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10th NASS Will Try Not To Be ‘Rubber Stamp’ – Senator-elect Thomas

Joel-Onowakpo Thomas is the senator-elect for Delta South Senatorial District. In this interview with FELIX IGBEKOYI, the chartered accountant spoke on expectations from the 10th  National Assembly (NASS) and how he intends to represent his district.

by Felix Igbekoyi
2 years ago
in News
10th NASS
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Who is Senator Thomas and why did you leave the financial sector for politics?

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I am an Isoko man from Delta State. Besides being a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA) and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria (FCTI), in 2003, I was listed in the ‘Who is Who in the 21st Century’ by the International Biographical Center, Cambridge. Traditionally, I am the Idudu of Emede kingdom and the Majidadin Kaigama Katsina. I started my political career in Alliance for Democracy, (AD) in Delta State in the 2003 general elections with Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru as the governorship candidate against our national leader, Chief James Ibori of People’s Democratic Party, (PDP). After the 2003 election, Chief Ibori initiated a move coordinated by Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan and Chief Ighoyota Amori that brought us to PDP in 2004. After the 2007 elections, the then governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, appointed me as the Transition Committee Chairman of Isoko South Local Government. This eventually made me a Council Chairman. The same governor appointed me as the first Executive Chairman, Delta State Board of Internal Revenue (DBIR) in 2009. In 2016, after the emergence of President Muhammadu Buhari, my mentor, former colleague and friend, Tunde Fowler, was appointed as chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), and in his attempt to hunt for the best brains in the profession, I was invited to join the revenue administration as Deputy Director/State Coordinator overseeing Rivers, Edo & Delta states. In 2018, I resigned, left the PDP and joined the APC to contest the House of Representatives election for the Isoko North and Isoko South Federal Constituency but lost.

 

What is your relationship with former governor of Delta, Dr Emmanuel Uduaghan?

I consider him as my father and mentor. We have a very excellent relationship.

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What is your relationship with Chief James Ibori?

He is our leader, a father and a mentor. Unfortunately, perhaps, I never had the opportunity to work with him directly when he was the governor of the State.

 

You are the senator-elect, Delta South Senatorial District on APC’s platform. What is your relationship with your governorship candidate and deputy senate president, Senator Ovie Omo- Agege?

He is my brother, my friend and my leader. He was the vessel God used to make me a senator.

 

How do you feel about your party not winning the governorship seat in Delta State?

I have taken it in the spirit of sportsmanship. However, this matter is still before the Tribunal, I am very optimistic that we will win at the tribunal. I encourage all our supporters to remain calm and be prayerful. I wouldn’t want to speak more but permit me to say that it would have been better for me if my candidate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, emerged the winner of the election because that would have made my job seamless.

 

How do you feel as senator-elect?

I don’t feel any different. Maybe it is as a result of the fact that I haven’t begun my duties as a legislator. However, I feel fulfilled, for it is a dream come true. I will forever remain grateful to God and the good people of Delta South Senatorial District, nay Delta State, for finding me worthy of this important assignment.

 

What is your vision for Delta South Senatorial District?

I want them to feel the impact of the government and I want to leave the office better than I met it. This is why during the campaigns I anchored my manifesto on the acronym, ‘DUE’,  which stands for Drastic Infrastructure Development, Unique Empowerment Initiatives and Effective Legislation. Being one of the senatorial districts that lay the golden egg in terms of revenue generation to the treasury of this country, Delta South deserves more than crumbs. I believe the time has come to accord Delta South what is due to her.

 

What are your expectations of the 10th NASS and how will you facilitate such expectations?

If truly the National Assembly is the second arm of government, I want them to live up to that expectation in a very professional way that is not confrontational with other arms of government, especially the Executive. There should be mutual respect for all arms of government with the sole aim of serving the people of this country. This country is currently in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). The National Assembly, while supporting the other arms of government, should prevent this country from going into extinction. This is not the time to engage in unnecessary controversy or parochial drives. But a time when all stakeholders sincerely synergize with the interest of moving this country to where we earnestly want it to be. This should show in our services to our people and the nation. The 10th National Assembly should be known for professionalism, selflessness, progress, national integration and unity. Personally, I will try to ensure that the different geopolitical zones are given to them.

 

What is your take on the current leadership struggle in NASS?

I have been away. However, I am aware that there are a lot of people jostling for the principal positions. To me, what is happening is expected and I have absolutely no reservations. As a first-timer, I will watch carefully, as a loyal party man, the interest of my people and party will come first before another.

 

Tacit endorsement has been given to Senator Godswill Akpabio as the next senate president by the president-elect. What is your take on that?

I am not aware, I have heard it just the way you said it. To me, like my name, ‘Thomas’, I consider this as mere speculation. And I want to beg the press not to give the President-Elect unnecessary baggage. The issue about the leadership of NASS is a sensitive one. I expect that whoever emerges, should be so from a process. It is the duty of the candidates to earn the respect and trust of their colleagues. And these colleagues should be able to take ownership of the leadership. Doing anything to the contrary, will amount to the president-elect taking sides. So, if asked, I will say the president-elect has not endorsed anybody to my knowledge. The field is free for all who are qualified to aspire. And the last thing that this NASS won’t want to be associated with is that “they are rubber stamp”. Even if we want to be a rubber stamp, I am pretty sure that we will do it with some level of dignity. Therefore, let the best man win.

 

The NWC of your party, APC, recently came up with a zoning formula which specified zones and the preferred candidates. Don’t you think the issue of who becomes the Senate President and other offices is a settled matter?

I also saw the letter, and if it is the letter you are referring to, I think you need to read it again, and possibly read in between the lines and you will understand that some persons are trying to play a fast one and the NWC of our party was so smart to spot the game and quickly did the right thing by issuing a subtle disclaimer. Simply put, the NWC is saying, they were presented with a report as stated below but because they were not convinced, they have asked that further consultation and harmonization should be done that will safeguard the interest of all concerned. From the above, how do you see that letter has an endorsement or a settled case? Persuasion, interaction, compromise and all instruments of bargain have to be deployed to reach a consensus.

 

Who is your candidate?

I currently don’t have a candidate. I just came back and I have spoken to all candidates. Since I came back, however, I have met three of the candidates. I am yet to meet with the remaining three. I am still accessing my options and I will finally align with the person that will support my vision in developing my senatorial district and give the Senate the best of leadership. I have only one vote, I have no control of other senators’ vote, and I intend to use that vote wisely. But like I said earlier, the interest of my people and party will top others. I am aware that my people voted for me because they trust me and that I will do the right thing. I do not intend to take that trust lightly. My focus is on what will benefit my people and move Nigeria forward. I am not in NASS to make friends that will not add value to my people and make Nigeria better. Primarily, I am here to be a voice to the constituents of Delta South, a place with massive production of crude oil and gas yet in abject poverty. I want that story to change. I don’t know how the government will be able to do it, but I want our cities to benefit from their God-given resources. I am here to make friends who see reasons to be sympathetic to our plight and who will join me to change the story. Anything short of that, please count me out. And I want to say this for the benefit of all, my one vote has only one condition, the welfare of my people. My vote will not support an argument for religious or ethnic imbalance. My vote will go for the best man

 

What is your assessment of the President-elect, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu?

The president-elect is a man I have tremendous respect for. I am grateful to God that I am a senator at a time he is the president. I consider this a unique opportunity and privilege to draw inspiration from him. I know he means well for the country and he is more than determined to do good. My prayer is for him not to lose focus. He should just stick to what he wants to achieve. It is my advice that he shouldn’t meddle with the leadership of NASS because he has so many like minds in the NASS that will help drive his vision. We are all tired of doing the same thing the same way and expecting a different result. We want that impactful change, and he has the capacity to do so. I have often joked with friends, when asked this same question, and my answer has always been, I don’t expect too much from our President-Elect. He should just fix power problem in Nigeria same way His Excellency, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo fixed the issue of telecommunication. I have experience in different fields of human endeavors, from being an entrepreneur, to being a tax practitioner and tax administrator, I am good in finance and financial management. In the midst of his many advisers, I am willing to contribute my knowledge in whatever is necessary to advance his goals in bailing this country out of its current situation.

While you were on vacation, there were a series of publications by your opponents challenging your victory. What is your take on that?

It was brought to my attention. I didn’t bother to read it. Michael Diden is my brother and friend. We grew up in similar circumstances, and we were offered similar opportunities in life, which have brought us to where we are today. It wasn’t by our power or what we know how to do best that has brought us to this level. Everything we have today is God-given. And I know he is aware of this. He shouldn’t be misled to think otherwise. We went into a contest and I emerged a winner. He has gone to court to challenge that victory which is alright, because it is within his right to do so. Writing in pages of newspapers for a matter you have taken to court shows that he wants to be a judge in his matter. I expected that his advisers would have told him that it is a wrong move. I personally didn’t spend time reading it because, judgement is not going to be given by the many newspapers paid to carry a story. However, I have excellent relationship with him. He knows, we are both made of the same stuff, let him go and find out. It will be in our mutual interest for him not to fight me. We have had enough fight!


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