Candidates of various political parties for the 2023 General Elections have assured the Organized Private Sector (OPS) in Rivers State, especially, Bonny Local Government Area, of their commitment to deliver on governance imperatives that would ensure ease of doing business when they win and get into office.

This assurance was given at the Bonny Business Community Political Dialogue organized by the Bonny Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (BOCCIMA) on Friday, October 4, 2022 in Bonny, Rivers State.

The candidates for Bonny Constituency in the Rivers State House of Assembly for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Victor Oko-Jumbo, and Accord Party, Lionel Opuada Pepple; Degema/Bonny Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives for Labour Party (LP), Dienye Willie-Pepple, and Social Democratic Party (SDP), Fubara Willie-Pepple; and Rivers West Senatorial District for Social Democratic Party (SDP), Dagogo Green, participated in the dialogue session hosted virtually by BOCCIMA.

The Political Dialogue, which aims at emplacing a robust engagement platform between the political class and the Organized Private Sector in Bonny, was hosted by the Director General of BOCCIMA, Constance Nwokejiobi, Chief Executive Officer of Kristina Reports, Godswill Jumbo, and Chief Executive Officer of ElFranti Nigeria Limited, Elfrida Jumbo, on behalf of the Chamber.

Responding to questions from the moderators, Oko-Jumbo of the PDP defined his approach to governance as “responsive and interactive”, saying that the era of impunity in leadership has since expired, stressing that he was consulting widely with his would-be constituents to aggregate their expectations with a view to map out his legislative plans, assuring that when he wins, he would work for the improvement of the lives of his people.

Asserting that the Organized Private Sector represented by BOCCIMA was critical in driving governance initiatives with direct impact on the grassroots with visible performance indicators, Pepple pledged to work closely with the Chamber in crystalizing his developmental plans to ensure that they not only capture the best interest of the people but also positively impact the business community, appealing to the business community to align with his aspiration to represent the people come 2023 by mobilizing votes for him.

Pepple of the Accord Party informed that his foray into mainstream politics was hinged on the sad reality of the dwindling lot of the people owing to an uncaring leadership paradigm, saying that when he wins, the interest of the people would be mainstreamed, disclosing that opportunities for development from both the public and private sector were yet untapped, assuring that he would pursue these opportunities for his people.

He, however, pointed out the key roles of the Business Community in processing these opportunities for the overall good of the people, promising that when he emerges the Bonny Constituency Representative, he would entrench an ongoing, robust and functional partnership with the Chamber in driving his legislative pursuits for the people, calling on the Business Community to muster their votes for him to win.

For the national legislature, Dienye Willie-Pepple of the Labour Party x-rayed the developmental paralysis of his constituency in terms of development indices, blaming the sorry situation on the lacuna in the leadership spectrum, positing that his approach to representation would be etched on knowledge, decisiveness, stakeholding and broadbased consultations, emphasizing the need for public sector benefits from the national government to cascade to the grassroots through the efforts of legislative officials.

Consequently, he stated that BOCCIMA would be strategic to the democratic dividends he would attract to his constituents, maintaining that this decision was predicated on the importance of the Business Community to properly warehousing and dispensing developmental initiatives, adding that it was important that the Business Community, which is the most impacted in governance failure, come together and vote for him and his party.    

Addressing the forum, SDP’s Fubara Willie-Pepple averred that the strategic place and critical roles of the Organized Private Sector was incontrovertible, stressing that governance impact can best be measured when it is conveyed through the Business Community, informing that the vast economic potentials of the Degema/Bonny axis of the State can only be aptly harnessed and its benefits dispensed to the people where a robust, responsive and responsible representation is emplaced.

He said the era of half measures and low budget legislative work were over, urging the Business Community to marshal their support for him and his party to emerge in the polls come 2023, asserting that visible change, verifiable infusion of constructive leadership and in-touch representation is what he is promising, adding that BOCCIMA would hold key stakes in his legislative activities when he gets into office.

On his part, the SDP’s Senatorial candidate for Rivers West Senatorial District, Dagogo Green noted that his party’s love for the Bonny people saw to the ceding of both the House of Representatives and Senatorial slots for Bonny sons, pointing out that the Rivers West Senatorial District contributes hugely to both the national and state economy, thus deserves the right kind of representation to leverage this status for the betterment of the people.

He drew attention to the place and roles of the Organized Private Sector in harnessing the abundant opportunities in that axis with a view to strengthening the economic viability of the eight local government areas in the senatorial district, stressing that Bonny remains a thriving economic hub that needs to be supported to reach its highest potentials.

In his view, the Business Community remains progressive partners strategic to the people-oriented plans of the SDP for Abua/Odual, Ahoada-West, Ahoada-East, Akuku-Toru, Asari-Toru, Bonny, Degema, and Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni LGAs that comprise the Rivers West Senatorial District, expressing his desire to work closely with the Chamber to drive the initiatives of his when elected into office.

In their closing remarks, BOCCIMA DG, Constance Nwokejiobi expressed the chamber’s interest in positive policy formulation and the need for elected officials to create a functional engagement template for better interaction with their constituents, stressing that the Business Community expects that the business climate around Bonny Island and beyond needs to be positively stimulated with initiatives and policies driven by the government at all levels and oversighted by the Legislature, stressing that these would create jobs, boost the local economy, upscale the capacity of local businesses and also increase the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

On his part, CEO of Kristina Reports, Godswill Jumbo enjoined the candidates to keep abreast their promises during the campaigns with a view to hitting the ground running when they assume office, assuring that the chamber was already mustering its members to get their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) with a view to supporting candidates that are primed to support the optimization of the business climate when voted into office.

In her remarks, CEO of Elfranti, Elfrida Jumbo wished the various candidates who were guests on the programme success at the polls, enjoining them to have the interest of the people at heart, stressing that when they get into office, they should do everything within the purview of their office to make life better for the suffering masses of Nigeria.