Politics
Rivers LGAs Are Autonomous – Hon Adiele
Mrs Okorite Carrie Adiele is the immediate past Caretaker Committee Chairman of Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State. In this interview with Opaka Dokubo, the former council boss shares her experience in office among sundry issues. Excerpts:
How would you describe your experience as chairperson for three months?
Fantastic! I had a good time with my people. I came down to earth with them. I saw them in their good selves and in their bad selves. I saw the political terrain of the local government area. The people, actually, had needed a governmental touch and in my own little way, I tried to give them the touch they had been yearning to get. I wish it was a little longer they would have had a reason to sing praises unto God.
What did you see as the most pressing need of the people?
I think they need healthcare facility, they need roads, they need water, they need electricity. These are the basic things that they had come demanding. To be honest, the people need adequate healthcare facility and I’m sure this was what His Excellency, Chief Nyesom Wike,Governor of Rivers State saw that made him to bring that cottage hospital to the area. Though it is still under construction, I know that by the time it is completed, it will be able to handle that basic problem of the people.
If given another opportunity, where will you concentrate your attention?
I would like to touch on the welfare of the youth. The youth really need attention. Secondly, the elderly ones really need some form of welfare packages if the economy was good enough, a monthly stipend of N5,000, N10,000 to the elderly would go a long way to help.
I really feel for them. Many times they come around and say they can do this, they can do that, they can farm, they can engage in one activity or the other. They are willing to do something but I could see age telling on them.
For the youths, yes they have all the energy but they really need orientation. Orientation in terms of having a skill or having some job to do as a source of livelihood. They need such orientation and the National Orientation Agency is trying.
The Orientation Officer there has ideas, he has wined and dined with them, he knew what the way forward for them is and I buy those his ideas.
If we could work on the basic things he had proposed to us, I can say that all these indulgences of our youths will be drastically reduced. He had a way to go with them but he didn’t have the where withall. If the government can come in, it will go a long way.
It has never been so good for women in Degema politically. what do you say?
It’s not been easy but in my own case, having been secretary of the council for eight months, the men were able to observe in me that women could also stand firm to take certain decisions, women can be trustworthy, they can keep up with the demands of administration. There are women out there who can even do much better but they have not had the opportunity to be there. That is why we praise His Excellency for giving women the opportunity. He open- handedly gave women the opportunity to come on board. He may have realised that women are wise, they could be knowledgeable and they can stand on their own administratively.
Take the example of our Deputy Governor, she has handled series of administrative jobs and found to be trustworthy in the past and now. She can be trusted at any level. There are women and there are women out there that can do it.
Women groups across the state have been calling on the governor to make himself available for election in 2019. Are DELGA women part of this?
Yes, DELGA Women are. In fact, women from all local government areas are. Women of Delga are even having a larger share of the number of women making the call. You know that our Deputy Governor is an indigene of Degema Local Government Area. We have come to realise that His Excellency has a special place in his heart for women. In decision making, women do well. He has confirmed that and that is why he has given us opportunity in strategic offices and we realise that it’s good we honour him, it’s good we say our kudos to him.
Be that as it may, we are still asking for more so that the percentage ratio can be increased in favour of women. He is quite good and he has given us the free hand to operate. We love him. He is a women-friendly governor and we want him over and over again. We cannot be tired of his type of governor.
Do you believe that the local government should be financially and administratively autonomous?
Autonomy is a principle. In this dispensation, the local government areas in Rivers State are invariably autonomous. Though His Excellency will tell you pay salaries, take care of security and all that, those are priority areas to him, but he has never imposed anything on anyone. He has left the local government administration to pure administrators to man the affairs of the local governments and there has not been any problems. So, I see the clamour for “freedom for Local Governments” as a mere principle.
If they say that the local government administration should be totally free, we are already experiencing that freedom in Rivers State. We are not being teleguided, we are not being controlled in any form. We are free, we know how to organise ourselves, we do our meetings, we take our decisions. Under the present administration in Rivers State, we experience a whole lot of freedom at the local government level.
Make a case for women involvement in politics in Nigeria
At the state level, I would wish more women to be in the State House of Assembly making the laws and policies. I would wish women to be at the helm of major parastatals in the state. Even at the federal level, I would wish women to be in the finance sector. This is because, of a truth, women have a certain level of reservation. They have their husbands to protect, they have their children to protect, they have their homes to protect and they have their world to protect.
As much as possible, there is a certain level of sanity in a woman’s life. The fear of embezzlement is more in women than in men. That’s the reality of it. Even at the family level, though you have the man, the family is invariably run by the woman. The man may be bringing the money, yes, but if you look at the nitty-gritty of family life, women are at the helm of affairs. I would wish judges, to be more of women, House of Assembly members to be more of women, etc and you will see our society grow. Let the percentage ratio between men and women be more in favour of women in politics and governance and the society will be better for it.
In your opinion, has the PDP, the ruling party in Rives State, done enough to win again in 2019 and the forthcoming local government elections?
Yes, the PDP has done enough. In Rivers State, they have done enough. In spite of the lean financial inflow into government coffers, inspite of the stiff opposition, in spite of the fact that PDP is not the party in government at the centre, if you take Rivers State as a case study, you will find out that PDP has more to offer to the people of Nigeria than any other party can do.
PDP is more realistic, it is more practical, it is more friendly, it is more humane; it has a broad spectrum. PDP is not the type of party that is conservative and becomes an embodiment of autocracy. PDP is a pure democratic party. It is a pleasure to identify with PDP anyday anytime in terms of behavioural pattern, in terms of manliness, in terms of courage. PDP is such a bold party that fears no odds.
I know PDP has done enough to win, even at the federal level.
A senator who represented Taraba Central, Mr Abubakar Yusuf, has declared that the economic policies of President Bola Tinubu are not yielding the expected results.
His comment is one of the strongest internal critiques yet from within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
The comment underscores the growing dissatisfaction within sections of the ruling party over the direction and impact of the administration’s economic reforms amid rising living costs and fiscal pressures across the country.
Mr Yusuf, who served in the Senate between 2015 and 2023 under the platform of the APC, made the remarks during an appearance on national television.
Responding to a question on whether the administration’s economic direction, often referred to as Tinubunomics, was working, Mr Yusuf answered in the contrary.
“For me, it is not working. I am a member of the APC. I would be the last person to hide the facts”, he said.
He said while the government might be operating diligently within its policy structure, the framework itself is ill-suited to Nigeria’s current realities
“Within the policy framework, yes, they are doing their best, but it is not the framework that is suitable for Nigeria at the point in time that President Asiwaju came into power,” he said.
Mr Yusuf criticised the immediate removal of fuel subsidy on the day the president was sworn in, arguing that the decision lacked sufficient consultation and planning.
“I am one of those who say President Asiwaju ought to have waited. Not on the day he was sworn in to say subsidy is gone. On what basis?”, he asked.
He urged broader engagement before major fiscal decisions are taken.
“Sit down with your cabinet, sit down with your ministers, sit down with your advisers,” he said, dismissing the argument that subsidy removal was justified solely on grounds of corruption.
The former lawmaker identified “structural flaws” in the country’s budgeting system, particularly the envelope budgeting model.
“One of the basic problems is that before you budget, you should have a plan. The envelope system we have been operating has been you budget before you plan. That has been a major issue”, he said.
He argued that allocating spending ceilings without aligning them to concrete development strategies inevitably weakens implementation and delivery.
“If you give me an envelope which is contrary to my plan, whether it is plus or minus, there is no way I am going to implement my plan. It is bound to fail,” he said.
Mr Yusuf called for the scrapping of the envelope budgeting system, noting that he had consistently opposed it even during his years in the National Assembly.
“It is not good for us. It is not going to work well for us,” he said.
He further blamed poor capital releases and persistent deficit financing for undermining budget performance over the years.
“We could not meet 60 percent of our capital budget in all these years. No releases. If you make a budget and the release is very poor, there is no way the budget will be executed”, he stated.
According to him, weak fund disbursement mechanisms and reliance on deficit financing have entrenched a cycle of underperformance.
“Our budget ought to have been a surplus budget, but all our budgets have always been deficit financing budgets,” Mr Yusuf added.
The Nigerian House of Representatives has resolved to reconvene for an emergency session tomorrow February 17, 2026, to deliberate on issues arising from the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) release of the timetable for the 2027 general elections.
The decision was disclosed in a statement issued by the House Spokesman, Rep. Akin Rotimi, who described the electoral body’s announcement as one of “constitutional and national significance.”
INEC had fixed February 20, 2027, for the Presidential and National Assembly elections.
According to the statement, members of the Green Chamber were notified of the emergency sitting through an internal memorandum from the Speaker’s office.
The session is expected to focus on legislative matters connected to the newly released timetable, reflecting the House’s resolve to act promptly on issues affecting the nation’s democratic process.
Rep. Rotimi noted that all related businesses would be treated with urgency and urged lawmakers to prioritise attendance in view of the importance of the deliberations.
INEC had on Friday formally unveiled the comprehensive schedule for the 2027 polls, including timelines for party primaries slated for July to September 2026, as well as the commencement of Continuous Voter Registration in April 2026.
The development comes amid ongoing consultations and proposed amendments to the Electoral Act ahead of the 2027 general elections.
As the controversy over the transmission of election results continues across the country, the Defence For Human Rights And Democracy (DHRD), a pro democracy organisation in the country, has criticised the National Assembly for not giving express approval to real time transmission of elections results.
To this end, the group is calling on all civil society organisations in the country to mobilise and push for a better Electoral Reform in the country.
This was contained in a press statement titled, “Defence For Human Rights and Democracy Demands Real Time Election Transmission of Result”, a copy of which was made available to newsmen in Port Harcourt.
The group described the refusal of compulsory real time transmission of result results by the Senate as undemocratic, adding that the situation will give room for election manipulation, rigging and voters apathy.
It said that the provision of mandatory real time transmission of election results would have significant improvement on the nation’s democracy.
According to the statement, “Since the return of democracy in 1999 to date, it is 27 years, so our Democracy has metamorphosed from being nascent and as such significant improvement should have been recorded.
“Defence For Human Rights And Democracy (DHRD), is really disappointed at the National Assembly, especially the upper chamber (Senate) for not approving ‘Real Time Electronic Transmission of Election Result’.
“This undemocratic act of theirs, if not tamed, will give room for election manipulation and rigging’”.
Signed by Comrade Clifford Christopher Solomon on behalf of the organisation, the statement further said, “The Defence For Human Rights and Democracy unequivocally supports real time transmission of election result”, stressing that his group will resist any act by the National Assembly to undermine the nation’s democracy.
“DHRD,unequivocally supports ‘True Democracy’, which is Government of the people, by the people and for the people.
“Therefore, anything that will crash the hope of Nigerians to Freely, Fairly and Transparently elect candidates of their choice in any given election should and will be vehemently resisted because good governance begins with leaders elected through credible process. By so doing, leaders have entered a social contract with the citizens to equitably manage their affairs and abundant resources”, the statement added.
It urged the National Assembly to revisit the issue in order to avoid civil unrest.
According to the DHRD, “To avoid civil unrest,voters apathy, election rigging and manipulation, rather to promote citizens participation, advancing our Democracy and entrenching free, fair, credible and acceptable electoral outcome, the National Assembly should amend the electoral act in a manner that will deepen our democracy and boost citizens confidence.
“On this note, The Defence For Human Rights And Democracy (DHRD), is calling on all other civil society organisations (CSOs) to mobilise, organise and push for a better electoral act amendment by the National Assembly”.
By: John Bibor