It’s Time To Serve Ebonyi People, Billionaire Declares For Governorship

After achieving success in the private sector, Dr Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii, Founder and Chairman of Orient Global Group and President, Ultimus Holdings, is looking to achieve similar feat in the public service.

The billionaire business mogul  recently declared his intention to run for the governorship of Ebonyi State in 2023 as the first step towards a burning desire to serve the people.

The man popularly called “Anyi Chuks” is convinced it is time to turn his attention towards making the lives of his people better.

While declaring his intention to be the number one citizen in the state ,he spoke on the qualities which has made him successful in business as creativity, perseverance, and visionary leadership—qualities he believes are needed to change the fortunes of Ebonyi State.

The 45-year-old business developer built his business from a four-square metre office with one computer, zero balance sheet  and “one employee I could not afford to pay.”

But he pushed himself by “the power of setting a goal so high that it scares you, yet you keep going for it.”

Anyi Chuks’ said he was stepping out into the governorship race not as a novice, but as a technocrat well prepared for public service having built himself with leadership, management, and business strategy skills over the years.

 Odii said his track record of “success in resource management and wealth creation” have prepared him to seek the office of governor in order to serve the people.

“It is with humility and the mission to serve that I hereby declare my intention to contest the 2023 governorship election in Ebonyi State on the platform of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP,” he declared.

Why I’m Runing For Governor

Ebonyi is one of Nigeria’s youngest states established in the early 90s to accelerate growth in the region recognized for its business acumen and industry, but  Odii said the reality is that the hope has not materialized.

He said driving force for him is the desire to change the narrative by offering selfless and visionary service to the people and rectify the situation.

Though he applauded the contributions of the “5 leaderships across military regimes and civilian dispensations” that have governed the state,  but expressed the desire to turn things around in the state.

He promised to deploy his wealth of experience, creativity and leadership in the service of the people in order to change their lives for the better.

Serving Through Philanthropy

For the past 16 years, he and his wife have committed their lives and resources to charity to empower the downtrodden in Ebonyi  State through the Ebere and Anyichuks Foundation.

The Foundation had identified acute housing shortage in Ebonyi State and the absence of mortgages which would have facilitated access to funds to acquire houses as major challenges and intervened.

The foundation provided quality housing to the people, including one unit of 135 houses, nine churches, and one traditional palace to “put a smile on their faces.”

In a state regarded among the worst performers in education, Odii has been steadily contributing to reversing the trend and deepening the system. Thus, his foundation has provided over 10,000 learning materials and scholarships to schools alone in the Ebonyi-south Senatorial zone.

He has invested heavily in infrastructure building schools and equipping them for better learning.

“We further donated three floors of primary and secondary schools, complete with ICT, Laboratory, and teaching equipment across the state,,”he revealed.

Other Interventions

As an entrepreneur who had challenges when starting up, he realized that many young people would be in the same situation and has been providing seed funds and grants to others.

So far, over 2000 start-ups and entrepreneurs have been beneficiaries.

Ebonyi is one of the states with  poor basic healthcare system. The primary health care centres that are supposed to be the first points of contact for the people are inadequate and poorly managed where they exist.

This pushes people to the edge as they seek secondary healthcare facilities, which are expensive and located far away.  Odii has been reversing this trend through intervention from his foundation.

The foundation has brought this primary healthcare system closer to the people through essential healthcare provision funds. Free medical tests and thousands of drugs on medical prescriptions are given to the people free of charge.

In addition, those who cannot afford their regular medication or journey into the secondary healthcare centres have been receiving support.

Football has become a global unifier. With the boom in investment where football showpieces are watched on TV showing Nigerians and in particular, footballers from the South-East plying their trade abroad in big clubs, Odii established the Anyichucks unity cup, which he described as “a sport tournament borne out of passion for football, to discover talent and foster unity in my hometown of Isu.”

There’s More To Do In Government House

Despite his unparalleled philanthropy which has affected many lives positively, Odii said he has often felt like “there was more to do.”

He believes that “To break this circle of pains and the despair for Ebonyians, we must deploy new solutions to persistent problems,” a reason he decided to throw his hat in the ring.

For a man whose faith was tested while growing up, he believes good leadership can bring hope to the people. He’s now an optimist that things can work, building on “convergence of evidence that the young people with fresh ideas must be active participants of this journey to the future.”

Lack of confidence in leadership is a concern to him. He said that the failure to provide the needed leadership by leaders, who impoverish the people, must change.

Thus, he believes he has what it takes to change the tide saying, “If, given the mantle to serve as your governor, my first order of business is to go after the high yielding fruits at the hearts of good governance.

“I am a firm believer in the democratic process- the rule of law and a fair reward for hard work. We must continue to grow Internally Generated Revenue. We must link up the disjointed value chain, from agriculture to industry, and service, creating wealth through what we already have from music and arts to theatre and fashion,” he said.

 Odii said he plans to make Ebonyi a mini-hub of the creative industry in Nigeria. “I’m aware of the earning potential and multiplier effect that creative ideas can have. The world has gone digital, and we must not be left behind,” he said.

 He underscored during his declaration the importance of security, stating that “Without security, all our visions and efforts will come to nothing, and our security approach in Ebonyi State will be proactive and technology-driven.”

He promised to “bring my capacity to identify growth opportunities and allocate scarce resources for maximum returns” when he becomes the governor, saying “empowerment of Ebonyians is the centrepiece of my ambition.”

Odii built his fortune in Real Estate, Construction, manufacturing, retail, haulage, and logistics with offices in Nigeria and Dubai. He sits on the board of Prosperis Holding Ltd and other companies. He holds a degree in Business Administration from LASU, and he is an alumnus of Lagos Business School.

He invited market women, students, teachers, farmers,  youths, elders and “all sons and daughters of Ebonyi State in Nigeria and the diaspora” to join him on this journey.

“Let us work together to actualise a new Ebonyi that we can be proud of. I am counting on your support. It is time,” he declared.