Uduaghan Convenes Delta Assembly: Seek Funds, Set to Shock Lobbyists Over Political Appointments
The shade of silence and near standstill situation in Delta state may soon become clearer as the governor of oil and gas wealthy Delta state, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has forced the state House of Assembly to reconvene after a long break. The Governor, according to verifiable sources decided to put a halt to the ecstasy presently being enjoyed by the lawmakers in far away Abuja to enable him get the House approval for a Supplementary budget and to present it with a list of commissioners designate.
The state Assembly had adjourned its sitting till Tuesday, July 12, 2011 shortly after the inauguration of its Fifth Assembly Session and subsequent election of a new Speaker and principal officers on June 7, 2011.
Findings by Huhuonline.com has it that the state legislators have been attending sundry legislative workshops and seminars in Abuja and other major cities in the country to become abreast with relevant and dynamic legislative matters ahead of the resumed sitting.
But a letter dated June 27, 2011 and signed by the Clerk of the Delta state House of Assembly, Mr. Raymond Yavbieri stated that the House has rescheduled its sitting for Tuesday, June 28, 2011 to attend to pressing and urgent state matters.
The Clerk is said to have issued the letter following the directive of the Speaker of the House, Engr. Victor Ochei, whose arrival, including 28 others were being awaited in Asaba on Monday, 27 June 2011, ahead of the Tuesday's sitting.
Meanwhile, there are pointers to the fact that the long awaited list of commissioners and other political appointees in the state may have been responsible for the sudden turn-around by the state legislature to reconvene to consider the list of Commissioner nominees, just as Uduaghan's close associates revealed that 'the Governor has already finished compiling the list of Commissioners and is only waiting for the House of Assembly'.
A source told Huhuonline.com that 'What has become obvious, even from these preliminary actions is that nobody is sure of anything anymore and Deltans are now waiting with bated breath and a high sense of anticipation over the names of those who will make the exco in this second term of Governor Uduaghan's administration.'
A dependable House of Assembly source who preferred anonymity, however disclosed to Huhuonline.com that 'There are very clear indications that the governor is seeking for an urgent approval of a Supplementary budget. Every new government need funds to work and it will not be out of place if His Excellency asks for an approval from the Legislature. The lawmakers too need funds to legislate effectively.'
Some Deltans have expressed anxiety over the lull in governance since the Governor Uduaghan's resumption for second term in office, claiming that 'The Governor wants to become a Sole Administrator of the state for some time. He has wilfully delayed the appointment of commissioners and other political aides so that he can keep all the funds to himself. Governance has been revolving round a very few persons made up of the Governor himself, the Secretary to State Government (SSG), Comrade Ovuozourie Macauley (the governor's maternal relation) and the Accountant General of the state, Mr. Cyril Agbele.
A member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state told Huhuonline.com that the governor is set to shock Deltans when he finally send his list of appointees to the House of Assembly for screening. According to him, 'Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan now has fewer friends and trusted associates, after the elections and the subsequent outcome. His scope of choice and selection may is very much limited to these persons'.
Recently, at a media parley in Asaba, while commenting on the selection of his cabinet, Governor Uduaghan had said 'I have no laid down principle of selecting those who will form my new cabinet, but I am relying on God for direction. A few of those who performed well in the past will definitely come back but it is a difficult exercise and there is no clear cut way or formula for doing it. All I will say is that God will guild me in selecting the people that will work with me'.
Political analysts have reasoned that 'Governor Uduaghan is likely not to retain all his trusted loyalists in the areas where he lost the elections, but would consider some new names in the areas where he won convincingly and would probably reward some loyalists who lost the elections because they remained in the PDP instead of decamping to other political parties'.
They further argued that 'Governor Uduaghan is not afraid to bring in new people with little or no political pedigree into his cabinet. This is his second and last tenure in office as governor. He will certainly shock politicians this time around, especially since he does not owe anybody any apologies for whatever actions he takes with his appointments.'