Delta State Commissioner for Information, Charles Aniagwu, on Monday said the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege lacks requisite knowledge to govern the state.

Aniagwu said with the poor performances of the All Progressives Congress led Federal Government at the centre, it will be very difficult to market any candidate from that party in the 2023 general elections.

He stated this at a news conference in Asaba adding that he had once advised Omo-Agege to concentrate his energy on things that could enhance his electoral value rather than chasing shadows.

According to him, “not too long ago I had advise the Deputy President of the Senate, and the APC governorship candidate in the state, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege to try as much as possible to stay with the issues that could help his electioneering campaign and not to begin to stray in directions that will not in any way advance the course of his interest.

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“I had thought that it was only those who speak for him that tend not understand what the issues are.

“I read somewhere, where he was mentioning that we have received over N700 billion in the last seven years and that we couldn’t account for that and I begin to wonder N700 billion as what?

“It shows that he does not understand how governance runs because the data that is available shows that we have received more than that.

“I say so because he thinks that what we use to run government alone in a year is N100 billion, our wage bill alone, that is the recurrent side of the budget is even far more than what he was mentioning,” he said.

He reminded the Orogun-born Senator that Governor Okowa was not contesting elections with him in 2023 and as such he should not make Okowa the subject matter of his campaign.

“First he needs to be reminded that Governor Ifeanyi Okowa is not on the ballot with him in 2023. Governor Okowa is not running for any of the elections in Delta, he is not running to become a governor again, he is not running for any election that is limited to Delta, so its important that he begins to address his mind to other issues rather than chasing shadows.

“As a government we have been able to show transparently through the press in the last seven years, the many projects and programmes that we have embarked upon.

“Programmes such as the many platforms that we have used to empower our youths and a cross section of Deltans.

“Policies such as the ones that affects the livelihoods of our people and indeed projects that are quite outstanding such as the New State Secretariat, upgrade and concessioning of the Asaba airport that has made our airport quite outstanding among the comity of airports in the country.

“We have performed significantly in the capital side of the budget with many outstanding accomplishments in infrastructural development.

“As a government we have added value to the people of Delta whether they live in the creeks or in the upland so for Omo-Agege to say that N700 billion is not accounted for, you begin to wonder whether he understands the issues of governance.

“I thought that as a member of the National Assembly he should be able to do some calculations because there has never been any year where we drew up a budget that is less than N360 billion.

“If in all our budgets we have performed 100 percent in the recurrent part of the budget which is why we are always ensuring that salaries are paid as and when due and that we have also performed significantly on the capital side of the budget.

“All these projects have led to the many milestones we have recorded in road construction, building of schools, bridges and other infrastructure such as the storm water drainage here in Asaba and Warri.

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“Many of these projects you have either accompanied us to inspect or to inaugurate many of these projects so you begin to wonder if such a person is capable of governing if he does not have a clear understanding of what statistics is all about?

“As we go into the electioneering campaign be rest assured that we will put up what our party the PDP has done in Delta. state for our people to be the judge,” the Information Commissioner stated.

On Okowa’s rising political profile and comments by some uninformed analysts, Aniagwu said the governor didn’t buy it from the market, adding that he Okowa will add value to national governance with his scorecard in Delta.

VANGUARD.