Dr. Angya speaks of his huge vision for Benue State
By Samuel Torlumun
He walked briskly into the venue of the event at New Karu, in Nasarawa State, wearing his trademark smile, breezing through handshakes and pleasantries. Dr Paul Tarvershima Angya, a former acting Director-General, Standard Organization of Nigeria (SON), lawyer, gifted advocate, university don and former gubernatorial candidate in the 2019 governorship election in Benue State, was in New Karu, Wednesday evening to keep to an interactive session with Abuja journalists of Benue extraction on his dreams and vision of making Benue great.
With journalists at the media interaction
Fluently, the man with a vision encapsulated ‘the New Deal’ spoke to the admiration of journalists. His presentation dexterity, intellectual depth, growing competence, analytical skills and engaging ability is, perhaps, an indication that Angya has the competence to salvage Benue State, the food Basket of Nigeria. It also gives an impression that Angya is one aspirant for the seat of Executive Governor of the state that burns the midnight candle, studying models of development to make his state great.
The former acting DG, believes that governance is unattractive if it does not offer quality service based on specific standards. He said, having worked at SON for 20 years reaching the highest pinnacle, he has got the privilege of experiencing developmental efforts across the world, which will endear quality leadership of the state.
Dr. Angya, a responsible family man
What this means as he explains is that, ‘everything yields to specification for standard. And standards are meant to connect the world.” In other words, there are equally standards in governance that countries adopt as best practices.
Accordingly, he noted that Benue State, though blessed with abundant agricultural products, is still at the rudimentary level of development because the state has natural resources but does not have infrastructure to translate the material resources to wealth. He argued that for any successful government to translate this raw materials to material wealth, it has to add value, it has to process and provide basic infrastructure for industrial take off. For instance, Benue State produces yams, oranges, mangoes tomatoes, soybeans etc in commercial quantities, but it’s wasting away because, farmers can’t store it; they can’t process it; they can’t package it, because there are no industries and there are no industries because there are no infrastructures.
Dr Angya believes that if competent efforts are applied, no matter the scarcity of resources, there would be an effort to make, that one can see a foundation for development been laid.
He called on journalists to pass his vision across to the people. Adding that, as the strongest tool for information dissemination in the society today, working together with Abuja Journalists of Benue extraction will help grow the state in particular and humanity at large.
“I have chosen to meet with you because I am only an individual, not a very influential one, but with a big dream and a big ambition, hoping and expecting that if you understand my vision, and find out that it can improve and make an impact, you can help me to pick up that dream, so that we can be given an opportunity to make a difference in Benue and Nigeria at large. It is only you who can project that ambition”, he stated.
Dr Angya was accompanied by State Chairman, Angya 2023 Campaign Organization, Hon. David Tsevende, Hon. Mark Achaku, former chairman Gwer and Director of Angya Campaign Organization. Others included, Barrister Reuben Acka of Corporate Affairs Commission, (CAC), Festus Ugondo and Clement Tsar.
Journalists in attendance cut across electronic, print and broadcast media, in rankings of reporters and publishers. Angya also went into deeper session of questions and answers with the journalists.
