Amosun seeks alternatives to oil as nation’s revenue source

OGUN State Governor, Senator Ibikunle Amosun has said that with the continuous fall of oil price, it had become imperative for the country to take urgent steps to diversify the economy.

Amosun, who spoke Sunday at Maun in Ipokia Council Area while addressing All Progressives Congress (APC) supporters in continuation of his campaign tour to the area, suggested that the country should pay attention to developing the agriculture and tourism sectors, which he believed were enough to sustain the economy.

According to the governor, “Nigeria needs to shift focus away from oil as the mainstay of the economy as current reality has shown that crude oil cannot be predicted again.”

“Oil has continued to fall at the international market. This is bad news for Nigeria because as we all know, oil is our mainstay. We are compelled now to shift focus away from oil to Agriculture where we have comparative advantage,” the governor advised.

Amosun reminded the crowd that before oil came, Nigeria survived mainly on agriculture, stressing that there was urgent need to go back to that era to rebuild our economy.

His words “Before oil came, Nigeria survived mainly on agriculture. All the economic wonders performed in Nigeria before independence were products of agriculture. We must go back to it.”

He further stated that continuous fall in the price of oil would have a direct negative impact on revenue accrued to the states and therefore it was high time states, particularly Ogun turned its searchlight to agriculture, tourism and commerce, potentials of the state so as to improve on the revenue base of the state.

“With continuous fall in oil price, many states are in trouble and this is the more reason we must diversify to Agriculture because revenues of states are already affected by dwindling fortunes of oil,” Amosun affirmed.

The governor identified various natural resources, which he said abound in Ipokia Local Government Area and assured that his administration would accord it the priority it deserved.

He however, promised not to renege on his efforts towards ensuring that oil exploration on the

Tongeji Island took off. He insisted that agriculture remained Nigeria’s best option to survive.

“The falling price of oil will however, not discourage us from exploring the oil reserves we have here on the Tongeji Island. We are committed to its exploration and we shall do it in due course,” the Governor asserted.