OPINION : Why Senator Gershom Bassey Deserves Support Not Pillory by Emmanuel Unah

Anger , especially misplaced anger can rob us of the benefits that can accrue from an otherwise  laudable  programme of government or selfless agenda of  an individual. Such misplaced anger can give us false arsenal to belittle or trample afoot what we ordinarily should embrace to transform our lives or change our destinies for good.

Like it is often said, for God to bless a man, he has to work through other human being. It is rare for God to come down in person to feed a person with bread like in the days of the Israelites in the desert. He pointedly said   after that that those days are over and since then we have not experienced or seen  manna fall from heaven again.

It is on this backdrop that God has placed  authorities , governments, powers  and so forth mounted by people who are saddled with the task of working  towards the good  of mankind.

Whatever the form of government, not all persons in a society can occupy the same office at the same time. And as we put it in Nigeria it  is “turn by turn”. That is to say, after one person another takes over because the essence  of government  is to initiate policies and prgranmmes that cam benefit the larger society and nobody has monopoly of wisdom or knowledge.

When such persons are in office, it is the responsibility of others  to support the ideas and prgrammes he initiates at each point in time and if  a person is sceptical  all he  can do  under such circumstance is to  watch and see how those programme will mature and come to fruition. Noit engage in premature diatribe inorder to scuttle the programme. No  seed planted bears fruit that same day. If we are impatient and dig up the seed after a few days, we would eventually destroy the seed and rob ourselves and  others  the opportunity of  savouring the fruits such seeds would  bear at maturity.

Driving the message home, Senator Gershom Bassey, the Senator representing the Southern Senatorial, District was part of the triumvirate that assumed power in Cross River State in 1999. He never showed any greed or desperation for power. He remained patient for sixteen good years and for the purpose of fairplay,  when Senator Liyel Imoke, the immediate past governor of the state insisted that the governorship slot should move to the northern district,  Senator Gershom did not object or raise eyebrow even when he was goaded by some forces to topple the cart. He remained calm and when the slot for Senate was rezoned, he threw his hat into the ring, contested the PDP primaries and won and went ahead to win the general election.

Politics is like sport and when defeated, it is only proper to take ones loss with good fate and work with the winner particularly when the winner has been overtly fair and accommodating like Senator Gershom to past occupants of the post. He has never been to the  State Assembly, House of Representatives and within the two years he has been in the post of Senate he has represented the district and state well by attracting  projects like the extension of the East West road to terminate in Calabar, the Oban road, the construction of the construction of the Calabar –Ikot Ekepene road, the reanimation of the Calabar – Ikom –Ogoja road and other projects.

Recently, he added verve  to the annual packages he gives  to constituents during the yuletide season by donating hospital equipment, empowerment items for hundreds of youths and women, held a town hall meeting which is a novelty by any representative of the district and also visited the different local government areas to parley with the youths, elders and chiefs.

He also introduced another novelty by mounting billboards across the senatorial district with his  phone numbers boldly unscripted on them for anyone with any issue or idea to contact him and thousands of his constituents are taking advantage of this selfless efforts and are  benefitting.

He has done all these in just two years alongside moving Motions and introducing Bills on the floor of the Senate  which is his primary responsibility  which is making the people of the district and state proud. To say the least Senator Gershom Bassey deserves our support not unnecessary pillory and diatribe as  better days are ahead.