GODWIN OBASEKI: OFF TO A FLYING START

Although Godwin Obaseki has been in the saddle for less than one year, he place special emphasis on the enforcement of Edo State’s town planning laws in order to rollout projects that can transform the state. Since assumption of office, he completed roads and drainages across all the senatorial districts. He has commenced work on Luck Way in Benin City, while Textile Mill Road in Egor Local Government Area, Benin, has been earmarked for reconstruction; the contract for the first central bus terminal in Edo State has also been awarded, while the state secretariat has undergone rehabilitation. Benin City, especially the city centre, under the governor’s watch is also been revamped through a cleanup and beautification programme, while education is receiving major priority.

In the area of agriculture, Obaseki is keen on resuscitating the rubber and palm plantations in conjunction with the private sector, in order to increase the state’s GDP, while the state government has rolled out a plan to leverage on the University of Benin’s power plant to drive the development of an industrial park within Benin Technical College. The goal is to create a ‘Silicon Valley’ to boost technology in the state.

Obaseki has equally placed a premium on developing Edo’s tourism potential through arts and crafts and leveraging on the state’s rich cultural heritage.

Though Obaseki inherited a state where worker’s salaries were up to date and its internal revenue generation improved in 2016, the state’s foreign debt stock put at $183.64 million as at December 31, 2016, was worrisome. With the devaluation of the naira, Obaseki would have to triple revenue in the state to sustain debt service in the years to come.