Cross River and the 2015 Elections. The inbuilt powers of our State Government can be used to implement social change, provide a new hope, and improve the well-being of Cross River through constructive social programs. Today with the political crisis rocking the fabric of our Democratic Social Order -sixthen (16) years after the return to democracy, there is confusion at the herm of Cross River State leadership and we can argue this confusion is a direct failure to make the effective use of Democratic Principles which are essential for good governance and smooth continuity of the Democratic Process. WE NEED SOMEONE WITH THE EXPERIENCE OF OUR STATE, ITS PEOPLES, AND THE DEMOCRATIC SOCIAL ORDER TO CHANGE THE ABNORMALITIES ! The inefficient use of government bureaucracies resulted in billions been spent from our treasury with little or no actual results is creating the MONKEY-SHOP name calling a thing of comedy. All who speak of the improvement on the lifes of our people in the last 16 years should tell me how many jobs were created in the public and private sectors of how economy in Cross River State? Sometime ago, I read in a speech by the Speaker House of Representatives, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal calling on the need for a revolution...giving compelling reason to the fact that in Nigeria today, there exist injustice, crushing poverty, marginalisation, rampant corruption, lawlessness, and joblessness. To him, there is a general disaffection with the ruling elite -Gosh-What a pointed castigation on the political class! Given the Speakers remarks, I beg to know why cant all candidates for elections across the nation and particularly in cross river state stand for the Democratic Ideals of fair and just representations? Why cant they stand for the true applications on the rule of law? If we are going by a Zoning formula on political offices, then why not Zone all positions properly to avoid the abnormalities been witnessed presently in the state. Should our leaders champion these ideas, irrespective of political parties, what they will discover is an eloquent defense on fair and just representations. Loyal party members of both political persuasion, fellow Cross Riverians, today we have come to a point were arguements cannot save this state. All the public media presentation on who did what and who didnt do what amounts to a total distraction. The infighting is baseless. There should be a solution to fix all that has gone wrong. To this end, I propose all aspirants affirm a cause -let them have a commitment in leadership towards economic justice for Cross Riverians. Let the commitments to an equitable fair distribution of our state wealth within the three Senatorial Zone apply and lasting prosperity be the driving engine that put Cross River to the path of progress. This must be the cause leadership embark on and let it sustain our people across the Land -from the hill mountains top of Obudo to the swamp river banks of Calabar -Cross Riverians have struggled, suffer the hardship of failed leadership that has betrayed their trust, and in the process lost confidence in the abilities of government to creat any meaningful impact in their lifes. The pains of a defeatist mentality hurts our people to the point they go beginning for peanuts to sustain their lifes. The elites live in unimaginable luxury! In 16 years, our people have learned the hard way that it is important to take issues seriously, but never to take themselves too seriously to forget why they must depend on one another to have a suceesful Cross River. We see the current political troubles facing our political elites, and it is obvious now why the boiling waters are today covered in red -a disheartening reality to witness. We are faced with serious and compelling issues in the cause for which our leaders must stand for in the finest hour, the cause that will keep our leaders glue to the youths, the elderly, and make all demographics ageless. Our cause remains as old as the founding of Cross River, since the days of our forefathers struggles, the cause of the ordinary man and the ordinary woman to raise a family to the best of their God given abililities. The commitments of our leaders should be to the humble citizens of our State -the farmers, the mechanics, the children, women, the disabled, and the laborers who drive the daily economy. To this commitment they must stake their values and define their purpose to a refreshed faith for Cross River. For there is a deep sense of urgency to the anguish and anxiety faced across the Nations Paradise State. Our leaders must understand there is great potentials to use government to make a difference in the peoples life. They have the capacity as leaders and we as a state to proceed with boldness and a common vision that will lift and heal the suffering in our era and the divisions we face as a people from North -to Central -to South. The Cross River I envisioned our leaders to lead -the challenge in 2015 is to collectively lend our voices, our votes, and sacrifice for the principle pillars of democracy: Fairness, Justice, and freedom of expression which is lacking now. Given the state of our lack of Jobs in the state, let all aspirants pledge that employment will be the first priority in their renewed commitment to the state economic policy, and that to those ordinary Cross Riverians -joblessly going about there business, there will be employment and that they (aspirants) when elected will not compromise on these issue. Let no one feel these are just simplistic commitments, they constitute the heart of a social contract, and they will make the core soul of our interest across the generations of Cross Riverians to come. It is the glory and the greatness of our historic struggles to speak for those who have no voice, to remember those who are forgotten, to respond to the frustrations of the incapacitated, and fulfill the aspirations of our people seeking a better life for themselves. Leaders dare not forsake their responsibilities to the social contract. We are not going to allow our purpose as a people become the by-gone passages of history but rather the pillers for which Cross Riverians renew their God given rights. We must not permit those known already not to be performing in their position to seize the moment of confusion and run on their campaigns on the message of change, prosperity, or progress. We have heard about their skills of oratory from afar, we have watched them campaign closely and they are not what they claim to be -like the progressive and detribalized individuals amongst us. Cross Riverians across the nation are today witnessing from their political leaders a bitter fight to block the forward surge of average men, women, and the downtrodden pursuit of happiness -this off course born out of selfish political interest by which the political elitist operate. Let our people not be deluded that overnight those seeking their support and claiming to be ready to fight and represent their interest have suddenly become friends with the average man and woman irrespective of their wealth. Lets be reminded by words of the Ashanti people the poor man and the rich man do not play together. Funny but true, many may not know, only very few are gullible to the antics of these so called aspirants/leaders who so purposely use stomach inferstructure as a way to pull crowds. Can these leaders pass themselves off as legitimate in all honesty? I think not! Those whom have gone to watch live soccer matches have all seen many marvelous passes and goel kicks in the stadium, but know also that no perfect goel-keeper can catch all penalties without a miss just one. The some Leaders who are talking about the crisis of unemployment and wanting to create jobs have done nothing to improve on massive unemployment in the state prior to seeking votes. How many workers go on paid vacation in their current jobs? How many State workers get unemployment insurance should they suffer accident on the job? How secure are retirement pensions? Any health benefits? These free political loaders parading as aspirants/Leaders are no friends of the working familys in the labor force. The same aspirants/Leaders who are talking about our problems continue both morning and evening in their prayers with known religious figures -pastors, every day as they prayer that God should help the State Government to bail our people out of bad roads from Ogoja to Calabar, that God should rebuild bad schools, rebuild bad health centers, and stop communal conflicts -infact, everything bad they pray to God for help. They are simply mistaken -God will not come down and do any rebuilding! It is within our reach to do so. The same leaders who seat in sessions at both legislative chambers, government houses and offices -those who are talking about security for the citizens have looked the opposite way as known cultist terrorize our communities, they have forgotten the prize many paid in blood to keep a unified community in the face of multiple trabal conflicts. The same leaders who are talking about preserving the environment -our forestry which counts for 50% of what is left in Nigeria according to a CNN report have done nothing to maintain its usefulness, clean up erosion disasters, fix broken locally built bridges, and clean up oil spills around the Southern regions which end up affecting us. They are not friends of our environment. The only great adventures which our aspirants/ leaders offer is a voyage into wealth creation for themselves and their extended relatives and families. Progress is our heritage, not theirs. What is right for them is also right for us -the way forward is shared democratic dividends for all as a win-win. Many will call those of us that bring these issues to the front corridors of power noise makers, but what commitments we seek are not outworn views but to old values that will never wear out. Political campaigns or political agendas or political programs may sometimes become obsolete, but the principle ideal of fairness in pratice within any social sytem always endures fruitfulness. While our circumstances may change someday, the real work of compassion must continue within us. It is absolutely correct knowing what we know now that our problems cannot all be solve by the act of politically sharing money within the club house of sycophants. Our problems cannot suffer inattention and indifference from those placed in trust of responsibility. The poor citizen of Cross River, the disabled, and the elderly may not be politically conscious of their rights, they are not without human needs. The struggling citizens may be angry today, they have not lost the dreams that all our children deserve to advance together in a better society. Like Milk and honey have different colors, yet share the same house peacefully, the political elites and the ordinary voting public are different in status but must share the same democratic dividends peacefully. The demands before of our people in 2015 is not for who speaks well on the legislative floor during legislative decorum, or who spoke well during party consultation exercise, or who has the bigger financial pockets to buy up voters, but for better government with leaders that can deliver. While some have complained that government is always bad, and may have concluded that corruption is our basic social cancer at the root of our economic evils, I reply: the state of unemployment on our able body citizens is the biggest evil faced by them, and leadership must address it. We need someone prepared to address it. Permit me to ask: Do you have any ideas on who that may be? -look closely, are any of these aspirants below prepared to address it:.... Is Barr Ugbo prepared? Is Sen. Ayade prepared? Is Barr Idagbo prepared? Is Hon. Odey prepared? Is Mr. Agba prepared? Is Hon Ibeshi prepared? The people must demand a task from leadership in 2015. They must ask that leadership not be about the parading of scapegoats or seeking pay back in reaction to those who oppose setting individuals now for elective office, but be about matching our collected strength as a people to the possibilities of progress in Cross River. I encourage those seeking leadership in Cross River to ensure the vision of free enterprise capitalism and end any undue regulation in the trucking industry as currently is the case in our state with heavy duty trucks, and they must restore competition to the marketplace of ideas. As an optimist, I recognize the inbuilt human abilities for which I believe generation of Cross Riverians to come have within them to build a different reality and social political order that enhances humanity. The answers of one generation of Cross Riverians only becomes the questions of the next generation of Cross Riverians. The realities in our political firmament and consciousness is that our people know today that all citizen are created equal, and nothing could be more contemporary to that truth than the disdain at which they look at the rumors of leadership imposition drumming around us everywhere. Again and again our people are determined to follow the new reality in their political consciousness to stand for fairness and the rule of law in pursuit of liberty and justice. In closing, let me challenge the youths to understand they stand as vanguards of a new breath of freedom for Cross River. They are the Leaders they have been waiting for, their New Frontier is before them, and they have to be the new change and new hope for Cross River. So this next election, let them offer a new change and a new hope to a Cross River uncertain about the present dysfunctional political crisis, but unsurpassed in the potentials of an unmatched future to greatness. They must abandon the urges towards violence and conduct themselves as humble members of society. Let them say to the politicians, commit to all those who are idle in our state that efforts to bring them jobs will be top, knowing that the dignity of a useful work provides a change and a new hope. Thanks you all for your time. God bless you! God bless the people of Cross River. cnn/2010/WORLD/africa/09/01/nigeria.rainforest.biodiveristy/
Posted on: Sat, 15 Nov 2014 17:10:28 +0000
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