Gov. Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta has called for sustainable peace to facilitate development in the state.
Okowa made the call on Tuesday in Effurun at the opening of a Mall 18-pump filling station owned by former Minister of State for Education, Mr Kenneth Gbagi.
Sources report that the 600-shop is located close to Golden Tulip Hotel also owned by the former minister.
The governor said that with the signing of the state’s 2018 Appropriation Bill of N308 billion into law, the people should expect more development.
“By the grace of God, we will be able to fund our budget in 2018.
“Not many people realise that for many months back, about 65 per cent of oil and gas that would ordinarily have come from this state was not exploited because of the Forcados Trunkline that was shot down.
“But, thank God that since June, 2017, the Trunkline has been operational and we are now benefiting from it. We have now moved to number two in terms of oil production in the country.
“I believe that if we continue to sustain this peace, in the next few years we will begin to reap the fruits of development.
“I want to encourage investors to come back because this area has a good population that can make any company to survive,” he said.
In his remarks, an elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, urged the Itsekiri, Ijaw and Urhobo people to love each other and live in harmony to galvanise development in Warri.
Clark commended Gbagi for the massive investment and urged other affluent persons in Delta to emulate him and engage the teeming unemployed.
Earlier, Gbagi had called for an enabling environment that would encourage local investors in the country.
“You cannot discourage your local investors and expect foreign investors to come and invest.
“Our government should be concerned with the provision of enabling environment to grow business,” he said.
(NAN)
