From Jeff Amechi Agbodo, Onitsha
Wife of Anambra State Governor and founder of the Caring Family Enhancement Initiative, (CAFE), Mrs. Ebelechukwu Obiano, has commended the chairman of Ogbaru Local Government Area (LGA), Prince Arinzechukwu Awogu, for building an ultramodern council secretariat and establishing a mass transit scheme in the area. The new LGA secretariat was constructed in honour of Mrs. Anthonia Isama-Lavender, who reportedly brought electricity to the local government.
Mrs. Obiano, while inaugurating the projects, urged political office holders to be impactful in their areas and affect the people’s lives positively.
She noted that the present economic and social difficulties could be defeated when those with the economic means reach out to the poor ones around them.
Addressing the people at the council headquarters, Atani, Mrs. Obiano said the need for beneficial social and economic rapport between the rich and the poor has become crucial, especially in this period of economic crunch. She urged the wealthy to help the poor ones for a healthier and happier society.
Mrs Obiano also noted that her charity organisation, CAFE, has begun measurement for people that need prosthetic limbs and arms, as well as surgeries for children with cleft lips and palate. She called on those with such challenges to reach out to her office.
Also speaking, the council chairman, Hon. Awogu, explained that Ogbaru has benefitted immensely from Mrs Obiano’s show of love, from building houses for indigent widows in the local government, to giving prosthetic limbs and arms to physically challenged people from the area.
The council boss said he built the office complex within one year through prudent management of resources in line with the mantra of doing more with less, as espoused by Governor Obiano.
“Through Mrs Isama’s benevolence, Ogbaru people saw electricity for the first time in 1993 and enjoyed electricity without paying bills for 10 years, courtesy of her love for her people. She is today immortalised for touching the lives of her people positively and you too can be when you deploy the privileges of your office to the betterment of your people. May the good Lord continue to bless Mrs Lavender Isama, the bastion of civilization to Ogbaru people,” he said.
Awogu said the foundation stone of the building was laid on March 13, 2019, explaining that the complex was named after the woman that brought electricity to the area to immortalise her.
Awogu said that the idea of the one storey new secretariat was to decongest offices at the existing ones, saying that the prudent management of lean resource had enabled him to achieve more with less.
“We have in the last ten months saved enough money for the local government to enable us undertake any such project of importance. First, we jettisoned frivolities and wasteful spending, which enabled us to save for capital projects and other interventions hitherto unheard of in the local government,” Awogu stated.
On the introduction of mass transit, Awogu said he floated the mass transit to complement the efforts of Governor Obiano in his bid to ease transportation problem facing the people of the area and Anambra State.
“The mass transit, which has its loading terminal at Onitsha Bridgehead by Ogbaru Junction, plies the following routes: Agbor, Asaba, Onitsha, Nnewi, Awka, Enugu, Ekwulobia, Atani, Owerri, Port Harcourt, Abuja, Lagos, Jos, Kaduna and Kano.
“Anambra State is known for its businessmen and women due to numerous markets in the state. This makes transportation very important and one of Governor Willie Obiano’s priorities is to meet the transportation needs of the people. I decided to key into the governor’s transportation initiatives to solve the transport problem of the people. This is the first of its kind in Ogbaru Local Government area.
“With the commencement of Ogbaru Mass Transit, the people of the area and others will benefit a lot due to its proximity. Anybody from Ogbaru travelling to Lagos, Abuja, Enugu or any part of the country will not take the risk of going to Upper Iweka or Asaba to board a vehicle because brand new buses with factory-fitted air conditioner are at their doorsteps at Ogbaru Mass Transit Bus Terminal by Ogbaru Junction.
“The benefits of floating of the transportation services now will not be overemphasized. It will reduce transport problem being faced by the people, especially during festivities,” Awogu stated.
He said the governor’s wife gave out palliatives to widows, indigent persons, children and the physically challenged from the 16 communities in Ogbaru Local Government Area.
Mrs Obiano was joined on the visit by the wife of the former Deputy Governor of Anabra State, Mrs Chinwe Sibeudu.