No development without unity, Dickson’s aide tells Jonathan’s kinsmen

Development will continue to elude Ogbia, the local government area of former President Goodluck Jonathan in Bayelsa State unless the people shun divisive tendencies and embrace unity.

The Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Mr. Daniel Iworiso-Markson, who made the assertion on Friday, said present political leaders in Ogbia must work together and shun tendencies propelled mostly by greed and selfishness.

The Commissioner made the assertion when grassroot community leaders under the Forum of the Community Development Chairmen across the four clans of Ogbia kingdom paid him a visit in his office at the Information House in Yenagoa.

Iworiso-Markson said he was humbled by the visit and promised to channel some of the demands of the chairmen and their goodwill message to the governor.

He said: “Personally, I do not have enemy. I see myself as brother to every Ogbia person. If I have any enemy at all; my enemies are under-development, disunity and poverty. It is therefore a task for every well-meaning Ogbia person to fight them with me.

“The security of Ogbia is very paramount. Security is key. To drive to Ogbia town now, you need personal security. But that is not who we are. We are peaceful people.

“For more than 50 years, they carried out exploration of oil activities in our communities, we cooperated with them. Not one day did we hear that any of the oil workers were kidnapped in Ogbia land.

“Out of that same land they took oil that built bridges in cities across the country but neglected us. Yet we didn’t do anything. We remained peaceful and we have continued to remain peaceful.

“So, it is a source of concern to some of us who are from that area that the peace that we want seems to be evading us. There are some people coming to create insecurity in our community. We must not allow it. You are CDC chairmen and you have a duty to protect our kingdom.

“We have the duty to maintain the peace in Ogbia. I want to work with you to ensure there is peace. I am tired of the report we are getting from Ogbia kingdom. I know all of you are tired. We want to live in a place where there is peace.

“It is when you have peace and security that development can come. If Ogbia is not peaceful, people will not come. This security challenges must stop and you need to make it possible.

“I am very concerned about the peace and development of Ogbia more than anything else. It is a must that we develop Ogbia. Nobody can develop Ogbia apart from us”.

The pledged their support for the administration of Governor Seriake Dickson describing him as a righteous man, whose government had brought joy to their council.

The Chairman of CDC chairmen, Chief Sylvanus Egele, said the governor had done well in education, health, agriculture and infrastructure.

He referred to the airport projects, senatorial road projects, Agge Deep Sea Port, flyover, sports academy, Ijaw National Academy, boarding schools and others as the key achievements of Dickson.

“We have vowed from this day to partner with the Restoration Government to move Bayelsa a State forward”, he said.

He, however, lamented the recent insecurity in Ogbia such as armed robberies, kidnapping, cultism, piracy, killings among others and sympathised with the families of policemen murdered at Ogbia Town waterfront by unknown gunmen.

He said: “This body had, therefore, unanimously decided to walk closely with all security agents to fish out all suspected criminals from all our communities and hand them over to government for possible prosecution”.

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