Willie Okoliogwe: Oru West Has Moved On—Stop Clinging To A Discredited Past.
By: Kelechi Uzomah
The political firmament of Oru West Local Government Area is once again being darkened by the familiar shadow of Willie Okoliogwe, a man whose name has become synonymous with controversy, crisis, and a barren legacy of governance. His desperate manoeuvres to return as Executive Chairman of the council are not only an affront to the collective memory of the people but a dangerous gambit that threatens the fragile peace currently being restored in the area. It is time for Okoliogwe to accept a simple, incontrovertible truth: Oru West has moved on.
Okoliogwe tenure as Interim Management Committee (IMC) Chairman and later Sole Administrator (SOLAD) of Oru West is not a chapter the people remember with fondness. It is a period marked by a vindictive and divisive style of leadership that alienated ward leaders, ignored due process, and rewarded sycophancy over competence. He repeatedly disrespected established ward leadership structures, unilaterally appointing president generals and endorsing councillorship candidates without consulting the very leaders who form the backbone of the party at the grassroots. Such conduct is not the hallmark of a democrat; it is the behaviour of a man who views public office as a personal fiefdom.
The administration of Willie Okoroigwe will not be remembered for any landmark project or transformative policy. Instead, it is remembered for its colossal failures. Health centre projects under his watch were poorly managed, and the much-touted 5-kilometre road remains incomplete to this day. Contractors, often drawn from his own community, failed to deliver, and the council has yet to account for basic assets that was entrusted into his care that belong to the local government. These are not minor administrative oversights; they are symptoms of a leadership culture that prioritised personal enrichment and political patronage over the welfare of the people.
Perhaps the most damning indictment of Okoliogwe character is the recent vote of no confidence passed on him by the youths of his own Nempi community. In a stinging rebuke, the Concerned Nempi Youths Association accused him of greed, selfishness, and insensitivity. They alleged that he sold shops at the Orie Nempi market without accounting for the proceeds. When the youths of a man’s own community publicly dissociate themselves from him, it is a clear signal that his political career is built on sand.
Undeterred by this catalogue of failures, Okoliogwe has now set his sights on returning as Executive Chairman, claiming that his people are pleading with him to serve again. This is a fiction. The reality is that his desperation has led him to convert the ALGON secretariat into a private campaign office, refusing to hand over government property to the current leadership despite multiple requests from the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs. Such conduct raises serious ethical and legal questions and demonstrates a blatant disregard for accountability and transparency.
The people of Oru West are not asking for a return to the past. They are asking for progress, for unity, and for a leader who respects institutions and delivers tangible dividends of democracy. Oru West deserves a chairman who will unite the community, not one who has proven time and again to be a divisive and ineffective figure.
The APC members in Oru West have already spoken out against the imposition of candidates, warning that such actions breach the peace and orderliness of the area.
Willie Okoliogwe should understand that the people of Oru West have not forgotten the crises that characterised his tenure. They have not forgotten all his deeds as chairman and the general atmosphere of fear that pervaded the local government during his time in office. They have moved on, and they expect him to do the same. The future of Oru West cannot be held hostage by a man whose only credential is a history of controversy.
It is time for Okoliogwe to retire from public life with whatever dignity he has left. He should stop creating unnecessary crises in the local government and allow the people to choose a leader who will serve them with integrity and vision. Oru West has suffered enough. It is time for healing, for progress, and for a new beginning. Willie Okoroigwe must let go.
Kelechi Uzomah is a public affairs commentator and Developmental Communication Strategist based in Owerri.