…Reaffirms commitment to inclusive development, promises more democracy dividends; targets 10,000km of roads by 2031
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Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah of Enugu State has commenced a statewide engagement tour of the 68 Development Centres, combining grassroots consultations with the commissioning and inspection of critical infrastructure projects delivered by his administration.
The exercise began on Friday in Aninri Local Government Area, where the governor visited Aninri West and Aninri North Development Centres, commissioning Smart Green School campuses and primary healthcare facilities while engaging residents and stakeholders on the impact of government policies and projects in their communities.
In Aninri West Development Centre, Mbah commissioned the Amorji, Uhueze and Agbada Nenwe campuses of the Smart Green School initiative. He also inspected the Type 2 Primary Healthcare Centre at Agbada Nenwe and commissioned another Type 2 healthcare facility at Amorji, Nenwe.
Beyond the project commissioning, the governor held interactive stakeholder engagements at Nenwe and Oduma, respectively, where he met with residents and community representatives, engaging them polling unit by polling unit. The consultations provided an opportunity for the administration to assess the impact of its interventions, receive feedback and identify outstanding development needs.
Addressing stakeholders at Nenwe, Mbah said the statewide tour was designed to strengthen grassroots participation in governance and demonstrate the administration’s commitment to equitable development across the state.
He maintained that his government was not visiting communities with fresh promises alone but with tangible evidence of projects executed under the mandate entrusted to it by the people.
“Essentially, we have just commenced our engagement with our grassroots. Our aim is to go to all the development centres and have an interactive session with all our stakeholders. We are not coming to our stakeholders and various communities empty-handed. Our model of development in Enugu State is inclusive development.
“What that means is that there is no electoral ward in Enugu State that does not have the footprint of governance. So, we have not just come; we have also come to say to them, look at what we have delivered with the mandate you gave us to serve you,” he said.
On education, the governor explained that the Smart Green School initiative was conceived to provide Enugu children with the knowledge, competencies and technological exposure required to compete effectively in an increasingly demanding global economy.
He emphasised that the success of the programme should not be measured merely by the physical structures but by the quality of education, skills and opportunities available to pupils.
According to him, investing in education remains fundamental to sustainable development, poverty reduction and the long-term preservation of infrastructure and other public investments.
“Our children have no limits to what they can become and no boundaries as to what they can become. That is the whole idea of Smart Green Schools: to democratise quality learning.
“We know that if we do not invest in our children today and get them exposed to skills that will prepare them for the workplace of today and tomorrow, all we would have done building roads, conference centres, hotels, and the myriad of projects would not be sustainable,” he stated.
On healthcare delivery, Mbah disclosed that his administration had established 260 Type 2 Primary Healthcare Centres across the state’s 260 electoral wards, with the process of onboarding and operationalisation ongoing in some locations.
He further revealed that approval had been granted for the recruitment of 2,250 healthcare personnel to ensure that the facilities were adequately staffed and capable of delivering effective medical services.
The governor stressed that the administration’s healthcare performance would ultimately be assessed by improved health outcomes, particularly safe maternal deliveries, reduced infant mortality and increased access to essential immunisation services, rather than the number of buildings constructed.
“We have built 260 Type 2 Primary Healthcare Centres across the 260 electoral wards of Enugu State. While some have started full operation, the process of onboarding is ongoing.
“We have also approved the recruitment of 2,250 healthcare personnel because we are not just interested in the structure, but also in making sure that they are well staffed,” he explained.
Turning to infrastructure, the governor reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to delivering 10,000 kilometres of roads across Enugu State by 2031, acknowledging that the state had so far constructed or reconstructed approximately 1,521 kilometres.
He said the administration had prioritised major investments in education and healthcare during its first term but was now preparing to intensify road construction across the state.
To accelerate the programme, Mbah disclosed that Enugu had established the biggest asphalt plant in the South-East, with plans to install additional plants in Enugu West and Enugu North Senatorial Zones to strengthen construction capacity and improve project delivery.
“You would have noticed that we have carried the heavy lift of schools and hospitals. The next item for us is to go aggressive on road construction.
“Our objective is still to do 10,000 kilometres of roads. We are not yet there. We have only done about 1,521. I acknowledge that we still have a long way to go on that, but rest assured that we will deliver,” he assured.
The governor also pledged increased support for rural agriculture, stressing the need to transition farmers from predominantly manual production methods to mechanised and value-added agricultural practices.
He disclosed that the administration was developing farm estates and implementing programmes to provide agricultural equipment and financial support to organised groups, particularly women, to enhance productivity.
Mbah encouraged women to organise themselves into clusters of between 20 and 25 members to benefit from interventions designed to strengthen their economic activities, improve production and facilitate value addition.
At Oduma, in Aninri North Development Centre, the governor reiterated his commitment to strengthening rural livelihoods, improving agricultural productivity and completing ongoing infrastructure projects.
He described Aninri as an important food-producing area and assured farmers of government support through the provision of equipment and other interventions to expand agricultural output.
He also assured residents that the Nomeh–Oduma Road would be completed before the end of the year, explaining that the rainy season had delayed the asphalt-laying process but that contractors would resume work as weather conditions improved.
Beyond the development engagements, Mbah urged residents to sustain their political participation by obtaining their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and mobilising support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, himself and other All Progressives Congress (APC) candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections.
He called for sustained grassroots mobilisation through door-to-door and house-to-house engagements, urging party faithful to prepare for the scheduled January 16 and February 6 elections.
The governor also interacted with pupils of the Smart Green Schools during the visit, further underscoring the administration’s emphasis on education and human capital development.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of Aninri Local Government Area, Hon. Ugochukwu Nwanjoku, expressed appreciation to the governor for what he described as the administration’s equitable distribution of development projects across the council area.
Nwanjoku noted that the projects commissioned and inspected during the visit reflected the practical benefits of the governor’s inclusive development agenda, assuring him of the people’s continued support.
He pledged that Aninri would mobilise massively for Mbah, President Tinubu and all APC candidates in the 2027 general elections, describing the council’s support as a demonstration of appreciation for the administration’s development interventions.
“You have demonstrated through the projects we have seen today that you are committed to the development of every part of Enugu State. Aninri is not left behind, and we are grateful. We will mobilise our people to ensure that you receive massive votes in 2027. We will stand with you and the APC from top to bottom,” Nwanjoku said.
The statewide tour is expected to provide the Mbah administration with an opportunity to assess its development footprint across the 68 Development Centres, strengthen engagement with local communities and identify further areas of intervention as it pursues its broader development agenda.
Editorial note: I have retained the key figures, project locations, policy commitments and quotations while improving the structure, transitions, headline and journalistic tone. I have also avoided presenting the governor’s political assurances as independently verified outcomes.
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