Two members of the House of Representatives from the south-south, Dr Unyime Idem and Dr Alex Egbona- from Akwa Ibom and Cross River states respectively, appear to be deliberate in their resolve to attract development projects to their constituencies.
While Idem, chairman of the House committee on public procurement, represents the Ukanafun/Oruk Anam federal constituency, Egbona, chairman of the House committee on specialty healthcare, represents the Abi/Yakurr federal constituency.
In Idem’s constituency, his rating keeps soaring. He is known to have exceeded the performance of all previous representatives of the federal constituency. In fact, apart from attracting projects and facilitating the employment of people in his constituency, he is seen to have also done so much for those in other parts of the state.
For example, he is said to have assisted youths from other parts of the state in gaining employments in federal government agencies and parastatals, while also sponsoring them to China for the ongoing capacity building programmes, which his constituents have been enjoying.
His classmates as well as leaders of the PTA at the Western Annang Secondary Commercial School, WASCO, Ukanafun, the foremost secondary school in the state, are full of praises for his intervention in attracting classroom and administrative blocks to the school, apart from the ICT centre which he built, as well as solar street lights which he attracted to the school. Similar classroom blocks have been attracted to other schools.
He is also credited with the construction of roads in the federal constituency, including the road leading to the secondary school and the biggest market in Ukanafun, the Urua Akpan Assiek.
Only recently, he made a public commitment to restore public power supply to the local government, as the people have been in darkness for many years. His activities are said to have endeared him to the governor, Dr Umo Eno and political leaders from the federal constituency.
In December this year, Idem is planning to produce 1000 millionaires, one from each family in the entire federal constituency, in an empowerment scheme that is being dubbed the mother of them all.
His counterpart from Cross River State is also seen to have done so much. One political leader from Ugep and former presidential adviser, Chief Okoi Obono-Obla and even the paramount ruler of Yakurr and Obol Opon Ugep, Obol Ofem Ubana Eteng, were recently reported to have said that Egbona had dwarfed the performance of former occupants of the seat put together, cine 1999.
While Egbona is partly credited with the establishment of the Federal Polytechnic, Ugep, he is said to have been solely responsible for the establishment of a campus of the Nigerian Leather Institute in Ekureku, where youths are currently being trained on leather works, including shoes, bags, belts etc.
Egbona is said to have attracted projects to all the wards in the federal constituency, including solar street lights, mini solar grids for existing health centres, electricity and water projects across the two local governments that make up the constituency.
While he has been reported to have caused the federal government to build new schools in various parts of the federal constituency, he has also facilitated the renovation of many, as well as the provision of basic infrastructure and books for the schools.
Chairmen of the two local governments that make up the constituency- Egbala Bassey(Abi) and Yibala Inyang(Yakurr) have seen in him, a leader with a heart to develop the people and the constituency and have been working closely with him.
Even his governor, Senator Bassey Otu is making commitments to support him in the drive to get collaborations towards boosting the facilities at the leather institute and also encouraging and supporting students to be trained there.
The projects attracted by Idem and Egbona are outside their contributions to legislative businesses on the floor of the lower chamber of the National Assembly, in the areas of bills and motions sponsored.
For instance, legislative processes for the proposed federal medical centre, Itigidi, Abi Local Government, which bill was sponsored by Egbona and successfully passed by the House and supported through concurrence by the senate, is now awaiting the endorsement of the president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
