By Darlington Ray Okpebholo
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, candidate for the 2024 gubernatorial election slated for September 21, Dr Asue Ighodalo, has been touring parts of Europe for strategic engagement with Edo State citizens. His first stop was in Italy, where he discussed about his vision for a greater Edo State. Yesterday, he was in Manchester City, an engagement that turned into a carnival of sort. Some of those who attended the meeting suffused with convivial atmosphere tagged it ‘Competence over Mediocrity’.
Ighodalo is very much conscious of the remarkable contributions and connection between Edo State citizens in Diaspora and the state, and on that basis, he is determined to make them critical stakeholders in his government when elected. From his engagements so far, he has acknowledged the role of the people in the Diaspora in the development of the state. These individuals play pivotal roles in various sectors; from agriculture, commerce and trade, cultural exchange and preservation, tourism to direct remittance to families residing in the state. This acknowledgement has dissmissed the desultory notion of ‘homeboy’ versus ‘strangers’, which some of the oppoisition members in the state are using to gain cheap political mileage. Rather than this vanquished sloganeering, Ighodalo has harped on competence, capacity, hard work, vision, creativity…which members of Edo State in the Diaspora exemplify.
The most significant reason for Ighodalo’s engagement with the Diaspora is to encourage them to continue to believe in Edo State through investments. He said he is very much aware of the fact that many of the diasporans want to invest in Edo State but want to be assured that the enabling environment is there and the ease of doing business is without much of unnecessary stress.
The administration of Godwin Obaseki through several reforms have made significant leaps in removing blockages in land acquisition and development in the state, and Ighodalo would leverage on it. As part of his manifesto, Ighodalo plans to create more enabling environment to particularly spur diaspora investment in the state. This would be achieved through meaningful engagements and collaborations.
Another major reason for this diaspora engagement is Ighodalo’s firm believe in and commitment to inclusivity. There is no way Edo State can be developed without leveraging on the strength of those in Diaspora as well as the citizens at home. There must be collaborations, and this can only be fostered through purposeful engagements. Ighodalo, in his wisdom, wishes to harness the enterprice, resources and networks of the people in the Diaspora for growth and development of the state. This he hopes to achieve through deliberate synergy between the citizens at home and those in the Diaspora.
So far, the engagements have been bearing meaningful fruits as those citizens that have been met in Italy and in the United Kingdom, Manchester, have shown keen interest in alligning with the vision and aspiration of the PDP candidate, Dr Asue Ighodalo. Several of them have volunteered meaningful contributions of varied versions towards the campaigns.
Deacon Darlington Ray Okpebholo is the Director of the Directorate of Diaspora Media in the Asue/Ogie Campaign Council. He is also the Vice Chairman and lead Spokesman of the Team Asue Media Organization, TAMO.
