High Court Projects: Ijaw Lawyers Forum Storm Bomadi, Pass Vote Of Confidence On Council Chairman
…Says We Are Seeing What Ordinarily We Didn’t Believe – Barr Akebofa
“Urges Gov Oborevwori, Chief Judge To Give Needed Encouragement
By: Chancel Bomadi Sunday,
CPS to Bomadi LG Chair
Bomad: The Ijaw Lawyers Forum (ILF) an umbrella body of legal practitioners of Ijaw extraction, yesterday, stormed Bomadi, headquarters of Bomadi local government area of Delta State, on a solidarity visit to the executive chairman of council, Hon. Rawlings Dagidi Andaye, over his administration’s intervention and taking over of the state high court rehabilitation project.
Hon. Andaye, on assumption of office, intervened and took over the renovation of the dilapidated high court hall, reconstruction of the high court access road and the initiation and building of a judge’s residence within the court complex.
Being conducted round the high court projects and various other projects within the Bomadi municipality, embarked upon by the Andaye-led administration within three months in office, the lawyers expressed their unbelief and commended the council chairman for the great feat at the grassroot.
We Are Seeing What Ordinarily We Didn’t Believe – Barr Akebofa
Briefing newsmen shortly after the project inspection, Barr Collins Gesikeme Akebofa, the most senior lawyer who led his learned colleagues for the August visit, expressed profound joy and appreciation to the chairman of council and his executive for a job well done.
He said: “We want to express our deepest appreciation to the chairman of Bomadi local government council for a job well done. For an administration that came on board just three months ago to have achieved this feat, we, the lawyers of Ijaw nation, are more than proud of the chairman of Bomadi Local Government Area.
“Before now, we heard our judges posted here are not willing to reside here. But right now, we are standing before an edifice being constructed by the chairman of council for the judge to reside here, we are seeing the access road under construction, we are seeing the ongoing renovation of the court hall and we are sure that, that dilapidated structure over there (a building overgrown by weeds) will be revamped to become, may be, a building for the staff of the court.
“We have seen many other ongoing projects, we have seen no less than ten different projects all running into hundreds of millions of naira, but the high court projects are our primary concern, all of which are being embarked upon by a local government council. We are seeing what ordinarily we didn’t believe in a hurry that it’s feasible, but we’re seeing it now.
“What more do we say, we trust that everyone seeing these projects would respect whoever is in charge of this local government council”.
Message To Naysayers
“The forum, expressing their position on the high court projects as against naysayers, noted that development thrives in a place when people take upon themselves the will to do so.
“As for the naysayers to these projects being undertaken by the local government administration, the most important thing in development is the will to develop. For instance, if a town is submerged under the water and one man has enough money to build or rebuild his houses and the houses of his neighbours, he cannot be condemned for that.
“Yes, we may not be in a hurry to define who should be in charge of the construction of this projects. It is not enough to be a naysayer, you must go and see things for yourself.
“Until you see things for yourself, if you are a naysayer from a distance, then that is more or less criminal because you have defined yourself to be one that is not insistent on probity, that is our position and we stand to be corrected. We are seeing it and that’s why we are here.
“We don’t want to hear those who say, no it’s not right or that it should have been a federal government or state government project. It is known in Nigeria that even if it’s a state government project and the local government is willing to do it, there can be reimbursement at the end of the day, it’s a normal practice.
“Therefore, we should be in a hurry to commend the chairman of the local government council. More so, the state is aware of what is going on here”, the forum said.
A Call On Governor Oborevwori, Chief Judge, Others
The forum, calling the state government to give the council chairman the needed support and encouragement, stressed that there was the urgent need to put in place the high court at Bomadi.
Barr Akebofa said: “We urge the governor of Delta State, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, to give all needed support to the council chairman to put in place the high court at Bomadi. We are equally calling on the chief judge of the state and the legal community to commend the effort of the Bomadi Local Government Council in taking this bold step.
“The state government must pay attention to what this young man is doing at the grassroots. I call him young man because he is very new in the system and has taken time to prove himself a most honourable man.
“We call on the legal community to pay a visit to these projects and see things for themselves. We hope that what this council administration under Hon. Dagidi Andaye has started will be completed and most expectedly, by the one month interval they have promised to complete the projects, we are coming back here to see the completion and commissioning”.
However, Hon. Andaye, who expressed his gratitude to the legal practitioners for their resolve to have come to see things for themselves, as well as to show solidarity on his administration, disclosed that his primary agenda was to come and contribute his quota to the development of Bomadi local government area.
He also urged members of ILF to establish their law chambers at Bomadi, stressing that his administration was ready to partner with the body in the development and progress of the riverine council area.
“My main agenda for coming to council, which is my base, is to contribute my quota to the development and progress of my beloved Bomadi local government area.
“One other important agenda of my administration is to foster unity among our political leaders to allow for the much needed development to thrive in Bomadi Local Government Area, and which we are doing now.
“My administration will do all the best to ensure infrastructural and human capital development at the grassroots here in Bomadi Local Government Area”.
