Idongesit Isong , an Information/Communications Technology expert and safety consultant was Special Assistant to the Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State; member, Transition Committee of Urue offong/Oruko local government Council and Chief Mobilizer, Oron for Udom 2019 Movement. In this exclusive interview with Ibom Telegraph, the widely travelled professional from the family of the late Ahta of Oro and exponent of state creation, the late Ahta Oyokunyi Isong, says Oron people’s interest will be best served if they support Governor Udom Emmanuel for a second term. Excerpts:
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You are a member of the Transition Committee of Urue offong/Oruko local government area. People think the committees were job for the boys and that they had nothing to do. Is that so?
For some of us in these committees, we are no boys. The committees statewide are made up of several seasoned, exposed and experienced professionals who were fully engaged before the call to service came. So for some of us, we couldn’t have accepted to serve where there was no work. Even if you were a boy who had no job and you were appointed into the committee, you will certainly find work to do. The way Governor Udom Emmanuel structured the committees gave no room for idleness. From the chairman to the members, we all have been busy. As it is in Uruo Offong/ Oruko, so it is all over the state. Go and find out. Our chairmen do not run the councils absolutely. In my place, I am Supervisor for Education. We have been able to further on the achievement of Governor Udom Emmanuel in the education sector by monitoring and getting standards to be upheld in our schools; thereby improving performance of our people. We did a study and found out that during our tenure, performance in external examinations had improved optimally.
The local government elections are around the corner. Do you think PDP will win Urue Offong Offong/Oruko as reports say the APC has a strong followership in the area?
There is no presence of APC in my area. We only had a House of Assembly member who used the APC platform to actualize the mandate of the people who wanted him to be their representative. All the people are in the PDP. So, it was normal that the member defect back to his original home where his support base is. There is no presence of APC in Urue Offong/Oruko. We are 100 percent PDP and our people will vote PDP. Our candidate, Mr. Umanah Efombruh will win the elections. He has no rival.
By your experience, are the local councils contributing to the development of the state; and, what can be done to boost their relevance?
The local government areas are the closest to the people. It should not be toyed with. My experience at the council has exposed me to the need to join voices with those asking for the councils to be taken more seriously. The people at the grassroots can only feel the impact of government through the works of the councils. If the councils stay on just three to four core areas, the people will feel government more. For me, these areas are primary education; primary health care; agriculture and entrepreneurial development. Primary education is what makes us educated. If you have a good primary education, you will fly higher in all other tiers of education and in life generally. It is important therefore for local councils to invest more in primary education. Even at the level of using it as a tool for reorientation; to create a citizenry that add value to government, it is important. Councils should invest in infrastructure, both hard and soft. As buildings are being renovated, computers should also be bought for schools. What does it take to give each primary school a desktop computer? Maybe N100,000 to N200,000 only. If you give one primary school a month, you will be doing 24 in two years. That will be amazing and amazing things like the broadening of the word view of our children will happen. You can then imagine how governance will be easy with those kinds of children as your subjects. We must breed young people with a new mindset. Then primary health care. Some of our primary health centers are dilapidated, have no drugs and lack adequate staff. If local government can look critically in putting money into even buying drugs into these centers, we will be able to fight diseases and illnesses that are rampant in the local areas. Agriculture and entrepreneurial development will put money into the hands of the locals and feed the nation. Local governments do not need more than these four things and you will see great changes at the grassroots. I am not against local government building halls or edifices in their respective councils, but I prefer they do things that touch the lives of the ordinary people.
There is an ongoing clamour for autonomy for local government, what do you think about this?
It is good. It is normal. It will boost the performances of the local councils but it should not just be about the financial autonomy. It should go with quality leadership. Autonomy without quality leadership will get us into the same challenges we faced before the granting of autonomy. Financial autonomy means more money and as such there should be good leadership to use the money well for the good of the people. To a bad leader, N100million is like N1million. He can blow it on things not necessary for the good of the people. That is why the supervision of the State House of Assembly is still necessary. Thank God the Local Governments are enabled by laws set up by the State Assemblies. Oversight functions by the Houses of Assembly, therefore, are important.
2019 is around the corner, what are the chances of PDP and Governor Udom Emmanuel in the elections?
Akwa Ibom is totally PDP and even a child on the street knows this. Ask any child for the house of the party chairman, he is likely to take you to the house of the PDP Ward, Chapter or State Chairman. Even those in the opposition APC were once in the PDP. Some of them are returning back to where they started from. In the 2019 elections, nothing will change. Akwa Ibom will remain PDP and Governor Udom Emmanuel will remain Governor. Many groups have even started endorsing him. The fact that some of these groups are not core political groups is another testament that he is on ground and he is accepted by all, politicians and non politicians alike. Moreso, Governor Udom Emmanuel is a performer par excellence. He has managed the state’s meager resources so well and our economy is one of the few in the country booming in a recession. Salaries are paid and on time. Roads and other infrastructural development are going on in all parts of the state. Akwa Ibom has become Nigeria’s next industrial hub while our people have been driven into heights of enterprise through the government enterprise development agenda. Governor Udom Emmanuel has also made great inroads into the Agricultural sector and soon Akwa Ibom State will be a net exporter of Agricultural produce to other countries. That is why I ask Oron people to stick with Governor Udom Emmanuel in 2019. The Oron for Udom 2019 Movement is a mass movement of Oron people who have felt the positive impact of Governor Udom’s administration and believe that the core interest of Oro Nation, which is development, will be best served by returning the Governor for a second term in 2019.
Specifically, what has Governor Udom Emmanuel done for Oron people?
Aside from Oron people generally enjoying the positive impact of other things I have mentioned earlier like salaries, jobs in the industries, passing through roads that are being done, etc. we in Oron are happy that through Governor Udom’s interventions, you can actually pass through or pass into Oron up to the Marina. That road was not passable at a point. The dual carriage way from Ibom Airport to link the East-West Road is another great thing Governor Udom has done for Oron people. Early in his administration, he worked on some internal roads in Oron town. Our sons and daughters are holding appointments in his government and contributing to the welfare and growth of Oro Nation. That is why I ask Oron people to stick with Governor Udom Emmanuel in 2019 because I know greater things will come to us.
