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… Tasks Leaders on Bonding with Constituents
By Amos Odeh, Yenagoa
It was a sort of carnival, full of excitement, and fanfare on Sunday, December 2, 2022, when Bayelsa’s deputy governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, led his children on a novelty fishing expedition to River Fircados, at his country home, Ofoni, in Sagbama Local Government Area.
Leveraging on his old fishing skills, Senator Ewhrudjakpo caught a tilapia and two silver fishes, while his children also caught a river catfish and two other species of fish.
Sharing his experience at the close of the fun-filled expedition, the deputy governor said fishing was one of the main traditional occupations and activities he grew up doing in the community.
According to him, he decided to bring his children to the river to coach them on how to fish using a fishing pole, line and hook, since they had not had the experience before.
Senator Ewhrudjakpo encouraged parents to make it a point of duty to groom their children in traditional skills like farming and fishing, besides providing them with Western education.
Senator Ewhrudjakpo cautioned that as a people, the Ijaws should not allow their tradition to die or fade away through neglect and abandonment.
The Bayelsa deputy governor explained that the outing offered him a rare opportunity to reminisce on the good old days, adding that he and his contemporaries would for whole days be angling for fish in the river.
He seized the opportunity to advise leaders at all levels to always come down to the grassroots and identify with their people to sustain their relevance and acceptance.
Senator Ewhrudjakpo noted that he loved spending valuable time with his people, interacting and sharing views on a wide range of issues with them, which gives him joy and a sense of satisfaction.
His words, “These are things we grew up with. And so, it is difficult to leave them. You know, one cannot unlearn old tricks. I just decided to bring my children to have this experience because they’ve not experienced it before.
“I wanted them to look a bit local to have a feel of life in the village because it is not too good to bring up our children solely on western education. We should also give them our own traditional education.
“This was one of the things we used to do to eke out a living and contribute to the welfare of our families. That is the lesson I’m teaching them. And by the grace of God, we were able to get some catch as you can see.
“We are all excited. We have a tilapia, and others including the river catfish. My daughter caught the catfish while my son caught two silver fishes. I caught the tilapia and others but it’s so painful that I lost the gold fish.
“My message to all leaders is that, they should bond with their people because North, South, East and West, there is no place like home. For me, I feel at home whenever I’m in my community because it makes me to have a feel of my people and reminisce the old days.
“If I stay away from my people, when my remains comes someday in the future, it will be a stranger to my people. That’s why I always find time to come and relax with them. And I enjoy doing so. It gives me the feeling that I’m still being loved by my people.
“So, leaders should try and get in touch with their people from time to time because that is the only way to remain relevant even when you are dead.”
