Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa
The Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Mr. Peter Obi; the National Chairman of LP, Mr. Julius Abure and the LP’s flagbearer in the forthcoming governorship election in Bayelsa State, Mr. Udengs Eradiri, have lamented the level of poverty and underdevelopment in the state.
The party leaders made the lamentation yesterday during the official inauguration of the campaign office of Eradiri and a town hall meeting in Yenagoa.
They expressed dissatisfaction that despite the enormous resources and federal allocation that had accrued to Bayelsa State since its creation, the state has remained in a sorry state.
They contended that the problem of Bayelsa was purely that of leadership and opined that the state is in need of purposeful, result-oriented, ingenious, people-oriented, honest, updated, bold and courageous leadership to turn things around for the better.
Obi and other LP’s leaders who stormed the state were received by many party stalwarts and faithful at Mbiama, the boundary of Bayelsa and Rivers states.
Expectedly, their arrival was heralded by pomp and pageantry as musicians, hordes of youths, women and men escorted them to the party’s secretariat and later the Aridolf Wellness Resort and Spa venue in Okaka, where the town hall meeting was held.
Their coming also created gridlock in the Yenagoa metropolis as many residents and indigenes of the state came out en masse to catch a glimpse of Obi and other chieftains of the Labour Party.
Lamenting the widespread poverty in the oil-rich Bayelsa State, Obi noted that it is sad, unfortunate and unthinkable that a state where oil was first struck in commercial quantity about 67 years ago still remained underdeveloped and poor.
He said: “That you can come to this state and still see poverty is unfortunate and sad. This is a state where we discovered our first oil over 67 years ago and it is worrisome that after such a long time, you cannot drive on a good road to Bayelsa.
“Bayelsa is not supposed to be among the list of poor states for what God endowed them with. It is caused by leadership and that’s what we are trying to change. Our candidate has told you other parties will give you money but we are not in politics of sharing money, we don’t have any money to share. Those who are giving you money are giving you, your own money to share; we didn’t steal anything so we can’t give anything.
“When they give you money, take it but vote your conscience. Labour Party is the party to vote for in order to emancipate you from poverty and underdevelopment.
“We want to reduce the poverty in Bayelsa and the only way we can do that is by using the resources of this state to move the country from consumption to production; it is from production that you will get jobs. I listened to him (Udengs Eradiri) talk about micro credit, supporting small businesses. That is actually the future of the world and the future of Nigeria and the future of young people.
“We have unveiled this man (Eradiri). All we want is for you to support him. You can go and verify all that he said. He has paid his dues not just in Bayelsa but in the region. It is time we work with wealth creators not wealth sharers and from what he said he is a wealth creator.
“He is the perfect man for the job of changing the sad narrative of Bayelsa State and I enjoin all Bayelsans to vote for him.”
Also speaking, the governorship candidate of the LP, Eradiri, an engineer; said he would liberate Bayelsa from the shackles of poverty and underdevelopment if elected on November 11, 2023.
He said that Bayelsa is greatly endowed with several natural tourism sites that could be harnessed to enhance economic prosperity of the state yet successive administrations in the state had done little or nothing to change the narrative.
Eradiri, a former two-time Commissioner and former President of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide, stated: “Unfortunately, despite the abundant wealth and blessings of God upon Bayelsa State, the state is up till date yet to translate to prosperity for Bayelsans.
“Rather, Bayelsa State is in squalid condition replete with abject poverty, abysmal underdevelopment, infrastructural deficit and gross darkness.
“Without any fear of contradiction, the problem of Bayelsa State is purely that of leadership. Bayelsa state needs a purposeful, result-oriented, ingenious, people-oriented, honest, updated, bold and courageous leadership.”
He said that the hallmark of successful political leadership across the world is no longer the control of public resources but wealth creation, promotion of humanity and environmental sustainability.
“This is the reason we are offering ourselves to bell the cat and be the vessel for the deliverance of Bayelsa State under the humble but skiable platform of the Labour Party,” Eradiri stated.
In his remarks, Abure said that he was appalled at the level of poverty that afflicted the state, saying it required a pragmatic leadership to ameliorate the situation.
He called on Bayelsa people to vote for the LP’s candidate and not to waste their votes for other parties.
He stated: “This is the time we must come out in our large numbers to vote for the candidate of the Labour Party in the Bayelsa governorship election. We must ensure that we do not only vote LP but we must defend our votes.
“Bayelsa needs redemption. When we drove past Bayelsa State, I wept that there are no roads, no good schools, among others. The causes are not farfetched: it is leadership failure. It is time for the Labour Party to mount the saddle and redeem the state from poverty and underdevelopment.”
