Osborn Umahi Asks Ohaozara’s 11 Wards to Set Their Own Project Priorities
“People are very happy & I have introduced a new style of leadership"
The council chairman has invited five proposals from each ward. For residents, the next test will be how those proposals are selected, funded and delivered.
What does each community in Ohaozara need most? Council chairman Osborn Nweze Umahi has put that question to the local government area’s 11 wards, asking each to submit five priority projects through its ward councillors.
Umahi announced the plan at an expanded stakeholders’ meeting held at Osborn Hotel, according to People of Ebonyi. The submissions will be considered for inclusion in his administration’s action plan.
“People are very happy & I have introduced a new style of leadership,” Umahi said. The proposal gives wards a chance to identify needs from their own perspective, rather than wait for the council to decide every priority on their behalf.
The exercise could produce as many as 55 proposed projects. That does not mean all 55 have been approved. The council has yet to say how it will assess the submissions, what funding may be available or when selected projects could begin.
Those details will matter to residents. A ward may put forward a road, a school, a health facility or another pressing need, but a useful consultation must also show people what happens after they make their choices. Publishing the ward proposals, the council’s selection criteria and progress on approved work would allow communities to follow the process.
For now, Umahi’s announcement opens a conversation across Ohaozara. The measure of this approach will be whether residents can see their priorities reflected in decisions and, eventually, in completed projects.
