BY ARCHIBONG EYO, CALABAR – Cross River State Governor, Professor Ben Ayade has applauded President Muhammadu Buhari for his love and massive support for the State, describing it as unprecedented in the history of Cross River.
According to Governor Ayade; “Never in the history of Nigeria’s politics has Cross River State benefited this much from the gale of appointments that have come to us.”
The Governor, who made the assertion when the Head of Service of the Federation, Mrs Winifred Oyo-Ita led a team of Federal Permanent Secretaries to visit to the Government House, Calabar, said on the State’s illustrious list of appointees are: “Head of Civil Service of the Federation; Auditor General of the Federation; Federal Permanent Secretary (Information); and Chairman NDDC”, adding; “we also have Minister of Niger Delta; Chief of Naval Staff; and Chief Justice of Nigeria, the list is endless. We have never had it this good.”
He said interestingly, the appointments were made despite the fact that “this man (Buhari) is from the northern part of Nigeria. This is a President, who is an All Progressives Congress (APC) member while Cross River is a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) state; a President who by faith is Moslem and Cross River State is predominantly Christians; a man who did not look at all of these bias and made a choice of Cross River State as the first state to perform his first working visit. This is unprecedented.”
Governor Ayade said given all the “love, appointments and timely approvals, including the Bakassi Deep Seaport project by President Buhari, there is no other way to show appreciation than to thank him while praying that God grants him good health to continue the good work he has started.”
He however urged the federal permanent secretaries to work in tandem with President Buhari’s deep vision for the citizenry, adding; “Work with full loyalty and support for Mr President to continue the good job he is doing. You have an opportunity to reduce hunger; we cannot leave it for the President alone. The pressure he’s come under is occasioned by the poverty in the land.”
According to him, it is imperative for the Permanent Secretaries to evolve unorthodox methods within the confines of the law to provide direction and focus in creating a sense of unity and equality in the polity.
“I ask you all to ensure that the retreat goes beyond the boundaries of just an intercourse. Take it truly to heart and show kindness to your fellowmen. Your position is to serve humanity, not to serve self or state and so I entreat you to put God and the fear of God first in all your considerations”, Governor Ayade said.
In her remarks, Head of Service of the Federation, Mrs Oyo-Ita lauded the Governor for his visionary leadership and industrialization drive to re-position the State for sustainable socio-economic growth and development.
“We must place on record that Your Excellency’s vision and drive for the progress of Cross River State is already bearing fruits, not just through hearsay but what we have already witnessed in the last couple of days in Calabar, well-done my big brother”, she said
Mrs Oyo-Ita said the team was in the State for a procurement retreat jointly organized by the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) and the Office of Head of Civil Service of the Federation for the Federal Permanent Secretaries and selected top government officials.
Accompanied by 21 Permanent Secretaries; Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris; Auditor General of the Federation, Anthony Mkpe Ayine; as well as the Director General of BPP, the Head of Service said adherence to existing public procurement rules and guidelines remains important for effective service delivery in line with President Buhari’s change mantra.
She stated that “it is very important for Permanent Secretaries to have deeper understanding, knowledge and practice of the procurement process while ensuring they do not find themselves as guests at the public accounts committee of the National Assembly and maybe the EFCC.”
