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By James Okoronkwo
When Dr. Peter Ndubuisi Mbah assumed office as Governor of Enugu State in 2023, his slogan “Tomorrow Is Here” sounded like campaign rhetoric. Three years later, the debate in Enugu is no longer about promises, but about evidence.
The most defining legacy of his administration is in education. The government has built 260 Smart Green Schools, one in each political ward, with over 7,000 classrooms, digital tools, laboratories and solar power. It committed 33 percent of its budget to education, a figure that stands out in a country where most states fall short of the UNESCO benchmark. Beyond buildings, it introduced experiential learning, teacher retraining and school feeding.
In healthcare, the state delivered 260 Type-2 Primary Healthcare Centres across all wards and completed the 300-bed Enugu International Hospital. For a state whose citizens once travelled to Lagos and Abuja for specialist care, this represents a significant shift.
In infrastructure, the administration has constructed and reconstructed over 1,500 kilometres of roads, including the 40-kilometre Owo-Ubahu-Amankanu-Umualor-Ikem dual carriageway, now a new gateway to the North-Central. It also rehabilitated long-abandoned assets such as the Hotel Presidential and the International Conference Centre.
The Nigerian Guild of Editors, after touring projects in the state during its 2026 conference, described what it saw as “solid infrastructure on ground that will grow the economy.”
Transport has also changed. The launch of Enugu Air, the construction of modern terminals at Holy Ghost, Abakpa and Nsukka, and the deployment of 100 CNG buses have repositioned Enugu as a regional hub. Pipe-borne water has returned to parts of the capital after years of scarcity, and the state’s security architecture has been strengthened.
Perhaps the clearest indicator is revenue. Enugu’s Internally Generated Revenue reportedly grew from about N26 billion in 2022 to over N400 billion in 2025. The administration has set an ambitious target of growing the state’s economy from $4.4 billion to $30 billion.
Governor Mbah has also aligned Enugu with national development. He has publicly supported President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s removal of fuel subsidy, arguing that the old regime benefited mainly the wealthy, and has engaged the South East Development Commission on regional gas pipelines, railways and industrialisation.
No administration is without critics. Some have questioned the pace and cost of projects and the impact on ordinary residents. Those questions are legitimate in a democracy.
But the central question before Ndi Enugu is not whether the first term was perfect. It is whether the foundation laid should be consolidated or abandoned.
Large reforms in education, healthcare, transport and power require more than one term to mature. The Smart Schools need a second phase focused on learning outcomes. The International Hospital needs to become fully operational. The proposed 660 megawatts power plan needs continuity.
To change leadership now would risk disrupting projects still in implementation.
Enugu has had governors who promised change. Mbah’s record suggests a governor attempting to institutionalise it. If the state is to move from construction to consolidation, from projects to prosperity, continuity, not disruption, appears the more logical path.
The voters will decide. But they will decide on what they can see: schools in their wards, hospitals in their communities, roads in their towns, and water in their homes.
That is the case for a second term.
• Okoronkwo is the National Coordinator, Coalition for Renewed Hope, Abuja.
