The Igbos are famous for their hard work, resilience and enterprising spirit. Our creativity, dexterity and business acumen has never been in doubt. It is therefore a paradox to see the God's own state in its present deplorable state. One would have expected the present and past leaders of the state to unleash the same brilliance that has made many Igbos successful in their private businesses in tackling the business governance. Unfortunately, the present and past leaders of my dear state have failed woefully in this regard. The disgraceful state of infrastructure in the Enyimba city of Aba and other parts of the state is an indictment on the leadership of the state. There seems to be a lack of clear direction and how on how to exploit thae potentials of the state for the benefit of the masses.
The eight years administration of Orji Uzor Kalu which the present Governor was a part of was a tale of misgovernance and brigandage. The talkative youthful Governor did very little to transform the state and the few projects embarked upon by him are all in ruins as a result of poor construction and use of sub - standard material. For 8 years Kalu and his mother held the state by the jugular and stagnated the progress of the state. State resources were turned into a private business which they dished out to sycophants and cronies whose jobs were to sing the praises of the young Governor to high heavens while the masses wallowed in deserted agony. I am really not surprised that Kalu's administration achieved very little, besides what could be expected from a man bereft of ideas and sound education. It is a universally accepted truism that ‘you cannot give what you don't have'. I only blame the Nigerian system that continues to throw up mediocre and unexceptionally minded people as leaders in a sea of better talented and eminently qualified people who may never get the opportunity because of the dirty way we run our politics.
The present administration is no different from the clueless and fruitless 8 years rulership of Kalu and his mother. Until recently, Kalu was still the lord of the manor and he dictated the tune of music at the government house. So powerful was he that he installed the present Governor in absentia, defeating the PDP and his sworn enemy Obasanjo. Things fell apart before the 2011 elections and Chief T.A Orji severed his ties with his godfather in a battle that was erroneously compared to that of Moses and Pharaoh in the bible. The Governor said at that time that he was tired of the burden and cloak of bondage strapped around his administration by his task master and his mother. To garner public sympathy and votes, he enthused that he had liberated Abians from the bondage of Pharaoh and that God has sent his as the Moses to lead the God's own state into the promise land. As gullible as our nature has always been, Abians accepted this implausible argument and lined up behind the self - acclaimed Moses. The rest was history and we are still waiting to get to the promise land.
Pray, do the roads in Aba look like that which can be found in the land flowing with milk and honey? Instead of taking us to the promise land, he has abandoned us in the wilderness of hopelessness. Driving through Aba is like driving to Golgotha. The ditches in the streets of Aba are like swimming through the red sea. How many communities has he lighted up with electricity since liberating them? How many communities has he provided with portable drinking water? How many communities has he connected together with good road network? How many new schools has he built or renovated across the state. Are we better off than we were in the hands of the supposed Pharaoh?
Abians like I said earlier are enterprising folks, they are not asking for manner from Chief T.A Orji. They are only asking for basic amenities that will improve their lives and businesses. Aba, the business nerve centre of eastern Nigeria can be turned into Tokyo with creative thinking and innovative leadership. As an agrarian state, investment in agriculture will ensure food security as well as increase sources for internally generated revenue. My brothers in the Enyimba city will expand their businesses with improved power supply, good roads and access to loan incentives from the government.
It is unfortunate that we live in a clime where criticizing the government is a taboo. Chief T.A Orji could do better by listening to the gale of criticisms against him by the people who bought his cock and bull Moses - Pharaoh Story during the elections. Instead he has surrounded himself with a bunch of hungry politicians whose duties are to hail him Ochendo not because he is living up to the name but because their meal ticket is tied to praise singing. Blaming tax collectors for the paltry 250 million monthly IGR or the rainy season for the absence of construction activities in Aba only reveals that the administration of Chief T.A Orji has been sleeping since 2007.
This administration still has ample time to move our people out of the wilderness of stagnation; this can only be done not by fighting critics but by concentrating on the business of governance. The performance of any administration is not based solely on what has been achieved but also on what could have been achieved. If placed on the balance of sound judgement, this present government cannot in all honesty say that the few projects it has been bandying around as achievement is the best Abia can muster given the rich potentials of the state - both tapped and untapped. Is this the Moses or should we wait for another?

Offor Honest hails from Abia State; He can be reached through offorhonest@gmail.com