MAKING THE DIFFERENCE REALLY CLEAR IN ABIA STATE
In the exclusive interview that the Governor of Abia State, Chief Dr. T.A. Orji granted to the “Daily Independent” newspaper, and recently featured in the “Newsbearer Weekly” magazine, he answered inter alia in response to the question: “Comparing your first tenure with today, would you say that things have really changed for the better?”, “We were able to remove ourselves from the stronghold (stranglehold?) of those people who felt that Abia State is their own vineyard, and when we did that, the difference today is very clear”.
Answering all the questions that he was asked in that interview, the Governor really poured out his heart to reveal his passionate desire to make a clean break from the sordid situation of the recent past.
In his answer to one of the questions during the interview session, the Governor made reference to some diabolical items which were uprooted from different parts of Aba metropolis and environs by ordained men of God; through that exercise, the city was sanitized.
Those revelations from the mouth of the Governor himself, are shocking in view of the slogan of Abia State as “God's Own State” which was always mouthed in official quarters, in addition to the weekly fasting and prayer sessions which were regularly conducted in the state during the tenure of the last state administration.
The Governor mentioned in that interview that he was not really unhappy with the people of Aba residents for showing disrespect to him on the day of the lying in state of the remains of late Ikemba Nnewi, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu at the Aba Township Stadium, in view of his strong belief that the people who did that on that day were imported from outside Abia State to score some cheap political points.
One could see through the Governor's answers to the questions to discover a leader who is eager to restore the confidence of the people of Abia State, especially the residents of Aba, the commercial hub of the state and indeed eastern Nigeria, in the state government; a leader who wanted to be seen as a people-oriented leader; a leader who is passonately committed to the welfare of his people.
In that exclusive interview, the Governor really cut the picture of a leader who wants to make a difference through his administration.
In the process of making the difference that he desires to make in Abia State, there are some issues that come into focus, and paramount among those issues is the need to ensure even development in all the zones of the state.
So far, the State Government has creditably acquitted itself in terms of making Umuahia, the state capital befitting of the status of the capital of a state. Many new projects are simultaneously being executed by the government in the capital city, such as the new Government House complex, the new State Secretariat, and the systematic extension of the state capital into the remote parts of the city like Nkatta Ibeku, among many other projects.
Umuahia city has always been a sweet city to be in, and the State Government under the leadership of Chief Dr. T.A. Orji has really improved the sweetness of the city through the construction of new roads and the maintenance of the old ones.
Even in Aba, the Enyimba city, the hub of economic activities of Abia State, the State Government has made some visible efforts to make the difference really clear, especially in the area of road rehabilitation.
Some hitherto impassable roads and areas have been made passable, like the “Ukwu Mango” axis of Faulks Road, Old Express Road, the Danfodio Road by East Street axis, Ohanku Road, the “Ama Ogbonna” axis of the town, and the resurfacing of some bad areas of the township roads around the town. Also worthy of mention is the dredging of the canal along School Road and the opening up of hitherto blocked drainage channels of the town.
However, in spite of the efforts of the Abia State Governor to placate the residents of the city of Aba, they refuse to be pacified, obviously because they feel that the Governor has not yet done enough for them, coupled with their disenchantment with the Governor for ordering the destruction of their means of livelihood across the city using soldiers and thugs.
Everyone knows that the mainstay of the economy of the city of Aba is trading (buying and selling). It therefore presupposes that anyone who attempts to disrupt the vocation of the residents automatically becomes their enemy. Perhaps, this explains the angst of the residents and their seeming refusal to be placated.
The demolition of the kiosks and sun shades of the traders, which was executed by the State Government using soldiers and thugs, greatly irritated the residents because it rendered most of the them jobless as a result of the disruption of their means of livelihood that the demolition exercise elicited.
The demolition of classified illegal structures was done without any consideration for the well being of the people; eventually, instead of the exercise leading to the restoration of the beauty of the city as the government had originally intended, it rather led to the distortion of the city's beauty and the economic impoverishment of the residents.
In the areas of the city where the topography of the land is low, the destruction of the sun shades rendered the buildings vulnerable to flood whenever it rains, resulting in the flooding of the shops in the buildings.
Of course, it could not have been the intention of the State Government to cause misfortunes for the residents of Aba through that demolition exercise; unfortunately, and painfully too, that exercise greatly impoverished the residents. The tales of woes arising from that exercise are still being told by the residents.
Take for instance the St. Georges field which accommodated many artisans. The temporary structures where the traders and artisans plied their trade were demolished by the demolition team, leaving them helpless without jobs, their means of livelihood having been destroyed.
Given the force with which the State Government demolished the temporary structures at the St. Georges field, it was expected that the government had better plans for the place. Unfortunately, the place has remained desolate and unkempt even up till now.
Even containers kept in open spaces in which people were doing business, were not spared during the demolition exercise.
The incontrovertible fact is that the demolition exercise was ill-advised. Considering the fact that the city of Aba was just recovering from the economic dislocation of the kidnapping era, the State Government should have treaded softly during the demolition exercise if at all it was absolutely necessary.
Given the fact that the State Government was passionate about making the difference really clear as the Governor stated in the interview that he granted “The Daily Independent” newspaper, the policies of the government should always be seen to have a human face so that they do not end up working against the interest of the people that they were actually intended to serve.
Take for instance also the dredging of the canal along School Road. The exercise was carried out without a scant consideration of the interest of the traders, as the slabs covering the canal through which the traders go into their shops,were mindlessly removed without allowing them to take their goods before the dredging exercise began. Even up till now, many months after, the canal remains uncovered while the traders cannot have access to their goods which are locked up inside their shops.
The residents of the city are quite happy that some hitherto bad spots in the city's road network have been rehabilitated by the State Government; unfortunately and regrettably, the work was done in a halfhearted manner, as most of the bad spots which were opened up for repair at the outset of the rehabilitation exercise, still remain uncovered.
Many bad portions were left unattended to across the city, for instance the perennially flooded Asa Road by Ehi Road, Ehi Road by Old Court Street, the Ochefu Road axis which runs from Jubilee Road intersection to School Road, Azikiwe Road by St, Joseph's Catholic Church, School Road by Asa Road axis, Clifford Road by Asa Road, Faulks Road by Omenazu Street, Eziukwu Road by “Ama Ogbonna”, and Cemetery Road, just to mention only these few bad portions.
Even the perennially bad portion of Eziukwu Road running from Tenant Road to Ehi Road, ought to have been rehabilitated, as it would lessen the sufferings of both the traders and customers of the Cemetery market.
The Governor wants the residents of Abia State to see a clear difference in the running of the affairs of the state; however, the residents of Aba want to see a change that is really clear, and this clear difference would only be visible when the basic problems of the city are consciously tackled by the State Government in a passionate and people oriented manner.
Written By OCHIABUTO KALU OKORIE