Former Delta State Governor, Ifeanyi Okowa, has defended President Bola Tinubu’s decision to remove petrol subsidy.
He argued that subsidy removal was not peculiar to Tinubu, insisting that other candidates, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Labour Party’s Peter Obi also recognised the need to end policy.
NEWSNGR reports that the former governor spoke yesterday in Asaba when members of the Asaba Branch of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE) paid him a solidarity visit ahead of the 2027 general elections.
“Any of the presidential candidates would have removed the subsidy, as they had all made that commitment in their manifestos. Tinubu only had the opportunity to implement it because he emerged as President,” he said
Okowa, who was Atiku’s running mate on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) platform in the 2023 presidential election, is seeking a return to the Senate to represent Delta North Senatorial District.
The NSE delegation, led by its branch chairman, Chukwuka Ojei, pledged support for his bid for the Senate. The delegation cited the infrastructural projects his administration executed during his eight-year tenure as governor.
The engineers, who included several professional members of the society, said Okowa’s record in office deserved recognition and promised to mobilise support for him across Delta North ahead of the 2027 elections.
In his response, Okowa described engineers as dependable partners in development, recalling the cordial relationship he maintained with the profession during his tenure as governor.
He particularly acknowledged their contributions to efforts to address flooding challenges in Asaba, stressing the importance of engineering expertise in tackling infrastructure and environmental problems.
