*‘My ambition to succeed Gov. Akpabio’

By Johnbosco Agbakwuru

Senator Helen Esuene is the Chairman, Senate Committee  on Women Affairs and Youths Development; she represents Akwa Ibom South (Eket) Senatorial District. In this interview, she speaks on the National Confab and why she is the best person to govern Akwa Ibom State in 2015. Excerpts:

Why is it that we don’t have many women in elective positions in the country?
We don’t have enough women in elective positions in Nigeria, and that is what women have been clamoring for. In appointive positions, we can say a lot of progress has been made, but in elective, we are still lagging seriously behind other African countries. A  few issues are responsible. One is culture but other African countries share common cultures with us and their women are treated better.

The second issue is the system of government we run. In some of the African countries, their constitutions are a little bit elastic. They have provisions for appointed parliamentarians in their constitutions. They even have quota for some groups like the disabled, the youths, even the military.

These are some of the things that give women in those nations a head start. In our case, we are not saying bend the rules, but give us a level playing ground because politics in Nigeria is rugged and sometimes quite violent and that inhibits many women.

A woman contested against the President at the last PDP primaries. But despite the  number of women at the convention, they didn’t vote for her. Don’t you think that women are sometimes their own  enemies?
I wouldn’t specifically say so. When it comes to elections, if a man is contesting, he is not contesting for the men, the same goes for  the woman, she is contesting for everybody and you have to do the needful, you have to work hard and talk.

With  due respect, I think that was lacking in the two times that the woman came out to vie for the presidency, but we still appreciate her courage in coming out because it will speak for her that she was the first woman to have done that. Meanwhile, standing for an election is not specifically a gender issue. If I contest,  I am a woman but I am not contesting just for women to vote me in.

Why do you want to govern Akwa Ibom State?
Why I want to stand for the gubernatorial election in Akwa Ibom State is because I am quite familiar with the terrain of that state. I know it very well, I know the people, I know the strengths of the state, I know the weaknesses, I know the ethnic interplay, I am very confident that I will be able to build bridges that will usher in peaceful co-existence because in whatever developmental strides or efforts the government may make, if you cannot assure peaceful co-existence, it may not be sustainable.

Where there is peaceful co-existence, when the populace is happy, that is when you will have their best in terms of contributions, attitudes, cooperation and everything. So, I feel I am the right person for the job at this point in time.

Godfatherism is a major issue. What is your relationship with Governor Godswill Akpabio. Are you his candidate? How are you going to face the challenge coming from men?
Godfatherism is there but politics is dynamic. What you see in the morning is not necessarily what you see in the evening. I have a very healthy relationship with my governor.

Has he given you the go ahead?
He has given me the go ahead. I discussed with him; if he is not carrying me along right now, it is not an issue because, as I said, politics is dynamic because what happens today doesn’t mean the same thing is going to happen tomorrow.

What is actually your attraction to the Government House? Why not come back to the Senate and make a mark in legislation?
When I was campaigning for the Senate, in my senatorial district, the unwritten agreement is that each federal constituency that occupies the senatorial seat should do so for two terms and then it moves to the next federal constituency.

When Senator Udo Udoma was here, he was representing Ikot Abasi federal constituency and he was here for two terms and, thereafter, Mrs. Eme Ekaite came on board from Eket federal constituency. I am from Eket federal constituency as well. By next year, I would have done my full tenure; so the senatorial seat is supposed to move to the next constituency which is Oron.

When I was contesting, it was a big issue during my campaign and the issue was since you are going for the first time, are you sure you won’t want to go back, and I gave them my word that I would do one term and get out, I wouldn’t want to go back on  my promise.

Since you believe  you are the right person to succeed the governor, are your constituents with you?
I have always impacted on the lives of  my constituents even before I came into politics. I enjoy a lot of good will within my constituency and the Akwa Ibom people as a whole.

They know me, they can speak for me, they know what I can do. With the position I have occupied in the last three years, I have been able to impact lives, I have able to do what a representative should do in terms of reaching out to them, I know the issues that are uppermost in their minds;  one of them is  employment.

Immediately after I came on board, I put in place a  job network center which is like a one stop shop to bring employers of labour and applicants together. It is a data base facility which is still on. That facility has enabled people to get employment, we even go a step further by organizing courses  for applicants on how to present themselves at interviews.

I have done many constituency projects. I commissioned one last month and I am working on commissioning another one  next month. The  constituency projects span the entire area. Mine is one of the biggest senatorial districts in the country with 12  local governments, it is bigger than some states and I have been able to do that. I also set up a cooperative society for women  to empower them.

Let’s talk about the bills, motions you have sponsored or co-sponsored in the Senate?
I initiated  about five or six bills, some on gender. I initiated the bill that seeks to amend the Universal Basic Education Act; there is another one on the Child’s Right Act to incorporate taking care of unaccompanied children or abandoned children during strife. I have a bill on how to restore the mangrove forest in the country.

Another bill that I put in place is to regulate the use of weapons of mass destruction. We have another  bill on how to manage nuclear products but we need a bill on weapons of mass destruction.

In what stages are the bills?
Some have gone through first reading. There was one also on women equal opportunities right  that went through first reading; at the second reading, there were some technicalities as some bills had captured some of the issues raised there.

Some members of the National Assembly have described the ongoing National Conference as a jamboree. What is your position on the conference?
In 2005 during the National Political Conference in which I was a delegate, the same sentiment was expressed that it was a jamboree. Unfortunately the critics were right. But this one  is not a jamboree. However,  whether something good comes out of it will depend on how we manage the outcome, the recommendations.

I believe that bringing Nigerians to talk about the contentious issues in the country is important; the National Assembly members cannot claim to be the sole custodians of knowledge about Nigeria. I quite agree that a conference such as the one that is being held is necessary; let Nigerians come and talk freely about what they feel about their country because if that is not done, it is bottled up.

The President has done so well to set up this national dialogue to defuse tension in the country. I think at the end of it, whatever recommendations they have, the Presidency will reduce  them into bills and send to the National Assembly.

I wouldn’t advise that there should be one bill because if one aspect in that bill doesn’t sail through, it will affect all. There should be several bills in their different components seeking to do one thing or the other and the National Assembly will take them one by one.

I am saying this so that we can avoid the experience of the failed constitutional amendment that was to be carried out under the Obasanjo administration when because the lawmakers wanted to kill the then President’s Third Term ambition, the entire exercise was shelved.

What would be your agenda as the governor of Akwa Ibom State?
Unity amongst the various segments is top on my agenda. I also consider it very crucial at this stage in our country that people should be gainfully employed, people should be encouraged to do something, it will bring about a lot of positive reactions and reduction in crime.

Of course, industrialization and agriculture will help to generate employment, that will be on the front burner of my administration.