In 1787, Empress Catherine II visited a Russian city governed by Grigory Potemkin. Governor Grigory Potemkin in order to impress the empress constructed fake villages along the Dnieper River which is the route of the Monarch and beautified them so as to impress the monarch and for the monarch to have the impression that the city is blossoming without knowing that the city is in dire hardship. The fake villages created were called Potemkin villages hence where the name Potemkin Village originated from.
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Fast forward to the 21st century, Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi state who we all can see is an ardent follower of Grigory Potemkin have copied serially from the old Russian governor by painting the city walls and building flyover and adding colorful street lights so as to have a place to show and impress visitors who may go and think that Ebonyi state is blossoming without knowing that the state with its residents are really suffering and still topping the rank as the state with the highest rate of poverty in southern Nigeria, still topping the rank as one of the states with highest rate of unemployment in Nigeria, still tops the rank as the number one educationally less developed state in south eastern Nigeria; but as a visitor who may have only visited Abakaliki at night and behold the colorful lights and multi color paints on the city walls or might have seen what the government media shows on social media you may get carried away and think otherwise that Ebonyi state is blossoming; lo and behold, what is created right there in Abakaliki is a Potemkin village.
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Behind those colorfully painted city walls and fancy street lights are dilapidated government-owned schools; there are primary schools around the Abakaliki town that I personally know of where the school kids receive lectures and write their exams sitting on the bare floor inside a dilapidated building that can collapse any moment and kill them all. If you walk inside the streets behind those beautifully painted city walls there are untarred roads, uncleared and smelling gutters, unstable electricity, insecurity, high rate of poverty, lack of jobs, and the list goes on.
The governor only masterfully created a Potemkin village in Abakaliki, Ebonyi state and people who should be holding him accountable to account for those resources squandered in all these white elephant projects and frivolous activities are applauding him as being the most hardworking governor amongst his peers.
It is a shame!!!
It is only because we celebrate mediocrity and the barest minimum in this part of the world that is why Governor Dave Umahi is regarded as one of the most working governors just because he engaged in wasteful and unnecessary ventures instead of prioritizing more important things.
The two major things that attract investors and industries to a state are steady and low-cost electricity and security. Any government that invests in electricity and security will attract industries that will create jobs. This is what Ebonyi state needs at the moment; jobs and education. This is what will build human capacity and drastically reduce the alarming rate of poverty in the state.
Paints and traffic lights will not attract investors or create jobs in Ebonyi state. The governor engaged in all these ventures for about eight years now and no industry is yet to come knocking; this is to show that the strategy is not working and I know it as I know my name that no serious investor or industry will ever relocate to a state and build an industry simply because of flyovers and city wall paints or traffic lights; those are frivolities.
Ebonyi state today being the poorest state in southern Nigeria with the highest rate of poverty and the state is top of the rank in educationally less developed states in Nigeria should warrant any serious government should prioritize things that will create long-term and sustainable formal jobs; prioritize on things that will boost economic and commercial activities in the state; prioritize on education. This is how you invest in the future of the state.
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This sequel to my last article “Street lights and paints will not attract investors or create jobs in Ebonyi state” only came as a response to the reactions I have been getting over the previous post.