By Chidi Uwabuofu.
Umutu: The member representing Ukwuani constituency at Delta State House of Assembly, Hon Alphonsus Ojo has told the people of the constituency that he was handicapped in the passage of the controversial Bill seeking to change the traditional stool of the people of Umukwata from the Okpala uku, to Ukwata, a monarchy stool.
This was his submission on Wednesday, 16 of November 2016, when he met with Umutu chiefs and Umukwata community leaders with regards to the looming crisis resulting from the executive bill that has been passed into law arbitrarily by Delta State House of Assembly, to replace the Okpala-uku tradition of the Umukwata people with an alien tradition.
The meeting was held at the residence of Chief (Hon.) John Nwachukwu, the spokesman of Umutu community, who spoke passionately about the sorry state of affairs with unwavering disposition, and without an iota of bias, he raised penetrating questions that remain unanswered to this moment.
While reacting to a call for help to countermand the decision of DTHA by some of the representatives of Umukwata community who expressed their dissatisfaction over the decision, Hon Alphonsus Ojo didn’t mince words when he said “I cannot do anything, as a lone man I couldn’t stop the bill at first, in fact, I was handicapped during the proceeding at the DTHA”.
The reasons for his supposed handicap is perhaps, explained by the fact that executive bills usually imply very powerful political influences and so tend to override fundamental protocol. Dr Alphonsus Ojo quashed the allegation that he was compromised. He said he can’t fight his own people, maintaining that he was never on the side of the legislators who helped the bill see light, but rather, he argued that he was a lone voice during voting
process.
