Ex-Senator makes case for LG autonomy

Former chief whip of the Senator, Sen.
Roland Stephen Owie, has said that
granting of local government councils
autonomy would bring development
across the country and restore power to
the people.
He made the appeal, Friday, while
inaugurating the state executive of the
Action Democratic Party (ADP) in Benin-
City.
Owie said also that the local
governments areas across the country
were backward because they have no
autonomy as they are strictly tied to the
apron strings of the state governments
and that the only way to experience true
development and the dividends of
democracy, is for them to be
autonomous.
He said the birth of the ADP as a
political party in the country is to set
things aright and restore power to those
it belongs, which are the people at the
grassroots.
He said the era of holding political party
meeting in government house and
deciding who gets what and who not to
get was over.
“There will be no more delegate to
conduct the election primary. All
registered party members will vote for
those they want to vote for in their unit.
If you are going to elect a councillor
from my ward for instance, all those who
have registered in the booth will come
out and vote for a candidate of their
choice and there will be no more
delegate.
“Do you know that since we came in
1999, as soon as the governor is elected,
Obasanjo created that problem., the
governor now takes over from the party.
The party chairman, the woman leader,
the youth leader, party executive are set
aside.
“They now do their party meeting n
government house. Never again shall
political party meeting be held again in
government house under ADP
government. It shall be held in the party
excos office because any person that is
elected is not elected by name but under
the party’s platform
“All those who are voting for the
governor, all registered members of the
party in the state will vote in their unit
for the governorship candidate on that
day and there will be no more primary”
he said.
In his acceptance speech, the new
chairman of the party, Mr. Gabriel
Oloruntobi, said his drive to make the
party strong and vibrant across the
country and eventually produce the
president of the country would be
paramount.
He said the party would not fail to
criticize the government when its falls
short of the expectations of Nigerians
and to also appraise it when it has lived
up to its expectations.