Prince Abubakar Audu is the candidate of the All Progressives
Congress, APC and served as governor twice between 1992 and 1993 and
again between 1993 and 2003. Audu declared recently that he has
intellectual and physical capacity to restore what he described as the
lost glory of the state following what he claims as the destruction of
the legacy projects he left behind 12 years ago.
By Chris Ochayi
On what exactly he is planning to do when eventually he wins this weekend.
What I did between 1999 and 2003, was to initiate a scheme where unemployed youths were placed on some kind of monthly allowances through our youths empowerment programme.
As a matter of fact, it was as a result of the choking level of unemployment in the state that made me to initiate the Obajana cement project. According to the agreement we entered into with foreign investors, Obajana cement factory would employ 15,000 workers. We also had a written agreement that out of that number, 13,000 workers must be indigenes of Kogi state, while the remaining 2,000 could come from anywhere in Nigeria.
I don’t think that the previous administrations have taken the
trouble of studying the agreement. By the grace of God, when I return
back to office, I am going to dust up that agreement and ensure that the
right thing is done.
The right thing is getting 13,000 jobless young men employed in Obajana cement factory. That would certainly reduce the pressure on the government. I also have plans to apply to the federal government to grant concessions for us to run the Ajaokuta Steel Company. When the steel company becomes operational, it will be producing billets for local use and iron rods for exports. That was the plan I had when I built the road from Lokoja to Ajaokuta.
There are several byeproducts of Ajaokuta Steel that will feed small scale industries and stimulate the economy. That will also reduce the pressure on the labour market. We have plans to boost agriculture. We wanted to bring in farmers from Zimbabwe and South Africa to embark on large mechanized farming.
Our ultimate goal is to make Kogi state have enough to feed the entire nation as well as for export. When that is achieved, it will again go a long way to reduce the pressure on the labour market. Such initiatives will provide our youths with so many opportunities.
What will he do differently when he gets back to Lugard House
I have done it before differently. When I get back, it will be a complete re-enactment of what I did before and we will also try to improve on it. During my administration, Kogi was the fastest developing state in Nigeria. When all the 36 governors were assessed, we were number one in terms of performance in various sectors, especially with regards to infrastructural provisions. Our performance is going be to more advanced. I have reflected on the problems that our people are confronted with and by the grace of God, we have the solutions on our hands. My administration, like I mentioned earlier was able to put so much on the ground for the benefit of our people despite the meager resource at our disposal at that time. When I get to Lugard by the grace of God, I shall ensure that our state is lifted to greater height of social and economic advancement.
By Chris Ochayi
On what exactly he is planning to do when eventually he wins this weekend.
What I did between 1999 and 2003, was to initiate a scheme where unemployed youths were placed on some kind of monthly allowances through our youths empowerment programme.
As a matter of fact, it was as a result of the choking level of unemployment in the state that made me to initiate the Obajana cement project. According to the agreement we entered into with foreign investors, Obajana cement factory would employ 15,000 workers. We also had a written agreement that out of that number, 13,000 workers must be indigenes of Kogi state, while the remaining 2,000 could come from anywhere in Nigeria.
Abubakar Audu
The right thing is getting 13,000 jobless young men employed in Obajana cement factory. That would certainly reduce the pressure on the government. I also have plans to apply to the federal government to grant concessions for us to run the Ajaokuta Steel Company. When the steel company becomes operational, it will be producing billets for local use and iron rods for exports. That was the plan I had when I built the road from Lokoja to Ajaokuta.
There are several byeproducts of Ajaokuta Steel that will feed small scale industries and stimulate the economy. That will also reduce the pressure on the labour market. We have plans to boost agriculture. We wanted to bring in farmers from Zimbabwe and South Africa to embark on large mechanized farming.
Our ultimate goal is to make Kogi state have enough to feed the entire nation as well as for export. When that is achieved, it will again go a long way to reduce the pressure on the labour market. Such initiatives will provide our youths with so many opportunities.
What will he do differently when he gets back to Lugard House
I have done it before differently. When I get back, it will be a complete re-enactment of what I did before and we will also try to improve on it. During my administration, Kogi was the fastest developing state in Nigeria. When all the 36 governors were assessed, we were number one in terms of performance in various sectors, especially with regards to infrastructural provisions. Our performance is going be to more advanced. I have reflected on the problems that our people are confronted with and by the grace of God, we have the solutions on our hands. My administration, like I mentioned earlier was able to put so much on the ground for the benefit of our people despite the meager resource at our disposal at that time. When I get to Lugard by the grace of God, I shall ensure that our state is lifted to greater height of social and economic advancement.
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