Many have come and gone, but some are remembered for the good works they did while alive. One of those individuals is the late Sam Onunaka Mbakwe, who though governed his state for only four years left the citizens in awe as they are yet to recover from the dividends of his administration years after he left office and passed on; writes SUNNY IDACHABA.
Dr. Sam Mbakwe who died way back in 2004 was the governor of old Imo state during the Second Republic, precisely from 1979 to 1983. To many people of Igbo extraction, especially from Imo state, Mbakwe has remained the best governor that has governed the state since creation.
The reasons are obvious: many years after his exit from what is today known as Douglas House, his legacies still resound in many parts of the state. Also, in terms of compassion and commitment to the governance of the state, Mbakwe also known as Sam Dee stands out.
For instance, it was not for frivolity that while he governed the state, he was nicknamed the ‘crying governor’. Essentially, this was because he openly shed tears in 1981 before former President Shehu Shagari after the latter was invited to witness the horrendous Ndiegoro flood disaster that enveloped Aba that year which caused unimaginable damage to the citizens and by extension infrastructures in the commercial town.
A trained lawyer who practised law in Port Harcourt after his training in overseas, he joined active politics and became a member of Nigeria Peoples Party (NPP) formed by the late Nnamdi Azikiwe whose platform he used to secure the governorship position for Imo in 1979. Just before he became governor, Sam Dee was a member of the 1978 Constituent Assembly that helped to draft the 1979 Constitution.
As governor, he was generally known for his progressive policies and developmental projects as he implemented various programmes aimed at improving the lives of Imo indigenes. In the entire Eastern Nigeria, he was the only governor even till date whose administration introduced free education for all pupils and students of the state origin from primary to university levels.
Aside from that, his administration focused on rural development, roads construction, bridges and other infrastructure to connect rural communities to urban centres. In health care, he improved health services especially free medical care to pregnant women and children. It is instructive to note that most of the facilities provided by his over-30-year-old administration still exist in many parts of the state today.
Some other existing legacies of his administration include the International Cargo Airport started by him in 1981 which was commissioned in 1994 and now named after him. It’s worth noting that the facility was built through donations from the indigenes.
There is also the Imo State University which was located in a territory that later became part of Abia state today and has been christened Abia State University as a result of its location. Others included the establishment of a Five Star Hotel called Concord Hotel in Owerri, the best in east of the Niger then.
Also, before the end of that administration in 1983, he had established Enyimba Hotel at Aba and almost completed it. If not for the military interruption that prevented that republic, Mbakwe would have created wonders in Imo. Following his incarceration and subsequent release from an ‘ill-intended’ imprisonment, he said many years after, precisely in 1995, while sharing his prison experiences with some politicians that, “If you have not been in prison before, that will be your baptism and qualification. You will learn from the prison yard that not all those in detention are criminals.”
It was obvious, he, like others, were merely victims of military dictatorship as no corruption-related scandal was traced to him before his subsequent release from detention.
Writing a lengthy testimony about Sam Dee is Don Ubani, a former commissioner for information & strategy in Abia state said he knew the ex-governor to a greater extent.
According to him, as at 1979, precisely after the civil war, the Igbo nation as it was then was contracted into only two states namely Anambra and Imo; therefore, whatever happened to either of the states had a direct or indirect bearing on any Igbo person in Nigeria. He said following the war, property of many Igbo people were ceased in many parts of the country, including Port Harcourt under the obnoxious Abandoned Property Policy.
Mbakwe, who according to Ubani, was practising law at Aba took on the challenge of confronting that policy introduced by then military dictatorship of General Yakubu Gowon through which some of those property allegedly abandoned and taken over by non Igbos in Port Harcourt were returned to their original owners.
“Dee Sam Mbakwe was an Aba-based lawyer. He was not only a successful and brilliant lawyer, he was also a patriotic and courageous one at that. On his own, he took up the challenge of Abandoned Property Policy. That, of course, endeared him to the Igbo.
“By the time he sought to be the governor of Imo state in 1979, following the democratisation agenda, Dee Sam had already become a household name. To add impetus to his acceptability was the fact that he aspired on the platform of Nigerian Peoples Party (NPP), a party that had Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the Great Zik of Africa, as its presidential candidate. It was, therefore, very easy for him to be overwhelmingly elected as governor, beating the candidate of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN), Dr Nwakanma Okorie.”
Continuing, Ubani said, “Chief Sam Mbakwe, being patriotic and altruistic, knew that the people he had been elected to govern were war-torn, with completely devastated infrastructure and an economy that was comatose.
“Without any equivocation, he embarked on an aggressive road infrastructure in Aba, Owerri, Umuahia, Okigwe and Afikpo. His revolution on roads also extended to Asa local government area. For those who did not know, Mbakwe, under the 1979 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria created local governments and Asa was one of them.
“Being satisfied, as could be attested to by Igbo people in general, that he had constructed a large network of roads that could support and sustain the economy of the state, Dee Sam then migrated into agriculture, education, tourism, aviation and industrialisation. For instance, within his first four years, he had established two gigantic farms: Imo Modern Poultry Farm, Avutu in Obowo and Ogwe Golden Chicken in Asa. While Avutu Farm had taken off fully, Ogwe Golden Chicken was close to a take-off before General Muhammadu Buhari overthrew the democratically elected government of President Shehu Shagari on December 31, 1983.
“Chief Sam Mbakwe succeeded in setting a standard any visionary and selfless governor, especially in Igbo land, should adopt as a standard. His lifestyle was very simple; never known for living a profligate life. He surrounded himself with men and women who could make him feel the real pulse of his people.”
It’s as a result of his unblemished, unrivalled records in office that Abia state governor, Dr. Alex Otti, has called on present and future leaders to draw inspiration from the former governor of old Imo state, the late Mbakwe who played a pivotal role in advancing the infrastructure and development of Eastern region.
Otti stated this recently when he paid a visit to the residence of the late Mbakwe at Avutu- Obowo, Imo state. The Abia governor who was received by the 87-year-old widow of the late political icon, Lady Victoria Mbakwe, described the ex governor as a political icon who left indelible imprints on the sands of time especially in leadership and development of the Old Imo state and entire South-east region.
The governor noted that the late political icon left lasting legacies of development and progress in the Eastern region and added that his legacy continues to influence the political landscape of Imo state, the entire South-east geopolitical zone and beyond, saying that some of the quality roads built in Aba and other parts of the eastern region during the administration of the late Mbakwe are still standing today.
“Dee Sam Mbakwe was our leader; if you go through his records, you would understand that he was a great leader, his achievements have not been equalled by anyone talk of surpassing him. If you go through roads in Aba today, you remember when he was governor of old Imo state. The roads built several years after him have all disappeared; that showed he was a great leader and did very well in the old Imo which included Abia state,” he said.
Sam Mbakwe’s legacies have continued to be celebrated in Imo and beyond. He remains one of the most beloved and respected politicians in Nigerian history especially in the South-east whose imprints cannot easily be forgotten as he remains one of the unforgotten heroes of our time.