Ejike Eze: Enugu North Yearning for New Leadership

Ambassador Ejike Eze is the Senatorial Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for Enugu North. A diplomat specialising in intelligence and security protocol, Eze served in Nigerian embassies in Germany, Portugal, Ghana and Cuba. He speaks to Kingsley Nwezeh about his campaign and chances of clinching the senatorial slot

How is your campaign to represent Enugu North in the Senate going?
So far so good. As a party, we started a joint campaign, the candidates, the Senatorial candidates, the House of Reps candidates, state assembly candidates and all other candidates. We went around all the wards in the state and that was the first time such campaign was ever done. After the tour of wards, we now relaxed and individuals started their own campaigns. For me, I have gone round the local governments and then talked to my people and discussed with the people in the six local government areas of Enugu North.

Beyond all these, I have also been talking to interest groups in Nsukka. The lawyers, the academics, the professionals and so many other areas, the artisans, the keke, the okada riders, Keke Napep associations and some distinct people with cultural festivals like the one in Igbo Etiti which I attended. It’s called Ochima. You know there is something they said about Ochima, being the eldest community in Nsukka. When they celebrated their odo festival, I was there and got the Ofo (title) from Onyishi Ochima (the eldest man in Ochima). These are the things I have done. Again the media, I have been visible in the media. All these have exposed my candidature to the electorate in Enugu State.

What has the response from the people been like?
The response has been overwhelming. You know, in our part of the country, our party, APC, is not a very popular brand, but now, due to the input of some of us, people are now beginning to talk about the individual, not the party which should be the actual thing. It’s not really the party per se and I also know that almost all the political parties have their own shortcomings, the APC, the PDP, which have been the two major political parties and the emergence of Labour Party and New Nigeria National Party.
People, who have been in these two parties are the bulk of these new parties that are emerging right now. Everything put together, people are no longer talking about party per se.

My candidature, I can tell you, has exposed me to the people. Before now, I was the only one that had the determination and courage to challenge the PDP’s ownership mentality of power in Enugu State because for 23 years, they have been there unchallenged. Now, they are beginning to feel there are people who are interested in what they have been doing which they have not done rightly. This is the situation for now.

What are the dominant issues they want you to address?
Issues of bad governance. This is the key issue they are looking at. For instance, I had a radio interview programme sometime ago and a woman called in to say she retired from government work three years ago and she has not gotten her gratuity or pension. When I asked why do we sell fuel in Enugu, N240 and Nsukka N340, they said because the road from 9th Mile to Nsukka is so terrible. That no trailer wants to pass through that road and because of this, they spend more money on transportation and that has made the price of fuel in Nsukka higher than most parts of Enugu State.
The issue of infrastructure is there and now the government, because another election has come, they think they can always deceive the people. Now if you go to all the roads, they are breaking all the roads, claiming to be building and constructing new roads. In all parts of Nsukka now, they have promised so many people roads. They are building roads for every tom, dick and harry and I asked them will they finish this network of roads they are constructing before February 25 election?

You see these things are deceit. I ask again if they had money to be building these roads, what have they been doing in the past seven years? And now that the election is at hand, they are doing panicky projects here and there.
The people are talking about lack of infrastructure, lack of innovative ideas. Look at the dirt in Nsukka. Nsukka is a university community and a university community is an international community.

As you enter Nsukka, the first thing you encounter is dirt. Just leave Opi Junction, drive some distance, you will see heaps of rubbish. A government that cannot even clean the environment, clean his house and a lot of things. Nsukka people are really dismayed about the performance of the governor. Look at Ogige market and what it looks like in comparison to what Gov Dave Umahi did in Abakaliki in Ebonyi State. Ogige Market should be turned into a modern shopping mall so that when you enter Nsukka, you will see modenity. For eight years, we have had our son in government and nothing has changed in Nsukka.
If you talk about human capital development, I wrote a memo telling the governor that Enugu Senatorial District has never produced a federal permanent secretary and most of them that come to Abuja as permanent secretaries come from transfer of service but he did nothing of the sort.

What kind of leadership are you seeking to provide?

Our people are yearning for new leadership, new crop of leaders to emerge so that the challenges we have in our area could be addressed. As a legislator, it’s not within my purview to begin to say I will change this policy or not but I can sponsor bills, move motions for good governance in the areas of local government system. The idea of a local government chairman that comes in, collects all the money, shares it and moves away is out of place.
If you begin to collaborate with them, you could initiate a bill that will promote an accountable system for the local government administration because it is an area that impacts directly on the people.

What are the chances of the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Ahmed Tinubu, winning the February 25 poll?
You know I belong to APC and I will wish that my party wins at the presidential election. The chances will be determined by the Nigerian people and the political party but we are campaigning to win. Other parties are also campaigning to win. If you put the whole thing on a scale, I would say on the spread of our governors, they are 22. We are still the party to beat. I know there are sentiments and the advent of a new party, the Labour Party and their presidential candidate, who is reputed to have done well as a governor and espouses ideas that appeal to Nigerian youths. These are issues on ground.
Like in my state, I would wish that one party system comes to an end. At the federal level let the best candidate win. Let the candidate, who will lead Nigeria to prosperity win but you know I want my party to win and I tell you, we have what it takes to win.
I know it’s not going to be an easy election.