Abia State Governor-elect Okezie Ikpeazu will inherit many challenges when he assumes office on May 29. To reposition the state for progress, he has unfolded plans to run a transparent government, reduce the cost of governance and foster economic development. EMMANUEL OLADESU reports.
Okezie Ikpeazu, former university teacher and Abia State governor-elect, will inherit many challenges when he assumes office on May 29. The state is very poor. It is also a disunited state. The infrastructure is ebbing away. To many observers, governance cannot be a tea party in post-Orji era.
The governor elect has many advantages. He is a very educated politician. He also has the experience. His antecedents as a public servant of note speak for him. Now, many indigenes expect him to make a big difference. His first assignment is to heal the wounds of a bitter contest and reconcile with his rivals at the poll.
The governor-elect has promised to set a standard. His no-nonsense demeanor has sent a huge message to those capable of distracting him. Ikpeazu has read a riot act to agents of perfidy in the state, saying that it will not be business as usual. When he assumes office, he said he would not entertain courtesy calls, receptions, and chieftaincy titles. He also ruled out an elaborate and money spinning thanksgiving service and grand reception, except for a solemn one with five widows and five motherless children at the Government House Chapel. He does not want the title: “His Excellency.” The governor-elect said that he will prefer to prefix his name with ‘Dr’ because he holds a doctorate degree.
“I want to leave the stadium immediately after swearing to commission a project for starters,” Ikpeazu told his associates in Umuahia, the state capital.
The governor-elect said that there will be no merry making in the State House. Instead, he promised to embark on projects that will make his administration stand out in two years. These include five major roads across the state. Also, he promised t sanitise the environment by making the cities clean through effective waste disposal. He said the drainage system would be upgraded to support the new roads to be constructed.
Ikpeazu promised to run an accountable government, adding that due process will not be compromised. He said jobs must be created for youths to reduce unemployment.
Already, the governor-elect has hinted that the huge political bureaucracy must give way. He has therefore, promised to reduced the cost of governance by reducing the number of ministries to 10. He explained that the ministries will be manned by core professionals or technocrats.
Ikpeazu has unfolded what he described as “nine development ideas” that will guide his administration. The first is economic transformation. “For economic growth to occur, certain things must be done to facilitate gainful employment and I believe that agriculture is a factor. Abia has the natural advantage of growing cash and food crops. We should also pay attention to industrialisation. Our local firms and industries should be able to compete globally. We will create industrial parks as centers of excellence to further enhance the historical strengths of the state in garment and leatherworks,” he said.
Ikpeazu also promised to encourage small scale enterprises, especially in garment and leather works space, by building their capacities through access to finance and power.
The task of wooing investors is also a priority. This will boost commerce in Aba, the major commercial hub, where plans are underway to raise the Ariara and Aregua markets to a modern standards. In fact, Ikpeazu said the 14 major markets across the state will be upgraded with modern facilities.
Abia is not a major oil-producing state. But, this has not fully robbed off on the state. The governor-elect said that the state has the capacity to develop a major operational and logistics base for oil and gas firms. “Abia State will explore the presence of, and potential for, crude oil or gas exploration and production,” he said.
Education is also a priority. Stressing that his administration will defend the critical sector, the former university don said: “We believe that the strength of Abia lies in her people. As such, the transformation of the education sector in Abia will involve both the public and private institutions. We will develop an all-inclusive master plan to drive development and progress within the sector.
“This master plan will incorporate the restructuring the education curricula for primary, secondary and state-owned tertiary institutions to ensure our children and youths are empowered with sound knowledge and technical skills required to survive and add value in the ever-evolving labour market.”
A major challenge in Abia is insecurity. It is not peculiar to the state. It is a national problem. As the Chief Security Officer, he said no stone will be left unturned to guarantee safety of life and property.”We shall enhance the security of Abia State by achieving the following key targets: Keying into the federal government’s Identity Management Scheme to generate identity documents for residents of Abia State.
“This will provide us with the data for our planning as well as give all Abia people a common identification card to facilitate their business transactions with the state and each other,” adding that he would also “empower the security agencies with funds to improve on equipment and intelligence gathering through the use of information tools and a structured vigilante network.”
On his plans for the judiciary, Ikpeazu said: “We will develop and strengthen our state judicial system to ensure the timely delivery of justice in matters affecting our people. In this regard, the areas we will address include:
“Introduction of a fully automated judicial system leveraging a Centralised Information Management system, an automated Workflow Court Calendar, Case File view etc. In addition to this, we shall ensure the improvement of the remuneration and welfare packages of our judicial workers to improve morale and drive efficiency.”
Health and housing are two other areas that the incoming government intends to invest on because of their effect on the generality of the people.
He said: “To provide effective and efficient healthcare services to all our people, in every part of the state, we will strengthen the 710 government-owned healthcare centers by improving their infrastructure, funding and improving the quality of healthcare professionals deployed in them. We will partner world-class healthcare providers to train our personnel and provide complimentary infrastructure.”
On housing, Ikpeazu said:”We will promote increased development of affordable housing through the provision of necessary infrastructure and PPP. Our government will optimise the Land and Title Registration process to encourage increased investment in the sector.
“We will attract private and corporate home developers to build in Abia State, and ultimately mastermind a ‘reverse brain drain’ which will see a majority of Igbo families moving their primary abode back to Abia State from Lagos and Abuja.”
Also, in preserving the environment, Ikpeazu promised to undertake “extensive drainage rehabilitation and channelization of flood prone areas within the Aba and Umuahia metropolis; construction of storm water management and erosion control sites.
He added: “We will embark on the development and beautification of numerous leisure parks across the State; encourage and promote horticulture across our cities; boost the quality of waste management and traffic management services to improve quality of life and boost IGR generation.”
“The governor-elect has promised to set a standard. His no-nonsense demeanor has sent a huge message to those capable of distracting him. Ikpeazu has read a riot act to agents of perfidy in the state, saying that it will not be business as usual. When he assumes office, he said he would not entertain courtesy calls, receptions, and chieftaincy titles”
Okezie Ikpeazu, former university teacher and Abia State governor-elect, will inherit many challenges when he assumes office on May 29. The state is very poor. It is also a disunited state. The infrastructure is ebbing away. To many observers, governance cannot be a tea party in post-Orji era.
The governor elect has many advantages. He is a very educated politician. He also has the experience. His antecedents as a public servant of note speak for him. Now, many indigenes expect him to make a big difference. His first assignment is to heal the wounds of a bitter contest and reconcile with his rivals at the poll.
The governor-elect has promised to set a standard. His no-nonsense demeanor has sent a huge message to those capable of distracting him. Ikpeazu has read a riot act to agents of perfidy in the state, saying that it will not be business as usual. When he assumes office, he said he would not entertain courtesy calls, receptions, and chieftaincy titles. He also ruled out an elaborate and money spinning thanksgiving service and grand reception, except for a solemn one with five widows and five motherless children at the Government House Chapel. He does not want the title: “His Excellency.” The governor-elect said that he will prefer to prefix his name with ‘Dr’ because he holds a doctorate degree.
“I want to leave the stadium immediately after swearing to commission a project for starters,” Ikpeazu told his associates in Umuahia, the state capital.
The governor-elect said that there will be no merry making in the State House. Instead, he promised to embark on projects that will make his administration stand out in two years. These include five major roads across the state. Also, he promised t sanitise the environment by making the cities clean through effective waste disposal. He said the drainage system would be upgraded to support the new roads to be constructed.
Ikpeazu promised to run an accountable government, adding that due process will not be compromised. He said jobs must be created for youths to reduce unemployment.
Already, the governor-elect has hinted that the huge political bureaucracy must give way. He has therefore, promised to reduced the cost of governance by reducing the number of ministries to 10. He explained that the ministries will be manned by core professionals or technocrats.
Ikpeazu has unfolded what he described as “nine development ideas” that will guide his administration. The first is economic transformation. “For economic growth to occur, certain things must be done to facilitate gainful employment and I believe that agriculture is a factor. Abia has the natural advantage of growing cash and food crops. We should also pay attention to industrialisation. Our local firms and industries should be able to compete globally. We will create industrial parks as centers of excellence to further enhance the historical strengths of the state in garment and leatherworks,” he said.
Ikpeazu also promised to encourage small scale enterprises, especially in garment and leather works space, by building their capacities through access to finance and power.
The task of wooing investors is also a priority. This will boost commerce in Aba, the major commercial hub, where plans are underway to raise the Ariara and Aregua markets to a modern standards. In fact, Ikpeazu said the 14 major markets across the state will be upgraded with modern facilities.
Abia is not a major oil-producing state. But, this has not fully robbed off on the state. The governor-elect said that the state has the capacity to develop a major operational and logistics base for oil and gas firms. “Abia State will explore the presence of, and potential for, crude oil or gas exploration and production,” he said.
Education is also a priority. Stressing that his administration will defend the critical sector, the former university don said: “We believe that the strength of Abia lies in her people. As such, the transformation of the education sector in Abia will involve both the public and private institutions. We will develop an all-inclusive master plan to drive development and progress within the sector.
A major challenge in Abia is insecurity. It is not peculiar to the state. It is a national problem. As the Chief Security Officer, he said no stone will be left unturned to guarantee safety of life and property.”We shall enhance the security of Abia State by achieving the following key targets: Keying into the federal government’s Identity Management Scheme to generate identity documents for residents of Abia State.
“This will provide us with the data for our planning as well as give all Abia people a common identification card to facilitate their business transactions with the state and each other,” adding that he would also “empower the security agencies with funds to improve on equipment and intelligence gathering through the use of information tools and a structured vigilante network.”
On his plans for the judiciary, Ikpeazu said: “We will develop and strengthen our state judicial system to ensure the timely delivery of justice in matters affecting our people. In this regard, the areas we will address include:
“Introduction of a fully automated judicial system leveraging a Centralised Information Management system, an automated Workflow Court Calendar, Case File view etc. In addition to this, we shall ensure the improvement of the remuneration and welfare packages of our judicial workers to improve morale and drive efficiency.”
Health and housing are two other areas that the incoming government intends to invest on because of their effect on the generality of the people.
He said: “To provide effective and efficient healthcare services to all our people, in every part of the state, we will strengthen the 710 government-owned healthcare centers by improving their infrastructure, funding and improving the quality of healthcare professionals deployed in them. We will partner world-class healthcare providers to train our personnel and provide complimentary infrastructure.”
On housing, Ikpeazu said:”We will promote increased development of affordable housing through the provision of necessary infrastructure and PPP. Our government will optimise the Land and Title Registration process to encourage increased investment in the sector.
“We will attract private and corporate home developers to build in Abia State, and ultimately mastermind a ‘reverse brain drain’ which will see a majority of Igbo families moving their primary abode back to Abia State from Lagos and Abuja.”
Also, in preserving the environment, Ikpeazu promised to undertake “extensive drainage rehabilitation and channelization of flood prone areas within the Aba and Umuahia metropolis; construction of storm water management and erosion control sites.
He added: “We will embark on the development and beautification of numerous leisure parks across the State; encourage and promote horticulture across our cities; boost the quality of waste management and traffic management services to improve quality of life and boost IGR generation.”
“The governor-elect has promised to set a standard. His no-nonsense demeanor has sent a huge message to those capable of distracting him. Ikpeazu has read a riot act to agents of perfidy in the state, saying that it will not be business as usual. When he assumes office, he said he would not entertain courtesy calls, receptions, and chieftaincy titles”
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