Posted by By Udede Jim on
"Democracy, as a form of government, is for service to the people that have given you their mandate." With these words as his guide, Hon. Nwuke Anucha, Chairman of Omuma Local Government Area (OMULGA) of Rivers State, went into action when he was sworn-in on April 21, 2004 after the council elections on March 27 same year.
"Democracy, as a form of government, is for service to the people that have given you their mandate." With these words as his guide, Hon. Nwuke Anucha, Chairman of Omuma Local Government Area (OMULGA) of Rivers State, went into action when he was sworn-in on April 21, 2004 after the council elections on March 27 same year.
In an interactive chat during a tour of projects/facilities in his area on Wednesday, 20th April by the Rivers State Chapter of Nigerian Association of Women Journalists, led by the chairman, Ms. Tonye Briggs, the Omuma helmsman revealed how he laid the foundation-stone of the Omuma Legislative Building seven days after he assumed office.
That project, added to several more such as construction of twenty-three security gate-house round the LGA, a road network of about seven hundred and twenty-four kilometers and neighbourhood water schemes, according to Hon. Nwuke, would be commissioned by Governor Peter Odili on Friday, 13th May, 2005 to mark the administration's one year in office.
The council chairman, however, cried out over of his aspirations for Omuma people which include non-linkage of the area to the National Grid and the fact that the earning power of the council is very low as Omuma receives about the lowest amount from the monthly federal allocation.
To combat all these identified snags, Hon. Nwuke, who is also the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of ALGON in the state, disclosed to the journalists a number of progmatic steps that he and his team have initiated to improve their income as a council.
One of them is the purchase of land for the construction of a filling station that will be run by the council, in addition to a modern business centre which will have computers for training of young men and women at the council offices.
Hon. Anucha also led the team of visiting journalists to the connection point of a NEPA High Tension Line at Umuagwuzie/Umuiku, the boundary between Omuma (Rivers) and Abia States, in a bid to improve the power supply in the area and generate self-employment for the people.
While catering for staff and appointees' welfare, Hon. Anucha former SA Youths to Gov. Odili, explained how council had initiated and executed several empowerment schemes for youths and women within the period under review such as the purchase of motor-cycles for point-men in all the wards and garri-processing machines for PDP women leaders in the area.
In his opinion, the effective use of the little funs available to council has attracted several assessors there, leading to the numerous awards on him including the latest one he received in Abuja as the 'Best Local Government Chairman in Nigeria' which came with a trophy and a fourteen-seater bus