President Buhari’s momentous visit to Ebonyi State (2)

While in Ebonyi State, President Buhari was emphatic that Ndigbo is synonymous with Nigeria just as Nigeria is synonymous with Ndigbo. The president, who celebrated what he described as the ingenuity of the people of South-East and their talent for trade and commerce, said the Igbo ethnic group and Nigeria were inseparable.

“The people of the South-East are known for their ingenuity, industrial and commercial talent. There is no part of Nigeria where you will not find Igbo entrepreneurs, both men and women, contributing to the development of their adopted communities.

“So, I am asking you all not to buy into the senseless propaganda for secession. Igbo is Nigeria and Nigeria is Igbo. Both are inseparable.

“We must therefore continue to commit ourselves to the development of Nigeria, a Nigeria where we sustain our national unity without compromising on our cultural identities, a Nigeria where the aspirations of its people are guaranteed without prejudice to tribe or religion, a Nigeria where we can sleep at night knowing that tomorrow will be better than today.

“The task of nation building is a continuous one. It never stops. Our founding fathers, from all corners of this country, worked together to actualise the creation of one Nigeria. “After independence, the same founding fathers worked together to maintain this one Nigeria. Yes, they had differences and varied opinions at times. After all, they were only human.

“And yes, they had moments of weaknesses and doubt. But again, no one is perfect. However, one thing they all protected until the end of their lives was having one Nigeria for all Nigerians,” he said.

In his remarks, the Ebonyi State governor congratulated the president on the chieftaincy titles conferred on him and thanked him for his enormous assistance to the state, which he said had resulted in a revolution in the agriculture and solid minerals sectors.

In appreciation of the assistance, Umahi presented 2,000 bags of rice and 2,000 tubers of yams to the president, describing the presentation as the fruit of the state’s prayers that the president would enjoy the fruits of the seeds he planted.

“First is to congratulate our president for this highest honour bestowed on you today. It is an honour that is well deserved, Your Excellency, you have helped us quite a lot especially in the area of the agriculture revolution and solid minerals. And today, sir, you are with us.

“The prayer of everyone is that you plant to see it; you will be alive to tap from the seeds that you are planting. Today, you gave us a giant leap in agriculture and so we have here with us 2,000 bags of rice and 2,000 pieces of yam to give to our president.

“It is a prayer answered because you have sown in the land of Ebonyi and God has given you the strength and health to partake in that seed that you planted. We are grateful to give back to our father who has given so much to us,” Umahi said.

Also, at a reception for the president at the state’s stadium, the President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, thanked President Buhari for his visit to the region barely a few weeks after Igbo leaders had visited him in the State House, Abuja to draw his attention to infrastructure deficit in the South-east.

Chief Nwodo then painted the horrible state of infrastructure decay in the region and appealed to the president to address it. He said the decay included the rotten state of the Enugu airport, recalling how an Ethiopian Airline aircraft recently lost a tyre while landing as a result of the bad runway.

He also said livelihoods in the region were threatened by the infrastructure decay including the dilapidated state of the Onitsha-Enugu expressway, Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway, stoppage of work on the Second Niger Bridge, unemployment, hunger and starvation, among others.

Responding, President Buhari gave an assurance that that his administration will deliver on its promises. “Our 2018 budget included many projects for the region in the area of power, agriculture and social services,” he said.

On the whole, there is no doubt that the president’s visit was a momentous one. It enabled him to see things for himself and also share his views on the unity of Nigeria as an indivisible entity with his audience in the South-east. But, more importantly, it was a major credit and a significant political victory for Governor Umahi, a PDP strong man in a PDP controlled state to host President Buhari.

In fact, the warm rapport between President Buhari and his host, Governor Umahi, during the visit gave political pundits an impression that Engr. Umahi might be given an APC ticket to run a second term as governor of Ebonyi State. There is no doubting that Umahi has made a profound impression in the mind of Buhari.

But, only time will tell whether or not Governor Umahi will cross over to the APC to clinch the ticket to run a second term in office.
…Concluded
Nnachi can be reached via: nnachieddyugbor@gmail.com / 08028535702