Oba Ewuare tasks govt on rural industrialisation

To curb unemployment and address the worsening problem of rural-urban migration and human trafficking, the Benin monarch, His Royal Majesty, Omo N’Oba Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Ewuare II, has stressed the need for the Federal Government to establish industries in the rural areas. The royal father, who gave the call Thursday at the State House, Abuja, during his visit to President Mohammadu Buhari, also commended the President for his handling of security matters in the country. On his part, President Buhari commended the stabilising roles that the Eweka Dynasty of Benin Kingdom had been playing in the affairs of the country. Receiving the Oba, Buhari said that Nigerians have reasons to be proud of the stabilising roles that Beni chiefs had played right from the colonial era, not only in the Delta region but the entire country as well. He particularly commended the immediate past monarch, Oba Erediauwa I, whom he described as his “back bone of support” when he was Federal Commissioner of Petroleum Resources and the late royal father a Federal Permanent Secretary, according to a statement by Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media and Publicity), Garba Shehu. “I cannot hold back my emotions talking about my relationship with your predecessor. After Gen. Murtala Mohammed was assassinated, I was moved from the North-East as governor to the Ministry of Petroleum,” Buhari recalled. “Your father was then Permanent Secretary. My relationship with him was very strong. I have lost count of the number of visits to his palace as Oba.” He commended his “firmness” in stabilising that part of the country, just as he commended the former governor, Adams Oshiomhole, for stabilising Edo State. Meanwhile, welcoming Oba Ewuare’s delegation, comprising chiefs from other parts of Edo State, including the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), John Odigie-Oyegun, Buhari commended the Oba for following the footsteps of his predecessors while reiterating his support for the traditional institution. “I know and respect the traditional institution. I try as much as possible to understand why the authors of our constitution kept silent about their role,” he said, noting, however, that this was probably the best way to preserve their neutrality.