By Uche Nwosu
At the beginning of every generation God creates a leader who emancipates his people and refocuses them to the part of reformation. Such leader comes rarely, except when they are needed to lead crusade against slavery, savagery and uncertainty like Moses in the bible did. They are great men because God has made him so. According to Henri Frederic Amiel, a Swiss writer, “Great men are the real men: in them nature has succeeded”. Accordingly, Gov TA Orji, the man that is steering the ship of Abia state is a great man that has succeeded in rewriting the history of this “God’s Own State”. As Abia marks its 23rd year Anniversary under the administration of this indefatigable administrator, it is pertinent to recall Abia’s position before he took over as its chief executive officer.
Having been created on August 27, 1991, Abia was bereft of quality infrastructures because, either by omission or commission, the military that ruled the Old Imo State where it was carved out from shied away from carrying out a sustained developmental process on its territory. And so when Abia state was created by the Ibrahim Babangida’s administration the challenge of the absence of quality infrastructure became its bane.
The problem was so pronounced that the then military administrator, Navy Captain Frank Ajobena had to resort to converting school buildings and personal houses of residents of Umuahia to offices and government houses. Against this backdrop, the Library Avenue Primary School not only became a government office but a cabinet office. The Emeka Emerua house, situated at the GRA Umuahia near the school was renovated to serve as the Abia government house. Ironically, that is where government house Abia state is currently situated until the current Gov TA Orji’s intervention.
It was also on record that Ajobena also embarked on the reconstruction of some roads and buildings to accommodate the army of public and civil servant who, having being disengaged from the civil service at Owerri, had to travel from Owerri to Umuahia on daily basis, to perform their official assignments. Even though he tried to position the state to a level that befits a modern state, Abia remained a huge glorified local government.
Indeed, it was so until the administration of Dr Ogbonnaya Onu. Though his was a diarchy (a combination of civilian and military government), Onu’s administration that came on stream in January 1992 was terminated with other governors when General Sani Abacha staged his November 17, 1993 coup d’état. The unceremonious removal of the government left his dreams unfulfilled and made Abia worst for it.
Consequently, Abia continued to grope in darkness; seeking for a Messiah that did not come under subsequent military regimes in the state. Though, it had some flashes of good governance during the military regimes of late Col Ike Nwosu, Group Captain TemiEjoor, Col Moses Fasanya and Col Anthony Obi, the state was far from attaining its Eldorado, as the state still lacked basic and developmental infrastructure in Umuahia and Aba, its two major cities.
However, in May 29, 1999 the fourth republic was ushered into the country and Abia had its second civilian administration. There were high expectations as the People Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Orji Uzor Kalu was sworn in as the second executive governor of Abia state. Actually, what were considered Kalu’s modest achievements in his eight-year administration were blurred by invectives and verbal onslaughts he unleashed against the central government under the leadership of President Olusegun Obasanjo.
As a result, Abia was considered an enemy state and yanked off from the scheme of things. In this regard, the expectation of the people that their state had returned to the track of sanity, progress and development following the commencement of a democratic government were dashed by Kalu’s quirkiness. And Abia was worse for it. It indeed cringed under the suffocating pang of unforgiving Obasanjo, who did all but allow Abia have any meaningful project from the federal government until he handed over to President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.
The state of affairs in Abia continued to be pitiable until the incumbent governor Chief TA Orji took over in May 29, 2007 as the third executive governor of the state. Even though Ochendo had a frustrating start, he cautiously steered away from obstacles and clogs laid on his way to governance. These impediments were meant to derail his administration. He began by reconciling the state with the Yar’Adua led federal government; an accomplishment that translated to the present President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.
Determined to work in order to move Abia in next level, Gov Orji began what today are known as Abia Legacy Projects. He indeed carried out a revolution that saw to the building of housing estates in Aba and Umuahia; construction of roads, enhancing rule of law and quick dispensation of justice by building modern office complexes and residential structure for judiciary officers.
Before he became governor Abia political space was polarized as politicians of Abia origin based in Abuja pitted themselves against their counterparts in Abia state. But Ochendo stopped this by remarkably assembling hitherto political enemies to one large and accommodating umbrella. It has been considered as a masterstroke. In fact it is interesting to witness those politicians who disagreed politically since 1999 come together under a common front to move the state forward.
Gov Orji has carried out the revolution to all sectors, be it political, economic and social. Since his second tenure in office (at the renewal of his mandate in May 29, 2011), theIbeku born technocrat has built not less than 2,000kms of roads scattered across the state which include Nkata-Alike-Umuahia, Umueze-Agbo-UbaniIbeku, dualization of Tower-Isieke, Ibeku,Umuafia-Agbama, Umuafia-Ndume, Okwoyi, Umukabia,Ohuhu-Mkpa, Okagwe-OmaekpuOhafia ring road, UkwuMango, Old Express/Samek, Abia Polytechnic pedestrian bridge, Danfodio and East street.
There are others too which space cannot accommodate. But suffice it to say that Sir Orji has gone out of his way to provide security by empowering women and youth with skill acquisition and vehicles to sustain them and work as employer of labour. In other subsectors such as healthcare, housing, electricity, security, peace, education, transportation, tourism, infrastructure etc, the Abia state government under the leadership of Gov TA Orji performed excellently. It is on record that the specialist and diagnostic hospital at Aba and Umuahia which it built is yet to be equaled in terms of medical equipment.
• Nwosu, a Public Affairs Commentator, wrote in from Umuahia, Abia state.
Ochendo Global! Biri kwa!
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