THE Abia State government has assured all those ex
pressing doubts about its determination to conduct local polls next year that nothing would hinder the plan.
Pointing out that local council elections were last held in the state in 2007, shortly after the governor assumed office for his first term, his Chief Press secretary, Mr. Ugo Emezue said the government was ready to ensure that democracy takes roots at the grassroots. Since the expiration of the tenure of the elected chairmen and councilors in 2009, local councils in the state have been run by transition committees.
Governor Theodore Orji had promised earlier in the month that council elections would be conducted in January next year. He explained that it had been impossible for him to do just that because he was dealing with the heavy debt profile inherited from the previous chairmen of the councils in the state.
Reaffirming the governor’s plan, Emezue said “I can tell you authoritatively that all is set for that election and as we know, the governor, Chief Theodore Orji has never made a promise without fulfilling it. I will also like to let you know here that the issue of that election is one that has gladdened everybody’s heart in the state today. The election will ensure that democracy takes firm root at the local government level.
“Yes, some people may be asking why it has taken this long to conduct the election. The problem the governor had was that we had some elected chairmen that were in office for two years and who owed huge sums of salaries running into billions. It was a sad situation in which Abians themselves even backed the governor not to conduct the election until things were sorted out.
He blamed the loyalty of the former chairmen to the administration which ruled the state before the coming of Governor T. A. Orji, saying their loyalty was elsewhere and so did everything to undermine the government of thwe day.
“Of course we know what happened before the governor liberated Abians from what can be aptly described as the clutches of darkness. We know that during that sad period, we hate to recall a lot of people were not loyal to the governor, particularly the local government chairmen who felt that they had a god-father somewhere that made them to become what they were.
“So they still paid allegiance to their so-called godfather, doing whatever they liked, while on the other hand, destabilising underground the laudable vision of the governor. To say they incurred so much for government is an under statement. So when their tenure expired, what the governor did, which was the obvious thing to do, was to appoint transitional chairmen for interim purpose. The idea was to enable the governor offset gradually the entire bill that was being owed”.
He gave a clue about the enormity of the burden that the government had to carry in respect of offsetting the debt the erstwhile local government chairmen incurred.
“Some local government chairmen owed more than one year salary and you could imagine the huge burden that was left for the governor to tackle. Governor Orji took time to clear all the problems and happily enough he is through with paying all that was owed and now ready for the election.
“Today, the Abia State government can beat its chest and say that the local governments are well stabilized and the time is now appropriate to conduct election in to the council areas. It has been slated for January and as I am talking to you, those responsible for the conduct of the election are making all efforts to meet the target date and to ensure a free and fair election”
On what to expect in terms of transparency of the election process next January, the governor’s aide said there is no cause for alarm.
“The governor has said it that the election will be highly transparent. He is the governor of Abia State, not the governor of any party and he has given that assurance. One of the hallmarks of his leadership is that he keeps to his promise so there is no cause for alarm. He is a man that believes in fairness, equity and justice.
“Even the opposition has come out to congratulate him for fixing the date because they know he will not renege. At the end of the day we will see that it is one of the best elections people will adjudge as free and fair. All the same, in an election, it is either you win or you lose but the most important thing is to know that the process was transparent”, he stated.
On the planned demolition of about 1800 illegal structures in Aba, which many people have criticized as an insensitive decision, Emezue said many people committed illegality by building unauthorized places, adding that there would be no going back on that decision so as to save the future of the state’s commercial hub.
“Aba that is the commercial nerve center of the state and if you go there you will discover so many illegalities in terms of people building on drains. What the governor has done over time is to take time to identify those places that are obstructing, not only the water flow of flood but disruption of the Aba master plan. He is not demolishing just to win applause because successive governments never had the courage to do the needful to save Aba from future disaster. Government is not witch-hunting anybody. Government has been able to drain many areas in Aba, particularly, School Road which connects the whole of Aba. There is nothing to fear in this demolition exercise as far as the building is not on drains or at illegal place. The governor is taking the bull by the horn and I do not think there is any going back. You cannot make an omelet without breaking an egg. We must do what is right”.
Making reference to what Lagos State Governor babtunde Fashola has made out of the former Oshodi, Emezue said what the authorities in Abia want is to make Aba look the way people would want it to look.
“At the end of the day the governor wants Aba to be what everybody is expecting it to be: a real commercial hub with the city well protected against future disaster. The truth is that change is a difficult thing for people to embrace. But as we know too, the only constant thing in life is change. I remember when Governor Babatunde Fashola of Lagos State was demolishing Oshodi, a lot of people were criticizing his action but today they are praising him for the wonderful transformation of Oshodi. What matters is not the criticism but that the right thing was done to the joy and benefit of the majority.
“By the time the governor finishes all he wants to do for Aba; it will become a destination point and Abia people will praise him for it. I can tell you there is no going back on that demolition. We want to give Aba a new face, it is a town that has been neglected by successive regime and we take exception to that mistake. Ask previous governments to point at what they did in Aba? There was nothing they did and this government cannot join that queue of neglecting Aba”, he declared.
