Itubo: We’ll End Era of Slavery in Rivers Civil Service

Governorship candidate of the Labour Party in Rivers state who also doubles as the Chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress in the state, Mrs Beatrice Itubo, in this interview with Blessing Ibunge promised to end the era of slavery in civil service by improving the lives of civil servants and pensioners in the state, if elected during the gubernatorial poll on March.

Can we have a brief about the governorship candidate of Labour Party in Rivers state?

My name is Mrs Beatrice Itubo, the Rivers state Guber Candidate of the Labour Party, and still the Chairman of the Nigerian Labour Congress, here in the state. I am married and have grown-up kids.

In less than two months, you will be going in for the governorship election, how prepared are you for the poll?

We are very prepared, some people are defecting from their party to join us because they have seen that the wave is really strong. In terms of campaign, we started sensitisation before now until I got this accident that slowed us down.

But by next week we are starting a full blown campaign. I think we are 100 percent ready.

What have you done to garner Rivers people’s support for your victory in March this year?

People have already known that Labour Party is the party that can’t be beaten in the election: people that we didn’t call are coming to us.

As we speak now we have gone to about 16 local government areas prior to this time and in all that theircacceptance was mind blowing, people have really come to identify with Labour Party.

Our support base is growing everyday.

We can see that the state governor, Nyesom Wike is working hard to see that his preferred PDP choice, Siminialaye Fubara succeed him in  May 2023. What are you doing to unseat the PDP ruling party?

Good market sells itself. It is not the effort you make at trying to push someone that really works. Yes, they have the money, they are presently in government, but we are talking to people and they really following us, they are assuring us of their votes. Most time you can see monetary inducement but in this case we don’t have, but they have seen in us that we will be able to deliver the dividends of democracy, so they are coming to associate with us and come May 29, we will be sworn in because we know Rivers people will vote for Labour Party.

Talking about money in politics, how financially are you ready or do you have sponsors?

That is an erroneous impression. To put it right first and foremost, that is why they are holding us captive because of using the money to deliver the dividends of democracy, they will starch this money and wait till election period when they can start giving people cups of rice and some items in the name of helping them.

So we are saying enough is enough. Yes, we will release money for logistics for our campaign but talking about huge expenses, that is corruption because you want you to go out and borrow money, we will not do that.

I am not doing that, we do not have any sponsor or godfather, we want to shift from paradigm of godfatherism because that is what is spoiling the state. But if they try to induce anybody with money we tell them to collect but they should vote for Labour Party on the election day.

Why do you want to be the governor of Rivers state?

It is really obvious that we have had bad leadership in the past and that is why Rivers state is static, not growing. Before now, when I was growing up, we have seen misrule leadership. Moreso, I am coming from the part of Labour, I am the current Chairman of Nigerian Labour Congress, Rivers state chapter and know what has been happening: the workers from this party has been mistreated, the pensioners have been mistreated.

For seven years running, pensioners have not been paid gratuity and years arrears, workers have not been promoted, no employment.

If you go to public institutions, people are retiring by the day no replacement. So we saw all these things and decided to come and create some changes. So we cannot continue this lamentations but to get into the position to begin to implement all these that are implementable.

I promise that within my 100 days in office, I will clear all the gratuity, promote every worker to the position they are supposed to be because I have the knowledge, the connections needed to make these things come to pass.

You have just listed some of the failures of the present government, can you tell us the major failure you will tackle first if you are elected?

I want to run an all encompassing government. That is to say, every part of the state should be included in governance. We don’t want lopsided development, yes, some people will say they are building bridges everywhere, but what happens to my own local government, it is these days because of politics they want to commission all the internal roads, this is few weeks to the eight years, all these time you don’t know you are supposed to repair the internal roads in the rural areas. People are now wiser, so we run an all inclusive government and also I will respect traditional institutions, I want to bring them into the framework of governance, I want to bring them into the security architecture of governance because they are the people that are directly in the grassroot, do know these people.

The chiefs know alot of things happening in their communities, so if you bring them in there are other benefits they will gain from you because they know they are really in charge, their best will come and it will reduce the restiveness that is going on.

So we are going to declare an emergency on employment. We will also make the environment to be conducive so that investors can come in and invest in the state. When you begin to work on the systemic failure things will begin to work well in the state. We will try to strengthen institutions.

What are your thoughts about the new Electoral Act.

That is why some of us are even here talking. If it was before, they would have gone back to fill their incidence forms, someone will seat at a particular place and begin to thump print and start announcing some bogus results but by the grace of God, God can use any bad situation to create good situation. Though we are crying, but God has used this administration to sign the electoral act that has brought about BVAS and with that be rest assured that what is voted is what will be recorded. The incidence of massive rigging will no longer be there, I still believe that even though there will be rigging it will be reduced to the minimal level that it will not harm the system. That is why we are sure of winning because if it is before, they will use their money to work their ways out. But with the BVAS,the way I saw it in Osun and Ekiti states, I believe that if that method is followed, things will work out well.

Will you probe Nyesom Wike’s administration if you become the governor of the state in May, and how how do you feel about the Executive Orders 21 and 22?

I am not an apostle of probe, I want to believe that everybody had their own style of leadership, because the time you begin to look back you will lose focus, so you have to face what is coming at that time, make good use of the resources  available and deliver the dividends of democracy to the people.

Let the people judge between this and that. The Executive Orders 21 and 22, is really unfortunate but I have decided not to say anything about that because no matter what you do, people can still go round what they can. I am not a law breaker and I didn’t go to court to challenge that law, I will not also do things that will be contrary to the law even though I know that in best of my knowledge, I have not seen a situation where venues are demarcated but today, politicians are restricted to have their meetings in hotels, other places.

That is why I said when the institution is strengthened such order will not hurt anyone.

It’s a way of seeing how they will strangulate some political parties and so we may not be using the public places but we will do our campaign in the state.

With your experience as the Chairman, NLC in the state, how do intend to improve people’s  lives in the state?

There is no stomach infrastructure without development. Like I said, we will go around and see how we promote employment, because when there is employment, people’s lives will improve, their life circumstances will also improve.

The truth is right now what is happening is that money is in the hand of very few people.

When we begin to liberalise things, allow people to work, allow the system to flow, you see that the economy will begin to grow.

I will encourage cooperatives, I will give soft loans to the market women so they will not need to pay interest. We will put in place a lot of policies, I will be so friendly to the people, so it will improve their quality of life.

Recently, your presidential candidate, Peter Obi, was in Port Harcourt to  campaign, do you think he has capacity to rule this country?

If the capacity is intellectual know how, out of the candidates contesting, Obi is second to none, if it is fluency, calculations on economy, Obi is second to none. He had translated that physically in Anambra state where he cleared all the debts owed by the state government, he made bold to tell people that he paid the last pensioner, that he never owed anybody.

He is well equipped: intellectually, spiritually, physically to rule this country and I believe he is the next president of this country come February 25.

On the other issue whether my presidential candidate is working with me, yes, we are together. I was with him when he came for the campaign. There is no way my presidential candidate will be in this boat and I will be in another boat, it happens in parties where there is discordant tunes. We will make the day by the grace of God, we will win the elections.

What are your promising words to Rivers people.

I am asking them that they should go on and collect their PVCs so that they can vote their conscience. They should not be bought because this period that is exactly why we are where we are. Our children cannot go to school,  no jobs, there are draconian laws everywhere, people are crying.

They should look well and vote a woman this time. Even in the Bible, when things become very difficult it was women that God used to rescue the nation. Many countries where women are leaders are doing well because they are not fantastically corrupt like men.

The women appetite for money is not like that of men, they are home managers, nation builders and Rivers in a state of chaos needs a woman to rescue it. We are going to bring back our unity for the progress our state and country at large.