Charles Offoboche
Ogoja/Yala by-election: ‘I joined race to better the lot of my people,’ says Offoboche
[From ANIEKAN ANIEKAN, Calabar]
Ahead of the Ogoja/Yala By-Election to be conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Cross River State, Charles Offoboche, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) aspirant for the forthcoming poll says he joined the race to better the lot of his people.
He made this known in Calabar after a successful screening exercise conducted for aspirants by the PDP.
Offoboche said he had no intention of joining the race but was compelled by his people to join the race.
In his words, “There wasn’t any intention initially to run the race but the cry and yearnings of my people, considering my pedigree, human capital activities which I have on ground over the years made my people compel me to join the race.
“In a nutshell, why I am in the race is to better the lives of my people and I think I am the right person to give that answer to their cry”, he said.
Speaking on his plans for the Ogoja/Yala people, he said access roads, education and skills empowerment are the greatest needs of the area.
He promised to do everything possible to attract the development in these sectors to the Ogoja/Yala people.
“The first thing my people are lacking is access roads. When you live in a rural community access road is very paramount because we are dominantly farmers.
“When you harvest your products you need to bring them out to the people because that is the only way you can make money as a farmer.
“When there are no access roads for them to bring those products out to the people it becomes a challenge.
“We are also going to look at education and provide educational facilities to people in the interior villages.
“We will also look at skills empowerment. It’s not everybody that must go to school, until the society understands this we will not be able to forge ahead.
“At the end of the day it is either you go to school or you forge ahead”, he said.
The Ogoja Yala Federal Constituency seat became vacant following the election of Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe as senator representing Cross River North.
About four candidates have this far been cleared by the PDP to contest in the primaries.
