AN ADDRESS DELIVERED BY THE CO-ORDINATOR GENERAL OF EDO CIVIL SOCIETY ORGANIZATIONS (EDCSO) COMRADE ANTHONY O. K. EBOIGBODIN ON THE OCCASION OF A COURTESY VISIT TO COMRADE ADAMS ALIYU OSHIOMHOLE MNI,CON, THE EXECUTIVE GOVERNOR OF EDO STATE. The Comrade Governor, Members of the Executive Council here present, Men of the Press, All Protocol duly observed. I bring you solidarity greetings on behalf of the leadership; members of Edo Civil Society Organizations (EDCSO), most affiliate organizations that are here present and the good people of Nigeria resident in Edo State. We do sincerely thank Mr. Governor for this audience. We do appreciate your very busy work schedule. It is instructive to note that Edo Civil Society Organizations (EDCSO) is an umbrella body of all human right groups in Edo State with the fundamental aims and objectives to promote, protect and defend human rights, rule of law, good governance, peace and security, qualitative education, sustainable development, human capacity building, political emancipation, economic empowerment and to join as a watch dog and mouth piece of the society/people and not Government alone. We must not fail to quickly acknowledge and thank you for your kind gesture towards the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations i.e. the gift of a Bus. We have and are still commending your efforts for most of the obvious positive interventions in the wellbeing of our people and physical infrastructural development in Edo State. However, we want to use this unique meeting to bring to your attention as a matter of urgent public importance some fundamental matters that are centered on promoting good governance and participatory democracy in the State which borders on the welfare, interest and happiness of the good people of Nigeria resident in Edo State that need your prompt interventions and positive resolutions. They are as follows: Benin Electricity Distribution Company fraudulent fixed charges and estimated billings: We are seriously constraint to bring back to Mr. Governor, the people’s contestation with BEDC on the continuous payment of fixed charges, arbitrary estimated billing on electricity power supply and the non-provision of meter already paid for by our people. Furthermore, it must also be noted that the general power supply in Edo State has drastically decline causing more misery, security problems and economic woes in the State It is on record that our Comrade Governor did make a public declaration on the 1st April, 2014 that Edo people will no longer pay illegal fixed charges and fraudulent estimated billing to Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) especially when services were not been rendered. Comrade Governor Sir, as I speak, these illegal fixed charges and fraudulent estimated billings are still on-going in the State even when you as the Comrade Governor, the Oba of Benin kingdom and Edo State House of Assembly had said no to it for the common good of our people. It must also be noted that you did direct BEDC to also ensure that another meeting was held with Mr. Governor in a fortnight from that said last meeting held at your instance. We are pained that BEDC, a private profit concerned in Edo State, would deliberately disregard the pronouncement of our own Comrade Governor, the highly reverend Oba of Benin and Edo State House of Assembly Comrade Governor Sir, we hereby fervently express that we have capabilities and “Will” to enforce your directives on the subject matter but we consider it most appropriate to formally bring this our position to your attention. We have put in place further strategies to press home these demand and we employ our Comrade Governor, the Commander in Chief of the Masses to be at the forefront of this phase of the struggle. We call on you Sir to match words with action as the Comrade Governor of the people, by the people and for the people. Neighbourhood Watch: Our Comrade Governor Sir, we want to commend you for upholding and adhering to our observation and suggestion on the urgent need to restructure the Neighbourhood Watch of Edo State during the town meeting held at Idia College on 22nd October, 2013 which led to your swift dissolution of the body. While we appreciate Government current intention to reconstitute the said Neighbourhood Watch, we do hereby appeal and request that Edo Civil Society Organizations should be involved in the process of the reconstitution of the New Neighbourhood Watch in Edo State, to ensure that our observed mistake of the past is not repeated and also to facilitate the participation of our patriotic members. Your urgent express approval of the above appeal would bring about the culture of more civic responsibilities of our members and followers. Edo State House of Assembly Crisis: It has become very worrisome that the crisis rocking our Edo State House of Assembly has assumed an embarrassing dimension which is contrary to the known image of Edo State. We wish to intimate our Governor that we have made some efforts to reach out to our Honourable members of the House to resolve their differences and reach an immediate truce in the interest of Edo people which matter most but to no avail. However, we have come to the conclusion that we must hereby demand of you to immediately intervene diplomatically in this matter to avoid civil unrest and total breakdown of law and order in our dear State- the Heart Beat of the Nation. We further declare that we are fully ready and more determined to work with you, our Oba of Benin, Traditional Rulers and the good people of Edo State; to bring about the deserved peace in our State within the shortest possible time. Public Complains: Sir, we must seize the privilege of this consultative meeting with you to bring to your knowledge some complaints of the people that deserved your humane remedy. These includes the following: a).Multiple Arbitrary Levies These is an ever rising resentment and anger of the people, especially in Oredo, Egor and Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Areas of our State over the often violent, brutal, extortionary and numerous levies obtained from the people which ranges from: Numerous Traffic Offences fines Various Traders and commercial shop charges Arbitrary environmental arrest and fines Mis-use of mobile courts to intimidate, criminalize and extort monies from Edo people. Ambushing of the people in the name of generating internal revenue (I.G.R) through countless unknown and often duplicated Committees, Task Forces, and Agencies that are ascribed to State and Local governments. These persons parade themselves with or without uniforms and/ or any obvious authorized identification. In sum, we hereby once again commend you Mr. Governor for all your good works and people oriented policies. We encourage you to remain focused on the business of the State. We pray that God Almighty gives us all the courage to change for the better those things that we can change and grant us the wisdom, sanity of mind to accept those things we cannot change for now. God bless us all, thank you. E sole to!!! Yours in nation building, Comrade Anthony Osa Kaduna Eboigbodin, Co-ordinator General, Edo Civil Society Organizations.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Jul 2014 21:18:18 +0000
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