C’RIVER, OTU AND THE CRISIS OF GOVERNANCE

PAUL A. OBI argues that with the resources at the governor’s disposal, the state merits more

“That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons that history has to teach.”

–          Aldous Huxley, English Writer & Philosopher

Of all the ills that characterized President Bola Tinubu’s administration, there is an exception, particularly, in advancing the frontiers of federalism – giving states and local governments their fair share. As an astute advocate of federalism himself, Tinubu has kept his own side of the bargain on how to make Nigeria’s troubling federalism and feeding-bottle democracy work. Conversely, with this flow of revenue, some state governors’ performance have not been commensurate with such surplus allocation. Consequently, it’s incumbent on us that Cross River State and its gubernatorial hegemon, Gov. Prince Bassey Otu are held accountable on the disparity between such a stupendous flow of resources and the abysmal outcomes that bestrode the state. Since 2023, no state governor, including Gov. Otu has cried out over lack of funds. At a point, a miffed President Tinubu, had to challenge Nigerians to hold their governors accountable as well. This intervention should be seen as a rhapsody of that call to duty – contrary to being perceived as spite or a de-marketing strategy for both the state and Gov. Otu. Far from it!

First, one of the key rationales for this intervention is that while there have been low-energy in terms of developmental strides in Cross River, other states have picked up the challenge of abundant revenue flow from Abuja and are developing and industrializing their states with admiration. Such states include Akwa Ibom, Enugu, Abia, Ebonyi, among others. This is not to say that Gov. Otu has nothing to show within the last three years. For example, the fight to reclaim the oil wells by the Governor sincerely deserve applause. Rather, the argument is centred on the not-too stellar performance by the current administration. For now, not much, points to a grand scale to industrialize the state in the midst of in-flow of revenue from the Federation Account. Last week, Otu met with stakeholders and elders of the state, where he serenaded them with all his fantastic plans. Hear him: “We have taken bold steps in strengthening our infrastructure, repositioning agriculture, refining education, boosting tourism and deepening social welfare, while our security remains top notch.” However, did the governor point to any physical infrastructure in Abi, Obubra, Etung, Boki, Yala, Bekwara, and Yakurr that has been completed within the last three years? The problem with Gov. Otu, therefore, is that he’s not doing enough with the surplus revenue from the Federation Account to develop Cross River. The clarion call, therefore, is for the governor to trigger a radical recasting of the developmental policies of his government, or consign the state to perpetual inertia in the midst of plenty.

Evidently, in the last three years, has the Otu’s government built any four or five star medical hospital? Or is there any signpost that indicates modernization of the state’s health sector?  Pictures of the dilapidated and decrepit state of General Hospital Obubra have regrettably been trending on social media to the consternation of citizens. What is the energy, power and electricity plans of the state for purposes of enabling industrialization just as Abia State has done and is now about to go off the national grid?  Instead, reports indicated that several communities with electricity have been without light for nearly two years without state government intervention. Let us take the Calabar-Obudu rail project for example. Gov. Otu performed the groundbreaking ceremony around August, 2024; the conservative estimated cost for the 365km rail project is pegged at $350 million. Since 2024, we are yet to see the completion of the project awarded to Mesesrs Reinhoke LLC. Are there even spur tracks to move raw materials from the interior such as Obanliku, Etung, Boki, and Abi? The absence of which renders the economic and multiplier impacts ineffective.

How about road construction? Granted, the state government has been expediting action in constructing roads in the Southern Senatorial District of the state, not much of such efforts are replicated in the other two zones. Take for instance, the Okuku-Mfon, Yahe-Wanokom-Wanikade-Wanihem-Benue Border Roads in Yala; Ndok Junction-Mbube-Oku Bushuyu and the Boki East-West Roads all in Ogoja and Boki Local Governments; all have been flagged off with no much progress. Worst still, in all the flag-offs of the above roads, the Governor never attended. The Deputy Governor, Mr Peter Odey represented him. This laid credence to insinuations that the Governor has left the governing of the Central and Northern senatorial Districts to his deputy. Delegation of power to his deputy is not out of place. However, to govern the state in a manner where the Governor’s calculus of engagement covertly excludes Central and Northern Senatorial Districts smacks of discriminatory and abdication of duty. How about the Ikom-Obudu Road, where youths from Etung, Ikom, Boki, Obubra, Obudu and Obanliku were protesting over bad roads and complete government neglect, demanding for the Governor to show up, and threatening ‘no road, no election?” Still, Prince Otu never came; instead, his Commissioners for Information and Works, Dr Erasmus Ekpang and Hon. Pius Edet did.

Within the body polity also, tension appears to be building over reports that the Governor is pushing for the Kakum man to return to the Nigerian Senate even after he has been trounced and defeated twice by the incumbent, Sen. Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe. A move that might truncate the political stability the state is known for. Substantially, the state is not winning on the political, economic and developmental fronts: it is performing woefully on federal appointments in Abuja; failing to industrialize in the midst of cocoa, palm oil, rubber, cashew, pineapple, mineral resources among others; added with reckless use of local governments funds, no stellar signature project on ground yet. Fantastic projects on paper, but little on sight; a lazy, lame and rubber-stamp state of assembly turned wife-beaters, combined with a clannish government that focuses mostly on Southern Senatorial District to the neglect of Central and Northern Senatorial Districts; and citizens dimensionally not rich according to the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS). These indexes all point to a nadir in Otu’s style of government, and equally, unpleasant scorecard and debilitating crises of an approach to governance.

Conversely, the eras of Donald Duke and Liyel Imoke were far better – Cross River was launched to the global limelight. However, with the chief from Kakum in 2015, the state took a nosedive. The question now is: is Otu repeating history?  As the pot of cash keeps rolling, the icy sweetness keeps pouring, the court jesters keep thundering ‘Sweet Prince’ and Peregrino House remains visitors’ delight. Like his predecessor(s), who learnt the hard way, Gov. Otu may be stunt by the realities of non-performance when the phone stops ringing. When an ambition to return to the red chambers may shipwreck. And his presence in the community of men of power becomes odious and an aberration. For too long, under ‘Sweet Prince,’ Cross River has been feasting; but flopping on the salient issues of infrastructure and development. Mr Governor for the most part has been a good marketer and deliverer on messages about the state and his intentions but with no show on real development. However, Gov. Otu can change the tide for good and learn from history. If the governor really wants to avoid the pitfalls of history as Aldous Huxley chastised us all to learn from, then, the pathway to such lessons should lead him to Kakum, where the residues of a colossal gubernatorial failure lies prostrate. The time to act is now, and in earnest too.

. Obi is a lecturer, journalist and researcher based in Abuja