Barely one year in office, Senator Joseph Ogba rolls out empowerment agenda for his Ebonyi Central constituents, Special Correspondent, CHIJIOKE AGWU, reports.
By June 9, the current set of National Assembly members would have spent one year in office. Regrettably, many of them are yet to meet with their constituents since their inauguration.
But in the case of Joseph Obinna Ogba, who represents Ebonyi Central Senatorial District, it has been interactions and empowerments all along.
When Ogba declared his intention to run for the Senate in the build-up to the 2015 general elections on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), it was apparent to his opponents that the contest was going to be tough.
This was on account of the reputation of the senator. To his supporters in Ebonyi Central and beyond, Ogba is a politician with the Midas touch, hence his unusual record in securing victories in electoral contests, irrespective of who his opponent is.
Though he had been out of political office prior to 2015, he was not entirely out of circulation. In fact, within the period, he ranked among the politicians in the state who enjoyed state-wide followership and support.
Born in Amanvu Nkalagu, Ishielu Local Government Area of the state, Ogba was among the visible figures in the administration of the first civilian governor of the state, Dr. Sam Egwu, where he served in various capacities, including being the Chairman of the state wing of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in 2007.
On account of his robust engagement in the politics of the state within the period, he successfully etched his name in Ebonyi history books.
A resident of Abakaliki, the state capital, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told TheNiche that given the verve with which Ogba piloted the affairs of the party in the state, his name, in fact, became synonymous with PDP and party politics in the state.
“Whatever strong footing PDP has in Ebonyi today has a lot to do with the inspiring role of Senator Obinna Ogba. He laid the foundation when he was the party’s chairman in 2007. We are happy that he has not relented in ensuring that the party attains its lofty heights in the state,” he said.
The senator is equally celebrated in the area of sports development in Ebonyi. Indigenes recall that during his time as Vice Chairman of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Ogba influenced Ebonyi youths greatly in the area of sports.
But his ambition to go to the Senate in 2007 suffered a setback when the authorities in the state favoured return ticket for Senator Julius Ucha, erstwhile Speaker of the House of Assembly.
Other frustrating experiences came the way of Ogba, but he took them in their strides until 2015 when he joined forces with Egwu and others to recapture party structure in the state from the then governor, Martin Elechi.
The outcome of the political struggle is that, not only that Ogba defeated the governor’s son, Nnanna Elechi, who ran on the ticket of Labour Party (LP), he also beat the other candidates, including the current Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Benard Odoh, who contested on the platform of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).
Soon after his inauguration, Ogba embarked on vigorous empowerment programmes to ease the pains of his constituents.
In what seemed a kick-off for the people-oriented agenda, during his thanksgiving ceremony, he shocked his audience when he announced the payment of monthly stipends to over 232 persons selected from 58 wards that make up his constituency.
Ogba, who said the empowerment programme would cost his office N1 million monthly, pledged to sustain the initiative throughout his tenure.
In similar stead, the senator has, barely one year in office, secured federal employment for more than 14 persons from his constituency.
Speaking during his recent constituency empowerment programme in the state, Ogba said: “June 2016 will make it exactly one year since I was sworn in as a senator. I am aware that majority of my constituents are eager to know what I have done with the mandate given to me.”
In this regard, he recalled that in addition to attracting several projects in the district, he had commenced construction of some rural bridges and roads in some of the communities in his constituency.
He also stated that he had been sponsoring some of his constituents on overseas tours, with each receiving a minimum of N500,000 on arrival.
Ogba equally noted that he had procured equipment to help the less-privileged in his constituency set up small businesses to be able to take care of themselves and their communities. These included motorcycles, grinding machines, power generating sets, cassava grinding machines and sewing machines. He urged the beneficiaries to put the items to judicious use in order to justify the efforts expended in procuring them.
H said: “I urge you to put these gifts into good use remembering that these gifts represent your sweat during the campaign period.”
He thanked his constituents for their support during the election, even as he enjoined them to brief him from time to time on issues that need his attention in the constituency. “It is true that money or material gifts cannot equate the support you gave me; but please do accept these as a token of my appreciation. I will appreciate it if, from time to time, you brief me on other areas that need my attention.”