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Author: Odimegwu Onwumere
Posted to the web: 2/3/2011 3:40:52 AM

Dr. Dawari George: Truth about the House of Representativescandidate

Written by Odimegwu Onwumere

Dr. Dawari George is the immediate past Commissionerfor Energy & Natural Resources, Rivers State. The Akuku-Toru and Asari-Toru LGAs delegates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) made him proud in theprimaries at ASALGA Secretariat on Thursday, January 6, 2011, to represent theAKULGA/ASALGA Federal Constituency in the Houseof Representatives, from 2011 to 2015, after the main elections. Those that knowthe youthful Dr. George knew that he has been wreathing in joyous mood sincehis people overwhelmingly supported his ambition. He had long time expressedgratitude to his people and had told his co-contestants, such as Barr. OnimimJacks, Hon Daddy West, Chief (Barr) Tam Princewill and many others that hewould individually relate with them on how to move the constituency forward.This will be after the April elections which, no doubt, he is going to win,because of his antecedents.

 

Critics of Dr. Dawari George and observers of Rivers State politics were not surprised when they heard that hepolled 429 votes, beating his co-contestants who polled 120 votes, 18 votesrespectively. However, the election reportedly, was not free from blackmail andmild threats. The DIG DEEP Campaign Organisation for Dr. George, however, preached to the stakeholders for a new dawn. Dr. George knew his onus when he was Commissionerfor Energy & Natural Resources, Rivers State.  He followedthe due process and re-organized the petroleum products distribution monitoringteam, without dissolving the team. Notwithstanding, he did not treat any memberfound wanting with the kidâ's glove. He always stressed his zero tolerance forbribery and corruption. He made sure that the team received their arrears ofallowances owed them and that adequate logistics were provided to enhance theiroperations.   Dr. George is a preacher of commitment to work.Anywhere he went, he urged people and the members of the public to put allmisunderstandings in the past behind them and work assiduously as a team inorder to achieve set goals.   It was this tenacious to work that the Rivers Stategovernment said the state possessed a huge gas reserve that would last for over150 years. This was achieved under Dr. George. He didn’t end there. He madeplans and developed a master plan for the state, as a result, which will enablethe government to utilize gas for both domestic and industrial activities.

His reign as Commissioner introduced a legislation that will enableintervention directly in the oil and gas sector, which will involve moving gasto private homes, offices and industrial complexes.  Under him asCommissioner, the government achieved a plan of a gas-to-diesel conversionplant that will enable the state to use gas to power its vehicles.

Dr. Georgecollaborated with foreign investors to build refinery, petrochemical andbitumen plants, to generate employments. According to him in one fora: “We havecomparative advantage to open more petrochemical plants in our state, given theexistence of such plants. Apart from providing jobs for the skilled andunskilled across the different strata of the economy, of course, you know thatthis will oil the wheel of the needed development which the current administrationhas hugely carried out.'

No doubt, it could bethe mammoth expertise of  Dr. George that compelled the Federal Governmentfor an effective emergency management blueprint for the Niger Delta. This wasin view of the magnitude of oil exploration and environmental degradation inthe region. Speaking with newsmen once after the inspection ofthe Masters Energy Tank Farm at Port Harcourt, Dr. George hadsaid: “There is no doubt whatsoever that Masters Energy tank farm can competewith any of its kind anywhere in the world. The size and facilities at the tankfarm are so mind blowing that government does not have any choice than tosupport the facility to achieve its objective.”   Bringing his point home, he said that the Rivers Stategovernment was interested in the tank farm and that was why he visited toinspect the facilities, to ascertain the extent of work done. A lover ofprogress, Dr. George told the management of Masters Energy that the RiversState Government was very happy and proud of them and would do everythingpossible to encourage them and ensure that the benefits of locating suchmassive structure in the state are not lost.

 

When he was Commissioner,every Monday morning the members of the Ministry of Energy & NaturalResources, Rivers State, would gather inhis office for prayers for 15 to 30 minutes, and he would be quoting copiouslyfrom the Bible. He was always punctual to work.

 

“There were some things Iconfronted and I felt were not right: People coming late to work, absenteeism andall that. The prayers have taken care of that, without issuing a query toanyone. Before we agreed to pray, we agreed that we would not come to pray,then go back to do the same thing that people who do not pray do. We will notdeceive ourselves. If a commissioner leads prayers and after that he isstealing and engaging in all kinds of things, then we will be deceivingourselves. Absenteeism, late coming and all types of sharp practices that wecame and met here, on the ground, most of them have been taken care of, by ourcoming together to pray,” he had said.

 

The prayers did miracles!

 

“There is a strong bond ofunity in the ministry, because when we have such communion, it gives them anidea of how the leadership thinks. It gives everyone the idea of how thefollowership feels. They also lead the devotion and make contributions. Withall that, the bond of unity is being strengthened by our prayers.”

 

Dr. George is not aphilanderer. Those that have seen his wife attested that he was one of theluckiest men to marry one of the most beautiful women on earth.

 

“If you see my wife, if youmeet with her only once, you will know that any woman who sees my wife will beintimidated, because you will begin to wonder why a man will leave this womanand run after you,” he expressed why he is not lascivious.

 

He advised married men to bevery wary of some women under the guise of needing their assistance in one areaor another.

 

“Some will even sendreligious text messages, if you are not careful, before you know what ishappening, your female pastor friend can begin to make all kinds ofadvances...” he had said.

 

For him, he likes women as apeople and not when it comes to the other way round.

 

“So far, I have not done it,not because I am morally strong or upright, but because I depend on God and Ihave covenanted with Him that He will not allow those things to be adistraction to my works. It is one key thing that confronts men in publicoffice and I have worked in different places and seen how it has truncated thedestinies of many people and I am conscious of the fact that I must not allowthose negative experiences in the lives of other people we have seen, to repeatthemselves in my life. God willing, I am marching on,” he enthused.

 

Upon singing praises of hiswife, Dr. George said that she was not the one who always made him to returnfrom work so quick but his son.

 

“...very handsome boy, too.He is one person who can make me close from work and go home straight, insteadof going to some other places, because I cherish my family and I cherish thefact that God has blessed me with such a wonderful family. I love my son. He isa very small boy, but he is my friend. It is good to have him around. If notfor decency and officialdom, I will prefer to see him around me in the office,which will motivate me to work more.”

 

However, he said that it wasnot the Holy Spirit first that introduced hiswife to him.

 

“I met her in a familyfriendâ's house. She was there on the ladyâ's birthday and served us food.Immediately I saw her, there were no two ways about it; I said this was mywife. I had not talked to her. I did not know anything about her. I did notknow if she was married or engaged to somebody, but I was convinced that shewas going to be my wife. We met ourselves, we introduced ourselves, there wasnothing much. Very unofficial. We met severally in the house of that familyfriend that I got to know her through. We just became friends. Somehow, alongthe line, I proposed and she also said when she saw me that day, she knew I washer husband. God does not lie. The Bible says from the mouths of two or threepersons, the truth shall be established. So far, we are convinced that we didnot make mistakes. It took a long time before I got married. A lot of indecisions,because as someone who is a politician, a youth activist, I mix up a lot and Ihave so many male and female friends. You know what comes with that kind ofthing. There is the confusion in determining who is the right person and who isnot the right one. It got to a point when I had to reduce the contacts I hadwith the opposite sex, especially my female friends.”

 

To him, he would be fulfilledif his son becomes a pastor.

 

“That is my first calling. Ifmy son becomes a preacher, that will give me great fulfilment, but if God sayshe should be a politician, why not? Whether a pastor or a politician, you haveresponsibilities and roles to impart into people. I know that these things arefraught with a lot of danger. There is always the fear and apprehension if theperson will be able to stand what will come with the career choice. Since Ihave been able to stand it by Godâ's power, I believe God will also give him thepower to stand it. Many parents mislead their children by thinking that becausethey went through this or that and the hazards or rigours of a particularcalling that their children should not go through that. There is grace that issufficient for everybody.”

 

No matter that Dr. George hasspecial interest in things of God he declines being a pastor?

 

“No, I am not a pastor, but Iam conscious of the roles of God in the affairs of men. Everything in thephysical is taken care of first in the spiritual. If you call me a pastor, youmay not be totally wrong. I am a Baptist. There are different processes beforeyou become a pastor, like going to the seminary and all that. In otherdenominations, you may not need to follow that. For instance, I have gonethrough several discipleship lessons that could be termed Bible school. I havealso risen to head the young men arm of the whole country. I mean the Royal Ambassadors of Nigeria, for males between the ageof 10 and above. Young men being prepared to become men. In otherdenominations, I must be a pastor to occupy that office. In my local church, Iam also the music director/minister. I am not a trained pastor per se, butinvolved in the ministry.”

 

With his activities in thechurch, Dr. George said that he would decline the appointment a deacon?

 

“I will not accept it. Itwill limit me. I believe that the roles I am going to play for God, will bemore than the roles deacons play. I intend to go into evangelical ministry,supporting evangelism. I want an outreach programme that will take me around.Even after playing politics, I believe one day, I will go into the ministryfull time.”

 

George was born in a familyof five children. His father is a Baptist clergy, and his mother is not apastor, “but more than a pastor,” he said. “She is the pastor of thefamily/home, while my father is the pastor of the church.”

 

Two things his parents nevertook away from Dr. George and his siblings were imbibing Christian virtues inthem and giving them the best education.

 

“The least educated person inmy family has a Masterâ's degree holder,” he had said.

 

When Dr. George was intoyouth activism, he was the Chairman of the Rivers Statechapter of the National Youth Council.

 

“...that was the height ofmilitancy and cult activities in this state. Combining that kind of sensitiveoffice, with the negative things that were happening around, many peoplewondered how I was able to survive. There was also security challenge.”

 

Dr. George came out with thebest result in secondary school (Government Comprehensive Secondary School,Borokiri, Port Harcourt). Initially at theUniversity of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT), he wanted to read Law, but for twoyears, he was not reaching the cut-off, in spite of the fact that he had allhis papers at a sitting in secondary school.

 

“I believe that God neverwanted me to be a lawyer”.

 

When he was in Class three insecondary school, something was in his spirit that he would have a Ph.D. in Political Science.

 

“Finally, I found myselfreading Political Science, instead of Law. I have Masterâ's in PoliticalScience, specialising in Political Economy, which is called Development Studiesand I also have my Ph.D. in Political Science, also in PoliticalEconomy/Development Studies, all at the UNIPORT. I have also been involved insome courses and seminars, to beef up my knowledge of some other areas that Iam interested in and want knowledge in.”

 

A lover of youth and youthlover, when he was screened, along with other commissioner-nominees at the Rivers State House of Assembly then, the galleries weretaken over by youths. Immediately after his screening, with some nominees yetto be attended to, the youths left en masse, with the galleries becoming almostempty, indicating that they actually came to support him.

 

“It was an area I hadinterest in. I like working with young people. In the youth council, I had myfirst baptism of fire in public service. There, you had the good, the bad andthe ugly. I went through hell in the hands of the youths. Your ability to beable to bring the different tendencies together, be able to control them andchannel their energies, whether positive or negative, towards achieving thepurpose of the youth organisation, you will know that, that will be thegreatest challenge. I am not sure that there will be any challenge I will facein life that will be more than being the chairman of the youth council. Theexperiences have been able to shape me.”

 

Positive results go with the name Dr. Dawari George. As the 2011 elections draw closer, the Asari-Toru/Akuku-Toru Federal Constituency seat in the Houseof Representatives should go to this amiable man. He has been tested andtrusted and has been declared fit and proper by friends and his people. Riverspolitical observers are glaring to hear the repeat of the reportedlyunprecedented event (after April) that took place Saturday, December 11, 2010, when political leaders and themasses of Asari-Toru (ASALGA) marched through the streets of Buguma chantingsongs: “Dr Dawari George na our choice,” “we believe wetin Dr Dawari George cando,” “Go and tell them that Dawari na our choice for House of Reps.”

 

Odimegwu Onwumere , Poet/Author, Media/Writing Consultant and Motivator, isthe Founder of Poet Against Child Abuse (PACA). He writes from Oyigbo, Rivers State.For Public Speaking invitation or Donation to his Project, contact: +2348032552855. Email:  apoet_25@yahoo.com