From Joseph Obukata, Warri
The governorship candidate of the Young Progressive Party (YPP) in Delta State, Sunny Ofehe, has pledged to attract foreign direct investment to the tune of $26 billion to Delta State in his first year in power when elected in the 2023 general election.
Ofehe stated this over the weekend during a mega rally held at Oharisi primary school field in Ughelli, Delta state to flag off the electioneering campaign of the party in the state.
He said that Delta has been lagging behind in many areas despite the enormous human and natural resources that endowed the state.
The Netherlands-based Nigerian activist, who was accompanied by his Dutch friend, Diederik Bos, CEO of FSG Academy in the Netherlands, said that among the contestants in the race, he is the most qualified, exposed and better fit as governor having prepared himself in his 27 years of living abroad.
Addressing the motley crowd which besieged the school playground, Ofehe who was flanked by his deputy, Mrs Eloho Dafe Chalele and other chieftains of the party, urged the people to rally around for his candidacy, boasting that APC and PDP candidates with all their monies cannot match his credibility in a free and fair contest if given the chance.
“If we work together if we combine our forces together if we unify together, there is nothing we cannot overcome. You know people say APC, people say PDP but I tell you that this young man standing before you this afternoon has what it takes to overcome all of the opposition that will come from those parties,” he said.
“You know, I left this country when I was 23 years old, I left this city Ughelli when I was 23 years old and I travelled to Europe and I’ve spent 27 years in Europe where society has taught me what it means for the government to value life, where the society has taught me what it means for the ordinary people to enjoy the dividends of democracy.
“Whenever I come back to this country I feel very sorry for you and for our people because a certain group of persons, cartels have taken over your commonwealth, it is time for you to stand up, it is time for you to stretch your hand and reclaim what rightfully belongs to you and there is no better time to do that than having an opportunity for you to exercise your right to vote through the power of your PVC on the 11th of march 2023.
“Don’t be deceived, the Bible said it takes one to chase a thousand, it takes two to chase ten thousand. It is not by numbers but it is by the collective will, encouragement, believing that we can get what we want today if you give me the chance to be your next governor I want to guarantee you that you will see governance the way you’ve never seen it before.
“Now we have a state that God has richly blessed, we have a state that does not have any reason to produce poor people, we have a state that does not have any reason to produce people who cannot produce go to school, we have a state that does not have any reason to produce people who cannot feed themselves, we have a state that does not have any reason to give medical health services to its people but unfortunately some people have decided to play the role of God in their lives.
“They have extorted you, they have taken what belongs to you, they have left you in penury, they have left you in poverty, it is time for you to change that narrative. I’m not here to accuse anyone, I’m not here to insult anyone but I’m here to say that Delta state is far much more blessed, far much more full of natural resources, human capacity for us to remain where we are today.
“As your governor come 2023, I want to assure you that with all my economic blueprint, my policies, I will make sure that Delta state becomes the 7th largest economy in sub-Sahara Africa. In my first year in power, I want to guarantee you that through international connection, my international network, my exposure and knowledge, I will attract to this state a minimum of 26 billion dollars in foreign direct investments and I want to promise you that as your next governor I will be the first governor in any Nigerian state that will grant social benefit to one million deltan citizens receiving a minimum of 10 thousand naira every month for as long as I remain your governor.
“I want to assure you that for all our women, particularly the pregnant ones, I want to assure you that as your next governor you will have free access to healthcare, free access to the hospital and free access to medicine and then when you give birth to the child for as long as the child is between birth and 5 years old, the child will also be covered by free healthcare and services.
“And for our young men who have shown capacity, and intelligence, I want to assure you that in my first year I will build a new ICT village in one of our constituencies that will pride itself as one of the best in Africa so that you can go there, develop your intellectual skills in a way that you can begin to generate money by just sitting behind your computer and doing a lot of things, this you will get from me and as you governor, I want to tell you, we will make Delta State the cynosure of all eyes and we will transform Delta state that wherever you go as a Deltan people will grant you respect.
“I want to assure you that for all of the ethnic conflicts that have divided us as a people my leadership will harmonise relationships between ethnic groups, my leadership will bring to all of our tribal people from outside who have decided to adopt Delta State as their own, whether you are a Yoruba man, a Hausa man, a person from the Tiv region, from Akwa Ibom, for as long as you have made Delta state your home we will embrace you, you will enjoy every benefit that every indigenous Deltan enjoy.
“We will live in peace and harmony and most importantly I want to assure you that as your next governor security will be my priority, I will ensure that we put in policies, and I will secure not just your lives but also your properties so that when you sleep at home at night, you will sleep in peace and not in pieces.
“I want to assure you that we will make Delta state the most secure state using 21st-century technologies that will protect all the roads that link into this state and all the exit point that takes everyone out of it. Kidnapping will never happen in this state, with my security policies, if you do any kidnapping you will not last 48 hours we will apprehend you.
“I want to restore back our night lights and in doing that one of the things I’ll ensure is that all our major routes in our urban city and even routes leading to our rural cities, we will electrify them with street lights, not street lights that the bulbs will not on but street light that will constantly provide electricity because in that way we will be able to overshadow darkness and bring light into darkness.
“I want to assure you that as your next governor, we will harmonise our religious capacity and capability, we will make sure that we transform this state to become the next Dubai where Muslims can live peacefully with Christians, where Christians can live peacefully with all other religions, you will be given free equal opportunity to practice your religion without being afraid of being attacked.
“I want to assure you that as your next governor we will make sure to provide jobs for the jobless and that is where my $26 billion will begin to revamp all our decaying companies and being to build new infrastructure and from somebody who comes from the Netherlands the country that prides itself as one of the biggest when it comes to agriculture becoming the largest exporter of agricultural products in the world, I will work tirelessly with the country and it’s people to ensure that we invest hugely in our agriculture so that we can produce food for ourselves and produce enough to feed the country and to export to the world.
“I have made my manifesto clear and my copy will be available to all of your to scrutinise. We have a lot of people running for this position but among them, I want to assure you that I am the only one that has credibility, I am the only one that has the capacity, I am the only one that has the international exposure, I am the only one that knows exactly what your problem is and I am the only one that can offer the best solution that can match your problem and I want to assure you that if you make me your governor I will be the governor of not one person, I will be the governor for all of you.
“I want to assure you that among those who are running as governorship candidates in the coming elections I am the only one that does not have a godfather, my godfather is all of you and because you all are my godfather will be answerable to all of you I will honour your calls, I will pick your calls, I will return your calls, I will read your messages, I will return your messages because I know that once upon a time I was once like you in this town, I trekked these streets, I moved everywhere until I went to the other side, the difference between me and you is that I currently live in a society that knows how to prepare somebody for the future and that is why they have built me in a way that I can now say I have what it takes to be your next servant leader.”