Governor Chukwuma Soludo has asked the people of Anambra to set emotions aside and avoid wasting their franchise on candidates whose involvement in politics has yielded no significant benefit to the Igbo.
Soludo made the call while addressing residents of Ekwusigo Local Government Area over the weekend, where he commissioned the 3km Ozu-Inyaba-Ozubulu-Ihembosi Road with street lights and other projects.
In his proverbial speech, the governor emphasised the importance of strategic alignment, noting its ability to rightly position the state to partake in the national treasure and get what is due to it.
Citing the erosion ravaging the LGA, Soludo rhetorically asked those present: “After a soldier goes to war, what is the evidence of his war? After 10, 15 years, what has happened? What did you bring for Igbo people?
“Look at the erosion that is happening to Ekwusigo… Whoever is saying all these things… Since he started politics, what has he done about any of them?
“…You run away, then when it is time for election, you will come to say… then we will throw away our vote. We say no to that! The Igbos will get their rightful inheritance from this administration.”
The governor, who spoke largely in Igbo without mentioning names, added that individuals who failed to bring a resolution to the erosion crisis lingering in the state for decades should not be considered to anchor the affairs of the region.
He added, “We will all go and fight the fight so the Igbos will get their entitlement. It is not when they tell you they are going hunting in a bush where there is meat, then you will be abusing them, but when you go to your own hunting ground and you could not get a cockroach.
“However, if others get elephant after hunting, you get angry and say they did not give you a portion. You will have to join them in hunting to partake of its success.”
Still speaking in riddles, Soludo said the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) was positioned for its inheritance and that the state was not willing to elect a candidate who neither understood where such an inheritance was shared nor where decisions were made.
He stated, “This is where APGA is; Igboland will be better. Anambra will get its right. Someone that would go to Abuja and not know where they share the inheritance due to them and would come and say he is contesting. No!
“There is division of labour! He doesn’t know where decisions are being made. This is not what you do on the streets. No! Not this one. Those people that are the death of Igbos, we say enough is enough because APGA is ours!”
Critics Question Soludo’s Record
Meanwhile, Soludo’s recent remarks have elicited reactions from some public commentators and critics who, in connecting the dots, demanded that he account for the significant achievements of his administration, as well as the benefits of the federal government with which he has aligned.
A critic of the administration, Kingsley Ubani, through his Facebook page, accused the government of blaming Peter Obi, a former governor of the state who completed his tenure in March 2014, for the erosion menace in the state.
Ubani argued that despite Soludo’s previous roles as Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and economic adviser to former President Muhammadu Buhari, as well as his tenure as governor, he had yet to make what Ubani described as a substantial impact in the state.
He added, “For the past three years, you have claimed that the progressives are working together. What did you attract to Anambra State all these years? But here you are blaming Mr Peter Obi, who left office 13 years ago, for the erosion challenges in the state you have governed for years?
“Peter Obi attracted SABMiller — an international company which is the biggest tax-paying company to Anambra State. Nearly five years as Governor, you have nothing to show. Except empty noise and bad character. Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, you have no shame!”
Also via Facebook, financial analyst and educator Kalu Aja questioned Soludo’s claim of having a close relationship with President Bola Tinubu and asked what the relationship had delivered for Anambra.
Aja queried whether the Federal Government had connected Onitsha, which he described as the largest open-air market cluster in sub-Saharan Africa, to the national rail network, linked Anambra to the Gas Master Plan or allocated strategic funds for the expansion of the Onitsha River Port or dredging of the River Niger.
He also questioned what international brands had been attracted to Anambra with federal government support.
Aja said, “No global manufacturer, auto OEM, pharma MNC, FMCG giant, or even a brewery has established a confirmed greenfield plant during your tenure.
“You mocked an international FDI in Anambra undertaken by your predecessor, but after five years, you have attracted no FDI based on official figures you can verify.”
He further claimed that Abia had recorded $150m in capital importation from mid-2023 to date, while Anambra had recorded zero.
Aja concluded, “Sir, there is no harm in supporting President Tinubu, but Tinubu is leveraging his relationship, and you have gained nothing from the Federal Government apart from a visit by the First Lady.” part of the you will say No, and later say you will.
