AN ENCOUNTER WITH ERIJO ‘EPISODE’ 2 I will start from where I stopped in my last ‘episode’ on this series. However, let me make a very quick point. THEY HAVE ALLEGED THAT ERIJO’S BARREN REPRESENTATION FOR 12 YEARS IS THE REASON THEY WANT HIM OUT. I NOW DOUBT THEM. If they genuinely believe in performance as the yardstick to reward an elected rep, then they better explain to the whole Isoko why they refused to support him for re-election in 2003. General Omu is Idolized in the whole of Isoko because of the singular act of influencing electricity to Isoko. It was through General Omu’s influence that Isoko was connected to the national grid and that has earned him a permanent enviable place in the heart of everyone. However, one Isoko community named Umeh was still in darkness, they were yet to be connected to the national grid. According to Erijo, one of his constituency projects in his first tenure was the electrification of Umeh community. He revealed that Constituency project’s fund was just N25 million per year then so the fund could only accomplish phase one of the project (they could not extend the poles and electric cables to East –West road to connect them to the national grid). One would have thought that someone who was taking LIGHT to a community would have been accorded the special status of near idolization like the Isokos currently accord General Omu. Such a person should have enjoyed massive support from such a community for re-election like EEU currently enjoys by reason of the road project. Also take note that it was in this same first tenure that Erijo influenced the construction of Irri-Aviara road (this is different from the Isoko ring road phase 1. Irri-Aviara road is from Irri to Araya through Aviara). While not waving away the role that might have been played by Senator Omu, the Isoko ring road- Araya to Ada-Irri- that has been solely credited to Senator Stella has the footprint of Hon. Erijo all over it. Hon Erijo challenged me to go and ask my fellow Oleh man, Mr. Okpokpor who was the Permanent Secretary in the Delta State ministry of works then, to verify who influenced the road. He asked me, “ I that put the road in the budget without benefiting a dime and someone that benefited as the contractor, who should more credit go to”? In spite of all these, most people in the community INCLUDING A VERY PROMINENT VOICE WHO DAILY ACCUSES ERIJO AND CHIEF OGBA OF BEING CLANNISH DECIDED TO GO CLANNISH BY SUPPORTING THEIR SON FROM UMEH AGAINST ERIJO. Their son, Hon. Silas Bouwe continued with the electrification project. The next phase of the project was awarded when Hon. Silas was there. The contractor went to site and extended it to the East West road, however, because of the politics at the time (remember, Hon. Silas was considered as an opposition within PDP and he suffered some measure of denial of privileges), the project was not funded so the contractor was owed until 2007 when Erijo regained the seat back. Erijo further stated that the contractor, a female from Ughelli, cried to him for help and the first year constituency project of his 2007-2011 tenure was used for the funding of the project to ensure the contractor was paid. I can state categorically that Barr. Duncan Afahokor- a prominent leader from Umeh confirmed this story to me during our telephone conversation. Erijo further clarified that it was he who gave Chief Iduh( their relationship then was still very rosy) the little money needed to do PR for NEPA to hook them up to the national grid but Duncan told me Chief Iduh used his personal funds to do it. I do not know why Erijo will want to tell a lie about it but then, it is chief Iduh’s word against Hon Erijo’s. None of us have any means of verifying this but even if we concede that it was Chief Iduh who brought the money to give to NEPA for the connection, can Erijo’s role in GIVING UMEH LIGHT be wished away? Does Erijo really hate Umeh? CONSTITUENCY PROJECTS 2011-DATE (By this time, na me dey ask questions so) When the hate-filled campaigns started, we were told Erijo has no constituency projects to his name. Only Hon. Essien has been executing constituency projects. It was only recently they are cleverly changing the campaign that he has constituency projects but they are not evenly distributed among the communities. I will address both allegations. In this tenure, Erijo informed me that due to the Governor’s desire to revamp the decaying infrastructure in our education section, he appealed to all our legislators to ensure that all their constituency projects are in the educational sector. Let me also add that Erijo said, it was few of the legislators, him inclusive, that negotiated the upward review of the yearly amount of the constituency project from the N25 million that it was, to its current amount. The Year 1 constituency project in this tenure. Construction of TWO blocks of classrooms at Abawae Primary School, Aberuo- Aviara. One of the blocks has five classrooms and the other block has 6 classroom (see attached pictures). This school was founded in 1955 and the building in the school prior to this intervention was in complete ruins. Also see attached pictures for the relics of the building that was in the school before. Pupils have started using the classrooms as at the time of this report. Anyone can also go to Aberuo-Aviara to confirm this. Year 2 constituency project in this tenure is ONE BLOCK of classrooms and toilets at Otor Aviara Primary School, Aviara. Yes, I know someone may ask, why was the first year constituency project able to fix two buildings and the second year just one building? Well, I did not have the time to ask Erijo this question too. However, I suspect this building will have more than six classrooms. Perhaps eight to 10 classrooms and also has a block of toilets separately built. Remember, one of the legislators widely revered in social media circles as the one who started executing constituency projects in Isoko has his projects usually, a block of THREE classrooms spread across villages in Irri, mostly. If you have been to Erijo’s private house in Aviara, certainly you cant doubt his taste for opulence and I am sure when he influences projects, he does so with the mindset that if something is worth doing, then it should be worth doing very well. Year 3 constituency project in this tenure is ONE BLOCK of classrooms at Enwhe Comprehensive high school Enwhe. He told me the name of the contractor who got the job. She is a contractor from Olomoro. I have not verified this project. I do not have time to do so too. Erijo desperately needs an iPader, sorry, an SA on social media affairs, because I guess most of the falsehood that has been written against him would have been dismissed by pictures. However, the PDP councillorship candidate representing Enwhe, who is also a member of this forum, Mr. Warri Ovoke Friday confirmed this to me in a telephone chat. Year 4 constituency project in this tenure: Erijo pointed out that a school in Olomoro has been penciled down as beneficiary of the year 4 constituency project which is yet to be awarded anywhere in the state. I know, someone’s finger is itching to type “ why did Aviara benefit from two year’s constituency projects whereas Umeh/Erowha, Igbide and Uzere have not benefitted”? I know the campaign of Erijo being biased towards Aviara in projects distribution would seem to have been justified. But wait! If Erijo had decided to say, each year, one community gets a constituency project (Let us not even start a debate on why he did not split it even if na a block of three classrooms, because the Erijo’s taste for extravagance- extravagance is used here in a positive light- will definitely not be compatible with “make we do projects wey we go manage just so long e reach everybody”), by the end of his fourth year, about four communities would still have not benefited. So is there anyway to correct this imbalance? According to Erijo, there is. Recently, some persons loyal to Erijo posted pictures of SUBEB buildings at Igbide as projects influenced by Erijo and a prominent leader from Igbide, who also happened to be my respected Chairman when we Organized the UNR IYC, Hon. Emamusi Obiodhe made a meal of the post. However, Erijo is insistent that he is the person who influenced those projects to Igbide. He clarified that SUBEB means State Universal Basic Education Board. Although, there is counterpart funding from State and Federal govt, the project was not awarded at Abuja. It was awarded at Asaba and he made sure to EMPHASISE THAT ONLY FEW INFLUENTIAL LEGISLATORS AMONG THEM WERE GIVEN THE PRIVILEGE TO PICK ANY SCHOOLS IN THEIR CONSTITUENCY FOR SUCH PROJECTS. HE STATED THAT ISOKO SOUTH 1, FOR EXAMPLE, DID NOT BENEFIT FROM IT. ERIJO SAID THE CONTRACTOR WHO HANDLED THE PROJECT IS MR. KENNETH EGWERO, SO ANYONE IN DOUBT CAN GO AND ASK HIM HOW HE GOT THE CONTRACT AWARDED TO HIM. So, although Igbide did not benefit directly from his constituency projects in this tenure, he ensured they also got their due from another agency of govt. As for Umeh, Erijo said because government is one, they all seat together in round table when projects are being distributed. So the DTSG will seat with DESOPADEC, NDDC and all other interventionist agency to avoid duplication of projects, that is, a project already awarded by NDDC for example, shouldn’t be awarded by DESOPADEC. He stated that in one of such meetings, he knew Umeh Primary school was in the list of schools earmarked for renovation by the Ministry of Education so it was better that if anything else was going to Umeh, it should be in another sector. I am sure all forum members have seen pictures of the ongoing Primary school building at Umeh( This project is not directly influenced by Erijo but he also did not use his office to oppose its execution). Erijo also has an ongoing project in Umeh he influenced through the MDG. It is the construction of Executive Toilets for Umeh Market. I can confirm that I spoke with the Umeh road CLO, Mr. Onofighe Akpojewe who confirmed this project. He said the building has been roofed. Only construction of septic tank is what is left. Again, Erijo needs an iPader, nay, SA on social media affairs to be uploading these pictures. Moreover, a lot of people do celebrate Ibori every year as a great man. That Ibori single handedly transformed Oghara to “small London” is well known to all. It is only normal that Charity must begin at home. No Isoko community has benefited one-fifth of what Ozoro community has benefited from the representation of Hon. Leo at the green chamber. Also, this is not the first time Erijo is executing two years constituency projects in one community. According to Erijo, in his 2007-2011 tenure, Enwhe community had two years constituency projects sited there. One of the years, he influenced street lights to Enwhe. He said because of the internal squabbles between Okpolo and Enwhe, Okpolo community leaders met him and insisted that the streetlights were for Enwhe alone that they need their own and they were so loud about this agitation that in the next year’s constituency project, he gave Okpolo their own streetlights (yet some people say he is not responsive?). We have also established here that Umeh community has benefited two years constituency projects in Erijo’s Eleven and half years reign. Has Erijo’s representation really been as barren as he has been made to look in some sections of the social media? Has he really been unfair to some communities as alleged? Is he really as bad as he is being painted? You be the judge. NEXT POSTS (also to be released soon) Erijo’s Desopadec Influenced Projects Erijo’s Other Impact Projects Erijo’s role during the 2012 floods
Posted on: Mon, 20 Oct 2014 15:52:03 +0000
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