Centre Engages Citizens On Holding Government Accountable

A non-governmental organisation (NGO), Public and Private Development Centre (PPDC) has engaged Abuja residents on the need to hold the government at all levels accountable.

Speaking at stakeholders’ engagement on service delivery in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, organised by PPDC with support from the Voice project, programme officer of PPDC, Marvelous Laurence, said they wanted the residents to ensure the government gives them good service delivery.

According to her, the project is all about how the citizens can access their rights to be involved in the contract that is being awarded within their community for proper accountability.

She said over time, people always say NGOs are always talking about it.

“On this basis, we decided to take a step forward and also collaborate with other civil society organisations so that they can speak independently.

“Today they are not hiding under the shadows of PPDC, even though we engaged them, but their findings are being shared and that is why we called the concerned community for them to be involved and whatever you heard from them is first-hand information,” Marvelous said.

Dutse Alhaji Community representative, Ibrahim Husseini, said even though they were part of the FCT, the government schools were poorly taken care of.

Hussein called on the government to come to their aid.

“During the rainy season our children do not go to school because school buildings are not properly taken care of. We are part of FCT. We should benefit from what those who are in the centre are benefiting from.”

Similarly, Keima Ogunlana, who monitored Junior Secondary School, Phase 3 Abuja, and Primary Health Care Centre, Gwarinpa, said the Gwarinpa Primary health care facility was in a bad condition.

According to her,” When rain is falling, the hospital is always wet. People with disabilities cannot have access to the hospital. There is no drug and the toilet facility is not functioning. No light in the primary health care centre. Also at the junior secondary school, the case is not different. Sometimes, children cannot come to school because of the nature of the classes.”