Sir Architect Dr Edward Nkwegu.
Architect Dr Edward Nkwegu is the Chief Executive Officer of EDON Nigeria Limited, an entrepreneur who has been involving himself in different developmental ventures, to create jobs and help people to grow. He has many honours including national honour as the Order of the Federal Republic (OFR) of Nigeria. In this interview he speaks on his 2023 governorship ambition and the reality of the charter of equity in the state, among other issues, VICTOR NWEGEDE reports.
As you are aspiring to become the next governor of Ebonyi State, what do you intend to do that can signpost your administration?
Ebonyi State has been lucky in leadership since the era of democracy, starting from 1999, when the first Executive Governor, Dr Sam Egwu, who is now the Senator of the Republic of Nigeria.
At that time, we had manpower deficiency in the state, and Dr Sam Egwu came up with a brilliant idea of free and compulsory education, manpower development, with other programs including the HIPAC, by sending most of our people outside the state to improve themselves academically and professionally.
I think by my assessment, Dr Egwu led a very excellent and successful administration because the beneficiaries of that program have a lot of success stories.
The Second Executive Governor, Chief Martins Elechi came in and served between 2007 and 2015. Of course, Ebonyi State is known for a long river basin, which has about 5600 Square Kilometer and thereabouts, 60 to 80 per cent are wetlands with its attendant water bodies, which disconnected communities - brothers and sisters from one another. This made Chief Martins Elechi bring a brilliant idea of building bridges of unity across the state and reuniting the Ebonyi people.
Chief Elechi also embarked on other infrastructural development like the construction of Offerekpe and Ukawu Water Schemes, among others which made his administration have a lot of success stories.
Coming to the present administration, Governor David Umahi came on board in 2015 and he has done marvellously well in building quality infrastructures including solid roads, flyovers, shopping malls, the ongoing rig roads, the market development, the international cargo airport, and so on. In my assessment, the past and present administration has done wonderfully well.
However, if Ebonyi people employ me as their Chief Servant, I will focus on economic transformation. We need to transform from our predominant civil servants economy to a financial economy, with enablers. For example, we need to roll out industrialization. We need to create micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, which are known as the engine rooms and greater employers of labour.
We need sustainable development and all-inclusive wealth creation. Apart from revitalizing our water system, by reticulating the already built water schemes to every home in the state, already built in the state, we are going to modernize our agricultural system. It is because we have the land very good for agricultural practice. We need to modernize the technologies that are being used in our state to encourage the younger ones to venture into agriculture. We are going to create jobs, jobs and jobs for our people.
Focusing on the economic revolution in governance, is a brilliant idea, what is your view on zoning the gubernatorial seat based on the charter of equity, what's your take on this?
When people want to play some games, they will start rhetorics. The fact is that the Ebonyi North Senatorial zone has been out of power for sixteen years by May 2023. Ebonyi Central Senatorial District is just the immediate past administration for 8years and the South is currently in the office.
In social justice, people with common sense would say let our next governor come from Ebonyi North. So, Ebonyi North Senatorial District should produce the next governor of our state.
Now, all the governorship aspirants from Izhi extraction, from my observation are confident to win the position in 2023, how acceptable are they to your people?
For me, I believe power belongs to God. It's God that will determine who becomes the governor. Though, people are free to say what they want to say, for me, power belongs to God. Ultimately, God knows the next governor of Ebonyi State. He is good enough to make the best effort in giving Ebonyi people the leader of their choice, for more rapid development. Ebonyi people know what they want as well. They know people that will not fail them, because even philosophers and lawyers, said you cannot give what you don't have. Before you elect someone into a position of trust, you have to look at his antecedents. The things he has been able to handle. What he did successfully for the benefit of humanity. The people in the society have to look for such a person who has built enterprises. Someone who has been able to employ people, helped them to make a meaningful impact in life.
Giving a position of trust shouldn't be like one looking for a pilot who will take him to London but decided to look for one chance driver on the roadside. It's left for the Ebonyi people to decide who will lead them as the state governor come 2023. I believe this time, we need people with experience, those who are qualified with the aggressive will to change some ugly narratives in the state.
How do you think APC gubernatorial candidate will defeat that of PDP, knowing fully well that the PDP has been ruling this state since 1999 before the present Governor defected to the APC?
First of all, we should understand that APC is the ruling party in Ebonyi State, it's not only in the state but the country. Of course, we know what happened in 2015, the people of Ebonyi State knew whom they voted for, and it's the will of God, it'll work out, to the glory of God. Even those in PDP and those in APC, when it comes to a person who will perform very well if, given the chance to be the Chief Servant of the state, they know. People vote these days based on their interests. They vote according to the capacity, the antecedents of the candidate. We need people from the private sector to be considered for the number one seat of the state.
So, I'm determined to bring rapid industrialization to Ebonyi, if I emerge as the state governor in 2023. If Ebonyi people employ me as their Chief Servant through the Grace of God, I hope to do what I called economic revolution. The catalyst for economic revolution, first, will be rapid industrialization. I will create micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. Micro, small and medium-sized enterprises have always been the engine rooms for economic revolution and the greatest employers of labour in society.
I believe, sustainable and all-inclusive wealth creation is what we need in the state now. I will create jobs, jobs and jobs if by the Grace of God I become the Governor of Ebonyi State.
I have a plan to introduce what I called access, quality and relevance in the educational sector, thereby ensuring a robust enrollment and curricular reformation in the institutions of learning in the state.
It’s one of my social agenda, to do that, first with education. It's because education is the bedrock of today and tomorrow’s society. For you to reform development in society, you must ensure that you have what is called access, quality and relevance in our educational sector.
By access, I mean more enrollment in our educational institutions. By quality and relevance, I mean curricular reformation, so that things we study in our educational institutions will be relevant to today’s society.
I want to use a cellphone for example. Some of us used 043. We also use 090, but many people have never seen 043, now using cellphones that have WhatsApp, Instagram and others for interaction.
They have more reformed development, and now passed the industrial era where they had 043. They jumped into the information era where they are using a cellphone. If you want to reform development, you have to do the same thing, in the areas of agriculture, and infrastructural development.
So, access, quality and relevance education, through curricular reformation are parts of what I will do. ENDS
