05th of September 2010
| Obis work has shamed detractors |
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Market leader and chairman of Fancy and Furniture Dealers Association (FFDA), Chief Chris Ofoegbu, gave the verdict after a recent fact-finding mission to the state. Speaking to Daily Sun after touring the state in company of other Anambra indigenous market stakeholders in Lagos, Ofoegbu enjoined the people of the state to cast politics aside and queue behind Obi in next year’s election because of the marked improvements he brought to every sector in the state. “I am not a politician but I can confidently say that Obi has re-invented Anambra state in the last two years. He has touched every aspect of the society such as education, health, electricity, agriculture, justice sector, roads, among others. “This is not what we read in the pages of the newspapers or viewed on television where different angles of a project would be displayed as different projects. “We toured the entire state and we saw different developmental projects he has accomplished while some are at various stages of completion. We were able to undertake a journey that used to take a whole day in less than half of a day due to the improved road networks all over the place,” he said. According to Ofoegbu, if there is any sin Obi has committed, it is refusal to share the state money with political godfathers which has always been a clog in the wheel of progress in the state. “Today, teachers are being paid salaries, projects are being executed everywhere because the state money is being spent for the people and not to service godfathers. “Also, he has been able to motivate and encourage indigenes of the state in the Diaspora, especially in overseas countries to come and contribute to the development of the state. This is quite encouraging as they have been responding to his call,” he stressed. He spoke further on his general perception of the state of affairs in the state; how he received the call to participate in the mission to visit the state; views on politics and the way forward. Excerpts: Invitation I was surprised when, one morning, someone called me and said that the governor of Anambra state wanted all market stakeholders who are indigenes of the state to come for a fact-finding mission. I was surprised because there is no precedence of such in this country. No governor has ever done that in Nigeria, I mean, to invite citizens of a state to come and inspect his own performance. What we know is that such things are usually done on the pages of newspapers which usually are often characterized with wide gulf between what is published and the true position of things on the ground. Let me also tell you that the invitation had nothing to do with partisan politics. We were not politicians. This clearly showed that Peter Obi is sincere and open about governance which was very uncommon in our environment. Mission We were taken round the state and saw things for ourselves. We travelled by road to the towns and villages. What is first noticeable is that there is a good road network around the state now. The journey that could have taken a whole day, we spent less than half of a day because of the good road networks built by Obi’s administration. We left Awka to Okosso; to Aguleri down to Onitsha to Nnewi under five hours. That is unprecedented. We were all surprised. In the past, you dare not venture unless you are mentally prepared to face the stress and pains. So we were all happy with this development. Anambra State since 1999 I must tell you that we have had a couple of governors since this new dispensation. Dr. Chris Ngige tried his best, especially in the area of roads. However, Obi has surpassed all in our estimation. He has been able to re-invent the state in all ramifications. Obi, so far, has not limited his developmental projects to roads, he has done so much in the area of schools, health, transportation and other sectors. There is a mighty secretariat for the state and the first phase is virtually completed. Also, in the area of administration of justice, Obi has changed the situation for better. Administration of justice has remained under neglect by successive governments until Obi came to the scene. He has built magnificent Judges’ Lodges for our judicial officers to make them comfortable in their sacred calling. Honestly, Obi has touched every part of the state and virtually every key sector of the society has been given attention. No area was neglected. Even in the area of electrification, over 100 transformers were bought and distributed to various communities to boost their electricity supply. These are facts that are verifiable on the ground. Overall, Obi has given Anambra a real lift to the admiration of those of us who are not politicians. Benefits from the Federal Government At the tail end of Obasanjo’s regime, he deceived Anambra state and the entire South-East that he has commissioned the second Niger Bridge. Peter Obi came out to debunk the claim by describing it as a 419 gambit. I can tell you that since 1999, we have not seen any dividends of democracy from the Federal Government in the state. Perhaps, what could be said is that, the centre has always been responsible for fueling position crisis in our state even within families. This is the irony because our sons and daughters have always been involved in the Federal Government. Motivating Anambrans in the Diaspora Another area where Obi has been able to tap from is the immense ability and potential of Anambra in the Diaspora especially in overseas countries. He has been able to use his wisdom to galvanize those abroad to undertake series of projects in the state. One of such is a school in my community. He deserves a second chance Honestly, Obi deserves our total support for the second term. He has surpassed our expectations within two years of office. For those of us who are not politicians, there is no reason why we should not invest our trust in him again. Sincerely speaking, every God-fearing citizen of Anambra state should support Obi and put aside politics. Politicians have a way of telling lies to the people. When they tell us Obi has not done anything, you will think that they are speaking the truth but when you visit the state, then you will discover their lies. Perhaps, the sin Obi committed against them is his blunt refusal to share the state money with them as was done in the past. He has decided to focus attention on governance and put the people first and that is what led to the positive changes we are seeing everywhere. I believe that by the grace of God, he will surely sail through because I see him as God-sent to the state and he has approached governance with the fear of God. Security and kidnapping problem Let me tell you that the issue of insecurity and today in the country is not peculiar to Anambra. And this has to be traced to the fact that the state government is not in control of security agencies, especially the police. This is the heart of the problem. The issue of kidnapping did not emanate from Anambra state. It was a carry-over from the Niger Delta. However, let me tell you that Obi has not rested or kept quiet over security. He has been very consistent in supporting and equipping the police with operational vehicles and necessary materials. As I’m talking to you, armored vehicles and about 100 operation vans have been donated to support the police. If a state government does that, what stops the federal government from giving them necessary support that would make them effective? To start blaming Obi for security problem is simply to call a dog a bad name to hang it. It is a sheer political gimmick that has no basis in the state of affairs in Anambra today. |
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