James Udemba
12 December 2007
Lagos — THERE is no doubt that Imo state is one of the very few states that have held the attention of Nigerians since the inauguration of governors on May 29, 2007. This is not just because the governor is from the Progressive Peoples Alliance, which has only one member in the 27-member legislature, dominated by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). It has a lot to do with the personality of Governor Ikedi Ohakim who in the last six months, appears to have captured the imagination of Nigerians with his style of governance. He is not only re-enacting the magic of the legendary Sam Mbakwe but has brought youth, charisma, vision, courage and raw determination to bear upon the delicate art of governance.
Indeed, when on May 29, Ohakim pronounced to run an all embracing and all-inclusive government that will be "warm, effective, responsible and responsive", some dismissed it as one of those euphoric rhetoric of one lucky to have benefited from the self-inflicted crisis of PDP in Imo state. But subsequent events have proved that Ohakim not only means those words but has long prepared to offer a dedicated service to the long-suffering people of Imo state. His Clean and Green Initiative encapsulated in the New Face of Imo Agenda has lately transformed Owerri from the rural setting it was reduced to by past administrations to a sparkling capital city ready to reclaim its glory as the cleanest state capital in the federation. It may not be an exaggeration to state that Imo people who will return home on Christmas may need guides to see them through Owerri because of the enormous positive changes wrought by Ohakim in the city.
But even more dramatic to them will be the economic activities they would witness going on in the communities as a result of Ohakim's resolve to lift the people from the nadir of poverty to prosperity. This dream was given practical expression a few days ago when the governor presented the state's 2008 budget to the House of Assembly. Even from the point of delivery, Ohakim showed class and got the audience raptured into dreamland. The question on the lips of Imolites is, "is this the messiah or do we expect another?"
Ohakim may not have pronounced himself the messiah but if he faithfully implements the budget which he has aptly christened "Budget of Great Opportunities", then Imo may be on the fast lane of economic and social recovery. With a proposed budget of N87.3 billion, 100 per cent above that of last year's N43.3billion, Ohakim's focus is to, in his own words, take Imo to "where we should have been".
In the past, budgets have always looked like one drab document that is detached from the people and therefore has no relevance to them. The annual ritual usually attracted such derisive comments as "their budget", "who will implement it", "they have already finished the money" etc. Tragically even the government officials had no faith in the document. As soon as the House of Assembly passed it into law, nothing more is heard about it. Because such budgets are hardly implemented, a particular road will appear in four budgets.
Again in previous budgets, the recurrent expenditure is always higher than the capital votes. Ohakim is determined to reverse the trend. In the 2008 budget, the governor allocated a staggering N26.8 billion to the economic sector which is 50.7 per cent of the capital budget of N53 billion. Under this important sector are Agriculture, Commerce and Industries, Petroleum and Environment, Works, Transport and Housing and Public Utilities. Aside completing on-going road projects as well as rehabilitation of others, Ohakim plans to construct 18 brand new intra state roads. He had already awarded contracts for the dualization of all major roads leading to the state capital. It is not surprising therefore that this sub sector will gulp a hefty N17 billion as proposed in the budget.
Understandably, Ohakim is worried by the low economic activities in the state and has made arrangement to step up the tempo. As a man from the private sector, he understands perfectly well what the people stand to gain if government intensifies efforts in creating a favourable industrial climate for increased industrialization. Apart from voting half a billion naira for the commerce and industry sub sector, the governor has pledged the realization of the International Electronic Market in Naze. He also informed that the Oguta Lake Resort will be upgraded to an international holiday resort and conference center called IMO WONDER LAKE RESORT AND CONFERENCE CENTRE. When realized, the center will employ a minimum of 3,000 persons. It is important to note that the government sees this project as one that will significantly assist in job creation as well as increased internally generated revenue.
Even at that, Ohakim knows that for now education remains the biggest industry in the state. That is why in the capital budget construction work will be completed at the Imo State University College of Engineering in Okigwe while school blocks, boreholes, technical equipment and construction of three model secondary schools are to be pursued. Health, Youths and Sports, Women Affairs and Social Development, Culture and Tourism, Law and Justice, House of Assembly and Poverty Alleviation also were taken care of in the capital budget of great opportunities.
An analysis of the revenue expectations of the Imo state budget showed that care was taken to ensure that areas of waste and leakages are blocked. That perhaps explains why Ohakim hopes to generate internally N12billion - something unheard of since the state was created in 1976. Other expectations under recurrent revenue are state share of the Federation Account N37.8billion, Value Added Tax N4billion and Excess Crude N7.2billion. In all N61.35billion is expected while capital receipts consisting of internal and external loans, grants and miscellaneous account for N25.9billion.
There is no gainsaying the fact that this is an ambitious budget articulated by a fertile mind and conceptualized to break the cycle of poverty in Imo state. But the worry is, can Ohakim translate this lofty dream to reality? Can he make the budget work or is it a mere window dressing meant to attract cheap popularity? He must have been aware of such anxieties when he declared that he knew what he was up to. According to him, "the problem of funding capital projects will become history as the government has put in place reforms to benchmark payments based on actual performance and payment of old contractual debts separately."
With that pledge, Ohakim seems to have reassured Imo people that he means business. Those who are wont to dismiss the budget as utopian and unrealistic will still adopt the "siddon look" approach to watch how the governor will realize the 2008 budget. And this is the great challenge before him. In the past, people were simply aloof to issues of budget but now things have changed because he has shown a remarkable new way of engendering and sustaining people's interest in the business of governance. Never in the history of the state has a leader aroused such interest in his people that governance involves everybody. That means that while they can forgive a dour and unintelligent leader who never illuminated the way for them, the people of Imo state will never forgive Ohakim if after whetting their appetite of a promised land abandons them half way. Put differently, the consequences of failure on the part of the governor will be catastrophic. As the Bible admonished, now that he has put his hands on the plough, he should never look back.
However, in surmounting that challenge, he needs the support of the House of Assembly and the entire Imo citizenry to succeed. In his budget address, he averred that he has no understanding of politics but to serve the people well by improving their welfare. He has also appealed to the Assembly to ensure early passage of the budget and the Public Procurement (Due Process) and Fiscal Responsibility Bills to enable him entrench good governance, transparence and effective service delivery. If the tools he has asked for are given to him and the state remains peaceful and stable, Ohakim's huge task will now be to translate his budget of great opportunities to actually improving the welfare and well-being of Imo citizens.
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