If
you ask most Anambra citizens why they think that Governor Willie
Obiano has become such a huge success barely 12 months at the helm, most
would point to his performance in the area of security. Perhaps,
there’s a good reason for this. At a security fundraiser in Lagos, the
governor himself had put the matter thus: “Our people have suffered from
general insecurity … for a long time. Long before kidnapping became a
big business in Anambra State, we have had to live in an endless period
of fear of armed robbers and brigands of all kinds.” He was not
exaggerating. From hooliganism and petty theft at the Onitsha
international market, intermittent uprising of vigilance groups that
ended up doing more harm than good, to the ubiquitous gangsters who lay
in ambush to kidnap, rob or murder their more successful kinsmen, the
Number One state in the South-east had turned into a sad metaphor for
lawlessness and crime. Many prominent citizens ran to Enugu and Asaba
from where they occasionally darted home and quickly slipped out before
anyone would notice.
By
December, 2014, barely eight months after assuming power, Willie Obiano
successfully uprooted the gangsters and cleared the land for a safe
return of the “exiles.” On my most recent visit to Awka, I noted two
things that advertise the governor’s success in dealing with the
security threat – nightclubs are now springing up in the state capital
while traders now stay longer at night in their various markets.
I
think that this governor is wise. There are four issues that destroyed
the development efforts of his predecessors, among them the ability to
mobilise the people to a common cause, clear the clouds of insecurity
and fear, harness and deploy people’s natural skills in commerce and
industry, and manage powerful interests. These presented challenges for
succeeding governors and subsumed their achievements under a cloud of
controversies. Insecurity was the number one monster that none of
Obiano’s predecessors could successfully tame. Also, lack of inclusive
governance made it challenging to mobilise key stakeholders to a common
cause. Inclusive governance extends beyond appeasing Anambra’s political
heavyweights to mobilising the economic titans whose combined financial
fire-power could have easily launched the state into its natural
position as the engine room of commerce and industry in Nigeria.
People
can now look at Obiano’s development blueprint because he has so far
successfully managed these governance risks. From what I have been able
to glean from this document – known as “four pillars of development,”
the governor seeks to install economic enablers that will push the state
forward to the frontiers of mechanised agriculture, industrialisation,
trade and investment as well as security. He also has his eyes trained
on mobilising the efforts of high networth Anambra citizens.
So
far, he has succeeded in attracting local and foreign investors to help
him actualise his vision. One example is the auto-magnate, Chief Cosmas
Maduka (Coscharis), who has been persuaded to return to his native
state and branch out into rice farming. Maduka’s Coched Farms aims to
increase rice production and processing in Anaku, a land that is reputed
for good yields. He is joined by foreign investors, including the high
profile Ekcel Farms (a $100 million tomato farms project in Omasi and
Ayamelum), Joseph Agro Limited (rice farming) and Grains and Silos Ltd.,
all of which have launched a coordinated effort to not only propel
better agricultural yields but also assure improved processing and
storage of agro-allied products.
Beyond
the big farmers, Obiano’s government brought together subsistent
farmers and youths and encouraged them to form cooperatives to access
benefits, such as improved seedlings, stalks and tractors, and the
training they require to apply modern mechanised methods of farming.
Over 1,800 of such societies have so far been formed to deal directly
with the government.
Another
example of a mobilised economic resource is Chief Innocent Chukwuma,
the Nnewi-based vehicle manufacturer and auto assembler, who decided to
intervene in the area of education. Chukwuma’s interest is on the
governor’s three-pronged plan to revitalise technical colleges, train
teachers of technical colleges and employ the graduates to bridge the
gap between education and industries.
Obiano’s
overall policy approach to governance is encapsulated in his 4C’s –
continuing, completing, commissioning projects he met, and commencing
new development projects. He is practicalising this approach in the
health sector (through rapid completion of his predecessor’s hospital
projects at Adazi-Nnukwu, Ogidi, Ihiala, Onitsha and Amichi), in the
education sector (through further billion-naira grants to missionary
schools and the state UBE Board to fund primary and junior secondary
education), through road constructions (completing ongoing road projects
while pursuing his own unique approach to connect rural communities and
big industrial centres – such as Orient Petroleum – to urban centres),
and in the leisure industry sector (where he is completing the Agulu
Lake Tourist Resort project while going ahead to revamp Ogbunike Cave
and Owelle-Ezukala Water Falls and environs into world-class tourists
spots).
It
is a full plate that Governor Willie Obiano is bearing and he comes to
the task with a challenged spirit that dissolves time in consciousness.
As he celebrates one year in office, it may be too early to say that
Gov. Obiano has got it completely right, or will indeed get it
completely right in the end. But so far, he has proved that he deserves
to be encouraged to continue to walk the bold and wise lane in his plan
to make the state healthy and strong, maintain top spot in educational
achievements, reduce the cost of doing business, maintain a safe
environment and provide outlets for the people to enjoy life.
OGBUAGU ANIKWE
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