IF you lived in Port Harcourt before Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi became governor of Rivers State then you would have known that this state was a day late and a naira short in security.
It was so bad that our streets were not safe. I knew this much: many people could not answer their phone calls whilst walking the streets in our neighbourhoods for fear of being mugged. One lady, in trying to resist attempts by gangsters wanting to snatch her bag, was hit on the head with the butt of a gun. She sustained a deep gash and massive loss of blood.
I ran into her per chance and took her to St. Michaels Hospital in the estate where the doctors were generous enough to treat her without payment even though they didn’t know me.
Again, the first kidnap of a boy child (the first of its kind) belonging to a female member of the Rivers State House of Assembly in June 2007 happened in the school where I was privileged to be a Primary Head Teacher. He was snatched from the female guide who brought him to school close to the school gate and was flung into a waiting car in spy-movie fashion. An innocent tweenager flung roughly, without care. As usual a huge ransom was paid to secure his release days later.
Also people couldn’t go to pleasure houses for rest and relaxation for fear of violence. Friends of mine and many others in one of such place had their valuables emptied into sacks by street urchins at gun point. Business owners wouldn’t dare close their office late at night because hoodlums brazenly went into their shops asking for cash without fear. Our women coming from night vigil were seized by crooks and assaulted on dark back-streets. At some point, our neighborly natives took the culture of the feeling of entitlement skywards so badly that you could not build a house without their say-so. Geniality became an essential commodity.
But sanity later on in Rivers State, to a level, was restored somewhat by the Amaechi administration until recently when things spiraled out of control due to gladiatorial fights by conceited politicians. I have repeatedly said that I am not a fan of the governor but truth be told: Amaechi no doubt has played his part in Nigeria’s politics. Love him or hate him, history will be generous to record his accomplishments which many of his nay-sayers might not approve.
Amaechi, for a fact, upped the democratic stake in this state. Isn’t it particularly strange that a governor chose to be different despite the unrelenting attraction of the people of his geographical block for regionalism?
I live here and listen to the piles of scorn that his critics pour out on him as the person responsible for the defeat of the president in the last general elections.
It was no news to see office-seekers here recently promote the candidacy of the president and their own (as if they were on a joint ticket), instead of approaching voters confidently on their own terms offering to leave a long-lasting legacy for posterity.
How many people from this state have expressed their open revulsion to the plight that the Igbo people suffered during the abandoned property saga in Rivers State, and even call for the abrogation of the term, ‘non-indigene? If my memory serves me correctly, Amaechi approaches the plight of the Igbo with gusto. The chief reason is that he is conciliatory towards non-indigenes and even considers them in the awarding of educational scholarships in a foreign country.
This governor may not be adored by all, especially those who say he does not respect elders, the kinds of elders who want to be Pharaohs in a democracy, but he has been able to draw attention to the responsibility of the federal government to build institutions that will endure.
General Buhari needs Rotimi Amaechi, whose records he is already acquainted with, as his Secretary to the Federal Government. His wealth of experience gathered as Chairman of The Conference of Speakers of Nigeria, Chairman Nigeria Governors forum, his unwavering principles will be needed to help the president-elect achieve the daunting task of reducing the high level of massive unemployment so we can have a robust national and state economy again; one that carries us into the future.
I watched Amaechi closely at a ceremony prior to the last presidential elections and saw how he was able to calm uneasiness from people who had already made up their minds on who to vote for. The people there on that day, most of whom were from the South-East, were openly belligerent towards him (not surprising as stated earlier). The way that he was able to calm this uneasiness and even receive a round of applause as he left, was amazing.
I expected the governor to be hot under the collar but he wasn’t. What he did was to penetrate a brick wall and challenge power truthfully. Repeated and rapturous ovations continued long after he left.
Buhari needs Amaechi not as a minister but as SGF because ours is a society where there is a need for risk-takers, for many knights in shining armour, to have an iron grip on almost every situation if we are to move forward.
That position under his watch can help to make his party strong in the South-South and strengthen the bond with the people of the South-East which will be made easier with a governor of Imo State whom the people of Imo have re-elected as their next ‘Mbakwe.’
It would be a disservice if Amaechi is left ignored after having sacrificed so much for his party. Rewarding Amaechi in this way would send a signal to many that to die standing on principles is better than nihilism.
Non-partisan commentators, like this present writer, is watching to see if genuine efforts, merit, sacrifice and benignity are virtues that will be rewarded in the next dispensation.