- Okpebholo is God’s will for Edo people, says Akpabio
Edo State Governor Monday Okpebholo has unveiled 30 new tractors, five bulldozers, 150 implements and a low-bed truck.
He said they would expand the state’s agricultural capacity, enhance productivity and accelerate rural development.
The governor who spoke yesterday in Benin City at the unveiling, asked the Federal Government to begin the processes of repatriating former Governor Godwin Obaseki to answer questions concerning Museum of West African Art (MOWAA).
He said his administration had resolved to ensure clarity and responsibility in the management of public funds.
He said the machinery would expand Edo’s agricultural capacity, enhance productivity and accelerate rural development.
The governor said the acquisition was designed to open thousands of hectares of new farmlands, attract agribusiness investments, reduce post-harvest losses and create sustainable employment opportunities for youths and women.
He said it was a shift from subsistence agriculture to full mechanisation, as well as ensuring the state became a reliable contributor to national food reserves, while reducing the state’s vulnerability to economic shocks.
“This is a strategic investment that will change the trajectory of Edo’s economy. We are laying the foundation for food sufficiency, commercial-scale farming and long-term prosperity for our people.”
Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who inaugurated the tractors, said Federal Government would review Okpebholo’s submissions and assured citizens that due process would guide further actions.
He described Governor Okpebholo as God’s will for the people of Edo State.
Akpabio thanked the people of the state and Southsouth for endorsing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for second term.
Akpabio stated this during the unveiling of Agricultural Equipment (Tractors and Bulldozers) day in Benin, the Edo State capital.
A statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Jackson Udom, quoted Akpabio as saying: “I am very pleased to be here to witness your first year anniversary in office. When I listened to what went wrong in the last administration, after the tenure of Senator Adams Oshiomhole, I wept because that was the same thing I met in my state when I took over as governor in 2007.
“Imagine allocating a paltry N41 million to the Ambrose Alli University as running cost in a year. That cannot even take care of the office of the Vice Chancellor, but under one year of your administration, you turned the situation around and upped the allocation to over N500million per year because you are God’s will for people of Edo, just like what happened to medical students in my state, who couldn’t graduate after spending 14 years in the University due to lack of accreditation.”
Akpabio noted that “I have heard and seen what you have done in the area of education and I am very impressed because when you open the doors of education for the children, you shut the prison doors.
“Under your administration, Edo is rising, progressing and shinning. You are a unifier because you have been able to work in peace and unity with your deputy, lawmakers and your leaders.
“Just like I brought the first flyover to Akwa Ibom State, you are doing the same, so you are God’s will for the people of Edo. By the time you are through with the people in eight years, there would be no house boys and girls again in Edo State.
“Just like I empowered the women of Akwa Ibom State through WADEP, you have done same by allocating N1billion for our market women to boost the economy of the state from the bottom to the top. I am happy I am witnessing this in Edo under you”.
On the 2027 presidential and national and state assembly elections, Akpabio said: “ One good turn deserves another. Continue to pray and support him to do more for you in the next eight years. I thank the people of Edo and the entire Southsouth region for endorsing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for second term in office. The competition would be rife in terms of votes.
Earlier in his remarks, Governor Okpebholo, thanked Senator Akpabio and his entourage for honouring his invitation to be part of the one year anniversary of his administration.
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