What can be a better form of government than democracy? This is a government where people’s representatives work in the interest of the people and it is evident in Delta State that those who are at the helms of affairs in the state are committed to working in the interest of the people in 2013 rather than putting self first. The N472 billion appropriation bill, otherwise known as budget, signed into law by Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State on Tuesday, gives credence to the fact that no form of government can be better than democracy.
Sixty-seven per cent of the budget sum would be spent on capital projects, which is a strong indication that most of the projects that are on-going in the state would be accelerated to a conclusive end and new ones that would benefit the people of the state would also be introduced. During the signing of the budget, which took place at Government House, Asaba, and was witnessed by the Deputy Governor of the State, Prof. Amos Utuama (SAN), the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Victor Ochei, some legislators, members of the State Executive Council and some political appointees, Governor Uduaghan emphasized that “we want to do more of capital projects and spend less on recurrent expenditure.” Of course, he observed that executing capital projects, which would provide an enabling environment for investors to thrive and raise the standard of living of the people, is a “big challenge.”
His administration has made it clear that a future ‘Delta beyond oil’ must be provided for the people of Delta State and this, Dr Uduaghan’s administration is working to achieve through the Warri Industrial Park project, which would provide 10, 000 jobs for Deltans, the construction of gigantic projects to facilitate the movement of people and goods to and from different parts of the world through the Asaba International Airport, which has been described as the best in West Africa in terms of design and quality of work done, construction of international runway at the Osubi Airport, dualisation of roads that link such ports as Koko Port, Warri Port and the Burutu Port, among others.
Recently, the Governor Uduaghan’s administration secured a partnership with (UNIDO) to establish the biggest shoe and leather works manufacturing and training centre in the state. When it is completed, it will provide jobs for 2000 Deltans. When such persons are trained and are independent, they will also become employers of labour, and in the long-run, there will be job opportunities for a lot of persons aside the few jobs available in government.
Dr Uduaghan, who has been in government since the birth of democracy in 1999 as a Commissioner, Secretary to the State Government and now as a Governor, is abreast with what the generality of the people need as he urged his political colleagues who were anxious for political appointments to be patient, noting that he was prudent in the management of the wage bill of the state. Even with the prudence, the Governor stated that about N7 billion is being spent on salaries monthly, disclosing that his administration is committed to plugging loopholes to ensure that only deserving civil servants earn salaries from the state government.
According to him, there are still ghost workers in the civil service and also unqualified personnel working in the service, assuring that his administration would carry out biometric checks within the year to weed out the ghost workers. He also emphasized that only qualified persons would be allowed to hold positions meant for them, and made reference to a situation when it was discovered that someone who rose to be head of an institution did not hold the requisite academic qualifications.
He disclosed that his administration would also engage in aggressive revenue drive within the year, noting that they are working towards ensuring that salaries are paid with Internally-Generated Revenue (IGR). This will mean that more money would be available for the execution of capital projects in the state and, of course, the people would be better for it. Who says democracy is not working in Delta State?