Edo Guber: Ighodalo Ends US Tour, Promises Better Economy

Adibe Emenyonu in Benin City

The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the September 21 governorship election in Edo State, Dr Asue Ighodalo, has ended his US engagement with the Edo Diaspora Community in New York with a promise to reshape and build a bigger, better economy  for the state.

Speaking on the last day of his three-legged town hall meeting with indigenes of the state resident in New York and its environs over the weekend, Ighodalo assured that if voted into power, together with his running mate, Osarodion Ogie, he would reshape the economy to lift people out of poverty.
He stressed the that the expertise of the people in the Diasporas would be needed in the state.

In a statement by the media campaign committee made available to journalists in Benin City,  Ighodalo who expounded his plans for the state as captured in his manifesto, tagged “The Pathway to Prosperity for All”, also assured that a lot would be done that would turn around the economic status of the people in the state.

Accompanied by his wife, Mrs Ifeyinwa Ighodalo, his running mate, Ogie and others, Ighodalo declared: “Edo State is blessed with different mineral resources. We will harness them for the betterment of our dear state. But we need your help in various areas of expertise to move Edo State to a first world economy.”
He reiterated the need for quality leadership and assured the audience of over 300 attendees that the PDP gubernatorial team was poised to provide that quality leadership.

“With the right leadership that we will offer, Edo State can pull other neighbouring states by peer pressure to economic revolution in Nigeria.
“We will leverage on the gains by the Governor Godwin Obaseki’s administration in the agriculture sector to take Edo to another level. We will ensure our farmlands are secured with adequate security to enable our farmers to go to their farms, and this will reduce food inflation.

“By its geographical location, Edo State is a natural logistic hub with several entry and exit points. We will source for finance to build industrial parks, and this will increase our Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) base,” he assured.
Talking about security, Ighodalo categorised it as “very important ” as almost every other thing depends on the security of lives and property in the state and Nigeria.

“We will beef up security with modern technology to track criminals and build a synergy between our local security and other relevant security agencies to track down crime.
“We will strengthen laws to checkmate crimes and ensure that criminals are prosecuted in due time. There must be consequences for engaging in criminal activities so that it will be a deterrent to others,” he stated.
Speaking about education, Ighodalo said efforts would be made to take out-of-school children back to the classroom.
“We will ensure that our out-of-school children are taken back into classroom learning. Our curriculum will be reviewed periodically and improve our learning facilities to increase the gains of EdoBest.”

The Town Hall Meeting which began with a carnival-like reception for Ighodalo, featured a question and answer session. The two candidates jointly answered all the questions satisfactory with applause at the end of each answer.