A governorship aspirant of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Delta State, Prof. Patrick Utomi says his intention to run for the office was to rescue the people living in the state from death.

Speaking during his declaration speech after submitting election forms at APC’s secretariat in Abuja on Wednesday, Utomi said he had a conscience and would not watch Deltans live under conditions that are worse than death.

“If you have a conscience and you watch a people live a fate worse than death, then your spirit must be on the verge of being broken. However, I stand today to say that all hope is not lost.

“Being a witness to crushing poverty lived by people across a small pond from oil production platforms, and being a witness and also a recipient of complaints from various quarters that family members continue to die untimely due to accidents triggered by the hardly motorable state of Delta roads leaves me with a feeling of despondency,” he said.

While lamenting the level of under-development in the state despite being an oil-rich area, Utomi said if elected, his government would focus on growing the state economy, infrastructure, education, health care, youth and women empowerment.

“Delta State receives very huge allocations from the federation account, yet extreme poverty exists in the state. Little of these fiscal transfers from the federation account that enter the state circulate in the state.

“In Delta State, my conscience kills me some more with the death from avoidable causes of every man, woman or child, due partly to poor healthcare in the state,” he added.

He further assured the people of the state that he would  promote and institute good governance, fight against corruption and run an inclusive government.

Utomi, a one-time presidential aspirant of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) is a renowned business and economy scholar. He is also the president of the popular Lagos Business School (LBS).