Correspondent, CHIBUZOR NWACHUKWU, writes on the likely hurdles which Governor Willie Obiano may face in governing Anambra State.
Willie Obiano
Anambra State politics began to assume a new phase on March 17, 2014, when Willie Obiano was sworn in as the governor. Obiano, the first governor from Anambra North senatorial district, took over from Peter Obi who hails from Anambra Central.
Before the current development, Anambra South had produced Dr. Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Dr. Chinwoke Mbadinuju, Senator Andy Uba, and Dame Virgy Etiaba as governors of the state at some point.
Anambra Central had, in similar vein, produced Senator Chris Ngige.
While the Central and South zones appeared to have dominated the post, there were insinuations of marginalisation from Anambra North. Many, thus, see in Obiano a demonstration of justice and fair play in the politics of the state. His election is also expected to address agitations for rotation of the prized slot in the state.
Analysts have, however, imagined the challenges before the zone and the governor as being enormous.
The governor does not appear to be oblivious of the task, since the buck stops at his table. Many, in fact, argue that how he handles the emerging developments in the next couple of months would go a long way in determining his future in the highly sophisticated state.
Already, the issue of insecurity, which had been the major drawback in the state, is being tackled with renewed vigour. In this instance, there has been increased visibility of armed policemen in major streets of the state.
In similar vein, the Anambra Vigilante Group, an internal security arrangement in the state, is said to have received greater impetus.
Even with these measures, Anambra indigenes are still convinced that the governor’s security arrangement requires more proactive engagement. According to the chairman of Anambra North Traditional Rulers Council, Igwe Roland Odegbo, “What we have in place at the moment is commendable, and we urge the governor to do more. He should ensure that there is that cordial relationship between the state police command and the local security authorities. He should also introduce what is called neighbourhood watch which would also partner with the official security outfits in the state.
“Again, job creation becomes another important way of fighting crime in the society. There are idle youths in our state that can be engaged in meaningful activities. This can be done through conducting a head-count of unskilled unemployed youths in the state and impress upon the private companies – small, medium scale and large scale – to engage them as short-time workers and that keeps them off the streets.”
The exponential increase in the state’s workforce is also seen as another hurdle before Obiano. This is because his predecessor is said to have employed additional civil servants and teachers, an exercise that has shot up the state’s wage bill.
The obvious rise in wage bill has given rise to insinuations of possible job cuts. But the state chairman of Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), Jerry Nnubia, has noted that the idea of reducing the workforce should not come into place.
“His Excellency should understudy the finances of the state and find a way out of this circumstance. In the past, governors had tended to cancel employments by their predecessors on the ground that there was no money to pay. But in the case of Obiano, we believe that he has the managerial expertise to carry on with the newly-employed workers and ensure that it would not have any adverse effect on the civil service,” he stressed.
The governor, who had a meeting with civil servants recently, has cleared the air over the new employees and the old staff, pledging to better their lot while in office.
While the civil service matter appears to have been resolved, the backlash occasioned by the recently-conducted local government election in the state is yet another issue in contention.
Government House watchers posit that the eight-year tenure of Obi without elected local government councillors and chairmen worked to the advantage of his administration, given that it placed at its disposal the local government funds.
But with the conduct of the local government polls in the state, Obiano faces the task of completing projects initiated by his predecessor without local government funds. The fear, therefore, is that in the event of any of the projects being abandoned, it may impact negatively on the public perception of the governor.
However, what concerned analysts see as having the likelihood of bothering Obiano is the issue of the N75 billion which the former governor claims to have left for him.
Our reporter gathered that the immediate impression by most Anambra people from the disclosure is that the sum is cash already at the disposal of Obiano. Many, it was discovered, do not have facts on the breakdown of the money as well as the sectors it had been channelled to.
Consequently, a section of the state’s elite has challenged Obi over the issues surrounding the amount.
For example, a particular group known as Anambra State Concerned Professionals led by one Dr. O.B. Manaka had in the last two weeks put up publications in some national newspapers dismissing Obi’s disclosure as a smokescreen intended to cover the failings of his administration. It is not clear at the moment who was behind the publication. On one hand, there have been suggestions that the publication may have been sponsored by opponents of the former governor who lost out in the last eight years that he was in the saddle.
There are also fears that the sponsors of the publication could be supporters of Obiano who intend to sensitise Anambra electorate that Obi did not leave N75 billion behind. The essence of the move, it was gathered, was to absolve the new governor of any blame in the event of things not working as expected in the state.
Obiano, who still has issues to settle with Ngige at the election tribunal, has incidentally kept silence on the N75 billion saga.