Former Governor of Delta State, Chief James Ibori has stated that the different shades of challenges facing modern towns and cities in Nigeria are some of the inevitable prices which such areas must pay as a consequence of their urbanization and exponential development.
Ibori explained that as a village develops and transforms into metropolis, there comes an unavoidable influx of guests, behavioural dynamism and security challenges, noting that one cannot eat one’s cake and have it.
The former Governor stated this on Friday, October 14, in a goodwill message read by the Chairman of Delta State Independent Electoral Commission (DSIEC), Hon. Moses Ogbe during the premiere summit of Oghara town held in Asaba, the state capital.
The theme of the event was “Oghara in Contemporary Nigeria: Prospects and Challenges” and it was organizes for eminent sons and daughters of the town to discuss, brainstorm and device lasting panacea to the festering challenges in the community.
He said: “As any place develops and transformation takes place, it changes from being a settlement or village to a town.
"As we all know, the characteristics of a metropolis is different from that of a village; there will be influx of guests, growth of new businesses, plurality of behavioural patterns and the vexed issue of land acquisition, land ownership and security.
“It is happening now in Oghara because you cannot eat you cake and have it. Development never comes without a price; but also, it is not untamable monster.
"The good thing is that we can be agents of this welcome change taking place in Oghara. We can make this change work for us and still remain members of the cheerful and welcoming host community that Oghara is famous for.
“To maximize the profit from the changes, we must remain part of the driving engine of that change and development taking place in Oghara. We must invest in the town. We must set up our own shops, hostels and industries. On this, we must march in step with the guests among us so that we will not be left behind in matters of investment and ownership”.
Ibori, who observed that an egg cannot go on forever being good but must either hatch or go bad, called on his kinsmen to eschew complacency and turn the town into a giant industrial and commercial hub by exploring its huge natural endowment, particularly the river Ethiope which courses through the town.
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