Mixed reactions and condemnations have continued to trail gift of tricycles popularly known as ‘keke’ as end of year empowerment to some indigenes and graduates of Isoko extraction of Delta state by the senator representing Delta South Senatorial district in the national assembly, James Manager.
Manager, represented by one of his aides, identified as Otobo, had on new year eve given out ‘keke’ to some indigenes and graduates of Isoko extraction in a mini ceremony said to have been tagged ‘2019 Christmas empowerment’, held at the residence of the aide at Emevor, Isoko North local government area of the state.
The fifth term senator however appreciated the beneficiaries for their steadfastness, diligence and commitment in working with him, assuring them of better days ahead.
Condemning the ‘keke’ empowerment to some of the indigenes and graduates, constituents of the senator from Isoko, have described the development as ‘insult’ to the sensibility of the Isoko people.
Expressing disappointment and what he called ignorance on the part of those graduates who accepted the ‘keke’ as empowerment, former president of a pressure group, Isoko Monitoring Group, (IMG), Sebastine Agbefe blamed all the ‘keke’ recipients.
“The graduates who collected Keke as empowerment and are bold enough to come out on social media in defense that the Senator has done well for Isoko graduates, should be left alone. Let them swim in their ignorance. They are not good enough to be enlisted to work in multinational coy or federal civil service.
“Why were they not considered in the just concluded state civil service employment. They are like slaves who love their chains. When slaves are in love with their chains there’s nothing you can do to liberate them. They are already on the side of their captors! We should let them be, for crying out loud.”
A staunched member of the Peoples Democratic Party, (PDP), and former house of Assembly aspirant in the 2019 general elections, who does not want his names mentioned, lambasted Manager for giving out ‘keke’ to graduates and some indigenes of Isoko as empowerment while fixing his Ijaw kinsmen in civil service and multinational companies.
“I am ashamed of my Isoko brethren, I feel for them. Reducing ourselves to nothing to accept keke as empowerment is insulting. Keke empowerment is a terrible and distasteful situation. Can Manager give keke to his Ijaw kinsmen, can he do this to his Ijaw graduates.?
This is the seventeenth year of Senator James Manager without any good thing for the Isoko nation. Manager fix our Isoko people just as you are fixing your Ijaw kinsmen. You can do better than this for my Isoko brethren. We need a better empowerment not this demeaning keke empowerment.”
As at the time of filing this report, the senator is still receiving backlashes from the people of Isoko extraction with warning to desist from demeaning and take for granted the Isoko people.
