They called him a
stooge, an errand boy of Ochendo. They accused him of signing a pact to part
with a sizeable chunk of the state allocation every month to service his
godfather. They ignored his sterling academic credentials and donned him in the
garb of a powerless puppet. But, Abians saw beyond their propaganda and reposed
their mandate in him...
Today, something
beautiful is happening in Aba. A city once abandoned to rot and decay is
wearing a new look. Even the deaf can hear the roaring sound of bulldozers
clearing the earth for construction; the blind can see that government no
longer exists only on billboards. It is less than 100 days but the people can
feel the impact of government.
The speed with which
the governor deployed men and resources to the task of rebuilding dilapidated
infrastructure in the premier commercial center of Eastern Nigeria,
demonstrates that he is a man prepared for leadership and puts to lie the
erroneous claim by his detractors that he is a mere stooge ill equipped to
govern the state.
The real change is in
Abia! 22 road projects are ongoing as I write. From Ukaegbu road to Umuojima
road, from the decrepit Kamalu road to the notorious Old express road,
contractors are working tirelessly to beat the deadline. Gutters that have been
abandoned for decades are being opened up while the Aba river is being dredged
to curtail the maddening floods that wreak havoc in the city when it rains.
Ghost workers that
have fleeced the state 160 million naira every year have been weeded out
without raising dust. The display of obscene wealth, distraction from praise
singers, and sycophancy has been removed from the corridors of power. In its
place, a serious government, a responsible and responsive leadership have
emerged. You can see it as the governor crisscrosses the State daily,
inspecting projects instead of sitting in the comfort of his air conditioned
office.
Abia has long yearned
for this kind of leadership; a leadership that understands the need of her
people and has the requisite competence to unleash the economic potentials of
Aba. That kind of leadership is what we have today under the captainship of Dr.
Okezie Ikpeazu. In Ikpeazu, Abia has a leader who is obsessed with changing the
face of the State, a man whose loyalty lies with the people not with any
godfather.
For those still in
court challenging the mandate freely given to him by Ndi Abia, it is imperative
to remind them of the admonition of the holy book in Psalms 75vs7, 'it is God
alone who judges, he decides who will rise and fall'. The destiny of Abia can
only be decided by God and not by the chicanery of SAN’s.
Honest Offor hails
from Isuikwuato Local Government area
About TRENDY
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