Mr. Valentine Obienyem, the Media Adviser to the Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, has described Chief Jude Umunnakwe as a chronic liar. Obienyem was reacting to the press release by the group Ununnakwe leads, which he calls “Soludo Solution Movement (SSM)” saying that not even one out of the many roads built by Mr. Peter Obi is still standing.
Obienyem’s reaction was contained in a press release made available to the press, where he recalled that it is, almost, 10 years since Obi left government, and wondered what informed Umunnakwe’s failure to refer to those roads built even recently in his assessment, while insisting that most of the roads Obi built are still intact, except those that the people that came after him failed to maintain as is done in other parts of the world.
Obienyem, being aware that maintenance is a critical part of road culture, charged Jude to investigate what happened to the Anambra State Road Maintenance Agency Obi set up with full component of road maintenance equipment.
Obienyem went on to name some of the roads Obi constructed and challenged Umunnakwe to visit them and confirm. The roads: Oba- Nnewi Teaching Hospital Road; Onitsha Bridge head to Umunya; Zik’s Avenue, Awka; Nnobi-Nnewi Road; Adazi-Nnukwu -Obeledu-Neni; Akwaeze-Oraeri Igbo Ukwu Road; Awgwu-Amaokpala Road with Odor Bridge; Aguluezechukwu-Ogboji- Ajalli road; Ekwulobia- Nkpologwu-Akpo-Achina-Umuchu Road; Over 30 roads in other parts of Onitsha; Over 25 roads within the GRA, Onitsha; Over 20 stone based roads within Habour Industrial Estate Onitsha; Old Nkpor-Amawbia Road; Awkuzu-Igbarian Road passing through the university; Owerre-Ezukalla-Umuchukwu Road; Ugwuoba-Obosi Road, 33 junction -Nwafor Orizu College of Education Road, Lilu Road, Nkwele Ezunaka by pass, Roads within Nnewi town; Roads within the Awka GRA, and many more.
Obienyem who frowned at the antics of jobless youths founding organizations that only exist on paper to make noise, such as the one under which Mr. Umunnakwe spoke, advised people like him to look for a better thing that would edify them and humanity to do.
In Obienyem’s words: “Jude Umunnakwe has become notorious for such. When Obi was in Government, he wanted to form one, but we warned him not to as such was not agreeable to Obi’s nature. We are aware that under Obiano he did the same. Today he has found one ostensibly to support Soludo, but actually to use it to make money from people and to lobby for appointment. We are not against the type of life he has chosen to live, we are, however, against taking people’s name in vain.”
