By Olayinka Ajayi - Vanguard
Ambassador Okey Emuchay hails from Azumini in Ukwa East Local Government Area of Abia State. He just voluntarily retired after 31 years of meritorious service in the foreign service including his last post as Nigeria’s Consular General to South Africa. He recently declared his intention to contest for governorship. Emuchay speaks on his plan for Abia in this interview.
We heard that you recently declared your intention to run for the governorship of Abia State. Can you confirm this?
Yes, I can confirm that I am desirous of presenting myself for further service to my motherland, but let me quickly add that the decision has been more of the Abia people than mine. What I did was to consult with the broad spectrum of Abians both at home and in the diaspora and I will pursue the interest through the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Having served the country meritoriously in the past 31 years, and your party (PDP) has zoned the governorship position to Abia South, should the party offer you this opportunity, what do you hope to do for your people?
What I would do is what I have also done, service, more so with my background as a scion of a foremost surgeon and administrator who dedicated all his life to the service of his people. My primary, secondary and tertiary focus would be qualitative service, production and output based service. As governance is a continuum , I will build upon the credible and commendable platforms and programs of Governor T A Orji.
I will build on the existing programs on security, education, entrepreneurship, oil and gas, with the overall focus of making the best use of the strategic position of Aba as the cultural and economic nerve center of eastern region. The essence will be to create the opportunity and environment for the private sector to thrive and by the private sector thriving we would solve the problem of unemployment and governance to provide other services.
Since the PDP has zoned the governorship slot to Abia South and you are from Ukwa which has only two local government areas out of the six in the zone, how do you actualize your ambition considering the population of your area?
Politics is about people, leadership in politics or political acceptance is a mixture of credibility, acceptability and capacity. Without sounding immodest, I have these qualities; so, against population, these qualities can suffice. However, I believe that the first thing is to give honour to whom is deserving and to this end I express my gratitude to Chief T.A. Orji for this historic decision to zone the governorship to Abia South. The zoning exercises justice, fairness and equity.
I come from Ukwa but what we are talking about is for the people of Abia South to produce the best for Abia State. The governorship of Abia involves the three senatorial zones and the first step has to do with the primaries, you have to win the primaries to be a candidate of the party. Politics is about negotiation, politics is about strategy, politics is about give and take and we are going to take a message from across Abia South to Abia Central and to Abia North.
The primaries would involve delegates from the 17 local government areas of the state. And again, the people of Ukwa are demanding justice, equity and fairness in this endeavour to produce the next governor of Abia. We are going to do it and with God on our side, we are going to succeed.
Still on the issue of population, many people see desperation from your Ngwa brothers to take the first slot. Do you think your ambition will materialize?
I disagree with the word desperation. Abia South is made up of Ukwa and Ngwa. We do not have Ukwa in Abia Central, and I say again, it is all about give and take, about engagement and the governorship of Abia involves the entire state, it has to do with primaries, to get the ticket of the party, that is that delegates would participate in the primaries and we have a message, we are asking for equity, justice and fairness; it is because of Ukwa that Abia State is in the NDDC and since the creation of Abia State, no Ukwa person has been deputy governor.
Our brothers from Ngwa know this fact and, I can assure you, they have no reason not to support an Ukwa person for the governorship ticket. We are also talking to our brothers from old Bende, the Isikwuator people and their responses are amazing. However, we are conscious of the fact that governorship race entails negotiations and concessions. We will continue to engage the people of Abia across all the divide.
You want to succeed a governor who would be exiting by 2015. What is your impression of his performance and if, by God’s grace, you succeed him, where do you intend to commence your programme?
Ochendo has done exceedingly well. Chief of his administration’s numerous achievements is security. I am sure the odious security situation that hitherto existed in the state is still very fresh in most people’s memories. This interview wouldn’t have been possible today in this area without what the governor has done to change the security situation. The situation was so bad that criminal elements almost overran the state and of course few people could dare to venture home except on very unavoidable circumstances and with very heavy security.
People are now coming home, fresh investments are pouring into the state, infrastructural development can be seen all over the state, but like I said, governance is a continuum, nobody , no one administration, no one governor can solve all the problems. Ochendo has done well to take Abia to the next level. We would continue from where he will stop and engage in programmes that would create more jobs and revenue, other social projects that are exclusive. But we have to improve on what Ochendo has done in the last couple of years, that is what governance is all about.
Having served most of your days outside the country, only few people knew you impact. Can you speak on the roles you have played over the years?
I served outside but I am a home boy. I am constantly at home and, coming from the family of the late Dr. D .W. Emuchay, I was groomed from childhood into community service.
My father though a highly placed city based government functionary who could have built his hospital in the city established a 120-bed hospital in Azumini that was
commissioned in 1961; this was against the choice of building his hospital in Aba, Enugu or Port-Harcourt, in what was Eastern Region, but he brought this hospital back to the rural people to serve today’s people of Akwa Ibom State, Rivers State and Abia State. I also served for 31 years and have just retired from the foreign service. I served in several countries. And with the 31 years of unbroken service to Nigeria, I feel I am eminently qualified to offer myself to run for this office, and to contribute my utmost to the development of my state, Abia, that is the passion, that is what is driving me and nothing else.
Ambassador Okey Emuchay hails from Azumini in Ukwa East Local Government Area of Abia State. He just voluntarily retired after 31 years of meritorious service in the foreign service including his last post as Nigeria’s Consular General to South Africa. He recently declared his intention to contest for governorship. Emuchay speaks on his plan for Abia in this interview.
We heard that you recently declared your intention to run for the governorship of Abia State. Can you confirm this?
Yes, I can confirm that I am desirous of presenting myself for further service to my motherland, but let me quickly add that the decision has been more of the Abia people than mine. What I did was to consult with the broad spectrum of Abians both at home and in the diaspora and I will pursue the interest through the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Having served the country meritoriously in the past 31 years, and your party (PDP) has zoned the governorship position to Abia South, should the party offer you this opportunity, what do you hope to do for your people?
What I would do is what I have also done, service, more so with my background as a scion of a foremost surgeon and administrator who dedicated all his life to the service of his people. My primary, secondary and tertiary focus would be qualitative service, production and output based service. As governance is a continuum , I will build upon the credible and commendable platforms and programs of Governor T A Orji.
I will build on the existing programs on security, education, entrepreneurship, oil and gas, with the overall focus of making the best use of the strategic position of Aba as the cultural and economic nerve center of eastern region. The essence will be to create the opportunity and environment for the private sector to thrive and by the private sector thriving we would solve the problem of unemployment and governance to provide other services.
Since the PDP has zoned the governorship slot to Abia South and you are from Ukwa which has only two local government areas out of the six in the zone, how do you actualize your ambition considering the population of your area?
Politics is about people, leadership in politics or political acceptance is a mixture of credibility, acceptability and capacity. Without sounding immodest, I have these qualities; so, against population, these qualities can suffice. However, I believe that the first thing is to give honour to whom is deserving and to this end I express my gratitude to Chief T.A. Orji for this historic decision to zone the governorship to Abia South. The zoning exercises justice, fairness and equity.
I come from Ukwa but what we are talking about is for the people of Abia South to produce the best for Abia State. The governorship of Abia involves the three senatorial zones and the first step has to do with the primaries, you have to win the primaries to be a candidate of the party. Politics is about negotiation, politics is about strategy, politics is about give and take and we are going to take a message from across Abia South to Abia Central and to Abia North.
The primaries would involve delegates from the 17 local government areas of the state. And again, the people of Ukwa are demanding justice, equity and fairness in this endeavour to produce the next governor of Abia. We are going to do it and with God on our side, we are going to succeed.
Still on the issue of population, many people see desperation from your Ngwa brothers to take the first slot. Do you think your ambition will materialize?
I disagree with the word desperation. Abia South is made up of Ukwa and Ngwa. We do not have Ukwa in Abia Central, and I say again, it is all about give and take, about engagement and the governorship of Abia involves the entire state, it has to do with primaries, to get the ticket of the party, that is that delegates would participate in the primaries and we have a message, we are asking for equity, justice and fairness; it is because of Ukwa that Abia State is in the NDDC and since the creation of Abia State, no Ukwa person has been deputy governor.
Our brothers from Ngwa know this fact and, I can assure you, they have no reason not to support an Ukwa person for the governorship ticket. We are also talking to our brothers from old Bende, the Isikwuator people and their responses are amazing. However, we are conscious of the fact that governorship race entails negotiations and concessions. We will continue to engage the people of Abia across all the divide.
You want to succeed a governor who would be exiting by 2015. What is your impression of his performance and if, by God’s grace, you succeed him, where do you intend to commence your programme?
Ochendo has done exceedingly well. Chief of his administration’s numerous achievements is security. I am sure the odious security situation that hitherto existed in the state is still very fresh in most people’s memories. This interview wouldn’t have been possible today in this area without what the governor has done to change the security situation. The situation was so bad that criminal elements almost overran the state and of course few people could dare to venture home except on very unavoidable circumstances and with very heavy security.
People are now coming home, fresh investments are pouring into the state, infrastructural development can be seen all over the state, but like I said, governance is a continuum, nobody , no one administration, no one governor can solve all the problems. Ochendo has done well to take Abia to the next level. We would continue from where he will stop and engage in programmes that would create more jobs and revenue, other social projects that are exclusive. But we have to improve on what Ochendo has done in the last couple of years, that is what governance is all about.
Having served most of your days outside the country, only few people knew you impact. Can you speak on the roles you have played over the years?
I served outside but I am a home boy. I am constantly at home and, coming from the family of the late Dr. D .W. Emuchay, I was groomed from childhood into community service.
My father though a highly placed city based government functionary who could have built his hospital in the city established a 120-bed hospital in Azumini that was
commissioned in 1961; this was against the choice of building his hospital in Aba, Enugu or Port-Harcourt, in what was Eastern Region, but he brought this hospital back to the rural people to serve today’s people of Akwa Ibom State, Rivers State and Abia State. I also served for 31 years and have just retired from the foreign service. I served in several countries. And with the 31 years of unbroken service to Nigeria, I feel I am eminently qualified to offer myself to run for this office, and to contribute my utmost to the development of my state, Abia, that is the passion, that is what is driving me and nothing else.
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