Imo: 'We Need Credible Representatives in the House'
Encounter
By Joseph Ushigiale
Few months ago, Hon. Maurice Ibekwe, a two-time member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the House of Representative from Okigwe North, died in detention while awaiting trial for his alleged complicity in advanced fee fraud. The seat has since been declared vacant and a bye-election is in the offing. If vision, intellect and focus are all the credentials that are needed for the seat to be filled, then Mr. Godson Offoaro, the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA)candidate is the man to beat.
An encounter with Mr. Godson Offoaro would leave you with a deep impression of how firm he has grasped the socio-economic and political problems of Nigeria. He would also not fail, through his robust arguments, intellectual and perhaps insightful presentation, to leave you with a lasting conviction of how determined he is about initiating change in the system.
But Offoaro, a journalist, author and public affairs analyst is venturing into politics, a field where even angels dread. With the demise of Hon. Maurice Ibekwe, a member of the House of Representative who represented Okigwe North between 1999 to 2004 died few months ago while he was being detained in Kirikiri Maximum Prisons.
Before he died, the late Ibekwe was being held for his alleged complicity in an advanced fee fraud also known in local parlance as 419. With his death, a vacancy has been declared in the federal constituency by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and it is expected that a bye-election would soon be conducted to fill the vacant seat.
Offoaro is confident of winning the bye-election on the platform of APGA because according to him, his foray into politics is not in vain, but to prove a point that the constituency made a wrong choice in the past.
"I have all it takes to win the forthcoming bye-elections in Okigwe North Federal constituency. By the circumstances of my birth, I have seen the two sides of life and there is no better placed person than myself to face the challenges created by the vacuum in this constituency," Offoaro said.
In assessing the huge potentials that could make the country great he explained that "in this country, going by our enormous resources, we should not lack. Nigeria is strategically positioned and has favourable climactic conditions for agriculture and human resources to make her a great nation."
He however regretted that "Okigwe North has for long been the butt of derision as the most backwards in the entire Igboland. While Orlu has broken lose and is now compared among the most modern, Okigwe is deteriorating beyond what it was in the past all just because we had the misfortune of electing a person without a vision and who failed woefully in carrying out the job of representing us in the House."
On his choice of party platform, Offoaro said his ambition would be realised on the platform of APGA, adding that "I am a person who thrives more on challenges than routine. I have already been warned about the monstrosity of PDP, but I am undeterred and want to prove a point by winning. "
Offoaro said he is aware of some political bigwigs who may want to prove a point by winning for their respective parties, pointing out that "even though some of them are against my running, I want to make my mark. I want to prove that you can start as a feather weight, and win as a heavyweight. I have the people behind me and can't see myself losing."
"My mission is to cause a stir within the political landscape of Okigwe North. I would shake the political foundation to the extent that things would never remain the same. I am aware of PDP's antics and I am not thinking about losing because I will run a clean campaign based on issues which would underline why we have to have credible people in power," he explained.
On the incessant fuel crises in the country, Offoaro wondered why Nigerians have to always pay more for a product produced at its backyard. "it is ridiculous that we have to pay more for a product produced by us. I support deregulation but we must put in place policies to provide relief such as mass transit, good road networks, electricity and telecommunication for the people."
"Everything in Nigeria is left for foreigners to exploit the people. Those vested with the authority to supervise hardly do what is statutorily required of them. The Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM) is an example and it is only in Nigeria that the cost of a call is so expensive and there are sanctions for dropped calls."
Offoaro said his mandate would be to provide a robust legislation that would protect the people's rights; provide food security and provide security of lives and property. It is only under a secured environment that foreign investment would flow and thrive."
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