The governorship candidate for the Social Democratic Party, SDP, Olorogun Kenneth Gbagi, has urged journalists to be more proactive and objective while performing their tasks saying they are not doing what is highly required of them.
He said the current situation of things happening in Delta state is a result of journalists who are not being bold in their reporting.
The formal minister of Education made this known while briefing journalists in Asaba on Wednesday under a program titled ‘The Platform’ organized by the Delta State council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, as a means to interact with candidates of the various political parties, to help the electorate to make reasonable choices in the election.
Olorogun Gbagi said if journalists thoroughly carry out their responsibility as a watchdog, the level of corruption and corrupt leaders in the society will reduce and leaders will be held accountable for any misappropriation of public funds adding that all the revenue generated from the oil in Delta state cannot be accounted for hence Delta has lost its glory despite the huge resources the state received from the federation.
According to him “Stealing has engraved in our souls in Delta State. It is a state where thieves become the leaders. Anybody who cannot declare his or her source of wealth is a thief.”
While faulting the level of corruption in the state, the SDP governorship candidate said there are no industries established by the state government to employ the indigenes of the state despite the huge allocation from the federal government and the internally generated revenue.
He explained that Shell has left Delta State for another state and they are paying their revenue to another state while still drilling the oil from the soil of Delta.
He clarified that if elected as the governor of the state, he will industrialize the state to enable it to retain its lost glory while advising that the state is only wasting its resources if it does not go back to industrialization.
While responding to questions from journalists concerning the issue of pension, he said he will endeavor to give every pensioner his or her cheque the day they retire and also promised to pay every youth a stipend of N30,000 when he becomes the governor.
In response, Comrade Michael Ikeogwu, the Chairman, of Delta State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) said “the Platform” was organized to give the same opportunity to candidates of all political parties to tell the electorate why they should be voted for in the elections.
He also thanked Gbagi for honoring the NUJ’s invitation.
