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Tony John, Port Harcourt
Ikwerre Local Government Area is one of the populous and oldest councils in Rivers State. It is also one of the local governments that made up Ikwerre ethnic nationality.
Daily Sun gathered that the council headquarters in Isiokpo received attention in terms of work in the 1950s. Since then, the council remained a sight sore for several decades.
Investigation revealed that insecurity played major role in grounding the council. According to some of the natives, successive military and civilian administrations met and left the council the same way without paying any attention to make the headquarters, with about a million work force habitable.
Before now, cult-related crimes held sway in villages and communities in Ikwerre LGA. Also kidnapping and hijack of commercial buses were daily occurrences, especially on the Elele-Omerelu-Owerri Road. These crimes, sources said, affected all sectors of government and retarded its development.
Mr Dennis Amadi told Daily Sun that the council suffered serious security challenges for decades. He said its current facelift was made possible through concerted efforts and synergy between the security agencies and the council chairman, Mr Samuel Nwanosike.
Amadi, who is the chairman of People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Ikwerre LGA, said: “Prudency by the chairman of Ikwerre LGA and synergy with security agencies contributed greatly to the infrastructural development going on in the LGA and at the council headquarters. Before, our people found it difficult to go to farm or carry out their businesses because of insecurity. But, now we no longer have security challenges like before.
“If not with the latest directive by the Inspector General of Police, that police commissioners should mop up light arms, the local vigilance groups and other security agencies have helped a lot in fighting insecurity in Ikwerre Local Government.”
Nwanosike said insecurity caused serious developmental setback in the local government. He noted that cult-related violent activities affected infrastructural sustainability at the council headquarters.
He added that the existing buildings did not give the aesthetic admiration befitting a council headquarters, which existed for decades without any attention. He said reptiles and rodents became regular occupants of the offices. Hence, council workers lacked befitting and enough office spaces to function:
“The last time we saw any clear work done in the Ikwerre LG headquarters was in the 1950s. So, we said we would not take that. We would rewrite the history of our people deliberately by ourselves using this opportunity God has given to us.
“When we came on board, we met the decay that we could not tolerate. We have no office. I remember that when I was inaugurated as the chairman of this LGA, you saw then, that it was difficult to talk with the media because we had no office to sit and work.
“People were hanging under trees; people were not coming to work. Ikwerre Local Government has a workforce of one million plus. But, those who come to work are less than 100 persons. You cannot query them; you cannot call them to duty. The question is where do you want them to stay and do the job?
“All the offices were leaking; all the places taken over by reptiles. People find it difficult to sit up and do files and make sure the government rules and regulations are properly followed. So, that called for action. We decided to change the narrative.
“The reason we are here today is because of the people. I tell everyone who cares to know that democracy is government of the people, by the people and for the people. The people are in centre of all the discussions, managing of the resources that belong to the people, improving in their welfare and making sure you protect their lives and property.
“It is all about the people. Some of our projects have been completed; some are still on going, nearing completion. And the star project of it all as it stands today is the provision of infrastructure development at the local government headquarters.
“We have also tackled insecurity because there is no way you can talk about development without first creating an enabling environment to achieve it. This was achieved through the synergy with all the security agencies in the local government. We keyed in to the state government’s Operation Sting security architecture provided and inaugurated by Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike.
“Today, the criminal activities on the notorious Elele/Owerri Road are no more. The story has changed. We saw the opportunity as a clarion call to serve our people.
“The truth is this job is done by the executive, legislature, judiciary and civil servants. One thing I must state very clearly is civil servants in the local government agreed that this job must by done by making sacrifice to rewrite the history of our people. They agreed not to ask for funds to run an office that doesn’t exist. This success recorded came with sacrifice paid by all involved in this work.”
