ABIA CHRONICLES; GOVERNOR IKPEAZU RE-WRITES THE NARRATIVES (Part II).

By Ubani Newman Ubani
Leadership, ideally serves as a veritable tool to consciously and conscientiously proffer answers and solutions to issues, challenges and uncertainties of the electorate or the led. Purposeful and visionary leadership should not be characterized or engrossed in blame game of past administrations or the inactions of past leaders.
Since inception, the government of Governor Okezie Ikpeazu has been apt and definitive of the challenges bedeviling God’s Own State thus given the administration a solid platform to takeoff. Understandably, without an indept grasp of issues and challenges, it usually seems intractable.
Against this backdrop, is the many wins of this administration within a short while which underscores the potency and imperativeness of determination, focus and hard-work which are the feeders and enablers that have leaped to unprecedented success and accomplishments in this clime even in the face of national economic gridlocks.
In the Health sector, for instance there are clear cut reforms that have started yielding dividends, old and decrepit hospitals are been renovated, with new ones constructed with staff quarters to enhance effectiveness and efficiency. It is no gainsaying the fact that these renovation spree will further ginger the morale of health personnel. It will not be out of place to assert that Abia is been tilted to become a health tourist spot.
Infrastructural decay weighed our commercial and Industrial prospects down, before now industries and captains of industries were fleeing the state in droves.
It is now on record that Governor Okezie Ikpeazu have championed an unsurpassed infrastructural revolution since the creation of the state. The roads constructed across the length and breadth of Abia state, most importantly Aba the economic nerve center of the state is geared towards awakening the sleeping giant thus placing Abia on the fast lane of progress and development. This government have metamorphosed to the darling of Abians as their aspirations and hopes are been met and restored.
Our internally generated revenue have progressed to over One Billion Naira from a paltry Four Hundred Million and the projections is that by the end of this year it will surpass Two Billion Naira, this is not a happenstance, it signals a favorable economic climate and investors confidence in the crop of leader piloting the affairs of the state. Unarguably, is a cankerworm that have eaten deep into the national fabric, and tackling it will fast track our development.
The war against corruption is not only peculiar to the Federal Government alone, the state government is exhausting all avenues in purging the state of this malaise, the recent biometric verification of workers to fish out ghost workers in the state is a good case in study. It will eradicate the era of over bloated wage bill and leave enough funds for the much needed development after salary payment. It is an aberration, that worker’s salaries gulp nearly Abia’s monthly allocation. The business of Government is been conducted in a manner that is throwing up transparency and discourage mindless inflation of government contracts via the creation of the “Due process “office by Governor Okezie Ikpeazu. This steps have proven to be well articulated as it has saved the government of Billions that would have been frittered away through the drain-pipe of corruption.
Industrialization is also cardinal to this administration, the “Made in Aba” campaign initiative of Governor Ikpeazu is yielding the desired results, as our indigenous made shoes, fabrics etc, is highly sought after today even across the border of Nigeria occasioned by the aggressive marketing strategy of Governor Ikpeazu. Many investors and industrialists are trouping to the state, perceiving Abia as a fertile ground for investments which is an offshoot of Governor Ikpeazu’s purposeful and visionary leadership.
Education, incontrovertibly is the pivot upon which any modern society revolves, it serves as a fillip for advancement and all round development. Hence, it has been receiving the desired attention it deserves from the State government. Cheeringly, Governor Ikpeazu is operating in a very familiar turf in this sector, having been a university don, the state owned university, (ABSU ) have been restructured, today signs are visible, the institution’s churn-outs are torch bearers today in the nation and beyond exemplified by our law graduates in Law school.
It is also gratifying to know that Abia students have been taking the lead in West African Senior Examinations consecutively since the advent of this administration. Even the Bible states that “By their fruit we shall know them” the efforts of this administration in education sector had certainly been laid bare by the positive results.
Abia state polytechnic Aba is not left out in the Governor’s Midas touch before now their fees have been reviewed for possible reduction, coupled with recently instituting a crop of management that will sanitize the institution’s battered system.
Governor Ikpeazu’s magnanimity that knows no bounds, located Abia State College of Education (Technical ) lately ,as he announced the reduction of fees paid by the students from Fifty thousand Naira(#50,000) to Thirty Five thousand Naira(35,000) only.
The achievements of Governor Ikpeazu in the Education sector cannot be chronicled but this is just a bird’s eye view of the numerous milestones of this administration as such more goodies are in the offing.
Attracting foreign investments is very crucial to this administration, this saw Governor Okezie Ikpeazu going to Egypt to seek support from Afrexim Bank in a bid to promote and enlarge Abia’s investment coast.
It is a new dawn in Abia and surely we’re enroute to the halcyon shores with Governor Okezie Victor Ikpeazu Ph.D on the saddle.
Indeed, Governor Okezie Ikpeazu is re-writing Abia State’s history for the better.
Newman Ubani writes from Umuahia.