By Prince Ejeh Josh
…Mbah’s manifesto ambitious, comprehensive, assuring – Church
The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah has outlined the strategies he will deploy to address the growing insecurity in the state.
Speaking in Awgu on Tuesday where he met with the Catholic priests and other religious, Mbah said, although security issue is nationwide, his government, if elected in 2023, will decisively checkmate the hydra-headed problem of insecurity through some strategic steps he had already mapped out.
He disclosed that security and infrastructure are at the core of everything he had proposed in his manifesto, stressing that it’s only when there’s security that investors will be attracted to the state to establish their businesses and industries.
Assuring that the problem of insecurity will be a thing of history, Mbah said his intervention area is three-pronged, including an integrated programmes to accelerate youth employment and end poverty, integrated rural development programmes, and kinetic and non-kinetic approaches.
The governorship hopeful further noted that youth unemployment and poverty have been established to be two major factors engendering insecurity in the country, adding that the development economic plans by his administration will create thousands of jobs that will end unrest and agitation among the youths.
He harped on his resolve to exploit the dormant resources in the state to create more jobs for the citizens by turning them to productive assets that will engage the youths and make them useful to the society.
While assessing the possibility of creating over four hundred thousand jobs in each senatorial zone in the state through the agriculture sector, Mbah maintained that the hideouts of criminals in the state will be cleared and designated as special economic zones for commercial farming.
On how he will adopt the kinetic approach, the business magnate stated that his administration will strengthen intelligence gathering, employ modern technology such as the CCTV and drones for surveillance, training and retraining of security personnel and collaborate with communities to enhance community policing.
This, he said, will enable investors find the state attractive for investment, and restore the confidence of farmers to go back to work without fear of molestation.
Mbah, who further spoke on other issues, promised that his administration will speed up efforts to grow the economy seven-fold by migrating it from its current $4.4 billion to $30 billion by making it one of the top three states in the country.
He promised to achieve a zero percent hunger in the state within 8 years of his administration through integrated rural development programmes, cross-cutting programmes, technical and vocational training centres, availability of 100 billion naira revolving capital for start-up investors, provisions of basic amenities and other incentives.
Assessing Mbah’s presentation, the Bishop of the Diocese, His Lordship John Okoye, commended his manifesto, which they’d previously gone through, as comprehensive, convincing and assuring, saying he had their support because of his good intentions for the state.
He recalled how the governorship candidate had been going about feeding the poor, building state-of-the-art hospital, engendering development and touching lives even with his personal resources.
Also lauding Mbah’s programmes for the state, a priest, Fr. Leo Ilechukwu said they attended his manifesto presentation, made critical evaluations and found it to be the best in the state.
“We need people like you who are adding values, and changing the narratives. You’ve governed well in the private sector space, and I can say that nothing can be more appealing and convincing than your mantra, tomorrow is here,” he added.
