Delta: Dishonourable honourables

By Bobson Gbinije

Media reports indicated that on 8th April, 2008, the Delta State House of Assembly was subermerged in an apocalyptic crisis hallmarked by Armageddon-like topsy turvydom leading to a free for all fight and assault on the lawmakers. The erstwhile Speaker, Honorable Olise Imegwu, was hijacked from his seat and his wig removed from his head right in front of the television cameras, and the full view of members of the public who sat in the gallery. Consequently, the Delta State House of Assembly Speaker Olise Imegwu and his Deputy Solomon Funkckeme were impeached on the 22nd of April,2008 by their colleagues and replaced by Mr. Martin Okonta as speaker and Basil Genagana as Deputy speaker.

It is clear that relative peace has returned to the Delta State Assembly after the political show of shame. But there are multidimensional questions and issues arising from the monumental show of shame. How did the hoodlums gain access into the State House of Assembly? Where were the standing security ratings before the ones assigned by the State Commissioner of police on the orders of the State Governor? How did Governor Uduaghan get wind of the cohorts as alleged? Why are members fighting for new power permutation in the light of the projected judgment on the Uduaghan Vs Peter Okocha case? Will Peter Okocha defeat Uduaghan at the Tribunal? Why did Uduaghan hurriedly support the replacement of Imegwu and Funkekeme and their immediate replacement by Martin Okocha and Ganagana? Is Uduaghan clandestinely the brain behind the political mayhem? What is the future of democracy in Delta State? What is the political future of Fukekeme and lmegwu? Is this not all the aftermath of a furtive intrigue by the Uduaghan power machinery? Is the PDP not a party of dishonorable Honorables? And how will this affect concrete development in Delta state?

This writer is not a politician and does not wish to arrogate to himself the false dignity of having answers to the above-mentioned questions, but wishes to state that Deltans deserve a more integrity-inclined, serious and committed Delta State House of Assembly members. During the Ibori-junta, the Delta State House of Assembly was reduced to a zombie-like contraption whimsically manipulated by lbori and his cultic kitchen cabinet, from the Governor’s bedroom and power altars. We ended up changing the speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly 3 times or more before his stepping aside because His political ghost still hunts the Delta Assembly.

We call on the Executive Governor of Delta State. His Excellency Dr. Emmanuel Ewetan Udughan, the Members of the Delta State House of Assembly and other psychotic power mongers to note that after everything it is not the lobbying fees, their corrupt enrichment to the detriment and starvation of deltans, nor the number of jeeps, landed properties and their filthy lucre that will make up their history before deltans and God Almighty. It is what structures they l eave on ground that touch the lives of the vast majority of deltans and how much food they put on our tables. We wonder what time the legislators have to enable them’ engage themselves in a free for all fight when there are important bills to be initiated on water, housing,,roads, global warning, electricity, education revenue generation, floods, drainage and good leadership etc. What a pack of dishonorable Honorables!

How can they all move on a junketing and gallivanting mission around the world with tax payers’ money totalling over N400 million? During the Ibori era, it was the same thing. They resorted to the mystical whenever it cameto supplementary budgets as they cooked up figures to shoot the budget up for their own enrichment. The supplementary budget logic remains their greatest treasury trove. If you look with an effective political telescope you will find that the fight and squabbles in the Delta State House Assembly are a feud between the executive and the legislative arms of government over money and power to the detriment of deltans. It is the Hausa kill Gambari syndrome at work. In Napoleon’s oraculum ,he said “If thou expectest that a companion in wickedness will prove a faithful friend, thou art deceived”.

Gbinije is with Bogep Oils, Warri.