The Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi has said that Trade Union can remove poverty from Rivers State and indeed Nigeria.
The governor made the remark during the just concluded 4th Triennial State Delegates Conference of the TUC, Rivers State council, held in Port Harcourt over the weekend.
The governor who was represented at the event by the Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenatari, stated that it is labour that can set parameters for measurement for better service delivery by government.
The governor commended the role of Trade Unions in the country, noting that without them there will not be democracy today.
He charged Trade Unions to advise government on how to eradicate poverty among its citizenry.
The governor however used the occasion to mention some of his achievements which he said include education, health, and construction of roads among others.
In his address, the Rivers State chairman of Trade Union Congress, Comrade Chika Onuegbu called on Nigerians to embrace unity in their quest for a country devoid of injustice, acrimony and hatred.
Comrade Onuegbu stated that love, unity and social justice will move the country forward.
The labour chieftain condemned the rate of violence in Nigeria which has killed many people in the country. He spoke against corruption, political thuggery, cult groups, sectarian violence and injustice in the country and called for a redirection among the ruling class.
Earlier, the chairman of the occasion and a former Chief of General Staff, Commordor Ebitu Ukiwe commended labour for the theme of the conference which is, “Building the Nigeria of Our Dream: the Role of Trade Union, Civil Society and Citizen.”
In an interview shortly after the event, Rtd. Comdr. Ebitu Ukiwe said the governor’s forum was not profitable to Nigerians, saying that their agenda are not helpful for the generality of the common man.
He called on Nigerians to realize the dream of the nation’s founding fathers.
He stressed that for Nigeria to move forward, the country must strive to meet the expectation and dreams of those that fought gallantly for the country.
In another development, Trade Union has been advised to imbibe the principle of building culture. The advice was made by the chairman of Nigerian Institute of Safety Professionals, Elder Vizor Paago.
Elder Paago made the remark in an interview with journalist shortly after the conference in Port Harcourt. He said the theme of the conference was very key in nation building in respect of the role of trade Union in the state and the country at large.
He stated that his body was also concerned on issues of development, health, safety and the culture of clean environment.
Elder Paago advised the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to imbibe the principles of building culture of cleanliness, information instruction, training and supervision for those in authority and other disciplines as a way of moving the country forward.
In a lecture on the theme of the conference delivered by the National Secretary of Alliance for Democracy, Prof. Udenta Udenta, he noted that any dream must be conceived before becoming a reality.
He said the celebration of Nigeria’s 100 years in time to come was the effort of our founding fathers. Dr. Udenta told participants that the birth of Nigeria was deformed from the onset because the amalgamation did not pass through the right political process.
On the issue of corruption, Dr. Udenta said that most often there is an agreement between those who loot the nation’s treasury for their selfish gain. He said the greatest challenge facing Nigeria is corruption, while decrying normalization of inefficiency and failure which lead to anti-intellectualism.
He stated that Nigeria has what it takes to radically transform the country. Dr. Udenta advanced that corruption in Nigeria was due to lack of capacity and incompetence, and called on political office holders to fulfill their campaign promises. ###
Pius Dukor
