EXPRESSO BY STEVE OSUJI Hope Uzodimma Was Here: One was in Owerri, Imo State recently and was pleasantly surprised that my favourite hotel now has adequate power supply. I have lodged intermittently in this serene, capacious facility since 2007. That’s nearly 20 years. But up until my last sojourn, the hotel was plagued with consistent electricity failure. Initially, it was power outages of the remorseless kind. It was as if a deranged kid in the power station was toying with the public power switch; flicking it off and on every ten minutes. For instance, immediately there’s power failure and the hotel generator is switched on, public power is switched on again in a space of 5-10 minutes. This is like a vicious, cynical roulette. And this would go on for a whole day. Indeed, it went on for over a decade. It was a most pernicious and unforgiving public work routine one ever experienced. At a point, the hotel stopped putting on the air conditioning system in the daytime. They would only do so at night using the generators. At my last visit early in the month, the receptionist was beside himself, announcing to me that they are now on Governor Hope Uzodimma’s Urashi Power grid. Now “our AC is on round the clock,” the young man enthused. I was also elated, understanding the prospect of a prosperous time that would soon return to my old redoubt. One can also see the fresh burgeoning of the New Owerri axis of the Imo State capital as the organic hospitality hub of the southeast. That part of Owerri already had a dense cluster of fine hotels, night clubs, eateries, lounges, up scale restaurants and supermarkets. This area grew into what it is in spite of almost zero, and indeed, disruptive public power supply. With Uzodimma’s Urashi Electricity Company, this area will blossom into the economic power house of Imo State. But the pricing of the energy must be deliberate with the motive of boosting the state’s economy and helping that natural hub to grow to its full potential. This way, Owerri will no sooner, become the hospitality capital of Nigeria with all the attendant economic benefits. But beyond breaking the power jinx in Imo State to some extent, Governor Uzodimma has also accomplished some important infrastructure feats especially in the last three years. He has indeed outperformed some of his predecessors, apart from only Chief Sam Mbakwe. With this power feat, we can easily say that Uzodimma Was Here! Ironically, the last time any governor conceived off-grid power was during the era of Dee Sam Mbakwe in the early 80s. STAR BOY ALEX OTTI: There’s no doubt that the incumbent Abia State governor, Dr Alex Otti has proved to Nigerians that state governance can deliver far more than they have been getting in this dispensation. Yours truly traveled to Uzuakoli, Abia State, some distance after Umuahia for a burial ceremony. The trip starting from Isiala-Mbano was a bit rough until we crossed the boundary between Imo and Abia. The transformation is transcendental. And that’s not hyperbolic. Well paved and dualized roads ushered us into Abia down to Abia Tower and all the way down to Uzuakoli. Apart from this first hand experience, Governor Otti’s infrastructure upgrade all over Abia in the past three years has no comparison. He readily trumps all other governors across the country. And it’s not only the urban roads. We have seen modern bus terminals and the one trending currently is the smart school. One was awed watching the documentary showing what a modern school looks like. MBAH THE SPHINX RISING FROM THE ASHES OF A FLAWED MANDATE A senior professional colleague operating from Enugu said over a year ago that Enugu people have been doing serial thanksgiving to God for giving them Peter Mbah. “We almost made a grievous mistake,” he said, lowering his tone. Governor Mbah of Enugu has put up a decent performance in three years. He has proved that a serious governor can easily deliver and impact a state in just three years. His urban renewal projects, roads infrastructure, schools, hospitals and transportation amenities mark him out as a serious and inspirational leader. Indeed, it has been conjectured that both Otti and Mbah may have pushed Uzodimma into a difficult position, forcing him to brace up to work. It was the talk of the town that these two men delivered more in three years than Hope presented in six years. But it’s most salutary that Uzodimma has bounced back to life and is bent on finishing strong. History may well remember him for good. NONDESCRIPT SOLUDO AND NWIFURU Since we seem to be x-raying SE governors, one really cannot report authoritatively on the performances of
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