Elechi’s Senatorial Ambition Not in The Interest of Ebonyi People

By Thisday

It is astonishing the level of disdain a people can feel towards their leader. Many citizens of Ebonyi State when  interviewed will leave you with the impression  that the seat of power in the state has either been empty for almost eight years or it has been occupied by a leader who lacks the slightest of clues of what it takes to be the chief executive of a state in a country like Nigeria reeling in the need for all kinds of government interventions.

One indigene recently posted on an online interactive portal called Nairaland: “ I live in Ebonyi. For the past eight years the place has been nothing to write home about. We are just praying that this administration comes to an end.”

Another wrote in response on the same portal “I served in Ebonyi State two years ago and I cannot but agree with eunisam (the first writer). There’s really nothing I can point to as a landmark achievement by “Ochudo” (as the governor is popularly called) and his administration.

For another participant in the online forum, “Ebonyi is an embarrassment to Igbo people. A state renowned for its agricultural potential, especially in the production of rice and Yams, yet is the poorest state in the country. As an Igbo state, they are a failure.

“What we have here is uncompleted projects such as the construction of fake bridges in far flung villages which nobody passes. There is no single road Elechi can boast of. It is this Elechi  Administration that rendered the teaching hospital of Ebonyi State useless.”

Such negative comments are endless on the various news and public affairs platforms to which indigenes have turned as a medium of expressing their disappointment and venting their frustration with the administration of Governor Martins Elechi.

For Ebonyi indigenes, not only has the Elechi government failed in development of infrastructure which lies prostrate i the state, it has also failed to encourage economic growth and development through industrialisation mostly for selfish political reasons.

A Failing Economy

Not long ago, seven states of the federation failed the domestic debt sustainability analysis undertaken by the Debt Management Office (DMO). From the South-east geo-political zone, only Ebonyi State was on the list of economic infamy. The state clocked 272 per cent, representing a domestic debt stock of N40.239 billion relative to her paltry Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of a N14.778 billion.

According to the report, which the DMO board, headed by Vice President Namadi Sambo met on to consider, the states’ domestic indebtedness relative to their IGR positions which ranked high beyond the recommended international threshold of between 92 per cent and 167 per cent.

The DMO offered explanation on the solvency exercise relative to IGR: “Given the fact that sustainability or otherwise of domestic debts are by best practice to be measured against the own revenue of the borrower, an analysis of the domestic debts of the states to their IGR was also undertaken. “For this, the Debt Relief International (DRI) solvency threshold of 92 per cent to 167 per cent is applied. The result outlines the need for the sub-national governments to grow their IGRs to reduce excessive pressure on their statutory allocations in the running of their governments and free up resources for other developmental projects.”

The foregoing scenario and perilously low IGR have implications for the pace of human and infrastructural development in the state. The little the state generates plus allocations from the federation account appears heavily mismanaged, otherwise, how come  the burdened with a debt of over N40billion when there is no major construction work going on there. How come the state is technically declared insolvent? What is the state government doing with taxpayers money? Shouldn’t EFCC be looking at how the state came to be burdened with such huge debt?

Emasculation of Industrialisation

In a recent 19-point position statement published in several national newspapers, national parliamentarians of Ebonyi extraction accused Ibeto Cement Company Limited, a major investor of the state’s cement sector of undertaking a smear campaign against the government and people of the state. From investigations, Ibeto Cement Company Limited, through its acquisition of Eastern Bulkcem Co. Ltd., controls over 60 percent of the shares of the Nigerian Cement Company Plc. (Nigercem), Public Limited Liability company with several thousands of shareholders from practically every state in Nigeria. The Ebonyi State government owns 10 per cent of Nigercem shares.

Further checks also show that the Board of Directors of Nigercem was reconstituted following the acquisition of Eastern Bulkcem Co. Ltd. Governor Elechi nominated Mr. Peter Nwokpor, Director of Ebonyi State Investments, to represent it on the new Board. The Chairman of the new Board is Dr. Cletus M. Ibeto, CON.

But there is a curious twist to the story. Before acquiring majority interest in Nigercem, Ibeto Cement Co. Ltd. had acquired Mining Licenses to set up a Greenfield cement manufacturing project in Effium, Ebonyi State. It completed geological mapping of the area, including core drilling and analysis and had designed its development scheme, including the Plant.

Some facilities construction had commenced when hoodlums alleged to be working for the political interest of the state government attacked the field workers. The government issued a letter to minders of the Greenfield cement manufacturing project to suspend further operations. They did and the project ground to a halt. When Ebonyi governor was approached for resolution he made it clear that the way forward was for the Ibeto group to reduce its interest in the venture to 49 percent while Ebonyi State Government would acquire 51%. The Ibeto group agreed.

At the request of Governor Elechi, the company submitted to him the accounting of the investment as at that time to form the basis for the restructuring. The governor promised to invite the Ibeto minders to discuss with those he called the 13-man stakeholders of Ebonyi State; According to Dr. Ben U.C. Aghazu, Executive Director (Strategy, Projects and Public Affairs), Ibeto Cement Company Limited, they are yet to receive that invitation more than two years after. From the foregoing, it is clear that some level of bad blood exists between the two parties. The intervention the Ebonyi national lawmakers was expected to light a candle in the darkness. But it did not.

According to the lawmakers, “Several years after the privatisation of the company, it became evident that the core-investor was neither interested in nor capable of reactivating the company as it was essentially a cement bagging company. It soon dawned on all and sundry that the core-investor only acquired NIGERCEM as a means of gaining import licenses from the Federal Government.

“Upon the inception of the present administration in Ebonyi State in 2007 led by one of the foremost founding fathers, His Excellency, Chief Martin Elechi, CON, the State Government formally petitioned the Federal Government about the fraud and exploitation going on in Nigercem at the expense of the people of Ebonyi State.

“That while the federal government was looking into the complaints of Ebonyi State government, the core-investor simply fast-tracked the vicious vandalisation, cannibalization and destruction of Nigercem leaving it a carcass and shadow of its former self.

“That following the handicap of the federal government to wade into the problem, Ebonyi State Government revoked the Certificate of Occupancy of the land area known as Nigercem and subsequently instituted a Judicial Commission of Inquiry in 2009 to comprehensively examine the circumstances surrounding the non-reactivation of the company.

“That following the setting up of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry on Nigercem, the Eastern Bulkcem Co. Ltd. dragged Ebonyi State Government to court praying the court, among other reliefs, to nullify the revocation of the Certificate of Occupancy on Nigercem. This prayer was rejected by the court. “That since the Ibeto Cement Co. Ltd. purportedly acquired Nigercem, it has carried on from where the earlier core-investor – the Eastern Bulkcem – stopped in blackmailing and insulting Ebonyi people.”

Executive Director (Strategy, Projects and Public Affairs), Ibeto Cement Company Limited, Dr. Ben U.C. Aghazu,  made compelling clarifications and stated that much of the allegations lacked substance.

More specifically he stated that “the old Eastern Bulkcem Co. Ltd. clearly could not revitalize Nigercem. However, the new Eastern Bulkcem Co. Ltd., owned by Ibeto Cement Co. Ltd., certainly can. Ibeto Cement does not need Nigercem to import bulk cement. We repeat the fact earlier stated – that under the enablement of a Federal High Court order, Ibeto Cement is authorized to import 1.5 million tonnes of bulk cement per annum until September 30, 2017.

Ibeto Cement has the financial and other capacities to expeditiously revitalize Nigercem. Towards achieving rapid resuscitation of the wet-process lines and construction of a brand new Dry Process Plant, Ibeto had organised for an essential visit by engineers from FLSmidth, the world leaders in cement plant construction and who built the original Nigercem Plant, to visit Nkalagu in November 2012 and carry out an audit of the plant. Their trip was postponed because the Ebonyi State Government had seized the factory premises and to this day retains physical control of same.”

Further according to Aghazu, “If in fact there was fraud and exploitation going on at Nigercem under the management of the old Eastern Bulkcem, it was not only against the people of Ebonyi State; it must also be against over 28,000 other Nigerians and organizations who are also minority shareholders. The Companies and Allied Matters Act makes ample provision for the protection of minority shareholders against exploitation by the majority. Here are the corporate shareholders of Nigercem, apart from Ebonyi State Ministry of Finance and Economic Development and Eastern Bulkcem Co Ltd. (Ibeto Cement Company Ltd.)

“If the Ebonyi State Government believed in the rule of law, it should have sought protection under the law and not resort to self-help by setting up a Judicial Commission of Inquiry and physically taking control of the factory, simply because it was located on its territory. Owing to the fact that Ebonyi State is part of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the laws of the Federation must apply within its territory. The Ebonyi State Government, every month, collects billions of naira from the Federation Account, which Account is supplied by incomes earned from crude oil (not yet produced in Ebonyi State), Value Added Tax (by consumption activities in all states of the Federation), corporate taxes (by companies operating in all states of the Federation), etc.

“Without these monthly receipts from the Federation Account, the Ebonyi State Government will definitely become insolvent. If other states were to erect obstacles to the lawful and orderly operation of industries in their states, the quantum of cash collection from the Federation Account by Ebonyi State Government will certainly reduce drastically.”

Then in a direct swipe at the lawmakers, Aghazu held that “If the signatories to the statement under reference regard the attitude of their state government in blocking this investment in-flow that will create thousands of jobs in their state, develop Ebonyi State and increase the state revenue base as “principled”, they are of course entitled to their views.

“However, may they be reminded that history keeps records all the time. We wish to state that the predictable result of this “principled stand on Nigercem” will probably include the ultimate ruin of Nigercem and the stigmatisation of Ebonyi State as unfriendly to non-indigenous industrial investment.”

At press time, there are no indications that the associated controversies will be resolved any time soon. But for as development-challenged Ebonyi whose indigenes crave the bare basics of modern life, does the curious, antagonistic footing of their governor represent the best way forward?   How can Ebonyi members  of the National Assembly who signed that March 22nd advertorial claim that Ibeto Group doesn’t have the capacity to turn around Nigercem when they have not been given the opportunity to either succeed or fail in the quest to revamp Nigercem? It is on record that you cannot count top five indigenous manufacturers in Nigeria today without counting Ibeto Group. Lest the legislators mislead Ebonyi people and unsuspecting Nigerians, Ibeto group  has been into manufacturing of auto mobile battery and auto spare parts since the 90s. Have those legislators bothered to go to Port Harcourt to see one of Africa’s most modern cement terminal built from scratch by Ibeto Group? Is that evidence of lack of capacity as claimed by the lawmakers? It is a shame that these legislators are playing politics with economic issues that will ultimately have beneficial effect on the people of Ebonyi state, and by extension the state government’s revenue base. Now, the question is, who profits from the actions of both the state government and the National Assembly members who signed that disgraceful advertorial vowing “not to permit the recolonization” of Ebonyi state? This is the big question.

Should failure be Rewarded?

With this notable non-achievement  or at best pervasive mediocrity exhibited  by a state’s helmsman for the maximum period allowed for a governor to be in office, what the average citizen of the state expects it that the senior-citizen governor, who some say could actually be older that his declared 73 years of age would get out of the way for fresh ideas to flow towards remedying the crisis that resulted partly from his poor leadership.

Unfortunately information making the rounds reveal that the same Elechi who failed the people as an elected governor and chief executive of a state with powers bound only by the constitution, who achieved nothing is now heading to be the people’s representative at the senate.

Should a man not know when people have has enough of them? If Elechi’s failure to deliver the dividend of democracy for eight years is not enough to deter him from this inordinate ambition then his very advanced age should make him have a rethink. Ochondo must rest his old ideas and allow the young and dynamic from Ebonyi take their destinies in their own hands. He should retire after an uneventful 8 years as governor rather than go to the Senate and be sleeping when important debates on how to move the country forward are going on.