By Archibong Jeremiah
The Special Adviser to the Cross River State Governor Senator Ben Ayade on Job Placement, Mr. Jessi Esu Ejemot has berated the Commissioner for Youth and Sports, Mr. Asu Okang over the proposed Job Center project.
The Special Adviser barred his mind in an exclusive interview with CrossRiverWatch TV saying, “The job center stuff, the Commissioner for Youths is over desperate, I use that word over desperate and it is not good to be over desperate”.
As to how the idea of the proposed Job Center was conceived he revealed that, “The previous administration had desk officers in every local government and when I came I looked at it I said this will cost too much, and I wrote a memo and sent to the Governor and he bought into it. I suggested we should do Job Center in the three senatorial districts and the Governor said yeah, it’s a nice one go ahead, get office space for the North, Central and South.
“Earlier on the Speaker of the House of Assembly, John Gaul called me and we spoke last year March and he told me I think this will be the best bet. In one of those my visits I had some challenges in Abuja I now called him, he talked to me saying just manage this thing, do this do that, that they are trying to make that office employment bureau and I said it’s a good idea that I’ve already sent that memo to the Governor and he said ok, that was last year March. Me and the Speaker of the House of Assembly discussed this.
“The idea of this … like I told you earlier the Speaker and I spoke … even when you call the Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker, Azogor he will tell you. The Commissioner doesn’t know anything that is happening. He only came to the picture, well he’s my friend we sit together, sleep together, do everything together. I discussed my activities with him and he went behind me you understand, he came into the picture when the Governor, after I had secured places in Ikom and Ogoja said that we should start from South, he directed that we should use Thumps Up Ayade office as Job Center for South, I now said no problem let us reach out to the Commissioner which we did and the man is finding it very difficult to leave the office. The best bet for him, he thinks he’s smart he had to go behind whichever way, you get my point, today he is claiming that it is his idea, how? The person I can boldly say gave me the idea is Stanley Nsemo”.
Concluding, he disclosed that, “So far we have achieved a lot, unemployment is a global thing, the governor has tried a lot in some areas of employment like in Ajaokuta steel, I was able to secure some slots for Cross Riverians, six slots. They were looking for geologists, my contact there gave me information, I rushed down there, used four days in Ajaokuta steel and it was a positive outing you know.
“They will call them next week to start because I leant they have called them for interview earlier on. We have secured over one hundred and something jobs; if you add Federal Inland Revenue that is still pending we should have over two hundred and something jobs”. He said.