People’s Expectations From EGCDF Leadership

Indigenes of Egbema and Gbaramatu communities across the kingdoms spoke on our social media page on their expectations from the new leadership of the foundation led by Comr. Jude Ebitimi Ukori. 

Below are some of the comments:

As an organization that is based on development I think they should focus more on those primary and secondary schools in those remote villages that lacks educational amenities e.g. no good learning environment; no enough teachers to teach; etc. – Capt. Ebi

I expect the Newly Elected Egbema Gbaramatu Community Leadership to do all their very level best in ensuring: (1) Adequate security of the community and its indigenes; (2) Job opportunities and employment for all indigenes; (3) Empower all SSCE drop-out to continue schooling; (4) Empower all Egbema Gbaramatu tertiary education students financially to boost up their morals and focus with studies; (5) The community leadership should also endeavour to ensure stable electricity supply from all the multinational oil companies around the community and also build an ultramodem computer library for the secondary and tertiary students in the community as a way of bringing the computer usage awareness to the people of the community. Though my expectation may be tougher to achieve but with collective ideas and commitments such can be easily achieved. Haaaa Izoooon! – Isaac Robert

I expect the new leadership to present a developmental master plan of 10-12 year and follow it strictly for Egbema Gbaramatu communities. – Mayor Truston Gbenekama

As for me, let the NEWLY inaugurated executive of Egbema Gbaramatu Community Development Foundation, must have a template where all stake holders must make their contributions and inputs toward its mandate of operation, and let there also be open door policy that will accommodate all stakeholders. They must take proactive measures to look into the following ways: (1) They must play open door policy and inclusive government; (2) They must bring out programmes that will empower the youths and all graduates of both Kingdoms; (3) They must renovate the existing toilet and create avenue for water supply; (4) They must also create a platform and avenue to connect light to our communities; (5) They must create avenue on ways for everybody to participate on the development of the council; and lastly they must always publish their yearly programmes.  – Tebiano Saint Abraham

As for me I want this new executive of Egbema Gbaramatu Community Development Foundation to be more transparent and efficient in the affairs of this great organization‪ in order for the two kingdoms to feel more positive impact of its goals and objectives – Kenneth Edio

Let this new executives start by publishing their budget… How many people know what they work with yearly? If they want to be transparent, accountable to the people they represent, then they need to let the people know what they have so the people can plan with them. – Tammy Smith

The newly inaugurated executive government of the regional council should put the people of the twin kingdom at heart by doing their possible best in ensuring the desired development to the people of the kingdom of which they came from by leaving personal aggrandizement! – Alex Miebi Ubebe

I will first commend successive government of the council for the efforts made to consistently build and renovate the local pattern of toilets which are less expensive to maintain in some host communities. Pragmatically, if we say modern toilets that use water system should be built in the involved communities, the factors we should put to consideration are: How many of these host communities have stable running water? How many except for BENIKRUKRU, KENYAGBENE and few other communities can boast of stable light system? So until we are done with treating the issues of stable electricity and constant running water, we cannot necessarily seek for modern toilet system in these communities, because these toilets instead of becoming source of blessings to our local communities may become medium through which infections and diseases associated to dirty toilet will be distributed. Nevertheless, the leadership of the council should try and increase the numbers of the local version of toilets in host communities which are less rigorous to maintain. I will also suggest the newly inaugurated executives should sort for means to advance the benefit of members of host communities from Chevron by ensuring that the IOC fund programmes that will ensure members of host communities the leverage to present business proposals for the purpose of funding. This will answer the question of unemployment in the communities involved owing to large amount of graduate out of school annually, and because not all members of the host communities have the opportunity to secure a job in the oil firm. With this, Chevron will not just end up providing jobs for the people but also such businesses will be another medium for employing more people.. – Godswill Doubra Wuruyai

The PRA (Participatory Rural Appraisal) is an active rural development model used by most international and local NGOs.   This model gives communities the opportunity to select projects that are of utmost importance to them. The communities provide cheap labour and are involved in the monitoring and evaluation. Guidelines for maintenance are made by community members. One of the pluses of this model is that, it does not only reduce corruption and project abandonment but ensures that the maximum utility of projects is achieved. I am not against project contracting but it is necessary that we take every available opportunity to develop our communities. Let there be a paradigm shift. I sincerely urge these new executives to rewrite the history. Let it not be business as usual. I also suggest that the newly inaugurated executives should deliberately tackle the educational challenges in the two Kingdoms; employ our people to teach and make necessary arrangements for the teachers including provision of speed boats to ease movement around our kingdoms. They should make a strong move to link our communities by road. This will make our communities to develop faster. What we need is facilities for education, road construction, street lights, portable drinking water, and viable health facilities. The people in our various communities should presented to the Foundation; their needs in the order of priorities.  – Ubebe Fred

Let this new executive look into projects like 6 classroom in a community that has only 12 children, town hall or guest house building. We need different projects. Building of toilet is not our problem in Gbaramatu; all are waste just like schools they build in those places; you see only 10 to 12 children with 6 classroom and teachers quarters. Go to those areas, strangers has turned them to living room. All those are waste. – Michael Tonlagha

The Council should seek credible advice from leading professionals on how to intensify the economic development of the area, by calling for ideas in entrepreneurship. Youths should be empowered on purpose to develop economics beyond oil and politics. Let’s extend the conversation into information technology, agriculture, hospitality, entertainment and engineering.-Victor  Sokoto Ebikonde  

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