Nigerians should eschew violence, things are getting better — Umenzekwe
Honourable Chief Modestus Umenzekwe (Onwa Achina) on January 26, 2026, granted his first interview for the year, he used the opportunity to send out his new year message, with the advice for Nigerians to be calm, eschew violence as the renewed hope agenda of the government is yielding fruits. SUCCESS DAMIAN reports:
Chief welcome back to Lagos after about one month holiday in the East. How was the atmosphere in the east, talking about the Yuletide?
I have to commend the various governors in the sub-national states of the southeast; they are doing very well. The atmosphere was calm, smooth and quiet. The security situation was quite in order, people moved about there businesses, those who had celebrations, either burial ceremonies, wedding, town union or whatever, had very smooth occasions. In fact it was the first of its kind in recent years where we experienced security surge. So 2025 Yuletide was peaceful and hope-giving and I must commend the various governors in the South East.
When you said hope-giving, that word is deep, what do you mean by hope-giving?
The hope giving is that we are relatively sure that the security situation in the South East will greatly improve and that of the nation will greatly improve.
This is new year, what do you tell our people doing business in Lagos?
Well the only thing I can tell Nigerians and Lagosians is that they should be prayerful, law abiding, be focused on their legitimate businesses, and obey the law.
I know you just came back but let’s talk s little about politics, of course there are alignments and realignments, let me ask again, almost all the whole state governors are now in APC, with their followers in their various state assemblies, they have all found themselves in APC, I ask again, as a chieftain of the party, how comfortable are you with this development?
Let me tell you, the test of the pudding is in the eating, they have, from the far off, watched the party, APC Government, watched the implementation of the manifesto, and they saw that APC is the only party to beat, so out of their own volition they decided to join the party. And you cannot tell them not to join. Our doors are open. So whether people are grumbling or not, it is none of my business, after all, APC was a laughing stock before 2015, they gave it all sorts of names, and all that, but today, it is the beautiful bride. So those governors, I feel, are taking the right steps in the right direction. No matter how people look at it, no matter how people analyse it, it is their right to defect to any party of their choice.
Many have argued that the defections might lead to implosion of the party, because all these defectors, as they are defecting they are coming with their different ideologies, in the end the good, the bad, and the ugly are coming together as APC, your take.
Why was there implosion in their different political parties, their parties are imploded, and they decided to come where they think the party is organised, and you are talking about implosion, it is the parties they are coming from that have imploded.
There is this fear allegedly, that unitary system or one party system always leads to military take over, allegedly,
How?
Allegedly there are some governors or party leaders who, of course, EFCC hammer is hovering over their heads, and they feel that going to APC would safe them, after all, a certain APC leader allegedly claimed that once you crossed over to APC, your sins are forgiven, so, do you think this may be the reason some of them are joining APC?
So you want me to depend on your allegation to give an answer, it is not possible. It is an allegation and I can’t rely on it.
Now who plays the role of opposition in a situation like this?
I wouldn’t know who plays the role of the opposition because I am not in opposition. It is those that are agitated that would identify themselves as opposition, I am not talking about opposition, I am talking about my own house, my own party. I don’t have business with opposition.
You know why opposition is important in governance, they act like mirror with which the government sees itself? The ruling party members may not tell, say, the president the truth about things happening around him or the way the people feel about the Government, your take
It is not our business to start looking for opposition. It is the opposition that would come up and say, we are opposition, you see you have your own ship sailing, another person has his own doing the same, you are in the same high sea and everybody is trying to save his own ship from sinking, and we are trying to make sure our own ship does not sink, and you are telling me to go and look for, you see, it is not possible now,
On December 24, the 23 storey building, the Great Nigerian House, Balogun Market-Lagos was gutted by fire, where predominantly Igbo people do their businesses, and recently, parts of the Computer Village was touched also by fire, another heavy fire was recorded along Orile/Mile 2, what do you advise our people on issue of fire?
You see, I am not a fire expert, it is unfortunate and heartbreaking that Nigerians are losing their goods in the inferno, more especially, in this hard time. It is quite worrisome and pitiable. And I pray God to quench such occurrences.
That said, including you and me have to be very very careful. The traders have to be very very careful, they have to restrategize on how to safeguard their markets, there houses, their estates and all that. So it is a question of looking deep down into the system to know the immediate and remote causes of those things and then guide against them, and then leave every other thing to God.
Your parting shot
Well you know we are still young in year, but from the look of things, in my usual way, I still appeal to Nigerians to be calm, it will be better before best. Now that the renewed hope agenda policies are yielding results, you can see the food prices crashing seriously, the price of petrol is adjusting downwards, the dollar is equally adjusting downwards, the security has improved, we are not yet there, but the federal government is doing her best, and when you look at the various states of the federation, most of the governors are working, working seriously, that shows that the federal government is working, we are beginning to see the that the federal government is doing something, we are beginning to see the result of the subsidy removal, and the floating of the Naira.
So we should be very very calm, I said it before that all the government policies will come to fruition if we exercise patience. Any person that feels disgruntled, is advised to pipe low, it is not easy for the president, it is not easy for the governors, it is not equally easy for members of the national assembly. So I think we are getting there gradually; as far as there is life, there is hope.
Finally, violence of any kind should be avoided, violence of any kind should be avoided, it doesn’t blow any good wind to anybody either on the part of citizens or the government. It might lead to loss of lives and properties, and when any life is lost, it doesn’t portend any good either to the government or the citizens, no matter who caused it. So let us avoid violence at all times and criticize constructively, that is my message to Nigerians this new year.
