Unveils 5-Point Legislative Agenda

A Chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party and former Executive Chairman of Edo State Internal Revenue Service, Dr. Ese Owie, has picked up the expression of interest and nomination forms ahead of the Senatorial Primaries scheduled for May 14th, 2022.

Speaking to journalists at the National Headquarters of the PDP shortly after collecting the forms, Dr. Owie reiterated his commitment to ensuring that the profoundly cosmopolitan Edo South Senatorial District fulfills its strategic role in shaping the future of the Nigerian State.

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Unveiling his 5-Point Legislative Agenda before a cross-section of national stakeholders of the Party, Dr. Owie assured them that Edo South is standing on the cusp of prosperous dawn.

“Within the context of a prosperous Edo South, and a sustainable future for Edo State, our Legislative agenda shall focus on 5 Thematic Pillars that would positively and fundamentally alter the developmental landscape of the Senatorial District:

“As stated during our engagement with the leadership of Edo South Senatorial Caucus and leaders drawn from the 7 LGAs that constitute the District at the onset of our consultations, these pillars are Education, Infrastructure, Health, Agriculture and Wealth Creation'”.

“Given the peculiarity of Edo South as the spiritual and cultural home of the Benin Kingdom, developing its infrastructure remains a key priority of all tiers of Government. To that extent, therefore, we shall ensure that the Federal Government, amongst other things, prioritizes the completion of Phase 2 of the Benin By-Pass which runs from Sapele Road back to Oluku, so as to open up the outskirts of the city, and ease traffic flow”, Owie added.

“We shall also use the instrumentality of legislative oversight to ensure that the NNPC’s exploration and production arm – the NPDC – fulfills its host community obligations to Edo South and the wider Edo State, with a view to engendering balanced and accelerated prosperity for the constituents.”

“We shall fast-track the comprehensive upgrade of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, which is the 2nd largest Tertiary Healthcare Facility in Africa (circa 1,100 Beds), to international standards so as to optimize access to healthcare in Edo and neighbouring states. This shall be in addition to optimizing the operations of the Federal Neuro Psychiatric Hospital, Uselu, to meet the mental health needs of our people.”

“In the education space, we shall prioritize the revamping of the University of Benin to adequately compete with other Universities on the Continent and strengthen the institutional dynamics of the National Business and Technical Examinations Board (NABTEB) which has its Headquarters in Benin, to provide not just regulatory oversight but also develop vocational capacity building initiative for the youths in Edo South”

“In addition to scaling up the capabilities of the Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) and the Rubber Research Institute of Nigeria (RRIN) Iyanomo, we shall constructively engage the Federal Ministry of Agriculture to set-up Produce Grading Centres in Edo South to stem the trend of taking produce outside for grading, so our local farmers can have their produce graded and the production volume tracked for produce aggregation, while simultaneously ramping up processing capabilities.”

“Given the centrality of power as a cross-cutting developmental enabler, we shall, by the grace of the Almighty, sponsor a Private Member Bill to domesticate gas pricing for power generation companies, thereby creating a special 10-Year Window at concesionary rates to subordinate gas payments for CAPEX repayments. This is with a view to unlocking the private sector-driven power generation capabilities that would engender rapid development” , Owie added.

While thanking the members of the press and other stakeholders for attending the media parley, Dr. Owie reaffirmed his faith in the internal democratic dynamics of the PDP, stating that he remains the most qualified and most prepared for the job. He thanked party leaders and delegates for the warm reception and prayers thus far. Concluding, Dr. Owie expressed his firm belief that the party leadership and delegates shall elect him the PDP Edo South Senatorial flag-bearer in the primaries scheduled for May 14th, 2022.