Ayade’s Re-Election Bid Gets More Support

The Chief Executive Officer, Rain Forest Research and Development Centre, Odey Oyama, has pushed for the re-election of Cross River State governor, Senator Ben Ayade, citing his industrialisation drive as one of the feats that must earn him a second term.
The renowned environmentalist and social critic also reappraised his earlier contrary stance on the construction of the superhighway and the deep seaport, insisting now that they are necessary for the economy of the state. 
Oyama who made his position known to newsmen after an on-the-spot visit to the Ayade industrial park maintained that his earlier position against the projects, especially the superhighway was from a misinformed narrative. 
“The superhighway and deep seaport are all interwoven because if you remove them, these things may not work fine. If we are going to do export, it will not work if we exclude these two projects. If you want to hit the market in the north without a good road network, these projects will not work, so, we need to work them out,” the environmentalist enthused. 
While voicing his support for Governor Ayade, Oyama said: “The present administration led by Prof Ben Ayade has surpassed others since 1999. 
“We all need to be involved in encouraging the governor to make all these projects work. What is lacking is information as people don’t have the correct information, this is what we need to work on.” 
Continuing, the environmentalist who hitherto had a contrary position with regard to the superhighway, pointed out that “we need to connect with the people to understand what is going on here because when they don’t understand, they pass on wrong information.” 
Recalling the negative perspective about Ayade’s industrialisation efforts, Oyama said: “I was told that machines were just kept here in the factory (rice seedlings factory ) for the president to come and see and after which they took them back to their owners.”

Friday Nwagbara, Calabar