Ogui people in Enugu North Local Government Area of Enugu State, under the aegis of the Ogui Nike Forum, have endorsed the candidacy of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Dr. Ibenaku Harford Onoh, for a second term as Executive Chairman of the council.
The group said its decision was driven by what it described as the visible impact of Onoh’s administration on infrastructure, education, healthcare, security, human-capital development and social welfare, particularly in Ogui community.
Speaking with journalists in Enugu on Sunday, the coordinator of the Ogui Nike Forum, Barr. Emerie Arum, said the council had witnessed unprecedented development under Onoh, stressing that Ogui had been a major beneficiary of the administration’s programmes.
According to Arum, Ogui has benefited from more than two kilometres of road construction and reconstruction, over 100 solar-powered streetlights, support for neighbourhood security and vocational training for dozens of residents.
“Ogui Nike Forum is endorsing Dr. Ibenaku Harford Onoh to go for a second tenure. He has performed beyond expectations in every aspect of governance, both in health, education, security, infrastructure, human capital development and social welfare,” he said.
“Ogui, as a community, has benefited more. Look at the 2km Ukwa Street/Ihewuishi Road Project that he reconstructed and asphalted. He has shared about 103 solar powered street lights across streets in Ogui axis and donated 2 Sienna vehicles for neighbourhood watch groups in Ogui axis.”
Arum further disclosed that more than 70 indigenes and residents of Ogui had benefited from vocational training and empowerment programmes facilitated by the Onoh administration in partnership with Copen Group and Poterswill.
He said the beneficiaries were trained in about 40 vocational skills, including bricklaying, electrical installation, plumbing, tiling, baking and detergent production.
“In his programmes with Copen Group and Poterswill, more than 70 indigenes and residents of Ogui have benefited, trained and empowered across 40 vocational skills that include bricklaying, electrical installation, plumbing, tiling, baking, detergent production and so on,” Arum said.
“That is why, when we talk about Dr. Ibeh going for a second tenure, we are not doing it for personal political gains but for continuity of good governance.”
The forum coordinator also commended Onoh for what he described as his efforts to consolidate the development agenda of Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah at the grassroots, arguing that his administration had helped make Enugu North a reference point in local government administration.
“Dr. Onoh has ensured that we feel the impacts of what Governor Peter Ndubisi Mbah is doing. The ‘we’ that I mean is not just ndị Enugu North but Ogui people,” he said.
Arum specifically cited the smart school at Queen’s Secondary School and the health centre at Aguowo as examples of projects whose benefits, according to him, extend beyond Ogui to the wider Enugu North community.
“The smart school in Queen’s Secondary School is one of the first to start operation in the state and one of the best. What about the health centre in Aguowo? It has remained one of the best in the state. That is a clear reference of grassroots interest fulfilment in local government administration,” he said.
“So, he is good to go and will deliver more in the next 2 years.”
The Ogui Nike Forum said its endorsement was based on what it described as measurable results recorded by the Onoh administration across various sectors, including infrastructure, skills acquisition, education, security and social interventions.
The group maintained that retaining the council chairman would allow ongoing programmes to continue while providing an opportunity for more residents to benefit from the administration’s human-capital development initiatives.
It therefore urged Ogui residents and other residents of Enugu North Local Government Area to support Onoh and the APC at the September 26 local government council elections, calling on voters to come out en masse to vote for continuity and sustained grassroots development.
