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Relating Stories

• When will Yar'Adua take off?
• The megalomaniac pandemonium in Imo
• A solution to kidnapping in Niger Delta

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The megalomaniac pandemonium in Imo

By CHERECHI UDEMBA

THE recent front page news about fifty billion naira corruption scandal in Imo and the alarm from Imo Democratic Congress organization to take up the matter with EFCC came as no surprise of most people.

The pattern of administration in that state has left much to be desired, for the great euphoria that came in the aftermath of assumption of office by that administration seemed to have vaporized like rain squalls in a desert sand dune. Here was an seemingly providential administration headed by a young man with previous administrative prowess as a commissioner and deemed to be equipped with new ideas, energy and initiative for uplifting the lives of people towards socioeconomic sustainability. And what now do we celebrate for this? Five billion naira spent just for dusting the Owerri streets, diversion of local Government allocation, five billion naira for shoddy construction of less than kilometers of roads, (this is more than 120 million naira per kilometer, the highest in the world), three hundred million naira misappropriated for a musical show night, 1.2 billion naira for travelling all around the worlds costly hotels to woo ghost inexistent investors, half a million pounds “lost” to conmen in London, 10 billion naira loan from UBA squandered another 5 billion from Oceanic Bank, 5 billion from PHB bank, 40 billion naira bond from UBA in collaboration with the infamous state house of assembly, the worst assembly ever since democratic dispensations. The list of infamy is endless and it is obvious that Imo State is in real trouble in the hands of forces ruthless and terrible. Imo State is beating the world Guiness record in greed and there is nothing to check this recklessness in a nation called university of graft.

EFCC is virtually non-existent now, and it is now looting by rule of law where you can go to court if you and where some judges are the new billionaires. Meanwhlile Yar'Adua cunningly looks the other way nonchalantly like the other Northern power elite groups do while the state traditional rulers council is under the aegis of disreputable characters and all looks gloomy because there are not many credible NGOs and organizations to challenge the bold rape of the states resources. In terms of development, whereas Anambra State is recently awash with new structures and ideas Imo presents nothing except monthly clean up fascades, a few shoddily paved roads few street signs advertising the government, no single new industry, to absorb the huge unemployed manpower (among the nations highest), no single new higher institution or secondary school or hospital but a monumental megalomaniac media publicity blitz in every media, every tabloid everywhere. Some muddled, sick brains must have advised the government to blow its trumpets and do nothing. Despite the clean and green venture mountains of refuse can be seen all over Owerri while trees and flowers such as along Concorde Hotel road have been barbarously mowed down for firewood. There are no flowers on residential side walks, and dubious agents collect as much as ten thousand naira from motorists for even stopping to buy newspapers anywhere in town. Bull-dozes demolish and ransack the livelihood of struggling souls everyday and there is no one to stop this madness in an administration that is heedless, insensitive and of which the henchmen and cohorts are often called to such nick names as “Solomon”, “Caesar”, and 'Jesuit-generals'. The state seems to adopt' the style of former Governor Orji Kalu who is aid to be the key prime mover of events in the state.
The situation in Imo calls for prayers because evil forces have become entrenched in that state. If the powers that be there decide to turn a new leaf then it will be cause for joy and I urge the young governor to seriously rethink his strategies and move the state forward. Once more I thank National Daily newspaper for making this closely guarded problem a headline and wish them more grease to their elbows.

• Udemba wrote in from Owerri