The question of who succeeds an incumbent political office holder has always generated intense strategizing, planning, alignment and realignment of political structures.
This is normal in politics as successful leaders often emerge through some form of leadership process and stewardship system.
The Speaker, Benue State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Titus Uba is an established leader who has passed through several career platforms as a mechanical engineer in several manufacturing and industrial entities and at the political level as a State Lawmaker in the 8th and 9th Assembly.
The trained engineer was first elected as a State Lawmaker representing KYAN Constituency by the good people of Vandeikya Local Government Area in 2015.
In the Eight Assembly, Titus Uba’s technical knowledge of the role of the Legislature in a democracy, his collaboration with his fellow colleagues as well as consensus building initiatives stood him out as a State Lawmaker destined for higher leadership responsibilities. Rt. Hon.
Uba is a holder of National Diploma in Mechanical Engineering from Federal Polytechnic, Idah, Kogi State and a Higher National Diploma in Mechanical Engineering technology from Federal Polytechnic, Bauchi
Titus Uba was elected by his colleagues as the Majority Whip in the 8th Benue Assembly. He demonstrated his deep knowledge and workings of Executive/Legislative partnership for good governance in that role.
He was instrumental to some landmark legislative acts in support of the Governor Samuel Ortom led administration.
During the legislative process of the Prohibition of Open Grazing and Ranches Establishment Law, his incisive contributions along with his colleagues in the House helped in ensuring that the bill quickly passed through all the constitutional processes of lawmaking paving the way for Governor Ortom’s historic signing of the law in 2017.
Rt. Hon. Uba in his stewardship in the State Assembly demonstrated high-level legislative competence that contributed greatly to the cordial relationship that exists between the executive, the legislature and the judiciary.
His wide acceptability, charisma and support he enjoys among his colleagues propelled him to the exalted seat of Speaker of the House in a landslide election in June 2019.
This signaled the beginning of an unprecedented executive/legislative collaboration resulting into several landmark achievements by the Governor Samuel Ortom administration.
In the area of budgeting, fiscal management, confirmation of political nominees, passing of bills as well as security initiatives, the Benue State House of Assembly under the leadership of Titus Uba has raised the benchmark in legislative functions to enhance good governance as well as security of the citizenry.
Currently, the Benue State House of Assembly is working on over 50 Bills some of which have been passed into Law under the 9th Assembly presided over by the Speaker.
Some of these bills include Bill for a Law to Establish the Benue State Institute for Cancer Research, a Bill for a Law to Provide for the Management of Funds Accruing to the Benue State Judiciary from the Consolidated Revenue Fund, a Bill for a Law to Establish the Offices of the Auditor-General of the State and Local Government and the Establishment of the State Audit Service Commission and the Repeal of the Audit Law of 1981 and 1986.
Among some of the Bills passed into Law include the domestication of the National Pension Commission Law. Today, Benue State has a PENCOM law in place to help permanently solve the challenge of payment of pensions to retired civil servants.
The State Government has already invested an appreciable amount of funds into the Pension System. Others are the passage into Law of the Highly Infectious Disease Bill 2020.
To strengthen some existing laws, the current administration and the State Assembly worked together to amend several Laws.
Some of these Laws include the amendment of the Prohibition of Open Grazing and Ranches Establishment Law to provide stiffer penalties for offenders while the Benue Internal Revenue Service Law was also amended to further boost the revenue generating capacity of the Board as well as plug areas of revenue leakages in the system.
The Benue Community Volunteer Guards Law amongst others was amended to reflect current security challenges.
In the educational sector, the Executive and Legislature partnered to amend and repeal some Laws establishing some institutions of learning.
These include the conversion of the then Akperan Orshi College of Agriculture, Yandev from a Monotechnic to a Polytechnic and the Repeal of the School of Nursing and Midwifery Law to transfer the assets of the school to the College of Health Sciences, Benue State University Makurdi for effective medical education.
Despite sustaining a cordial relationship with the Ortom led administration, the Uba led State Assembly maintains a strict legislative oversight of Government Ministries, Departments and Agencies to ensure compliance to budget and fiscal responsibilities. This compliments Governor Ortom’s accountability and transparency stance.
Rt. Hon. Uba’s election as the Benue PDP Governorship Candidate in the 2023 elections marks a positive development.
Having being involved in the passage of several Executive Bills into law as well as providing legislative support to several socio-economic policies of the present government, Uba is placed in a vantage position to consolidate on the achievements and foundation led by the Ortom administration when elected.
Continuity in government policies is the bedrock of modern governance and development. His election as Governor of Benue come 2023 God willing would help fast-track the pace of development initiated by the present administration.
Abrahams Kwaghngu,
Principal Special Assistant
on Special Duties to the Benue State Governor