Charles Nwodo Jnr. has a rich background as a chartered stockbroker and banker with professional memberships of the Chartered Institute of Stockbrokers and Nigerian Institute of Bankers.
A Civil Engineering graduate from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nwodo Jnr. was also at the University of Lagos and the Harvard Business School, Boston, Massachusetts, for more trainings and for his MBA, with specialization on Investment Management.
Nwodo Jnr., who hails from Ukehe in Igbo Etiti Local Government Area of Enugu State, is the President of Nsukka Professional Group, (NPG), Lagos.
In this interview with THE CITIZEN, the NPG President reflects on Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s first year on the saddle in Enugu State, his developmental and leadership styles, among other issues.
Excerpts:
How would you say it has been for the state so far?
The governor’s one year in office so far reflects improved relationship between the government and the governed across the entire length and breadth of Enugu State, whether you are from the Northern Senatorial district; Enugu, Nsukka, Awgu or wherever in the state. It is obvious there is a sense of ownership of governance by the entire people of the state. He has just succeeded in bringing the entire Enugu State into a cohesive movement of people in tune with their government.
There is a bright future with the state with this style of leadership as he has succeeded in making the whole populace to buy into his own vision for the transformation of the state. Personally, I would say so far he is together with the people in this journey, with his genuine sense of mission to develop every part of the state. Even people who are not politicians feel actively consulted in many of his decisions and are indeed carried along in the way everything is thrown open. So Ugwuanyi’s government is not just a government of politicians; it is a government of the people of Enugu State. And mark you this is because he deliberately chose it so. How he achieved that is a credit to his political maturity. It is not easy.
Considering that paucity of funds has been constraining governments at all levels, how do you assess the Governor’s project distribution and execution efforts in the state?
The truth is that he is driven by this passion and commitment to provide for his people that the little funds he has are never shared out for the patronage of the high and mighty as the typical average political office holder in these climes does. He is after the actual development of the state and the improvement of the welfare of the people of the state. So you can’t find such situations like where some people owe workers eight months and that sort of thing. It is all about one’s decision from the go to be there for just everyone in the state, hence he throws projects about the whole place, I mean state-wide. Truly, considering the meagre resources Enugu State has, it is really a credit to the governor that he pays salaries on time and is still able to deploy these funds to carry out activities in all the local government areas as he does. If you check, there is no part of Enugu State that doesn’t have activity. This is indeed remarkable for sure.
Enugu has been in the news following the herdsmen attack on Ukpabi/Nimbo where many lives were lost and property destroyed. This generated a lot of outrage across the country. How would you assess the Governor’s handling of that situation?
I must confess that initially I had thought the governor was more aggressive, more militant in his response. But of course you would understand that those of us outside may not have all the information that was available to him as a governor. But in retrospect, his approach was the best the situation truly demanded. He was behind the scene where he worked tirelessly to make sure the case was appropriately tackled without playing to the gallery as some other politicians would have done without regards to the overall implications of that to the security and stability of the polity. He silently concentrated on what mattered most. He made sure a case was well-made at the appropriate quarters and the state got the attention of the President. He ensured resources were deployed to rescue, save and sustain those that needed such in the aftermath.
And let me tell you, it is gratifying some of those that perpetrated this devilish act have been apprehended. It is a testament to the approach the governor had deployed in handling the whole crises. So in retrospect, those who had wanted a more militant approach can now very much agree with his wise approach that yielded all the positive responses we are all seeing and thus congratulate him in being more foresighted than we had been. He just operated in the background and got the results, which is what our people desire. They want the culprits to be apprehended, they want the cause of justice to be served, and they want adequate compensations paid to the victims. These are what the judicial commission of enquiry which the governor has set up is intended to accomplish.
So in all, you can see the almost effortless leadership excellence the governor’s approach had engendered, whereas other politicians would choose to go to the podium to make some political capital out of the sorrows of his people. His level-headed and effective approach is delivering results for the people. This I think again is worthy of commendation. Any student of leadership would understand this is pure and practical leadership.
As the leader of Nsukka Professional Group, Lagos, an organization that has played some leading roles in trying to ginger leadership and economic regeneration of Nsukka and all that, how do you think the political leaders and elites of the zone appreciate the leadership style of the Governor?
The Governor is a grassroots politician. Obviously, he understands the politics and leadership of grassroots better than a lot of the elites, especially those elites that are distant from the state. He is in touch with the people; he feels their pulses and has a better understanding of their priorities. Those of us who are not politicians and who are not totally on ground in our state however have some contributions to make. And I think it is a blend of the governor’s on-ground realism and deep knowledge of the grassroots political environment combined with relevant awareness and exposure with international trends; also tapping from some of our people within and outside that can give our people the kind of development he wants for them.
What I am saying in effect therefore is that some of us who are not in government should be able to offer constructive suggestions and advice in addition to being available to play roles that are consistent towards the development of our place. So developing our place as we are talking is not just an issue for the governor or the politicians alone. The civil society and everybody has a role to play. As a matter of fact the private sector has to be at the fore front of the economic development. For example, latching on to the conducive environment the Governor has made available, the process of attracting private sector investment to our state must be championed by the socio-economic elites of Enugu State. And this is where I think those of us at the Nsukka Professional Group are relevant. We have made some submissions to the government regarding our proposals for rapid economic transformation of the state; and these are receiving attention of relevant authorities in the state.
The proposal covered many facets from infrastructural development, to education, commerce, industry, and crime control and prevention. All are aimed at partnering with the government to create jobs for the teeming youths of the state. That is the nature of the blueprint we have submitted to the government, and in addition to that, we as individuals are always available to contribute with our ideas and opinions whenever called upon to participate in any platform the government may choose to involve us. And don’t forget the governor’s door is open at all times. So we must all join forces with the government to work to see a state that is working and flourishing for the good of the people, as our Governor has always wanted and worked towards.
