The Lumine News

Tag: #Agba Jalingo

  • Cross River Northerners, Open Your Eyes… BY AGBA JALINGO

    Cross River Northerners, Open Your Eyes… BY AGBA JALINGO

     

    If you are from Cross River North, kindly come with me. There is something important which you may already know but may not have given thought to, that I want to put in context for you.

    Do you know that by land mass, all the five local governments that make up Cross River North, put together, are smaller than Akamkpa LGA? That means the Chairman of Akamkpa LGA is ruling over a land space bigger than the one ruled by the five LGA Chairmen of Northern Cross River, combined.

    Ogoja is 972 km². Yala LGA has an area of 1,739 km². Obudu is 591.7km². Obanlikwu is 1,057km². And Bekwarra LGA is 306km². All the five combined, sum up to 4,665.7km². Akamkpa LGA alone has a land area of 5,049km². That means Akamkpa is bigger than the whole Cross River North by 383.3km². The remainder is still bigger than Bekwarra LGA. That also means Akamkpa alone is bigger than the entire Lagos State, which has a meagre land area of just 3,475 km².

    Cross River North, however has a combined population of 1,116,700 people out of a total population of 4.406million for the whole State. That’s 25.3 percent of the State population. Between July to September (third quarter, 2024), from official FG documents, the five LGAs of Cross River North, also received net allocation totalling N5,349,067,043 from FAAC, excluding internally generated revenues.

    So, 1,116,700 people, living within 4,664.7km square of land, were allocated N5.34billion in three months from FAAC. If you multiply this by four quarters of the year, that’s over N20billion. This is excluding internally generated revenues. Let’s also look at the constituency development funds allocated to Cross River North, through our federal lawmakers which also run into hundreds of millions of Naira. We have one Senator and two House of Reps members.

    Looking ahead, let us project positively that this financial routine will repeat itself or even perform better and Cross River North will within the next 12 months, get say 30billion in remittances from both FAAC, IGR and Federal Constituency Development Funds, let us also assume that the encumbrances that used to swallow up LG allocations have been torpedoed by the Supreme Court judgment, is it not time to begin to ask questions about where these monies will be spent?

    With this volume of resources, entering a space smaller than Akamkpa LGA, there is no tenable reason why our leaders cannot rebuild our water works instead of drilling boreholes, why they can’t give us electricity instead of rechargeable lamps they call street lights, why they can’t give us health insurance and equip our Primary Health centers, instead of three days health outreaches, why they can’t give us motorable roads, instead of bikes and kekes, why they can’t ensure food security instead of sharing rice and noddles and handouts? why they can’t give children free basic education instead of driving kids away from schools over illegal levies.

    Comparatively, there is no reason why Cross River North should not be ahead of other parts of Cross River State and that should perturb our leaders who seem more concerned now about their personal egos and retention of power than the gruelling conditions of our people.

    We just lost the golden opportunity of changing the fortunes of the North as the last eight years were blown away by our brother. The people who told us they were stepping in to rescue us should know that we will also hold them to account. They didn’t promise the people that they will step in and fight themselves. They didn’t tell us there were stepping in to divide and rule and hoodwink us. The people of the North know how to ask questions at the right time, and we will ask if the work is not done.

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

    Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Agba Jalingo, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for 

     

  • What Is In A Name…. BY AGBA JALINGO

    What Is In A Name…. BY AGBA JALINGO

    Edited

    What Is In A Name….

    If you are still entangled in that hog wash about how names determine destinies and the Jabez and Jacob fable, then let us have a conversation.

    Bush is a shrub or clump of shrubs. But two Bushes (father and son), became Presidents of the US and their two sons became governors, and their mother became the only woman in America to be first lady and later first mother of the US.

    A thatcher is a person whose job is making roofs from straw or reeds. Yet Margaret Thatcher rose to become the first female UK Prime Minister.

    Rice – Is a grass or grain which is widely cultivated as a source of food. Yet Condoleezza Rice, rose to become America’s Secretary of State and she is also a Stanford University Professor.

    Stout is a beer, yet Christy Lu Stout, a CNN presenter, is one of the most popular faces on Earth.

    Dick is the male genital organ. Yet Dick Cheney became the Vice President of the US.

    Pussy is the female genital organ. Yet Pussy Jones is known till date as one of the most successful and prolific rugby union centers, who played club rugby for Cardiff and international rugby for Wales.

    Hemp is cannabis sativa. Yet Lauren Hemp became England’s Young Female Player of the Year in 2017, and still reigning as one of the best female footballers in the UK.

    Bill means, a printed or written statement of the money owed for goods or services, in order words, debt. And Gate means, a hinged barrier. Yet Gill Gates, is the fifth richest man in the world.

    Musk means, a strong-smelling reddish-brown substance secreted by the male musk deer. Yet Elon Musk is the richest man in the world.

    Ṣóyínká means, I am surrounded by sorcerers. Yet Wole Soyinka became Africa’s first Nobel Laureate.

    Fáyẹmí means, Ifá suits me. Yet Kayode Fayemi became governor and minister of the federal republic.

    Fáyóṣé means, Ifá will do it. And Ifa did it for Ayo Fayose, who became governor of Ekiti State.

    Tinúbú means,
    ti – belonging to
    inú – inside of
    ibú – the deep (ocean). Yet the ocean boy became governor of Lagos and President of Nigeria.

    Fáwẹ̀hìnmi means, Ifá watches my back. And Ifa watched the back of Gani Fawehinmi until he became Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Senior Advocate of the Masses and Nigeria’s most popular freedom fighter.

    Fálànà means, Ifá cleared the path. And Ifa has cleared the path for Femi Falana who has also become a Senior Advocate of Nigeria and the most popular CSO voice in Nigeria today after the death of Fawehinmi. His wife is also a SAN.

    Fáshọlá means, Ifá makes wealth. And God made Babatunde Fashola governor of Lagos state and Minister of the Federal Republic.

    My mother’s name till her passing was ‘Uwhanye’, meaning Barren. Yet she saw her great grand children before she died.

    Yet, we have seen so many people bearing Blessing, who have never been blessed. We have seen those bearing Abundance, who are living in lack. We have seen those bearing Marvelous, who are dangerous.

    Whether anyone will succeed in this life is dependent on the level of work you put in and the grace of God that waters the work. It also depends on the knowledge you acquire and how you are able to use it to the benefit of the world. The meaning, the spelling, the sound or texture of your name has nothing to do with it unless in a nepotistic country like Nigeria where your ethnic group and your name is what determines whether you will succeed or not.

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

    Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Agba Jalingo, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for 

     

  • Dear Minister Ojo, As You Investigate Afokang Prison…. BY AGBA JALINGO 

    Dear Minister Ojo, As You Investigate Afokang Prison…. BY AGBA JALINGO 

     

    Thank you for giving prompt attention to the situation in Afokang Prison in Calabar. As the investigation panel you have set up begins their work, I believe there are problems within the prison system that you already know.

    I do not believe that the photos that our news platform, CrossRiverWatch, obtained from Afokang prison are a shock to you or that you are not aware that inmates are going through same and even worse conditions in different prisons across the country.

    A combination of inadequate budgetary provision, corruption and low morale amongst personnel, has exposed inmates to some of the most terrible prison conditions in the whole world.

    As you investigate Sir, my own suggestions on inmates feeding will be that:

    1. Presently, inmates feeding is covered by procurement laws. Because of its nature, and the security implication it poses, inmates feeding should be done directly from the office of the CG of the Correctional Service, under Direct Contract Award, DCA. Should anything go wrong, we know who to hold accountable. This will reduce the pilfering in the present situation where top guns in the service share inmate’s feeding contracts amongst themselves and then resell, while some get kick backs before approving for a contractor.

    2. The current approved cost of inmate ration is N1,125 per inmate, per day. Divide that by three square meals and it amounts to N375 per meal. With the very high cost of food items in the market now, it is common knowledge that N375, cannot afford a good meal in Nigeria today. They has to be supplementary appropriation to capture the rise in food prices.

    3. Most of the ration contractors who supply food to the Correctional facilities are serving and/or retired top officers of the service and their cronies. They decide what to send to the officers heading various prisons who are usually called – “In-charge Stations”, to use for the purchase of inmates’ ration on a monthly basis. Having run stations as In-charges before, these ration contractors know the sharp practices involved and are aware that sometimes, public spirited individuals and organizations donate raw food items for inmates. This has to be corrected.

    4. Out of the N1,125 per meal, per inmate, appropriated, most ration contractors give In-charge stations, a paltry N280 to N300 per meal per inmate.

    5. Morale amongst the service personnel is so low due to low pay. They are poorly paid. Which is one of the reasons they continue to share inmates ration amongst themselves and facilitate trafficking of banned items into prison yards.

    6. Officers are promoted without placement for more than a year. And when they are finally placed, promotional arrears are not paid. No training or course allowances, no transfer allowance. They print their ID cards in business centers. They don’t have uniformed IDs. They buy and sew their uniforms from the open markets.

    7. The only time the service personnel see extra income is when they are made in-charge stations, and are close to retirement. And that becomes an opportunity to amass every available funds to settle themselves knowing that at retirement, their pension is nothing to write home about.

    8. As a long term measure, the Correction Service should begin thinking of putting their various farm centers into maximum use so they can produce food that would be used to feed inmates.

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

    Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Agba Jalingo, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for 

  • Death In Jail, A Call To Action… BY AGBA JALINGO

    Death In Jail, A Call To Action… BY AGBA JALINGO

     

    Two awaiting trial inmates in Afokang Prison, in Calabar, Mr. Ntiero Effiong and Mr. Okon Eke, died two Wednesdays ago in their cells due to illnesses related to malnutrition. Another awaiting trial inmate died today Sunday in Cell A1, a cell holding over 79 inmates. The third inmate, an elderly man, was brought in since 2021 in good shape, but due to malnutrition, he developed multiple illnesses that saw parts of his body decaying.

    It is worthy of note that all three dead inmates are awaiting trial detainees who were never convicted by any court, of the alleged crime(s) that took them to Afokang prison. They were still presumed innocent until proven otherwise. But they have died without a chance to defend themselves. Whether they were guilty or not, their friends, neighbours, family members and the world, would conclude that they committed crimes and were sent to go and die in jail. The guilt will live with their loved ones forever, yet they weren’t given a chance to defend themselves.

    The new trending pictures and videos of what is served to inmates in Afokang Prison as food are horrible, to say the least. Higher authorities have to intervene and do something promptly. The federal government budgeted N24,447,582,237 for the feeding and welfare of inmates in 2024. The prison authorities also complained that the money isn’t adequate for the needs of the inmates. As at 26th of August 2024, the month that just ended yesterday, the total number of inmates in all the prisons in Nigeria was 84,575 and only 26,913 have been convicted. The remaining 57,662 are awaiting trial inmates and I can bet that more than 50 percent of them are innocent based on previous conviction statistics.

    So before you conclude those who go to prison are criminals that must be allowed to suffer and die, you need those figures to get clarity that many of those who are there are actually there for no reason. Yours sincerely has been to several prisons for no reason. All the courts I was taken to, said I didn’t do any wrong and acquitted me. But I went through several jails. Such is the fate of many locked behind those iron bars. And for many of them, they may never get a fair chance to defend themselves like the three that have died and many others dying in jails across the country.

    Catering to the needs and welfare of people in prisons is an injunction written in every known holy book of all known religions. It is not a favor that those who are free are doing to those who are held, it is rather a command to mankind to be our brother’s keeper, knowing that anyone can be a victim of a decayed society where we don’t watch out for one another.

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

  • Still On Obudu Chairmanship: Where Is Your Manifesto? BY AGBA JALINGO 

    Still On Obudu Chairmanship: Where Is Your Manifesto? BY AGBA JALINGO 

     

    The regular flyers that aspirants go to design and print in any business center usually have ambiguities on them, which usually include:

    i. Beautiful studio pictures treated with apps. Even if the aspirant no fine, he or she will be fine in the picture.

    ii. Youths and women empowerment.

    iii. Job creation.

    iv. Human capital development.

    v. Peace and security.

    vi. Social amenities.

    The truth is that, none of those things are the core functions of the local government. Not even one of them.

    There are specific functions of the LGAs that take their subheads.

    1. Payment of salaries and allowances of primary health care workers.
    2. Payment of salaries and allowances of primary school teachers.
    3. Payment of salaries and allowances of traditional rulers.
    4. Payment of salaries and allowances of LGA staff.
    5. Payment of salaries and allowances of elected LGA officials and appointees.

    Let’s even assume for instance that you claim you want to create jobs, which you should, you must break it down and let the voters know how those jobs will be created. Just writing job creation in your campaign poster doesn’t amount to anything. Tell us how you will achieve it.

    Let me break it down further. Assuming I have the faintest interest in the office of the Obudu LGA Chair, if I write “Job Creation”, I will further tell you the sectors and projected numbers of jobs I intend to create within a set period of time.

    For instance, it is the duty of local governments to register and regulate the operation of motor and bike parks. As Chairman of Council, I will first of all, deliberately saturate the 10 wards of Obudu LGA with open wifi hubs using Elon Musk’s Starlink Internet. It is presently the fastest Internet service available in the market and it works everywhere without a need to lay cables or build masts, because it is satellite internet. 20 of those devices and cell extenders will cost the council approximately N50m plus installation and control center, and that will put two devices in each of the ten Wards.

    This will create the infrastructure for registration and capturing the over 10,000 commercial Okada bikes in Obudu LGA into a portal like “Gokada.” It will become a real time transport service similar to BOLT in operation, and the Council will formalize and standardize that sector and create at least 500 formal jobs, excluding the riders. The Council will also generate tens of millions of Naira from every ride and riders registration and boost the IGR of the LGA.

    Every bike in Obudu will have a digital ID and if it is used for any crime or should a passenger lose any ware while on transit or gets missing or hurt, the bike and the rider will be easily tracked and brought to book. This can be achieved within six months.

    It is also possible to identify locations in Ohong, Utugwang, Ofambe where men and women speak different languages, and other mini urban towns in Obudu and deliberately develop gardens with embedded rented shops and restaurants like “Jedy Garden” where we all relax when we go to Abuja. This will create another 500 direct jobs and revenue spots that will also up the IGR of the State. Tickets from visitors and off-the-pocket expenses will generate money for Council and locals.

    Affordable fire proof prefab building materials can be brought in to couple at least 200 shops at the main Katube Market in Obudu town and 50 shops each, in Kazul, Udama, Lifembe and Ohong Markets. The prefab materials are not very expensive and they are readily available. This will modernize those markets and generate additional jobs and revenue for Council and empower local peasants.

    This is not a campaign document. It is just a random maze on how to break the manifesto ambiguities down to the understanding of the voter so we can know where you stand and command thunder to fire you properly, when you refuse to keep your word.

    So stop giving us bogus copy and paste campaign posters. Go to work and think and come back with sectorial and thematic details of what you wish to do as Obudu LGA Chairman. Una don pass 15 aspirants. If you have nothing in your head, abeg clear road and share the grace so that we can properly screw the serious ones.

    I mean the next Obudu Chairman o. No be joke o.

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

    Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Agba Jalingo, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for.

  • Obudu LGA Chairman, Do You Still Want To Run? BY AGBA JALINGO

    Obudu LGA Chairman, Do You Still Want To Run? BY AGBA JALINGO

     

    Our Governor has given assurances that LG elections will soon be conducted in Cross River State. He has also indicated that he will like to see people who are humble and desirous of serving their people emerge as Chairmen and not those who want to go and amass lucre. That is a good benchmark if you ask me. So all political parties should get ready.

    If indeed, the allocations of the LGAs begin to go directly to the councils as directed by the Supreme Court, I wish to earnestly beg those who know nothing about governance, but want to enrich themselves from Council allocations, particularly in Obudu LGA, to desist from wasting their money on consultations and campaigns.

    The reason is simply that, you won’t be able to steal. Even if you succeed in stealing, what you will pilfer won’t be much to make you rich. Because we will hold you accountable inch by inch. And let me tell you how. You may want to copy this in your LGA, if you find it useful.

    1. Cross River State signed on to the Open Governance Project OGP, in 2020. That imposes a duty on government at all levels in the State to come clear on the activities of the government and put everything in the open.

    2. LGA Chairmen do not have immunity. They can be sued while in office. They can even be jailed while in office.

    3. We will track all income to the LGA from Abuja. All that information is available from the federal budget office and the office of the Accountant General of the Federation. All financial receipts to Obudu Council will be tracked diligently and meticulously.

    4. We will officially write under the Freedom of Information FOI law, and demand for details of monthly FAAC allocations, monthly Internally Generated Revenue IGR, record of expenditure vis-a-vis, salaries and allowances of LG workers, political appointees, health and primary school workers, traditional rulers.

    5. We will officially write under the Freedom of Information FOI law, and demand for forensic examination of the total number of people on the LGA payroll and what their statutory pay is.

    6. We will officially write under the Freedom of Information FOI law, and demand records of expenditure on LGA projects and interventions.

    7. We anticipate that the LGA Chairman will be recalcitrant to respond to our demands, so we are also working already with Firsts Baba Isa Esq and his team, to ensure that we sue the Chairman and ask the Court to compel the Council to make all details of the Council’s income and expenditure available to the public who own the money. We are prepared to file as many cases as can give us a victory on this. We believe that the courts will oblige. The judges aren’t dumb. God forbid!

    8. We will create an Open Governance website and publicly document how the Chairman and his cabinet spend our money every month. Everyone from Obudu or anywhere in the world can simply log on to the portal any time of the day and see clearly how our money is working for us.

    9. We will give real time, accurate, factual and objective reports of Obudu local government developmental strides and interventions.

    10. If our money is misappropriated, embezzled or siphoned, we will drag the Obudu LGA Chairman to EFCC and ICPC. Remember the Chairman will not have immunity.

    11. If the Chairman does well and develops Obudu, we will sing his or her praises to high heavens and roll the drums on the streets.

    In my opinion, I think this is fair to the next Chairman of Obudu LGA. This will assist him or her to stay on track and concentrate on giving us value for money.

    I hope you still want to run?

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

    Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Agba Jalingo, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for.

  • Sweden, A Nation With “No Excellencies…” BY AGBA JALINGO

    Sweden, A Nation With “No Excellencies…” BY AGBA JALINGO

     

    Did you know that, Sweden, a Scandinavian nation that transformed itself from an impoverished, agricultural society into one of the wealthiest, most socially just and least corrupt countries in the world, is a nation with ‘no excellencies?’

    1. Sweden does not offer luxury or privileges to its politicians. They do not treat their elected officials differently than the citizens?

    2. Swedish Ministers and MPs do not have official cars or private drivers. They travel in crowded buses and trains, just like the citizens they represent.

    3. They are not allowed to have private secretaries and their parliamentary offices are as small as 8m².

    4. Swedish politicians who dare to spend public money on taxi journeys, instead of riding the train, end up on news headlines.

    5. Even the Speaker of Parliament (Riksdag), receives a card to use public transportation.

    6. Only the Prime Minister has the right to use a car from the security forces on a permanent basis.

    7. Swedish parliamentarians live in tiny apartments in the capital, where they wash and iron their own clothes in communal laundries.

    8. At the municipal level, unlike our LGA Councilors and Houses of Assembly members who live large on our resources, Swedish councillors do not even earn a salary.

    9. They do not have a right to an office. They work from home.

    10. According to Business Insider, an MP in Sweden earns $78,000 a year. That’s less than the quarterly office running cost of a Nigerian parliamentarian.

    11. When foreign Heads of States visit Sweden, they sometimes ride with their Prime Minister in public transportation.

    12. Judges also do not have the right to official cars, private secretaries or perks.

    13. A former Swedish Deputy Prime Minister, Mona Sahlin, once bought a bar of chocolate, nappies and some other personal items with a government credit card. There was national uproar and she lost her job. The scandal went down in the annals of Swedish politics as the “Toblerone Case.”

    14. Yet, Sweden tops as the number one country with the best quality of life and social purpose on Earth.

    15. Sweden is ranked the best country to be a woman and raise children in, and for a sustainable lifestyle.

    16. Health care and college education are free in Sweden and its people boast one of the longest life expectancies in the world.

    17. Almost all of Sweden’s trash is recycled.

    18. Swedes donate about 1 percent of their gross national product to humanitarian aid programs around the world each year.

    19. The literacy level in Sweden is 99 per cent.

    20. Sweden is recognized for having an abundance of clean air, given its high tree cover percentage, and they have the highest number of non-religious population in the world.

    How did a non-religious society come to love simplicity, humanity and even God, more than the very religious nations, who are struggling to produce honest leaders that can give their people basic rights?

    Why do non-productive leaders in struggling countries prefer to spend more public money on their personal luxuries than on the welfare of the people that voted for them?

    How did a nation with no excellencies, manage to become so excellent, while nations filled with countless excellencies, are unable to become excellent?

    Think about it and decide today to be part of building a new Nigeria that will at least, have less excellencies.

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

    Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Agba Jalingo, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for 

  • Letter To Next Obudu LG Chair…. BY AGBA JALINGO

    Letter To Next Obudu LG Chair…. BY AGBA JALINGO

     

    Dear Chair, you are not yet in office. I do not know who you will be. But whoever it turns out to be, I am writing you this letter because, I am still assuming, albeit confidently that with the Supreme Court judgment on LG allocation, which has ordered that FAAC allocation should be paid directly into LGA accounts, you will be getting an average of N200million monthly, as Obudu LGA Chairman. It could be much higher some months.

    I am taking this queue from what the Council got from federal allocation from January to December 2023. It amounted to N3.2billion only. That information is from BudGIT and the Budget office. Using the same template, you will receive nearly N10billion in a three year tenure, and that doesn’t include Internally Generated Revenue IGR. You will agree with me that this money is massive. The excuse for non performance was that, most of the money is captured by the State Governor and doesn’t get to the Council. Now that the governor may not be able to siphon the money again, there shouldn’t be any excuse for failure.

    Let us assume Mr. Chairman that, you spend half of your monthly N200m on your overhead and other pressing political exigencies, including the money you will ‘steal’, because you will, what will you do with the remaining N100million x 12 months x three years? How will you use it for the development of our LGA? Give us an idea! Break it down to the ordinary man because the LGA is for the ordinary man.

    Do you know the total number of schools and children enrolment and out of school children in Obudu? Do you appreciate the relevance of modern learning tools and technology in early education? Will primary education in Obudu under your leadership be free or paid for by pupils? Do you know the number of health centers in Obudu and their current state? Do you know anything about infant and maternal mortality and the trailing figures in Obudu? How many kilometers of roads does Obudu have? Which ones are in Trunk C? Which of them are more strategic to rapid development? Do you have this information? Does it ever cross your mind that these questions are pertinent?

    I am asking because we will track the money from Abuja down home. That is for your information. The reason is because the money belongs to us. Not you. If indeed the money is paid directly into our LGA account, we will not allow you transfer it to the Governor under any guise unless for pending or arising obligations. If for any reason, the Governor finds a means to withhold the allocation, even through the House of Assembly, we will rise together and fight with you until we get our money. I will personally join you in that fight.

    But what will you use the money for? We need to know. That is very critical. Say it in very clear terms. Write it down for us in black and white, let us copy it as your assessment card and marking scheme. In other words, we need to see your detailed work program.

    Also remember Mr. Chairman, the fourth schedule of the Nigerian Constitution, clearly spells out the functions of the Local Government Areas LGAs.

    1. Construction and maintenance of roads, gardens, street lights, drains, public highways, parks and public conveniences.

    2. Registration of deaths, marriages and births.

    3. Establishment and maintenance of slaughterhouses, markets and motor parks.

    4. Naming of roads, streets, and numbering of houses.

    5. Establishment and maintenance of cemeteries and burial grounds and homes for the destitute and infirm.

    6. Provision and maintenance of health services.

    7. Development of natural and agricultural resources, except for the exploitation of mineral resources.

    8. Provision of primary, adult and vocational education.

    9. Licensing of bicycles, trucks (other than mechanically propelled trucks), canoes, wheelbarrows and carts.

    10. Provision and maintenance of public transportation and refuse disposal systems.

    11. Assessment of privately owned houses or tenements for the purpose of levying such rates as may be prescribed by the House of Assembly of the State.

    12. Control and regulation of outdoor advertising, movement and keeping of pets of all descriptions, shops and kiosks, restaurants and other places for sale of food to the public, and laundries.

    With the exception of number 1, number 6, and number 8, which are government services, all the other nine functions of the LGAs listed supra, are revenue earners. Very heavy revenue earners. Look at the list again.

    How do you intend to leverage on those nine revenue earners to internally generate revenue for the upgrade of health and educational facilities in the LGA, without putting too much burden of taxation on the people? People will willingly pay taxes for development, but not for the upkeep of politicians.

    Tell us your reach and exposure. What strings will you be able to pull to attract external resources into the LGA within your tenure? Where are those places you can see opportunities outside the LGA?

    Apart from the recent surge in gang violence and the perennial communal clashes with the Tivs, Obudu is generally a peaceful place that draws people with its hospitable ambience. With the right balance and intentional strategies, proper harnessing of those revenue heads can yield as much as another 100million monthly, if not more.

    So dear Chair, kindly do the good people of Obudu and break these questions down in a simple document that we can understand and run with. That will help us to properly assess you and determine whether you deserve our vote or not.

    Thank you and God bless you.

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

    Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Agba Jalingo, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for.

  • Who Is The Next Chairman Of Obudu LGA? BY AGBA JALINGO

    Who Is The Next Chairman Of Obudu LGA? BY AGBA JALINGO

     

    I am a bit excited at the ongoing effort to ensure LG funds get to elected Chairmen.

    Many persons have been talking to me from my LGA, Obudu in Cross River State, about their intention to run for Chairman in the planned election.

    On average, Obudu LGA gets an average of N200million monthly allocation on paper, before the capture of the money by the Governor. If for any good reason this money or even half of it, begins to end up with the elected Chairmen, I please want to say some things to those who want to run Obudu.

    If you don’t have anything in your brain about development of local communities, please bury the thought of running for the office. Look for another job or an appointment in Calabar. This is not about certificates obtained from UNICAL, it is about the existentialist challenges facing our people. It is about competence and exposure. Not distribution of palliatives and spreading gangsterism.

    Please you will not use zoning and acclaimed number of years spent in your party to seek emotional and undeserved favor; if you don’t have track record and competence.

    All of you hopping about and shouting how you have been loyal for years; loyal to what? That’s not a criteria for development.

    Your dubious god-fathers may get you the ticket and the office but you won’t have peace of mind in that office if you don’t have capacity. We will breathe down the throat of anyone who is going next into that office. The person must show evidence of performance. Enough of going in there and leaving without doing anything.

    Almost all the people aspiring for that office are my contemporaries. We are within the same age bracket. I do not have any interest but I have maximum interest in making sure that none of my contemporaries will enter that office and take Obudu people for granted again. Never again!

    So consider your options before running. Run away, if you don’t have a clear and practical program. Because me like this, I will drag you morning, afternoon, evening and night. I will drag you in the media, in the courts, physically, and spiritually. Enough of this suffering and looting. So help us God!

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

    Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Agba Jalingo, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for.

  • No Mind Them, Idle Jobless People…. BY AGBA JALINGO

    No Mind Them, Idle Jobless People…. BY AGBA JALINGO

    No Mind Them, Idle Jobless People….

    That was the comment someone I know, wrote somewhere yesterday after the Managing Editor of CrossRiverWatch, Jonathan Ugbal was arrested in Calabar by the Police for joining the ongoing nation wide protest. Like I said, I know the person. He has never worked after his NYSC because there are no jobs in Nigeria. He is only waiting, hanging around politicians, abusing others for politicians and hoping to be made PA in Governor Otu’s government. But he is calling me and Jonathan, ‘jobless people” because we are protesting that the country should be better for people like him.

    The irony which I want to write about is that, it is those who suffer the most because of hardship in Nigeria that are up against those who can take care of themselves, but still choose to stake their lives for the poor. I work, I pay salaries every month end. I just did. I have been doing this for fourteen years. I pay office rents in Calabar. I have overhead cost every month. Jonathan works. He earns a pay. Apart from CrossRiverWatch, he is such a multi talented young man that is also doing several other things to augment his earnings.

    When we sent him to Government House in Calabar as CrossRiverWatch Correspondent under Governor Ayade, the Governor rather decided to turn him to SA Media. The governor told me and I asked Jonathan if he wanted the job and he bluntly refused. I called Governor Ayade and told him, Jonathan cannot be his SA. Governor Ayade is alive. Jonathan insisted that he wanted to learn and grow his career in journalism.

    I could have been anything that is not elected in the immediate past and present Cross River State Governments if I wanted to. I mean any position apart from the ones up for elections. I could even blend into a federal government hatchet man and make dirty money. I think I have the credibility and know many people in there to make that happen.

    But we have decided to carry placards not because we are suffering or incapable of eating. We are doing it for the sake of those who are abusing us. We also know how to stay away and enjoy ourselves and watch others being killed and brutalized on TV by security agents. We also can decide to travel abroad and stay there. We can get visas. In fact, our passports have some visas, and when we travel, we are in a hurry to return home.

    Falana, Sowore, and very many other comrades around the country, who always dare to stand in front of those armoured tanks are all employers of labor who can take maximum care of themselves and many others. They all have alternatives and can decide to keep quiet. Yet they stake their lives for those who abuse them for not giving up the fight for a better country.

    But that’s ok because no one sent us. It is a path we choose by ourselves. That’s how we are wired. Everyone cannot be like us but everyone of us desires a better country that will avail us opportunities. It is therefrom that we should look at the ongoing protest.

    It is true that there are elements who want to use the occasion to cause chaos. It is also true that the government is sponsoring violence to discredit the protest and clamp down on peaceful protesters. It is again true that, there are peaceful Nigerians who want to be provided safe passage to peacefully express their discontent with their government. The latter is where we belong and no one must try to take that away from us. It will only make things worse. A suffocated man is an angry man.

    Yours sincerely,
    Citizen Agba Jalingo.

    Disclaimer: The opinion expressed in this article is strictly that of the author, Agba Jalingo, and does not represent TheLumineNews, its agent or the organization the author works for.