Opinion: Let’s face it, Gov. Obiano has achieved so much in office

Willie-Obiano

On March 17th 2014 when Chief Willie Obiano mounted the saddle of leadership in Anambra State, amongst the people of Anambra state, many were left wondering if such remarkable feat set by the former governor Peter Obi could be achieved by him, let alone improve on it.

A year and into his administration, the people of Anambra must be nodding their head in contentment. In a country where succession has posed the greatest challenge to leadership, Obiano’s widely acclaimed great performance in the last six months has firmly validated former governor Peter Obi as a great leader who is not only concerned about the present but keeps an eagle eye on the future.

A year down the road, the facts of Obiano’s stewardship are there for all to see. The ex-banker had signalled his intention to turn things around in Anambra in his prophetically titled inaugural address “Expanding the Frontiers of Excellence”.

The most glaring achievement I observed while visiting the state recently is that for the first time in living memory, Anambra State has almost attained a crime-free status. For more than four decades, Onitsha, the economic engine-room of Nigeria’s South East was a metaphor for crime and unnameable absurdities. People who are familiar with Onitsha can easily recall the era of the first and second Boys Oh Yeahs down to the Bakassi Boys days, the Derico days and a host of other regimes of the underworld in Onitsha.

These periods in history made Onitsha synonymous with violent crime, stripping it of the promise it once held as the literary publishing capital of West Africa which it firmly established with the era of the once famous Onitsha Market Literature. For close to four decades; Onitsha was an anathema of sorts; a taboo to decent folks. But Obiano’s Operation Kpochapu changed that narrative in just six months.

It would seem that Governor Obiano had this in mind before he assumed the leadership of the state. He figured out that if he could fix Anambra’s security worries, then everything else would follow. He also knew that without a secured Anambra, his Four Pillars of Development (namely, Agriculture, Industrialization, Trade & Commerce and Oil & Gas) for Anambra State would amount to nothing. And now that he has found the formula for cleansing Anambra of crime and criminals, the outcome has been quiet impressive.

It is indeed remarkable how, Obiano’s vision has started to show so early in the life of the administration. One of the earliest signs of what could happen in the New Anambra State under Obiano is the massive investment inflow that the state has witnessed in the last few months. Last year the Anambra State Investment Promotion and Protection Agency (ANSIPPA) came into being when the bill proposing it was signed into law by the Anambra State House of Assembly. In a very short time, the agency has justified Obiano’s background as an investment banker with statistics his fellow governors would envy.

Obiano’s giant strides in agriculture are understandable. Agriculture is one of the pillars of his administration. But the governor has shown as much hunger for success in other areas as well. Another remarkable feat is in the area of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) which has increased from an average of N700m that the administration inherited to over a Billion naira at the moment. Knowing how averse the people are to the payment of taxes and levies, the marginal increase in IGR in the period under review is quite significant and commendable. Also remarkable that during the recent economic downturn for the FG due to the drop in oil price, Anambra was amongst the only 16 states in the country able to pay state salaries.

Having suffered privation as a son of low-income earners, and being sensitive to the plight of the suffering people, Governor Willie Obiano increased the salaries of different cadres of workers in the employ of the Anambra state government. He donated buses to the Anambra state workers. The buses ply the major routes in the state, and convey workers to their work places from their places of residence. His welfarist and people- oriented deeds have imprinted his name on our collective psyche, and endeared him to us.

More so, in order to open up Anambra state for rapid industrialization, he has been rehabilitating bad roads and constructing new ones. In Ayamalum area, he is building a bridge to facilitate the movement of people. And, he is building pedestrian bridges (flyovers) in Awka as well as constructing the three arm zone structures, which will be used by members of the state executive, legislature, and judiciary. Like his predecessor, Mr. Peter Obi, revamping the educational system, as well as equipping the schools for optimal performance in academic activities has come top in his priority.

Governor Obiano is one of the leaders the people of Anambra long yearned for. He is one who has a great sense of leadership and zeal to work for the people. It’s therefore no coincidence that he has recorded tremendous achievements in his first year in office.

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