Nosike Ogbuenyi and Benneth Oghifo
8 July 2009
Lagos — Abia State Governor, Chief Theodore Ahamafule Orji, recently squeezed time out of his crowded schedule to speak to THISDAY in Umuahia, the state capital. The Progressive Peoples Party (PPA) governor, who is becoming renowned for his forthrightness, comments freely on several topical issues including the the menace of kidnapping, the recent ban of motorcycles (okada) in Umuahia, Aba and some other towns in the state, his infrastructure development programme, the mega party option, his political future and so on. Nosike Ogbuenyi and Benneth Oghifo present excerpts
Can you tell us how you have been pursuing your developmental programmes particularly with regard to roads, housing and water?
There are many sectors we are touching but I will begin with roads, which is very important to every community and in Abia State we need roads, especially to communicate and to bring food from the hinterland, roads for investors and peoples use. We have concentrated on the development of many roads in all the senatorial zones of the state and what we are developing are quality roads with drainages. These are being done irrespective of whether it is federal or state or local government roads. We are also building federal roads like the Aba-Owerri road, which has been impassable until we rehabilitated it. If I hadn't touched that road, by now many vehicles would have continued to break down on it, but today it is like an expressway, very free and the people are happy. The Aba-Port Harcourt road belongs to the federal government and at a time it was blocked. The two roads passing through Abia State are free. We don't discriminate because these roads are beneficial to our people.
In terms of building roads I think we have tried compared to the resources that we have. When you view our massive developmental projects against those of other states that would show you how well we are using our resources. Compared to what we have in our kitty I think we have done well in terms of roads.
What about the area of environment, how far?
Before now during the military era, refuse heaps used to cover most roads in Aba, causing health hazards, and also in Umuahia. There was a major dump site on Aba road at Osisioma that I closed, because the site was inappropriate. I relocated it to a place where it would not be a threat to people or traffic. I also closed and relocated the dump site at Obak in Umuahia where solid waste used to cover the road. Building a new dump site costs money because apart from the landfill, access roads have to be constructed. Daily, a lot of refuse is generated in Aba and any day it is not evacuated, there will be a build-up that causes great environmental problems. So we clear it daily to make that city clean and the people are no longer complaining about refuse disposal.
Umuahia ranks as one of the cleanest cities in the country. It is almost impossible to see refuse there because they are collected instantly and the bins are always empty. Recently, we purchased mechanical vehicles that can dispose waste on their own and located them at Aba and Umuahia. We are doing this for the good health of our people.
Regarding housing, this is a sector where we are not relenting. We have the Omoba housing estate, which has been completed and would be occupied as soon as the access road is completed. There is the Osisioma mix development estate, which is also ready for occupation. We gave some units to Geometrics, a company working on the state's independent electricity power project. There is the Adelabu Housing estate in Umuahia on Adelabu road being developed like the rest under a public private partnership. The challenge is the disappointment the government had with some of its partners who after being given land and documents abandon the job. We give them the certificate of occupancy and documents and they vanish. But some of them said their work is being delayed by the crash in the stock market, particularly the Adelabu estate where the developer invested all his money. We have given it to another developer who has started work. We have another at Isiekpe and the developer is negotiating with his bankers and once the deal falls through, he would start work.
There are those the World Bank is doing at Amuso Oku, and in Aba. The land has been acquired and investors are on it already. They build and sell to the public. We are not doing badly at all, as a small state and compared to the resources that we have at our disposal.
Concerning water, it is running, because when this government came on board, it did not take us a month to rehabilitate the water works in Umuahia and since then water has been running uninterrupted. We have been supplying the chemicals, buying the gas, maintaining the equipment that pumps the water and it was been flowing in.
Contract has been given for the reticulation of water because the pipes had rust or burst, and the change of pipes would enable water get to every community.
It is only in Aba that there is a problem with water supply because when we came on board, the federal government took up the water project, but the contractor stopped work. When we wanted to take over the project, we were prevented. The problem became very persistent and eventually the project was put in the seven point agenda of the federal government. We have written to the federal government that we are ready to take over, but the government has not replied for us to take over so that Aba people can enjoy. In the rural areas, there are many water projects that we have reactivated and it is our objective that our people have portable water.
Your state is among those suffering from the problem of kidnappings and militancy. Few days ago your government proceeded to ban the use of okada (motorcycles) in major towns in the state, including Umuahia and Aba. Can you throw more light on the problem and the measures your government has taken?
We don't have any militancy in Abia State. What we have is kidnapping; kidnapping is the highest crime in that category that you have now. And the reason why we banned the use of Okada in the state capital and certain urban areas is that from empirical evidence, we have seen that okada is the easiest means that kidnappers use in kidnapping people. This is because it is easier to manoeuvre with it and it can pass through any road including footpaths.
Also it is the means mainly used by armed robbers in their operation and in doing their reconnaissance, obtaining information and other plots. So it had become a vehicle for crime especially in the urban areas and some local government headquarters.
On the other hand, I looked at it and I discovered that it is an industry that employs a lot of people. There are some graduates who are riding okada because of unemployment. Motorcycles spare parts are in that industry; vulcanizers are in that industry; mama put people are in that industry of okada. And that was why I delayed the timing of okada restriction up to this time.
If you look around, you will discover that neighbouring states like Rivers have done it, but I kept my cool seeing that this industry employs a lot of people. I have been dialoguing with them on daily basis; calling on them and pleading with them to help us to fish out these people. You will not deny the fact that you know them. Most of them belong to that your industry; most of them, you transport them to their areas of crime and back and you benefit from that; help us to flush out these people. And nothing positive had come out of that.
Then, the last time I met with them, I told them in clear term that that was the last warning that if there is any kidnapping or armed robbery incident that is traceable to an okada man or okada people, that I will have no alternative than to stop them from operation. I told them and they agreed with me. Just few weeks after that there was this incident in Aba of kidnapping where people were killed and another incident of robbery. Somebody who went to the bank to withdraw money and they just pointed gun at him and took the money and they traced it to okada people. I called them again and reminded them that what I told them I had to abide by my words. And moreover, there were pressures coming to me from left, right and centre to stop okada people from operating.
The business community in Aba came here, the whole of them, to tell me measures I have to take to stop kidnapping. And in truth, this issue of kidnapping has done a lot of harm to our people and society. If you go to Aba, many people doing businesses there are moving away; industries too are leaving because of the menace of kidnapping.
The problem is even affecting the road projects that we are doing. The other day, even the strategic Aba-Owerri Road project was affected because the hoodlums went and kidnapped two of the white men who were working there. And because of that, the people refused to work again. Breweries, bottling industry, the chalk industry in Aba, the glass industry, these kidnappers are always harassing them; even Geometrics that want to give us power, they went there and started harassing them. So, the problem became a thorn in our flesh and I said no reasonable government will stay here and fold its arm. What we have to do is to put in place measures that will curb the menace.
That was why when I called the okada people, I told them that this is not an occasion to extend time for you again; we have to stop from last Monday.
And you can see for yourselves, the positive effects in the town - the place is now more peaceful and orderly. The place is better because all the noise that the okada people cause left, right and centre is no more there. And very important, the rate of accidents on the urban roads has dropped sharply. If you go to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital here, there was a ward that was dedicated to okada people there. When you go there, you see legs hanging up and down. I know that since last Monday, when we stopped the okada people, nobody has been rushed into that ward with broken limbs and bones. No person has gone into that ward to hang his leg up and we have not heard of any incident of armed robbery or kidnapping since then. So, the vast majority of our people are happy and I have been receiving text messages and phone calls from the people applauding the measure. Over eighty percent of the populace of Abia State are happy with this measure that we have taken.
Apart from that, you asked me also what measures we have taken to fight kidnapping. Indeed, we have taken a lot of measures. Some of them are confidential and some are open. Because it borders on security, I will not tell you the secret measures. Now, we have gotten a special adviser, who is a retired military officer to advise the government on how to deal with the menace. He is an expert in dealing with the problem of kidnapping. He has done it for other states, he comes from our state. So, we have secured his services to help to tackle the problem. He has come in with lots of ideas and innovations that have helped us apprehend many of the criminals. As of now, we have in our kitty up to 35 suspected kidnappers. These were apprehended one after the other. Beside that, we have also passed some legislation. For instance, we have a law in place that makes kidnapping a capital offence. We have also empowered the Police by giving them more vehicles and logistics to fight this crime. That we have been doing. We have a reward system also. If you give us information, we have a way of telling you thank you. By giving cash rewards, we encourage such people to give us more information. And the approach has been quit helpful to us because people are now stepping forward to give us more information. And there are good citizens that have come forward to give us clues that are scientific because the boys who perpetrate these acts are mostly intelligent boys. Therefore, you need to match their intelligence with intelligence also. We have people with us also who are giving us advice and telling us scientifically how we are going to track these people, I mean tracking where they stay in the bush and how we can track them to that place and catch them.
And when you catch two, three or four people through that means, you will see that the others will leave this bad act. We want them to leave this the trade. You see, one interesting thing is that majority of the people doing this thing are from a particular area of the state. I mean they are coming from a particular place in the state. I don't know why, whether that is their business or what. I have appealed to them severally - leave this business because it will not benefit you. He who lives by the gun will die by the gun. That is obvious. Everyday, you use your gun to harass innocent people, kill them, and take their money. One day, that same gun will kill you.
We have been appealing to them to leave this business and join another business. Come for employment and we will give you. We are creating employment for people but these people are not interested because they want to hit it big overnight. Because, it is a new business for them that gives them big money they plunge into it. These are boys who hadn't got anything before, but in a single operation, they would make up to 30 million naira, 50 million naira; so they are tempted and are ready to stake their lives to get this money.
And what do they do with the money - buy flashy cars, pursue women about and other non profitable things. What will it benefit you when you kill your fellow human being for that kind of money?
So, we are appealing to them but they refused to take our appeals seriously, we had to show them that we are in power, that this is a government and the way to do this is to pursue them bumper to bumper.
Aba used to be an industrial hub of the country. Today, the story is different as the manufacturing sector in that city is fading. Kindly tell us what is being done about Aba's fading industry?
The industrial spirit is still on in Aba. Made in Aba shoes are there at Ariaria. The government established a common facility for the craftsmen in Aba. There is a common facility with machinery built by the state government in conjunction with the federal government. The invention prowess is still in Aba people and they can fabricate any machinery you require in a week. It is to galvanise it, because Aba has the greatest concentration of industries; the glass industry, bottling industry, malt industry, paper industry among others.
We are fighting the kidnapping issue for business to thrive, because these kidnappers go for the manufacturers who have the money and this has adversely affected production capacity. There is no product that is not available in Aba. People come from far and wide to sew their cloth in Aba and close to the city is Akwete, a place where there is very superior clothes industry.
Aba is inhabited by people from all over the country and the world because that is the centre of commerce and what the people need is encouragement from both government and private investors. We are building a modern market now before Aba at Osisioma because there will be no new market in Aba that will not be occupied the following day. Ariaria market and all the others in Aba are now congested.
How do you think export of made-in-Aba products can be achieved?
That is a question for the younger generation. Will they like to wear shoes made in Aba? They would like to go abroad and buy clothes and shoes from their malls and flaunt them. It is more convenient for them, because they would like to boast about what they have and where they bought it.
In Aba, we used to have presidential tailors who would sew classic suits and deliver at record time, but this is no longer so because of the influx of foreign made suits.
However, traditional wears are best designed and made in Aba today. Just go there and tell them you want a design and they will measure you and the next day deliver the appropriate product. The emphasis is no longer on suits but traditional wears.
Recently, there was a statement by a top official of your party in the state that all political or campaign organisations should be dissolved except the Reality Organization. By this development, has your own outfit, the Ochendo organisation been rested for Reality Organisation?
I have said it severally that as atf now, my concentration is to deliver to the people of Abia not to talk of 2010 or 2011. I don't want to lose focus at all, because for two years I was in court and my attention was divided. I was battling for my seat and I was also delivering. If I had concentrated on delivering alone I would have achieved more than I have done today.
So, right now that I am no more in court, I want to channel all my attention on delivering to Abia people. Year 2011 will take care of itself and then we don't have any problem in the PPA. A statement may have emanated and the person who made that statement has retracted it and apologised because people can make mistakes and the person who made that mistake has come to me to apologise, which is the reason I have not reacted to the statement because it is a statement made out of mistake and not from the heart.
How are you coping with the issue of funding, considering your various projects?
Funding is a major problem confronting this government and other governments because of the global economic melt-down but it is for us managers of states to fashion out means of mitigating the problem and this is what we have started doing.
First and foremost, we have started to enhance our internally generated revenue by bringing in experts who can help us to ensure revenue will not get into private pockets and in no distant time we will start reaping the result.
Secondly, there is the issue of bond market, which is the cheapest way of getting genuine money. This we wanted to do long time ago, because I was one of the first governors that wanted to go to the capital market to raise money for our projects but our opponents and detractors said we were laundering money and want to use it to fund our court case and some of our people who are gullible started buying that lie, and we decided to show Abians that we could perform without going to the bond market, which we did and that proves the point that this is not a corrupt government and that we are using the money for the benefit of the people.
We are now in the bond market where other governments have been to hoping that when we get the money we are going to use for the benefit of all Abians and the people will see the projects. After all, Abians did not elect me to come and sit here and cry that I don't have money but to go and find money without stealing it and that is what I am doing by going to the stock market to look for money for the benefit of Abians.
Talking more politics now, have you been approached to return to the PDP? We have it on good authority that you are a target for PDP poachers.
You said you have it on good authority. You know why we left PDP. We were the original members of PDP and in fact in my ward I think my card number was number one and we had passion for the party and fought for it to stand very strongly. But what did we get in return? - a rebuff, disgrace, that we were not wanted. Why, what did we do? Nothing! The party is made up of people of different characters. You have gentlemen and people who will give you problem, but it is in the interest of the party to control these people and not for the party officials to, without any justification, remove people because you are in charge. When, instead of registering more people to come to PDP, you start de-registering people to remove them for no just cause, what do you expect? Of course as responsible people when they were not wanted in PDP, they had to carry their fate in their hands to find another possible platform where they could express themselves. That was how PPA came on board and I'm happy many people in the PDP are realizing that singular mistake they have caused and did a lot of harm to that party. They are now trying to adjust and readjust, but is it going to be as it used to be? No, because most of these people have found their way to other areas and for them to come back now will be difficult for many people. Being wooed or not being wooed it is you that said you heard so from good authority. So, it is left to you to go to those who told you and pursue that.
For sometime, there has been this hoopla about the floating of a mega party by some opposition elements to challenge the PDP in subsequent elections. Can you tell us whether the proponents of mega party have approached you?
I have not been approached and when discussions start then we will know whether it is good or bad. Discussions have to start and it is not late because INEC will register parties. When that starts, then discussions will gear up to the expected level, but as of now, I have not been approached and before you go for mega party, people have to sit down and discuss and marry ideas and agree on how to pursue them.
What kind of legacy do you want to leave in Abia?
I want to leave a lasting legacy for which I would want to be remembered. A lasting one so that people would say this was done when Governor T.A Orji was here. I remember Governor T.A Orji. He did very well. Not a legacy of praise singers. When you are in power people come to sing your praises. That is not the legacy I want. I don't want anybody to begin to sing my praises now because that would confuse me. Rather, I want people to sing my praises when I have left this seat. That time, they will be able to assess me fairly because what I want to leave behind is a lasting legacy.
As an Igbo leader, what steps are you taking or believe should be taken to bring the Igbos back to the fore of Nigeria's politics?
In politics no condition is permanent and no position is static. Today, it is one ethnic nationality, tomorrow it may be another, probably the Igbo or another and that is how satisfaction will reach everybody. Things have to move. Yesterday it was Igbos, but today it is not Igbos because of change, circumstances that have determined everything. Tomorrow, it will not be the turn of the people that are holding power today and it will move to other people and so circumstances will continue to determine movement of power in Nigeria. I'm assuring you that this will happen. It may take a year or a century but it will surely happen.
Kindly brief us on the state government's ventures?
Government has no business in being in business but to involve private investors through its public-private-partnership (PPP) which has been working. We revived the Modern Ceramics, Golden Guinea Breweries, which will employ a lot of people. In Aba, the Glass Industry which produces pharmaceutical bottles and the other which produces glass sheets for vehicles and the malt companies; in Ohambele where there is the moribund oil-mill, that has been revived to produce commodities and give jobs to the people and that is why we are building roads to take out products and bring in investors.
We conceived the idea of building three refineries in Abia Central, Abia South and Abia North, starting with Abia South where the oil is produced, but our detractors came and said we were laundering money and that it is not a viable project. But I am assuring that the project is still on and that we are still trying to untie some of the issues for the project to take off and we have even brought more people who know that the project is viable and we are partnering with people who want to finance the project all by themselves.
What about payment of salaries and pensions?
When we came on board, we started settling backlogs of arrears of pensions. We are paying constantly every month. We release N30 million every month so that arrears of pensions are paid. We even made it up to N40 million and salaries are being paid but remember that this government is the only state government that promoted everybody from one grade level to the next on assumption of office. If you are on grade level 13 you move to 14 and not step, including lecturers and those on super scales not running the civil service structure, such as university lecturers, doctors, lawyers among others. I promoted every person including teachers. And apart from the promotion, I increased the subvention of Abia State University from N50 million to N146 million per month. The same for the Polytechnic and the College of Education at Arochukwu, and the Teaching Hospital and the Health Management Board and I was paying this constantly as well as salaries and pension until the economic melt-down started and it affected us.
Some people disengaged workers but we didn't and we are coming out of it. As at now, we do not owe people, but if there is any person that is owed in the local government or elsewhere, they will be paid, because it is better to owe workers than to disengage them. One day there is hope that government will pay.
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