David Olofu, African Democratic Congress’ Benue South senatorial district candidate, has promised to establish a people’s assembly and people’s council to strengthen representation and accountability in the district.

Mr Olofu, a former Benue finance commissioner, made the promise on Tuesday in Makurdi while presenting his agenda ahead of the 2027 elections.

He said the proposed people’s assembly would bring together representatives from the nine local government areas, including council chairs, councillors and members of the state and national Assembly irrespective of political affiliation.

“Once you have our mandate, you must be accountable. You must work together because you cannot work for us when you are working alone,” he said.

Mr Olofu said the assembly would meet annually to identify and prioritise people’s needs. At the same time, the council would translate the resolutions into a development agenda for elected representatives.

He said the agenda would guide elected officials in preparing budgets and implementing projects at the state and federal levels.

“If, by the grace of God, I become the senator representing Benue South, I will take that agenda to the National Assembly and ensure that what needs to go into the national budget gets into the budget,” he said.

The ADC candidate said the proposed structure would also help bridge the gap between elected representatives and their constituents by ensuring that the people’s needs remained central to governance.

He said elected representatives should work together regardless of political differences because they all received their mandates from the same people.

Mr Olofu said the proposed council would comprise key stakeholders who could also serve as a lobbying team for the district when necessary. He said the arrangement would promote continuity by ensuring that development priorities were not abandoned whenever elected officials changed.

Mr Olofu assured the people that he would also develop a comprehensive development plan for Benue South to serve as a roadmap for elected officials and provide measurable targets for assessing their performance.

He urged constituents to assess elected representatives based on measurable achievements rather than promises.

Mr Olofu said eight years was enough time for constituents to evaluate their representatives’ performance and demand accountability. He said his objective was to establish a system where the people would define the priorities and standards by which their elected representatives were assessed.

(NAN)