Bayelsa State governor, Chief Seriake Dickson, recently spoke with select journalists on the broad outline of his administration's programmes. Abuja Burea Chief,Okey Muogbo, who was there, brings excerpts.How was the journey to the Government House in Yenagoa' For some of you who were with us when we started our Restoration Agenda, I know that many people were skeptical; is this real' Will this workout' You know we went through very challenging time. We were confronting the sitting governor and we were operating from outside here trying to tell the real Bayelsa story, most importantly our own message; message of change and restoration. Happily, I will give God the glory and the people of Bayelsa. Election has come and gone. If you look at it, yes I emerged the winner but here is a breath of fresh air and we now have a wonderful opportunity to build a new Bayelsa from the ashes and ruins of the immediate past system.Can you give the details of the programmes your administration would be pursuing in the next four years' The detailed activities we intend to unfold are not what we need to go into now. I just want to interact with you people and than you for the friendship and solicit for your continuous friendship, cooperation and understanding. On the basis of the preliminary interaction I've had with the permanent secretaries and others, I have confirmed my suspicion of the dept of rot in the state. So, the work there is going to be tough; it is going to be challenging; it is going to be demanding. That's why we have painstakingly selected the team that not only has the confidence, and dedication, but also, above all, understands the need to take Bayelsa to the next level and also a crack team that has the right sense of service. This is because politics must be based on service, not the other way round. I just appointed the Secretary to State Governor (SSG) and he is a man that I've not known before, that I have not met before, I appointed him based on his track record of performance and signs of dedication and capacity to apply these fully to the challenges that are ahead of us.As you are all with us, this is the second time we are meeting. I have actually been going for all good characters that I need in the task of reclaiming Bayelsa.The state has no reason to record the least performance in all national examinations because we have no reason to be classified as an educationally-disadvantaged or backward state. Educational infrastructural are all dilapidated or are non-existent.You will recall I declared a state of emergency in the educational sector during my inaugural acceptance speech because I think that the greatest challenge a society faces is the challenge of knowledge which is the most important resource. A number of people have asked me how I am going to give free education in Bayelsa and I have told them that is a question of cutting cost, a question of blocking all leakages and wastages; a question of adopting lifestyle, and prioritisation and we have made education the topmost priority. We will also invest massively in health services because that is is very important to the majority of our people. Some work has been done in terms of the foundation for tertiary health delivery in terms of the hospitals and others. Our goal is to be sure that Bayelsa becomes the place people go to in Nigeria for medical treatment and we will achieve tnat in no distant time.Well, you must be familiar with my statement at every opportunity that our government allows no room for criminality and violence. We are committed to ensuring that we create an enabling peaceful environment for businesses to thrive; for tourism to flourish, for investors to come down and do business. We also have a very revolutionary program of infrastructural development. There are major roads that are abandoned, started earlier when President Goodluck Jonathan was the state governor. I was the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice of that government. So, I have knowledge of some of the programmmes of that government; roads abandoned, contracts awarded, etc. We also have focus on the economy. It is now important because we need to create jobs. The government alone cannot create jobs that will keep people employed. So, we will partner with the private sector in way of construction and; an appropriate framework will be developed for engaging the private sector to engage youth.There have been reports that you have fallen out wit President Jonathan because of differences on the constitution of your cabinet. How do you respond to this' I want to assure you that certainly there is no misunderstanding with the president. The president is not involved in the appointments being made by me. The president is my leader, my boss, my elder brother and I am one of his loyalists; one of his foot soldiers and that is the way it should be. I don't have any regret for that. The president has no time to meddle in the running of the state, but don't forget that the president is a stakeholder and I am his field commander. But there is no quarrel between us over appointments into the state cabinet. Maybe people just want to look for trouble where there is none. He doesn't intervene in all those type of thing, though I intend to run to him from time to time for advice, for counsel, for guidance, for directions but the ultimate responsibility for political decision of government in Bayelsa I take and I will take the credit as well the criticism.Given the huge debt allegedly left behind by your predecessor, Chief Timipre Sylva, are you considering probing his administration' I am interested in knowing what have gone wrong to enable me understand the past and to enable me develop a baseline from where I am taking off. For you to take off effectively, you must know where you are coming from, just like a starting of a journey of building a house, you must have a foundation. So, it is not a probe; this is not the time to talk about probe but this is now time for me to understand what went wrong, why senatorial roads awarded and what what happen to them' Why are not completed' Wwhat happened to the abandoned hotel project' You know, these are basic enquiry. For me that is the focus and in the next couple of days, we are going to see government actions in these areas. But it is to understand what has happened, not so much with the view to criminalise anybody.What we will do with the fact at the end of the day is another matter but my focus and I think the focus of any reasonable person in government in my position will be to understand what went wrong then.What will be the guiding philosophy of your administration as far as fiscal matters are concerned' Now Bayelsa will, under my government, cut down on recurrent expenditure beginning with my own office. The money for the maintenance of the Government House will be reduced. I will also reduce the expenses on other government agencies. Both myself and my deputy are frugal with money and we intend to bring this prudence into the running of our government. The savings would be ploughed into essential areas and sectors.How do you feel disengaging from the House of Representatives' Today, I will enter there for the last time as a member. I am going to resign from there today. Well, it is very emotional. The good thing about the Parliament is that when you have left your colleagues, they continue to identify with you. I will remain a parliamentarian and I have a word of advice for them. They should realise that it is a training ground for leaders. Today, I am governor, any of them can be anything tomorrow. I want them to continue to work for the unity of the country. They must continue to be guided by national interests in all their action.
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