Need to Respect Power Rotation in Enugu State

Power rotation, which ordinarily means the ability for the power in government to be in stable and fair rotation either clockwise or anticlockwise in a state either zonally or according to locality. This healthy system of power distribution is that which is solidly rooted in the government of Enugu state and also instrumental in maintaining political balancing in the State since the return of democracy. It has not only given room for the smooth running of government for many decades but also made Enugu state to be perceived as one with transparency when it comes to the running of affairs of the people. It is the kind of power system that gives room for people to be accommodated, and also for those who are not accommodated at that time to have hope of the opportunity to get to them along the way. This ‘hope’ is that substance that brings peace in the heart of citizens to keep them at peace with the government, with the knowledge that the power in government would get to their zones too.

This power rotation is an issue the Nigerian government as a whole still finds hard to practice and this naturally causes the issue of insecurities from other zonal and tribal bodies. Although Nigeria and Enugu have a common trait that brings them close, which is, that they have different breeds of people which make up their colony. For Nigeria, they deal with different people with different languages, cultures, and religions but Enugu is said to have different kinds of Igbo people which boils down to them having different cultures and believes, however, the Enugu government can handle this with their idea of power rotation. The power is distributed and this gives the people this idea that the power is around their locality or would reach them in a way.

As at the time Enugu was first separated from the old Anambra State in 1991 to be called its state, it had three Senatorial zones which include, Enugu-east, Enugu-west, and Enugu-north. In dissecting Enugu State as a whole, it is made of seventeen local government areas. These areas are divided into three senatorial and political zones which are; Enugu North, Enugu West, and Enugu East. (Nsukka for Enugu North, Udi for Enugu West, and Nkanu for Enugu East). These senatorial zones are not only just mere political zones, sometimes they are considered cultural zones, even though the cultural zones overflow from one political zone to another.

The distribution of power in Enugu State began with the administration of Dr. Chimaroke Ogbonnaya Nnamani of Enugu-east (Nkanu’s section) Senatorial District whose tenure in office ran from 1999 to 2007. The next tenure was that of Barr. Sullivan Iheanacho Chime of Enugu-west (Udi’s section) Senatorial District whose term in office was from 2007 to 2015. The present administration of Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu-north (Nsukka’s section) Senatorial District, whose tenure started in 2015 and is expected to end in 2023. Persons among the indigenous people of the three senatorial districts would have been said to have had their fair share of representation at the office since 1999. And not only were persons appointed but zones were the ones allowed to be in power and by this, the people have the feeling that their ‘own’ is in power.

Now, some may argue that the real deal of power rotation has been breached as for the past three consecutive tenures we have had to see the power in the hands of one political party which is the People Democratic Party (PDP), but this cannot stand as an argument as who represent the people are not the political party but the zonal or cultural leaders that’s why it was mentioned earlier that those senatorial zones are not only just mere political zones but they are considered cultural zones. In the Igbo land, it is a known fact that people are more interested in the ‘home branch’ one may be said to belong to besides the political party they support.

It was also perceived that the loss of power at the National level was a result of the disruption of the rotational system, whereas in Enugu State the party has been consistent with the scheme and as such retained power in the state. This system hence has proven to be useful both to the party (PDP) and the entire Enugu State to ensure an enabling environment to achieve the needed developmental goals of the state. It is also a visible fact that this system doesn’t start and end at the National and state levels. This system though informal is effective in the candidacy of the office of the governor of Enugu State by the PDP, observations also prove that the efficiency of this system made other political parties in the state adopt it.

Vera Igwilo Writes from Enugu