By Azubuike Okeh
Port Harcourt – Wike has urged the newly sworn-in Caretaker Committee Chairmen to reside in their respective area councils instead of the state capital.
Wike made the call in Port Harcourt on Monday while addressing the 19 newly sworn-in caretaker committee chairmen.
He decried the fact that council chairmen preferred residing in the state capital instead of staying close to their people.
According to him, not staying within the communities in the area councils will keep them far away from the people.
“The third tier government is the closest to the people; so, those in charge of the system must be close to the people.
“Not living among the people keeps you far away from the people; they need to be close to feel the challenges of the people.”
The governor further advised the chairmen to evolve networks to generate information that would help in tackling security challenges in the rural communities.
He expressed worry that many council chairmen were only interested in security votes and never bothered to liaise with security agencies.
“You are the eyes of the government at the grassroots; you must liaise with the security agencies and the people; that is what leadership is all about,’’ Wike stressed.
Edited by Oluleye Abiodun/Nkechi Okoronkwo