Oxfam / Cislac Team In Asaba for Appraisal of Delta State Tax Justice and Governance Platform
By Jude Ojiugo-Onochie
A team of OXFAM-NOVIB and Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), paid a working visit early this moth to Asaba the Delta State Capital to appraise the performance of Delta State Tax Justice and Good Governance Platform.
The team which comprises of Henry Ushie, the representative of OXFAM-NOVIB and Chinedu Basset of CISLAC, arrived Asaba on Sunday July 31 from the headquarters of their offices in Abuja, the Federal Capital for the appraisal exercise.
Delta State Tax Justice and Good Governance Platform, was established in 2015 to work for a fair and just taxation system in the State.
A multi- Stakeholder Organisation, with members from the government, Civil Society Organisations, traders, artisans, labour, the press etc, the platform is domiciled at Int’L Centre for Women Empowerment and Child Dev. (ICWECD) which also serves as the secretariat of the platform in the stats.
It is sponsored by OXFAM-NOVIB and the government of the Netherlands with CISLAC as facilitator.
The appraisal meeting, started in the late morning hours on Monday 1st August with a meeting of the visitors and members of the platform.
The meeting which took place at the conference Hall of ICWECD, was chaired by the Executive Director of the Asaba-based non-governmental organisation and Acting Co-ordinator of the platform,Abolo Mercy, Esq.
Other members of the platform who were present at the well attended meeting include, Pastor Cyril Eluemike, the former Secretary of Ogbogonogo Market Traders Association, Mrs. Lilian Adigwe, the Co-ordinator of the traders in all the markets of Oshimili South and Mrs. Grace Mragbozo, a prominent leader of traders in Urdu Market, who is the Co-ordinator of the platform in Delta Central District.
They also include, Barr. Tina Odunna, a Civil Society activist and Daniel Nwankwo, a Keke rider in Asaba.
Issues examined in the meeting which was essentially interactive include:
- Recent Advocacy activities of the platform
- Feedback received by the platform from it’s activities
-Gender-Mainstreaming in the activities of the platform - Result and impact of the programmes and activities of the platform
- Partnership of the platform with OXFAM-NOVIB/CISLAC
- Strengths and challenges of the platform
- Opportunities open to the platform going forward
- Risks encountered in the implementation of the programmes of the platform.
At the end of the meeting, the OXFAM-NOVIB/CISLAC Team, accompanied by some members of the platform proceeded to Ogbogonogo Market for a fact-finding visitation of the Central market in the Delta State Capital.
The visitation team, on arrival at the market undertook a brief observation tour of the market, before moving down to interview Mrs.Lilian Adigwe and Pastor Cyril Eluemike in their shops at the market
