*Ndidi Anike Val-Okeoma, Esq* is a Human and Gender Rights Advocate, a Business Attorney, Family Law Expert, Politician, a successful legal practitioner with an active legal practice spanning almost 20 years.
She is the Managing Partner & Head of Practice at ‘DIDI ANIKE & PARTNERS, a frontline Law Firm in Owerri, Imo State. Ndidi is a Social Crusader and Woman Advocate who has championed the passage of several legislations to promote the rights of Women and Children.
She was the pioneer Chairman of the Young Lawyers’ Forum, Imo State and has served as the Publicity Secretary of the Nigerian Bar Association, Owerri Branch. She is currently the Chairperson of International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA NIGERIA), Imo State Branch, an international organization that promotes the rights of Women and Children. Ndidi is also a Gospel Music Minister and public speaker who has spoken in so many conferences across the country.
She was the only female Governorship Aspirant on the platform of Labour Party during the last gubernatorial election in Imo State.
In an interactive session with Woman Mata column of Nigeria Watchdog Newspaper, the Woman Advocate and reputable legal luminary dwelt on sundry issues ranging from gender advocacy, women inclusion in governance, and lots more.
Excerpts:
Question: Why are you a gender advocate?
I am a gender advocate because of my commitment to social justice and a desire to address inequalities. My aim is to also raise awareness, challenge stereotypes, and work towards creating a more equitable and inclusive society.
Question: Do you feel women are marginalized?
I don’t “feel”, I KNOW that women are marginalized. The indices are there for all to see.
Question:
You obviously had good agenda for Imo State, going by your manifesto during the Imo electioneering campaigns, do you see the possibility of making a change in Imo even without being in power?
Yes, I do. I don’t have to be a Governor before I can touch lives. Impact is about giving value and not a function of office or position only. As a gender advocate and given my experiences in frontline advocacy and gender mainstreaming, I can confidently say that we are contributing our quota in this regard.
Question: With zero female representation at the 10th Assembly, what do you think should be done to achieve gender inclusion in governance?
Ans: It’s really quite simple: enforce the existing policies on gender inclusion.
Question:
As a family woman, do you think family responsibilities can become obstacles to women’s active participation in politics.
Ans: The truth is that women have the ability to multitask. However, the success of this largely depends on the level of support we get from the family and even the society. This is why we are advocates of equity because in deploying a woman to thrive in a task, you must also take into consideration her peculiarities as a Woman.
Question: You are an accomplished lawyer, what propelled you to veer into partisan Politics?
As a lawyer, I am a Social Engineer. This means that I use my knowledge of the Law to proffer solutions to my community and this was part of the driving force behind my ambition. Again, I got tired of the status quo. I was desirous of making us understand that governance isn’t rocket science but simply all about workable systems and structures.
Question: You are among the few women who dared to contest for the Imo governorship position, what motivated you to challenge the men?
Ans:Firstly, I didn’t challenge the men. I challenged the status quo of non-inclusion. I recognized that I was first a human before a woman and flowing from experience, I was thus equipped to run for the office and offered myself to serve in that capacity.
Question: What advice do you have for young girls with good dreams, visions and passion but no money to pursue them?
Ans: Vision begets clarity and clarity comes with time and experience. For everyone who has a dream, hold on to it and then start building capacity and forming lasting networks that will bring you closer to your dreams. You don’t need money to pursue your dreams; you need people. That is all the capital you need.
Uzodinma’s kinsman at war with Ministry of Finance over state funds, payment of workers’ salaries
The last may not have been heard about the alleged excesses of Terrence……………., Head of the Data Management Center that overseas the payment of salaries of civil servants in Imo State, as some Directives in charge of various departments in the Ministry of Finance have raised alarm over his activities which have made them idle and redundant.
A source in the Ministry who does not want his name mentioned said, a situation where Terrence, who hails from Orsu Local Government Area, has assumed the duties of the Accountant General of the state ad makes things difficult for civil servants who often cluster in the Ministry seeking how to reconcile issues and solve their salary related problems.
“The disturbing aspect of the ugly scenario is that not even the Head of Service has influence over Terrence who has assumed a larger than life image because of his closeness to the Governor, whose name he drops often to massage his ego. Besides, he is not a civil servant and nobody knows how he came about the position and the arrangement he has with who appointed him. All we know is that he is in charge of the payment of salaries. Aside being arrogant and full of himself, he also lacks human feeling”, the source said.
It would be recalled that a thorough bred career civil servant and retired Permanent Secretary, Chief Festus Agba had earlier faulted the idea of handing over the payment of the salaries of civil servants in the state and attendant issues to an outsider who is neither a civil servant nor conversant with civil service procedure and guidelines, describing it as an aberration.
“It is an aberration that will make civil servants in the state suffer physical, psychological and emotional trauma because the person in question did not rise through the ranks of the civil service and does not have anything at stake”.
Agba, whose comment was in reaction to several complaints by civil servants about the non payment of their salaries, arbitrary and inexplicable deductions among other discrepancies called on the Governor to beam his searchlight on the activities of Terrence and the Data Management Center under his watch to negate speculations making the round in some quarters that Terrence who has been described as a conduit pipe through which millions of naira that are wrongfully deducted from the salaries of Imo people is an agent of some top government functionaries who benefit from his ignoble actions.
