By Emma Ogoigbe, Warri
Elder statesman and former Military Administrator of Abia State, Air Vice Marshal Frank O. Ajobena (rtd), said Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori has kept his election campaign promises by embarking on legacy projects in the Niger Delta state.
Marshal Ajobena proffered the position in a chat with newsmen at his country home in Mereje, Okpe Local Government Area (LGA) of Delta State.
He said in less than two years in office, the governor has “embarked and still embarking on infrastructural projects across the state”, listing the flyover bridge projects in Warri and environs as typical examples.
According to him, with the infrastructure being put on ground, the oil-producing city of Warri will take its rightful place in the comity of cities in the country.
His words: “Governor Oborevwori was campaigning in 2023. He said he was going to make Delta State a befitting place and today, we can see what he has done and still doing in the state.”
Air Vice Marshal Ajobena, however, called on the governor to also provide energy by building or facilitating the construction of independent power plants (IPPs) in the state, as obtains in Lagos State and some other states that think in that direction, in order to boost the local economy.
Furthermore, Ajobena implored the government to embark on skill acquisition training programmes in agriculture for the youth to enable them go into food and livestock production.
The way to go in that wise, he advised, is by government providing relevant capacity such as soft loans, to boost food production in the state.
He said: “We used to have Songhai Farm in Amukpe, Delta State, that has been abandoned. There is nothing wrong if the government can revamp it; it will create employment for the teeming graduates and help in food security.”
On security challenges in the state, especially the frequent clashes between farmers and herders which have led to lose of lives, Marshal Ajobena advised that cattle rearers be instructed to provide ranches as expected of them, to rear their animals instead of roaming the farms and having their cattle destroy residents’ crops.
“The issues of herders and farmers’ conflicts have been addressed for many years. We have said the best form of practice all over the world is ranching,” he emphasized.
Acknowledging that many graduates do not have jobs in the country, he said government can not provide all jobs needed by everyone, urging potential investors to also plough in money to create jobs for the people.
He, however, deplored the attitude of some Nigerians who steal their employer’s items, including cash, with reckless abandon, insisting that such discourages would-be investors.
On President Bola Tinubu’s clamping of emergency rule on Rivers State, Air Vice Marshal Ajobena maintained that while the 1999 Constitution (as amended) gives the President powers to declare a state of emergency in any state, the President does not the power to suspend the governor, describing his action as autocratic.
He highlighted the ravages of hunger in the country, cautioning government to divert its energies to bridging the security lapses in the country and fight starvation to a standstill.
