It remains a very hard argument to undertake telling an outsider that Gov.David Umahi of Ebonyi State has dealt with the state as her Governor since 2015. Their argument always is that the Governor has blessed the state with infrastructure and tertiary projects.
There’s no doubt that Umahi has tried his best in terms of infrastructure, but then, how has he carried out the projects? How have the projects affected or impacted the lives and economy of the state and citizens? 90% of the infrastructure are sited on federal roads. He’s gaining a lot of fiscal dividends from the projects. He’s using our chippings and sand free of cost. He’s using staff of the Ministry of Works and Infrastructure in Ebonyi State without any salary upscale. His brother, Austin Umahi is the one in charge of supply of cement directly from the Dangote and BUA. His immediate elder brother, Barr Roy Umahi handles the iron and metal materials used. He only hires white men who play a supervisory role. You see it that everything goes back into his pockets.
Most parts of our rural areas remain what they have always been since 1996. His infrastructure breeze didn’t blow there apart from his LGA and other selected communities in his senatorial district – Ebonyi South. He only focuses on the city where first-time visitors cast their sight. Umahi in a bid to harvest huge sums of money for himself went into construction of vainglorious projects such as the Abakaliki Ecumenical Centre for prayers which he said cost over N7.8billion. He constructed a Chinese Shopping Mall he said cost about N10billion. Up till now, traders have refused buying spaces there as the spaces lie waste. Umahi went into building a new Government House which took over N5billion. As if that didn’t give him enough cash return, he undertook construction of Ebonyi House in Abuja which he said cost about N2billion. He undertook airport project. Could anyone tell us the contractors handling it? Umahi is using direct labour to construct it. His S.A on infrastructure is supervising it – a field politician supervising what should be a private sector affair. Umahi went on building 13 overhead bridges. He constructed 2 of such in his village which doesn’t have up to 2 thousand population of steady dwellers. In a week the overhead bridges don’t count up to 20 persons driving on them. Yet, the road in his village on which he constructed these overhead bridges is a federal road linking Mpu, Aninri LGA of Enugu State to Ebonyi State and Abia.
Since 2015 that this man assumed office as Governor, there has not been a recruitment exercise into our civil service till today. No promotion of civil servants till date. He reduced monthly salaries of existing workers by more than half. A secondary school principal receives N39k under Umahi monthly. He stopped paying pensioners since 2018. Umahi cancelled free education in our primary-secondary schools. Umahi cancelled our foreign scholarship policy. Umahi left stranded those on foreign scholarship scheme prior to his becoming Governor. Umahi used high taxation policy in driving away business owners from Abakaliki. Coca kola left. Michelin left. Julius Berger left, just to mention but a few. Umahi kindled intercommunity lethal crisis all round the state by being obviously biased in each case, seemingly supporting a side…
Ask Gov. Umahi the whereabouts of the N2billion palliative money Federal Government released to Effiom community to cushion the effects of the crisis. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo made the donation when he visited the community. One may curiously ask if Umahi kindled the war in expectation of such amount of money from the Federal Government as to convert it into personal use when it was released. Umahi got possession of quarry sites in Afikpo North and other places.
Umahi personalised many solid mineral mining sites in the state.
Umahi starves his political appointees. Umahi got possession of Anambra people’s lands in Abakaliki using the instrumentalities of the Government of Ebonyi State. The matters are in different courts today. Umahi went into reconstruction of the International Market in Abakaliki after allegedly perforating the roofs to use same as excuse for reconstruction. Who handled the reconstruction contract? Umahi used surrogates in acquiring lands at the Centenary City in Abakaliki. Umahi auctioned Ebonyi properties in Enugu, Lagos, Aba and elsewhere. Who bought them if not Umahi himself?
Ebonyi State University is today a glorified private secondary school. For five months now, the staff of the University have not been paid. Ebonyi State College of Education, Ikwo remains on life support. Nothing is happening there. Only 30-45 students are matriculated there each year since 2017. Instead of returning life into these institutions, Umahi started building a personal University in Uburu which he named “David Nweze Umahi University of Medical Sciences, Uburu” and pegged annual school fees at N1.5 – 2million. Only 25 persons applied for admission in 2021. In 2022, they were not up to 15. He used Ebonyi money in building it. He lied that Federal Government got possession of it. If Federal Government did, why is Umahi the one issuing appointments there and asking Ebonyi State House of Assembly to approve fund for the university in late 2022? The same Umahi said that the university had been given to the Conference of Catholic Bishops in Nigeria. Umahi used Ebonyi money in constructing a 5-star hotel at the Abacha Road in Portharcourt. Umahi built 25 different duplexes in Uburu as personal home in 2017. Umahi built a stadium and helipad in his compound in Uburu. Umahi built noodles company and other factories in Uburu in his name as Governor. Umahi built different duplexes for renting around the Ministers’ Hill, Abuja with our money. Umahi acquired properties in Dubai and UK. Umahi bought a private jet and registered for courier services in 2018. Umahi bought engineering machines in his name with Ebonyi people’s money for direct labour works. These are just a few out the myriads of his sins as our Governor.
If Gov. Umahi has truly performed creditably as outsiders are of the view, why is it not reflecting on our people’s lives and environments? Why did the number of our children hawking and women doing menial jobs outside the state increase by 70% since 2015 he assumed power as Governor? Why did communal crises surge by 50% since 2015? Why is it that the Ebonyi State Government’s health sector has only 9 medical doctors till today? Who’ll point to a single state – owned hospital working since Umahi became Governor? If Umahi was a miracle Governor as outsiders opine, why is it that Anambra traders in Abakaliki left the state in droves? Why is it that WAEC held the 2022 results of public secondary schools in Ebonyi State for government’s non remittance of registration fees to WAEC? Why is it that the population of people in Abakaliki is receding by the day? Why did the Computer Village Union in Lagos retract from building a computer village in Ebonyi as they advanced to do in 2021? Why did Shoprite withdraw from building a branch in Abakaliki in 2019 till today? Why did W.H.O petition Ebonyi State Government to the Federal Government through the office of the SGF over swindling of project funds by Gov. David Umahi? Why did UNESCO do same? Why did UBEC stop doing projects in Ebonyi State?
Engr David Umahi is one Governor who enjoys fake glory from outsiders. Nobody who lives in Ebonyi praises him as a good Governor. Why is Gov. Umahi reconstructing Government House a month to the expiration of his administration with N2billion? Why did he seek approval for loan of N33 billion when he’s leaving office in a month time? Why is he rugging roundabouts with N1.5 billion in a month to leaving office? May David Umahi not happen to Ebonyi State again! May the incoming administration have the gravitas to recover our stolen wealth from Umahi. May it be courageous enough to get back the public properties he personalised.
