BY BEN BILUA
PREMIER of Western Province says his government will be very careful in its deliberation on the statehood agenda.
In his Sine Die Speech last week, Billy Veo said adopting a federal system type of government is easy but sustaining it over the long run is another thing.
He said his government fully understands the importance of statehood, however, preparatory approach is something that his government will investigate further.
“Successive government over the years have been talking about statehood and the need for the provincial government to be given more autonomy in running their affairs.
“A couple of our sister provinces have also been very vocal about the need for adoption of the federal system and substantial work has already been undertaken up to several drafts of the federal constitution.
“I know it will come, it will eventually come, but my million dollar question is ‘are we ready?’.
“How do we prepare ourselves for that eventual outcome when the opportunity presents itself?
“I believe in order to get there, we have to have a strong economy foundation to bolster economic growth, together with good human resources capacity to ensure we take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves,” Veo said.
He said all the required goals will not be achieved overnight but it will be good to at least start somewhere.
