George Onyejiuwa , Owerri
Imo State Governor-elect, Emeka Ihedioha, has restated his resolve to run an inclusive and transparent government targeted at giving meaning to life for the people of the state.
He said this to newsmen in Owerri, shortly after being declared winner of the governorship contest by Prof. Francis Otunta, Imo State Returning Officer for last Saturday’s governorship election.
He said: “I’ll put Imo back to life. We shall get Imo working again. We shall reintroduce, in our state, a deliberate administration, and by the grace of God, get back to the basics and revive our cultural heritage to give meaning to life. We shall revive our ethical system and reinvigorate our infrastructure. I can assure you that Imo people made the right choice and we’ll prove it in the coming months.”
Ihedioha, who has extended his hands of fellowship to his co-contestants, said, “quite honestly, to my co-contestants, I congratulate and thank all of them for a very good race that brought the best out of all of us. For me, Imo is one, and under my watch, we’ll unite everybody. I want to assure that under my watch, there will be no Okigwe zone, no Orlu zone, no Owerri zone. It does not matter where one comes from. Under my watch as the governor of the state, we’ll try to incorporate everybody because I believe that my compatriots, who contested for governorship in other political parties, have ideas that would benefit the state.
“We shall work together for the benefit of Imo State. I’ll make efforts to invite and incorporate them in my government. I believe anyone who has anything to offer our state is welcomed, irrespective of party affiliation.
“Good governance will be fundamental, because we basically have not had good governance in Imo State for such a long time.
“We are going to look at institutional and infrastructure development. Fundamentally, we are going to look at areas of job and wealth creation, which will define our future.
“We shall respect the rule of law, revive the public and civil service sector, with deliberate attention to education and health care delivery system. Agriculture will be a major stake-holding sector in our economy, and we‘ll take advantage of the fact that Imo is an oil producing state, with huge gas reserve that would reinvigorate our development in several areas.”
The former deputy speaker of the House of Representatives, who scored 273,404 to win the governorship seat, said, “you will notice a lot of youth restiveness in Imo. It is a major burden and, so, in creating jobs, we have to identify areas and sectors we shall provide these jobs.
“Fundamentally, without power, we cannot industrialise, hence, we are going to pursue, immediately, plans towards getting the power sector to work.
“To achieve this, we have to interface with the federal government. Already, I understand how the federal institutions work; so, I’ll work hand in glove with them to ensure the power projects in Imo are completed. If we achieve this, it will revive and activate the industrial sector.”
Meanwhile, Chairman of Igbo Traditional Rulers Forum and Chancellor, Federal University, Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State, Eze (Dr.) Cletus Ilomuanya, has given an assurance that Ihedioha’s emergence as governor of Imo will restore the people’s confidence in the leadership of the state.
Eze Ilomuanya said with Ihedioha’s victory, ‘Imo will certainly witness a new lease of life, because of the credibility and selfless nature of the in-coming governor.”
The Obi of Obinugwu Kingdom in Orlu Local Government Area of Imo State, spoke while congratulating Ihedioha on his election as the next governor of Imo State. According to the monarch, “civil servants, pensioners, business men and women, artisans and even the traditional institution, have reasons to thank God that Ihedioha is now coming on board as governor.
The massive jubilation, which preceded his formal declaration, on Monday night, was an eloquent testimony that Imo people earnestly seek Ihedioha’s administration.”
He said Imo is in dire need of an administrator of Ihedioha’s pedigree, whom, he said “is tested and trusted.” He argued that Ihedioha is exactly what Imo needs now to recover and rebuild, pointing out that restoring Imo to her lost glory requires a person of sound mind and intellect like Ihedioha, who will place p