It is saddening especially when you are on the disadvantaged side to see a section of the same society having virtually everything while yours is in squalor. It is more so, if you find out that more is given to “them” that already have much. My teachers called it uneven development while I prefer calling it an osmotic development.
Weird I bet, but truly, thinking about such ugly reality of the society where more development is given to a much more developed section of the society in the utter disregard of its next, sends striking memories of the meaning of the word, “Osmosis” which I learnt when I offered Chemistry in my formative years in Senior Secondary School. Generally speaking, osmosis gives more to much.
Our beautiful world is rife with this ugly osmotic development at every societal level. In the international politics, this ugly reality manifests itself as North-South, Centre-Periphery, and Development and Underdevelopment. In our national life, the Northern and Southern regions of the country with few exceptions are still sharply divided in both human and infrastructural development.
It is not surprising against this societal malaise, to see security breaches such as terrorism, kidnapping, armed robbery, cyber-criminality, prostitution and the likes. Along this line, respecting the increasing spate of insecurity in Nigeria, former Ghanaian president, John Kufour, identified unbalanced development as a major cause of insecurity in Nigeria saying the situation is forcing the country to pay a higher price than it should to sustain its role as the giant of Africa that it could and should be.
Accordingly, a government that prioritizes security cannot successfully dismiss the problem of uneven development with a wave of hand. In this regard, Governor Willie Obiano’s priority on security and his state-wide community development grant of 20,000,000 Naira each to all the 177 communities becomes understandable, commendable and recommendable to other states that are still grappling with the gruesome depredation of insecurity.
By the design of the community development programme, the residents of the communities will choose the project, supervise and take ownership of it afterwards while the State government sponsors. Already government has asked various communities to forward projects that would enhance their well-being (felt needs). Today, the programme has reached advanced stage and all the communities in the State are rejoicing.
The security and development conscious government of Anambra State also ordered the State’s Ministries, Departments and Agencies to submit the administration’s giant strides in 177 communities in the State, as a stock-taking mechanism geared towards achieving a balanced development in the State.
These informed policies by the Anambra State Government tell us many things including the fact that the man in the cockpit of our beloved State is capable. The all-inclusive development policies have no match in our clime. This is the more reason why we must guard the leadership we have today jealously towards maximizing all the benefits therein.
Ozeh Cornelius Chiedozie,
There is always something to appreciate in a good man's behavior. Apart from the increasingly developing Anambra, other national leaders who are not on the right path should endeavor to emulate what seems to me the most important of it all - and that is humility of Willie Obiano. For I have found that he is honorably humble.
ReplyDeleteAn idea well-expressed oh my junior.
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