By Justice Nwafor
Ugwumba Vanguard, one of the political structures of the Chief of staff to government of Imo state, Uche Nwosu may have gotten more than it bargained for, as an empowerment programe designed to further propagate the image Mr Nwosu has caused ripples and disaffection among members of the group.
The empowerment programe which took place on Wednesday, 31 January, 2018, at Imo Trade and Investment Center (ITIC), Owerri, was designed to empower 500 youths from the 27 L.GAs of the state.
This Newspaper learnt that the programme caused disaffection among the members, especially those at the ward levels from the various the local government areas of the state, who wanted to meet Mr Nwosu and get some kind of gratification from him for championing the group’s cause.
Some of the members who confided in Trumpeta expressed disappointment at the absence of Mr Nwosu at the flag-off of the programme, which, according to them, was organized to propagate the image of the Chief of staff as political calculations and permutations ahead of 2019 elections.
Trumpeta, which observed with keen interest as the event went on, learnt that the members who came from places far afield as Ngor Okpala, Ohaji/Egbema and others came with high hopes of meeting the man they have been championing his cause. They also came with the expectation of getting, at least, their transportation fare back.
With disappointment written all over their faces, as the event came to an end, some could not hide but complain to any ear willing to listen.
One member from Ngor Okpala complained bitterly of spending close to two thousand naira on transportation for himself and one other member, who had not the wherewithal to attend the event, with the hope of getting back his money and transportation fare back home. He cried out in anger that he had lost his money and was stuck at the venue of the event as there was no provision for their transportation. H regretted attending the event, quipping, “I would have stayed at home with my money.”
As some verbally expressed their anger, others, very mindful of who was watching and listening, gathered in groups and discussed in hush voices the way out. Few minutes later, as Trumpeta observed, some members besieged the state coordinator for solution to their transportation quagmire. According to one of the female members who was visibly disappointed, the state coordinator referred them to their local government coordinators, who, she said, complained of not having any money for their transportation.
At this point, they were left to sort themselves out. Some resorted to pleading with other members who they felt could weather their transportation storm, promising to reimburse them when they get home, while others decided to trek long distances to reduce cost.
One of the members who pleaded not to be named for fear of victimization expressed disappointment, complaining that he came expecting to see Mr Nwosu at the event. He said they learnt Mr Nwosu was not far from the venue of the event but decided not to attend the event, instead, sent one of his aides to represent him.
“Imagine, we learnt he is around having meeting with some people. So, those of us that left our responsibilities to come here are fools, right? He can’t spare few minutes to come here and address us? That is very bad”, he agonized.
When Trumpeta probed more to confirm if there was provision for the transportation fare of the members, he confirmed there was none as they were given only Ugwumba branded face caps and T-shirts.
He, however, absorbed Mr Nwosu of blames on the non provision of transportation fare and heaped the blame on the leadership of Ugwumba Vanguard for not doing its job well.
He said, “they just gave us Ugwumba T-shirts and face caps, no transportation. Anyway, I don’t blame the man totally because, maybe, the leadership of our organization did not do their job well that is why there’s no provision”.
Mr Nwosu, however, sent a representative who addressed the youths on the essence of empowerment programe which he said was to give the youths a sense of Independence. He further revealed that the practical aspects of the trainings will take place at the various zones of the state.
The state coordinator, Prince Nwuwa debunked insinuations that the empowerment programe was politically motivated, stating that Mr Nwosu has the penchant for youth empowerment.
