LAGOS OCTOBER 15TH (URHOBOTODAY)– The former Governor of Delta State, Chief James Ibori has called on the people of Oghara, Ethiope West Local Government of Delta State to realise its great potentials and turn the town into a giant industrial and commercial hub.
He stated Friday in Asaba during the Oghara Summit 2016, stating that the wish for transformatuion of the town informed why they gathered for the summit.
In his speech titled ‘’Contributing Our Quota Towards Uplifting Oghara’’, he said as any place develops and transformation takes place, it changes from being a settlement or village to a town and that development cannot come without paying a price.
Represented by Mr Moses Ogbe, Chairman, Delta State Independent Electoral Commission, DISIEC, Chief Ibori advised the people to make the change work and still remain members of the cheerful and welcoming host community hat Oghara is famous for, remain part of the driving engine of the change and development taking place in Oghara, invest in the town, set up shops, hostels, and industries and and march in steps with the guests in the town in order not to be left behind in the matter of investment and land ownership.
‘’Oghara is known for being cordial and courtus host to the various government agencies and outfits in the town. The direct effect of this is that this pleasant reputation serves as a welcome recommendation that attracts even further government presence.
The former Governor warned that nothing should be done to tarnish the good image which has been bequeathed to Oghara and leave it as a needed legacy to those coming after, pleading that any misunderstanding there might be, over any matter, with any Federal or state agency I n their midst, especially the security outfits, should be amicably handled.
‘’As long as they are in our midst, we must make them feel at home. Thy too as long as they are in our midst, must be one with us. The way to go is not ‘we versus them’ attitude but there must be a symbiotic, independent and mutually beneficial relationship between us and the visitors in our midst’’, Ibori stated.
Chief Ibori particularly implored everybody to take the issue of security of the area very serious and a business, pleading that all hands must be on deck to ensure that the security of life and property in Oghara is not breached.
‘’Every residents of the town must watch out for the well being of all the other. The protection of all the investment and government outfit in the town must be everybody’s business. This is a responsibility we cannot deny,’’ Chief Ibori warned.
Earlier, Chief Emmanuel Ighemena, Chairman, Oghara Summit Planning Committee, while speaking on the topic, ‘’Oghara In Contemporary Nigeria; Prospects And Challenges’’, said Oghara people cannot continue in their good conscience continue to ignore the realities, concerted and painstaking efforts.
According to him, they should manage the concomitant, societal and contemporary challenges which together hinder, stultify and negatively impact on the peace, growth, development and stability of the cherished community.
HRM Noble Eshemitan, Orefe 111, Ovie of Oghara, in his address, said they were at the summit because of the said the challenges of Oghaa include high rate of unemployment among the working age population, bad roads, inadequate water supply, infrastructural decay, land grabbing and encroachment, criminal activities of herdsmen including destruction of our farms, environmental pollution, kidnapping and robberies.
This challenges he said are impediment to the peace and development of the kingdom and the impediments which are the underlying causes of conflicts which he summarized into illiteracy, disease, hunger, poverty, lack of clean water and environmental concerns.