By Hon Anayo Edeh
On 4th January, 2025, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu paid an official visit to Enugu State during which he commissioned several infrastructural projects built by the Enugu State Governor, His Excellency, Barr. Peter Ndubuisi Mbah.
Among the Projects commissioned by President Tinubu while in Enugu were: 30 completed Enugu Green Smart Schools out of 260 under construction, 60 equipped Type-2 Primary Healthcare Centres across 260 Wards, the Enugu International Conference Centre, 90 newly-completed urban roads to ease intra-state mobility, a state-of-the-art Command and Control Centre with 150 AI-embedded Patrol Vehicles for effective Security.
From all indications, Governor Mbah has put Enugu State on the path of irreversible growth and development. His numerous investments in health, education, infrastructure, transportation and security are geared towards his economic dream and projection which is to grow the Enugu economy from $4.4 billion dollars to $30 billion dollars in the next eight years.
President Tinubu's visit to Enugu State is strategic in several respects: first, the visit has put Enugu on the national and international stage as a preferred destination for local and foreign investments; it has made the whole world to see Enugu as a political entity with a visionary leader who is building a foundation for growth which the present and future generations of Enugu people will depend on for the realisation of their collective aspirations as a people; the visit has put Governor Mbah on the centre-stage of national discourse as a 'leader with promise and a man to watch in the politics of Nigeria.
President Tinubu made it clear that what matters to him, is Mbah's capacity and commitment to development and not political party affiliation. The fact that Governor Mbah is a member of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) and President Tinubu, a member of the All Progressives Congress(APC), does not matter to Mr. President. What matters to him, is the overall development of Nigeria by effective, honest and committed leaders such as Mbah, irrespective of differences in political party affiliations.
Every Enugu person should hold his head high because of the honour and respect Governor Mbah has brought to the state. The even development which the Governor is carrying out is being felt by everyone. The days of segregation and selective development in Enugu are over. The days when the development of certain areas was deliberately stagnated to benefit preferred areas are over. It is the dawn of a new era in Enugu.
All the projects commissioned by President Tinubu in Enugu are real and physically available. This is unlike in some instances where leaders have been lured to commission projects with doubtful origin and poor finishing.
The projects built by Governor Mbah can stand any test or scrutiny anywhere in the World. As a man with private sector background, Mbah brings excellence and effectiveness to bear on whatever he does. This explains why all the projects are built in accordance with globally accepted Standards.
Finally, Governor Mbah has re-defined leadership in Enugu State, Southeast and other parts of the country. He has, indeed, raised the bars of leadership in Nigeria. No Governor should give excuses for non-performance.
Even though Enugu is not an Oil-producing State with shares from the derivative fund and other special allocations, things are happening in the State.
We have a state where government is working because of the presence of a transformative leadership.
To say the least, posterity and history will be kind to Mbah for building modern Enugu.
Hon. Anayo Edeh
Eze Di Naka Chukwu 11.
