Associate Editor, Sam Egburonu, had a brief encounter with Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State last weekend and attempts, in this report, to capture the governor’s vision for his state and the raw passion that fuels his drive
Even before assumption of office, Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi did not leave anybody guessing on the direction of his government. He had anchored his electoral campaign on what he termed seamless continuity and consolidation. So, when he won the election, his supporters said it was victory for continuity. Only opponents of the Chime political family hoped he would change on assumption of office.
So far however, they seem disappointed as the relationship between the governor and his predecessor has remained robust.
Confirming his determination not only to consolidate on Chime’s policies and developmental direction but also to improve it, Ugwuanyi had said in his inaugural speech, “The government of Governor Sullivan Chime has done well and we are justifiably proud and happy about it. But we cannot rest there. What we can and must do, is to try and utilise the advantage that come from this historic achievement.”
He added, “in line with my campaign promises, I recommit myself to continuing with the legacies of the Sullivan Chime’s administration and his roadmap for taking Enugu State to the next level. I recommit myself to employment generation, enhanced social services and good governance, rural development and indeed, security and justice. We will deploy government services to create fair and equal opportunity for every willing citizen to make a living and create wealth, educate our children, and enjoy life in a peaceful and secure environment. We will drive with full force investment promotion, agricultural sector renewal, provision of critical infrastructure, human capital development, and skills acquisition.
“We are all aware that unemployment is a major issue in our country today. In order to alleviate the sufferings of our people in this regard, we deliberately designed government policies embedded in our roadmap to generate employment and provide the platform to partner with the private sector.
“In the area of agriculture, we shall consolidate the efforts of the past administration in the San Carlos Farm Project, the Adarice and other such farm settlements where our people will be gainfully employed.
“We undertake to continue with the ongoing educational reforms, which have lifted our public schools to new levels of excellence. The introduction of e-learning and exchange programmes for our tertiary institutions in line with international best practices will be our priority.
“The need to compliment the already established state-of-the-art medical diagnostic centre – the first of its kind in our geo-political zone- with our vision to create hospital chains to make Enugu the preferred destination for receiving high quality and affordable Medicare in the country will be a matter of first choice.”
With such firm promises, Enugu indigenes believe that Ugwuanyi, a former Chairman of Committee on Maritime at the House of Representatives, who is fondly addressed by his supporters as ‘Gburugburu,’ is poised not only to advance the developmental direction of Sullivan’s administration but also to do it with the usual glamour that surround his person.
Giving an insight into what Enugu people should expect, one of his close associates, a likely key player in his administration, who pleaded not to be named on the pages of newspapers for now, told The Nation, “Gburugburu is a glamorous politician. But he is more than just glamour. He is an idea man and a man of action. On the first days of his tenure for example, he shocked contractors when he paid unscheduled visits to construction sites. The result of such visits is better seen than described. Right now in Enugu, every contractor or worker in any corner of the state knows or fears that Gburugburu may visit him or her unannounced, any time. Go and find out, the effect is electric. We expect such changes in different areas even as the governor pursues the seamless continuity policy.”
The impression so far caused by his first steps notwithstanding, virtually all that have come in close contact with Ugwuanyi since he became governor do not fail to say his humility is rather disarming. Our brief meeting at the Government House in Enugu last weekend also left that impression. Given his popularity while he served as a federal lawmaker at the Green Chamber and the glamour of his elaborate campaign before the governorship election, one had expected to meet a governor that would at least be very conscious of his exulted position as the state chief executive. Not so. As he walks in casually, side by side with the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, he stretches out his hands for a handshake almost in a boyish gesture, patting your back as if you were an old school mate or a childhood friend.
Beyond his evident humility and the easy going nature, it has been established that Ugwuanyi’s aim is high, so high that the opposition is already expressing doubts over the possibility of realizing some of the campaign promises he made.
Reacting to this fear, Ugwuanyi said, “One of the promises we made is that Nsukka is going to be modernized. But that is not accommodated in the budget. So, the first thing we are going to do is to revise the budget and accommodate those electoral promises that are not provided for in the budget.”
It would be recalled that as soon as he assumed office, Ugwuanyi had assured: “Enugu State under us will pay a special attention to rural development because the bulk of our people live in the rural areas. We will create more urban areas to boost economic growth. In line with this, we must equip and modernize Nsukka – a university town founded over half a century ago – to compete with other university towns in attracting technology and knowledge-based businesses and other industrial support ventures, bearing in mind that Nsukka is the second largest town in Enugu State.
“In the same vein, the Ninth Mile Corner is a long overlooked economic hub that we need to harness to enjoy the full benefits of our newly acquired status as a Free Trade Zone. We will give attention to these places to speed up urban development, create fresh economic opportunities and reduce pressure on Enugu metropolis.
“Likewise we will boost the Enugu city by opening up the Independence Layout Phase Two, Abakpa Nike, Emene and other satellite towns to compliment the proposed Industrial Park. We will partner with the private sector, not only in housing development but also in agricultural development and industrialisation. We want people who are ready to enter into strategic partnership with us to develop Enugu State. We will provide the necessary legal and policy framework to make investment thrive.
Explaining how he hopes to achieve all these ambitious and capital intensive projects in spite of the fact that Chime, while handing over to him, confessed that the purse of the state has become very lean, he said at the informal meeting:
“We are blessed with great men and women. We feel as a government that while others are busy lamenting over their fate as a result of the development in the oil sector, we should quickly initiate the Enugu State Economic Advisory Board. This, we have done.”
The calibre of members that constitute the board, according to observers, is a testimony of the tall vision he has on economic rebirth of the state. For example, the Vicar-General of the Catholic Diocese of Enugu, an outstanding entrepreneurial and financial magnet, Monsignor Prof. Obiora Ike, is the chairman of the board. There are also members like the Deputy Senate President, Sen. Ike Ekweremadu; former Minister of Power, Prof. Barth Nnaji and the highly respected industrialist and Chairman of Innoson Group of Companies, Chief Innocent Chukwuma, who is not from the state but was convinced to be part of the vision. There are also the former Economic Adviser to the President and current Director of the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Nigeria, Prof. Osita Ogbu and former Aviation Minister, Amb. Fidelia Njeze among others.
Commenting on the board Ugwuanyi said “they have all agreed to help and open up the state and to attract investors, which will ultimately boost our Internally Generated Revenue. The reason for this approach is that we want to begin by laying a strong foundation.”
Explaining further that he expects swift economic revival of the state if the people key in to his economic blueprint, Ugwuanyi said, “it is on this note that I wish to call on our people in the Diaspora and the business community to key more freely into the new phase of development in Enugu State. I enjoy their overwhelming support and goodwill for which I will remain grateful. Now, it is time for them to consummate this support by investing more at home and using their wide network of contacts to boost socio-economic development in the state. Although it is said among our people that “Ebe onye bi ka o na awachi”, it is also a fact that “Aku ruo uno, amara onye kpara ya”.
He also said, “we will continue with our foreign investment drive. We were in China recently. We had fruitful discussions with some businessmen who want to invest in our state. The result of those meetings will be felt by the good people of Enugu State when the investors storm Enugu State soon. We will continue to provide favourable policies, legal frameworks, and business-friendly environment to encourage others to follow suit.”
Considering the harsh economic realities in the country, these are difficult days for states in Nigeria, most of which can hardly afford basic necessities like payment of workers salaries. But Ugwuanyi is optimistic that Enugu will work.
He explains the secrets of his optimism this way: “A political associate recently told me that this is not the best of times to be the Governor of Enugu State. But I replied that this is indeed the best time to lead Enugu State. If former President Franklin Roosevelt could lead America out of the great depression; and if President Barack Obama could lead the Americans out of the economic meltdown, I believe that we too can turn the present economic challenges into huge blessings. Since it is knowledge-driven economies and not oil-driven economies that rule the world, I believe that this is another great opportunity for Enugu State and indeed Nigeria to look inwards and harness those potentials, which free oil money has blinded us from exploiting. It is an opportunity to live to our full potentials and discard the feeding bottle federalism syndrome. Importantly, I believe in the miracle of five loaves and two fish. I believe that God will give us the wisdom and courage to successfully navigate the state through the current economic crunch.” This is vintage Ugwuanyi. As the former lawmaker navigates the ship of the South-East state with such raw passion, observers are keen to see how far he can go.
