By; VITALIS UGOH, Calabar
A one time Head of Service in Cross River and Commissioner Federal Character Commission, Chief Wilfred Inah, has said that the people of Ugep and Yakurr might not waste their time casting their votes for Governor Ben Ayade if he seeks re-election.
He declared “as far as I am concerned there is hardly anything that this administration has achieved within the period under review. I can’t point to and say that this an outstanding achievement recorded by Ayade’s administration since May 2015.
According to him, “the institution sited in Ugep is virtually been closed down”.
Inah stated this while speaking to newsmen in an interview in Calabar.
The way and manner Ayade has handled the Institute of Technology and Management (ITM) is annoying, he pointed out.
The former Constitutional conference member of 1994/95, recalled that ” there was an arrangement between the people of Ugep and the Imoke led administration for the establishment of the school but regrettably, Ayade had killed the school”.
The institution was to be run by a British based Highbury College. The state government is owing the College and Ayade is creating an impression that he wants Highbury college to thrive.
Sadly, he said, ” Ayade set up a committee headed by me and met and wrote our recommendations, adding ” as far as I am concerned there are no students registered to pursue their National Diploma”.
According to him,” if you doubt me you can go to the school to see things for yourself. I mean Ayade may not come out to say I have closed down the school but by his actions and omission, you will know that the institution is dead”.
Inah said ” I think the Yakurr and Ugep people in general are waiting for pay back time. In case, Ayade wants to go for a second term and he comes to Ugep to solicit for votes, that is when the people will ask him why he killed the institution”.
He further stated that the former governor Liyel Imoke had established the institution as his legacy before leaving office adding ” if you kill the institution, you would have ended up erasing Imoke’s legacy in the Central senatorial district”.
He called those who are already campaigning for his re election to advice him to set up and allow the dividend of democracy to get to the people.
On the issue of Federal roads in the state, Inah, regretted that the roads had remained the same as it were when Jonathan was in power. No change has taken place, yet we are talking about 260km superhighway. We have not seen the existing road from Calabar to Ogoja repaired. In the days of Donald Duke when you come to Ugep you will see the number of roads that were constructed. When Liyel Imoke came to power,he increased the number of roads in Ugep which is the Local Government headquarters.
On the bailout funds, he called the governor to ensure that the money was used for the purpose it was meant for as quickly as possible to save the pensioners of further stress.
