- Says Okowa Fleecing State Fund To Finance His Vice-Presidential Ambition
As Deltans continue to battle hardship amid a dearth of basic infrastructure, unemployment, poor health facilities and abject poverty, the Deputy President of the Senate and Delta All-Progressives Congress APC governorship candidate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, has identified bad leadership and mismanagement of the State resources by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP’s administration led by Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as being responsible for the current ugly situation.
Omo-Agege who stated this while fielding questions from newsmen during a world press conference organized by the Delta State APC in Asaba, yesterday, lamented that in spite of the humongous revenue accruing to the State from multiple sources, the people remain the most impoverished among all the States in the federation.
According to him, the State has received a whooping N2.8 trillion as revenue in the past seven and half years of the Okowa-led government but with nothing on the ground to show for it, adding that the governor is now very busy allegedly pillaging the State’s fund to finance his vice-presidential ambition.
“We are saying that Okowa has not done well, given the amount of money we have received here in this State in the last seven and half years to the tune of about N2.8 trillion by way of the Federation Account Allocation Committee, FAAC and several billions of naira by way of internally generated revenue and 13% derivation fund. If you go around the whole state you cannot see the evidence of what has been done with N2.8 trillion.
“That’s what we are saying, that the reason we are in this situation is because of the bad leadership of Okowa and mismanagement of our resources. His dwelling on the wrong priorities has led us to this state of decadence.
“That’s what we are angry about; that’s what Deltans are angry about. And that’s why Deltans want a change. Under the PDP, and especially in the last seven years, the problems of Delta State have been squarely rooted in bad leadership, misplaced priorities, pervasive incompetence, and even corruption.
“By the records of the Debt Management Office (DMO) Delta State also has the second highest debt portfolio in the country. This is certainly unacceptable.
“Ours is, therefore, a movement to restore and revive a State that had been misgoverned and rapaciously pillaged by those whom we had entrusted with leadership.
“Ladies and gentlemen, our vision for a New Delta is driven by the desire to arrest receding hope among Deltans and build a State where the people’s future is brighter than their past.
“I will address our scary unemployment rate by giving priority to public investment in agriculture and tech-driven entrepreneurship. My plan as stated in our manifesto will change the commercial ecosystem of the State and create an investment-friendly charter that makes access to funds and infrastructure a natural way of life. Human capital development, agriculture, tourism, infrastructure, housing and other labour-intensive interventions will be at the core of our agenda.
“We shall establish a Delta State Employment, Entrepreneurship and Empowerment Programme (DEEP), and facilitate the establishment of cluster industries in each of the twenty-five Local Government Areas of our State. We will deliberately create an enabling environment for industries and manufacturing; establish tech hubs, set up small business loan guarantee schemes, promote skills acquisition and set up a Career Development Centre for Deltans.
Emphasizing more on the reason why Deltans should hold Okowa responsible for the untold hardship pervading the State, Senator Omo-Agege stated that apart from the N2.8 trillion which the governor had allegedly frittered away in the past seven and half years, the State was also a beneficiary of President Muhammadu Buhari bailout to States in 2015.
Omo-Agege noted that rather than use the humongous resources to develop the State and better the lot of Deltans, Okowa is deploying the State fund to unholy ventures including financing his vice presidential campaign.
He said: “Buhari has nothing to do with the situation of things in Delta State. Buhari at the centre has done all he could to assist the State. Even beyond the receipt of revenue allocation, 13% and internally-generated revenue, Buhari tapping into the federal component of our revenue, also made revenue to the States including Delta State, to help in the payment of salaries.
“You recall that when he came on board in 2015, there was no money. This State, and indeed, most States were going into bankruptcy. Buhari had to approve a cash bailout for them. That money has not been repaid just to make sure that the State has enough resources to take care of our people.
“But rather than use that money to develop the State, that money is being channelled into unholy issues including but not limited to the campaign for his ill-fated vice presidential ambition.”
