Lawmakers representing Ekiti State at the National Assembly have been advised to make themselves more accessible and engage their constituents periodically.
This recommendation was made by the Justice Development and Peace Initiative (JDPI), Catholic Diocese of Ekiti, and the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ekiti State Council, during the presentation of a report on an independent survey conducted on the performance of lawmakers representing Ekiti North Senatorial District at the National Assembly.
Presenting the report, the Director of JDPI, Catholic Diocese of Ekiti, Reverend Father Emmanuel Akingbade, explained that it is the responsibility of lawmakers to educate their constituents about government policies and programs and seek their consent before sponsoring bills or facilitating projects.
He noted that such engagement would ensure that the projects provided by the lawmakers meet the immediate needs of the people.
Reverend Father Akingbade stated that the survey was thoroughly conducted using conventional methodologies, without bias.
According to him, constituents were randomly interviewed and engaged in one-on-one basis, and their responses were carefully collated, analyzed using pivot tables, and interpreted using the Likert scale tool.
He noted that the result of the survey indicates that lawmakers need to improve their engagement with the people through town hall meetings and the media and ensure that dividends are spread beyond party loyalists.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, Ekiti State Council, Kayode Babatuyi explained that the Union was only exercising her constitutional rights of holding those in power accountable.
He urged the lawmakers to heed to the recommendations so as to improve on their services to the people.
Stakeholders and representatives of the lawmakers commended JDPI and NUJ for the thorough job and promised to work on the observations.
