Dr.  Anthonya, medical  doctor, writes from South Africa.
IN a recent contribution, I called for voices like those of advocate Mike Igini and others from Delta State to take up the gauntlet of representing the diminishing voice of Delta State in the nationallegislature in the imminent elections for 2011.

I expressed this view because, like many other concerned Deltans in the Diaspora, I have observed that the contribution of Delta State to the Nigerian commonwealth is not reflected in the developmental outcomes accruing  to the state in the basic metrics with which one can evaluate federal presence in a state.

It was, therefore, with some surprise that one received the news that advocate Igini was amongst the very credible Nigerians with  pristine public interest antecedents that the Federal Government and the National Council of State had adjudged as competent to act as electoral administrators in the coming elections in 2011.

While this is a commendable initiative on the part of the Federal Government, because it shows that the public call for credible elections is acknowledged by government and that it takes such calls seriously, it is my view that this development will be a big sacrifice for the Urhobo nation and Delta State in particular and the constituents of the Niger-Delta in general.

I hold this view because, having known advocate Igini from close quarters, with an exemplary record from the renowned Okotie-Eboh  Grammar School in Sapele, where he was a punctuality prefect, to the University of Benin (Uniben), where even as a  scholar in the humanities, he participated actively in student unionism, serving twice as speaker of parliament and reaching the apex of the student union as president and collaborating at the highest levels of NANS (National  Association of Nigerian Students), he has never been known to waver from any public interest matter to which he is committed, like his student union peers of similar ilk in Uniben such as  Ogaga Ifowodo, whose conviction in support of the public good is resolute.

Such unwavering conviction characterised his unimpeachable support for the public welfare during the SAP riots, his advocacy that the votes of the people of Edo State be respected during the elections which culminated in the victory of Chief Odigie Oyegun of  the Social Democratic Party.

This was at the Appeal Court in Edo State in 1991, even though the opposing party had flooded the University of Benin with its agents, canvassing with excess funds to buy the support of student leadership.

There is also his intrepid leadership of  Uniben students in the call to validate the June 12 election, even when many people had capitulated to the daunting forces dispatched to quell such calls by the Abacha government.

Not to be forgotten was the unveiling of the student union complex named in Uniben as June 12 Building at the peak of the struggle by the winner of the 1993 election, the late Chief MKO Abiola.

Similarly, this conviction is seen in his vocal support for the respect of the votes of Nigerians and his persistent advocacy to highlight the unrealised dreams of Nigerians -especially the Niger Delta people- of benefiting in the natural resources of the country in the vital realms of development.

Given this pedigree, therefore, I am convinced that the antecedents of advocate Igini working under  a chairmanship of Prof Jega, a tested man of character and integrity, will be an asset to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC),  though a significant loss to his primary constituency Urhoboland and Delta State, where committed and transformational leadership is currently in great demand  by the people, particularly in the legislature where his long leadership background and scholarly competencies in the fields of Sociology and Anthropology, law and diplomacy will be an added asset to the process of  agenda and priority setting as well as policy formulation.
However, the loss to the constituency is a gain to the Fatherland, Nigeria, which for once has recognised the need for a truly accountable leadership through the ballot.
Many Nigerians take the election process for granted because of previous bastardisation.  Butthe appointment of Prof. Attahiru Jega, Prof. Olurode and the likes of lgini has brought in some ray of hope and interest in the forthcoming elections.  Local governments are often overlooked, yet our first interaction with government is at the local council.

In addition, most of our social transactions and commercial needs are consummated in the marketplace which is in the ambit of the local government, also, our movements from place to place are facilitated by local transportation which falls within the responsibility of local councils.

It is, therefore, helpful to know that the potential loss of representation by Delta constituents of people like Advocate Igini to INEC will benefit the country in our quest to build credible and enduring institutions like INEC that can supervise transparentelections instead of searching for strong men or certain men/women of character that we may not always  have around all the time.