Change culture of abandoning projects, Oshiomhole tells Minister

BENIN CITY – Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State yesterday re-emphasized the need to change the culture of abandoning road projects which was perpetrated by the previous administration led  by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying the people have been cheated for too long.
He gave the advice while receiving the Minister of Niger Delta, Pastor Usani Uguru Usani and the Minister of State for Niger Delta, Prof. Claudius Daramola who paid him a courtesy visit in his office.
The Governor said: “So I will urge you that this culture of abandoning project, as part of the logic of change, this culture has to change so that when we start a project, we must finish it, otherwise, it loses integrity in the eyes of the people. So I urge you to see if you can, rather than starting new project which we would like to be able to do with you, but the one already started, it will be nice to complete it”
“There is this road that was flagged off with funfair and our people rolled out the drums and the media covered them generously and the hope of the communities was raised. The construction of Benin-Abraka road and it is a very strategic road, it is part of the East-West Road. After the drums and the funfair, as we now know, it wasn’t meant to be and nothing has happened on that road.”
He said, “we want to congratulate you on your richly deserved appointment as the Honorable Minister as well as your colleague, Prof Daramola. I think the fact that the President attached very brilliant, resourceful and well known people to the ministry of Niger Delta can only be a symbol of the importance he attached to the development of the region and we in this part of the country as part of the Niger Delta community want to congratulate you but also commiserate with you.”
“I commiserate with you because people always look at the glamour of being Minister, but they have never imagined the huge challenges that it entails and those challenges are compounded by the paucity of funds at a time of mounting expectations, particularly in the face of the disastrous performance of your predecessor in office under the past government that made much noise about Niger Delta, empowered the wrong guys because they showed capacity for violence and ignored the real people who were peaceful and just wanted development.”
“Therefore, you have a huge task, not only in terms of bringing development but also to carry out massive reorientation and enlightenment program for our people to recognize that the world has changed in so many fundamental ways that the long term challenge of bringing prosperity our people will not necessarily continue to be driven by intervention agencies, it has to do with making the region peaceful. So peaceful that our huger natural endowment will attract private capital and private investors that will bring jobs, good and sustainable jobs, employ our people and allow them to turn our liquid gold in to something that will bring opportunity to millions of our people.”
The Governor maintained “On the long run, that will be the way to go and the responsibility of government is to help to create that environment and I think at the very best, the Ministry of Niger Delta Affair can only help to refocus on the critical issue of infrastructure in this sub region. Ironically, it is a region that what it takes to construct a kilometer of road across swampy water might be two or three, times more than what it will take to do the same on a dry side and so, once those infrastructures are there, people can navigate the water ways because they are cleaned up, and they are secured for boats to move freely, roads are built with appropriate bridges and the region is integrated through this  comprehensive road networks, I believe that investors will come here if in the end, we have peace and people feel, they will be safe, then, they can take advantage of our natural endowment to do the sort of thing that will make our sub region the real hub if Nigeria economy activity”.
“Also, to pay increasing attention to the issue of environmental degradation. I am very worried that the damage we are doing to the environment, either by major oil companies that are allowed to flair their gas even in 21st century when the technology is there and is possible to convert this huge natural resources that we are flaring away to a way that will bring more resources to our country, you also have some of the bad boys and girls who are setting up illegal refineries in all sort of places and polluting the environment.”
“My worry is that, by the time oil dries, the kind of resources that will be required to regenerate the environment will simply not be available and our people will only become poorer, new diseases will begin to manifest just at the time you don’t have resources to deal with it. So looking holistically at the challenges, it is huge.”
“You can be assure that whatever we in Edo State can do to support you, we will and we will also join you to explain to our people that those pipelines, those investments that had already been made, whether they are public-owned or privately owned, must be protected. They must behave responsibly in a way that will attract both foreigners and local investors to come to our sub region.”
He continued: “I am particularly excited by the method you have adopted. I tell people that when we say change, it is a huge process. Here you are, all the way from Abuja, to come to find out in each state, of all the challenges we face, which one do you think the Niger Deltas Ministry should embark on in a way that will deliver more impact to the greater number of our people.”