Stories by Romanus Ugwu, Abuja, Tony Osauzo, Benin and Ngozi Uwujare
The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Asue Ighodalo, yesterday, flagged-off his campaign in Ubiaja, Esan South East Local Government Area of Edo State, with a pledge to continue the infrastructural drive of Godwin Obaseki administration.
Besides, Ighodalo while bemoaning the economic situation in the country, promised to give incentives to farmers, scholarships to students in the state, saying that Obaseki has been trying to shield Edo people from the situation.
“We are ready to continue where our governor stopped, we will take Edo State to the next level; if a man wants to build a house he has to start from the foundation. Governor Obaseki has started the foundation and we will continue from where he stopped. The works they have done for the past eight years will soon begin to show.
“By the next one year, we will begin to miss the governor, but myself and Osarodion will do our best to maintain his good works. We all know the suffering on the ground, we all know the problem in Nigeria. Since January this year, they just said something in Abuja, and our lives have gone down since and the governor has been trying to shield us from the harsh condition created by the APC and that is what myself and Osarodion will continue.
“Before you can leave your house by 2.00am, but at a time it became impossible due to insecurity until when Obaseki came and stopped it. Now, you can go out and do your business but that is what we will continue to improve on in Edo State”.
The PDP candidate also promised to reinforce Obaseki’s achievement in the area of security, saying that his government will ensure that Edo State will be monitored from the situation room, just as he pledged to continue the EdoBEST programme which he said has produced good results and will makes it better.
“The work that he has done on agriculture, we will continue from there, we will give incentives to cassava farmers, oil palm producers. Edo has been the number one in oil palm, but at a time we left it. Today, Obaseki has brought it back and we are the number one today.
On his part, Governor Obaseki said he has known Asue Ighodalo for the past 40 years and that he can vouch for him, pointing out that Ighodalo has the love of his people at heart.
He, therefore, urged Edo people to vote for Ighodalo in order to continue his good works, disclosing that Ighodalo was part of those that fought for democracy.
“When, we approached him to come run for governor, he said it was a great sacrifice for him to leave his business and come run for governor, but I told him it will be unfair for him not to come serve his people.
“For somebody to give up so much, he is not looking for money, he is not looking for fame, he is not looking for fortune, he just has the love of his people at heart.
“The two of them will do it, those who said they will destroy EdoBEST because it is Edoworst. That is the problem, if we had started EdoBEST earlier, we would not have produced that kind of candidate that does not know how to read and write, he would have known how to read, write and think”, Obaseki said in apparent reference to the APC candidate.
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