Newly inaugurated governor of Cross River State, Bassey Edet Otu has pledged to use the experience he garnered over the years to turnaround the fortunes of the state.
Otu who took the oath of office at exactly 12:50 pm asked any of the residents with criminal tendencies to relocate to other states or be prepared to face the wrath of his administration.
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In his speech after taking the oath of office administered by the chief judge, Justice Akon Ikpeme, at the U.J. Esuene Sports Stadium in Calabar, he threatened that his administration would not hesitate to deal decisively with perpetrators of criminality.
He said one of the policy thrusts of his administration is zero-tolerance for criminality.
“Only two options are on the table, turn a new leaf or vacate Cross River State. We will curb gender-based violence to make Cross River better.
“We shall trim over grown trees, focus on refuse evacuation. We will boost morale of civil servants, formulate friendly tax policies, introduce efficient legal framework and due process would be followed.
“We are ready to partner with the labour unions. I shall treat all equal. I joined politics for service,” he said.
“We hope to engage with the labour unions, dispassionately on the feasible and sustainable path for dealing with our depleting civil service, ” Otu said.
In his remarks, the outgone governor of the state, Prof Ben Ayade, urged the residents to support Otu to do well office.
Ayade said the state was a weeping child in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), stressing that all that is needed by Otu to move Cross River forward was the support of the people.
He said the emergence of Otu as governor where other contenders suffered defeat at the polls had shown that money and power can collapse.
Earlier, the chairman of the inauguration committee and former Senate leader Victor Ndoma-Egba wished Ayade and his deputy, Prof Ivara Esu well in their future endeavours.
In an exhortation, the general overseer of Christian Central Chapel Int’l (CCCI) a.ka. Faith Mansion World Centre, Calabar, Bishop Gospel Emmah Isong, drew biblical inference from Exodus 15:23-25 and spoke on “how to make your bitter water sweet.”
He called for attitudinal change, especially “in the way and manner in which we see our leaders.”