Mkpoikana Udoma 07 February 2017, Sweetcrude, Yenagoa – In a bid to curb militancy and unemployment in the Niger Delta region, Innoson Motors plans to build a world-class automobile assembling plant in Bayelsa State
This is according to the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs and Coordinator of the Niger Delta Presidential Amnesty Programme, Brigadier General Paul Boroh (Rtd),
Boroh announced this during a meeting with the Bayelsa State government led by Governor Seriake Dickson; the Chairman of Innoson Group of Companies, Chief Innocent Chukwuma; the Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Economic Council, Mr. Donald Benibo Wokoma, and the Chief Executive Officer of JUMAB Global Services, Prince Jacob Momoh, at the Bayelsa State Government House.
The Amnesty coordinator also said that crude oil was fast losing relevance and pointed out that now was the time to look into other avenues of generating revenue.
He explained that one of the strategies of the Muhammadu Buhari government in stabilising the region is to make the Niger Delta the industrial hub of the nation.
According to him, “the aim of the meeting was to seek the support of the Bayelsa State government in the establishment of the world-class automobile assembly plant in the state.
“The management of Innoson Motors, who just trained and graduated over 100 Niger Delta ex-agitators in automobile repairs and manufacturing, on my request, have accepted to build a world-class assembly plant in the region.
“This plant will first of all absorb all the ex-agitators recently trained under Innoson Motors and also create job opportunities for other Niger Delta sons and daughters.”
Governor Seriake Dickson, on receiving the proposal, instructed the State Commissioner of Trade and Investment to allocate space needed for the project immediately all paper works were completed.
The governor expressed his delight at the initiative of the Amnesty office and Innoson Group, and promised to give his full support to the project.
On his part, the Chairman of Innoson Group, Chief Innocent Chukwuma, who expressed his delight over the project, indicated his readiness to move to site once the site has been allocated, adding that the ex-agitators who successfully graduated at his academy would form the workforce of the plant, upon completion.