By Efa Sunday, Government House Correspondent
“There are two conditions for appointments, one is your polling unit result and another is land for farming. If you didn’t do well in your result, but you have land for farming, appointment will come.”
These were the words of Cross River State Governor, Ben Ayade recently, while addressing stakeholders on the occasion of Rice Wet Season Planting official flag off held in Calabar.
Speaking during the event, Govenor Ayade stated the commitment of his administration to reshape Cross River from being a “civil service and white collar workers” state to a “green worker” environment.
He further mentioned that, “our policy of food on the table will continue, except that it will come with small addition of food on the table, hands on the plough, so everybody must show me his or her piece of land.
“I am pleading to everyone of you that if you don’t own a farm, you are being a disservice to all the industries I have set up.”
Harping on the power of imaginative thinking, Mr. Ayade continued “…whatever you cannot picture, you cannot capture. I pictured a prosperous Cross River State, with a super highway starting from Bekwarra terminating in Bakassi deep seaport. I pictured each Local Government having an industry, I pictured the super highway evacuating industrial produce from each Local Government to Bakassi deep seaport to export. I will rather aim high and miss, than aim low and succed.”
While concluding, he advised all seeking appointment to own farmlands, even as he promised to collaterize for everyone using their appointment to secure loans from banks.