As the country continues to grapple with the economic recession, speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, has charged President of the Dangote Group, Alhaji Aliko Dangote and other industrialists to exhibit patriotism by helping ensure that the country came out of the current recession.
This is even as Alhaji Dangote urged Governor Obaseki of Edo State to adopt Lagos State’s development template to transform Edo State from where his predecessor, Adams Oshiomhole stopped.
Dogara gave the admonition in the presence of many heads of industries and players in the financial sector, including Dangote, AIG Imoukhuede, among others, at the Governor’s Ball held in honour of Obaseki, to celebrate his inauguration in Benin City at the weekend.
The speaker, according to a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Turaki Hassan, expressed confidence in the industrialists to make the necessary impact needed to re-engineer the economy, and appealed to them to put their heads together to tame the recession.
Speaking on the new government in Edo State, Dogara said judging from past performances, he was positive that Obaseki and his deputy, Philip Shuaibu, have the capacity to deliver growth and development to Edo people. He said: “I had come in contact with the governor when I was serving in the House of Representatives, specifically, on the House Committee on Capital Market.
He made appearances before that committee and I can attest to the fact that I knew him to be a man that is very deep. “And so, when I heard that the people of Edo State identified him as one of the shining stars that will take over from the governor that by popular consensus, performed credibly well, I knew that they had made a good choice.
“I believe beyond reasonable doubt, that together, you will achieve a lot for Edo State, what has not been possible.” Meanwhile, Alhaji Dangote urged the newly sworn-in governor, Godwin Obaseki, to replicate the leadership template of former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, to transform Edo and make it a reference point for commerce and development.
Dangote, who also spoke at the inaugural dinner held in Benin to usher in the new governor, said Tinubu laid a solid foundation for development of Lagos, which his successors keyed into and even scaled up to bring about massive transformation and development. He said just like Tinubu, Adams Oshiomhole, had also placed Edo on sound footing for development, urging the new governor to also follow the path of continuity for progress.
(Vanguard)
