Contrary to rumors that the next governor of Delta State had been anointed by powers-that-be to come from Delta Central senatorial district, Governor Ifeanyi Okowa says he didn’t know who will be his successor.
This is in departure from political permutations that with power rotation pattern of the People Democratic Party (PDP) in which Okowa emerged in 2015, the next governor is expected to come from Delta Central.
Okowa said that only God will appoint his successor since it is only Him that appoints Kings.
He spoke while fielding questions from newsmen during the quarterly media interaction held at Government House in Asaba, the state capital on Tuesday.
According to him, “I can’t give verdict on who become governor in 2023 in Delta State. I’m not God, so I don’t know my successor now, only God knows who will take over from me so when we get to that bridge, we will know how to cross over it”, the governor resorted.
Speaking on the worrisome poor state of electricity in the state, Okowa expressed doubt if the Benin Electricity Distributions Company, BEDC has the finances to shoulder the power crisis.
“I am in doubt if BEDC has the finances to run the outfit, he said adding that the persistence problem of power supply should be traced to lack of finances to tackle the challenges of electricity in the state.
The governor however lamented that roads were failing across the country and that the Federal Government was overwhelmed.
He pointed out that the nation’s economy was going down “and with competing needs, there is need to provide for toll gates in functioning roads.
“They should concession these roads to competent companies and the money made should be ploughed back to continue the maintenance of the roads where the toll gates are located.
“It is far cheaper to pay for tolls on good roads than spend money on maintenance of your cars, with the attendant delays and inconveniences as a result of bad roads.
“We would have preferred that Federal Government either repaired the roads or made refunds when states reconstruct the roads, because most of the roads have started to fail, more so, when bigger heavy duty vehicles are on roads not envisaged during design and construction.”
He also disclosed that his administration was giving a boost to tourism, saying “there are things that we need to do to encourage the people to improve on activities that will make families more comfortable.
“So, we are looking forward to building a Pleasure Park which will be on the Ugbolu-Asaba road, and we are also putting up a film village to encourage our budding artistes as Asaba has become the hub for movie locations.
“The new Secretariat Complex we are building in Asaba is coming on strong; I am very satisfied with the level of work being carried out and it is one of the biggest secretariats in the country.
“We thank God that at the end, we will have a reasonable accommodation for our workers”.
