Governor of Akwa Ibom State Umo Eno has said his administration would pay greater attention to revamping the private sector, assuring that approval to float a Business School to train and develop budding entrepreneurs was in the offing.
According to him, this would engender in the business community in the state the necessary leverage to develop their Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (SMEs) in line with the “Arise Agenda” and vision of his administration.
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Eno, who dropped this hint in Eket local government area, said he was determined to cut down unemployment and discourage laziness amongst the people.
He said, “There is no way we can appoint everybody to work in government. It is not possible. But there is a way we can help you go into trade and eke a living with what you are doing.
Government is going to specifically budget money to help strengthen small businesses and I can tell you that on good authority.
“The only way you can benefit is to have something doing. I would not lie to you, if a man keeps sending you money everyday and you keep looking up to that man, the day he will stop giving you, you will get angry with him. But if the man helps you to stand on your own, you will have your own mind and appreciate him. This is how men are raised.
“I beg of you, for those who have nothing doing, we are going to open a business school and even before we open one, try and ask yourself, what will I really do for a living because I assure you, help will soon be available.
“A man can only produce his kind. I am an entrepreneur and I am determine to support small businesses. That is why when you see me stand by roadsides and encourage those traders, we are not doing show.
“When I see roadside traders, I remember I use to be like them. Grace only brought me out. Whenever God takes one out from an orphanage, the person should remember that there are other people in the orphanage, so he should not fail to return to the orphanage because God must have sent him help because of his being there in that orphanage.
“When you see me do that, it is not a show. I want to support them because some of those women you see on the road side, that is all they have. They train their children from there, pick their children’s bills and pay their rents from there. Anytime you support them, you are supporting the entire family.”