Moshood Adebayo
Chairman, Community Development Council (CDC), Ogun State, Alhaji Kolawole Razaq Ikupoliyi, has described the CDC activities as selfless, appealing to people to join hands with the leadership of CDAs in their communities.
He told Daily Sun: “Since we started our administration last year, it has been with mixed feelings; trying our best to ensure that community administration continues to grow. We thank government and the Commissioner for Community Development for giving us the opportunity to serve in this capacity. So far, so good in about 8,000 CDAs that we have in the state with 216 area CDCs and 20 zonal CDCs; all these have been doing well in their assignments since I came in.
“We have been to many zones in the state to commission projects. We have executed and commissioned many community projects including roads, installation of transformers, others which are very essential and crucial to the needs of people both in rural and urban areas of the state.”
He said community development is a selfless job, since they were not being paid; “yet we use our efforts, energies to ensure that community development grows for the betterment of the people, particularly in area of security through community policing.” Ikupoliyi said at council level, the CDC has tried as much as possible to satisfy the people in terms of enacting a law that will make them happy and enjoy their stays in their respective areas:
‘People have been asking about the Community Development Law which has been signed by the state government. The law will really enlarge the operations and activities of CDCs in the state as well as give them necessary impetus to operate. It will also address many burning issues in community development, as it will highlight the responsibilities of residents, whether you are a landlord or tenant in a community.”
Making clarification about the operations of CDAs, the chairman said it is the first step in community development with 10 to 20 houses or with not less than 100 people coming together in the interest of their community:
“CDC is a step over CDAs; with 40 CDAs making one area CDC which coordinates the activities of area CDAs where all executive members of the CDAs, meet at least once in a month to discuss issues in their CDAs. The area CDC reports to zonal CDC; one in each local government area of the state. The more area CDCs, the better in a council area; because it helps in the administration of local government; making it easier.
“The Senatorial CDC which is next on the line is where all the zonal CDCs in each Senatorial CDCs report and deliberate on the affairs of the community development. Zonal is the apex at the local government level. The overall is the state council which to the glory of God I’m the current council chairman. All the area CDCs, Zonal CDS, Senatorial CDCs report to the council which in Ogun State is made up of 57 members,
“Creating more areas in community development helps the growth of the state and council. Community development is not discriminatory; whether you are Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, or whatever you may be, Christians, Muslim or others, it takes care of you. There is no religious or ethnic bias.
“Our main and immediate project is the building of our state secretariat. The Ogun State Government has graciously given us about 1.6 hectares of land at Saje in Abeokuta South Local Government Area of the state for this purpose.
We have done the perimeter fencing and currently, we are at the designing stage. It is going to be a multipurpose hall with business centre, vocational centre; where we will be training, re-training trainers as well as an exhibition centres and others.”
He urged residents to show more interest and concerns about the running of their community development saying it is the closest to them: “Residents should change attitudes towards CDAs in their areas is not the best.
My advice to every resident is that they should show more interest in several CDAs in their areas in their own interest and their families. They should also be security vigilant, because there is no development without peace.”