The leadership of the Igbo Community in Kaduna State had said it would do all it could to assist the incoming administration led by the governor-elect, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, to lower the high expectation of the people of the state in view of the lean economic condition that the new administration would confront come May 29. This view was made known on Friday by the royal father and leader of the Igbo Community, His Highness Igwe (Sir) Sylvanus C. Aneke, in his palace in Kaduna on Friday. The royal father who spoke in the course of an exclusive interview, and in the presence of his Council Members, added that the governor-elect must have his reasons for making the appeal that people should be patient with the incoming administration.
For Aneke, people expected much as a result of the promises made during the campaigns, but it was the responsibility of the man who would soon take charge of the administration to let the people know the true situation of things. “I think he is in a better position to know what is available. People expect much, and it is normal because during the campaigns politicians made promises. People are now expecting the fulfillment of these promises; this is natural. But he is in a position to know, and he knows that what he has on ground may not be able to meet the expectation of the people. That is why he makes this appeal,” Aneke said.
Based on this, he thought the governor-elect was justified to appeal that people should lower their expectation. “I think he is justified, because I believe if the resources were there he would want to meet all the expectations of the people. But he probably feels that what he has on ground will not be enough.”
For him, while the expectation must be there, people should however not expect the incoming government to achieve all that they wanted in one day. “People should not expect things to happen overnight. But we are also praying that he will have the resources to meet the expectations; so what we need to do is to pray for him, to wish him well, and to stay with him,” the Igbo leader said.
He also expressed his willingness and that of his Council Members to assist the government in passing the message to understand the condition of the state to his people if asked. According to him, government efforts are geared towards improving the condition of the people, including the Igbo Community in the state, so a request to pass relevant messages to the people is welcome more so as the community has functional structures from the state, local government, to town meetings, suitable to effectively achieve this objective.
“It is a question of understanding, so if he (El-Rufai) tells me to do that I will do it and appeal to the people. I will tell them to give him a chance, and like I said we are praying that things will improve. The economy, oil price, and so on can change,” he said.
As for the most pressing challenge he would want the incoming administration to confront, the leader said effective security of lives and property was his number one wish. This, he said, would enable all people to live in peace and harmony, just as it would allow his people to engage in their businesses and thereby contribute better to the economic well-being of Kaduna State.
