Dafinone, DPP Senatorial candidate, unfold vision for Delta Central

Democratic Peoples Party (DPP) senatorial candidate in Delta Central, Chief Ede Dafinone Tuesday night vowed to protect the people’s rights to professional representation, sustainable economic development, quality education, job creation, improved healthcare services and poverty alleviation through empowerment if voted into power.

“As a senator representing your interests, I would bring my professional knowledge and experience to bear on a wide range of public policy issues and topics. As a senator, I would focus on the regional impact of legislation and policies, routinely communicating with individuals, business representatives, universities and schools, communities and interest groups in Delta Central. This would ensure the region’s interests are considered in the public policy process. As a senator, my expertise in many areas, including agriculture, business and economics, the environment and the oil and gas industry would be brought to bear”

The extensively experienced and goal oriented charted accountant with over 34 years’ experience and core competence in accounting, auditing, taxation and conducting who on Tuesday won the Delta Central Senatorial District ticket at the National Assembly primaries of the party with 872 votes in an exercise held at the Ughelli Hall amid tight security promised to devote his energy to serve the people of the area. He also promised to address the problems in the senatorial district.

“There is poor level of attendance in public schools; there is poor quality of teaching in schools. There are schools that are free but just the cost of the books and uniforms are problems to many parents and for this their children don’t go to schools. The problem of poor level of education has given rise to a higher level of crime around the country not just in Delta Central. We have possibly one or even two generations of Nigerians today who are not educated to the level where they can get job and those missing generations are with us for life. They would be 50, 60 years of age and not able to apply for any job, not able to feed their families.

“And when you get a large group of people in that classification, they are tied to poverty for the rest of their life. We must correct the system from the bottom and start policies that will insure education from that young age. There is also the problem of infrastructure. We have a large number of roads between local governments, inter-state roads that are either uncompleted or in a bad state of disrepair. If the roads and transportation systems are improved, the movement of goods and farm produce would increase the whole market size available to farmers, traders etc. Health is also an important issue. The quality of healthcare is so poor. Nigeria is still very high on the infant mortality list. The clinics have not been staffed to a level where we can be assured of proper healthcare delivery. There is a lot of work to do in every sector. The issues of banditry, hostage taking, kidnapping, etc are also major problems that need to be addressed urgently”.

Dafinone who said he stands for good governance and integrity, thanked the people of Delta Central who supported his campaign for quality representation with prayers, counsel and encouragement.

He also thanked fellow contestants for the senatorial ticket.

“I thank Richard Odibo, Napoleon Gbinijie and Abel Oharume for the strength of their participation, the vastness of their individual visions and the robustness of their commitment to Urhobo unity. It was truly a family affair.

Emphasizing that his colleagues in the primaries have shown that they are true democrats by the gracious manner in which they have accepted the verdict, he assured them that “their various visions for a greater Delta Central would be fused into where we should be heading to as a people”.

He also commended the party’s leader in the state, Chief Great Ogboru, members of the executive and other party members who spent their time and energy to organise the primaries”.

He appealed to the people of Delta Central and members of the party join hands together to ensure victory come October 5, 2013.

“I wish to assure you that no interest will be overlooked and no point of view will suffer from lack of attention. I am inviting all DPP aspirants, all Urhobo sons and daughters and all non-indigenes residing in Delta Central to join my campaign team”.

Dafinone who also spoke on reasons for joining the senatorial race said he had been content with the little he was doing for fellow human beings within the circumference of his reach and means, until he was convinced that he could have a wider platform to render more beneficial services to humanity as a politician.

”I am a democrat, with a firm belief in the supremacy of the will and the choice of the majority. With fathomless and eternal thanks to God, I am a child of privileged background. I am most happy to have realized very early in life, the lesson that life is nothing if we do not use our vantage positions, to leave the world better than we met it, by improving on the quality of our environment and our fellow human beings.”

Noting that the time has come for the development of the area and the people, Dafinone said he is in the race to touch the people’s lives.

“I am very confident that the people are ready to vote for me. I have no fear about that. As far as the people of Delta Central are concerned, my consultations with them have been very positive.