The positive testimonial now on Imo State is deafening. And it has shut out negative perceptions that many people held about the state prior to the change of guard in 2019. I am deliberate in saying 2019 because that was when Imo people took a decision to break with their past (the years leading to 2019).

After President Muhammadu Buhari’s visit to the state, where he inaugurated some projects, there was a very strong effort to use some social media platforms to present the projects as auto-deliveries. What struck me most was the effort to deny the existence of the projects.

It was expected because the opposition has to do what it is supposed to do. But Chin Akano, an indigene of Nkwerre and resident in the United Kingdom, who had no reason to speak for the Imo State government or the governor, shared his view of the new reality in Imo after a road trip.

Note that Akano, a medical doctor, is not known to be anyone’s mouthpiece. And I believe that what he read on social media about the projects inaugurated by President Buhari made him ‘report’ on his experience driving on the roads.

He wrote the following on his Facebook page: “I am not a politician and not hired by any to speak in their favour. While in Nigeria a few months ago, I drove through the Owerri-Orlu road of my Imo State on my way to my place, Nkwerre. I marvelled at the wonderful state of that road. Properly finished, paved and provided with solar-powered street lights.

The quality was Julius Berger standard. Travelling on that road prior to that was a nightmare. It could take nearly two hours to get to Orlu from Owerri but with the state I saw it, it took about 30 minutes.

I marvelled. A few days ago, I drove to Nkwerre again through Owerri-Amaraku and, wow, that road has been worked on. No potholes at all. Good quality and solar street light fitted. For the first time in several years, I met that road in that wonderful state. I am told all these roads were done by the government of Senator Uzodimma. Good job”.

Akano further made a case for some inner city roads in Owerri. He was particular bout the inland roads.

However, this is not about roads because there are other indicators of progress, other than roads, that the people are excited about. Residents of the state will relate easily to the excitement, which is not just about the completion of the Orlu-Owerri road and the first phase of the Owerri-Okigwe road and, also, not about the approval for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of the other equally very strategic link roads to the state. The excitement now is about other strategic interventions aimed at radically altering the development trajectory of Imo.

These include the commencement of groundwork for the Urashi free trade zone with deliberate intention to exploit gas deposits in the state and with eyes fixed on investments estimated at $1.5 billion through direct inflows. It is also about the proposed dredging of the Urashi River to connect it to the Atlantic as a way of opening up the river for maritime trade navigation and a port complex.

A lot of people in Imo State are excited about this development for which the state governor, Hope Uzodimma, is in talks with relevant authorities and agencies for the commencement of development. The reason for this excitement is that the idea of taking advantage of the water body in Imo state for the development of maritime trade and a possible port complex has remained a campaign promise since the days of NPN and NPP.

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Several politicians in the state, especially those from the Orlu zone, always used the dredging and expansion of Njaba and, or, Oguta Lake for navigational purposes, using ships or barges, to campaign for votes.

I am aware that a previous administration in the state talked so strongly about creating an energy-recreational city/tourism hub with access to sea navigation out of Oguta Lake. Another had talked about opening up Nworie River, through dredging, and emptying it into Oguta Lake for marine transportation using ferries for business and leisure.

At the time, the project was said to have cost Imo State some princely N7 billion. While those promises kept the economic importance of those water bodies in the consciousness of the people, making them thirst for action over the years, it has taken Uzodimma to give hope toward the realization of the dream.

Here the most important step is the first step. That first step, which moves the project from the realm of potential to the doorstep of actualisation, is exciting.

Looking at the possibilities, I recall that the Lekki Deep Sea Port is about 99 per cent complete. It is private sector-driven. And it frees up a lot of locked potential in the Lekki Free Trade Zone, including the drastic increase in property value.

The success of the port at Lekki, I believe, spurred the Federal Government to approve the creation of another such port in Badagry. One can only imagine what impact these will have on the economy of Lagos State, which is begging for decongestion.

That is the way I see the approval for the opening up of the Njaba River to achieve access to the sea. It means a whole lot of new possibilities for Imo State and, as Nelson Mandela said, it always seems impossible until it is done.

When achieved, the Urashi River will become the fulcrum for a new vista for trade and commerce in the state. Adding value to the river will radically change the economic landscape of Imo and, by extension, the South-East region by way of jobs and wealth creation. Already, the new naval base at Oguta is coming up as a very strategic establishment that will offer support through maritime security for the visions of the state government toward the transformation of Urashi River.

This development is supported by another federal government approval for the construction of a hydro-powered electricity plant at the Nworie and Otammiri rivers, put at 10 megawatts. Though Imo people are eagerly awaiting the delivery of these projects, there are also doubts about the complete delivery of the projects. As it is said, once beaten, twice shy. A previous administration in the state gave Imo people more than enough reason to doubt government.

Those who express fears about the completion of the projects are justified in their fears. However, similar doubts were openly expressed when Uzodimma promised that he would renew the hope of the Imo people in government by delivering on the rehabilitation or reconstruction of Orlu-Owerri and Owerri-Okigwe roads. For Imo people, therefore, Uzodimma is living up to his passion to leave positive landmarks much in the same manner as Sam Mbakwe did.

Most people in and outside the state now believe that, if he does not accomplish the projects by the time his first tenure runs its course, he will do so in his second tenure because he has shown great passion for changing the narrative on the state.