By Johnson Ebigide
ASABA/Nigeria: The Director-General (DG) of the Delta State Orientation Bureau and Special Adviser to Governor Okowa on Orientation, Eugene Azuka Uzum Esq, has given his stewardship as the orientation helmsman of the state.
Speaking to the cream of journalists in the state in his office in Asaba, Uzum traced his humble ascension on the ladder of orientation in the state since 2015 when Senator (Dr) Ifeanyi Okowa became the state governor.
Appreciating Governor Okowa for recognising his capacity to handle orientation issues in the state, Uzum said he was first appointed Senior Special Assistant (SA) to the Governor and was elevated almost immediately to the designation of the Executive Assistance (EA) to the Governor with the creation of the Directorate of Orientation in the state.
He added that his rise in orientation management in the state continued with his appointment as the Director-General of the state new Orientation Bureau and was capped with his being appointed the Special Adviser to the Governor On Orientation.
Uzum maintained that Orientation is very critical for national integration and development, adding that the perceived failure of leadership in the country was intertwined with an improper mindset assessment of values and the national ethos.
He said that the mental reorientation of the people is hindered by many factors, including cultural, religious and social underpinnings, adding that it is arduous to completely change a fixated mindset.
He said that his office had determinedly carried out the crusade against Cultism and Drug Abuse, political apathy, vanderlisation of public utilities, unbecoming attitude and the crave for sudden wealth among the youths and wilful environmental degradation, including bush burning, in the state
The Delta Orientation helmsman said that many lives and property of the people in the state were saved through the timely sensitisation of the public each time floodings loomed, adding that the state government through his office and many other critical stakeholders had cushioned the effects of flooding in the state.
Uzum called for a sustained mental reorientation of the people for a better society, adding that geographical spread and political differences were major constraints in deepening mental reordering of the populace.
He ascribed the success recorded by his office to the constant support of the state governor, adding that the impacts of orientation may not easily be seen on the surface, but would on the long run manifest in attitudinal consonance of the people.
