Tracking down Pastor Sam Iyiogwe, a former LGA Chairman and former SSA to Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi for this interview was as difficult as anything one can think of. At a time politicians are avoiding the press ahead the 2027 election Iyiogwe couldn’t help but accept when the issue of infrastrucural development of his people was mentioned.
As Nkanu East LGA Chairman, Iyiogwe, led journalists through neglected communities in his area where schools were scarce, chemist shops doubled as hospitals, and some areas lacked road access for decades. In Amankanu, residents recalled transporting pregnant women in wheelbarrows to distant health facilities.
Iyiogwe began opening up rural roads and improving access to services before Governor Peter Mbah’s election in 2023. In this chat with PETRUS OBI, he reflects on the situation of his people 10 years later.
Q: You initiated the development of abandoned communities in Nkanu East as LGA Chairman. You also canvassed for a Governor from that area. Are you surprised that you have no appointment in this government?
Iyiogwe:
Thank you so much; compliments of the season. Its a period we are celebrating the Liberation of mankind from sin through our Lord Jesus. I say Happy Easter in advance.
The issue is that in life God is in control. He is in charge of everything. Every politician deserve to be part of what is being done. If I answer your question directly…you are aware how Nkanu East used to be. When we came in we did our best. The issue in Nigerian system is that many of us coming into politics are actually supposed to be looking for employment in the ministries or companies. But we have turned politics into a place of becoming rich overnight. Many are not there because of the passion for their people. But as a person, what brought me into politics was the state of things in my area especially Amechi-Idodo, Owo, and Amankanu. Then I didn’t know much about Nkanu East. I used to think that our own side was so bad until I joined politics. Dr. Chimaroke Nnamani, I can say was another person who because of him I was dragged into commitment to PDP and politics because of the attacks against him by some opposition, some of them our brothers. And God said to me, give him your support.
In this present government what I can say is that the number one thing which brought me into politics which happens to be our roads; because it was a disaster; it was as if we were not part of Nigeria. And God told me; you can do it. Today, the governor, God has used him to accomplish number one thing that brought me into politics. I didn’t join politics because I was looking for work, or contract or appointment, it was primarily to see how our area can be opened up. A situation where from January to December-year to year movement is a tug of war. Rainy season is out of it, you cant move, even on bicycle.
God also used me in due season to open it up and by His grace we were able to effect reasonable changes in every community of Nkanu East. And today the governor has completed 100%, of that thing that brought me into politics. And he did it in a bigger way. It’s a dual carriage way; all the way from the Enugu/Abakaliki Expressway, that’s Owo junction to Owo, up to Ubahu, Amankanu all the way to Neke, Ikem linking us to other part of Enugu North zone.
You remember we did a tour, I was the one as LGA Chairman that opened a road for a vehicle to enter Amankanu for the the first time. I remember the efforts to open up that road; I also remember the efforts to link up Amechi Idodo to Amagunze. In those days you pass through four local governments to come to our Council Headquarters. Today, the governor has also accomplished it; concrete bridges have been done across the Inyaba River, Idodo River. So whether I am holding a political position or not I am happy and very grateful to God and the Governor. I am also very happy that the governor appreciates the efforts put when I was a chairman. That i don’t have an appointment doesn’t mean that I am not part of the government. The governor listens to my words; he is my brother, we are also in the same party. He has respect for my words because I don’t present unnecessary issues. Whenever there is something I feel could affect the government or the people I usually pass it to him and I always see a response on his side. So whatever, the government has not ended, we still have over one year in his first tenure and his second tenure, by God’s grace is still there. The governor knows what he wants to achieve and the best people to use. Personally, I am happy and grateful to God and to him.
Q: Dont you think as one who had that foresight and zeal to develop your area, that working from the inside in this administration would be a good idea?
Iyiogwe:
Just as I said earlier, the governor knows the best people to use at any point in time. I also, in my lifestyle, I strongly believe in the will of God. That’s how God wants it. The most important thing is that the governor is doing much more than I expected when it comes to infrastructural development. In terms of transformation, unexpected projects are being done and I am happy. Not only that road, remember the road I opened from Godfrey Okoye University in Ugwuomu to some of our communities in Odobudo, Owachi, and Ndiagu Idodo Omulo Ubahu that linked up to Obeagu Ohuani Mbulu owo, the governor is also doing it.
There was a team we coordinated, the governor may not even know that I was involved; we connected ourselves together, I was the anchor point, we did a NEED assessment of connectivity of roads because one of the major problem of our people is roads; another is electricity. I remember during my time in Nkanu East through my connection with former Minister of Power Professor Bart Nnaji and Senator Gil Nnaji I was able to get electricity to about 16 communities through the federal government. So this road network was presented to him; also you remember I once mentioned that the governor did a NEED assessment where he sent people ahead of time to find out what the people’s needs are. If you go to that road we opened from Ugwuomu, you will come out at 17th Mile, Enugu/Abakaliki Road. As a Chairman I did about 100 box culvets within that corridor. Today the governor is reconstructing it with asphalt overlay. Honestly I am happy. I am grateful to him. I cannot thank God enough. I remembered lying down on various roads and junctions in parts of Nkanu East pouring oil, crying to God for mercy, breaking powers that said No, Nkanu East will not open up, ‘allow them to suffer for the sins they committed; the blood they shed.’ God intervened, because when you call upon Him genuinely He will answer. And today the rest is history.
Q: Generally, how would you rate the performance of Governor Peter Mbah?
Iyiogwe:
The governor is a very calm and organised person. He doesn’t make noise. He doesn’t talk much. People say he doesn’t see people, he doesn’t do this and that. The truth is, if you are really committed to governance you have little time for much receptions and all those things. I can tell you, I have never had a private audience with the governor. But most of the things I present to him are being actualized and I feel happy about it. What I can tell you is that Enugu State has gone much steps ahead.
I cried once when we had Economic Planning Commission Meeting during our own time under governor SullivanChime. Last year during the NBA Conference, I cried again. That was the first time I entered the International Conference Centre which was one of the things we prayed when Chimaroke Nnamani was governor that was not completed and I felt bad about that. Each time I passed there I will ask God, why has it not been done? Is it that He didn’t answer the prayer – because it’s not everything you ask that God will do. I remember how I took many ministers of God to ESUT when it was under construction and many other project sites and we prayed and the University was built and many other places. I kept asking, what was the problem of International Conference Centre? When it was completed with speed by the present governor I wasn’t around and when I came back I didn’t have the time to enter there until the NBA Conference last year. I was there and people around me were asking questions and commending our governor. I didn’t know when I started crying. Cry of joy and praise to God. I said God, you are so faithful. Apart from that, look at Presidential Hotel – My good boss, my oga, man whom I will never forget in life, I told my people and children the love he showered on me, former governor Sullivan Chime, he tried rebuilding the hotel but some factors came up that encumbered it.
If you go across Enugu State, I mean all the Local Governments; there’s none you won’t go with pride. During our time, Sullivan did excellently well. Grading of roads were not part of Sullivan’s approved projects. I personally had to request for it because of the state of Nkanu East. Sullivan believed in asphalt roads; if its 1km so be it, but not road grading- seen as a means of siphoning funds. For us in Nkanu East, we didn’t even have roads to grade. What we had to do was to use bulldozers to open the roads. Some of these roads the governor is doing now are part of the roads I opened up. I connected Mburubu community to Nkerefi Community. We opened up Amechi Idodo to Amagunze, crossed the Inyaba River. I trekked that road almost five times with my team praying asking God for intervention…I remember a day, I was outside the country they were trying to connect from Amechi-Idodo to Amagunze but the bulldozer spoilt. They brought another one it refused to work; they brought a third one, I said don’t worry I am coming back. I came back on a Sunday; from the airport we went to where the bulldozers spoilt, and I said don’t worry I am here. As I was praying I heard a voice saying, leave these people let them suffer, they shed a lot of blood. I said No, Jesus Christ has paid the price and you cannot continue to hold them bondage. I annointed the bulldozer, and said start it, and it started. This is not a fairytale, I have witnesses. We crossed the Inyaba River and opened up the road to Amagunze.
It’s not only in Nkanu East that the governor is working as there’s no ward in Enugu State that you cannot go with pride because of what the governor has done.
I don’t want to keep talking about the Smart School but I can tell you with pride that it is a Mini University. Some people say it’s waste of money, why not do three, one in each Senatorial Zone. That is not the dream of the governor; he believes that people in the rural areas should have light and life. And its being reflected in every community. Besides the governor is very economical in his projects costing. In Enugu State you don’t hear of anyone harrassing contractors for kickbacks. Such act is unacceptable in this government. Also Health Facilities are being built across the communities.
The roads are being done across every area in Enugu State. I am not talking about Enugu Urban but rural areas.
Enugu urban projects are going on everywhere. I was going to see a relative who was involved in an accident in Emene. I was with a small car, and I called for them to bring an SUV because I know how that area used to be. To my surprise, when I got there, the road had been tarred with drainages on both sides. I also started seeing other roads in Emene, of all places.
What is annoying me is that people in government, other than Barrister Josh and few others , are not letting people know the amount of work being done. Projects are going on everywhere. What about the road from Nike Lake Road to Opi, which he is dualizing? Some people may say, why not leave it the way Sullivan did it, but he believes in advancement. Sometimes you wonder how it will be completed, but before you know it, it is done. So the projects are all over the place.
Why I talk about Nkanu East is because it was total darkness. When I came, I put on the light, but the governor has amplified everything, and I am happy. I can tell you that the governor appreciates the efforts I made as Chairman because he mentioned it during a stakeholders’ meeting last month and also commended me personally.
Q: You mentioned crying twice. Please can you elucidate on that; what really happened?
Iyiogwe:
The one at the International Conference Centre was a cry of joy, a cry of praise to God, a cry of thanksgiving to God Almighty. It was also a cry of appreciation to the governor, Barr. Peter Mbah, for making the International Conference Centre truly international after so many years. Nobody believed it could be done. I had asked God several times, why? During Governor Chimaroke’s time, I used to bring different ministers of God to pray, and every other project was completed except that one. So it was a cry of celebration.
The other was at the Exco chambers, where we used to hold Economic Planning Commission meetings with the governor; where the affairs of the local governments were discussed and we collaborated with him. Each local government would review what had been done, what was to be done, and approvals would be given.
I packaged a proposal, it was a 70km road from Neke to Amankanu, Ubahu, to Owo, to the Enugu/Abakaliki Expressway, down to Amechi-Idodo, to Amagunze, then to Akpugo and Ihuokpara. Maybe because of my passion and hunger for transformation, I proposed that 70km road. It was not a small project, and nobody advised me that it was too much. The day it was presented, Sullivan said, “Pastor, 70km road? That is like going to Onitsha and back.” That was the end of the story.
I was heartbroken and I started crying. The irony is that none of my friends or colleagues came to encourage me. It was only the then Deputy Governor, His Excellency Sunday Onyebuchi, who came when he was passing. Everyone else had left, but I could not get up. I was crying and saying, “Lord, will our people continue to suffer this way?” He came to me and said, “Chairman, don’t worry, maybe you can present something smaller and it will be looked into.” That one was a cry of pain.
But I remembered the love Sullivan had for me, and I said, thank you Lord. Then I took up the road myself. We asphalted part of it so our people could have access, and we stopped after Owo which Governor Peter Mbah still remembers today. Even my own people from Ubahu were abusing and criticizing me, asking why I should go and build a road for Owo people. But I was guided by the Holy Spirit. A road that would benefit up to five communities, why should I do it for only one?
How would I have felt now if I had done otherwise, now that an Owo man is the governor? That is why today I am proud and always bold to present important issues to the governor with humility.
Another project I did was in Obeagu-Ohuani, Ubulu Owo. The road there was in a very bad condition. Today, they honour me and appreciate me because of what I did there. When I was a child, my father used to hold my hand and we would trek from my community to Owo for ceremonies. So when I became Chairman, I asked about the road, and when my aides showed it to me, it was a disaster.
I opened up the road, constructed box culverts and mini bridges about 14 of them along that corridor. I am happy the governor appreciates it. He is also building a bridge across the Idodo River in that area. I also built another bridge at Idodo River connecting Ubahu to Ndiagu Idodo Omulo, to Ohuani Obeagu Mbulu Owo, which leads to 17th Mile.
There is a Smart School being built there. But my people are about to be cut off. Children cannot attend the Smart School in Mbulu Owo from Odobudo, Owachi, or Ndiagu Idodo. They also cannot go to the one in Ubahu, or the one in Owo, because erosion has almost destroyed the bridge. The bridge is at the point of being washed away.
I have presented this to the governor, and he has sent his team to inspect it. This is the only appeal I am making to him to help our people so that we are not completely cut off. The children cannot be trekking about 25km to school. If that bridge collapses without a new one, we will be completely cut off.
Q: Upon all that is being done in Nkanu East, a lot still needs to be done?
Iyiogwe:
I remember telling you in an earlier interview in 2022 that Nkanu East will need a governor for about 16 years to address the problems of the area. This is because all the waters from Enugu State are discharged there. So when you get there, everywhere is waterways, and the area has been neglected for a long time. That is why it needs an Nkanu East person to become the President of this nation for us to be fully liberated. I don’t know how, but God can do it.
When people were asking me to run for governor in 2023, after my tenure as chairman, my ambition was to be governor, not for myself but for the people of Enugu. As time went on, we had a meeting in London where we set up a manifesto. But along the line, God said to me, “Be calm, just be calm.” There were other things He told me which are personal. I thank God I listened because it would have been a disaster if I had contested while my brother Peter was also contesting. Many people offered to buy the form and support me financially, but I told them, “Don’t worry, I am not interested.” I thank God that Peter Mbah emerged.
Honestly, I knew he would do well, but I did not expect him to perform at this level. The issue is that people do not know what is being done in Enugu State. That is why I am calling on our political team members to speak out. When things are done in your area, let people know. We are in politics.
Q: Sir, you were chairman from 2012 to 2016. What have you been doing since you left office?
Iyiogwe:
I worked for about six months with Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s council as Chairman. After that, he appointed me as SSA on Water Supply, where I worked for his first three years and six months. After that, I returned to my business. Since 1993, I have been in private business. I took voluntary retirement from the Nigeria Customs Service. Now I am in my family business, where I travel from one place to another in a supervisory role. I am doing well.
Q: What business is that? Can you share with us?
We are into different kinds of business: construction, pharmaceuticals, labour supply, consultancy, equipment and vehicle leasing, interstate transportation, trading, among others.
Q: What are the chances of Peter Mbah in his re-election bid in 2027?
The truth is that 2023 and 2027 are two different scenarios. In 2023, many people were aggrieved within the ruling party in the state, the PDP. I do not like saying this because Ugwuanyi was my boss and he respected me. There was a position he intended to give me, but for some reasons, he changed his mind. Politics involves a lot of blackmail and misinformation, and I am not interested in those things. However, I believe I could have been useful to him. God showed me that position, and I believe I was pushed out of it. I could have contributed more.
Like I said, 2023 and 2027 are not the same. Many party members who could not secure tickets became angry and worked against the PDP. We were not able to manage the situation, and it was further affected by Mr. Peter Obi’s presidential influence, as many people were focused on producing the President.
There was also a lack of discipline. Commissioners and other political appointees joined different aspirants, and aides to council chairmen supported candidates without waiting for the governor and stakeholders to decide. There was no coordination or control. Normally, appointees should wait until the governor, after consultations, announces the candidate.
These were some of the issues that affected us in 2023.
For 2027, Peter has done a lot. It will be a disservice to the people of Enugu if we do not support him for a second term. I believe he will win, and win well. However, we should not take anything for granted. I also want to say that the governor has the interest of Enugu State at heart. He believes in development and is very committed to it.
