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![[OPINION] Gov. Peter Mbah’s Yes, We Can, Spirit - IfeanyiChukwu Afuba](/media/k2/items/cache/0aa33f83cacab9ae3526d50ba209757c_XL.jpg)
There is unmistakable boldness in what Dr Peter Mbah is doing in Enugu State. His bid to reposition Enugu State for a competitive tomorrow is a bold launch that cannot be ignored. No doubt, every Nigerian State Governor, every leader of government, announces their arrival with Martin Luther King’s refrain, I have a dream. But that is where the commonality ends. The translation of dream to reality is what makes the difference, setting individuals apart, creating standards and unveiling spirit and passion. Strikingly, the loud noise that typically accompanies projects of Nigerian democratic government sounds faint with Mbah. What draws your attention are the daring, path – breaking nature of the administration’s exploits, and the leadership confidence that somewhat belies the challenges of the task. This is a strong impression from two years of the Peter Mbah governorship.
Mbah’s impactful governance proceeds from an environment of peace and social stability. This is the benefit of a quiet, political engineering that has emphasized constructive engagement. How else does an incumbent overcome our fractious politics of relevance to receive affirmation of the political elite? In the high stakes of Enugu State government and politics, incumbent – predecessor(s) relations had largely been turbulent. It is heart – warming then to observe eminent citizens, Jim Nwobodo, Sullivan Chime and Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, all rallying for Mbah. Nwobodo recently declared:
“What I can tell you today is that no other state has done what Enugu has done. For me, you are going to continue to be our governor. Everyone knows you are doing well.” (Vanguard, May 29, 2025).
The circle of former governors is enriched with the live and let live spirit of Chijioke Edeoga, the frontrunner in the 2023 governorship election. Reconciliation with Edeoga, popular governorship candidate of the Labour Party, brought closure to the closely fought poll, putting the State’s development ahead of partisan considerations.
The administration’s confidence in it’s mission seems to be serving it well. An abiding sense of self assurance has shaped the government’s vision in clear – cut terms. The interconnectedness of plans and programmes unfold not just in bold relief but also in measurable terms, ensuring that set objectives and goals can objectively be assessed by observers. Thus, the ambition of growing the State’s GDP from $4.4m to $33m in eight years is a defined target that can easily be monitored. A tall order no doubt, but the conviction that it can be done and will be done; the cheerful invitation to be part of the story; the firm steps in the process of execution, all coalesce to infect society with the driver’s confidence. Declaration on providing second tier health centre at every corner is not a vague political promise in Mbah’s leadership world. 260 type 2 health centres are in various stations of construction in every ward in the State!
In education, the Peter Mbah administration has set a national, perhaps international record. United Nations benchmark for requisite budgetary allocation to education is twenty-five percent. But for two years now, 2024 and 2025, the educational sector has taken thirty – three percent of the budget. And Governor Peter Mbah is decided on keeping it so in the years ahead. This then, is part of the secret behind the smart, green schools the government is building. Again, to ensure accessibility to school age children in the State, the schools are being built in the 260 wards of Enugu State. A prototype is already standing at Owo, Nkanu East LGA. Each of the teaching and learning elevating school boasts robotics/artificial intelligence system, ICT centre, digital whiteboard, internet, two science laboratories, multi media library, production studio, 25 classrooms, solar power and 700 android tablets. And there will be free pupil feeding to go with it. An impressed Unicef, Chief of Field Office, Juliet Chiluwe enthused: “You are the pioneer of smart schools here. The smart schools show your commitment to the development of human indices in the State.”
We see another feature of massive social intervention in infrastructure works. Consider the modernisation programme of Enugu metropolis. The sheer scale and size of the undertakings are amazing. A total of five, international standard terminals were embarked upon and now completed; four in Enugu, one in Nsukka. The enormity of the venture may be compared with Willie Obiano’s simultaneous delivery of three flyovers, also in two years, in Anambra State during his first tenure. Add to the modern bus stations, the feat of 800 kilometres of road rehabilitation in two years and the audacity of optimism sinks in. And there is a well thought out, feeder scheme for lasting, road construction. A production plant with capacity for 1000 ton, daily, eco – friendly asphalt is already operating in Enugu. Water pipes and taps, dry for over two decades, are once more functional, conveying the precious liquid to thousands of households. In the state capital alone, water production has moved from a miserable two million litres a day to over one hundred and fifty litres.
It is as much a robust investment in the agro value chain. From ensuring availability of land to processing of agricultural products, there are no half measures. The Mbah administration is targeting a land bank of 300,000 hectares, half of which has been acquired in different parts of the State. There is a N100b contract with Pragmatic Palms for a palm plantation industry. A partnership with Ugwuanama Farms is active with cultivation of cassava, rice, maize, yam and banana on a 15, 000 hectare farm at Isi – Uzo local government area. On April 8, 2025, the State Government took delivery of 100 tractors imported from Denmark. But the bigger story is that the establishment of a tractor assembly plant in the state is at advanced stage. On completion before the end of the year, the facility will be able to roll out ten tractors a day. Another partnership is for the erection of modular fertilizer plant and production of cassava chips at Umuigbi – Nkerefi, Nkanu East LGA.
Somehow, Mr Peter Mbah is able to sustain his dream big, harvest big, march with minimal borrowing. In October 2023, the State Government took a loan of N170b. Of the State’s N521b 2024 budget, just about twelve percent was funded by loan facility. Much of the administration’s fiscal resources have come from internally generated revenue and investment fund inflow. Prudent management of available funds would have helped out too. But the consistent force driving the exploits would be the will to succeed. It’s still this differential
firm – footedness that is encountered in the Enugu Air project, with two of the three take – off aircrafts for the State’s airline already procured. While many States are still considering the desirability of electric vehicles, the Mbah administration has acquired 200 CNG buses to boost mass movement. This is to be complemented with a ready fleet of 2000 city taxi cabs.
Would it be right to describe Peter Mbah as a populist; reformer – administrator, benevolent leader or in fashionable street parlance as action Governor? Or some other variant of statesman? Without necessarily opening ideological windows, it seems safe to say that the governance thrust borders on welfarist idea. Mbah does not seem to agree with the theory of minimum government. His social programmes lean on the side of bold government interventions in the State. A closer look at the projects of the administration reveals their accessibility and beneficial value to the poor and less privileged. Subscribing to government owned industries and hospitality endeavours like hotels as Mbah’s governorship has done, is an indication of preferred bigger role for the State in democratic society. And it would be necessary to add, especially in a society grappling with poverty and underdevelopment. He tells us: “There are days I pause – not from indecision but from compassion. I’m constantly asking, how will this decision affect the people? Have we thought through the consequences? It’s part of the burden of leadership.”