•Justice and Special Duties Commissioners present their scorecards

By Julius Oweh

Recently, the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Barrister Peter Mrakpor and Barrister Ernest Ogwezzy, Commissioner for Special Duties in Delta State presented records of their achievements to the people of the state via the press as part of accountability programme of the Okowa administration. Both men spoke of their passion for the jobs and how their jobs have impacted on the ‘Smart Agenda‘ of the government.

Barrister Peter Mrakpor explained that the philosophical underpin of the Ministry of Justice was to provide the necessary legal framework and advice for government to achieve its overall objectives and ensure that government does all its transactions and dealings within the ambit of the law. According to him, under his watch ‘the Ministry of Justice has experienced tremendous overhaul, with the support of Governor Okowa. The entrenchment of law and order, good governance, respect for human rights and rule of law in Delta state are the paramount focus‘.

On infrastructural development, he listed the renovation of the Ministry of Justice headquarters buildings, the provision of 250 laptops equipped with e-library for lawyers and development and launching of an official website for the Ministry among others. He also stated that the administration has invested massively in capacity building initiatives so as to ensure that the staff of the Ministry, both legal and non-legal perform their duties optimally.

The commissioner explains further: ‘In the area of Alternative Dispute through Mediation and Arbitration training and certification, presently, 73 Mediators and 15 Arbitration practitioners have been trained   by this administration   in Alternative Dispute Resolution practices through the Institute of Chartered Mediation and Conciliators of Nigeria.‘

Okowa

Mrakpor maintained that the department of public prosecutions has lived up to its billings especially in cases of sexual abuse of children. Said he: ‘The unit also ensures that victims of rape and domestic violence receive holistic free medical attention, counseling, rehabilitation and other support services. The unit is currently handling 312 rape and defilement matters pending in the High Court of Justice across the state. Since the creation of this unit, five convictions have been secured in respect of sexual related cases. In respect of domestic violence, aggressive violence or behaviour within   the home, the unit has received nine petitions so far from victims six of which have been resolved.

The commissioner also spoke of tremendous achievements in disputes between companies and host communities, common disputes between landlords and tenants and cases of violation of human rights. Mrakpor said that innovation has been brought to the Ministry especially in the department of advisory services which is saddled with the responsibility of giving advice to government particularly on Chieftaincy matters and preparation of statutory declarations of succession to traditional stools.

As for the Bureau for Special Duties Commission, Barrister Ernest Ogwezzy, disclosed that ‘the bureau was established by the government to cater for the safety of lives, properties, provide welfare support and quick intervention for disaster victims as well as spiritual edification of Deltans and Nigerians in general through facilitating travelling arrangements and welfare of pilgrims to the Holy Lands for Christians and Muslims‘. According to Ogwezzy, the bureau for special duties supervises four parastatals namely: Delta State Fire Service, State Emergency Management Agency, Christian Pilgrims Welfare Board and Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board.

Ogwezzy while praising the efforts of Delta State Fire Service disclosed ‘the fire statistics from May 2015 to date showed that the service attended to 794 fire calls, 63 were false calls. In all these, 176 persons were rescued alive, while 24 persons were evacuated dead. The estimated value of property saved was put at N8,381,584,427,100.00‘. He said that among the notable fire incidents included Anioma Petrol station at Okpanam Road, Asaba, College of Education Co-operative Filling station, Warri, PPMC Refinery, Ekpan and Beta Glass Factory, Ughelli. Apart from saving lives and property, the state fire service command was able to generate N53,032,750   from 2015 to April, 2018..

On the part of the state emergency management agency, it inspected over 115 cases of fire disasters, 60 cases of rainstorms and over 2,500 cases of flood disasters. It was also responsible for the management of 2015 flood disaster. It also set up camps at Asaba, Kwale and Aboh for the internally displaced persons of that 2015 flood and relief materials (food and non-food items) were given to them by the government. The commissioner further said that the agency sent relief materials to victims of rainstorm at Umutu in Ukwuani LGA, Isumpe in Ndokwa West LGA and victims of fire disaster at School of Nursing Hostel, Sapele.

According to the commissioner, to make the bureau more effective, a lot of things are being put in place. These include   the refurbishment and repairs of Delta State fire service vehicles, purchase of fire fighting equipment and accessories, construction of water hydrant/borehole at the state fire service headquarters, Asaba, renovation of fire service stations, purchase of uniforms and kits for officials and men of the Delta State fire service command, construction of water hydrant/borehole at the Event Centre Complex, Asaba and refurbishment and repairs of fire trucks/tankers and utility vehicles.

Deltans are happy with Okowa -Ukah

The Delta State Commissioner of Information, Patrick Ukah spoke on Governor Ifeanyi Okowa three years in office and returned a verdict of great achievements. Here is the brief encounter with this reporter.

How would you rate the government of Senator Dr. Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa?

Without sounding immodest, I would rate the government of Senator Dr. Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa very high. In fact one is forced to go spiritual in the sense that God actually loves Delta State. He knew that the state would find itself in the condition we were hence he prepared His Excellency to govern Delta State at this critical time. Look at infrastructural development, he ensured that no part of the State is left out in the distribution of amenities. Job creation is another area that the governor has been fantastic. Thousands of Delta youths are business owners and employers of labour through the state youth empowerment scheme and this has checked unemployment as well as eliminating youth restiveness. In my candid opinion, the Delta State Government under Dr. Okowa has been performing wonderfully.

Is t true that the governor has failed to deliver on his campaign promises?

Is it true? I don’t know the rationale behind your question but I can unequivocally state here that if anything else Senator Okowa had exceeded his campaign promises in the delivery of democratic dividends to Deltans. Through his SMART Agenda, the governor practically touched every facet of life of Deltans positively and he is still doing so much. A man with courage to venture into very high capital intensive programme cannot be said to have failed in service delivery. You would recall that last year, we had to contend with flooding especially within Asaba metropolis. Today even when the job has not been completed, Asaba storm water drainage has seriously started checking the menace of flooding. Is it in agricultural sector, water, construction/ rehabilitation of thousands of kilometres of road to mention a few? The governor in three years has done so much that Deltans are yearning for more of his leadership acumen

Are you comfortable with the level of development under the government of Senator Okowa?

 Very comfortable is an understatement because in three years he has surpassed his promises to Deltans in terms of service delivery. Every right thinking Deltan knows that Okowa is the right man for the job, I am not given to praise singing, and neither am I saying this because I am the image maker of the State. In all sincerity Governor Okowa is my hero. First, his leadership style is so contagious that one has no choice than to emulate him. His leadership style is that of leadership by example and this has made those of us working under him to take our jobs very seriously. This in turn has imparted positively on the socio – economic life of many Deltans. He is an embodiment of experience in the act of governance. This has also impacted positively on the state. That is why today Delta State can be seen as a giant construction site especially on road construction/ rehabilitation. Also in education, he has not just planned to educate Delta children but has also ensured that they go to school as well as being able to stand on their own anywhere. You can see what he is doing in Technical education sector. All the Technical Colleges in the state are already on the way to producing quality students following massive renovation/ equipment of the colleges. Again, in agriculture he has through practical terms shown that apart from oil Delta State is so blessed with arable farmlands that some of us are now farmers of some sort.   Like his name implies, ‘Ekwueme‘ he does what he says. Once he is convinced of your work plan, he gives the go ahead and supports you. There was a time people thought that the Delta Broadcasting Service especially the television arm was jinxed. I can confidently tell you that when Ekwueme stepped in things started happening. Today we are on terrestrial and transmitting on very clear signals. Indeed Okowa has performed creditably well and deserves commendation and support to make his second tenure more robust and I can assure you Deltans are happy with their governor.