Imo State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Declan Emelumba has debunked the claim that the workers in Imo state are owed salaries by the Uzodimma administration.
Emelumba, in an interview with ARISE NEWS on Friday, said the false news is being peddled by some person with an ulterior motive in the state.
“It is not true that salaries are owed in Imo state. It is an absolute falsehood. Those who have been spreading that falsehood know that they are telling Lies. There is no verified, authentic Imo civil servant that is owed. All these workers have industrial unions.
“They have leaders and their leaders have repeatedly said none of our members is owed salary. I don’t know why it is difficult for people to believe those who should know better instead of believing those who have ulterior motives.”
He also gave some clarification regarding the governor’s promise of securing international employment for the youth of the state. He also stated that many Imo youth have secured international employment already.
“We come to the job now, the skill up Imo digital project is aimed at empowering Imo youth to acquire some digital skills so that they can be self-employed and get gainful employment in this digital age.
“Basically, I think people misunderstood the whole thing. The whole idea of this digital skill acquisition program is to enable the youth to have access to the global digital economy. With all these digital assets, they would be able to access jobs, not only in Nigeria but outside and the government entered into some arrangement with private companies so that they would be able to have access to work there in Canada and some European countries.
“So, it’s an ongoing process and I can assure you that some of them are being enlisted already and the process will continue, just like the digital training skills continues. So far, about 26 thousand youth have been trained and equipped with startup capital and other things. Many of them have already been gainfully employed. Some of them have secured employment outside the country.”
Emelumba further said about 83% of the 592-billion-naira budget presented by governor Uzodinma, will be used for ‘massive infrastructural expansion that would yield economic values to the state’
“The total budget is 592 billion and out of this, 491 or you could say almost 83% is mapped out for capital expenditure. So that would show you that the governor’s focus for the second tenure is massive infrastructural expansion and that is why he titled the budget, the renewed economic growth. In his first tenure, he was able to address several infrastructural deficits through massive construction of roads that have economic value to the state and the people of the state. He has been able to consolidate in this area, lay the foundation for economic group
“Concerning the IGR, I think that if you check the record from four years ago when we came in and what the situation is now, you would have noticed very marked improvement because when we came in, IGR was below half a billion monthly. Today, it is going over three billion and part of the budgetary provisions, a substantial part of it would be funded through the IGR.
“So, I think we are doing better in terms of IGR and this has been achieved through automation of the physical regime of the government which has blocked many loopholes in terms of leakages in revenue generation. This also has been followed up by the transparent management of the economy.”
On the issue of insecurity, the commissioner said the present administration has brought down the insecurity situation to the barest minimum. He added that the state will become safer with the measures put in place by the governor in the second tenure.
“The people that voted for Governor Hope Uzodimma appreciate the fact that insecurity in Imo state has come down significantly from what it was two or three years ago. There was a time Imo was unsafe and when we say that this insecurity was politically contrived, when you look at the fact that the thing escalated after the storming of Owerri correctional centre, over one thousand, six hundred inmates were released and they went all over the state. Then of course, insecurity escalated.
“Then you ask yourself who aided the illegal release of these inmates and when you look at it, you see some political fingers being pointed here and there because some people said they were going to make the state uncomfortable for the governor. But the important thing is that governor Hope Uzodimma rose to the occasion and within one or two years, brought down his insecurity issue to the barest minimum.
“I know certainly that in the governor’s second tenure, Imo will be safer to the shame of those who thought or imagine that Imo will be unsafe. So far, the evidence is that we are heading towards a very safe Imo state and those who have been parading insecurity as their main agenda will discover that that is far from the truth and Imo will continue to be safe and making progress every day.”
Chioma Kalu
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