The immediate past governor of Delta State, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, has condemned previous administrations in the country for the policy of subsidising fuel with borrowed funds.
Okowa stated this at a youth forum in Asaba on Friday after being honoured with an award, the Living Legend, maintaining that the benefits of subsidy removal have started to reflect on the huge allocations to federal, state and local governments.
The award was given to him by the Delta Chapter of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYC).
He said the subsidy regime was unacceptable and retrogressive, adding that the bold step taken by the administration of President Bola Tinubu to change the narrative for the survival and economic transformation of the country should be commended.
He praised the ongoing economic reforms of the president saying it is best for the nation.
The former governor however urged the local government councils to make judicious use of the huge statutory allocations to them by building public infrastructure, empowering farmers and traders with grants.
“Salaries are being paid constantly now; allocations to the states and local government councils have increased remarkably.
“During my tenure as governor, we had to support local government councils to pay salaries. But today, local government councils are in better positions to pay salaries and execute projects. But that does not mean that everything is okay yet. There is still a lot of work to be done,” he stated.
He advised youths to engage in productive ventures to secure their future instead of allowing themselves to be used as political thugs.
“Building the youths is not just the job of the government of the federation or that of the state or the government at the local government level.
“The youths themselves have to be prepared to be built; they have to be prepared to use the energy in them and their God-given talents to work along with government in order to bring a total turnaround of our nation,” Okowa stated.
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