Hon Rabiu Alfa: The Accountable Lawmaker, A Big Game With A Small Name

362
Spread the love

By Comrade A. M. Nasir.
Till the end of time, the decision of Hon Alhaji Alfa Momoh Rabiu openly, publicly and for consultation purposes present a constituency allowance cheque as against the old order of using it for personal utilities does not only demand an apology from previous representatives to the good people of Ojoku and Enjema districts who have been the sufferers of impunity and abuse of public trust but must be greatly commended at every level. It can be well recalled that Hon Rabiu conveyed his constituents upon receiving his constituency allowance cheque and declared that the eight wards that makes up Ankpa 2 constituency sets up independent committees for needs assessment and even execution of projects which shall be directly funded by the constituency allowance.
Whether anyone accepts the fact or not, constituency allowance is one of those murky taboo wealth cloaked in veils of secrecy, deception, intimidation, self service and enrichment by Nigerian legislators at both the state and federal level. Thus, the defaulters exist in all societies, come from every culture and practice all religions. It does not just exist in the north or south; it is perpetrated by almost all public servants that are entitled to it.
So, It would be really naive and reckless for any community or institution to think that their families and leaders are totally immune from the corrupt practice of embezzling public fund. Hence, it is important for the masses to acknowledge the existence of constituency allowance in order for that knowledge to serve as a deterrent and help in the reduction of this transgression. And that is exactly what Hon Rabiu Alfa have revealed.
Before now, accountability is a subject that I am extremely passionate about and committed to. For the past couple of years, I have wanted to write on this topic but never so motivated until recently when I witnessed the commissioning of projects initiated by Hon Alhaji Alfa Momoh Rabiu across his constituency (Ojoku and Enjema districts of Ankpa local government area of Kogi state). Apparently, the projects had been in long use before the commissioning but upon the comprehension of testimonies that greeted my ear after the one day but highly epoch event, I saw the need to put this up.
Although it seems out-of-order for me to carry out such a dignifying function of image leveraging, an act the recipient sees as normal because of his love for his own kin. If truth be told, it is really heart-breaking to know that there are people that even if compelled will find some constraint to carry out such selfless acts for their people and that is why the set back, trauma, underdevelopment and social neglect that abuse of public office inflicts on a people is not a faith-based problem nor a western or developing world problem but a problem within every single society.
In Ankpa 2 constituency for instance, there have been at least five republic representation among which a deputy speaker was once produced but nothing to show for it. In reality, it is unfortunate to note that, from my experience and observation; some of these past leaders even admonish the incumbent, selfless, pro people, humane, articulate and all encompassing Hon Rabiu Alfa against developing the area and I begin to wonder how these people have greatly risen with high reputations in the society. While I’m particularly impressed about the contrary reality of these ill fated counsels, I begin to imagine how great and advanced Enjema and Ojoku districts would have been should it be that past representatives invested in the constituency in the area of social amenities and human capital developments rather than the ordeal the area had gone through.
However, the reality of a quote (“Do not worry about holding high position; worry rather about playing your proper role.”) by an ancient philosopher – Confucius beckoned on the day Hon Rabiu Alfa commissioned his projects. That day, to say Ankpa local government stood still will be an understatement, from the popular interlona junction to Emere all through the hills and valley of every village in Ankpa were amused by the calibre of personalities that have come from far and near to witness the historic ceremony of these projects unveiling. On arriving at some of the projects point, it was further revealed that some of those projects had long been in use without commissioning as he, Hon Rabiu prefers quenching the needs of such projects rather than leveraging them without effects on the welfare of the benefiting communities.
More so that the projects were agreed by a sectarian of party men who attended the town hall meeting where a constituency allowance cheque was presented without any skirmish, in the aftermath of the execution, the joy of the benefiting communities was that they had access to the various needs and so, no one cared much to know how the manna came.
Although that some would tend to argue where these projects are, such challenge is what ensures qualitative representation and by large extension strengthens accountability. If I argue that past representatives have nothing to point at, it becomes duty bound on me to point at where the incumbent member has done one or two things. Every sane mind knows that politicians who abuse the electorate are completely aware of their actions and have an absolute understanding that what they are doing is wrong. For me, there is no debate in this; otherwise, why would they go to the length of making promises year in year out? It is of course to cover up their deceits!
As far as accountability is concerned, it doesn’t really matter whether embezzlement is carried out by federal lawmakers or ex-governors in Nigeria, what matters is that in all of our communities, we cannot ignore the consequences of embezzlements. So, whoever is in position of authority; be it an old family member who spends family belongings in the wrong manner, a teacher who immorally crosses the line of justice against students, religious leaders who hide under the clandestine nature of their institutions or civil servants stealing under the guise of norm all play a part in breaking down schemes of how elements within our societies had made it stagnant from progression.
Indeed, Hon Alhaji Alfa Momoh Rabiu has personified accountability so much that he can be likened as “a big game with a small name”. This is because, aside other initiatives which recourses to his personal earnings and influence, Hon Alhaji Alfa Momoh Rabiu has through his constituency allowance ensured the execution of at least on project in each ward across Ankpa 2 constituency and they are in the following order;
-Enjema Ward 1: Construction of bore hole at Enjema
-Enjema Ward 2: Building of Open market shops at Ofugo
-Enjema Ward 3: Renovation of class room blocks at Inye
-Enjema Ward 4: Renovation of primary school blocks at LGEA Anyitata. And for Ojoku wards;
-Ojoku Ward 1: Building of Open Market shop at central market Ojoku agbodo
-Ojoku Ward 2: Fencing and erosion control at Okaba government secondary school
-Ojoku Ward 3: Building of Open market shops at Inyologu and
-Ojoku Ward 4: Building of open market shops at Ukwo doko market.
As a media aide and electorate too, I find it vitally important for every single individual to speak to their neighbors about the dangers that may come from the goons and machinery of be powers should they renege the chances of an already tasted and reliable representative in the like of Hon Rabiu Alfa as we head into another electoral dispensation. In order to protect our future and the developmental tendencies of Ankpa 2 constituency therefore, we must have good communication with ourselves, talk regularly, listen and make findings about the efforts of the serving lawmaker and then ratify his continuity should he decides to run for a second term. So, If in the unfortunate situation a candidate is imposed on us, it is most likely to be a keen contest and then, it becomes the responsibility of us to all rally round in physical and behavioral commitments to ensure our very own is not shortchanged.
Finally, it is the obligation of each and every one of us to protect our constituency from the occurrence of one of the worst crimes against electorates, candidate imposition and the starting point for that protection is celebrating our own. Aptly, there is no better way of such celebration than to religiously conserve his numerous gestures, surely, they will be the yardstick of his chronicles when the die is cast for narratives. Till then, only God gives power and we look on to him for continued guidance and direction in our daily affairs.
God Bless Hon Rabiu Alfa
God Bless Ankpa 2 Constituency
God Bless Ankpa Local Government Area
– Comrade A. M. Nasir is a Concerned Citizen and Public Opinion Moulder.
Can be reached Via His Mobile +234(0)7068416768, His Email, naadejohs@gmail.com Or twitter handle – @amnasiru

Spread the love



Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *