From Paul Osuyi, Asaba
The governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Delta State, Kenneth Gbagi, has promised to take advantage of the proximity of the commercial Onitsha city in Anambra State to create another business hub in Asaba, Delta’s capital city
Gbagi, an entrepreneur, berated former governors of the state for lacking the requisite business acumen but relying on monthly allocations from the federation account to keep the state going.
Speaking at a rally in Asaba, the former Minister of State for Education, vowed to create another Onitsha Market in Asaba with over 10,000 shops, if elected on March 11.
Besides, the candidate said he would not only revive the moribund Asaba Textile but expand it to create jobs so that it’s clothing designs would be exported to other countries within a year of his administration.
“We will convert the entire Isoko land to the rice mill, and that will feed the entire nation,” he added, noting that the menace of herdsmen would become history in the state as cattle dealers would be made to be supplying the expected quantity to be consumed on a daily basis to abattoirs in the state.
“Cattle herding is a private business, and as such, you do not need to use it to inconvenience others. What we will do is to ensure that cows are brought daily to our abattoirs to meet the consumption needs of the people,” he said.
While promising to provide free education at the university level, Gbagi re-affirmed his commitment to the payment of N30 monthly to deserving youths across the state, adding that as the social welfare scheme is running, efforts would be made to get the beneficiaries gainfully employed.
Gbagi also vowed to stop his appointees from sending their children abroad for educational pursuit, reiterating that neither he nor anyone in his government would be allowed to seek medical attention outside the country.
Gbagi, a lawyer and criminologist, also berated Governor Ifeanyi Okowa for concentrating development in his immediate community of Owa-Alero, noting that during his time as minister, he had the option of taking the Federal University of Petroleum Resources (FUPRE) to his Oginibo homestead but chose to site it at Effurun.
“Search all the candidates and determine who can guarantee the future of your children, who will not steal your money. Okowa has done his limited best. We need a man of character. The stealing and lying in Delta is overwhelming.
“I am running on SDP like Felix Ibru, the first governor of Delta State. The broom has been destroyed with smoke in Delta, the umbrella is leaking. SDP is the only for Delta,” he stated.