Governor Seriake Dickson on Tuesday called on government at all levels to provide adequate security to enhance meaningful development in the country.
The governor, represented by his deputy, Rear Admiral John Jonah (rtd.), made the call during the inter-ministerial/agencies briefing at the Gabriel Okara Cultural Centre, Yenagoa.
The event was part of the activities scheduled to mark the six years of his administration in office.
Dickson said his administration placed much premium on security, noting that in the absence of good security architecture progress and growth would elude all segments of the economy.
“When we came into government, the first thing that we pursued was security.
“We had no choice but to do so, knowing well that without security, you cannot do any meaningful projects; without security, there will be inhibition of movements.
“The concept of security that has evolved over the years, the end point of security today is what we call the human security.
“You have to ensure that every human being is secured and this should permeate all areas and communities. So, we started by improving the security system in the state. Today, our security system is second to none in the country.
“A lot of investment was put into it and because I was in the security myself, I drove the system directly.
“At a point, after establishing the state security outfit, ‘Operation Doo Akpo’, we went to Doo Akpo marine and conceptualised constructed boats. Most of the security boats used by security forces were conceptualised in the state.’’
He also lamented inequalities in the country, saying that most parts of the country were living in denial even though many pretend that all was well.
“When we say that they should not use our derivation for something else, these are the things we are talking about. The challenges we have here are far more than what others have.
“So, whatever is legally ours should also be released to us and we know how to manage it. We are not stopping at infrastructural development; we are also talking about efficiency in government.
“That is the essence of public reforms we are doing. We need a system that is more efficient so that when you come to work, you earn your pay,’’ he said.
The Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure Development, Mr Lawrence Ehwrujakpo, said the government initiated about 104 projects since 2012.
Ehwrujakpo said the initiative consisted of both social and investment projects.
He said that the work on the state five-star hotels, `Tower Hotel’ would not continue until they found a manager to run the hotel.
“For the Tower Hotel, we won’t continue building it without a concrete business plan. So we have to have a concrete plan before going into execution.
“Don’t expect us to sink N18 billion without a manager to run the hotel. The project was not conceived by us,’’ he said.
He listed some of the major projects of the government as Bayelsa Ecumenical Centre, University of African, Odi Pavilion, Quality Control room, Government House construction, Helipad among many others.
In his welcome address, the Commissioner for information, Daniel Iworiso-Markson, said the government in realising the dire needs of the public deployed the state resources to development.
“In Education, it has been a total transformation with Bayelsa having the best public schools in the country.
“The health sector also received greater attention with the building of the world-class Diagnostic Centre, the Specialist hospital and other legacy health institutions,’’ he said.
He noted that the last six years had been challenging, the government had made a huge difference, returning the state to its pride of place as the pride of the Ijaw nation.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CR0OdTtjc4]
