By Augustine Akanigha
ASABA/Nigeria: The Delta State House of Assembly Member Representing Ika Northeast, Honorable Anthony Elekeokwuri has said that the mandate of every Lawmaker is to make laws that will impact meaningfully on the people.
Hon. Elekeokwuri disclosed this during a Media chat with DTHA house Correspondents while giving his stewardship on his terms as a Lawmaker representing the good and wonderful people of Ika Northeast for the past 8 years.
The eloquent Lawmaker said he was grateful to Almighty God and to the people of Ika Northeast for giving him the opportunity to serve, adding that right from the day he was elected as a Lawmaker, he has a clear responsibility for what he wanted to achieve for his Constituency.
” So far so good I am very grateful to God Almighty, Deltans, and especially to my constituents who gave me the mandate to represent them.
” Coming to the house 8th years ago, my responsibility was very clear and precise, and I know I am voted in because my people believed I have the capacity to deliver, nobody comes to the house to learn.
” Our mandate was to make laws that will impact meaningfully on the people of Delta State and perform oversight functions on the laws that we have made”.
He said being in the house gave him ample opportunity to interact with other Lawmakers, lobby them, defend them, and he was able to see his vision and key into them, especially when bills are coming in that will impact the life of the people.
” One of the things I did when I came in as a Lawmaker, I build a team, I believed in teamwork, and I believed every Lawmaker in the house has the potential of giving out something positive on the floor of the House.
” Based on that, I was able to work with the rest of my colleagues, and as usual, most of them became co-sponsors of my bills, they help me to gather facts, and do a lot of research to make sure we come out with bills that are very impactful.
He also said that in the last 8th years, he believed he and the rest of the Lawmakers have done a lot for Deltans in the aspect of Lawmaking and he prayed Deltans will continue to benefit from those things that they have done.
Hon. Elekeokwuri enumerated the number of bills he has sponsored and co-sponsor.
” I have sponsored and co-sponsor a good number of bills too numerous to mention in the house, and setting bills that I have sponsored and co-sponsor, including the ones that His Excellency, Senator Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa Governor of Delta State has signed into Law, is Jermaine and very important to me.
” As Chairman house committee on Public Account I was able to bring transparency to bear, so if you look at the Transparency and Accountability bill that we did at the state level, you will be discovered that we are able to deepen that process.
” We believed if we don’t institutionalized the fight against corruption, corruption will kill us”.
He listed some of the bills he has sponsored and co-sponsor which include the Transparency and Accountability Bill, The Urban Renewal Bill, and The Criminal Justice Law at the state level, others include. The infrastructural Bill, the Equipment Leasing Bill, the Public Finance Management Bill, The Audit bill 1 and 2, the Physical Responsibility bill, The power sector bill, The Good Governance bill, etc.
Saying that he is leaving the ovation high and that he came, he saw, and they all conquered.
In his message to incoming Lawmakers, He said, “You don’t just come to the State House of Assembly because you want to make money, reason for this is that the Lawmakers don’t have approval authority, they don’t have approving powers, they don’t give out a contract or execute contract, so what they do is just lawmaking and everything about lawmaking, that is why they need to be trained.
” The Speaker of the House who happens to be the Governor-elect, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori has done so much in terms of training and retraining Lawmakers, Management Staff, and General Staff of the assembly, including Lawmakers’ aids.
” So, if you have a trained workforce, you will be able to build a team works around you”.
He advised the incoming Lawmakers that they must ensure they engaged legislative aids that are competent, make sure that money due to them is paid to them, and he can assure them that the aids will give their very best.
He restated that there is no big deal about lawmaking, all they need was for them to have the passion, drive, and motivation to identify laws that will eliminate the suffering of the people, those things they can do items as infrastructure, healthcare delivery, water supply etc.
Adding that they should look at those areas that have been experiencing decay and think of ways they can create a solution for them.
” As a legislator, you have to make use of your space, your legal space to create solutions to problems affecting your people,
” We understand the challenges that come with Lawmakers, people who voted you in, are expecting you to bring pipe borehole water, build schools, roads, etc you can do that indirectly by making sure you work together with the Executive arms.
” Passing budget is not enough, when a budget is passed, there is a need for Lawmakers to follow up with the budget, what is there in your local government, your Constituency as the case may be, and how can you make sure that the executive arms implement those things they have promised to do.
” As a Lawmaker, if you know what you are doing, then you will follow the executive step by step and in the long run, you will attract massive development to your people.
” A Lawmaker makes laws and follows up with the executives on the laws he has made, which is what we call oversight functions, and most importantly, you go home and be with your people, organized town hall meeting, interact with them, and see what their pains are, put them together and come back to Asaba, see how you can put this thing into policy making for government, and if you can able to do that, you become a Lawmaker that brings dividends of democracy to his people”.
On Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, the Ika Northeast Lawmaker said that whatever that has kept Sheriff on the throne as the speaker for over six years, and whatever that has endured him to the people and his colleagues, let him keep it up.
Saying that by the grace of God, Sheriff Oborevwori come May 29th, will be sworn in as Governor of Delta State, and this will be the first time that it will be happening, he thanks God that he was privileged to witness and experience Speaker becoming a Governor in Delta State.
He assured Deltans that the way the speaker has overseas the state assembly comprising 29 Constituency, 25 local government, and 29 Lawmakers, which he counts himself lucky to have benefited from the speaker, that there is nothing too big for him to do as Governor, apart from the fact that he is moving from one arm of government to other arms.
He reminded Deltans that the Governor-elect has promised the M.O.R.E. agenda, which means that whatever has been done by Governor Okowa, he is going to continue with them while also bringing in new projects.
” With my personal discussion with him, he has assured me that he will get serious with government and ensure mistakes will be limited, and Deltans are going to be happy at the end of his tenure”.
