By Ogu Bundu Nwadike
Without fear or favour, the greatest factor that led to the fall and failure of the out-going governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, is his apparent lack of understanding and inability to apply the philosophy of modesty. He behaved like the parabolic Man of Manitoba, who lacked sense of moderation in his words and deeds. Everything must be most bogus and loudest!
The result is that Rochas Okorocha embarked on a number of elephant projects but ended up abandoning all and achieving little or nothing. Imo people will never forget the Rochas abandoned 27 General Hospitals littered across Imo State. Imolites will forever remember painfully the building of big arenas he tagged Centres and Squares by which he ensured that he abandoned the Dan Anyiam Stadium in Owerri, thereby making it a mere shadow of itself!
The feeling is that if the out-going governor had any iota of knowledge and understanding of the philosophy of being modest, some of the unpardonable mistakes and errors he made may have been avoided. So much would have been achieved for the overall benefit of the State and the people of Imo, if GovernorRochas Okorocha had allowed modesty to guide his thoughts and actions.
That’s why it was very exciting to hear the incoming governor of Imo State, His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, CON, KSC announce recently that modesty will form the backbone of his plans, policies, programmes and projects. He specifically declared thus: “We shall be modest. That should be the central philosophy behind our activities.” That’s the language of a prepared and anointed leader.
What’s philosophy of modesty? Simply, it’s a reference to the human behavioural tendency to do things with careful calculation and determination of the appropriate extent of action. To be modest is to be positively prudent and deliberately thrifty. It is to look at the future with one eye, at the past and thepresent with another eye. To be modest is to cut your coat according to your size and not according to your cloth.
Being modest is the sponsor of the capacity to save for the rainy day. It checks against a person, a people or place running faster than their shadows. A leader that is modest will not initiate a project whose time has not matured for the place and the people. Modesty will also help a people or a place to look before leaping and thereby preventing “had I known” and wastage of scarce resources.
Unarguably, the out-going governor was not modest in his leadership style. That made him a bad leader. That cost the State so much waste of both human and material resources. There was no need for 27 General Hospitals, for example.
There was no need to waste multiple millions of naira to erect numerous artificial palm trees across some roads in Owerri. That’s a mockery of the failed “ikuola nkwu” programme that cost the state a whopping N200 million!
Conversely, the incoming governor has promised to be modest in his delivery of government and governance. And that is quite reassuring because it will be a total departure from the days of undue centrifugation and extravagance with State money and materials since 2011. In eight years, Imo State raked in at least N1 trillion, but there’s little or nothing to show for it.
Sincerely speaking, Gov. Okorocha was simply not modest in dealing with Imo State and Imo people. He was bent on doing things that pleased him, his family, friends and associates. While he went about doing that, Imo State and Imo people groaned under the weight of poverty, lack, disease, sickness and death!
However, I believe that whatever good thing the out-going governor failed to do and the incoming governor succeeds in doing it for Imo State and Imo people, there is nothing wrong about that. That’s the sense in the Imo governor-elect’s declaration that he would be modest in all his plans, policies, progammes and projects.
In fact, after all, the need to do right things and do things right, is the main reason for the change on Saturday, March 9, 2019 of the change that brought the misery in the State. That’s the basis for Imo people voting massively and electing the governor-elect.
Let orderliness be fully restored in Imo State. Let modesty return in the conduct of the business of government and governance in Imo State. That’s what is required to make good success of the RebuildImo project which the governor-elect has solemnly promised Imo people.
With modesty, there will be due process and respect for rule of law. With modesty, the irresponsibility of playing to the gallery, which was wrongly glorified by the expiring governor will be discarded into the basket of bad rubbish.
Indeed, there will be so much benefits that will accrue to Imo State and Imo people with the adoption and application of principles of modesty in the running of government as declared by the incoming governor.
Ultimately, with the liberation of Imo people by the Almighty God through His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, it shall continue to be very well with Imo State and Imo people, in the mighty name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
*Nwadike is a journalist, author and public affairs analyst.