By Jeff Enechi
‘If there is a will, there is a way’ is a saying that conveys the wisdom needed to move Nigeria forward in the present scheme of things. The greatest advances that human society has ever attained on the earth have always come at the most trying times. This is a testimony that human accomplishments happen more by the will and the zeal of the leadership to accomplish than the availability of abundance of money. That is why I have great respect for what Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi is doing in Enugu State.
The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 11: 4 that he that is mindful of the wind shall not sow and he that regards the clouds shall not reap. If we continue to give and take excuses based on the present economic challenges facing the nation, this administration will finish the four-year term with nothing to show in terms of realising the developmental promises those elected into power made to the people. The government of Enugu State is quite aware of the revenue challenges facing all tiers of government but appears to be driven by the will to accomplish, which is the critical ingredient of progress in society. I will not be surprised if the state eventually emerges as a leading example of economic and social development under the present mandate.
While excuses seem to have taken the place of decisive actions in both federal and state governments, Ugwuanyi apparently is not letting excuses to retard the pace of development in his state. He appears to take a stance of someone set on a mission to impact lives and society. He is moving ahead to open up new urban areas to boost the economic growth of Enugu State and he isn’t letting anything hinder him from delivering the results. In pursuit of this commitment the State Executive Council last week awarded a contract for the construction of Orie-Emene-Adoration road, located at Emene – a satellite town in Enugu. This is coming just two weeks after the flag off of construction work on eight urban and rural road projects across the three senatorial districts of Enugu State.
At its completion, the new road will decongest the existing roads and enhance easy movement of people and goods in the area. The council is said to have considered the road, which leads to the popular Adoration Ministry praying ground due to its importance to Christian faithful and the inherent economic benefits to the state. Aggressive road development projects need to kick off nationwide to avoid further delay in the in bridging of the critical infrastructure gap in the country.
This constitutes the centre of the electoral promises of the present administration and it is important that governments at all levels do not let revenue difficulties obscure their promises to the people.Nigerian people are quick to appreciate good works and even positive body language, which makes the country one of the easiest to in the world to govern. I believe that appreciation is one of the best forms of motivation to do more. It is in this light that the move by residents in Enugu State last week to commend their governor is welcome. Ugwuanyi’s six-month stewardship in the saddle as governor of the state has witnessed an undeniable commitment to match development actions with electoral promises. And the people rightly applaud his government.
Last week some of the residents in Enugu State described Ugwuanyi as a selfless leader, who has devoted himself to the service of the people. At a time of general despair, hope has been rekindled in this part of the nation with the people expressing satisfaction with what the government is doing. Good leadership needs good followership to accomplish desired objectives, which is so far the working formula in Enugu State. While appreciating the government actions, the people are urging their governor to remain focused and steadfast in his determination to advance the pace of development in Enugu State. Road is the principal means of movement of people and goods in Nigeria and therefore road development is of prior importance in the country. A good road attracts attention because it represents a clear evidence of government’s developmental action.
This explains why residents in Enugu State continue to hail Ugwuanyi for the recent flag-off of the construction of eight strategic urban and rural roads across the state. Mr. Udenta Benjamin from Ngwo in Udi Local Government Area of the state, said the road development project was a clear indication that government has commenced a new chapter of aggressive development in the state.In his comments, Udenta pointed out a pertinent issue why the present government at all levels must not fail the people. Expectations of the people of this nation from government to improve their living conditions reached a new height before the election. Those who sought to be elected into government offices saw the unacceptable conditions of the people and made promises for a change. No excuse therefore will do for failure of any government, federal or state, to improve the lots of the people as promised.
This is the reason why the people are full of appreciation for the bold steps by the governor of Enugu State. It is important that Ugwuanyi remains focused on his vision for making the state the economic hub east of the Niger. Internally generated revenue is getting a capacity building attention in Enugu State. The Enugu State Executive Council has appointed a private company, Bricks Data Limited in a bid to boost internally generated revenue. The company is positioned to generate revenue on landed property through geographic information system approach. The approach is designed to streamline revenue collection on landed property in the state and avoid the ugly incident of multiple payments of such fees.It is easily admitted that Nigeria has great economic potentials but also that these potentials are largely untapped. This is the explanation for the low internally generated revenue capacity in most states of the federation.
The drop in crude oil prices and consequently government revenue presents yet a new opportunity for this nation to begin the long overdue process of developing the human and material resource potentials of the various states of the federation.It is in the light of the above that what another resident in Enugu State said is indeed a message to the whole nation. Mr. Donatus C. Nnamani from Emene, in the Enugu East Local Government Area, brought to the fore the strategic importance of Orie-Emene-Adoration road, which is the additional contract the state government awarded last week. This road leads to the popular Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka’s Adoration Ministry praying ground – which is a tourist attraction centre.Some states of the federation may keep their arms folded for the next four years bemoaning the crude oil market and the loss of huge revenues.
A few others like Enugu State will seize the opportunity to look inwards and go a long way to develop their economic potentials. Nnamani expects that the construction of Orie-Emene-Adoration road will boost the economic growth of the state through tourism and other commercial activities.“For our governor to have remembered the importance of this road to the Christian community and its inherent benefits to the economic growth of our state especially now that the state is running short of cash for development issues is enough evidence that he has the potency for the advancement of good governance in the state. I am confident that the God we serve will continue to bless him and give the wisdom and resources to take Enugu State to greater heights”, Nnamani said. Enechi, a public affairs commentator writes from Abuja
