My dear people of Imo State,
On this historic occasion, my heart overflows with gratitude as I join you to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the creation of our beloved state. Fifty years is more than a milestone. It is a moment of reckoning, an invitation to reflect, to take stock, and to look ahead with renewed purpose.
Since that defining Third of February 1976, Imo State has travelled a long, instructive, and often inspiring road. Our story has been shaped by courage, industry, resilience, and an unshakable belief in possibility. We have experienced seasons of great promise and seasons of profound trial. Yet through every challenge, the spirit of Ndị Imo has endured. Our presence here today is no accident; it is the result of God’s grace and the quiet, persistent labour of generations who refused to abandon hope in this land.
It is only just that we honour the pioneers who laid the foundations upon which we stand. The early architects of our statehood bore a responsibility they embraced with seriousness and sacrifice. Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu provided discipline and order at a formative moment, while the legendary Sam Mbakwe infused governance with vision, compassion, and moral clarity. Their contributions and those of countless others who served Imo State with devotion, remain etched in our collective memory. History is always kinder to those who build than to those who merely occupy, and our builders deserve our deepest respect.
As we celebrate this golden jubilee, we also acknowledge the present. Imo State marks its fiftieth year under the stewardship of Governor Hope Uzodinma. It is fitting to recognise the efforts of his administration in sustaining the machinery of governance and ensuring continuity. Every era is judged by how it responds to the demands of its time, and this moment calls for steadiness, resolve, and foresight.
We have every reason to be proud of how far we have come. Yet pride must never give way to complacency. As a son of the soil and a stakeholder in our shared destiny, I remain convinced that Imo State’s most remarkable chapters lie ahead. There is vast room for growth, innovation, and broadly shared prosperity. The Imo of our highest aspirations, secure, productive, creative, and just, is not a distant dream. It is an attainable future, but only if we choose collective effort over division and long-term vision over short term comfort.
This anniversary must therefore be more than a celebration. It must be a recommitment. A recommitment to unity across political, communal, and generational lines. A recommitment to service, integrity, and shared responsibility. The task of building Imo State does not rest on government alone. It rests on all of us, at home and in the diaspora, bound together by memory, duty, and hope.
As we mark fifty years, let us renew our covenant with the future. Let us resolve to hand over a state better than we met it, one that offers opportunity to its young people, dignity to its elders, and peace to its communities.
I congratulate every son and daughter of Imo on this golden milestone. This is our story. This is our moment. And by God’s grace and the labour of our hands, the years ahead will shine even brighter.
Happy Golden Jubilee, Imo State.
Ka Chineke mezie okwu.
Yours in service and solidarity,
Senator Ifeanyi Godwin Araraume, PhD
