*Wants Nigerian roads tolled
By Kemi Kasumu, General Editor
Igwe Ezeoba Alex Nwokedi, OON, at 81, is no longer a young man. Usually, as a lover and talker of united states of Nigeria, the foremost Nigerian foremost traditional ruler of South East extractions is known for patriotism and has lived his life as a Nigerianist of difference, reclining on the majestic throne of Uthoko na Eze Achalla Kingdom, Anambra State. His identify of Nigerianism makes him have many things in common with others cross-country: speaks Yoruba, married to core Lagos woman of Yoruba Land, school in Yoruba Land, climbed from bottom to the top of his journalism profession in Yoruba and does business with Northerners among others.
The Nigerianness that radiates in his physicality is further exemplified in his response to interview questions bothering on ethnicity. In some of such interviews he once retorted, “Why do you want an Igbo President? To me, what we need is Nigerian President because a Nigerian President is President of the Igbo, the Yoruba and Hausa/Fulani of Nigeria.”
The basic message he has by this report came at a time that Federating Units that is the 36 states of Nigeria were enmeshed in economic challenges necessitating that each of them required to device means of upping its standard for self-subsistence, economically.
Igwe Nwokedi, a once upon a time Press Secretary to a Nigerian Military Head of State (Olusegun Obasanjo), elected President (Shehu Usman Shagari) and Group General Manager, Public Affairs, of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), calls the attention of governors of the country away from incessant dependence on allocation from the Centre and redirects them to looking inwards to the area of agricultural, market and road infrastructural development which, according to him, does not require too much but the political will and concentrated effort to achieve.
“For instance, I have said to you severally that my governor, Willie Obiano is a performing governor and I am sure that any governor in any state of the East that has performed will definitely have a second term and will continue to be relevant. So, if, as it were, Obiano makes it into the second term, you cannot be surprised because he merited it and that is all. And all of these meritorious achievements are largely in the area of his contribution to agricultural development, rural development and road infrastructural development,” Nwokedi said.
He continued, “I had advised that if President Muhammadu Buhari could support Obiano in the area of agriculture in addition to what he is already doing in that sector, Anambra State will produce rice that will be enough to feed not only South East but, more extensively, the whole country. The President is doing that and it is commendable. That is because the state has a large concentration of farmers and my Kingdom, Achalla, is prominent in this area. I am a farmer myself and you know that I am a big rice and yam farmer. I have a tractor now that I use in my farming and if other farmers can be supported to get bigger in agriculture, who says importation of rice cannot stop in short time to come in Nigeria?” He was enthusiastic.
The traditional ruler, speaking on rural and market development, counseled, “My son, there is no need for any Nigerian state government not to be able to pay salaries and I mean it. All you need to do is this, with market establishment and development of organized market centres alone, you can say bye-bye to Federal allocation dependency. That way, even the government at the centre will have rest of mind and enough time to concentrate on Federal projects development, instead of having to bother its mind on how to help states with loans to pay salaries and carry out other responsibilities that they need to do. This, also, is being done in Anambra State under the government of Obiano and I want other states to emulate him so that together Nigerian states will give massive boost, collectively, to Nigerian national economy.”
On road infrastructure, Igwe Nwokedi said, “Sometimes in the past when I travelled to Japan, I tell you that from the Tokyo Airport to town they have up to 18 toll-gates. What that means is that, when you build the roads, you toll them and generate money for your government through that.”
Explaining why toll-gate system did not work in the past he said, “Corruption was why toll-gate system did not work in the past. Yet, the best way to keep road infrastructure intact is by tolling. You can operate separate account for toll-gate system to enable proper monitoring and management of it. Your priority for the toll-gate account is to cater for maintenance of existing roads and building of more. In a given accounting period, once you have taken what you need for maintenance, you push the rest funds into the general account. Your government is first felt by your road infrastructure.
“You can see that all the three areas of economic development that I have suggested here are doable. What do they cost any government? Nothing much! If you decide to take loans to execute them, therefore, it is reasonable because they can always fetch back the money with which you repay back the loans in no time. Let our governors of Nigeria carry out their economic reforms along these major areas and see whether they will lack in anything again.
“This is growth by creativity. Don’t forget that natural resources that you have in your states are owned by the Federal Government. If you develop those three areas of self economy, you will have capacity for keeping your youth engaged and youth restiveness will be drastically reduced. If, like Anambra is doing, other states can follow suit, the peace and unity that we desire for Nigeria will come naturally and that is the way to go,” Igwe Alex Nwokedi, who was first ever to be Manager, Public Relations of the Electricity Corporation of Nigeria (ECN) which later became NEPA and PHCN, said.
