Ozioma Teddy Ukwuoma
I beg to recall a conversation I had with the information officer, office of the Deputy Governor, Pastor Chris Akuchie , about a year ago . This was after the swearing in of their Excellencies, Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodinma and Prof. Placid Njoku as Governor and Deputy Governor respectively, of Imo State. I had sought to know the personal dispositions of former Deputy Governors of Imo State and the trajectories their official lives took. This was aimed at helping me understand the intricacies that could shape events of our stay in office especially with regards to my serving as the Chief Press Secretary to the new Deputy Governor.
Pastor Akuchie had kind words and good stories to tell about every former Deputy Governor, yet, my analytical mind picked up a constant ; the office changes every man!
Once a man is sworn in as Deputy Governor, once the realities of office settles in, once the protocols and little perks of office touches you, a transformation takes place. The first to be lowered is the eagerness to run around to attend to issues and matters that may be considered ordinary. The next is the massive reduction of time available for friends and non VIPs, these are usually followed by distinct self realisation which puts in place a heightened sense of the self worth. All these transform our political office holders and turn most into demi gods , thereby further removing them from the grasp of the people.
I told him of the disposition and personality of the new Deputy Governor and we both decided to wait and watch as the history will definitely unfold before our very eyes….
Today. One year later, His Excellency the Deputy Governor of Imo State , Prof. Placid Njoku constantly walks into the visitors sitting room to personally attend to people whose status may be hampered by protocol from easily seeing him. I have watched him sit with blind beggars in private while he listened to them with keen interest , I have seen him share the story of his life with an unemployed youth who desperately needed guidance, I have watched him….I have observed him, daily, I have seen his intense love for his fellow human being, I have seen his overwhelming desire to do good. I have noted that his happiest moments are the times he is in church, at the alter before his God…I have seen his incredible love and devotion for his family…
But the most enduring observation I have made about the person of His Excellency, Prof. Placid Njoku, is that he is a man who is deeply content and lives happily without the pursuit of wealth and the material side of life. Placid Njoku is more concerned about his relationship with God and the good he can do for his fellow human being. His devotion to duties remain a constant encouragement to everyone around him; he believes in the work! His life is a challenge to everyone of us…we can dare to keep a good heart, we can dare to genuinely care, we can dare to make doing good become our way of life….we can start believing…
Prof. Placid Njoku works with his total belief in, and commitment to the visionary programs and politicies of His Boss, the most Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodinma , this explains the technical depth , expertise, and enthusiasm with which he handles his assigned duties. These have shored up more confidence, it has fortified a loyalty that is 100% ab initio and is further setting the foundation for a greatly prosperous Imo State. The Deputy Governor has variously described his boss as a leader with the incredible capacity to see beyond the moment, to understand the final outcome of a political and social metamorphosis even from it’s very beginning, and a man with the unrivalled privilege of discernment. These are great pointers to the future for Imo State, serving as a clarion call to everyone to come contribute his own quota . The job of building a prosperous Imo State is young, but it has certainly began.
I celebrate Placid Njoku as he marks one year in service as our Deputy Governor, and I thank God we are witness to this great history. He is the best we have ever had.
And God knows this is the very truth.
Ozioma Teddy Ukwuoma is the Chief Press Secretary to His Excellency the Deputy Governor of Imo State.
9News Nigeria (Owerri)
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