“Innovation is the central issue in economic prosperity” – Michael Porter.
When a society is peaceful and stable, economic and political development are encouraged.
Today, I say to you that the challenges we face are real and serious and many too.They will not be met easily but know this my people of Owo, that they will be met.
As leaders we must communicate the reality about our economic environment but still maintain a vision of hope for our investors and ourselves.
I call on all of us to cooperate in order to promote peace. Economic peace is not an alternative to political peace but an imperative component in achieving it. Together we can develop projects that overcome drawbacks of our town such as:
- Collaboration and cooperation
- Holistic and Integrated Approach
-Expanded Approach (look beyond us)
-Education Health Services -Sports
-Agriculture - Transportation
- Tourism (do you know our Olowo’s palace is the largest in Africa?)
We believe that promoting our economy is only an accompanying aspect to a political process that will constitute the main path without which no actual change will occur in our relationship with others. Improving our economy cannot act as an alternative to a political arrangement and cannot exist in a political vacuum, despite being a vital key to testing the fruits of peace.
Ours being an agrarian community, we expect promotion in our crop yield, new skills in farming and deploying economic crops that connect us with other states and even outside Nigeria, thereby increasing revenue.
Economic prosperity can change the structure of political power in a society. A booming economy cannot be developed overnight but by changing ideas and philosophies. When these new concepts prove beneficial to the economy, the structure of political power will begin to shift.
China, for example, was never free of capitalism. Street markets were constant bastions of capitalism. Modern China has never embraced either economic or political system, rather she prefers to mix ideas and concepts to suit the Chinese.
We must evolve our own ideas that suit our own people. After all, “it didn’t matter the colour of the cat so long as it caught the mice”.
The political landscape is changing and our people expect more transparency from the government and continued economic growth. Things are happening in Nigeria and all over the world and we must not draw back.
Despite the stunning pace of technological progress and high economic growth rates in some parts of the world, we continue to live with growing inequalities and
unacceptable levels of poverty Over 1.5 billion people live under extreme poverty (less than $1 per day). According to UNICEF, every year, ten million children die before age 5 from preventable diseases and still a large number of them do not finish primary education (we reject this from now henceforth).
In many parts of the globe, inadequate social protection systems, persistent violence, institutional instability and environmental degradation create complex poverty traps that have condemned many to lives that are nasty, brutish and short.
How to transform this morally unacceptable situation through effective practice and policies at global, national, state and local government levels remains one of the greatest challenges of our time.
Our communities should be bound together by close relations especially in this generation as we take up the mantle of leadership. The choice is ours. Let us make the choice toward building a strong, prosperous and nationally (also internationally) respected community which will be a source of rightful pride for our children. I believe we can achieve this goal working together with our friends and partners within and outside this State.
Let me leave you with the words of Shakespeare, “we are living in a moment of tide, which taken at the floods leads on to future. Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and miseries” Together and united we can bring back Owo to political and economic prosperity. We can and can do it.
Thank you and God bless.
Long live Owo
Long live Ondo State
Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria
AKIN AWODEYI-AKINSEHINWA (APATA)
THE ACCIDENTAL POLITICIAN
