Election is a process. The exercise which began in Imo State December last year with the primaries among the various political parties climaxed with the supplementary elections of April 25, 2015.
In the Governorship election, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, the Candidate of APC retained his Seat as the Governor of Imo State by defeating his closest rival, Rt. Hon Emeka Ihedioha of the PDP.
To many, that is the conclusion of the exercise as far as 2015 elections were concerned. But to Okorocha and Ihedioha, this is just the beginning. Okorocha will be sworn-in on May 29, 2019 as a second term Governor of Imo State, while Ihedioha will move on with life as former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives. To me both men still have tall assignments waiting for them in the future.
Between both men, Okorocha has the toughest assignment. While Ihedioha pursues his personal life and business, Okorocha remains the Chief Executive of Imo State for the next four years. If Okorocha wants to sketch his name in gold in the annals of Imo history, he should realize that now is the time to begin that task. He will be deluding himself to believe that having conquered Imo State for a second term bid, it is now time to frolic and enjoy in office, since he will not approach Imo people again for their votes.
To whom much is given much is expected. Imo people are now looking up to Okorocha for more having given him their support when he needed it most.
Whether anybody likes it or not, the 2015 Governorship election was tougher on Okorocha than the 2011 tsunami which swept off the over-confident PDP, who were shocked that a “Rag-Tag” Army assembled by then APGA Guber Candidate could flush out Ikedi Ohakim and PDP despite the power of incumbency and free money in Government Coffers.
In 2011, immediately Okorocha was announced winner, there was a spontaneous jubilation among the Imo populace who trooped out in their numbers and were willing to storm the Douglas House, except for Security men who repelled the overzealous crowd.
But did you notice that on Sunday, April 26, 2015 when Okorocha was declared winner, the 2011 euphoria was lacking until Monday when APC members were “assembled” for the celebration unlike in 2011 which took place without promptings from the Governor.
Therefore, this is an indication that although Okorocha won the election, a majority of Imo people were not pleased with his last four years outing.
Their disdain also showed in the result of the April 11 election, where Okorocha could not out rightly defeat Ihedioha, even when Ihedioha lost his zone, Owerri, with APC winning Mbaitoli, Ikeduru, Owerri North and Owerri West LGAs.
Therefore, instead of Owelle Rochas relaxing on his oars, he should go to work immediately. But he should drop the combative and exclusive type of Administration which dominated his regime since 2011.
Though nobody could blame him because he had to reward those who worked for him in 2011 when nobody gave him a chance to dislodge the incumbent PDP. This necessitated his administration being populated with “unknown faces”.
Due to lack of confidence on his project in 2011 by the Imo elites who stuck with PDP, Okorocha had to make do with what he had, which was the reason his administration was dominated with young men and names hardly heard of before in Imo politics.
However, while some of these neophytes did well, others were swallowed by the weight of their offices. In fact most of them today have created a niche for themselves and have turned out to be the future of the state, who invariably owe their political rise to Okorocha whom they have become his protégés.
Every administration has its own idea and cannot be like the other. Okorocha’s administrative thrust is focused on two major things: free education and construction of roads; despite the criticisms both sectors attracted from critics of the administration. Much as Okorocha has opened up a lot of roads in Imo State, much still needs to be done. Even in the education sector, the policy looks error-free from the man on the street, but to the educated, the policy still has a lot of shortfalls, which I suggest Okorocha should improve on in his second term.
For instance, a lot of Faculties have been de-accredited in Imo State University (IMSU), while the admission policy has shut-out too many Imo indigenes, who the free education was supposed to benefit in the first place.
No theory or policy is error-free. Nothing stops the Okorocha Government from reviewing the programme. The administration should not assume that for having been voted into office for a second term Imo people approve of all its policies.
In the last four years, Okorocha did not do anything about water supply in Imo, especially the state capital, Owerri. Instead, the state Water Corporation which has been existing for as many as over forty years was demolished and a Secondary School built on the old site.
Imo people need clean water. Okorocha would raise the ante if he sees what residence of Owerri suffer in looking for clean water. I did not see the Governor commission any water project in the last four years. Parents and their children who attend free schools need to first take their baths, eat and drink water. So water is important. That was the reason Fela sang, “Water no get enemy.”
Again, the other area Okorocha must look into is the area of Sanitation. Owerri is too dirty. I know it takes millions of naira to evacuate dirt and keep the environment clean, but what is a society without its citizens? “Cleanliness is next to Godliness” the Bible says. A Healthy Society is a productive one.
Owerri, the state capital, is too chaotic. Illegal Motor Parks everywhere. Vehicles park indiscriminately on both sides of the streets, causing traffic gridlocks and accidents.
Hawkers are everywhere, dropping leftovers from their wares, which dirty the town, causing erosions. But what should young Hawkers be doing in a State that professes free education? Government should look into this.
Vehicle sellers who were sent to Somachi first, and then to Naze have returned to the state capital, displaying their vehicles on major roads and streets without qualms, therefore taking those of them at the proper Egbu Car Market for granted.
Vulcanizers, under whose shelter petty thieves hide until it is late, are back to major streets of Owerri, causing rise of crime in the town.
I appeal that Okorocha should look into the beautification of Owerri once more, through proper sanitary exercise. He would not be seeking for a second term again. Therefore he can afford to dare those who do illegal businesses in town, unlike when he would be looking for their votes.
Socio-politically, Okorocha should open his arms to all Imo people who wish to embrace him. He should do away with the closed-system policy, where only those he knows on first name basis should benefit from his administration. He should soften a little from hard stance towards those he sees as his political enemies. Maybe, without the criticisms of such people, he may not have been at his wit to have even made it a second term as Governor.
No democracy in the entire world thrives without opposition. While playing the APC politics, Okorocha was in opposition to President Jonathan and countered some of his policies in the State, but he was never intimidated from Abuja, even when some Imo PDP hawks called on the Presidency to trample him.
Therefore, the Governor should treat his “opponents” as equal citizens of Imo, who see his policies from another prism, other than what he thinks.
From the look of things, Okorocha stands the opportunity to be among the Igbomen that can make hay in the Presidency in 2019. In other words, he should begin from his base first. I see Okorocha eyeing something higher in 2019 when he would have served out his tenure as Governor.
Power is very transient. Time will come when he will rely on the support from “home” to make it “outside”. We all saw how the Southeast and South-South saved Jonathan from being comprehensively humiliated in the last Presidential election. Time has passed when a politician can wave his part of the country aside.
The Middle Belt Jonathan depended on to decimate the Northern part of the Country capitulated. So, rather than treat Imo people with scorn since he has no other need for them after the 2015 election, the Governor should remember that 2019 is here already. Therefore, he needs to even work harder in the next four years.
For Chief Emeka Ihedioha, he should forget about heading to Court and rather face his life as both a politician and Businessman. Not that one does not have confidence in our Judiciary.
Ihedioha has all the opportunity in the world to vie as a Governor of Imo State again in 2019 or even further. He is still young and age on his side. However, I know that the Hawks around him will ask him to head to Court. He was not humiliated in the election and should bid for his time. He has shown that he is no push-over in Imo politics.
Before Okorocha made it in 2011, he tried to be Governor in 1999 but failed, and twelve years after God handed him the diadem. Therefore, Ihedioha can still be Governor. The future looks bright for him.
What he should rather do now is to review the whole exercise and unravel how the seat eluded him and stitch the loose ends for future endeavours. A lot of factors caused his failure which was not mainly his fault as an individual.
What litigation could do now is rather to keep hope alive within his camp, while hangers-on continue extorting him. For advising him, I am expecting attacks from tomorrow as a “Sell-out” or “Settled”.
Owerri Zone and PDP “sold-out” and abandoned their own when it mattered the most. Ihedioha fought like a Lion but since God said it is not his time, when the appointed time comes, a million Okorochas cannot change the hand of time. I rest my case.
