By joshua ROADS, JOBS AND PROSPERITY: THE DEVELOPMENT ESANLAND NEEDS
By Saintmoses Eromosele (SME)
Dr. Reuben Abati was right. Governor Monday Okpebholo’s Ramat Park Flyover is a major achievement.
Anyone familiar with Benin City knows the traffic challenge around Ramat Park. The flyover will improve movement, beautify the city, and deserves commendation. Good work should be acknowledged, no matter who does it.
But leadership must always ask a bigger question: What kind of economy are we building?
I welcome the proposed Nursing School, Teaching Hospital, Amusement Park, Event Centre, roads and other projects coming to Esanland, particularly those cited in Udomi, Uwessan. They are important and deserve support.
However, there is a simple truth: our people cannot eat concrete. Concrete opens roads, but jobs put food on the table.
A school produces graduates. A hospital saves lives. But factories, markets, farms, industries and enterprises create wealth.
The wealth of Esanland is already in our soil. Cassava, yam, rice, maize, palm produce, fruits and vegetables leave our communities every day. The challenge is processing, packaging, storage, security, good schools and access to markets.
That is why the next phase of development must focus on jobs, enterprise, industry, education and community safety.
Imagine a modern Spare Parts Market on the Ewu–Eidenu border serving Esanland, Edo North, Kogi State and parts of Delta State. With agro-processing industries, better roads, ICT and vocational training, it can create jobs, attract investment and stimulate commerce across our region.
Imagine Oto-Uruwa and Uwessan with increased economic activity, banks, businesses and jobs for their teeming youths and traders. Imagine every market in Esan Central with toilets and water to improve sanitation, dignity and hygiene for traders and consumers. At present, our markets lack these basic facilities.
Imagine Opoji, a major agribusiness community, with proper road access, a functional police station, storage facilities and processing factories. Imagine Ugbegun, also rich in agricultural potential, with a restored, properly built and functional police station, agro-processing factories, warehouses and markets.
The absence of police presence heightens insecurity and gives criminals room to operate around farms, forests and rural routes. But when security improves and economic activity grows, communities become safer, businesses become stronger and young people find work close to home.
We must also address the shortage of government-paid teachers across Esan Central. In many communities, PTAs are often forced to carry the burden of paying teachers because schools do not have enough teaching staff. This problem is particularly felt in Ugbegun, Ewu, Ibore and Opoji. Government must provide teachers, support schools and restore confidence in public education.
Imagine an Esan Unity City in Ugbegun, the geographic centre of Esanland, jointly supported by the five Esan local governments and the state government. Such a city can drive real estate, commerce, tourism, hospitality, recreation and modern living, making Esanland attractive for professionals, investors and families.
I am not proposing this for election purposes. I shared this vision with Engr. Clifford Ordia when he was contesting for Senate, and with Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu when he contested for Governor in 2016. If elected in 2027, I will push for it because I believe in it and understand how it can work.
I want an Esan Central where farmers can reach markets easily, where produce is processed locally, where schools have teachers, where communities have security, and where Irrua, Ewu, Opoji and Ugbegun become centres of commerce, ICT, vocational training, agribusiness and equal opportunity.
One bold idea worthy of consideration is an Edo Central/Edo North logistics and cargo airport corridor along the Ewu–Agbede axis, which I have already shared with Governor Monday Okpebholo. When elected, I will sponsor a motion or bill for a feasibility study and regional economic plan for an Edo Central/Edo North logistics and cargo airport corridor.
Airports attract businesses, industries, investors and jobs. With a location acceptable to both Edo North and Edo Central, such a project can transform the economic landscape of Edo State.
The lesson of the Ramat Park Flyover is not merely that government can build. It is that government can think boldly. That same bold thinking should be extended to Esanland, Afemai land and every part of Edo State.
Representation is not merely about occupying a seat. It is about bringing ideas to the table, working with government and securing a better deal for our people.
The flyover is a good project. Now let us build an economy around it.
Because roads move vehicles. Jobs move families. Industries move communities. Prosperity moves societies.
Our people need more than roads to travel on. They need opportunities to travel towards.
And my aspiration to represent Esan Central Constituency in the Edo State House of Assembly in 2027 is built on that premise.
Saintmoses Eromosele (SME)
NDC Candidate, Esan Central Constituency
Edo State House of Assembly Election, 2027
ONEGHELE, OSELE!
0807 943 6049