Kalu's BBC Interview

Did anyone catch a glimpse of the interview Orji Uzo Kalu gave to the BBC last week? It was a tragic display of the crudeness and lack of finesse that has characterized the Kalu-led government of Abia State. It was full of bombast, an arcane, mislaid arrogance and patent ignorance.

When the anchor man, Allan Little tasked Kalu about the allegations of fraud leveled against him (being on the top 10 list of the EFCC), he claimed he was a very wealthy Nigerian before he became governor. He made a spurious claim of his company, SLOK, employing over 17,000 Nigerians. All investigations by the writer revealed that this is not true. SLOK employed only about 150 people before Kalu became governor according to sources. The way to prove this will be a look at the Nigerian Inland and Revenue Services books to see how may employee tax returns were remitted by SLOK. Kalu's solution for the Niger Delta problem is also half-brained. He does not seem to have a grasp of the problem facing the Niger Delta. He made no attempt to define or put the problem in context before proffering possible solutions.

This interview gives a good depiction of Kalu's standing and grasp of issues. Allan Little asked him about the issue of refuse dumps and heaps taking over the streets of Aba and how the place has been in dire need of sanitation for the past eight years. Kalu said it was not his duty to ensure the refuse dumps were cleared, but that nevertheless, he had this cleared about three months back. Allan Little was befuddled that in the eight years that Kalu had been governor it was only three months back that he had this done. Kalu just shrugged and repeated that it was not his responsibly. It begs the question - "What then is the role of a governor if he cannot provide a clean and sanitary state?"

For a man who is vying to be president Kalu seems to be so preoccupied with self-aggrandizement and embezzlement that he is oblivious of his responsibilities. This means if he is elected president, Nigeria can be a humongous refuse dump for all he cares.

For more on Kalu's kleptocracy see: - The Rape of Abia, a Tell Magazine Report.