Ohakim will return as Imo governor -Okehie

The immediate past Governor of Imo state and gubernatorial candidate of Accord party in the upcoming general elections, His Excellency Dr. Ikedi Ohakim has been described as the best amongst crowd of candidates jostling for governorship position in Imo state in the upcoming general elections.
The assertion was made penultimate Monday by Orlu zone Accord campaign Council Chairman and Apex leader of the party in the zone, Hon Chief Kingsley Okehie (Nnaoma) while fielding questions with newsmen in an exclusive interview shortly after State Campaign Council meeting of Accord held at All Seasons Hotel Owerri. He affirmed that Governor Ikedi Ohakim with his past outstanding performance as the State Governor between 2007 and 2011, coupled with his well thought out development blueprint for the state has gained unprecedented and massive support across board and that on the strength of that popularity, he is poised to be reelected as next Governor of Imo State to enable him complete his remaining one term of four years and peacefully handover to someone from Owerri zone to restore the fractured charter of equity.
According the Umudiokah Ancient Kingdom born business mogul turned politician, Governor Ohakim has edge over the crowd of Imo guber candidates who according to him are not better than the outgoing Governor of the state, Rochas Okorocha and expressed optimism that Imo electorates having learnt their lessons in the last eight years would not repeat the same old mistake of electing individuals without track record or that have not been tested and proven worthy to serve in such high public office of a State Governor.
Chief Okehie recalled with nostalgia how Dr. Ikedi Ohakim initiated world class development programmes like Clean & Green Initiative, Health at your door step programme, IRROMA, Operation Security Festival, Oguta Wonder Lake Resort and International Conference Centre, Oak Petrochemical refinery and several other programmes that would have transformed the state and put it on the path of sustainable progress and socio-economic development.
He reiterated that Imo State would have by now looked like any of the metropolitan cities of western Europe such as Paris and London if not that Ohakim’s second term bid was truncated in 2011 through the grand plot of the Imo political elites who for whatever selfish reasons decided to retard the trend of political development of the state.
The Orlu zone Campaign Council Chairman regretted that the truncation of Ohakim’s return bid in 2011 has set Imo State a century backward given litany of policy somersaults, impunity, non regular payment of pensions and salaries, collapse of urban and rural infrastructure especially the low quality of road projects and public buildings that has become the order of the day under the Rescue Mission Administration in the last eight years, observing that Imolites have expressed satisfaction with the quality of projects executed under Ohakim first tenure alongside his numerous far reaching people oriented programmes that had direct bearing on lives, especially regular payment of workers’ salaries, pensions and contractors which amongst other things circulated money in the economy of the state and reduced the rate of poverty to the barest minimum.
Chief Okehie called on all man and women of goodwill that abound in the state to rise in unison and challenge of the situation at hand and work assiduously towards the return of Governor Ohakim to Douglas house so that Imo could be restored to its former pride of place/excellence.
On how Accord party with its relative newness disposition in the State political landscape could muster such strength to achieve the feat of producing the next Governor of the state, Chief Okehie who holds the traditional title of Ogbuefi Ichie Chukwudemere of Umudioka Ancient Kingdom dismissed the insinuation that Accord is new, saying that the party has been there for a very long time and that he had over the years nurtured the party and contested several elections on its platform.
According to him, the party has been on ground for so long but has not been lucky to be in government and that with a strong and capable personality like Dr. Ikedi Ohakim using its platform to contest for the governorship of the state that right thinking Imolites are gradually rallying around the party as a credible alternative having been disappointed by the so called major political parties.
Chief Okehie expressed joy with the current trend of political events in the state as most people are leaving the other parties in their droves due to intra party wrangling that has decimated parties like the ruling All Progressives Congress, the All Progressives Grand Alliance, the People’s Democratic Party etc and observed that it is only in Accord that members are at peace in one accord wondering how parties that lack internal democracy, peace and discipline could be trusted to produce the number one citizen of the state.