By Matthew Okache
The people of Cross River State Northern Senatorial District will always look over their shoulders with overwhelming sense of pride, for having entrusted their mandate during the 2015 general elections on a worthy daughter, Senator (Dr.) Rose Okoji Oko to be their voice at the upper legislative chamber of the National Assembly. The electoral victory way back then was quite resounding, indicative of wide acceptance and popularity of the candidate.
This however, was not unconnected with her quintessential performance, when she served as a member of the House of Representatives, representing Ogoja/Yala Federal Constituency, between 2011 and 2015. The reasoning then was that if she could served her constituency so meritoriously well at the lower chamber, then the sky would definitely be a stepping stone if given the opportunity to serve at the upper chamber. Rightly so, Distinguished Sen. (Dr.) Rose Okoji Oko is living out the truth behind that wise and elderly reasoning, since she was elected into the Senate in 2015.
So far, her less than three years in the Red Chamber is indeed, a time well spent. This brief, but significant period has been quite eventful, as it is dotted all over with dividends upon dividends of democracy.
As a seasoned scholar and educationist, Senator Oko is passionately disposed to engendering qualitative education in Cross River State Northern Senatorial District. her firm belief in human capacity development through the instrumentality of quality and accessible education, has led her, like a messiah, to bring significant turn-around in the Cross River North educational landscape, which until her appearance on the scene, was a forlorn and unattractive enterprise, sharply marked by deplorable state of infrastructure and a visible absence of teaching and learning materials. This unpalatable condition of Primary and Secondary schools in Northern Senatorial District saw everything education dancing precariously to the precipice. The mental torture evoked by mere sight of classrooms, which looked more like vestiges of long era of neglect, was enough to break the stoutest of mind. Teachers and students abandoned classrooms, and parents frowned at the idea of enrolling their children and wards into public schools in their localities.
The trend continued unabated, so much that its effects became telling on the general school enrolment. To those who could afford them, private schools readily became the toast of parents and guardians. Due to exorbitant fees, hopes of most children, whose parents lacked the financial muscle to get them admitted into these private schools, were left wandering and gazing despondently into the dark horizon, praying and wishing a messiah miraculously turned up in the open sky.
And, just at a juncture when fate were to hit the final nail on the future hope of Cross River North, which the children amply represent, a messiah and restorer, in the person of Senator Oko, stepped in to salvage what was indeed, the remains of education in the Northern Senatorial District of Cross River State.
To start with, she dealt a decisively accurate and heavy-weight punch at the pitiable and sorry state of education that confronted the Senatorial District. This blow was masterfully materialized and delivered in the Senator’s 2015/2016 and 2016/2017 zonal intervention projects in education worth over One Hundred and Eighty-Five Million Naira (N185,000,000.00).
Under these projects, the lawmaker embarked upon educational infrastructure intervention in Thirty-Four (34) primary and secondary schools across the five local government areas of Bekwara, Obanliku, Obudu, Ogoja and Yala that make up the Northern Senatorial District. In one fell swoop, Community Science School, Olachor; Community Secondary School, Aliforkpa; Community Secondary School, Ore, Ijiegu; Comprehensive Secondary School, Okwel Urban II; Community Secondary School, Nwang; Science Secondary School, Wanihem; Secondary Grammar School, Wanokom; Government Secondary School Ijiegu; UBEC Model Junior Secondary School, Abachor Okuru; Bagga Secondary School, Otaga; Community Science School Aladim; Government Science School, Ishibori; Community Secondary School, Utugwang; Igbeku Comprehensive Secondary School, Igbeku; Technical School, Ijiraga; Technical School, Ipong; Government Science School, Ipong; Government Secondary School, Ukpa; Technical School, Bendi II, were all touched by the wave of Senator Rose Oko’s transformational and purpose driven representation. This insightful masterstroke saw a whole new page in the educational system opened, as dilapidated classroom blocks and offices were totally renovated. The air around the school ambience was freshened up, and like a coloured petal atop a rose flower attracts birds, the interest of parents, teachers and students were rekindled. Confidence was gradually restored on the educational system, brought about by a servant and worthy Senator.
Without resting on her oars, and in seeing that education in Senatorial District is top-notch, the delectable Senator Oko consistently followed up with provision of science equipment to Thirteen (13) Secondary Schools. The move was a conscious effort geared towards reviving the teaching and learning of science subjects these in schools, which was hitherto, greeted were lukewarm attitude by both teachers and students, owing to lack of teaching apparels. Among the schools that benefitted from this gesture are Mary knoll College, Yala, Ogoja; Government Science School, Ukpa; Government Science School, Ipong; Technical School, Bendi, to mention but a few.
The apparent dearth of books and other learning materials in school libraries across the Senatorial District, prompted the legislator to embarked upon massive provision of textbooks, reference materials and computers to at least Ten (10) schools in each of the five local government areas under her constituency. Here, secondary Commercial School, Yala; Government Secondary School, Ukpa; Secondary School, Abuochiche; Secondary School, Mount Camel, Ogoja; Secondary Grammar School, Yahe; Government Science School, Egbe-Mbube; Comprehensive Secondary School, Gakem, among others, have felt the impactful encounter with Dr. Rose Oko’s quality representation.
Following the Senator’s Midas’ touch, schools that were moribund began to roar back to life. Gradually, this revival in the education sector started manifesting its own challenges. Like a flash, school enrolment hit the roof, necessitating additional classroom space to cater for the influx of students and pupils. In understanding this, the listening and caring
lawmaker, urgently swung into action, by initiating and completing the construction of six (6) numbers of two (2) classroom blocks for three (3) primary and four (4) Secondary Schools in each of the five local government areas of the Senatorial Zone. In addition to this, the legislator ensured the provision of standard classroom desks for each of the newly built classroom blocks, spread across Community Primary School, Udiege, Obudu Urban II; Community Primary School, Ntara II; Community Primary School, Okpodom; St. Ben Primary; School, Mfuma; Primary School, Sankwala; St. Patrick Primary School, Egbe-Mbube, among others.
As someone who desires to see youths read further and attain the zenith of their academic pursuits, Dr. Rose Oko, has between 2015 to date, given out scholarship, grants and other academic support, amounting to the tune of Eighty Million Naira (N80, 000,000), to over Two Hundred Under-Graduate and Post-Graduate students across the component units that constituted the Senatorial Zone, who are studying in various tertiary institutions in the country.
In the area of health, the Senator deserves commendation. The thinking of the federal lawmaker is that, it is only when people are healthy and sound, will they be able to work and contribute meaningfully to their socio-economic well-being and that of the society at large. Hence, she has been consistent in pursuing vigorous health intervention campaigns for her people.
In 2016 alone, Senator Rose Oko undertook several medical outreach programmes across the nooks and corners of Cross River Northern Senatorial District, so much to the admiration of Traditional Rulers and chief, who showered her with encomiums. She generously bankrolled the medical bills for Eighty (80) constituents who were suffering from life-threatening illnesses. This magnanimous gesture, no doubt, gave beneficiaries a second chance at life. Within the same year, she distributed Eight Hundred (800) units of Sight Corrective eye glasses to people with varying degrees of visual impairments. To this category of beneficiaries, Senator Oko, represents the light at the end of their dark tunnel.
To cap her effort in improving health status of the people, she provided hospital equipment worth Forty Million Naira (N40, 000,000) to different health care facilities in zone; this is, in addition to the provision of regular counseling on various deadly diseases such as, HIV/AIDS, Lassa fever, Breast Cancer and many more.
Under her social empowerment programmes, which most often reflect core element of human agency, the humane Legislator has taught a good number of the people how to fish, instead of depending on her for fish. So far, the Senator was instrumental for the inclusion of Fourty-five (45) constituents in the federal government’s N-Power programme. She single-handedly sponsored Fourty (40) constituents for recruitment into the Nigeria Peace Corps. Through her contacts, she facilitated and perfected the employment of Five (5) constituents into the Nigerian Navy in 2016.
As the people’s voice in the upper legislative chamber, Senator Rose Oko persistently raised her voices, until the case of late Joy Odama, allegedly murdered by Alhaji Usman Adamu in Abuja, was given urgent attention. And, even at a time when finance posed great challenges to autopsy that was required to aid investigation, the law maker intervened and gave out three Hundred Thousand Naira (N300, 000) to facilitate the process.
On the legislative front, Distinguished Senator Rose Oko, has so far, so good, sponsored Seven (7) significant bills and moved Four (4) motions, which are all at various stages of development.
It is pertinent to note that all these giant strides were achieved within a short space of two years, that is, 2015-2017 and there is high hope of grater and better achievements in the years ahead.
To this silent achiever, the saying that one good turn deserves another rightly comes to play as we march towards another general election in 2019.
Okache is the publisher of Voplink Media, writes from Calabar
