Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi, says the state had been a hotbed of political skirmishes because people in the state depended mainly on politics for livelihood as there were no other jobs.
He said the over-dependence on politics, resulted from the deficient background of the people.
Umahi spoke in Abakaliki on Wednesday at a ceremony in honour of the Nigerian Ambassador-Designate to Zambia, Chief Nwanne Ominyi.
“I have realised that the background was not right from the time our leaders sojourned from Anambra, Imo, Abia, Enugu before the state was created in 1996.This has made the battle of politics in the state fierce but we are doing everything within our powers to change the narrative. We can longer depend on the government and allocation from the Federation Account for survival”, the governor emphasized.
Umahi, said the appointment of Ominyi, who hails from Ebonyi State as an ambassador, was indicative of President Muhammed Buhari’s show of love for the state, noting that there was nothing that was requested by the state from Buhari that he had not granted.
“There is nothing we have asked the president that he has not done for us. I saw the fantastic work being done on the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway and declare that no one has ever done such for the south east zone. I promise to visit you within your first four months in Zambia and trust that you would deliver being a man of proven integrity”.
In another development, Umahi has announced that all the former local government council chairmen and secretaries of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that defected to the All Progressive Congress (APC) have been appointed Senior Technical Assistants to the Governor.
He has also sworn-in five special assistants and assigned portfolios.
