MY STEWARDSHIP AS ABIA GOVERNOR (1999-2007) – 13

CONCLUSION)

Last week I named some members of the team I worked with between 1999 and 2007 to move Abia State to the next level of development. Though the list was not comprehensive I have deemed it proper to list more names as a part of the conclusion of the 13-week series on our achievements as a government. Among them were Dr. Chris Akomas (one-time Senior Special Assistant on Education and later Com­missioner for Lands and Survey); High Chief Johnny Ukpabi (Commissioner for Agriculture), Donatus Okorie (Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs) and Dr. Sam Ahaiwe (Health). These men brought their wealth of experience and dexterity to bear on the perfor­mance of their duties. Let me, however, quickly apologise to any person who worked with us and whose name did not appear in these series.

As indicated in the preceding paragraph this is the concluding part of the series started 13 weeks ago intended to put a lie to some of the fabrications by the Abia State Government and its cohorts to paint our administration black and hoodwink unsus­pecting members of the public. One remark­able fact that emerged during the series was the bogus claims by the same government to projects it neither started nor completed. Many of the projects the government had been laying claim to were actually projects started and completed by our government between 1999 and 2007.

To demonstrate how desperate the gov­ernor has become he has had the effrontery to even advertise some of these projects in the media. Until the latest expose, gullible members of the public had believed some of the false stories coming from the stable of the Abia State Government.

I must state here that the response we have received since the series began had been heartwarming. My email box is daily inundated with inquiries from readers eager to know more about what we did between 1999 and 2007.

Another revelation of the series was that the governor of Abia State Theodore Orji has run a lacklustre administration which has nothing tangible to showcase as its achievements. Despite the huge financial resources that had accrued to the state be­tween 2007 and date the administration of Governor Orji has performed below aver­age. Even the recent visit to the state by a team of media men and bloggers on the invitation of the governor did not reveal anything different from the rot and docility that had been the lot of the administration since it came into office in 2007. According to the report of the team the government of Governor Orji has been evasive about how much it had expended on a few projects the team inspected which, in its assessment, comprised mainly white elephants. The team was left in the lurch about the costs of the projects, because it is the style of the governor not to reveal anything as a way of hiding the embarrassing corruption that has dogged his government.

So, where has all the money gone? Why has the government of Governor Orji spent the past 91 months chasing shadow, instead of working for the people? All he is inter­ested in are personal interests: perpetuating himself in power and building fiefdoms all over the place. Who is not aware of the na­ked rape of democracy in Abia State? The desperation of the governor to cling to pow­er even when he is aware that Abians no longer want him is nauseating. He does not have any regard for legality or constitution­ality in any matter that involves his person­al affairs. The PDP in Abia State has been made a personal property of the governor, while sidelining other major stakeholders.

It is therefore, preposterous that such incivilities and illegalities occur under the close watch of our leaders. Why should one man’s interest override the public interest? This is the position in Abia State, where money is the paramount consideration in matters of election. I will dwell on this in latter editions. However, the situation of things in Abia State has reached a worri­some level, such that if nothing is done fast the governor can land the state in troubled waters.

As a major stakeholder, I have contin­ued to play placating and stabilizing role to ensure the overall interest of our people is protected. As things stand now, it does not really matter which side of the divide one stands. What is central to me and, I believe, other stakeholders are the peace, develop­ment and growth of Abia State.

It is painful that Abia State, which we la­boured relentlessly as a government to de­velop, has been left in the lurch, while other states make giant strides. Believe or leave it, there was no government before or after us that has worked for the development of Abia State as we had done. The records are there for all to see. What the present gov­ernment in Abia State relishes is falsehood and fanfare, while the people suffer in the midst of plenty for no justifiable reason.

The only sign of development in Abia State could be seen in the projects we ex­ecuted, some of which the government of Governor Orji lays claim to. Apart from some white elephants, as the report of the media team to the state stated, the govern­ment had done nothing tangibly verifiable between 2007 and 2014 to justify the nearly 1 trillion naira it had received from differ­ent revenue sources available to it. For our administration, we achieved all we did with the N108 billion we received in eight years.

Last week, pensioners in Abia State took to the streets protesting the non-payment of their over five-month pensions. It was a pitiable sight to behold as old men and women, wearied by debilitating hunger and poverty, groaned in pain and penury as they marched through the streets of Umuahia. Yet the government has not done anything to ameliorate their condition or give them hope.

The situation gets worse as the day breaks. Not only pensioners, other work­ers such as university lecturers have been on work-to-rule for non-payment of their salaries. Some categories of workers are owed up to 8 months’ salaries. What reason does the government has for owing work­ers when it receives revenue from the fed­eration account and collects huge money from taxes and levies? The only answer to this question is that the state government is neck-deep in corruption. Otherwise, the state makes sufficient money to take care of its workers and do quality projects for the good of the people.

I recall with happiness that in my days as governor we made it a point of duty to pay salaries every 25th of the month throughout the duration of our government. We also paid pensions and gratuities with available resources. Any government that fails to pay the pensions of retired civil servants, for no justifiable cause, is evil.

I threw a challenge to the governor in the course of the series to invite the best five audit firms in the world to audit his government’s account and that of ours to see which between us was corrupt. Up till date he has not accepted the challenge, even when I have offered to defray 50% of the cost of the audit. What does this tell you the reader? For me, it shows how incompetent and snaky the governor is in coming forth with the truth about what his government has done since 2007 it came to the saddle.

What Governor Orji has made Abia be­come is a mule drained of all the blood in its body. Abia State is like carcass with thou­sands fleecing it under the close watch of the governor. Imagine a state pilloried and pillaged for 91 long months! The state has survived by sheer luck, because the gover­nor and his family have held the state and its people hostage for the same period. Not sat­isfied, he wants to install a stooge to carry on his legacy of corruption and ineptitude.

Our achievements in education have been unprecedented in the annals of our state. We left solid structures in the sector and laid a foundation on which its future would thrive. But see where the sector is today. Nothing works there. It was a sorry sight when students of Abia State Univer­sity, Uturu took to the streets protesting the poor infrastructure in the school and non-payment of salaries of lecturers, which have stalled academic activities in the institution. For the period we stayed in government the institution never closed to business neither did any lecturer go on strike! We ensured that all issues relating to the students and their lecturers were promptly resolved.

It was the dexterity with which we ran the affairs of the sector that led to the many achievements recorded. Sadly, today, al­most all the tertiary institutions in the state are a shadow of their old selves. It is either the sector is rescued now or it dies. That is the true situation. Reducing school fees two months to elections as the state government had done is not a solution to the intractable problems stifling the sector.

The recent visit to the state by a fact-finding media team revealed the decay in the present system unlike the one con­ducted during our tenure that scored us at least 65% in every sector. That alone points to one fact: that the difference between our two governments is clear. It is a tall order, therefore, for the governor to think there would ever be any equation between our administrations in whatever guise. I have written in several forums that our admin­istration between 1999 and 2007 outper­formed the present administration.

Unfortunately, the governor has re­mained adamant to the quality advice of­fered him. Instead he has chosen to do his things his own ways, which have often pro­duced negative results. Does he think he is an island? No man is either. That is why he has appointed advisers and commission­ers to assist him to do the work. Neverthe­less, the advisers and commissioners exist on paper. They do virtually nothing in the running of the government as all decisions are taken by the governor and his wife and son. This accounts for the neglect of these political appointees. It is almost impossible to find a political appointee in Abia State that can afford to donate N20,000 on any occasion. The only person that can do that is somebody very close to the triumvirate of father, son and wife.

In the contrary, our tenure in office was a period of prosperity for the whole of Abia. People were happy and enjoyed the divi­dends of democracy. We made the resources go round, while making conscious efforts to ensure adherence to due process. Ours was the only government that published quar­terly reports on its financial dealings. By the time we left office, we had a clean slate.

Let me use this opportunity to reempha­size that throughout the 96 months I served as governor the only money I spent was the security vote duly appropriated by the State House of Assembly. And the vote was han­dled by Chief Theodore Orji who served as my Chief of Staff. I did not dip my hands in any government coffers, nor did I engage in any underhand deal with anybody. It was this stance that made it possible for us to successfully fight and wrestle corruption.

The legacies we bequeathed to Abia State will outlive the present generation. In spite of the negative media against our administration by Governor Orji and his co-travellers, the truth has remained unassail­able. If he claims he has worked for Abia let him take up the challenge I made to him to bring independent assessors to assess what he has done in comparison to the huge re­sources he has received.

The truth is that Abia State is hemorrhag­ing and asphyxiating under Governor Orji. The fear is that it will die if no immediate help comes to it. The plan of the governor is to go to the Senate, his son to the House to become speaker, while his crony occupies Government House, Umuahia. By this ar­rangement, then what is left is to sing the nunc dimitis for Abia State.

Are we going to fold our arms and watch as our state bleeds to death? This is a ques­tion that must be answered by every con­cerned Abian. It is either we stand up col­lectively and rescue Abia State or we will live to regret it.

I know the God I serve; He will never allow shame to come upon our people. As God’s Own state it will not be long before salvation comes. But the salvation will come faster if we chose the path of recti­tude, courage and wisdom. We cannot con­tinue to grope in the dark when we have the capacity to redeem our conditions.

I thank our people for standing firmly behind us. It would have been impossible to make progress without you.

I thank God Almighty for the great things He did in Abia State through us. I thank Him for the protection and under­standing He granted us throughout the pe­riod we served that made it possible for us to achieve great things for our people.

Things may look bleak today, due to the indiscretion of one man, but very soon light will spring up at the end of the tunnel. It is only a matter of time before the evil that has enveloped Abia State takes flight to abyss.

I cover Abia State with the precious blood of Jesus and wish her well as she­marches into a new era – the era of change.