Jeff Amechi Agbodo, Onitsha
Chief Okwudili Ezenwankwo is the House of Representatives member-elect for Orumba North and South Federal Constituency on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). He is currently the president of Amalgamated Market Traders Association of Anambra State and president of South-East Amalgamated Market Traders Association. He speaks on the struggle for the National Assembly leadership.
What is your position on the struggle for the leadership of the National Assembly?
As I said before now, my opinion as a person who hails from South East part of the country is that the leadership of APC should zone Deputy Senate President to the South East in the interest of peace, equity, good conscience and fair play. We are not second class citizens in the country. Igbo people are being marginalised and to stop that marginalisation, the APC- led government should zone the Deputy Senate president position to the South East or in the alternative; it should zone the Speaker to the South East. I keep saying that Igbo remains the most populated ethnic group in the country, I maintain it and I can defend it anywhere. When you go to Lagos State today, minus Lagosians, the next tribe that has the highest population in Lagos is Igbo people; we constitute over 45 percent of the population. If you go Kano, Katsina, and Port Harcourt, it is the same thing. If you go to any state after the indigenes of the state the next people you will see there are Igbo people. The politicians underrate the number of South East people because of the number of registered voters in the zone but I know that the zone still remain the group with the highest number of population in the country.
What is your advice to those who want to hijack the leadership of the country for their selfish interest?
All of us own this country and it is not winner takes all. They must zone one principal position of the National Assembly to the South East. Before I forget, the issue of Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) is not negotiable for the South East. Talking about Deputy Senate president or Speaker of House of Representatives is not enough; we need the office of SGF to balance the equation in leadership of this country. I know that our president has listening ears to do the needful for justice to prevail.
Some say by 2023 it should be the turn for Igbo, what do you think?
When we get to the bridge we know how to cross it, that is all I have to say for now. Politics is all about interest, all about membership and all about calculation but when the time comes we know what to do.
What are those things you are going to change in your constituency?
I made campaign promises to my people that I’m going to change the face of the constituency. I keep on saying that the people that represented us in the past did not do well. I’m going to there to correct their mistakes. I promised to bring the dividends of democracy to the downtrodden because I so much believe that the downtrodden is one set of people that matters in the society. Then, I promised my people that I’m going to tackle the erosion menace in my area through the legislation because one of the biggest challenges we have in that constituency is erosion. We have the erosion sites at Nanka and Oko communities that are the biggest erosion site in Africa.
How do intend to do that?
It is through legislation. I know the problem; I’m a grassroots man so I know how to follow it up. I must attract federal presence to the erosion site.
How do you intend to assist the youths and the widows in your area?
Well, youth’s empowerment is very important and as a private person, I have started empowering the youths through my foundation and now I have been elected to represent them, the empowerment should triple. I had provided skill acquisition to the youths, starting small business for the youths, empowering the widows.
What are those things you did as a market leader that made you to contest and win the just concluded election?
You can see things for yourself and what I have done speaks for itself. I don’t know where to start but I know that I have done well in all ramifications. I built the edifice we are using today as our secretariat. I’m praying that the new executive members that will take over from me should perform more than me. Today we are enjoying N10million choose your project in about 65 markets in the state by Governor Obiano, you can see street lights in our markets, access roads, donation of fire fighting vehicles to the markets, provision of boreholes in the markets, Obiano is a God sent and by the special grace of God we will continue to support his government and administration.