Abia: Gov Orji’s many headaches

Gov. T. Orji

Indeed, the essential ingredients to measure success or failure of any democracy are credible election, service delivery, good governance and accountability. Without these...

then democracy becomes sour and unpalatable. The big question remains; eleven years into democratic experiment in Nigeria , how have we fared and what are the constrains towards achieving good results? Abia State Governor, Chief Theodore Ahamefula Orji is not resting on his oars to ensure that he delivers quality life to the people of the State in keeping with his campaign promises. However, the present economic condition is a factor the governor must contend with. 
 A former Minister of defence, Chief Thomas I. Aguiyi-Ironsi, in one of his published Advertorials in one of the Nation's National dailies, said, “The democratically elected governors (in Nigeria, with an eye on Abia) have played good politics, but nothing to show for the large allocation from the Federal government and internally generated revenue. This development has made observers both at home and abroad, to ponder why a State endowed with great resources, both human and economic, and has floundered with an increase in poverty, infrastructural decay, and unemployment, closure of industrial concern, insecurity and loss of faith in governance by the governed”. 
 In an attempt to show-case how much he has tried to satisfy the ingredients of democracy under his three years administration of Abia State, the State governor Chief Theodore Orji, at the democracy Day rally held at Umuahia Township stadium, reeled out his score sheet, which contained a number of completed, on-going and stalled projects, across the State. He regretted the failure of some of them to attain the required stages, or even the inability of some of them to take-off so that they could make the desired impact. 
 At the end of his remarks the governor said; “anyone wishing to judge the performance of our administration should also take into cognisance the revenue that has occurred to us within the period of assessment. We are seeking various means of injecting funds to our State to enable us complete most of the far-reaching projects that we have embarked upon. The process of sourcing these funds are still on-going. We have been honest and open with Abians in all dealings and we have carried every sector and zone along in our developmental strides. Our aim is to guarantee an even spread of development to all the sectors of the State”. 
Acceptance of that document generated some mixed feelings. While some people said that Governor Orji has done very well within his three years administration; others agree with Chief Aguiyi Ironsi that there is nothing on ground yet to see. Others, still, argue that a lot more are expected from the governor based on the promises he made during his electioneering. But economy-watchers are of the opinion that critics should base their arguments on the health of Abia State economy and the economic variables at the disposal of the State government since the regime came into power. 
For instance, both the 90 days incarceration of the governor, his bail and the protracted legal battle orchestrated by the PDP which has lasted till date , are enough distractions for any governor and resource consuming. Other hiccups followed thereafter. 
One of such is that governor Orji remains one of the governor's maintaining the Secretariats of his party, the Progressive Peoples Alliance(PPA), in all the other 36 States of the federation as required by the law of the land. Chief Ikedi Ohakim of Imo State , who could have made a comfortable partner, and who clinched power under the umbrella of the PPA, had defected to the PDP, leaving Orji as lone PPA governor in the country catering for the rest of the States of the federation. The financial involvement here also demands a solid financial muzzle. This is probably why Orji has continued to appeal to his party faithful to intensify their campaign to win more States, come the 2011 general elections. 
Another headache the governor is passing through is low internally generated revenue (IGR) and low federal allocation. The governor has often expressed dissatisfaction about the way and manner Abia State is loosing huge revenue and the federal government deducting state indebtedness at source. Addressing a delegation of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises from Aba, that called on him at the Seat of power in Umuahia, the governor lamented that out of the numerous of small and medium scale companies scattered all over the commercial nerve-centre of Aba, only about 16 of them pay tax to government. At present, Abia State makes an average of N250million monthly from IGR, courtesy of the Board of Internal Revenue. This is afar cry from what Aba is capable of generating into government coffers. A reliable source says that Aba is capable of raising N1billion monthly as tax. The irony here, the source said is that a good chunk of revenue generated from Aba and elsewhere, go into private pockets, coupled with the fact the well-to-do people in Abia hardly pay tax. 
Regrettably enough too, the Palm oil, Rubber, Cocoa and cashew plantations that generate the needed revenue for government in the 60's are yet to come upstream. For years, the Ministry responsible for reactivating these plantations has only busied itself doing paper works and feeding the governor with false information. It is unfortunate that this real sector has been left in the hands of the aged who are dying away due to hash realities of life, while the youths have gone to town in search of unskilled jobs or engage in violent crimes. 
To shore up its IGR and close some of the leaking holes in government's tax system, the State government engaged the services of private revenue consultants, in order to meet up with its projected target of N9.7billion IGR in its 2010 budget. Sources say it is not so rosy with the consultants, either. A situation where they generate about N20million and pay only N7million into the coffers of Abia State is not encouraging. 
On the nature of the State workforce, Governor Orji inherited a polarized and politicized state civil service, courtesy of the co-called civil service reform programme of former Head of Service, Mr. Uchenna Emezue. Most civil servants possess political party carols and this has made for the large scale indiscipline and low productivity in the State service. A good number are enjoying full-time studentship at Abia State University Uturu (ABSU), while receiving full salaries from their employers, the ministries or local government councils every month. To compound the problem of indiscipline and god fatherism in the system, all retired former Heads of Service, who had in one way or the other tinkered with the civil service General Order, to suit their purposes, have been pulled together to constitute the State Civil service commission. Till date, it is still very difficult to fish out ghost workers in the State Teaching service and Local government system. The moment you start it you are stepping on powerful toes and you will be forced to stop the exercise. Huge revenue will continue to go that way. 
Moreover, even the governor's own people, his lieutenants or aids are not helping matters. Un-reliable statistics states that about 90% of these lieutenants are mere sycophants who only want to gain not to serve. Their stock in trade is praise-singing while looking for avenues to cut-corners. Justice I.Akomas of Abia State HIndeed, the essential ingredients to measure success or failure of any democracy are credible election, service delivery, good governance and accountability. Without these, then democracy becomes sour and unpalatable. The big question remains; eleven years into democratic experiment in Nigeria , how have we fared and what are the constrains towards achieving good results? Abia State Governor, Chief Theodore Ahamefula Orji is not resting on his oars to ensure that he delivers quality life to the people of the State in keeping with his campaign promises. However, the present economic condition is a factor the governor must contend with. 
 A former Minister of defence, Chief Thomas I. Aguiyi-Ironsi, in one of his published Advertorials in one of the Nation's National dailies, said, “The democratically elected governors (in Nigeria, with an eye on Abia) have played good politics, but nothing to show for the large allocation from the Federal government and internally generated revenue. This development has made observers both at home and abroad, to ponder why a State endowed with great resources, both human and economic, and has floundered with an increase in poverty, infrastructural decay, and unemployment, closure of industrial concern, insecurity and loss of faith in governance by the governed”. 
 In an attempt to show-case how much he has tried to satisfy the ingredients of democracy under his three years administration of Abia State, the State governor Chief Theodore Orji, at the democracy Day rally held at Umuahia Township stadium, reeled out his score sheet, which contained a number of completed, on-going and stalled projects, across the State. He regretted the failure of some of them to attain the required stages, or even the inability of some of them to take-off so that they could make the desired impact. 
 At the end of his remarks the governor said; “anyone wishing to judge the performance of our administration should also take into cognisance the revenue that has occurred to us within the period of assessment. We are seeking various means of injecting funds to our State to enable us complete most of the far-reaching projects that we have embarked upon. The process of sourcing these funds are still on-going. We have been honest and open with Abians in all dealings and we have carried every sector and zone along in our developmental strides. Our aim is to guarantee an even spread of development to all the sectors of the State”. 
Acceptance of that document generated some mixed feelings. While some people said that Governor Orji has done very well within his three years administration; others agree with Chief Aguiyi Ironsi that there is nothing on ground yet to see. Others, still, argue that a lot more are expected from the governor based on the promises he made during his electioneering. But economy-watchers are of the opinion that critics should base their arguments on the health of Abia State economy and the economic variables at the disposal of the State government since the regime came into power. 
For instance, both the 90 days incarceration of the governor, his bail and the protracted legal battle orchestrated by the PDP which has lasted till date , are enough distractions for any governor and resource consuming. Other hiccups followed thereafter. 
One of such is that governor Orji remains one of the governor's maintaining the Secretariats of his party, the Progressive Peoples Alliance(PPA), in all the other 36 States of the federation as required by the law of the land. Chief Ikedi Ohakim of Imo State , who could have made a comfortable partner, and who clinched power under the umbrella of the PPA, had defected to the PDP, leaving Orji as lone PPA governor in the country catering for the rest of the States of the federation. The financial involvement here also demands a solid financial muzzle. This is probably why Orji has continued to appeal to his party faithful to intensify their campaign to win more States, come the 2011 general elections. 
Another headache the governor is passing through is low internally generated revenue (IGR) and low federal allocation. The governor has often expressed dissatisfaction about the way and manner Abia State is loosing huge revenue and the federal government deducting state indebtedness at source. Addressing a delegation of Small and Medium Scale Enterprises from Aba, that called on him at the Seat of power in Umuahia, the governor lamented that out of the numerous of small and medium scale companies scattered all over the commercial nerve-centre of Aba, only about 16 of them pay tax to government. At present, Abia State makes an average of N250million monthly from IGR, courtesy of the Board of Internal Revenue. This is afar cry from what Aba is capable of generating into government coffers. A reliable source says that Aba is capable of raising N1billion monthly as tax. The irony here, the source said is that a good chunk of revenue generated from Aba and elsewhere, go into private pockets, coupled with the fact the well-to-do people in Abia hardly pay tax. 
Regrettably enough too, the Palm oil, Rubber, Cocoa and cashew plantations that generate the needed revenue for government in the 60's are yet to come upstream. For years, the Ministry responsible for reactivating these plantations has only busied itself doing paper works and feeding the governor with false information. It is unfortunate that this real sector has been left in the hands of the aged who are dying away due to hash realities of life, while the youths have gone to town in search of unskilled jobs or engage in violent crimes. 
To shore up its IGR and close some of the leaking holes in government's tax system, the State government engaged the services of private revenue consultants, in order to meet up with its projected target of N9.7billion IGR in its 2010 budget. Sources say it is not so rosy with the consultants, either. A situation where they generate about N20million and pay only N7million into the coffers of Abia State is not encouraging. 
On the nature of the State workforce, Governor Orji inherited a polarized and politicized state civil service, courtesy of the co-called civil service reform programme of former Head of Service, Mr. Uchenna Emezue. Most civil servants possess political party carols and this has made for the large scale indiscipline and low productivity in the State service. A good number are enjoying full-time studentship at Abia State University Uturu (ABSU), while receiving full salaries from their employers, the ministries or local government councils every month. To compound the problem of indiscipline and god fatherism in the system, all retired former Heads of Service, who had in one way or the other tinkered with the civil service General Order, to suit their purposes, have been pulled together to constitute the State Civil service commission. Till date, it is still very difficult to fish out ghost workers in the State Teaching service and Local government system. The moment you start it you are stepping on powerful toes and you will be forced to stop the exercise. Huge revenue will continue to go that way. 
Moreover, even the governor's own people, his lieutenants or aids are not helping matters. Un-reliable statistics states that about 90% of these lieutenants are mere sycophants who only want to gain not to serve. Their stock in trade is praise-singing while looking for avenues to cut-corners. Justice I.Akomas of Abia State High Court, at a civic reception for Governor Orji at Isieke-Ibeku School play ground, Umuahia-North LGA, put it succinctly to the governor when the said, “surround yourself with positive thinkers rather than negative thinkers. Most of your aides are mere praise-singers, which will not help you succeed”. In the same manner, several men of God, including Bishop Goddy Okafor of GO Harvest International, preaching at the Government House Unity Chapel and elsewhere, had made it clear to the Governor Orji that there are many Judases in his kitchen cabinet who are working negatively against him. But that the clergy are praying that the efforts of such black legs would be in vain. There are clear indications that majority of them only hover around in Umuahia but will not go down to their localities to enlighten their people on government policies or mobilize them as the governor expects them to do there. 
 However, Security is another capital intensive project Orji has been tackling with all amount of sincerity. Security is one that has posed a recurring challenge to Abia State government. Soldiers, Navy, and air force, as well as the police, NSDC, and local vigilante group have been deployed to fight the scourge of armed robbery, kidnapping and other violent crimes in Abia. A total of 105 patrol vans fitted with communication gadgets have been procured and given to the various security formations in the State to fight crime. Each of the gadgets is empowered with a 40KVA generator to ensure 24-hour radio surveillance in the state. Now, Helicopters have been deployed to locate the hideouts of these criminals , while additional police contingent has been drafted to Abia, at the expense of Abia State government, to combat crime. In addition, the personnel involved in this war against crime in the State are given cash and material incentives, given Insurance covers, etc, to ensure that Abia State regains its place as the number one destination for commerce and investment. 
Again, the debt profile of $20million and other liabilities Abia inherited from old Imo state have become another source of worry to government. The federal government now deducts this amount at source on monthly basis. Recently, the federal government ceded to Abia State 46 oil wells, which were wrongly credited to Rivers State .This should ordinarily boost the State revenue. But, alas, since then the royalties that should accrue to Abia State have not come. Whenever they start coming Abians will know and the citizenry would wear smiles on their faces. Nobody will then suspect the other. 
 Of course, if the above bottlenecks are cleared, more amenities, structures and developments will flow into Abia and for Abians. With a federal allocations of N2.4bn, IGR of about N250m and a salary wage bill of N1.2bn monthly, there is little any governor can do. 
However, it is not that Orji has no human feelings or regrets for what he has not been able to achieve within this three years in office. One of such regrets he has is his inability to implement the 27.5% salary increase for teachers as agreed by the Governor's forum. He has not also lived up to his election promises to relocate the Umuahia main market to Ubani-Ibeku to give it the status and convenience it desires. Also in the list of his regrets is the resuscitation of the moribund Golden Guinea Breweries, Plc, Umuahia and reactivation of the Aba Regional Water scheme; all due to paucity of funds within these three years. 
In his 3rd anniversary remarks, Orji made it plain that it has been difficult to accomplish all he promised the electorate within his first tenure. This is probably why he made a passionate plea to the electorate to give him a second chance to enable him complete his un-completed projects and have enough time to impact on the lives of Abians. He had declared: “There is no governor who will be satisfied with one term. You cannot complete all your projects within the first term. It is during the second term that you are in a position to complete most of your projects and then meet the expectations of the people as regards the promises you made to them during your campaign. That is why the constitution so specified it like that. Nobody expects a magician can sit for only four years and accomplish everything he has in mind for the people. It is impossible!”