Whereas Mr. Peter Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, has left office more than eight solid years back, his marks on the sands of time have remained indelible, indeed, something like a cobblestone that would straddle for ages to come.
As the governor of Anambra State, his legacy would remain, as though no governor came in between him and the tenure of current Governor Chukwuma Soludo, when he would have done office. The reason is so simple: Rather than devote his time and energy to pursue good governance and responsible and accountable leadership, the immediate past administration of Chief Willie Obiano foolishly and vainly tried to discredit a man whose governance issues and leadership style were self-evident in humility, discretion, transparency and accountability: even the blind could feel these qualities because they were penetrating.
Take the case of education, for instance. Following the involvement of religious organisations in the running and management of secondary schools in Anambra State, the performance of the state shot up in all competitive examinations. Anambra topped the charts in WAEC, in NECO and in UMTE, among others. The international community also noticed it.
Interestingly, this rubbed off on the government of Obiano, but he never at any time associated this good fortune to the foundation laid by his predecessor, Obi. I was in one of those gatherings where one of his commissioners laboured so hard but vainly, to explain the ‘magic’ his principal was performing in the education sector that was responsible for the amazing results they were posting in competitive examinations. Unfortunately, the audience he was talking to knew where the magic in Anambra education sector came from.
The revolution in education under Obi was so clear the state took the world by storm, winning some international competitions during his tenure and even after he left office. A rub off on the Obiano administration, you would say. If not, where else did the administration of Obiano show any creativity? Where else did they think outside the box to provide leadership for Ndi Anambra?
It was also foolhardy and patently strange that Obiano and his team attempted to rubbish the figure of 75 billion naira handed over to his administration by Obi’s administration. Or the 20 million-dollar investment they inherited. By the time the investment natures, Anambra would be head and shoulder taller than most of their peers.
The implications of this massive investment are many to the state, including the fact that while the rest of the states race to Abuja, cap in hands, begging and waiting for Federation Allocation, Anambra state would joyfully approach their bankers to slice part of their cake. What a sharp thinking by a man who saw tomorrow.
I read a report then where one uninformed writer wondered whether Obi meant 75 million naira? As against the 75 billion naira being bandied about?
The writer also queried the offshore dollar-denominated savings. These facts are on public domain. The banks have also not denied husbanding these funds.
But what a shame! Could it be that Obiano was already prepared to do extra governance during his regime? This was especially so because these quislings of his government began very early in its life. Perhaps, the recent inquisition into his administration by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, may well be a pointer that he has questions to answer on how he managed the finances of the state. Yet Obi who was his object of attack is free with several well-meaning Nigerians making case for his presidential candidature, on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP. I personally welcome this good development for our country.
No doubt, Nigeria needs an Obi to provide leadership going into 2023 and thereafter.
This is why the recent mobbing of Obi at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja by Nigerians, especially young people, and youths in heart, in expression of their support and solidarity for his presidential ambition is great and heart-warming.
It is a good development because it is beginning to indicate that young Nigerians are becoming more conscious of who governs them and what is good for them.
Yes, for too long, Nigerian youths have been made to appear indifferent to things that affect them. This must necessarily change. And the time to begin it is now with more and more Nigerians endorsing Obi for the the country’s presidency.
In fact, the Abuja airport event which went viral in the social media appeared to be a little of the larger development which saw hundreds and thousands of young Nigerians across all spheres, and all parts of the country queueing to drum
support for an Obi candidacy and eventual presidency. We need an Obi to reset the country’s economy and, perhaps its politics too. One just has to take a retrospective look at Anambra politics and economy before Obi came on board and when he left, to appreciate the strength of character, the scope of knowledge, the tenacity of purpose and the resoluteness that altered the narrative. There is no gain saying the fact that Anambra is better for it today. For one thing, it will take a very long time for an efulefu, one without pedigree, to rise to govern that state. It may not happen in the foreseeable future.This is the kind of brilliance, courage, integrity and tenacity of purpose required at the centre, if the country must survive the next decades. We are almost at our wits end as a nation.
The point must be made that Nigeria has in the recent times become an entity with the highest number of out-of-school children, especially girls. Before now, it used to be one million out -of- school children. TODAY the figure has risen to 13 million and more, surpassing India and China whose combined population is more than the population of Africa. This is unacceptable for any right thinking person. And for any government to have done little to shift the paradigm is not worth anybody’s sympathy, not even a farewell.
The country is also the capital of poverty in the world. If anybody was in doubt, the haze would have cleared with the new classification by the World Bank in which $2.15, is now the basic minimum for daily sustenance. Given our ever-rising exchange rate, the implication is that almost all retirees, all junior workers of all establishments but oil sector, all state civil servants yet to implement the minimum wage and all informal sector workers among others, are caught in this poverty trap. So the earlier figure of 100 million Nigerians being poor has been wasted. Today, no fewer than 150 to 180 million Nigerians may have fallen into poverty. This is happening under a government that recently reaffirmed its promise and commitment to lift over 100 million Nigerians out of poverty before it leaves office on May 29, 2023. There is no further argument that a proper handling of education to capture more souls, and a more discerning management of national resources through employment and job creation and conscious efforts to bridge the poverty and income gap would reduce insecurity. Those few who persist to disturb others will be easier to deal with by law. But as it is today, the gap keeps on burgeoning. It’s foreboding really! We must think about our children, as Obi told a section of the PDP convention delegates recently.
It’s also true that the country has been taken over by corruption and lawlessness, a twin development that keep any economy down on the pecking order of attraction to foreign direct investment (FDI). Of course, no foreigner or even local investor would want to invest in an economy where security services, the judicial system, the ports and in general, those institutions responsible for the protection of lives and property have almost collapsed. As we speak, there are no industries, no matter how small in states like Yobe and Borno because of insecurity. The same for Zamfara, where a study a few years back showed that there was no single private school. I doubt if that statistics has changed given its long – drawn security challenge with banditry and cross- border brigandage.
While it’s arguable that there are no quick fixes to these challenges, the reality is that Obi is a man with the right pedigree to tackle them. It’s instructive that some of these challenges linger because those who should address them are part thereof. Take the issue of corruption. If a president or a governor and their families are far removed from it, those working with them would ordinarily know that nobody will shield them if caught. That was the point Obi made recently in a television program when he said no member of his family would be involved in his government if he is elected president. That was how he put Anambra right. He can do similarly so for the Nigerian state. The audacity of some agents of the state, and the recklessness of some non state actors find expression in the failure of the state to extract the required punishment or reprimand on them. That is where the country is, almost, currently. But this drift can be checked.
That is why we need Mr Peter Obi as the next president of the Nigerian state. Beyond being adequately prepared, he has got the cosmopolitan character of a man who is unbiased and just in judgement, honest and corrupt-free in his dealings with men, materials and finance, humble in wealth and power, as well as God fearing with the understanding that we are all pilgrims on this side of eternity. Let’s give him a chance.
•Okoro is a Lagos-based journalist
