By CHARLES KUMOLU
Former broadcast journalist, Abike Dabiri-Erewa in her hey days as a television girl built a reputation for bringing light to the downtrodden in the society across the country. Now fully engaged as a legislator representing Ikorodu Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa’s good spirit is the toast of a deeply appreciative constituency.
FOR a people, who before now, could hardly boast of quality representation from elected lawmakers at all levels of government, the coming of Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa is a godsend for the people of Ikorodu Federal constituency.
So it was not surprising that the constituents recently passed a vote of confidence on their daughter and representative. The forum was the commissioning ceremony of 15 solar powered boreholes, cited across the nine communities in the constituency on the behest of Dabira-Erewa, who represents them at the House of Representatives.
Speaking at the event, which attracted a large number of constituents drawn across party lines, Dabiri-Erewa explained that she would continue to attract dividends of democracy through even distribution of projects.
The federal lawmaker, however stressed that what the members of the House do, is to lobby for the execution of projects in their communities, adding that no member of the house handles constituency project funds.
Dabiri-Erewa, (m) with joyful mothers during the commissioning of a solar powered motorized borehole at Ikorodu Local Government Children Centre in Ikorodu. Photo by Lamidi Bamidele
Constituency project fund
“It is the duty of the communities to prioritize their needs out of which we would pick the most pressing one. It is also the communities that would pick the sites for their projects without the interference of their representatives in the House,” she stated.
Accordingly, she said, “no member of the House handles project money, what we do is to table the needs of our people and lobby for their execution without having hands in who the contractors should be.”
Dabiri-Erewa, who is the House Committee Chairman on Diaspora, further called on her constituents to continue to support the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, adding that the best was yet to come from the party.
“Right now, 15 transformers have been installed across the communities awaiting energizing by the Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PCHN). The total number of the boreholes was 15 out of which nine were ready for commissioning,’’ she added.
The high point of the forum, which was held amid heavy downpour was the display of appreciation by leaders of the nine communities in the constituency.
The leaders, who were full of praises for their representative for her efforts in attracting the Federal Government projects to their communities, named the longest road at Okoitan Community after Dabiri-Erewa.
Instructively, the community Heads of Ijede, Ikorodu, Solomade, Imota, Aga, Mowonla, Igbopa, Agura, Igangbe and Okoitan, who were present, described the lawmaker as the pride of Lagos in the National Assembly.
The Chairman of Agura Community Development Association (CDA), Chief Saliu Erubami, who spoke at the event, said, ‘’she is a worthy Ambassador. the last time we tasted dividends of democracy in this community was 21 years ago during the regime of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).’’
Continuing, Erubami said, “it was when this our daughter was voted in to represent us that we started to have the feel of democracy,” asserting that “we have never regretted voting for her and her party-Action Congress of Nigeria (AC N).”
Similarly a leader from Igbonpa, Mr. Olohunlomotito Stephen said “Dabiri-Erewa has proved beyond reasonable doubt that she is worthy of celebration. She is seeing to the welfare of our community in terms of social infrastructure.”
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