The All Progressives Congress (APC) government of Senator Hope Uzodinma (Onwa Oyoko) and his Deputy, erudite Professor Placid Njoku, both Christians of the Catholic denomination by the grace of God, is today Friday, April 17, 2020, exactly 90 days in office and in the next ten days will be marking its celebration of 100 days in office and the electorate of Imo State and their friends are full of expectations, speculations and hope at the verdict and grace of the Supreme Court of Nigeria on January 14, 2020, the erstwhile PDP led administration of Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha was sacked and Senator Hope Uzodinma was sworn-in on January 15, 2020.
The Ihedioha government which was earlier sworn-in and inaugurated on May 29, 2019, had taken off with some wonderful programmes.
However to believe the envisaged general impression, Governor Uzodinma took an initial bold step at ensuring that government is a continuum hence he adopted some of the populist programmes and some of the projects initiated by his immediate predecessor, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha. He also adopted the Treasury Singular Account (TSA), inherited the rural and major roads projects of RAMP and the several panels and judicial committees of inquiry instituted by Ihedioha which inaugurations were publicly applauded, as some of them were aimed at recovering huge public assets which include lands, funds and institutions of Imo State that were either looted, hijacked or appropriated by the highly discredited rescue mission government of Owelle Rochas Okorocha.
When Governor Hope Uzodinma adopted these committees of inquiry, he was applauded in the media and by the populace as a step in the right direction especially when he extended the tenure of some of these panels. They include the Justice Iheaka panel on contracts awarded between May 29, 2011-2019, the Eze Duruiheoma committee on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, the committees on Allocation and Acquisition of Private and Public land and immovable assets, among others.
The committee on contracts awarded under Owelle Rochas Okorocha has been sitting and taking oral and written evidences from people. It has been reported severally in the media that the former Governor of Imo State now Senator for Imo West in the National Assembly, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, has vehemently on more than three occasions, refused to honour the invitation asking him to appear before the judicial Enquiry to defend several allegations and state his role before the Judicial Commission of Inquiry.
One now wonders if Okorocha still enjoys immunity morethan a year he left office or above the law or better still assumes the toga of a sacred cow. We are yet to see the APC government of Hope Uzodinma doing anything so far to call his kinsman and party man to order.
We also hear from the grapevine that all the public properties including lands and institutions allegedly looted by the former Governor and members of his family which were earlier confiscated by one of the several assets recovery committees or marked by the anti-graft agencies (EFCC) as sealed have been returned to the former Governor and are in full operation. While this is trending, we understand that Senator Uzodinma has yet constituted another fresh cash recovery committee on local government affairs with emphasis on the Ihedioha’s short-lived tenure.
Imo people are asking this big question, Is Senator Okorocha of APC a sacred cow or above the law? When do we expect the reports cum white papers of the various committees? There are rumours of another expensive verification exercise of Imo pensioners and workers, while another committee on local government. What is the position of Eastern Palm University Ogboko? Is it state private or public private owned university presently?
Imo people are all ears, as they sit at home without food or cash for Coronavirus to fly, past with all the soldiers and police guarding the entrance to their various homes making it not free to source for food or medical aid and keeping clean in the absence of any ENTRACO to evacuate generated domestic rubbish and wastes.
May Senator Uzodinma continue with the good steps which he started.
