Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi

Lawrence Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (popularly known as "Gburugburu") (born 20 March 1964) is a Nigerian politician who was elected as the Executive Governor of Enugu State in April 2015, and was sworn on 29 May 2015.[1][2] He was a member of the House of Representatives of the Federal Republic of Nigeria for 12 years.[3] He is a People's Democratic Party (PDP) member and represented Igboeze North/Udenu Federal Constinuency of Enugu State.[4] Ugwuanyi was elected the Governor of Enugu State under the PDP.[5] He was sworn in as the governor of Enugu State for a second tenure on May 29, 2019.

Lawrence Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi
Governor of Enugu State
Assumed office
29 May 2015
DeputyCecilia Ezeilo
Preceded bySullivan Chime
Personal details
Born (1964-03-20) 20 March 1964
Orba Town, Eastern Region, Nigeria
(now Orba Town, Udenu Local Government Area, Enugu State, Nigeria)
Political partyPeople's Democratic Party

Early life and education

Ugwuanyi was born in March 1964 and is from Orba Town in Udenu Local Government Area of Nsukka Zone in Enugu State.[6][7] He attended St. Theresa's College, Nsukka. He holds bachelor's degree and master's degree in Business Administration from University of Nigeria, Nsukka.[8]

Ugwuanyi was the General Manager of Premier Insurance Brokers Limited Enugu and has also been the president of the Rotary Club of Emene in Enugu State.[9]

Political career

Ugwuanyi was first elected to the House of Representatives of Nigeria in 2003 and he was the Chairman, House Committee on Marine Transport.[10][11][12][13] [14][15][16][17] Ugwuanyi was a two term Chairman of house committee on Marine Transport. Ugwuanyi also held the position of Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Pensions where he helped enact the Pension Reform Act 2004.

Following his party's primary election of 8 December 2014 in Enugu, Ugwuanyi won PDP's gubernatorial ticket, which made him the State's PDP Governorship Candidate for the 2015 General Elections.[18] However, another PDP gubernatorial aspirant, Senator Ayogu Eze, was displeased with the conduct of the primaries. Eze went to court to challenge the legitimacy of Ugwuanyi's emergence as the PDP's flag-bearer for Enugu State Governorship Elections.[19] Eze's petition was dismissed by Justice Evoh Stephen Chukwu, an Abuja Federal High Court Judge, who ruled that Ugwuanyi's election in the gubernatorial primary was legitimate and legally binding.[20][21] [22]

Ugwuanyi who was sworn in on May 29, 2015 as Governor has initiated some approaches to develop and transform Enugu State. One of those initiatives was his recent oversea trip to Ireland for an investment summit organised by Metro Eireann Dublin. He was also the recipient of Metro Eireann International Outstanding Leadership Award 2016 for his exemplary performances as a legislator, especially as the Chairman of Marine Transport, during his time in the House of Parliament of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.[23][24] [25]

On March 9, 2019, Uguwuanyi was re-elected as Governor of Enugu State in the 2019 Nigerian gubernatorial election. He polled 449,935 votes which was higher than his opponent, Senator Ayogu Eze who scored 10,423 votes.[26]

Achievements

Although Governor Ugwanyi encountered many obstacles at the commencement of his administration, he has proven his leadership prowess following the way he has been managing the state. Admist sentimental backlash mainly from Enugu North, the governor has maintained the developmental trajectories of Enugu. As the past governors since 1999 had focused on urban development, Ugwanyi turned his attention to rural development. Within his first tenure, he completed the Udenu Ring Road which had been a death trap for most the people of Ezimo and Imilike-Ani. The completion of this road has opened up these towns to the outside world for business and other transactions. He engaged in this capital-intensive project when many state were not able to pay workers' salaries.

The unsung hero of infrastructure, has continued with his aggressive execution of legacy projects- projects that impact directly on the people. Some of these projects include the completion of the Nike Lake junction – Harmony Estate Road – Amorji Nike – Adoration Pilgrimage Centre, Phase II and III, in Enugu East LGA, which will link Abakpa and Emene and serve as a critical bypass that will decongest traffic gridlock at Abakpa T-junction; the asphalting of a 22.443km inter-community link road – the Neke-Mbu-Ogbodu Aba-ObolloEtiti road – that connects Isi-Uzo and Udenu LGA, under the Rural Access and Mobility Project II (RAMP II); rehabilitation of numerous internal roads in the University town of Nsukka and the flood routing/erosion control works at Achi Street, Independence Layout, Enugu.[27]

See also

References
  1. "Nigerian States". WorldStatesmen. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
  2. "Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi takes oath of office as Governor of Enugu". Daily Post. Retrieved 31 May 2015.
  3. Uganwa, Austin (2014). Nigeria Fourth Republic National Assembly: Politics, Policies, Challenges and Media Perspectives. Xlibris Corporation. ISBN 978-1499088755. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  4. "Members of Nigeria National Assembly". Nigeria National Assembly. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  5. NAN (9 December 2014). "Ugwuanyi secures PDP guber ticket in Enugu State". News24. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  6. "Exclusive: Enugu PDP endorses Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi for 2015 governorship". The Citizen. 6 September 2014. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  7. Lawrence Njoku (25 January 2015). "Enugu: PDP Parallel Primaries Signal Hope For Distant Opposition". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 15 March 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  8. James Ezema (9 October 2014). "Ugwuanyi's Emergence Unsettles Enugu PDP". Newswatch Times. Archived from the original on 30 September 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  9. Newswatch, Volum 31, Issue 12. Newswatch Communications. 2000. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  10. Andrew Airahuobhor (2 July 2009). "Cabotage – National Assembly Probes Grant of Waivers". AllAfrica. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  11. "House Committee – Marine Transport". Nigeria National Assembly. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  12. "House Committees – House of Representatives". Nigeria National Assembly. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  13. John Iwori (10 January 2014). "2014: Individuals and Organizations to Watch in the Maritime Industry". THISDAY. Archived from the original on 6 March 2014. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  14. "National Assembly Sets to Increase Budget Allocation for Maritime Training". Amehnews. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  15. John Iwori (13 December 2013). "Training Ship for Nigerian Cadets Underway". THISDAY Newspapers Limited. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  16. Akinola, Bolaji (2012). Arrested Development: A Journalist's Account of How the Growth of Nigeria's Shipping Sector Is Impaired by Politics and Inconsistent Policies. Author House. ISBN 978-1477238226. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  17. "PLAC – National Assembly Committees: Committees in the House of Representatives". Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre (PLAC). Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  18. Austin Ogwuda (25 December 2014). "Enugu: Ugwuanyi goes to the streets". Vanguard Newspaper. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  19. "Stop PDP, INEC from accepting any other candidate, Ayogu Eze asks court". The Nation. 13 December 2014. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  20. Nnamdi Felix (2 March 2015). "PDP candidacy: Ayogu Eze loses out to Ugwuanyi in Enugu". The News. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  21. Ise-Oluwa Ige (March 3, 2015). "Enugu Guber: Ayogu Eze loses, as court okays Ugwuanyi". National Mirror. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  22. Fred Itua (3 March 2015). "Jubilation in Abuja as Ugwuanyi floors Ayogu Eze". The Sun News. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  23. Chinedu Onyejelem (15 December 2016). "Enugu State Governor to visit Ireland". Metro Eireann Newspapers. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  24. Odomero Igbodo (19 January 2016). "Gov. Ugwuanyi Receives Award of Outstanding Leadership,Lures Nigerians In the Diaspora, Others To Invest In Enugu". Coal City Express. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  25. "I am more Igbo than any other person because..., says Ambode in Enugu - Vanguard News". Vanguard News. vanguard news. 2 February 2018. Retrieved 2 February 2018.
  26. https://www.punchng.com/nsukka-residents-hail-ugwuanyis-re-election/amp/
  27. "Governor Ugwuanyi: Unsung hero of infrastructure". Vanguard News. 2020-05-15. Retrieved 2020-12-09.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.