By Ugani Elijah
An aspirant for the position of the member representing Obudu constituency in the Cross River State House of Assembly, Comrade Cosmas Okiri has promised to use his allowances and constituency votes for youth empowerment if voted into office in 2019.
Okiri stated this during an interview with CrossRiverWatch where he averred that he intends to do things differently.
“Empowerment of our youth is paramount to me,” said Okiri who is currently the branch Chairman of Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria PENGASSAN at Hobark International.
He continued: “This is very key to solving violent crimes and upsurge of social vices, when the youths are actively engaged, they don’t have time to engage in vices. I will make available my allowance and constituency vote to continuously empower the youths in skill acquisition and entrepreneur training (because) when you empower a youth, you build the nation for an empowered man is a developed man.”
Okiri said that he intends to run a participatory democracy if elected to bridge the gap between the electorates and the elected by providing a stable channel of communication and information via regular town hall meetings and maintain a functional and up-to-date website on the activities in the House of Assembly.
On the area of education and agriculture, he averred that: “I will provide special funding to assist our young ones in higher institutions as well as those in secondary and primary schools while ensuring conducive learning environments, equipping class rooms with desks and learning kits to avert pupils sitting on bare floors in some primary schools.
“I will encourage farmers to form cooperatives which will be platforms to provide them with soft loans and financial assistance. I will encourage the youths and young graduates to see farming as a lucrative business while assisting them in setting up fish and livestock farms for commercial purposes.”
On health and lack of water during the dray season, he pledged to consolidate on the giant strides of the state government through the revitalization of the primary health centers.
“I will revitalize all existing boreholes in rural areas and provide harvesters and sources of water storage for domestic use as the amount of rain water that can be collected during rainfall will serve its purpose,” Okiri said.
He promised wide consultation with his constituents during policy formulation and to use the knowledge acquired in administration to sponsor motions that will be geared towards human development and capacity building for the people of Obudu in particular and Cross River State in general.
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