Anambra Govt, APGA, Opposition Disagree On Tinubu’s Picture On 1st Niger Bridge

Anambra State government and the leadership of the ruling All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) have expressed opposing views on the directive by the minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi, for the First Niger Bridge to be decorated with the photographs of President Bola Tinubu.

Umahi gave the directive on Wednesday when he inspected the ongoing maintenance work on the bridge, saying that the 1.404-kilometre bridge should be decorated with the President’s photographs as a mark of appreciation for the administration’s gesture in rehabilitating the vandalised bridge.

Reacting to the order, the chairman of APGA in Anambra State, Chief Ifeatu Obi-Okoye, described the minister’s directive as well deserving for President Tinubu.

Obi-Okoye argued that it is a normal practice nationwide to see photographs of the President in virtually every federal establishment,

“In every federal establishment in the states nationwide, you have the photographs of the President. And in every state, you find the photograph of the President with that of the state governor together in the same poster.

“So, I find absolutely nothing wrong in putting the photographs of the President on the Niger Bridge as directed by the Minister of Works. Everything shouldn’t be politics. He is the President of the country,” the APGA state chairman stated.

But the State Commissioner for Information and Value Reformation, Dr Law Mefor, expressed a contrary view to that of the chairman of the state’s ruling party.

Mefor argued that there are more important tasks that the Federal Government should be directing attention to than decorating the Niger Bridge with the President’s pictures.

“There are more important things they should be talking about than putting pictures on the bridge. If they like, they can even put Umahi’s statues, put President’s statues, if that is what is more important to them,” Mefor stated.

Also, in their separate reactions, one of the leaders of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the state and deputy governorship candidate of the party during the 2025 governorship election in the state, Dr Ndubuisi Nwobu, and the state Chairman of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Hon. Ikem Uzoezie, described the Minister of Works’ directive for the First Niger Bridge to be decorated with President Tinubu’s photographs as “sycophancy taken too far.”

The duo particularly argued that President Tinubu did not deserve any gesture of appreciation because his administration carried out maintenance work on the bridge, saying that such projects form part of the responsibilities the administration owes the citizens of this country.

They argued further that the funds deployed in the bridge’s rehabilitation are not the President’s personal money but the commonwealth, so he does not deserve any personal appreciation for doing what the government should do for the citizens.

“It (the Minister of Works’ directive for the First Niger Bridge to be decorated with President Tinubu’s photographs) is sycophancy taken too far. The money used in the maintenance of the bridge is not his (Tinubu’s) personal money. The money belongs to the entire citizens of this country.

“And what the government has done is that it used money from the commonwealth to repair the bridge.

“I know that this is an election season. But I can assure you that decorating the Niger Bridge with Tinubu’s picture can never give them any political advantage.

“On election day, the people will vote for whosoever they want,” the ADC chieftain asserted.

Also expressing a similar view to the ADC chieftain, the NDC chairman in the state and a former member of the State House of Assembly, Hon. Ikem Uzoezie, described Umahi’s directive as “sycophantic,” adding that it amounts to trying to gain “vain glory” for Tinubu.

“You don’t have to begin to glorify the President for doing a job the administration owes the citizens. The money used in the maintenance work belongs to the citizens of this country, so you don’t have to say that he did any favour by rehabilitating the bridge,” the NDC state chairman stated.

In a similar vein, a legal practitioner, Mr Chijioke Ndubuisi, argued that it is “wrong” to demand appreciation for President Tinubu because his government carried out maintenance work on the First Niger Bridge, as according to him, decorating the bridge with photographs of the President would “deface” the bridge.

“It is wrong to deface the bridge with photos of the President because his government did rehabilitation work on the bridge. The optics will be wrong,” Chijioke asserted.

Meanwhile, efforts to get a reaction from the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, Senator Emma Anosike, were unsuccessful as he did not pick up calls put through to his mobile phone, nor return the calls as of the time of filing this report. He also did not reply to a message sent to his WhatsApp platform.