By Phil Okose Onitsha
The immediate past chairman of Idemili branch of the Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, Barr. Benjamin Chukwudi Okoko, has exonerated Governor Willie Obiano over accusations of non-performance since he assumed office as the governor of the state.
Exonerating the governor, Barr. Okoko recounted the ordeal his childhood friend (names withheld) went through when the friend was kidnapped in front of his (Okoko’s) chambers at Nkpor in the not too distant past, adding that such an incident cannot happen now that the state is under the watch of incumbent Governor Willie Obiano.
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He said, “In 2013 a banker friend of mine, my childhood friend of over 30 years, was kidnapped in front of my office at Nkpor. I negotiated the ransom.”
“So the issue of insecurity has been drastically reduced. We can now sleep with our two eyes closed, courtesy of Obiano. When you look round you see the street lights installed throughout the state; on the issue of sanitation, they remove refuse in front of my office on daily basis. I live at Omagba and it is still the same thing, for the past three and half years the thing has been consistent; not because election has been here”.
“The governor has been performing and, on the issue of payment of workers’ salary, I am not a salary earner but I know there has not been salary problem despite the fact that former Governor Obi’s administration employed so many people at the tail end of his (Obi’s) administration and Obiano has never fired any worker,” he revealed.
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Okoko recalled that before he (Obiano) became the governor, they asked him how he would tackle the security challenges and he responded by saying that he would use intelligence and that has worked out and he promised to install CCTV cameras.
He expressed optimism that the governor would take the people to the promised land stating that the alleged non-performance were those criticisms that came during the gubernatorial election used by opposition to draw sympathy.
He described the election as very free, peaceful and smooth pointing out that security was also put in place. He urged those defeated to join hands with the governor in building the state adding that it is also their fundamental right to go to court if they so wish but reminded them that it was a landslide victory.
“The margin is too much. For the first time in the history of the state that a governor won in the 21 local government areas, from the report we have. What are you going to the court to do? It is going to be an uphill task for whoever that wants to go to court. The courts are there to satisfy everybody” he stated.
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