Of all the governorship aspirants identified so far in Enugu State, Hon. Godwin Chidozie Ogenyi [pictured] stands tallest. The former commissioner for human capital development and poverty reduction (2011–2015) is perhaps the only aspirant who is not tainted by corruption of any description: looting of public funds, certificate forgery, drugs, 419 or economic sabotage. He has demonstrated competence, capacity and credibility in several assignments over the decades.
A professional quantity surveyor who makes genuine money from genuine businesses, Hon. Ogenyi is also the founder and director of YORDEL Africa, a non-profit non-governmental organisation dedicated to empowering the youth, the vulnerable and the disadvantaged in society. Many in Enugu State have benefitted from the charity’s empowerment programmes. YORDEL Africa has presence in over 50 countries.
A core Obidient
Hon. Dozie Ogenyi is a true Obidient who walks in the footsteps of His Excellency Peter Gregory Onwubuasi Obi. And like Obi, he is not desperate to become governor but is terrified by what he sees in his home state and desires to change the situation from 2027. “I do not claim to have all the answers,” he says in his manifesto, “but I promise this: I will listen, I will serve, and I will lead with integrity.”
Leadership failure in Enugu
Enugu is currently a state in turmoil. Markets, shops and other sources of livelihood have been demolished; on their ashes, motor parks have been erected. Across the state, hundreds of victims of the 2024 demolitions (without compensations or alternative shops) have died while hundreds more are bedridden due to stroke. Several communal lands have been grabbed. Over-taxation has thrown most families especially women and children into poverty, subdued economic growth and driven away investors including commercial estate developers.
In the face of all these, nobody knows where Enugu’s money goes. The promise to provide water within 180 days has yet to be fulfilled, three years after, and families pay N40,000 to N50,000 for a tankerful of water even in the rainy season. All that people see and feel are projects executed on television and social media. Roads are repainted for publicity, not for durability. White elephant projects christened “smart schools” and “Type 2 hospitals” dot every ward, but nearly all the structures under construction have been abandoned. In any case, buildings do not make a school “smart” or a hospital useful. Enugu has become grossly indebted, as is the Tinubu-led federal government, because the state keeps borrowing for non-regenerative investments.
Dozie Enugu
The governorship hopeful hopes to return to government in order to restore the peace and prosperity of Enugu State. “The ideal Enugu State is far from reality,” he says, “as the people have been made poorer owing to the stifling taxes introduced by an insensitive government.”
A dedicated leader is what Enugu State urgently needs now. A state that receives billions of naira from the federation account should have huge prospects for fair and progressive taxation that would attract investments, lower cost of living, lower unemployment rate and more prosperity for the people. This is a state with vast arable land, rich for mechanized farming and animal husbandry as well as agro-allied ventures, inland waterways rich in fisheries and navigable year-round farming, with potential for massive inland ports and access to the open seas and oceans, not forgetting tourist sites with capacity to broaden the economy of the state to one of the largest in Africa and beyond.
Enugu State deserves a new kind of leadership, one rooted in truth, compassion and service to the people. There should be shared vision, urgency and commitment to restore dignity and shared prosperity across the state. The people including low-income earners deserve decent housing, they deserve a conducive business environment that stimulates growth; civil servants should be able to access welfare with ease and be able to cater to their families. Transporters including commercial bus operators and keke riders should be allowed to breathe! Agriculture and its value chain could be advanced for food security.
The man himself
Hon. Ogenyi is a devout Christian, a faithful husband and a loving father. He promises to provide a God-fearing, people-oriented leadership. His core principles include equity, transparency and accountability.
The governorship hopeful calls on ndi Enugu from every ward, village and city to embrace a bold, people-driven transformation. 2027 is not just about a new governor; it’s about a new direction for generations to come.
NDC — Service to the people
Hon. Ogenyi hopes to realize his governorship ambition under the platform of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), having resigned from the ADC and the LP, at different times in the past, along with his role model Peter Obi.
He has an added advantage: rotation favours him. Although there is no zoning (rotation) agreement in the state, many have accepted that, for the sake of fairness, the office of governor should rotate between the two old senatorial zones, Nsukka and Enugu, that now make up the state. The more populous Nsukka zone has rejected rotation based on three senatorial districts because that was a PDP affair and is unjust. It was in a bid to redress that injustice of Enugu occupying Lion Building for 16 straight years before Nsukka’s 8 years that caused the victory of LP’s Chijioke Edeoga in 2023. Even if the rotation is among three zones, a candidate from Isi-Uzo LGA is still favoured since the LGA is also in Enugu East senatorial district.
Baggage
Chijioke Edeoga’s betrayal of Peter Obi and Nsukka people (by going back to the party and people that robbed him of his mandate in 2023) constitutes some baggage for Hon. Dozie Ogenyi. He and Edeoga come from the same Mgbuji in Eha-Amufu, Isi-Uzo LGA. However, Ogenyi has been apologetic; he has reiterated that he and Edeoga are poles apart when it comes to matters of honesty and integrity. “I will never betray my supporters or the finger that fed me,” he says.
Victory assured
It appears he has earned the trust of ndi Nsukka and will receive the votes of all ndi Enugu. The only thing that stands between Hon. Ogenyi and victory at the polls is the gubernatorial ticket of the NDC. He will run a good campaign, for the incumbent governor is very unpopular and will have nothing to campaign on. Ndi Enugu usually describe him as “audio governor” because he spends all their money on media advertisements to fool non-residents of the state. Enugu’s money goes into paying bribes to Aso Villa and party chieftains, planting moles in rival parties to destabilize them, and hiring all manner of sycophants to lie on television and social media.
But the people know the truth. Worse for the incumbent government, the governor and his loyalists have switched to the APC, a party that stands no chance in Enugu State, though they are plotting to steal an election again.
Hon. Ogenyi of the NDC is equipped to stop vote thieves in their tracks in 2027. He may not have as much money as those who stole public funds, but he has enough to run a decent campaign.
By Aniebo Nwamu
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