Re: The Fading Beauty Of Owerri (Trumpeta Aug.
9 2013) Henry Ekpe Is Hundred Percent Right!.
Every Tuesday, Thursday and Friday I hurry up from my Orodo base spending the last hundred naira (#100) in my pocket to get a copy of this colourful and Romantic Owerri based tabloid established by the Imo BIG-3: The Gerry Ogus, the Henry Ekpes and the Kelechi Mejuobis. These illustrious sons of Imo are the pride of Eastern Heartland. Salute to their courage! Mr. Henry Ekpe the founding editor of the famous Announcer Express, makes us relax a bit from the wears and tears of the Imo turbulent Political discourses. He takes us to the memory lanes, of Owerri yesteryears to compare with Owerri of today, though beautiful and attractive, thanks to the successful chief executives of the State plus including our Owelle! No matter how beautiful the Capital city of Eastern heartland may be, what troubles us, we the Artifacts- lovers, Historical monuments- lovers is the tendency at which these historical monuments and treasures of the past are destroyed and erased as if there will be no tomorrow. In the USA is the Status of Liberty, the French has the Tower of Effel, standing forever there on the Parisian soil. I was glad to climb it and touch it and embraced it, on that cold winter of 13th October 1982, eleven degrees celcius. The Chinese Great wall is there, the Indian Great Temples are there and the Kremlin Castle in Russia is always there. Where is the Imo Douglas house, the Original Colonial House that reminded us of our Colonial Past? Have we nothing to tell the next generation of our Imolites? Governments go and governments come but “Douglas House” must be allowed to remain. Ex-Governor Ikedi Ohakim might have had his short comings as a human being, but posterity will recommend him for being environment friendly, and in Henry Ekpes word “Art Collector”. He planted the grasses, greened and cleaned our environment even in the height of severe criticisms. We were conscious of our sanitation Days and Chief Ohakim gave no Damns over the consequences of flouting his environmental sanitation days. Today everybody in Imo is planting grasses. In the words of Mr. Ekpe “when Dr. Ikedi Ohakim came, Owerri was in for a serious touch, because the man love the nature and was an Art- Collector. Such a mind -set led him to introduce environmental project, which exhumed thousand metric tones dirt lying under the gutters of Owerri for eight years. What was clear was that he was a neat Governor and it showed how immaculate clean the entire Owerri became, within a few months of his administration, to the extent that Owerri became the cleanest State capital in Nigeria.
However, he left behind those tourist attractions that are dear to the heart of
average Owerri man; The Douglas House and the British Executive Chamber”. For me, no body now or in future Governance of Imo will not preserve the various beautiful edifies being put in place by Owelle Rochas Okorocha’s administration for the good and benefit of Imo State. Preservation of the Treasures of our past has been the huge battle cry of Imo’s foremost Art Collector and Preserver of Nature, Mr. PADDY OBINNA. He is vindicated. If perhaps I assume the Governorship of Imo State today or tomorrow I will ensure that all the legacies of my predecessors are preserved and improved upon even protected. Mbakwe’s Concord remains everlasting, even as it was built with meager resources of Imo then, even as he was then being referred to as a weeping Governor of Imo: Imo State University of the five campus concept from Nebraska University USA, Avutu poultry, Inyishi excrusion industry, Aba glass industry, Raisin paints Mbaise, etc all speak volumes of Dee Sam. Governor Achike Udenwa’s legacy secretariat along Port-harcourt road is there for Imo, Senator Evan Enwerem’s IMSU, (from old Imo State University at Uturu) remains there etc. Governor Fashola of Lagos State never wiped out Tinubu square, but he improved on its aesthetics. The Ekpe’s cries and tears for Owerri of the old and of the present are that efforts should be made by the successive governments to let the past remain, because without the past, there will definitely be no future. Henry Ekpe, Imo’s chief Editor Emeritus, remains a noble son of Igbo land and an African legend. Chief Ikedi Ohakim remains Mr. Environment, Art Collector, preserver of our Ancient Antiquities, the Greener and Cleaner of all Imo nooks and cranies. Lets give it to him. Mr. Henry Ekpe is right. HE HAS MY DIPLOMATS PEN HANDSHAKE. I write to build.
Chinyochaobi Israel Uhuegbu
