OKOROCHA, THE PROPOSED LG POLLS AND IMOLITES
The last time I checked, another period
had been scheduled for the long awaited local government elections in Imo State
by the state governor, Chief Rochas Okorocha. According to the disclosure, the
expected period is now between September and October 2017 as against the
earlier proposed period that entailed January 2017.
The governor disclosed this during his
warmth interaction with all the practising journalists in the state penultimate
week – precisely on Monday 10th April 2017 – at the Nigerian Union
of Journalists (NUJ) Press Centre situated at Port-Harcourt Road, Owerri. The
information therein reportedly brought a fresh anxiety among the well-meaning
individuals, particularly Imolites, in the midst of the teeming professionals.
It suffices to say that the members of the gathering were filled with mixed
feelings.
It
is not anymore news that Imolites had since the emergence of Chief Okorocha as
the governor of the Eastern Heartland in 2011, been anticipating the emergence
of elections that would usher in substantive chairmen of the existing
twenty-seven (27) Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the state. Though frantic
pledges had been made in that regard, the situation keeps introducing a mirage
unabated as the odyssey progresses. The immediate past governor of the state,
Chief Ikedi Ohakim came up with what could be best described as a ‘façade’ in
the name of LG polls.
It’s noteworthy that it is not only in
Imo that such scenario is witnessed. To the best of my knowledge as well as
that of those who are keenly concerned over the uncalled tradition, countless
states across the length and breadths of the federation are harbouring the
anomaly. In some of them, Local Government (LG) bosses are known and addressed
as ‘Sole Administrators’ whilst some go by the name ‘Transition Committee (TC)
Chairmen’. Several Nigerians, especially true activists, have been deeply and
sincerely troubled over the issue that is seriously telling on the country’s
polity at large.
Among the three constitutionally
recognized tiers of governments in Nigeria, the LG system remains the only one
that touches the grassroots directly. And, we are not unaware that if the
grassroots are sidelined while discussing issues bordering on governance, the
deliberation would definitely end up yielding virtually nothing in the long
run. This is so, because it is only the LG that can provide the painstaking list
of the names of all the electorate, both alive and dead, in any locality.
The LG is the voice of the people; it
is the avenue through which the masses reach the umbrella government; it is the
only tier of government that can hear directly from the electorate; it is the
means through which the people can cry and their tears would get instantly to
the doorstep of the individuals at the helm of affairs; it remains the sole platform
on which the masses can stand and they would be seen by everyone in all nooks
and crannies. Hence, it’s a system that cannot be easily relegated to the
background, or swept under the carpet, if the needful must be referred to.
To this end, if the truth needs to be told,
from my candid point of view, the long-awaited LG polls are the only debt the
Rescue Mission Administration ably led by Governor Okorocha, owes the teeming
Imolites. Payment of the said debt remains inevitable owing to its exemplary nature.
It’s a debt that is meant to be paid by the government if everything must be
gotten rightly.
The governor has succeeded in proving
to Imolites beyond reasonable doubts that he is a compassionate leader; he has
equally proven beyond doubts that he possesses a great passion for education,
which remains the bedrock of any anticipated societal uplift. Thus, what is
left of his person to showcase in the state is true and thorough democracy. A democratic setting cannot be said to be
complete if the LG system is not taken seriously. Needless to state that it’s
high time the amiable and highly revered governor concluded every bit of his
lofty motive for the overall people of the state.
Now that a new period has been
announced for the polls in question, although no specific date yet, let’s
assume no period was previously scheduled for the exercise; hence, I urge
Imolites to remain hopeful, and prayerful too, till the needful is duly done.
Inter alia, we are expected, either individually or collectively, to
continually remind the governor on the promise he made not just to Imolites,
but the entire world. Our concern at the moment ought to lie on how to put our
acts together towards witnessing hitch-free and credible elections come
September cum October 2017. As the popular Igbo adage would say, ‘Osita di nma,
ekele chukwu’.
On his part, I enjoin His Excellency
to take this mandate very seriously so that no inconsequential story would be
told when the awaited era eventually arrived. Imolites do not apparently need
stories, either long or short, any more; rather, desperately in need of
manifestation of that executive pledge tendered by the people’s governor on
that fateful sunny day.
Owelle has obviously done well, but he
must acknowledge that the continued postponement of the LG polls is making his
well-celebrated administration seem not unlike a paradox. In view of this frank
assertion, it’s therefore needless to reiterate that the time to act is now.
Think about it!
Comrade FDN Nwaozor
_________________________
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