By Shirley Ikonne
“In the spirit of patriotism, here is something everyone of us must know.
Every great achievement starts first with a dream, every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember you have within you the strength, the patience and the passion to reach for the stars and to change the world.
Change on its own will never come if we wait for some other people or some other time, we are the ones we have been waiting for, we are the change we seek. You must be the change you wish to see in the world. Let your daily actions and decisions reflect the positive change you long for and want to seen in our dear nation.” -Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu
The human society has always been confronted with challenges of varying degrees. The challenges, if left unaddressed, could generate tremendous consequences on man and society.
Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, the former governor of Abia State, is a great man recognised for his endless drive to motivate his people. A patriot and a great leader, who believes much success can be achieved through motivation. As a youth, I was moved by his words: “Let this motivate you, Success in life comes when you simply refuse to give up, with goals so strong as obstacles, failures and loss only acts as MOTIVATION.
“You can achieve anything whatsoever you wish to achieve, only when you believe in yourself and most importantly decide never to give up.”
Anyone who wants to be sincere will agree to this fact that Kalu was among the top three governors that performed creditably well during the 1999-2007 era. The then President Olusegun Obasanjo nicknamed him “the action governor.” He was fondly called “Miri nyiri enyi nke mbu n’ala Igbo” by his admirers. He is truly a salt of Igbo race. A true leader, who has shown enough courage and traits to be recognised globally as a hero and motivator.
Responsible and responsive segments of the human society have, at various times, shown commitment to problem solving and conflict resolution and Kalu is an embodiment of these humane traits. It is a well-known fact that prior to and after his days as the governor of Abia State, he had continued to empower thousands of youths in different ways. He has so far helped in empowering many in skills acquisition, providing lots of job opportunities and employments.
Kalu is a man who made every sacrifice to make Abia State a leading economy in Nigeria. He made great efforts to recover 43 oil wells, which had so far been ceded to the neighbouring Rivers State, despite the odds, because of his motivation to do the needful to ensure social justice and equity.
A man who is passionate for the well being of others elevated the civil service in Abia State to the point of dignity and honour. Civil servants’ salaries were duly paid. His government organised seminars, workshops and trainings for their advancements and developments.
It would be recalled that many able-bodied youths in Abia State roamed the streets and engaged in various crimes. Through the vision of Kalu, numerous skills acquisition centres were created across the state and most were enrolled into these acquisition schemes. It was hitherto efficacious.
Kalu was also popularly known as African Pillar of Sports. It is a well-known fact that the success story of Enyimba Football Club cannot be told without the mention of Kalu. He did excellently well as a great lover of sport. Through his efforts, Enyimba Football Club, which had been relegated to the background, was elevated to a top table champions club. Not only did Enyimba rule the Nigerian football league but also went ahead to win the CAF Champions League back- to-back. Enyimba became the first club in Nigeria to win the CAF Champions League and the first in Africa to win the prestigious trophy back-to-back. Through Kalu, Enyimba FC became a force in Africa Football FC. This achievement earned him lots of accolades, respect and love by many Nigerian football lovers.
Recently, while responding to journalists in a conference call from Washington DC, Kalu tipped the Nigeria Super Eagles to lift the 2018 World Cup in Russia. According to him, motivation of the players and the entire team must be the key. He said the players would give the best if they are well handled. He advised the Federal Government to invest in the Super Eagles. He made it clear that Enyimba winning the African Champions League back-to-back was not magic but an outcome of good strategies.
As a great leader, he felt the pulse and heartbeat of his people in everything he has been doing. In 2007, working in concert with the elective chairmen of the local government councils, created 13,000 jobs to reduce drastically the unemployment rate in Abia State.
The Abia North Senatorial politician is a man, who wants stability of the country, which, according to him, is good for his business. As a stakeholder in the Nigerian project, stability is the best thing in democracy. He emphasises that stability of the country is good for business.
Let us recognise these selfless sacrifices made by this great icon, a great motivator of our time, who has distinguished himself credibly well in his love for humanity.
• Ikonne wrote in from Lagos.