I’m Not An Accidental Politician – Niger Delta Minister, Hon. Godsday Orubebe. Elder Peter Godsday Orubebe, CON, is Honourable Minister, Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs (MNDA) and member, Federal Executive Council, Federal Republic of Nigeria. In order to actualise the 7-Point Agenda of the Yar’Adua administration, the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs was created in 2008, and Elder Orubebe was appointed its pioneer Minister of State. He worked assiduously to establish the infrastructure, the human and the “info” structure required to enable the Ministry turnaround the decades of neglect and under-development that had been the bane of a region responsible for 80 per cent of Nigeria’s revenue. In recognition of his excellent performance the Minister of State, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan appointed him as Honourable Minister of the Ministry in 2010. Prior to this, in 2008, Orubebe was appointed Minister, National Planning Commission (NPC) and Deputy Chair, National Planning Council. During his stewardship at the NPC, where he focused on organisational development and restructuring of the Council to better galvanize the human resource for optimal efficiency and effectiveness, he was instrumental to moving it from a rented office accommodation into its own befitting property. This saved the Commission a lot of resources that is now channelled into staff capacity building. He contributed to formulating the socio-economic development-oriented policies, which formed the backbone of the Vision 20:2020 agenda of late President Yar’Adua’s government. Between 2007 and 2008, Elder Orubebe served as the Minister, Special Duties performing delineated presidential functions according to the directives of Mr. President. Working with late President Yar’Adua, Elder Orubebe contributed to the President’s Seven-Point Agenda through a series of routine comprehensive reports on government activities. He was also member of a special committee headed by then Vice-President, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, who worked on the amnesty solution to the Niger-Delta crisis, which is being successfully implemented and has restored peace to the region. One of the mandates of Orubebe as Minister of Special Duties was the management of the National Lottery, where his tenure saw an unprecedented increment in revenue generation of over 1000 per cent over a period of six months. He is an educationist, having performed in teaching roles in a number of schools in present-day Bayelsa and Delta states, as well as during his National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) year. Born on June 6, 1959 at Ogbobagbene, Burutu Local Government Area in Delta State, the amiable man of Ijaw origin holds a Master’s degree in International Relations from Ambrose Ali University, Ekpoma and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Lagos. In this chance encounter, TAYO MUSTAPHA had a brief and exclusive chat with the Honourable Minister at his country home during a reception held in his honour by his kinsmen under the umbrella of the Delta Peoples Forum. Enjoy it: How has President Goodluck Jonathan’s ‘Transformation Agenda’ fared so far? Under President Goodluck Jonathan, Nigeria is experiencing unprecedented developments as being witnessed in the revived Railway system in the country, Peace and security in the Niger Delta region, cutting down on corruption in the civil service by the introduction of an automatic payment system which is exposing government waste in over payment and the existence of ghost workers, roads construction which the East-West road falls under. In agriculture, thousands of jobs have been created for young and old Nigerians and recently, we were all witnesses to the successful privatisation of PHCN which millions of Nigerians have unilaterally expressed their support for the President’s action, seeing that he is on the right track to rescue Nigeria from the decay of the past. What major achievement can you point to in Niger Delta region as a minister? I must humbly say that my tenure as Minister of Niger-Delta has been quite rewarding and beneficial to the people of Niger-Delta. Amongst the numerous list is the opportunity and encouragement given to me by Mr. President to personally generate funds for the development of the region; hence the progress on the East West road as at today. This has been made possible by the bold step taken by the Ministry of Niger Delta and President Jonathan to ensure a future of hope for the present, future and unborn generation. I can only urge Nigerians to be more tolerant, wait on God and be patient with their leaders so that all aspirations on policies and implementations can be actualized. I can confidently tell all that under President Jonathan’s administration, Nigerians now have access to information from the government which was an impossible thing in the past; this has placed this administration as the most transparent in the history of Nigeria. Also, I must say that the present Nigerian economy is the fastest growing economy in Africa since the assumption of office by President Jonathan What is Delta Peoples Forum all about? Delta Peoples Forum symbolises a new era of handling political issues. Gone are the days of declaration without vision in the Niger-Delta Region. This is an era of peace, hope, transformation, development and above all, security for the people and the society. DPF will ensure transparency in governance and also promote an ‘All-inclusive’ method of public service which is targeted at placing the Niger-Delta Region in her place of glory. I am personally endorsing and supporting the vision of DPF because it is geared towards ensuring good governance, transparency and integrity. It will deliver to the people unending support for nation building in empowering women in the society to become good ambassadors of peace and societal development. DPF as an NGO will ensure that everyone will regain confidence in government as the highest level of integrity will be followed and maintained. A new era is born because of the caliber of growth that is about to be experienced. How did your political life start, accidental, inherited or inborn? Not many people know that I am of the clergy sector; I own a church. The 3rd year anniversary of the church, ‘Glory Sanctuary Christian Centre’ (GSCC), Ogbogbagbene, Burutu Local Government of Delta State was held recently while the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) President, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, was the guest speaker at the event. The vision to establish the sanctuary came in 1998 to preach the gospel and win souls in the creeks of the Niger Delta and beyond. On my political life, I never lobbied to become minister; instead, I went to God in prayers, who told me I was advertising Him. I did not come into politics by accident or through the assistance of some benevolent personalities, no! I actually started from the grassroots in a hard way, through the divine guidance of God. As a young man, I had opportunity to work in five different organisations which include the Nigerian Police and Nigerian Customs Service but I turned down the offers because I had a calling from God to go into politics and serve my people. The puzzle then was that where would I raise the money to contest for political office when as a young school leaver, I had no financial means to achieve all these. Can you be specific with the ‘calling’? God directed me to go and contest election as a councilor in my local community. I could not believe it because I had no money to obtain the registration form, not to talk of money to spend in the electioneering process. But I obeyed His command and everything just fell in line as I committed my all to the hands of God who called me. At my first political attempt, it was my people from Ogbogbagbene Community of Burutu Local Government Area, Delta State who gathered in solidarity to sponsor my Counsellorship election by selling their River which is their only means of economic survival to ensure that he contested for councillorship election which he eventually won; a feat that triggered his continuous political success. My coming into politics was divinely planned by God. My story is that of grass to grace. Initially, I had no money to even purchase the registration form not to talk of money to spend in the electioneering process. I obeyed God and everything fell into place. Consequently, my divine callings and high achievements are evident in my good works in the light of human capital and socio economic development we are all witnessing in the Niger Delta today. To God be the glory, Elder Godsday Orubebe is the Honorable Minister, Ministry of Niger-Delta, member, Federal Executive Council of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and holds the national honor of the Commander of the Order of the Niger. What has life taught you as a politician? Life has taught me so many things but I can say that the two major ones are faith in God and focus. Life has taught me to be absolutely faithful to God, to be unapologetic about total submission and belief in Him. Secondly, life has taught me to be very focused in whatever I set out to do. Politically, I have refused to be distracted or discouraged. I have set out to serve my people and up till today, I have never for a day considered stepping aside or pulling out. It amuses me when I hear statements connoting me as an accidental politician. I laugh because I am not an accidental politician. A politician is one experienced in the art of science of government, devoted to advancement in public office, a statesman engaged in civil administration and I ask you, can the office of Minister of the Niger-Delta be run by a rookie politician? Can you recall genesis of your political life? I was born to play politics. I started right from my school days. While in the University of Lagos, I served as the Student Union Leader, Public Relations Officer and a member of the Parliament. Going back to the roots, I started as a Supervisory Councilor, Burutu Local Government Area and second member of the State Education Board and later, Chairman of Burutu Local Government Area, Delta State. As the Chairman of Burutu Local Government Area, I facilitated developmental changes to the area by ensuring the development of infrastructures including schools, rural electrification, water, roads and health care. The health care center I built in 1992 is still serving the indigenes of the area till now. I was the Special Adviser to Governor James Ibori on Urban and Regional Planning from 2004 – 2005. My modest achievements during this period of service included developing, planning and implementing strategic and useful policies and modalities for urban poverty intervention and rural area development with the sole aim of increasing the socio-economic activities for the betterment of the people. I also submitted a bill on Urban Development to the Governor which was passed into law and still in operation in the State and serves as a model for other states. Between 2007 and 2008, I served as the Honorable Minister, Special Duties to President Umaru Yaradua. While working with the President, I contributed to the president’s Seven – Point Agenda through series of routine comprehensive reports on government activities. During this period, I was also a member of a special committee saddled with responsibility to oversee the amnesty act under the supervision of the then Vice President, His Excellency, Dr Goodluck Jonathan who worked on the amnesty act seeking an end to the Niger Delta Crisis. The amnesty program saw the light of the day and is still being implemented and has restored peace to the region. My tenure as Special Duties minister also saw an unparalleled increase in revenue generation to management of the National Lottery. Perhaps I must also humbly say here that my modest achievements must have directly or indirectly led to my being appointed Honorable Minister, National Planning Commission and Deputy Chairman, National Planning Council. We were able to focus on organizational development and restructuring of the Commission for optimal efficiency and effectiveness. I also contributed to the formulation of developmental oriented policies which formed the backbone of the late President’s governance in terms of administrative policies. How has your closeness to God impacted on your people considering the hostility? I see myself as a double minister; I mean I am a Minister of the Federal Republic and also a Minister of God. I like to be seen as a man with deep love of God, a man of God who has whole heartedly contributed to his immediate community in drawing the lost souls to the salvation of God. As a starting point and as a man who believes in the teachings of God, I brought the people of my community closer to God by establishing ‘Glory Sanctuary Christian Centre’ in Ogbogbagbene. The importance of the church which has the capacity of occupying no fewer than 10,000 worshippers is that it has not only provided a worshiping centre for the people at Ogbogbagbene community but those from surrounding communities, including Burutu people who also worship in the church. It has created opportunity for the people to come closer to God and directly spread the message of love and peace among them which had invariably made the once volatile Niger Delta environment for all to live together peacefully. Also, and as a minister of the Federal Republic overseeing the affairs of the Niger-Delta region, I have worked hard to establish a good foundation required for the Ministry to change the neglect and under development of the region which can be seen in the light of human capital and infrastructural development. I have created a peaceful and conductive environment for the oil companies to operate in and as thus led to an increase in oil production through my youth empowerment program. How do you unwind given your busy schedule as a minister of the Federal Republic Nigeria and God? Sure, I unwind… I am a ‘home boy’ to the core. If I am not preaching, you will see me enjoying my golf but my best way to relax is to eat my local kpokpo garri. with fish and ‘madiga’ with my childhood friends all of whom we all grew up together. Anytime I am in my village, I invite them all and we all sit down to eat kpokpo garri.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Jan 2014 07:54:37 +0000
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