Politics
As the countdown to the November 6, 2021 Anambra state governorship election begins, the 18 contestants for the position are busy rounding up their campaigns for the highest political position in the state. Among the list of candidates from 18 political parties, only four candidates can be described as the frontrunners for the political race in Anambra State.
By Goddy Ikeh
OBVIOUSLY, Professor Charles Soludo of the ruling party in Anambra State, the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, is the man to watch for the race. He is followed by Valentine Ozigbo of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, which is another party that is present in the state, while Senator Andy Uba of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and Senator Ifeanyi Ubah of the YPP are the third and fourth contestants, whose political parties have no significant presence in the state. Most of the other 14 political parties and their candidates are mainly known to the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, than to the people of Anambra State.
And for the bookmakers, Prof Charles Soludo of APGA, an academic, administrator, former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, a member of the Special Economic Advisory Team of the federal government, among others, is “Soludo for Solutions” for the state,
Apart from his impeccable manifesto and blueprint for the state, the emergence of Prof Soludo will mean continuity and sustainability of the gains achieved by the outgoing administration of Governor Willie Obiano and APGA. In addition, the goodwill and support which Prof Soludo enjoy in the state have been clearly stated in some of the Speeches at campaign grounds and other socio-political gatherings in the state.
For instance, the Anambra people have been enjoined to vote for economic sustainability. A former member of the Anambra State House of Assembly, Aguata 1 Constituency, Ikechukwu Umenwa told the APGA faithful at Akpo Ward, Jacob Okpalanechedo’s Compound, Umueze Village, Akpo, on Oct 13 that there was the need to vote for Prof. Soludo to ensure sustained economic development of the country that has over the years been battered.
“A vote for Soludo would help to turnaround the economic fortunes of Anambra and the country for good,’’ he said.
The former lawmaker said: “It is common knowledge that crude oil, which is a major source of revenue to Nigeria, is no longer attracting favourable pricing at the international market. The situation has placed the economy on a steady decline.
“The activities of Boko Haram, bandits, unknown gunmen; cattle herders’ – farmers’ clashes are thorns in the flesh of the economy. Many states are now finding it difficult to pay salaries as a result of these factors,” he observed.
“Thank God for Gov. Willie Obiano, whose economic initiatives have helped to sustain payment of workers’ salaries and retirees. He was able to deliver some capital intensive projects like Cargo/Passengers Airport Umueri, International Convention Centre Awka and an International Standard Stadium, Awka without borrowing.
“We need an economic developer like Prof Chukwuma Charles Soludo to build on these economic foundations of Obiano. He is a tested and proven economist of international repute at home and abroad. He knows what to do.
“Soludo was the brain behind Obasanjo’s economic successes as President of Nigeria.
“He served under Goodluck Jonathan as governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, and made indelible marks. A vote for Soludo is a vote in the right direction. It is in the interest of Ndi Anambra,’’ he added.
In the same vei, Cyprian Okpala, Obi of Akpo, at the occasion, urged Ndi Akpo not to waste their votes, as any vote outside APGA is a waste.
“APGA is the party of Ndi Anambra. It is Igbo man’s political identity. We cannot afford to lose our identity. It is priceless. No amount of money can purchase it.
“Election success is always a collective responsibility. So, tell your neighbours, your friends and everybody within the reach of your voice that APGA is the party, Soludo is the man. He is the best among all those jostling for the number one seat in Anambra State,’’ he stressed.
The commissioner for health, Anambra State, Vincent Okpala, reminded Ndi Anambra that “APGA is a big family as such, disagreement may crop up sometimes.
“We need to keep in mind that APGA is more than a party, but a Movement of brotherhood. We need to win this election convincingly in Akpo. It will give us the audacity to notify the government about the poor state of our roads in Akpo.
“Our roads are bad. It is a difficult task to drive to this place. We will attend to it but your vote is the key,’’ he said.
In one of the APGA campaign grounds, the people were reminded that Igbos don’t like to waste votes
“No sensible Igbo man will like to waste votes on just any political party other than their own,” Prof. Charles Soludo, said. Addressing his supporters, Prof Soludo said that Igbos would remain indivisible in pursuit of their interest. A former governor of the CBN, Prof. Soludo said: “It is only in APGA that Igbos can gain access into the dividends of democracy as witnessed under the Anambra Governor, Willie Obiano, as well as under a former governor, Peter Obi, while on the platform of APGA.
Soludo, who spoke at the party’s rally at Ukpor, in Nnewi South Local Government Area, LGA of the state emphasized the developmental strides of Gov. Obiano, and added that no sensible Igbo man would vote in APC in the forthcoming elections.
“APC has never won in Anambra governorship election and will never win. APGA has projected Anambra State into the limelight. Ndi Anambra are clamouring for peace and only APGA will guarantee sustainable peace and security that they already used to enjoy. I have signed a contract with Ndi Anambra to build on the solid achievements of Gov. Obiano in providing basic infrastructures.
“I will make Anambra a Technology entertainment home and will turn the party, APGA, into a Cooperative Movement. Governor has given us an airport; we will now concentrate on the provision of roads. We will tackle all roads in Anambra, especially in Nnewi because of the city’s importance as an industrial hub of the state.
“Nnewi is contributing immensely toward the economic development of Anambra State; so, we will not leave them behind in our developmental strides,’’ Soludo said.
In his campaign speech, Victor Oye, National Chairman of APGA, stated that Anambra people have no choice than to stick to APGA as the party has done well and will even perform better in the coming years under Prof. Soludo as governor.
Chief Oye told newsmen shortly after a Silver Jubilee Mass of Rev. Fr. Michael Onwukike at St. Andrew’s Catholic Church, Adazi-Nnukwu on Oct. 24 that Anambra people “are aware of the truth that APGA has a clear-cut vision about what to do to enhance the living standards of the people”.
He said that the Willie Obiano government had done well, noting that Peter Obi performed well while in APGA, but Obiano vastly improved on his performance, while Prof. Soludo would perform much better.
“That is our trajectory, what we are looking at and our vision is very clear; where APGA is going over the next four to eight years to make life better for our people.’’
Oye explained that APGA had no competitor in the Nov. 6 elections, noting that the party was on ground, “we are ready to win the election.
“We have prayed and asked the Federal Government to ensure that there will be a free and fair election by guaranteeing security for the polls’’.
He said that Anambra people would come out en masse for the election, as life and future of the masses would be at stake and they would like to lose it.
The APGA chieftain said that the last court case was the end of the “wahala’’ as far as the leadership of APGA was concerned.
“There are interlopers, trying to reap where they did not sow, but the Supreme Court nailed them.’’
He emphasised that their doors were open to welcome them back those that stepped off line; explaining, “anyone who goes astray and has repented will be re-admitted if he comes back”.
And the Coalition of Civil Society Organizations in Anambra State has said that the All Progressives Congress, APC, has no candidate in the November 6 gubernatorial election in Anambra State, describing Senator Andy Uba’s candidature as a ruse.
“Everyone knows that the APC has no candidate in this election”, the coalition said today in a statement signed by Vincent Obiatuegwu, the Public Affairs and Social Mobilization Director of the organization.
Corroborating official reports by INEC and the Department of State Security, DSS, on the supposed APC congress in Anambra State on June 23, Obiatuegwu stated that there was no primary election in the state which Senator Uba or any of the 14 governorship aspirants could have won.
The judiciary, he observed, would certainly rule even after November 6 that the APC did not validly field a candidate in the election.
George Moghalu, a founding APC member and chief executive of the National Inland Waterways Authority, who sought the gubernatorial ticket, has challenged Uba’s nomination in court.
Even top shots in the Presidency as well as members of the National Assembly and other senior party operatives have long come to terms with the fact that the APC has no candidate in the election, the statement added.
“A handful of elements”, according to the coalition, “sat together at Golden Tulip Hotel at Agulu on June 26 and cooked up fantastic figures in the name of vote allocations to the 14 APC gubernatorial aspirants.
“Uba received an unbelievable 320,201 out of a supposed 348,490 votes in a state where the APC got the least number of votes in the country in the 2019 general election because APC’s numerical strength in the state is not more than 30,000.”
“None of the other 13 contestants have endorsed Uba,” the statement added.
Unfortunately, a few campaign clips were recorded for the candidate of the PDP, Valentine Ozigbo and the YPP candidate, Sen, Ifeanyi Ubah. However, Sen. Enyinnaya Abaribe, Peter Obi have drummed support for Ozigbo. The Senate Minority Leader, Enyinnaya Abaribe, has called on Anambra voters to support and ensure the victory of Valentine Ozigbo at the Nov. 6 governorship election in the state, while former Gov. Peter Obi of Anambra State also joined in making the call when the duo led the PDP campaign trail to the Onitsha Drug Market.
According to local media reports, Abaribe described Ozigbo as a long-time associate of his and a man with strong character, who would provide good leadership in Anambra and in the entire Southeast if elected. He told traders at the market that as an individual, Ozigbo had always been a defender of the Igbo cause and would continue to ensure justice for the Southeast and every part of Nigeria. In his speech, Obi said there was a need for committed leaders in the Southeast zone and that Ozigbo was suitably qualified as “he is young, energetic and innovative”.
The vice-presidential candidate of the PDP at the 2019 general elections said the Nov. 6 Anambra governorship election was crucial not just for Anambra, but for the political future of the Southeast zone. Obi stressed that Anambra must align with the PDP, which had always protected its interests.
Ozigbo, who was the immediate past President and Group Chief Executive Officer of Transcorp Plc, promised to revolutionise the economy of Anambra if elected by creating business clusters. INEC confirms readiness for Anambra governorship election
Meanwhile, the Chairman of INEC, Prof Mahmood Yakubu, has confirmed the commission’s readiness for the November. 6 governorship election in Anambra State. Speaking at a meeting with the Joint National Assembly Committee INEC and Electoral Matters to engage with the commission over the forthcoming election on Wednesady, October 27, Yakubu said: “We have recovered from the series of attacks on our facilities and I am happy to say that we have deployed all the non-sensitive materials to all the local government areas.
“As far as INEC is concerned, we are good to go on Nov. 6. We have trained the requisite number of ad-hoc staff for the election and mobilised members of the National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, for efficient distribution of materials on election day.”
On the distribution of Permanent Voter Cards in Anambra, he said, “We have a little over 81,000 valid registrants. With the suspension of the Continuous Voter Registration, CVR, in Anambra that includes a little over 5,000 that applied for replacement of cards and intra-state and inter-state transfers.”
Although, there is anxiety over the security situation in Anambra State, following the impact of the new 7-day Sit-at-Home order by IPOB in the South East could have on the governorship poll, but with the interventions of the Ohanaeze Ndigbo and some prominent persons from the geo-political zone as well as deployment of security personnel in state, election will certainly hold. And Prof Soludo is expected to emerge victorious in the November 6, poll in the state.
Oct. 30, 2021 @ 16:00 GMT |
A.I
Tags: All Progressives Grand Alliance Cyprian Okpala Gov. Willie Obiano Professor Charles Soludo Valentine Ozigbo
