Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodinma has reminded People Living with Disabilities in Imo State that they are part of the reason for his administration and that no room will be given for any form of discrimination against them. 

The Governor gave the assurance Thursday night when he received in audience the leadership of the Imo State Chapter of People Living with Disabilities who paid him a courtesy call at Government House Owerri.

Governor Uzodimma told them outrightly that he does not support discrimination against anybody, what is more against them “merely because  of their challenges,” noting that “those who are not challenged today may be challenged tomorrow.”

“No one knows who will lead the State and Country tomorrow,” the Governor said, and urged them not to feel they have any shortcomings as “what is needed for performance is mental strength and ideas.”

Besides, the Governor said, ‘’ideas rule the world.’’

He thanked them for finding time to visit him and for remaining resilient in their support to his government even as he reminded them that they have been friends and will continue to relate with each other as friends. 

Governor Uzodimma promised to look critically at their request on employment waiver and assured that they will be “given equal opportunities.”

He said his Government will work on their demand to accommodate them in the areas they will be best fitted and not necessarily their demand for quota “because waiver and quota will bring a type of stigma on you.”

The Governor also promised to take care of their request for Subvention through empowerment of their members on skills development so that “they will be self employed, self sustained and become employers of labour themselves.”

The Governor also promised to look at available options to deal with their request for a Bus.

He told their Leader and the Imo State Chairman of People Living with Disabilities, Chief Stanley Nwachukwu who is aspiring to contest the election of the National President of People Living With Disabilities, that he has always supported him and will support him again, noting that if “he succeeds it will be a boost to our Party, the APC both at the State and National level.”

Earlier while presenting them to the Governor,  Hon. Commissioner for Women Affairs and Vulnerable Groups,  Lady Nkechinyere Ugwu told the Governor that “People Living with Disabilities have been very supportive, reliable and trusted allies” of her Ministry and the the 3R administration from the beginning.

She said they were happy to meet with the Governor who is their Grand Patron.

In their address presented by the State Chairman of Joint National Association of Persons with Disabilities (JONAPWD),  Imo State Chapter,  Chief Nwachukwu, they acknowledged the “immeasurable acts of good deeds of Governor Uzodimma weaved around the 3R mantra of Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and Recovery,” noting that “Imo people have heaved a sign of relieved since the Governor came on board in Imo State.”

He congratulated the Governor on his numerous infrastructural developments, saying that “step by step Imo is being reconstructed, recovered and all eyes, except for few opposition die-hards, are witnesses to massive reconstruction of roads and improvement of infrastructural decay as well as reduction in infrastructural deficit embarked upon by the Governor.”

He however made request for payment of arrears of their subvention, employment waiver for members, bus for the association to enable them move around and even participate in forth-coming political campaigns of APC.

Present at the courtesy call were the Deputy Governor,  Prof. Placid Njoku, the Secretary to the Government of Imo State, Chief Cosmas Iwu, the Chief of Staff, Barr. Nnamdi Anyiaehie, among other top government functionaries.

Officials of the Nigerian Navy on Saturday met with Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State in furtherance

of discussion on the approval given by President Muhammadu Buhari for the drainage of Orashi River in Oguta to link the Atlantic Ocean for the enhancement of economic activities on that corridor.

President Buhari had communicated his approval for the project through the Office of the Chief of Naval Staff, Rear Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo, based on Governor Uzodimma’s proposal that the Orashi River in Oguta is pregnant with lots of economic activities if drained and linked to the Atlantic Ocean.

At the meeting which held at the Government House Owerri, Rear Admiral Silyranda Lassa represented the Chief of Naval Staff.

Addressing the media on the essence of his meeting with the Navy, Governor Uzodimma said it was in furtherance of  the discussions and proposals by the Imo State Government to the Federal Government to pursue its Gas Industrialization Policy on the Oguta Lake and Orashi River axis.

He said that the leadership of Nigerian Navy were in the State to “visit the site to assess the main obstacles hindering the programme as proposed by the State Government.”

Governor Uzodimma said that the Government of Imo State had “considered it expedient to propose to Nigerian Navy for a partnership to open the access of Oguta Lake and Orashi River up to the Sea in River State to enable bigger vessels come into Imo State.”

The Governor said: “When realised, the project will help manage the security situation in the area, eliminate cases of crude oil stealing, pipeline vandalism and enhance security.”

Additionally, he said the realisation of the project will “stimulate economic activities, create more jobs for our people and then boost the economy of the State.”

Governor Uzodimma said the Naval Officers who are in the State will visit the site on Saturday,  September 24, 2022, and thereafter “Government will sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) leading to the project implementation proper.”

He described the project as work in progress, assuring that “when the MOU is signed and the other processes concluded the authorities will come up with the work programme highlights which will be made available to the public.”

Speaking on the reason for their meeting/visit, Rear Admiral Silyranda Lassa who represented  Rear Admiral  Gambo said recently they “established a Naval Base at Oguta which has helped in addressing certain security challenges in the area.”

“Beyond that, it has made social and economic activities to strive, especially with giant strides in the security areas made by the State Government.”

Furthermore,  Lassa said as a Maritime Security Agency, the corridor will provide them with the opportunity “to also assist the State in any way they can and in some certain aspects, the State’s desire to, at least, alleviate what they are seeing as the de-generalization activities within the State.”

The Naval Chief also informed that they were in Imo “at the instant of the Chief of Naval Staff to look at where we will partner with the State Government to assist in some of these areas and help the State benefit from its enormous resources.”

He acknowledged that a lot of natural resources abound in the area and that when they are opened up “Imo State will be one of the leading States in the Gas industrialization activities in Nigeria.”

Lassa added that in the course of their visit, the Hydrographer of Nigerian Navy will look at the area under examination and carry out the survey. “They will be able to chart appropriate areas they think will be in cheapest possible manner they can achieve the mandate to the State,” he said.

He acknowledged that the Geographic Department of the Nigerian Navy has already started the dredging/expansion and survey of the River Niger which started from Lokoja, noting that work has progressed up to Burutu. 

“Once this is completed the entire aspect of the survey is done. It will be left for the Federal Government to do the needful and the expansion of that axis. So when the corridor is expanded it will open up the area to the benefit of Imo State and Country in general.”

Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodimma has harped on the need for greater synergy between the three arms of government.

He spoke Thursday night at the Banquet Hall of the Government House Owerri during a Dinner he held for the new Speaker of the Imo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Emeka Nduka and his colleagues.

It turned out to be an occasion that it afforded the immediate past Speaker of Imo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Kennedy Ibe, the opportunity to explain why he resigned from office.

Ibe, who represents Obowo State Constituency at the Imo State House of Assembly said he needed time to prosecute his campaign as electioneeeing for the 2023 general election draws closer, noting that his successor, Rt. Hon Nduka is most fitting to occupy the exalted office now “because he is not contesting the election.”

Governor Uzodimma told the gathering that included political appointees, APC State Executives and other Heads of Government Agencies, that the coming together was a deliberate way of creating bonding for members of the three arms of Government for greater productivity.

The Governor said he deliberately brought the entire arms of the Government together for them to “re-evaluate themselves and their performance in Imo politics and access their successes and failures.:

 “Identity mixture has been the issue, yet, within the party top brass, the decision and determination is to make the place called Imo State a friendly place to live.”

The Governor said that the target of the Party and its members is always to have a meeting point where they must agree and review their work and ensure they function well and efficiently.

Governor Uzodimma who described the day as special, thanked the leadership and members of the Imo State House of Assembly as well as the leaders of the State who have been with him since 2020 and reminded them that “democracy has come to stay and it will be better practised and consummated when the politicians, understand themselves better.”

He reminded all that as one political family they needed to operate as a network where people can identify and see them as those working together for a common interest and goal.

The Governor told the aggrieved members of the Party, who for no fault of theirs or anybody, did not clinch ticket at the primaries, that “it is no longer fashionable to go about complaining,” pleading with them and all those who are aggrieved to “consider the sense of reasoning, forgive and forget and join hands to achieve the bigger target of winning the elections for the party.”

He said as Governor he has been trying his possible best to put on ground some observable achievements needed by the candidates of the Party to convince the people of Imo State and even the opposition to support and vote for them during election, insisting that the gains were recorded through the 3R mantra of Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and Recovery.

Governor Uzodimma said as a leader his responsibilities include attracting respect and dignity to the Party and its members.

He acknowledged the essence of separation of powers in a democracy, and emphasized that “what makes democracy thick and strong is the clause of separation of powers – Executive, Legislature and Judiciary.”

“However, in every strata there must be a head and as such the leader of the Executive is the head of the  three arms of Government.”

He said it is “important the arms of government realize the need to forge a common front and a common objective that will help government of the day to realize its vision and mission.”

He reiterated his believe in the Nigerian project and urged the gathering to “wear your thinking caps and ask some pertinent questions of where we are, where do we want to go and how do we get to where we want to go?”

He added: “Nigeria is a Federation, the Igbos and the South East is only a Federating Unit. The rest of Nigeria has one third that can form a quorum and also have two third that can dissolve the meeting. The consequences of this are that Nigeria can move forward without us, therefore we need Nigeria more than Nigeria  needs us.”

To the entire people of the South East,  the Governor encouraged them to work hard and defend their positions today so that the “generations unborn will remember them positively.”

“Let us be remembered for what we did when we had the opportunity because we must leave Imo State better than we met it.”

He promised to continue to meet with the audience to bond more with them and urged them to go home and talk to the people at the Local Government level as Nigeria is theirs.

Governor Uzodimma told the audience that President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the drainage of Orashi River to the Atlantic Sea and that the leadership of Nigerian Navy will be visiting Imo State soon for project management meeting.

“This must be supported because it is a way of boasting the economy and opening up the South East to the outside world through the Seaport.”

Addressing the audience, the new Speaker Imo State House of Assembly,  Rt. Hon. Barr. Emeka Nduka described the dinner as “symbolic, significant and awesome because of the host, the Governor of Imo State himself.”

Nduka thanked God who made it possible for his colleagues to elect him as their “Chief Servant” and thanked the Governor for accepting him as the Speaker Imo State House of Assembly.

He promised to leave up to the expectations of the Governor, his colleagues and Imo people in general. 

Also, he pledged, on behalf of his colleagues, that the Assembly will continue to use all legal instruments to run the legislative affairs and churn out laws and motions that will give Imo people the best dividends of democracy.

In his own brief remarks, the immediate past Speaker, Rt. Hon. Kennedy Ibe affirmed that he resigned from the position to enable him face his electioneering and avoid distractions that may come up from the challenges of the office.

He told the audience that the process that led to the emergence of his successor was smooth and devoid of bitterness or rancour, and thanked his colleagues and the Governor for the massive support he got from them during the period he served as Speaker.

In their goodwill messages, the Majority Leader and Member representing Owerri West, Rt. Hon. Kanayo Onyemechi, that of Owerri North, Hon. Philip Ejiogu and Hon. Ngozi Obiefule of Isu State Constituency, expressed their fervent support to the new Speaker whom they described as a “humble member of the House.”

Earlier while welcoming the audience,  the Secretary to Imo State Government, Chief Cosmas Iwu said that, “as a family the Governor had thought it wise to ones in a while call his children together, look at their faces, interact with them and reason a way forward.”

Also in his brief remarks the Chief Political Adviser and Head Political Bureau,  Barr Enyinna Onuegbu said the luncheon, though organized to honour the Speaker and his members, attracted all the key players in the 3-R administration, and thanked the Governor for approving the coming together and hoped it will yield the expected results.