By Victor Lewis
Ahead of the March, 2023 Governorship election, the APC Guber Candidate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, has pledged to restore Burutu to its past glory, just as he promised to reposition the Delta State Oil Producing Area Development Commission, DESOPADEC, to be alive to the mandate for which it was set up when he becomes the governor.
Omo-Agege who made these pledges yesterday when he led the APC ward-to-ward campaign train to Burutu town in Burutu Local Government Area, recalled with nostalgia the hey days when Burutu was a commercial hub for export of palm oil and palm kernels, rubber, and timber from the surrounding area. It also played host to the multi million naira Burutu Timber Industry and the ever-busy Burutu port which provided lots of job opportunities to thousands of people.
Delta Voice learnt that although Gov. Okowa promised to revive the Burutu port when in 2017 he purportedly signed an agreement with a private investor, Akewa Business Group, to revive it, he abandoned the project.
So, while addressing a mammoth crowd of people in Burutu yesterday, Omo-Agege vowed to restore the lost glory of the area, adding that he will not fail in his promises when he becomes the governor of the State.
He also assured that he will make the Burutu port to become functional as he promised to work in synergy with Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, whom he urged the people to vote massively for to become the next president.
The Delta Central lawmaker decried that Burutu, which used to be the economy hub of the state with one of Nigeria’s best seaports and Delta Timber Industry (DTI), has been left to rot despite the council’s monumental contribution to the nation and Delta’s economy.
The APC governorship candidate, while promising to “bring back Burutu to its glory days”, vowed to end the marginalisation of any section of the state by ensuring that development gets to all parts under him as governor.
He also promised that his administration will tackle the issue of absence of power supply in Burutu Council and ensure that the all-important Ayakromo Bridge, which connects several Ijaw and Urhobo communities, was completed.
“I can assure you that as a governor, we’ll restore the glory days of Burutu when Elder Godsday Orubebe was the council chairman when there’s electricity and the Delta Timber Industry was thriving. Today, Burutu is a shadow of its old self, and yet, we have a sitting governor who came to Burutu to campaign in 2015 and 2019 where he promised prosperity for all Deltans.
“For our children and young boys and girls who went to school and have graduated but no job, you all know how Burutu port used to be. I’ve already strike an agreement with our in-coming president by God’s grace, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, that God willing you vote for him to become the next president and you vote for me to become the next governor, we are going to revive the Burutu port and make it functional again. And you all know that when the port begins to work all of you will get jobs.
“Not only that, the Delta Timber Industry, you all know how it used to be functional here before. We still have timbers in the forest. Why can’t we go back to that business? It’s just a matter of priority. So, we are going to bring back that timber business and make it functional again so that the economy of Burutu will boom again.
“I can also assure you that when I’m voted for and become the next governor, we are going to bring electricity here because this is where the goose that lays the golden egg is. Will you leave someone who is producing your wealth for you to go and pamper someone who is not contributing to the economy? We are going to pamper Burutu, we are going to pamper the Ijaw nation, we are going to pamper the Itsekiri nation, the Urhobo nation, the Isoko nation and the Ndokwa nation.
“All those that are contributing to the economy of this State will get their recompense. And those who are not contributing, they will also be taken care of”, Omo-Agege assured.
On the effective management of the 13% derivation fund originally meant to develop the oil-producing communities, Omo-Agege assured that when he becomes the governor, he will ensure that whatever portion of it that goes to DESOPADEC would be properly utilized.
“We’ll ensure that 50% of the derivation money must be seen to be expended on behalf of those who produce the wealth. The era in which few persons hijack DESOPADEC funds for their personal use is over. If we say this money is for DESOPADEC, it must be used for the benefit and development of the oil-producing communities.
“We’re going to appoint credible people who will effectively manage the resources of DESOPADEC for the benefit of our people to bring industry and ensure that there’s electricity in our communities,” Omo-Agege stressed.
While soliciting votes from the people of Burutu for all APC candidates, Omo-Agege further promised to attract investors to the state and revive ailing state-owned industries across the state.
In his welcoming remark, the Chairman of APC in Burutu LGA, Comrade Seikemiengan Moni, said the people of the council will vote for Omo-Agege and other APC candidates in 2023 because the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state has failed their people for too long.
Moni posited that more PDP members are joining the APC because they believed the capacity of Omo-Agege who has performed credibly well as a senator representing Delta Central.
He assured the people of the council and Ijaw nation that Omo-Agege’s administration would be beneficial to them and other tribes in the state.
Also speaking, the Director General of Delta APC Campaign Organisation, Orubebe, lamented: “Delta Timber is dead. It employs over 500 staff. There’s no light. Omo-Agege will give us light. The port will work again. It will come back to life. He will empower our youths, women and the aged.”
Meanwhile, several chieftains of the PDP in Burutu Council have defected to the APC with the assurance that they will deliver Omo-Agege and other APC candidates in the forthcoming elections.
Among those who defected during the campaign train included Mr Abe Idolor, Comrade Alex Enekrogha, Lucky Otutufa, Chief Grade-One Clarke and Godspower General.
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