Gary Ken writes from Enugu
Chief Barr. Peter Odo, the Aguneche Oha 1 is an aboriginal son of Umu-Eguru Village of Owerre-Ani Community in Owerre Nsukka Autonomous Community of Nsukka Town in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State, Nigeria. He was born and brought up from a decent and pious family background in his hometown. His parents, Mr. and Mrs. Pa Fredrick Ugwu Odo who understood the language of Bible in Prov. 22:6 KJV, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it”, brought him up in that biblical standard. After his primary school, he went to St. John Cross Seminary School Nsukka. His close affinity with the Seminary and the Church is still waxing strongly up to date of which he is one of the founders of activities there in the Seminary. So, his long established camaraderie with the institution is still intact.He proceeded to University of Nigeria Nsukka(UNN) where he studied Economics major, single honour and successfully garnered home B Sc. Econs (1983). Out of his strong penchant to enhance his academic sagacity, he advanced to study professionally and widen his horizon of pedagogical dexterity as an academic. A scholarly peregrination that paved way for his amassing of Postgraduate Diploma in Education (1987) and PGD on Population and Development Studies (1994) at Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife.
Still not satiable with the magnitude of his intellectual profundity, he indefatigably retired to University of Nigeria Nsukka to read law. An inspiration borne out of his curiosity to stem the tide of social injustices and human rights violation pervasive in the country. He caught the image and was successfully crowned the legal wig as a consummate Officer in the Temple of Justice; his LL.B (1999) and BL (2001) after his Law School in Abuja.
With this humongous wealth of experience, Barr. O.C Peters was able to make tremendous marks in the government of Enugu State as a career Public Servant who contributed immensely to the development of civil service in the state prior to his retirement. He started his career as a Planning Officer from where he grew up in the service and got to the apex rank in civil service as a Director. He served in various MDAs as a Director which offered him the opportunity to exhibit his potentials and consequently achieved prominence and enviable reputation.
One astonishing peculiarity in Barr. Peter Odo during his service years was his power of resurgence for any MDA found quiescent in the delivery of their official mandate; once you deployed him to such MDA at the nadir of its activities, he would amazingly change the status quo and galvanize staff into active performers and everyone including the least person would rise up to their responsibilities and delivered effectively because a man endowed with coordinating acumen, competence and good leadership qualities was sitting at the helm of affairs. “He is a man that does not condone lassitude but wants result”, said one of his subordinate staff when he was in the service. The popular profession from people’s lips was that whoever worked with Peter Odo would like to work with him again because of his simplicity, selflessness and effective mentorship that boosted the morales of his workers and enhanced their competence.
It was this meritorious attribute and the commitment with which he discharged his official responsibilities with enthusiasm as a high ranking Public Servant that caught the attention of His Excellency, Barr. Sullivan Iheanacho Chime, former Governor of Enugu State and rewarded him by elevating him to the enviable position as a Permanent Secretary in the year 2013. A position well deserved to recognize and encourage excellence in the system for others to toe the line. As a Permanent Secretary, he didn’t rest the oars but instead accelerated the paddling to enhance the texture of the system, taking civil service and Sullivan’s administration to a greater height.
In pragmatic terms of reference, if the standard of a product was high and met the taste of consumers, everybody would like to consume that product because of its satisfying component in the product. This was exactly the point with Barr. Peter Odo, a product of high standard, tested and trusted to both immediate past government of Sullivan Chime and the present government of Rt. Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi in Enugu State.
No sooner the government of Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi inaugurated on 29th May, 2015 than he (the Governor) discovered the uncommon traits inherent in Peter Odo and deployed him forthwith to the Lion Building, Government House, Enugu as a Permanent Secretary and Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) to the Governor for the task ahead, a position he held till he retired in the year 2017. He eventually proved his administrative dexterity and became very instrumental in Ugwuanyi’s Government and because of this impression that the legal luminary was appointed the Permanent Secretary of the State Executive Council which by virtue of the appointment, he became also the Deputy Secretary of the State Council. It didn’t end there as it lent credence to a popular dictum that the reward for good work was more work. This time, he was saddled with another onerous official assignment at a higher level as an acting Chief of Staff. The Governor was impressed with the degree of proficiency Peter Odo handled the office on acting capacity as a Chief of Staff.
As a man of wisdom and rich experience in administrative matters, he made His Excellency proud by making accountability, transparency, honesty and diligence his watchword throughout the time space he handled the job at executive level without any vestige of palpable loopholes during which he was jam-packed with multiple assignments done synchronously.
As an adroit development economist and a planning, monitoring and evaluation specialist, he exhibited high level of prudence in government finance management that consequently saved unnecessary expenditure and reduced financial cost of government projects. He assiduously monitored project development and implementation within the confines of his administrative power and this laudable commitment gave birth to humongous achievements made in Government House, Enugu during his time of active service as a Permanent Secretary and Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) to the Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, in Lion Building, Government House, Enugu. It took a man of high integrity, contentment and fear of God to handle multiple of highly sensitive positions simultaneously in Government House without a dent in his reputation and that was no other person other than Chief Barr. Peter Odo, Aguneche Oha 1 in Nsukka Land.
The economist and legal luminary was also a phenomenal interface between the leadership of Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and the middle/low class individuals for official or crucial reasons. He used his position to touch so many lives positively without prejudice. Through his influence, the successful employment of many staff into Enugu State Civil Service work that went through him was made possible. Out of his public-spirit, he influenced posting of some civil servants to Government House to have a taste of better living. To some he gave them connection to the Governor for His Excellency’s recognition for one position or the other. Others in the civil service through his natural benevolence got successful conversion which could have been cumbersome if he hadn’t intervened on their behalf. Some retired civil servants were paid of their gratuities through the influence of Peter Odo who used his good office to get it done. He also helped some individuals who suffered severe ailments to receive Governor’s financial assistance for their medical attentions. Some of them were flown abroad because of the severity of their health challenges but the good news was that they got well and healed to the glory of God through the courtesy of Chief Barr. Peter Odo.
The staff worked under him in Government House before his retirement had fair share of his altruistic disposition and cordial relationship. All his hebdomadal entitlements as the Permanent Secretary and Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) in form of comestibles such as beverages, food, meat, etc were rotationally shared out of his magnanimity among his staff to appreciate them and urge them to be more productive in their assigned duties. In addition to that, he often times gave his staff warm weekend handshake that would make them enjoy their weekend. When he was in the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and also in EXCO Secretariat as a Permanent Secretary, he kindly shared bags of rice and beef to the staff. In fact, the list is endless as no writer can exhaust all his bounden duties to humanity.
The last day he packed out of Government House, Enugu for his successor to take over coincidentally precipitated serious emotional feelings among his staff. Some who couldn’t restrain their emotions burst out shedding tears conveying a message that the relationship was cordial and affectionate.
His Excellency, Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and other top politicians including Government House Staff thronged his hometown during his thanksgiving service on successful retirement from civil service work. A celebration that attracted large number of people from far and wide to witness the thanksgiving which depicted the fact that Chief Aguneche Oha 1 is indeed a man of people.He believed absolutely in golden rule, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you”, a biblical concept spoken by Jesus in Luke 6:31 and Mathew 7:12 that informed his philosophy of life from where his corporal works of mercy and egalitarian gene in his bloodstream could be traceable. “As a legal practitioner, he has rendered multifarious legal services pro bono to the hoi polloi, offered legal advice to people and fought gallantly for people’s inalienable and indefeasible rights being trampled upon and enthroned justice in the legal domain.
People of all social stratifications have benefited from his unlearned generosity without recourse to their ethno-religious background. He is non-clannish and has fraternal love to all and sundry in spite of your origin. All in all, Barr. Peter Odo is a quintessential Good Samaritan, a born Catholic who is a true Christian in faith and in practice”, said by anonymous in Government House, Enugu.
Bob Marley in one of his quotes said, “The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.” Barr. Peter Odo is an ardent believer of this quote and is registered in his character and relation with humanity. As a passionate community leader, he was part of the team that championed the total eradication of social discrimination in his community.
It was because of his kind gestures to people of his community that they with one accord recognized him specially by investing him with the chieftaincy title, Aguneche Oha 1 (The lion that safeguards his people) of entire Nsukka Land. Charity they say begins at home. He relates well with the elders and the youths of his constituency and beyond.
The legal luminary is also a regular radio programme presenter at Coal City FM, Enugu who uses the medium to sensitize the public on issues of paramount importance affecting society. He is the sole sponsor of the educating and entertaining radio programme for public consumption. A lot of people have benefited from the programme and changed their lives positively. Chief Barr. Peter Odo, Aguneche Oha 1 of Nsukka landand is a man of many parts.
He is a former Permanent Secretary and Chief Administrative Officer to the Governor, a former Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Specialist to the Governor, a former Deputy Secretary of the State Executive Council, a former Acting Chief of Staff, a proficient Bureaucrat, a Media Analyst, a Development Economist, an Academic, a Social Engineer, a Philanthropist, a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, a Seasoned Democrat, a team player and a true Christian. He is a man of integrity and you can see the experience, education and leadership qualities richly embedded in him. With these enviable endowments, he is no doubt the round peg in a round hole that can restore the lost hope of a common man if massively voted in come 2023 general election for the House of Representatives to represent the people of Nsukka and Igbo-eze South Federal Constituency in the lower chamber of federal legislature.
This is the right time for the Constituents to come en masse and speak with one voice to synchronize with the blessing His Excellency, the Governor of Enugu State, Dr. Lawrence Ifeanyichukwu Ugwuanyi, Gburugburu has given to our brother to serve you better than before in the political history of Nsukka and Igbo-Eze South Federal Constituency. Chief Barr. Peter Odo, the Aguneche Oha 1 is the man that can take us to the Promised Land. The cap fits him let him wear it and the people will testify that all politicians are not the same for he is gifted with what others do not have. He is the voice in the wilderness, hear him. He is the Panacea to our ailing society, give him a trial.
He is the man we need, the captain to take home the trophy and the light to illuminate the nightfall in the day time engendered by our past successive leaders in our constituency. By virtue of this clarion call, the electorate of Nsukka and Igbo-Eze South Federal Constituency are therefore, exhorted to ignore any invitation to mortgage your conscience, it is high time, Obi became a man and no longer a boy by refusing bluntly to sacrifice integrity on the altar of dishonesty because of material gifts offered to you by disgruntled politicians after which you are plunged back again into penury and perpetual agony.
Our youths should wake up from slumber and choose a radical leader who is passionate to change the narrative of politics of our time, who is dogged and aggressive in getting from government the necessary resources to effect constituency development, youth empowerment, security of lives and many others. Not politicians who offer highest gifts to buy people’s conscience to get to power and forget the plight of his constituents only to concentrate on his personal gains and interest. To avert this lamentable mistake in our constituency by choosing a wrong leader through vote buying, empty promises and other enticements to buy people’s mandate, this is the right time to be wiser in exercising your franchise to get a Good Samaritan, a radical leader and a visionary leader who will bring back lost glory and put smiles again on your faces. It is axiomatically true that no other person has the requisite skill or natural endowment to fix our constituency except Chief Barr. Peter Odo, the Aguneche Oha 1 in Nsukka land because he is wonderfully made and exceptionally unique. He is our choice; let him occupy the seat for our sake in the green chamber of the National Assembly of Nigeria (NASS). In God we confidently commend this journey and strongly believe that it will end in praise.
