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Emmanuel Onwubiko
By On Sunday this week, I boarded the Air Peace airline to Owerri, the Imo state capital for a singular reason of personally witnessing the beginning of the remaking of history in the Eastern heartland which has only recently come out of a whooping eight years of desolation and crass bad governance by the immediate past governor – Mr. Rochas Okorocha. This remaking of history in my state of birth was the official flag off of the World Bank’s assisted rural roads infrastructure which took place incidentally from Umuduru market which will cover my home town of Arondizuogu located in Onu-Imo local government area council.
While on board, I sat few places away from and infact next to the newly sworn in governor of Imo state Mr. Emeka Ihedioha who was also travelling back to Owerri apparently from an official tour in the nation’s capital or somewhere nearby.
The governor came in to the aircraft with about half a dozen personal staff and his beautiful daughter just as one of his top private officials sat just next to me. This proximity afforded yours faithfully the opportunity of exchanging few words regarding the planned flag off of this rural road infrastructure. I also had about five minutes conversations with the governor whereupon I applauded him for remembering my hometown which has faced horrendous ordeals of infrastructural deficit over the past decades from virtually all the previous governors of the state. Arondizuogu suffers from multiple deficiencies of social infrastructures and the worst case scenario of marginalization of unfathomable scale even as the few signs of civilization such as electricity and graded rural roads were done as a result of communal and/or individual efforts.
For instance, the only source of intermmittent electricity power to most parts of Arondizuogu in Onu-Imo local government was donated by a single individual who is also reputed to have singlehandedly constructed some culverts and rural roads beginning from his immediate community in a part of Arondizuogu located within Onu-Imo LGA. It must be noted too that Arondizuogu traverses Okigwe and Ideato North local government area councils. In effect, our people are amongst those who feel the pains of a failed administration under Rochas Okorocha, and who appeared to have spent more time in the media spreading falsehood and outright cheap propaganda about some fantastic feats he achieved as governor which are not in existence anywhere in Imo state which today appears like the ruined segments of the war torn Syria.
My readers can now understand my overwhelming enthusiasm to read that the Imo state governor has remembered a long forgotten part of the state and has indeed scheduled the flag off of the World Bank’s partly funded rural roads which incidentally has only happened because the now governor paid the counterpart fund which Rochas Okorocha failed to do.
My trip to my state was therefore a labour of love for my hometown and to witness the beginning of history and to be able to pen down my thoughts independently and to charge governor Emeka Ihedioha to ensure that the flag off ceremony does not become the end of the dream of the long suffering people for imminent liberation from an absolute denial of social amenities by the state government. This is exactly what this article is set out to do- set agenda and to remind Emeka Ihedioha that we are monitoring his administration closely to see whether he will rebuild the devastated state from the debris of ruins left over by the failed governor Mr. Okorocha who miraculously manouvered his way to the Senate to represent Orlu which is one of the places he destroyed by way of incompetence in office as governor for two terms.
So on Tuesday this week, the governor arrived my hometown to begin the construction of this all important road infrastructure which if actualized, is capable of opening up many communities and helping rural farmers and dwellers to be able to connect with modernity and civilization and to enhance their economic activities. As stated, i witnessed first hand using my own resources to fly all the way to and fro to see as Governor Emeka Ihedioha flagged off the construction of rural road projects in Imo state which he estimated is worth N13.5billion – It include 380.7 kilometers of rural road across the 27 local government areas of the state.
I stood amongst The enthusiastic crowds in Umuduru near Arondizuogu, as the governor said he approved the swift payment of the counterpart fund to activate the project upon assumption of office. Incidentally, upon departing my hometown the entourage reportedly stopped over at Mbaitoli LGA for the same solemn occasion in which he read identical speech.
Speaking at the flag off at Onuimo, Isu and Mbaitoli local government areas of the state, Governor Ihedioha assured the readiness of his administration to partner development agencies for the betterment of the state. The governor said he approved the swift payment of the counterpart fund to activate the project upon assumption of office. He also decried the poor states of roads in the state said the project will boost agriculture and socio-economic development in the state and reduce rural urban migration.
His words: “As soon we assumed office, the RAMP project attracted our attention, and so came under review. Our task teams and committees analyzed the program and its processes, and being satisfied with its objectives, immediately ratified it, then provided the necessary approvals and directives therein including updating payments of counterpart funds. “As a state, and indeed as a person, we are particularly grateful to the two (2) institutions that have made today possible – The World Bank and the AFD (the French Development Bank). He continued: “As a policy of state, we will continue, as a matter of fact to intensify our engagements with the development partners and multi-lateral institutions, in order to leverage on their pedigree.” The governor revealed his administration’s intention to revive the Imo Rural Roads Maintenance Agency (IRROMA), to ensure that no part of Imo state rural areas remained inaccessible due to bad roads.
Onwubiko is the Heads Human Rights writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) and blogs @www.emmanuelonwubiko.com,www.huriwa.blogspot.com.
