Idorenyin Umo joins Akwa-Ibom gov’ship, plans to make state self-reliant

Former member of Akwa Ibom House of Assembly, Idorenyin Umo has vowed to transform and make the state self-reliant if elected the governor of the state.

Umo spoke on Tuesday at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) national secretariat in Abuja where he obtained the party’s nomination and expression of interest forms to contest for the state governorship.

He said his mission was to build a God inspired purposeful leadership that would make the state self reliance.

Umo who said he was in the race as alternative choice for the people, pledged to harness all the resources of the state to make life comfortable for the people.

He said that his priority would be education, agriculture and healthcare.

“ In doing this, we have carefully outlined some drivers to achieve our mission. One of which is to invest in education, knowing that is a bedrock of any economic development.

“Secondly, is to also make sure that we provide food for our people by invest in agriculture. When we have food available for our people there will no need for people to have issues of poverty.

“Number three, we have heard that an average lifespan of a Nigerian is 65 years. For me it is because of lack of medical care, So we will give medical care to our people at affordable rate.

“Every program under my government will give priority to our people. We will lead the people to serve them and not to rule them.

“We will be accountable them in whatever we do. We will actually lead them to where they have opportunities , care and protection. With this approach we would have been able to serve them well,” Umo said.

Asked of his view about the incumbent governor endorsing an aspirant, Umo said that as human being the governor has the right to endorse whoever he likes but power belong the people and God.

“The governor is a human being and political animal that must have interest on who succeed him.

“We have had in incidents where these happened and it never work.

“He is just an individual and he has made his choice. At the end of the day it is what God want and people accept that will stand.”

Umo however, said that his integrity and competence would speak for him when it was time for the people to decide on who they want.

On the performance of the incumbent, UMO said that he believed that Gov. Udom Emmanuel has done well in the areas of his mission, especially industries in the state.

He said that if given opportunity he would continue from where Udom would stop in the development of the state.