-Extols The Role Media To Success
Former Deputy Speaker of the state Assembly, Hon Leyi Kwanee has called on Nigerians to ensure the election of credible and eligible people into the nation’s legislative houses at every dispensation so as to entrench good governance culture and deepen democracy in the polity.
This is as Lawmakers of the 8th Rivers Legislature elected Hon. Ikuinyi Owaji Ibani from Andoni Constituency as the new Speaker, and Mr. Marshal Stanley-Uwom from Abua/Odual (upland) constituecy as Deputy Speaker.
Ibani who was the Chief Whip in the dissolved 7th Rivers House of Assembly,and also the last of the sixth lawmakers who defected to Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to fight the former governor of the state, was elected the speaker last Monday.
Kwanee gave the advice while commending the media, after a thank You visit to the Correspondents Chapel of NUJ , Port Harcourt , for their support while he served as Deputy speaker in a chat with the Niche.
Kwanee appealed to all political parties in the country to take it as first and important civic duty to the Nigerian people , to put all hands on the deck and ensure that eligible candidates represented the people at all levels of the legislature, saying, ”the legislative arm of governance is cristical for the sustenance of our democracy”.
He further advised: ”If we want to get the best out of our law makers, we should start from the screening processes that would lead to the emergence of credible candidates to the election to get the best. If you take men and women that are low in morale ,devoid of character and poor in their understanding of what it takes to represent the people at the grassroots, you should not expect good representation from them”.
”From my little experience I have come to the conclusion that the legislature is superior to other arms of government. From their roles in the appropriation, stimulation of budgets checking of other arms of government in the fulfillment of the doctrine of checks and balances and not being checked, the legislature is superior”, he said.
He also advocated long state of good law-makers in the legislature, pointing out that law-making is as good as wine, which tastes better as it gets older, adding that a law maker gets more experience and refined as he spends more legislative periods in the House.
He regretted that over 70 per cent of members of the current Rivers legislature are new.
The Former Deputy Speaker who was the only legislature that had the tradition of interacting with the press at regular intervals, expressed his gratitude to Journalists ,saying, ”there was no way I could have accomplished what I did without the input of Journalists”.
”You all stood by me in the rough days of our struggle to fosster a peaceful and sane polity in Rivers state and as we begin a fresh journey to guide our democracy forward, we will expect more from the press” he exhorted.
