All Progressives Congress governorship candidate in Delta State Senator Ovie Omo-Agege has assured investors, artisans and property developers his government will abolish the collection of “Deve” levy in the State if elected.
Omo-Agege also said that his administration will create enabling business environment to enable businesses thrive in Delta. He promised to guarantee bank grants to artisans and small business holders in the informal sector to boost the economy of the state and create jobs.
The Delta Central lawmaker stated this during a town hall meeting on Wednesday with the National Association of Mechanics and Automobile Technicians in Delta State at Cedar Hall, Opposite Edjeba Junction, Airport Road, Warri.
Omo-Agege, while decrying the level of infrastructural decay in Warri/Uvwie, pledged to clean up Warri and Uvwie and restore the past glory of the city.
He said as part of measures to address the challenge of workshop space faced by mechanics, automobile technicians and other artisans in the State, his government will map out designated areas and create a mechanics village across the major urban centres.
According to him: “Delta State is the richest in the Niger Delta region but sadly when you come to Warri and other parts of the State, there is nothing on grounds to justify the huge amounts that have come to the state in the past 8 years.
”Okowa has turned Warri into Keke’s capital, those of us who grew up in Warri are very sad to see what it has become under the PDP-led Delta government in the past 16 years. Warri is not a shadow of itself but the days of agony will soon be over; because when I emerged as the governor, we will clean Warri up.
”We will modernize this city. It will look like its glory days and we will even improve on it better. But more importantly to create more jobs for you we want to reopen the Warri Port here. And I know when we reopen it, lots of business will come to you. The economy will bubble again.
”My government will abolish “Deve” collection across the state, this we will do to create an enabling environment for startups and free the economy of the state and boost job creation because no one will harass anybody coming to set up business in the state going forward.
”And as part of our plans to create jobs for our children, we want to make sure that we will bring Julius Berger to do major road construction for us, particularly the PTI- Ororekpe-Eku-Abraka to Agbor road and Ughelli-Ozoro-Kwale-Asaba roads.
”We will also insist that as they are doing the job, they will hire artisans from Delta State to do the job. It is only when they tell us that they have talked to you and you told them that you don’t have any qualified person to do the job, it is only then that we can grant them permission to source for the workforce outside. But I know that there isn’t any job that they want to do that we can’t have artisans who can do it in Delta.”
He added: ”This sector that you are operating in is a very important sector. Because your services are helps to stabilize the economy and grow wealth, that is why we want to create an enabling environment for you so your businesses can stand and expand.
”If it means signing an MoU with banks here to give you grants to expand your businesses and buy new equipment to work, I will call the banks and sit down with your leaders to discuss it and the government act as your guarantor for the loan.”
Comrade Oloruntobi Sunday and Comrade Dennis Ohue, who spoke on behalf of the group, thank DSP Omo-Agege for the great job he has done as a lawmaker and assured him of their support, adding that Delta cannot settle for anything less.
