The Delta State Civil Society Organisations Forum, DELCOF, an umbrella body of more than 250 non-state actors in Delta State, has threatened a N10 billion lawsuit against the State Government led by Governor Ifeanyi Okowa.
In an open letter signed by Convener/Chairman, Board of Trustees, Chief Comrade Mulade Sheriff, and its Chairman, Dr. Andrew Agboro, the body prayed the government to rescind and retract an earlier publication made against it within 14 days or face a legal action.
The state government had in a public notice on March 9 signed by the SSG, Patrick Ukah, labeled DELCOF “as a self-styled group of mischievous elements that is misleading the general public.”
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The Letter which was circulated across media houses reads in full;
Dr. Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa, Governor Of Delta State.
RE: DEFAMATION OF OUR CORPORATE ENTITY, DELCOF, THE UMBRELLA BODY OF NON-STATE ACTORS IN DELTA STATE
His Excellency,
Our attention has been drawn to a government public announcement purportedly made by the Delta State Government on the 9th of March, 2022, about Delta State Civil Society Organizations Forum, DELCOF, which is an umbrella body of non-state actors in Delta State.
We wish to inform Your Excellency that DELCOF is a broad coalition of more than 250 non-state actors, associations and social movements in Delta State, focusing on different thematic areas of sustainable development. DELCOF champions a sector that is accountable and autonomous, giving voice to the common man.
We have a Board of Trustees, an Executive Council comprising the Chairman and his Executive members, State Focal Persons (Coordinators both at the 3 Senatorial Districts, and 25 LGAs of Delta State), 7 Management Committees and 6 Cluster Heads (Media Cluster, NGO Cluster, CBOs Cluster, FBOs Cluster, Human Rights Cluster, and Persons Living with Disability Cluster).
Our Vision is to be a body of non-state actors enjoying effective partnership for sustainable development, while our goal is to strengthen the underlying principles of good governance and targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through collaborative efforts of non-state actors, towards creating a sense of cooperation, mutual harmony and affection among member organizations.
In the last two decades, our members have proffered alternatives and solutions that are in line with good governance, and collaborated with the government in tinkering and executing laudable projects for the benefit of Deltans. Significantly, our members had in the past, mentored platforms that included community based organizations, security agencies, civil society organizations, public administrators, women and youth groups, and persons living with disability, to mitigate conflicts and violence in Delta State, using the non-violence approach.
Despite these laudable interventions, your administration, through the Office of the Secretary to the State Government, SSG, issued a disclaimer to our partnership and referred to us as a self-styled group and mischievous elements trying to mislead the public.
For us, it is only normal for a pro-people organization forum such as DELCOF to recognize the importance of State Government partnership and extend our invitation of inauguration to the government which is supposed to be the major partner in bringing sustainable development to the State.
Mr. Governor Sir, we hereby state that DELCOF is not a self-styled and mischievous group of elements trying to mislead the general public as erroneously stated in your alleged letter of public announcement dated 9th of March 2022.
Instead, we are a conglomerate of over 250 non-state actors, associations and social movements under one big umbrella body known as DELCOF, promoting good governance, transparency, accountability and sustainable development in Delta State, while giving voice to the voiceless and hope to the vulnerable.
We hereby wish to know the areas where we have not played our roles as a civil society group, to warrant your administration’s alleged public disclaimer of our partnership, and our defamation before the right thinking members of the general public.
Mr. Governor, be informed that your SSA on Civic Engagement and Civil Society constituted a Civil Society Organization, CSO, group known as Delta State CSO Volunteers in 2016, and in May, 2020; floated another group known as the Delta State CSO Community to promote your administration’s programmes and the CSO Community has since been incorrectly representing the actual picture of civil society Organizations in the State. This is totally against international best practices of good governance.
A Civil Society Group comprises of autonomous and non-state associations that are voluntarily constituted, self-generating, self-supporting and self-governing. It is those associations that enable citizens to participate voluntarily, freely and openly within the public realm, and operate and function independently. Civil Societies are not to be constituted and regulated by government paid office or staff as your administration presupposed.
Even the body that your administration is projecting as the only government recognized body of civil societies, is painted before you as a platform that truly represent the people, but we make bold to tell you that CSO Community Group is just a mere online platform that has no structures, no constituents, no spread and no executive body.
OUR POSERS FOR GOVERNOR OKOWA
- Who owns or formed the so-called Delta State CSO Community?
- Who are the Executives of the said Delta State CSO Community?
- What impacts of capacity development and donor funding has the so-called Delta State CSO Community brought to the state.
It is important to note that Civil society organizations does not need the recognition of any entity to perform its duties of driving civil rights and sustainable development.
Civil society organizations are non-political, non-profit making, and voluntary organizations that aim at establishing common grounds with other institutions, either through consensual, integrative and collaborative actions, or interactive networks to bring about, consolidate, or sustain democracy.
Civil Society organizations play the important roles of providing public good, social welfare services, humanitarian services, socio economic empowerment, and very importantly, restraining the abuse of state power by government.
We contribute to society by improving the quality of governance, developing capacity of government, promoting accountability, transparency and fairplay in the distribution of justice.
Mr. Governor, we urge you to develop an eagle’s eye and watch closely to see that some stomach infrastructure, political sycophants holding key positions in your administration are projecting a false picture to the public about a partnership between civil society organizations and your administration, and are inciting your government against an association of a structured professional body with proven track records of effective engagement with Government MDAs in promoting sustainable development and prosperity among all Deltans, in order to achieve their selfish interests.
PRAYERS
- Government should rescind the purported circular (Government Special Announcement) dated 9th March, 2022) referring to DELCOF, the true umbrella body of non-state actors, as a self-styled group of mischievous elements that is misleading the general public.
- Government should use the same media to retract the misinformation circulated across media houses, through the Secretary to the State Government, SSG.
- Government should call the Office of the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Civic Engagement and Civil Society to order for his unprofessional misconduct as he is not, and cannot be a regulator of civil society activities in Delta State.
ACTION
We have a strict policy in keeping our integrity. Accordingly, if these prayers are not answered within FOURTEEN (14) DAYS from the date of this notice, we shall be forced to initiate a legal action and a Ten (10) Billion Naira defamation of Character claim against Sen. Dr. Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa led government of Delta State.
Signed:
Chief Comrade Mulade Sheriff
Convener/Chairman BOT,: DELCOF
Dr Andrew Agboro
Chairman, DELCOF
