…insists desire of few desperate politicians can’t suppress will of majority of Edo people
BENIN CITY – The Deputy Director-General of the Edo State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governorship Campaign Council, Engr. Gideon Ikhine, has expressed confidence that the legacy projects of Governor Godwin Obaseki, including the Edo Modular Refinery, Benin River Port, CCETC-Ossiomo Power Plant, among other infrastructural projects executed to boost the state’s economy and better the livelihoods of the Edo people, will earn the governor a second term in office.
Ikhine, who spoke to journalists in Benin City, said the majority of Edo people are impressed with the governor’s performance and will show their appreciation come September 19, 2020 by voting en masse for Obaseki and his deputy, Rt. Hon. Comr. Philip Shaibu, to ensure the consolidation of the administration’s numerous transformational projects and programmes.
“Governor Obaseki will be re-elected because the lives of Edo people have been transformed positively. It is beyond the commissioning of roads or schools and other infrastructure. He has over 3000 projects and he is yet to commission many of the completed ones. Obaseki is a man that works and builds infrastructure, yet does not make a noise with his achievements. He knows that it is his responsibility to work for the people”, Ikhine noted.
The Campaign Council’s Deputy DG said the governor has continued to leverage on his experience as a seasoned investment banker to bring developmental projects to the state through Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with local and international investors.
He noted that the 5500bpd Edo Modular Refinery, which is at 70 percent completion; the 55MW CCTEC-Ossiomo Power Plant, which has been completed and ready for use; the Benin Enterprise and Industrial Park, which development is ongoing and the Benin River Port, for which preliminary works are ongoing, among other legacy projects of the Obaseki-led administration were birthed on the back of MoUs with investors.
Ikhine said: “They are talking about Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) and private partnership with the government, yet investors are coming in. There has to be an understanding in the partnership and investments and agreements. I also heard from someone that the Modular Refinery of the Government does not exist. That is not true.
“For the record, Edo State Modular Refinery would be completed and commissioned very soon. Those are part of the MoUs that you can see that are operational.”
He continued: “Let me tell you things about the gigantic projects in Edo State like the Gelegele Sea Port, now known as the Benin River Port. For you to carry out a conceptual design of a project, you need to carry out studies which cannot be done in one day or haphazardly. First of all, we need an access road to the proposed port. That is what the governor is already doing with Ekehuan Road dualisation.
“Aren’t you going to build jetties? Aren’t you going to study the water way and know the drift of the water? There are lots of studies that are being done. You do not wake up one day and start building a skyscraper without design or the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the project, logistics and benefits of those projects to the state. If you have not considered these sets of variables, you do not embark on such projects.”
“In the days ahead, the Benin people will know those who are for them and those who are against them”, Ikhine added.
