When we say the governor of Delta State, Senator Dr Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa, is a prudent manager of state resources; it connotes the obvious. It is no longer news, Deltans trust their promise keeper governor.
What is news is the rapid growth of Delta economy and the ongoing monumental infrastructure development across the three senatorial districts, which has consistently attracted investors to the big heart of the nation.
The Kwale Industrial Park, KIP, when completed and fully operational promises to be a major industrial and commercial hub in the country, that will obviously provide thousands of jobs for our teeming young graduates, skilled and unskilled Job seekers. It will drastically decongest Delta State labour market and produce young business tycoons.
Okowa administration has earned tremendous reputation and accolades for itself, especially for introducing the biometric workers verification exercise which completely put an end to the vexed issue of “ghost workers” wherein billions of Naira were frittered away by unscrupulous elements in the system.
Nigerians will never forget the self inflicted economy recession in Nigeria, occasioned by poor and counter productive forex and other weak economic policies introduced at the very beginning of President Mohammadu Buhari’s administration of the now infamous All Progressives Congress, APC.
Throughout that unforgettable economic hardship, governor Okowa and his team introduced sound fiscal policies and result oriented economic measures that kept Delta State solvent and was able to pay monthly salaries as at when due, created thousands of jobs and commenced an unprecedented roads infrastructure development across the state.
Revenues earned from oil, Internally Generated Revenue, IGR, and other sources of funds since inception of this administration have been transparently deployed on job and wealth creation, infrastructure development; several schools built and renovated, upgraded infrastructure and equipment at Asaba International Airport, Stephen Keshi Stadium, new mega state Secretariat, Teachers Institute, FRSC School, Delta Nollywood Film Village, built over 1,000 kilometers of bridges in riverine and upland communities, built and rehabilitated over 1,600 kilometers of roads, and tastefully furnished and equipped primary schools and colleges.
Funds generated and earned from the nation’s Oil Commonwealth were appropriated transparently towards the various socioeconomic advancement programmes; YAGEP, STEP, RYSA, GEST, Widows Monthly Stipends, Students Bursary, Sports Development, prompt payment of huge monthly salaries, gradual and steady payment of pensions and backlog, Healthcare and upgrade of Health infrastructure, Education wherein three more Universities were added to provide greater opportunities for admission seekers to fulfil their dreams.
Okowa administration created Ministry of Vocational and Technical Education, rehabilitated and equipped existing six Technical Colleges now in full academic sessions and have commenced building of additional Technical Colleges; one each in every Local Government Area across the three senatorial districts; North, Central and South.
It is also common knowledge that these multifaceted life transforming projects are capital intensive by all standards, and will indeed require huge injection of funds to drive them to fruition. The total income of the state; federal allocations and IGR was and still unable to fund these projects needed to build a stronger Delta of our collective dream.
Therefore, the only credible option available was and still sourcing of funds to facilitate socioeconomic and infrastructure development across the three senatorial districts. These loans have been judiciously applied in the past as stated above, which is why the State House of Assembly was favourably disposed to approve another N12 Billion to speed up development, meet financial obligations to performing contractors and creditors in fulfilment of state contractual and other financial obligations.
It is also a known fact that Okowa administration have been transparent and sincere in the management of state financial resources wherein annual audited accounts of the state are usually published in some of the dailies and also available at the state official website.
Thus, Delta is one of the few States in Nigeria, that is transparent and honest enough to adopt open accounting system, allowing citizens to scrutinize annual financial reports. APC Delta cannot genuinely and honestly deny the fact that this state made unprecedented progress in the past nearly seven years and still counting.
More importantly, loans payments and debt servicing schedules have been duly worked out, such that cash inflows and earned revenues will adequately deflate them within stipulated period of time, while the state affairs runs smoothly.
Lagos state under the APC party, and nearly all the States in Nigeria, obtained multifaceted loans to facilitate infrastructure developments and other capital projects. Lagos, an APC state, is the highest loans receiver in the country and still counting. Delta APC is blind to this open fact.
The Federal Government under the All Progressives Congress, APC, is heavily entrenched in huge foreign loans and multifaceted financial indebtedness which it claimed have been invested in Railway projects, Marketmoni, Tradersmoni, N-Power and so and so forth.
The Presidency and President of the Senate recently disclosed that the Buhari led APC national government will continue to obtain more loans and credit facilities for major capital projects and poverty alleviation programmes. APC Delta will not criticise the federal government that has obviously mortgaged the future of generations yet unborn.
It is therefore very surprising for leaders of APC and their amateur propagandists in Delta State, to question the moral and economic justification for the N12 Billion legitimate loan duly approved by the State House of Assembly under the able leadership of the Speaker, Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori, JP.
Governor Okowa track records in prudent management of state resources cannot be disputed for the reasons adduced above, whereas same cannot be said of the APC national government. With the exception of Lagos and Rivers State, there is no other state in Nigeria that can match Delta in terms of socioeconomic and infrastructure development, healthcare, education, sports infrastructure and in job and wealth creation.
The newly commissioned Delta Mega Secretariat named after the Asagba of ASABA, Obi Prof Chike Edozien, is second to none in Sub Sahara Africa, as attested to by the Vice President of Nigeria, Prof Yemi Osinbajo of the APC.
Within the past nearly seven years, Okowa administration created job and wealth for over 6,014 young Deltans and they have also trained others and will continue to train more youth and in the same token employ other youth in the state.
The peace we enjoy today in Delta, was not achieved on a platter of gold. It is the result of a properly executed people focused master plan, and result oriented policies and programmes encapsulated in the SMART and Stronger Delta mantras, as well as injection of huge financial investments.
Deltans trust their working governor, Senator Dr Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa, and as usual the N12 Billion loan facility shall be judiciously deployed to scale up socioeconomic and infrastructure development across the state.
APC should focus on how to organise their national convention which has been in the pipeline for nearly three years. A party that cannot organise itself certainly cannot govern a highly populated country like Nigeria, which is why this nation, is now at the verve of total collapse.
There is acute hunger in Nigeria, epileptic power supply, unprecedented high inflation, unemployment at its peak, no fuel, Universities are closed due to federal government inability to maintain our institutions of higher learning, insecurity across the country like never before, our country is divided along ethnic lines, our best doctors have been driven away into foreign land, and nothing is working in Nigeria.
On top of these monumental failures of the Buhari led APC national government, the APC Delta, its frustrated leaders and their infamous propagandists are chasing shadows, and day dreaming on how to take over Delta State in 2023. Well, time shall tell.
It is obvious that there will be no APC in Aso Rock Villa and in Delta State after 2023 general elections.
Stronger Delta, Let’s Build Together!