CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: WHY SHOULD CROSS RIVER STATE LAG BEHIND?
Anthony EKPO BASSEY
As companies cash in on our commonwealth, our communities cry out for care. It is high time the state government turned the tide and tapped into the untold treasure of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
When elephants dance, the grass suffers but when companies thrive, communities should not barely survive, they should shine. Yet from Calabar’s corners to Obudu’s outskirts, the footprints of private profit leave behind little more than dust and debt. The road to real development cannot be walked by government alone; it takes two to tango.
We need more than piecemeal philanthropy and PR stunts. We need a permanent platform. Suggestively, an Office for Corporate Social Responsibility Initiatives, to coordinate, communicate, and compel companies to give back meaningfully. It is not a handout, it is a handshake. A win-win. After all, you do not pluck fruits from a tree and refuse to water its roots.
Besides, who is better to lead this mission than a vibrant, visionary young Cross Riverian? Someone with fire in the belly, facts at their fingertips, and faith in the future. A person with brains, backbone, and boldness; who can talk the talk in boardrooms and walk the walk in the bush. Not a paper pusher, but a pathfinder.
This office would do more than dot the i's and cross the t's. It would connect the dots. It would map who is making money where, and match them with what the communities need, be it boreholes, books, or better health. Talk is cheap, but action speaks volumes and this office would turn pledges into projects, and promises into progress.
Other states are already cashing in on corporate conscience. Why should Cross River lag behind? We must strike while the iron is hot. With the right structure and the right steward, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), can be more than charity. It can be change.
In Cross River, the harvest is plenty, but the hands have been few. Let us fix that. Let us create the office, pick the right pilot, and let the private sector pay it forward. After all, if you want to go far, you go together.
