Stephanie Clems, Umuahia

House of representatives member forIsuikwuato/Umunneochi Federal Constituency, Chief Amaobi Ogah, says leaders in Nigeria must learn to be patriotic and understand that the country is the only one they have.

The legislator who stated this while answering questions from bloggers under the aegis of online media practitioners association of Nigeria during an interactive session with him in his country home in Onuaku, Isuikwuato local government area of Abia state, said the call for a single term of six years for the executive will not solve the problems bedeviling the country.

He said the only thing that will help set things right is when everyone is patriotic despite the term of office.

According to him, “Nigerians are the simplest people you can think of,” saying little things make them happy.

Chief Ogah also on the same day told some of his supporters in his abode that he would make the welfare his constituents a priority by encouraging them to succeed in different fields of human endeavour.

To support agriculture, chief Ogah donated and distributed a total of 10,700 palm seedlings

The law maker revealed that he embarked on grading of many rural roads in the constituency to create to enable farmers to access their farm lands without much encumbrances. He pointed out that 200 farmers from the constituency have been empowered with 40 palm seedlings to encourage them plant in their farms. He added that he also embarked on the construction of an ultra modern market in Ukwunwagwu, Uturu to serve as one of the biggest food market in the state.He said,”We are prepared to serve our people because there is nothing God has not blessed us with as young people.

That is why I made a vow to use my stay in the green chambers to work for our people.”We know that most of our people are farmers, that’s why we are opening up rural roads in our Constituency.

“Given the cost of things in the market a bag of rice may go higher in price by next year, so even if the salary of workers is raised raised to N250,000 it will not be enough for the workers to survive. That is why we are encouraging everyone to go back to Agriculture. “For our youths we are already sponsoring 66 of them on scholarship at the Federal College of Agriculture in Isiagu and 22 students are also benefiting from our scholarship in School of Health Science Management Aba.

We also registered Jamb and WACE for many of constituents.”For the other youths who into transport business, we will give them 100 of motorcycles between now and December this year. Our plead to them is to use the machines for business and not to sale them.”There are so many roads that have not been motorable for over 40 to 50 years, so we used the dry season to open them up. The first road that we did was the road leading to Ulonna North farm settlement. “I visited the settlement during my campaign and cried because of the nature of the road. If you see the level of work done by the Premier of the defunct Eastern Region Dr Michael Okpare, you will know that our fathers had great vision for our people.

So the moment we entered office I opened it up, we are also doing the curvet on the road. There is another road that links Uturu to Umunneke-agbor which is about 7.1 kilometers for more than 70 years no vehicle has used that road.We have also worked on the road When you open up some of those roads it will reduce kidnapping in our area, because when people know you are coming to Isuikwuato only through Okigwe it becomes an issue. We are also doing another one leading to Leru.

When these are not graded, when you attract it will be seen as Feeder roads that belongs to the state government. But when we open them up it becomes easier for them to be awarded for reconstruction.”I moved motions that attracted the ecological fund to Isuikwuato to help us check the erosion menace in our constituency.”We have been supporting Agriculture in different areas. We have asked our people to form cooperatives. When the Isuikwuato started their program I supported them with the sum of N5 million naira. “We have a market at Ukwunwagwu Uturu, that doesn’t look like a modern market for over 100 years. I have turned it to one of the biggest open market in whole of Abia State. All we are going is turn into an Agricultural market products hub. As a result of the roads we are opening up, we thought it wise to build a market with a modern motor park where people can be coming to buy farm products from Aba and Umuahia. The project which will cost N5 million. We have done most 80 per cent.”We succeeded in puting many projects in the budget, by the time they start coming to fruition you will see massive infrastructure development in our constitucy”.Earlier in his remark, the chairman of OMPAN in Abia State Chief Promise Uzoma Okoro, congratulated the law maker on his election and subsequent victory at the Court of Appeal which perfected the mandate given to him by his constituents.He said OMPAN as an independent organization that engages in news gathering an reportage in the state seeks to help private individuals, politicians and cooperate organization tell their story to the world.Okoro pointed out that the organization is not an appendage of the government in power, nor attack dogs for opposition politicians.

He said, “All we do is to help people tell their story to the world. We try to build a synergy that will promote both our organization and members of the public.”We know that people like you that occupy public office need to let their constituents know laws they are making and the projects they are attracting to their people.”We have seen the 66 students that you awarded scholarship to at the Federal College of Agriculture Isiagu, we are also aware that 22 students are also benefiting from your scholarship scheme in the school of Health Management Technology in Aba, those are the dividends of democracy that the people longs for and it’s our duty to report them for your constituents within and outside the Country to know”.