Uzodimma Meets President Tinubu, Says Meeting Productive

By Adesina Soyooye 

Snippets from the meeting between President Bola Tinubu and the Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State have gradually been made public by the Governor.

President Tinubu, while in Lagos, met with  Uzodinma, on Sunday during which Mr President urged State Governors to  ensure Nigerians feel the impact of his administration’s reforms.

Briefing Journalists after the meeting, Uzodinma said his visit to Lagos was to update the President on developments in the country while he was on working visit to Europe.

It is not  known if he briefed the President on the cold relationship between the PGF and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike or not, but the Governor said he had “a very quality conversation,” with the President. 

Uzodimma: “We had a very quality conversation, and he is now aware of the things that happened while he was away and the efforts of the Governors of Progressive Forum in making sure that Nigerians are properly aware of the achievements of his government and the policies.

The meeting, he said,  also focused on the administration’s campaign to highlight its reforms, which added would begin almost immediately.

Uzodima: “I referred straight to our campaign outing, which will start almost immediately since he is now back. So it was a quality conversation, a quality meeting I had with Mr. President.”

Uzodimma noted also that the focus of the President’s reform agenda has shifted from implementation to ensuring that Nigerians benefit directly from the policies.

He said: “We have already taken cue from that broadcast, and that is exactly what we are doing. The reform policy has moved from implementation to ensuring that the people of Nigeria get the dividends of the reform policy itself

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The Governor pointed at   the impact of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses as an area where the benefits of the reforms should be passed on to Nigerians.

He said: “The advantage of having CNG buses sent to Nigerians through the various agents, that the savings made should not be as huge as it occurred now. The transporters and commuters should also be responsible in ensuring that since the cost of transportation has been reduced by the introduction of CNG, that they should now also reduce the fare they charge passengers. That way, it becomes a win-win situation.”

State Governments Uzodimma said, will not just praise the reforms but would work to ensure that their impact reaches ordinary Nigerians.

He said: “So we are not going to only sit here and sing the songs of reform. We are going to make sure that the benefits.”

Using the financial position of Imo State as an example, the Governor pointed out what he called the positive impact of Tinubu’s policies on state governments.

When he took over the governorship of Imo State in 2021, Uzodinma recalled, the state found it very difficult to meet its financial obligations after paying workers’ salaries.

Uzodimma: “In 2021, I became the Governor without President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his reform policies. It was difficult at the end of every month after paying salaries. That is, if we managed to pay salaries, to have money to run the state.”

But no longer, he said.

Uzodimma: “Today, we pay salaries as we do and we have money to do all the achievements that we have recorded in the state. It is not only in my state. Every other state. Most of our Governors are very active, with a lot of projects here and there.

“We are grateful to Mr. President and his reform policies. And we are charged again to ensure the real benefits, that the real beneficiaries of the reform policy are the people. That the masses will feel the impact. That these policies, the dividends, should be impactful.”