_… Named in Education, IGR, Infrastructure, and Outstanding Governor of the Year categories

 

The governor of Enugu State, Dr. Peter Mbah, has been nominated in four award categories in the Independent Newspapers Silver Jubilee and 2025 Awards ceremony billed for this Saturday.

 

Mbah was named in the Education Reformer Governor of the Year, Financial Architect Governor of the Year, Infrastructure Champion Governor of the Year, and Outstanding Governor of the Year categories.

 

This was conveyed to Mbah in a letter signed by the Chairman of the Awards Committee, Yemi Adebisi, and the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of Independent Newspapers, Steve Omanufeme, which also disclosed that the awards ceremony would hold at Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos.

 

“The Board of Editors of Independent Newspapers Limited writes to convey to you your nomination in four different categories, namely: Education Reformer Governor of the Year 2025, Financial Architect Governor of the Year 2025, Outstanding Governor of the Year 2025, and Infrastructure Champion Governor of the Year 2025, the only one among your peers to be so nominated in this Silver Jubilee Edition of the Independent Awards.

 

“Nigerians have voted in their numbers online for nominees across various categories seen to have demonstrated exceptional oversight, policy innovation, and commitment to the stability and growth of the nation’s economy in general, and in line with the philosophy of this year’s award: ‘Game Changers: Breaking Barriers and Shaping Tomorrow,’ they stated.

 

On the Financial Architect Governor of the Year 2025, the Board wrote, “Your nomination is in recognition of your exceptional fiscal management, revenue generation, and sustainable economic development, on the back of reforms that seek to transform a civil service-dependent economy into a productive, private sector-led powerhouse, as seen in the 125% Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) growth from N180.5 billion in 2024 to a record N406.77 billion in 2025, in addition to the N355.2 billion, or 87.4% revenue derived from the recovery and revitalisation of moribund state assets.

 

“Our Board of Editors also shortlisted you for implementing advanced technology to ensure traceability, accountability, and transparency, while effectively plugging long-standing revenue leakages in the state’s financial system, as well as the significant N971.08 billion budget allocated to capital expenditure last year, up 86% from the prior year’s N837.9 billion.

 

“It is noteworthy that Enugu State under your watch is working towards funding all salaries, pensions, and overhead entirely from IGR, following which federal allocations (FAAC) are either to be saved or strictly reinvested into developmental projects.”

 

On Infrastructure Champion Governor of the Year 2025, the Independent Newspapers Board of Editors acknowledged the governor’s giant strides in “driving transformative infrastructure development and a capital-intensive approach to physical development, turning Enugu State into a massive construction site, especially with the simultaneous road and urban renewal projects spanning over 1,000 kilometers of roads, the transition to 260 Smart Green Schools (one per ward), each of which is a high-tech ecosystem featuring 25 digitally connected classrooms, ICT centers, robotics/AI labs, and solar power at over N1 billion per school.

 

“Our Board of Editors also shortlisted you for embarking on the 10,000-hectare Smart City that will feature skyscrapers, residential estates, and business districts, monorail transport, and a central utility and sewage system designed to rival global hubs like Dubai.”

 

On the Education Reformer Governor of the Year nomination, the Editorial Board predicated it on Governor Mbah’s successful transformation of the state’s education sector through policy reforms, infrastructure investment, and innovative learning initiatives backed by an unprecedented financial commitment to the sector and a structural overhaul of basic education that is unique in Nigeria, especially the allocation of 33% of the state budget to education in 2024 and 2025, thereby exceeding the UNESCO recommendation of between 15 and 20%.

 

The Board equally noted the unprecedented scale of 260 Smart Green Schools constructed by the government, a complete overhaul of the primary and secondary school curriculum to align with global digital standards, and the earmarking of N30 billion in the 2026 budget, as signed into law in December 2025, for daily school feeding in smart schools.