Rev. Sam K. Ken is the transition committee chairman, Warri South West Local Government Area. A proactive participant in local, state and national politics as far back as 1979 when he joined the then National Party of Nigeria (NPN), Ken has been very visible in politics since. In this interview with newsmen, he speaks on his performance, the need for Nigerians to wake up to their civic responsibilities and other issues. Copy Editor Peter Ekanem brings excerpts of the chat.
Do you plan to extend this gesture to other areas?
We went further to look at other areas because the local government area is not just about the headquarter. There is a community called Orere; from the information I have, commercial transport goes to that community once a week so people cannot go out until that transport returns. I therefore decided to buy them a boat which has been commissioned to ensure they can move around whenever they wish.
We have also looked at the environment; there is a part of the local government called Ogidigben, Ogborodo, Akpakpa and others but it’s mainly called Ogborodo area. The creeks have been overtaken by water-grass which has made it difficult for boats to navigate. So we have decided to hire a swamp-buggy to dredge the creek so that movement can be very easy for the people of that part of the local government.
What else have you been doing?
We have also approved projects in the wards. I released money for 13 new projects recently, so visually projects are ongoing in the wards though we are a caretaker committee. We have 10 federal wards but because of the crisis, the state government decided to create 10 more wards, totaling 20 wards. So we are doing our best to transform all the wards.
We have gone further to open about 15 new earth roads in the Esaba ward. We have also established oil palm plantation there.
How do you manage all these, I mean you must have more than adequate financial support for these projects?
We are using SURE-P funds; there were funds held back by the state government and released to us. I got about N65 million, which I am using wisely. Looking at the blueprint of the national SURE-P programme, I have decided to utilize the money in the area of agriculture. So we are supplementing our initial farm at Esaba with a similar sized farm. We went beyond that to establish 16 fish farms (aqua-culture) in Ogbe-Ijoh community with the SURE-P funds, and then another 16 with the council’s proper allocation. So we have 32 fish ponds in Ogbe-Ijoh community and we are replicating same in “Deleghe community” representing the Itsekiri area; 16 sponsored with SURE-P funds and 16 from normal council allocation.
Don’t you do empowerment?
We have gone into the area of human capital development using the SUER-P funds to train over 250 people in various vocations and skill acquisition. We initially earmarked 219 people, but when the programme took off, we discovered that the pressure was too much had to make room for over 30 more people. As we speak, we have a total number of 253 people trained under the SURE-P in various vocations such as hair dressing, cosmetic making, welding, poultry production among others. We have since given beneficiaries starter packs since completion of the programmes so they can start something with their lives, and a busy person will not have time to think about crime.
What do you think about the accusation that politicians don’t follow their campaign pledges?
Politicians who abandon their followers after assuming office do so most times, because they have paid their followers. What I am trying to say is that we have a political culture where people want to be paid for whatever they do. When politicians carry people to Asaba for instance; they pay them, it may be peanuts but they pay them. By the time you calculate these peanuts over and over again, you will discover that for a politician to get to office, he practically owes a bank, he becomes bankrupt by the time he arrives in office.
Whose fault is that, is it not those politicians choice to make?
We make them bankrupt.
Definitely, it is the followers that make them bankrupt; we do not have free followership in this country; what we have is hired followership and that is why when the people eventually made it into office, they try to recoup what they have spent. Some of them owe
banks, others owe money lenders. They try to get back what they have spent. That is why people think that they have abandoned their followers.
What is your experience?
I didn’t spend any money to get to this office though I have been spending money in politics; I have been in politics since 1979. I have been in this business for a very long time. I have been spending money in politics but I didn’t spend money to get to this office. So I hit the ground running but that is not the reason. There are other chairmen who didn’t pay money, who are not running at all. So it is just my nature to run and I am running.
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