Mr Emmanuel Jime, the All Progressives Congress (APC), Governorship candidate in Benue State, has promised to ensure a new direction for the North-Central state, if elected.
“I want a new direction for Benue; I want more development that will improve the living standard of the people. Benue will move faster if I am elected its governor,” Jime told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), on Tuesday in Makurdi.
He promised to give the state a clear-headed leadership, saying that Benue needed a governor that had been groomed to take the responsibilities of governance.
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“I can say this, with all due respect, that I have the necessary preparation to offer quality governance. I can also say this, that in the last three and a half years, we have witnessed a decline in quality governance.
I am running for governor to add value and improve the quality of lives. I also want to make sure that Benue reclaims its place as a leading state in Nigeria.”
Jime, who promised to serve “just one tenure”, added that his performance during that period would determine where he would be in future.
“The constitution allows for only a four-year tenure. The reason for my insistence on one term is because we are limited by our zoning. If you do well and creditable, there are chances of higher responsibilities,” he explained.
According to him, any governor that can’t perform in four years can’t perform in eight years either.
“Gov. Aper Aku, the first civilian governor of the state, spent just four years in office and positioned the state on the path of greatness; most of the infrastructure in the state today were built by Aku.
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Rev. Fr. Moses Adasu, another former governor of the state, spent less than two years in office, yet accomplished so much.
I served in that administration. I was the Speaker, Benue House of Assembly, and learnt a lot under Governor Adasu.”
Jime, who acknowledged the concept of godfathers in the country’s nascent democracy, said that politicians needed mentors for grooming and guidance.
“The whole concept of a godfather isn’t a bad one, people need to understand that we need mentors, we need people to advise us, we need to make consultations to succeed in whatever we are doing.
This must not only be in politics; a godfather is a mentor. I think part of the challenge of the new breed politician is who should mentor him or her. We have not been properly mentored.
The syndrome has not been used in a way that guarantees effective delivery of service to the people,” he said.
On the anti-open grazing law, Jime said that it was good for the overall development of the people and should be supported by all.
He, however, advised politicians against playing politics with the law and making it discriminatory.
Jime urged Gov. Ortom to partner the Federal Government in implementing the law, noting that the state government did not have the security apparatus to enforce the law. (NAN)
