Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Local Government Area, Barrister George Ariolu, has said that his administration would continue to add value to the lives of indigenes and residents of the area.
The chairman gave this assertion during a meeting organised by the council to address successful candidates and beneficiaries of the Ph.D and Masters scholarship grants initiated by his administration.
Ariolu while addressing beneficiaries at the newly furnished council multi-purpose hall, expressed happiness with success of the initiative thus far, with the presentation of the grants.
He added that it was a dream come true for him, the council and beneficiaries.
“I’m highly elated to address you, the awardees. I’m seeing it as a dream come true. It all started as a dream and came out as a proposal. We are here today trying to actualize that proposal as we thank God for giving us this laudable project”.
He further reiterated that his administration was still focused on human capacity development.
He said the decision to embark on the scholarship programme was informed by the council’s desire to impact positively on the lives of the masses.
The chairman also appreciated God Almighty for enabling his administration to achieve huge developmental strides within such a short time, adding that it was the first of its kind in any LGA in Rivers State.
According to him, governance is a serious business and it’s all about the people and how to add value to the masses.
He also noted that the council desires to have a paradigm shift in its desire to reach out to the people.
While congratulating the beneficiaries, he disclosed that N500,000.00 and N700,000.00 would be received by each Masters and Ph.D, respectively.
This shows that the council is spending N25million for the Masters students and N35million for the PhD students.
Similarly, he stressed that out of over 2,000 persons that applied for the grants, 100 were successfully screened, with 50 selected for Ph.D and another 50 for Masters.
In his admonition, he encouraged beneficiaries to be studious and hard working as the council expects to have over 30 persons growing to the ranks of Professors within the LGA.
The chairman, who maintained that his administration was conscious of its commitment to the people, added that not only indigenes of Obio/Akpor benefitted but others from neighbouring LGAs and states who were resident in the area.
Also, he disclosed that the payment would be made in two tranches to further ward off misappropriation of funds by beneficiaries.
To this end, he said that 50percent would be disbursed to enable beneficiaries pay their fees and other sundry obligations, while the remaining 50percent would be paid during the examinations and thesis period, adding that he expects a better result from them.
He further revealed that the committee saddled with the responsibility to screen beneficiaries would in the period under review, monitor activities and progression of beneficiaries in their various schools as the grant issued to them was not a largesse.
He said the council expects returns in the form of positive results as it has expended a huge sum to ensure that beneficiaries get the best of quality education.
Ariolu urged beneficiaries to always project the LGA in good light as he intends to rewrite the narratives of the LGA using beneficiaries as ambassadors of Obio/Akpor to the world.
In his remarks, Secretary of the Screening Committee, Barrister Kelvin Akani, who spoke on behalf of the beneficiaries, thanked the chairman for his foresight towards engaging the youths meaningfully in the core areas of societal interest.
He also commended the chairman for his non-interference throughout the selection process by the committee.
Akani made it clear to the beneficiaries that the council expects nothing short of success stories from them.

By: Nelson Chukwudi