SPEECH DELIVERED BY PROF. STEVE SINIKIEM AZAIKI ON HIS DECLARATION OF TO RUN FOR THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES IN YENAGOA/KOLOKUMA – OKPOKUMA FEDERAL CONSTITUENCY IN THE 2019 GENERAL ELECTIONS ON JANUARY 21, 2019

Protocol:

Let me first express my gratitude and deep appreciation to all of you for honouring my invitation and putting on hold all you have scheduled today, to come here, and to listen to what I have to say. I do not, and will never, take your sacrifices for granted. You came here because of the value you attach to quality representation and good governance.

I must salute members of our great party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), who have remained steadfast over the years. I am standing here today because you have kept faith with our party. You have been resolute, in spite of inducement, harassment, intimidation, and outright violence perpetrated against you, especially in the past four years, by those who thought they could either conscript everyone into their fold, or drive them to perdition in the ocean. However, by choosing to remain in, and with, the People’s Democratic Party, you have demonstrated unalloyed loyalty, commitment, and determination, to ensure that the ideals of our party are the main driving force of governance. Rest assured that your abiding faith in the PDP will be duly rewarded.

Permit me to also pay tribute and respect to the leaders and elders of our party, the People’s Democratic Party, for ensuring that democracy is deepened and a level playing field is provided for greater participation of many of us shaping good governance in our dear state. In this regard, I must single out the leader of the Party and the Executive Governor of Bayelsa State, His Excellency, Hon. Seriake Dickson. If you look across the state today, all of us will bear eloquent testimonies to the fact that Governor Dickson’s positive footprints, especially but not exclusively in the areas of infrastructure and human development, will remain indelible in the history of our state. Governor Dickson will always be remembered as an architect of good governance, one who has promoted inclusivity. I thank him for his courage and consistency in the transformational leadership of Bayelsa state.

Both as a public servant and civil society leader, the quest for contributing to the growth and development of our communities in particular, and the Niger Delta region in general, has been an important---probably the most important---part of my life. I was born into a fishing community of Yenebebeli here in Epie-Atissa clan. My mother was a fisherwoman, peasant farmer and trader. As a young boy, I recall how we travelled to communities as far as Nembe, Olodioma, Brass, Warri, and Onitsha to buy and sell wares like dry fish, plantain, cassava and cocoyam. Growing up in a fishing community just across the road, I came face to face with poverty, lack of opportunity and environmental pollution and destruction of our livelihoods as an aftermath of unsustainable oil exploration.

I will crave your indulgence for me to briefly summarize some of my activities and contributions that show in no uncertain terms that the well-being of my people has always been a guiding principle for the ideas I have proposed, and the actions I have taken over the years. As founder of the World Environmental Movement for Africa (WEMFA), I consistently used that platform to sensitize people---national and international---about the environmental challenges in the Niger Delta region. It is with humility that I say we achieved modest successes which were widely acknowledged. I have also served as a public servant in various capacities at the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), as pioneer Commissioner for Agriculture in our state and later as Secretary to the State Government.

My passion for education is reflected in the fact that I have been instrumental to about 2,000 scholarships awarded to our youths by various governments in the state. I am the founder of the Azaiki Public Library here in Yenagoa. I am also the founder of the Institute of Science and Technology,Yenagoa and of the Museum of African Arts and the Museum of Niger Delta. For four years, I was President of the International Society of Comparative Education, Science and Technology (Nigeria).

Indeed,I spent 30 active years in the academia, serving on Boards, Committees, and University Councils, I was appointed Pro-Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the Niger Delta University. I thank Governor Dickson most sincerely for the opportunity and immense support he gave me while I was Pro-Chancellor of the Niger Delta University. The governor is also truly deserving of praise for his courage in establishing the University of Africa, Toru Orua, and the Bayelsa Medical University in Yenagoa.

In addition to some of the assignments I have listed, for over a decade now, I have been the National Coordinator of the National Think Tank, a policy incubator with membership drawn from diverse backgrounds and expertise that have been deployed in articulating and pushing policy options towards the realisation of the Nigerian Project. The experiences I have gathered, and the network of enduring friendships I have established while serving in these various capacities in and outside of government, have made me to understand the meaning of service and have equipped me for a higher responsibility, which going to the National Assembly obviously presents.

I know that representation is an important moral responsibility. I know that representatives are supposed to be chosen from among individuals who are willing, and capable of conducting themselves in an exemplary manner for both constituents and the larger society. A Representative is one, I believe, who is accessible and who has the patience and disposition to carry the burden of the represented, in search for solutions. Someone who you can trust to ensure that never again shall our interests as a people and a region become commodities of exchange for the ambition of a few, or the bitter partisanship that defines Abuja politics. Someone whose voice will resonate loud and clear, to reflect the paradigm shift that favours peaceful engagement with stakeholders, attracting investment, generating employment and creating opportunities that will make our economy sustainable years after our oil wells dry up. I have considered all these factors and more. That is why I have decided to present myself to represent you, my people of Yenagoa/Kolokuma/Opokuma Constituency in the Ninth National Assembly, beginning in June 2019. You will be proud that you made the choice of investing your hope and mandate in me, to champion our collective cause at the Federal legislature.

For many years, and on many occasions, respected elders and prominent individuals in our state and across the region have beckoned on me to present myself for one elective position or another. I maintained a studied silence not because I chose to ignore them, but because I needed to wait patiently, make consultations until such a time when I believe we can together maximize the opportunities that such positions offer to the benefit of our people. I believe that opportune moment has come. As you may have observed, the National Assembly is an intricate and sometimes delicate forum that demands skilful negotiation, productive networking, and focused attention on matters that are relevant to the nation in general, but more particularly to your individual constituency. I will, therefore, strive to promote laws that affect the country as a whole, and also bring the federal government closer to the people of Yenagoa/Kolokuma/Opokuma, by attracting and domesticating national issues for the immediate benefit of my people.

I hope to work with our brightest minds across the state and the region. Those who will be able to step out and contest for other elective offices to provide quality representation. Our able governor has already raised the bar and has shown us what is possible when fair, committed and public-spirited individuals are in charge of governance. It is with this unity of purpose that we can champion the cause of the emancipation of our people from the shackles of poverty and underdevelopment.

If you look around the state today, you will still women, children and men, too, who suffer from hunger and disease. You will still see some shocking figures of maternal and child mortality and rising numbers of young people who cannot afford good education and those who are educated but not gainfully employed. This means that there is still a lot of work to do. That is why we must elect representatives at all levels who have the right vision and commitment to serve selflessly--- those who have the right networks of social capital across the country and beyond; those who will listen to you and learn from you; those whose experiences re-echo your daily challenges and reflect your priorities; those who are problem-solvers; and those who can help mobilize significant resources through programmes and projects that will help knock down the unacceptable figures of unemployment, hunger, disease, and general poverty.

A time has come to do away with the unfortunate stereotypes that have been used to characterise and even denigrate the Niger Delta citizen. We cannot achieve meaningful development if our youth continue to use mundane and violent methods to seek justice. Pipeline vandalism, kidnapping, robbery, killings, and disruption of production and general economic activities will only scare people away from our region. And yet, we need investments from all over, to boost our living standards. We live in a different world today---the Age of Knowledge---and so we must also collectively come up with new ideas and strategies to attain environmental justice, better livelihoods, and a future assured for generations to come. These are causes I will champion.

There are many sides to our region beyond oil that are yet to be showcased to other parts of Nigeria and indeed the world for mutual benefit. The reform in the oil and gas sector will be one of my biggest legislative priorities. I have studied and written extensively about the petroleum sector. As Secretary to the Bayelsa State Government, issues relating to the oil sector were matters I had to deal with on a regular basis. With your mandate, these are the experiences I will take to the National Assembly, to extract a fairer and better deal for my people.

The presence of oil companies in our communities must be more visible than their rigs and trail of environmental destruction. For years, there has been a campaign to get the oil majors to relocate their headquarters to the Niger Delta region, rather than in Lagos or Abuja. But this has only been lip-service. Chevron has its global headquarters in California, and not Washington DC. ExxonMobil also has its global headquarters in Texas, and not in New York or Washington DC. Getting the oil companies to move their headquarters to the Niger Delta, where they prospect for and produce oil and gas, will create multiplier effects that will undoubtedly reduce unemployment and widespread poverty in the region. This is one goal I will pursue in the National Assembly, and ensure that it becomes reality.

I am aware that the current National Assembly has done well in passing the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB) which is awaiting Presidential assent. However, other Bills are pending, among which is the Host and Impacted Communities Bill. As you know, that Bill is one that concerns us most as it is critical to the health, survival and livelihood issues of many us who live in oil-bearing communities. I wish to join my voice in calling for its passage and will do all within my capacity to ensure that the Bill, if it is inherited by the 9th Assembly, becomes law.

Environmental regeneration of the Niger Delta of which Yenagoa/Kolokuma/Opokuma Federal Constituency is a critical part; combating the consequences of climate change; mainstreaming sustainable development; demilitarizing the Niger Delta, as well as rigorous oversight of Federal agencies charged with development programmes and projects for our region---these are among the priority items that, with your blessing, I will pursue at the National Assembly. Of course, let me add that because of the dynamism of life and nature of human existence, my legislative agenda will accommodate fresh proposals from my constituents, and indeed be responsive to other emerging issues and circumstances.

One issue that will be a top priority for me, and invariably for you---my people, is Resource Control and Management, and most importantly the Restructuring of Nigeria. I agree wholeheartedly with Governor Dickson that, for us the Izon Nation and the Niger Delta, the election of 2019 is a Referendum on the Restructuring of Nigeria. The Presidential candidate of our party, the PDP, is also in agreement on this vital agenda. While there have been some amendments, here and there, to the 1999 Constitution, those measures do not go far enough to address the yearnings of the Izon Nation and the Niger Delta region for a restructuring that empowers us to have greater and more beneficial control of our resources and destiny. The current federal structure is not working; it is dysfunctional.

You can count on me as a true Izon son, to be a relentless advocate of restructuring, until it is achieved. In doing so, I will continue to be inspired by the struggles of our heroes past. They include Chief Ernest Ikoli, Chief Harold Dappa Biriye, Isaac Adaka Boro, Captain Samuel Owonaru, Ken Saro Wiwa, Chief DSP Alamieyeseigha, and several others, whose valiant efforts for a better deal for the Niger Delta shall not be in vain.

Those who are familiar with me know how accessible I am. I have always been one among you. I will even now, with your mandate, be more accessible, to listen to you, to share ideas with you, to respond to your yearnings. I will not betray your trust.

The smiles I see on your faces convince me that you are willing to come with me on this journey. It may be steep. It may even take us to other turns in the coming months or years. One thing I promise is that I will consult you every step of the way. Your interest will be uppermost in every decision I will make.

A journey of one thousand kilometres, they say, begins with a single step. That step, I have taken today with your kind support. It is not going to be an individual endeavour. It is just that I have decided to offer myself as a vessel for the pursuit of our collective objectives. Whether we achieve our objectives satisfactorily will depend on how far we can close ranks and come together to rally around a common purpose. I am prepared to undertake this journey and I am very confident that, with your support, we will leave a mark on the governance landscape in this constituency, this state, and this region, for generations to come.

Today I, Professor Steve Sinikiem Azaiki, OON offer myself to contest for the Yenagoa- Kolokuma/ Opokuma Federal House of Representatives under our great party the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

I thank you most sincerely.

Professor Steve Sinikiem Azaiki (OON).


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wo0h4_XgApI