Bishop Silas Eke of the Kingly People’s Assembly has said former Abia State Governor, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, left behind a prosperous and politically influential state when he left office in 2007, arguing that the decline witnessed in subsequent years should be attributed to successive administrations.

Eke, who reacted to former Aviation Minister Osita Chidoka’s assessment of Abia State at 35, said Chidoka was right to acknowledge Kalu’s role in projecting the state onto the national stage during his eight-year tenure as governor.

In a statement on Friday, the cleric said any objective assessment of Abia’s democratic journey must distinguish between the condition of the state Kalu handed over in 2007 and what it became in the years that followed.

According to him, Kalu’s administration gave Abia visibility economically, politically and in sports, while Aba emerged as one of the major commercial centres in the country.

“I agree completely with Osita Chidoka that Orji Uzor Kalu put Abia firmly in the national conversation and made the state punch above its weight,” Eke said.

He recalled that Aba attracted traders and businessmen from across the South-East and neighbouring parts of the country, with its commercial influence extending to Akwa Ibom, Cross River and Bayelsa states.

The city, he added, also attracted traders from Cameroon, including those from Buea, Yaoundé and Garoua, who came to source goods and conduct business.

“Aba was a commercial destination.
People came from different parts of Nigeria to buy goods. It did not stop with Nigeria. People came from Cameroon to buy goods in Aba,” he said.

Eke said the vibrancy of Aba’s economy created employment and business opportunities, arguing that economic activities during the period supported various sectors, including hospitality, transportation, retail and services.

He also cited the transformation of Enyimba International Football Club into a continental football powerhouse as another major achievement of the Kalu era.

According to him, Enyimba’s success attracted thousands of football supporters to Aba, boosting hotels, restaurants, transportation and other businesses.

“Enyimba carried the name of Aba and Abia across Africa. For two consecutive years, the biggest prize in African club football was associated with Aba. That was not an insignificant achievement,” he said.

Beyond economic and sporting activities, Eke said Kalu’s political influence gave Abia a strong voice in national affairs, particularly during the early years of Nigeria’s return to democratic rule.
He argued that, irrespective of differing opinions about Kalu’s politics, his administration ensured that Abia remained prominent in national discourse.

However, Eke said the momentum was not sustained after Kalu completed his second term in 2007, accusing successive administrations between 2007 and 2023 of failing to make adequate investments in infrastructure and the wider economy.

He said the deterioration of infrastructure and decline in Abia’s national influence identified by Chidoka should therefore be examined against developments that occurred after Kalu left office.

“Those things faded because those who succeeded Kalu refused to make the investments necessary to sustain the development of the state.

“Infrastructure deteriorated, our economic influence declined and the strong national voice we once had became weaker,” he said.

Eke urged Abia residents to use the state’s 35th anniversary to undertake an objective assessment of successive administrations rather than allowing political considerations to distort history.

“History cannot be rewritten because of politics. If we are honest about Abia’s journey, we must acknowledge the period when the state prospered and commanded national attention, just as we must acknowledge when the decline began,” he said.

The cleric maintained that responsibility for the state’s performance should rest with those who exercised power at different periods.

“Every government has a duty to build on what it inherited and leave something better for the next generation,” he said

Kalu governed Abia State from 1999 to 2007 and currently represents Abia North Senatorial District in the National Assembly.