Buhari approves new agency for South-east, minister says

The Minister of Science and Technology, Ogbonnaya Onu, said President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the establishment of an agency on robotics and artificial intelligence(AI) for the South East.

Mr Onu revealed this at a grand rally of the All Progressives Congress in Abakaliki, capital of Ebonyi State. The rally which received defectors from the Peoples Democratic Party, was attended by the national chairman of the party, Adams Oshiomhole.

Some of the defectors who were received include Sonni Ogboji, former Minister of Power and Steel; Goddy Ogbaga, former Secretary to the State Government, Bernard Odoh; and former Speaker of Ebonyi State House of Assembly, Augustine Nwankwegu.

Mr Onu told the rally that in 2015 he pleaded with South-east not to put its eggs in one basket but his pleadings fell on deaf ears.

“In 2015 I pleaded with the zone not to put our eggs in one basket. Today I want them to compare the 16 years of PDP and relate it with just 3 years of APC.

“The three years of APC is greater than the 16 years of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP); the second Niger Bridge is nearing completion, the Enugu – Port-Harcourt and Enugu – Onitsha highways are in various levels of completion,” he said.

“The time has come for the South East to be in the mainstream of Nigerian politics by voting for President Buhari and APC in 2019.”

APC chairman Adams Oshiomhole said that the current security challenge in the country was devoid of religious or ethnic colouration.

Mr Oshiomhole therefore urged Nigerians not to allow themselves to be deceived by the antics of selfish politicians in the country who are trying to give the security challenges in the country an ethnic colouration to score cheap political points.

According to Mr Oshiomhole, there is a plot to paint the government of President Muhammadu Buhari in bad light by portraying all the killings in some states in the country as the handiwork of herdsmen.

“Let me urge you to be more careful because in this season people are spreading untruth. People are being hired to turn the gospel upside down. They want us to believe that every problem should be explained in ethnic and religious terms.

“We have a problem and we must confront those problems. Criminals must be dealt with individually as criminals. Government at all levels must work hard to protect every Nigerian regardless of tribe or religion, ” he said.

He said Mr Buhari and the security agencies are working hard to put an end to the security challenges facing the country.

Mr Oshiomhole urged the people of the South-east to vote for APC and President Buhari in the 2019 general election as he has delivered democracy dividends to the zone.

” If Buhari has remembered the South-east which did not give him more than 10 per cent in 2015, imagine what he will do if you give him 85 per cent in 2019″.

Former Governor of Abịa State, Orji Kalu said the new River Niger bridge, which the PDP could not construct in 16 years, has now reached 53 per cent completion.

According to him, the South-east will give the President and APC majority of its votes in 2019 in appreciation for all the projects and democracy dividends he has given the zone.

The rally earlier scheduled to hold at the Pa Oruta Ngele Stadium Abakaliki was later moved to a a playground near the Enugu-Abakaliki Expressway following the refusal of the state government to grant the APC permission to use the stadium.

(NAN)