A section of Governor Hope Uzodimma’s address that caught my attention during his inauguration for a second term on Monday, 15th January was where he reminded fellow Imo citizens that the state belonged to all and sought their cooperation in getting it back on the tracks. He further asked all to bury the hatchets wherever they existed, forgive and forget whatever wrongs that may have been committed in the past in order to move the state ahead.
His words: “My dear brothers and sisters, as you know, Imo State belongs to all of us, and building the state of our dream will require the contributions of everyone of us, irrespective of our political affiliations. The time has come to bury all those differences so we can work collectively to develop our state. Remember, this is the only state we can truly call our own. Therefore, we should all think of how we can contribute to her growth instead of leaving it to the government alone. Let us forgive and forget. Let us reconcile and move our state forward”.
That, for me, is the first step in recovering the state. For long, Imo has been mentioned on the wrong side of social discussions to the point of being an object of derision and disdain. I had once in this space done a piece on why Imo should not remain in its piteous state. I still hold that opinion.
Until the last few weeks, hardly any day passed without sordid tales from the state. The stories could have elements of embellishments and exaggerations but they could not be entirely dismissed with a wave of the hand. It was usually a story of blood, cold blood, spilt by either the security agents engaging the youths, amorphous organisations holding communities to ransom or the so-called unknown gunmen running riot.
At the centre of it all is leadership failure which has befallen the state since the glorious days of the Sam Mbakwe administration of the Second Republic. It is in fact, not for fun that residents snigger that Imo has not had any purposeful leadership since the exit of Mbakwe. Those that have come after Mbakwe have done little to correct this impression. The situation rather gets worse with each successive administration appearing worse than its predecessor. There is, of course, no point recalling the crisis between Uzodimma and his predecessor, Rochas Okorocha, which many insist has a lot in the current confusion in the state. It is rather, commendable that Uzodimma has asked everyone to forgive and forget whatever that may have happened in the last four years.
It pays the governor to start on that note, not by mere proclamation but putting it into action. The buck stops on his desk. Accounts are being taken on the developments in the state, under his supervision. By the time a full story of the state would be told, he would be given adequate mention on which side of the divide he falls in – good or bad.
The significance of his victory in the November 11, 2023 governorship election in the state, is that by that singular feat, he has cast aside the derogatory tag of “Supreme Court Governor” that he had contended with all this while. Having been leapfrogged by the apex court from the fourth position in the 2019 governorship election to the first, Uzodimma has been dismissed by opponents in and outside the state as an imposition without legitimacy.
There is no doubt that his overwhelming victory in the entire 27 Local Government Areas of the state – a feat that not even Mbakwe with his massive popularity could have achieved – could have elements of manipulation that characterised all the elections conducted by the Prof. Mahmood Yakubu-led Independent National Electoral Commission. His opponents in the election are vigorously contesting his victory at the courts. Notwithstanding, winning at the ballots, this time, has conferred on him good measures of legitimacy. He can now lay sufficient claims of winning his mandate.
It can then be safe to say that he has achieved what he literally spent the last four years fighting for. He has braced the tape and picked the prize. There is nothing more for him to run after. All that remains is for him to sit down and govern. How he runs the state from now till 2028, will determine how history will judge him.
Uzodimma has his job cut out for him. The major task is that of reconciling the various tendencies and aggrieved parties in the state. It is still not yet Uhuru in Imo, truth be told. When I confided in some friends and colleagues of my intention to travel to the state with my family last Christmas, the apprehensions on their faces were palpable. Informing them further that we were going to Orlu, my home town, drew more concern. They were bothered about our safety, given what had been heard and said about the state and Orlu, in particular.
But as it turned out, our journey to the state was hitch-free and our stay, peaceful and devoid of any issues. For the two weeks that we were at home, I visited many communities, without any form of molestation by any person or group. That was the first of such luxury in the last four years. Yes, there were relics of destruction and scars arising from disturbances of the recent past in some towns. In Orlu, leading pharmaceutical shops and other business outfits abandoned by their proprietors at the moments of uncertainties, remained shut. Life had not fully bounced back. But there were signs of peace and commitment of the people to pick up the remaining bits of their lives once again. The governor needs to build on these opportunities, engage the leaders of the communities and win the confidence of the people. Experiences have shown that winning the peace in the state cannot be achieved solely through military fiat or kinetic efforts. A little bit of dialogue can do the magic.
Imo epitomizes hard work, discipline and diligence at all levels. At the level of individual and communal initiatives, the people have a good account of themselves. Imo, for instance ranks tops among the states with the highest number of Professors of different backgrounds in the country. It counts among states with highest number of candidates sitting for competitive examinations, annually. In the last 15 years or more, the state has consistently featured among the first 10 in West African School Certificate Examinations and the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination. The lesson in all these, is that in Imo, there is still a reservoir of hands and brains willing and ready to take the state to the next level. The governor should harness these patriotic minds for the good of the state.
It is good that Uzodimma has pledged that his second tenure will be centred on massive economic development in every community or ward, through his Community Economic Development Initiative which will see every community in the state feel the impact with at least one significant project fully executed within next 12 months. The proclamation should be matched with actions. Doing so and lessening the tension in the air will be a good way in rebuilding Imo.
