By Cajetan Mmuta, Awka
Good governance comes in several ways. It heralds the provision of basic infrastructure such as good and quality road networks, improved health facilities, security of lives and property, creating a stable and viable environment for trade and investment as well as other business opportunities, quality and qualitative education, political stability, youth empowerment and creation of employment opportunities, among many others.
For Prof Charles Soludo, the Governor of Anambra State, the past two years have been both challenging, eventful, revealing, and one that spoke volumes.
The cheery activities of clicking glasses and expressing gratefulness to God on Sunday, March 17, 2024, were wrapped up in an interdenominational Thanksgiving church service at the International Conference Centre in Awka, the state capital.
It was a gathering of both the high and low drawn from across the 21 local government areas and three Senatorial districts of the state. Specifically, its sole aim was to present his scorecard to Ndi Anambra, the real owner of the government and governance.
The governor at the event laid bare to the people, how much fruit the journey that started two years ago had yielded since he and his deputy Dr Onyekachukwu Ibezim, were elected and sworn into office.
Indeed, it was worth rolling out a red carpet, drums, and rendition of songs of praises in endless glitz, pump, and pageantry that dotted the scenes to celebrate the day.
No doubt, within the period under the review the people have heaved sighs of relief in what could best be summed up in a line as ‘the dawn of an era.’ Though, to some analysts and keen observers, amid mixed feelings about what is to come, the state is still struggling to make bold statements going by the quantum of revenue that is expected to come from it and even as things continue to unfold.
Interestingly, the administration of Charlie Nwamgbafor former Governor of the nation’s apex financial institution, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), since assumption of office has been meeting set goals and propping up exciting examples.
These are in line with the vision and mission as well as the manifesto of the ruling All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and working collaboratively with the state’s legislative and judicial arms towards making Anambra a liveable and prosperous homeland comparably with Dubai and Taiwan.
Speakers at the ceremony were unanimous in summing up their testimonies that Soludo had done well and as such must not lose his eyes on the ball in making the state the envy of South East and by extension the entire country. To them, the expression that when the righteous, is in power the people rejoice is incontrovertible and sacrosanct.
Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Aguata, Most Rev Jonas Benson, who led the speakers while highlighting some key achievements of Governor Soludo in his sermon said the government had outstandingly etched its name on the stone of history in the areas of security, infrastructure, especially, in the construction of over 200 out of 400 kilometres of roads across the three Senatorial districts; education, reclamation of the environment, health sector, among several other people-oriented programmes.
He tasked the federal and state governments on the need to step up action against the spate of kidnappings and other criminalities spiking insecurity as well as the effort to tackle hunger, power outages, and other negative socio-economic and political activities threatening the polity.
The cleric noted that what is happening in the nation smacked of a gang-up but appealed to those behind the spate of kidnappings and other heinous crimes to sheathe their swords to embrace amnesty or rehabilitation.
“What is happening in Nigeria is a kind of gang-up. It’s as if someone is doing something to someone. We appeal to our brothers and sisters that there is no life for someone to live in the forest to kidnap the other because of money. They should come out so that they can be rehabilitated,” he said.
Bishop Benson also tasked Governor Soludo to mobilize other governors of the South-East geo-political zone towards tackling perennial power problems and for him to replicate what Chief Barth Nnaji had done in Abia state through Geometric Power Generation in Anambra’ state as the Light of the nation-state so that the citizenry would be saved from the daily nightmare they currently pass through.
He also frowned at the attitude of parents for abandoning their children who daily leave homes for school at 7am and come back home at 7pm, saying that it is a dangerous signal capable of wrecking families and the entire society if urgent steps were not taken.
Jonas urged the people to queue behind Soludo’s team towards moving the state forward and that critics must look at the activities of the state government constructively and desist from politics of vendetta and empty criticisms.
Soludo, while presenting his scorecard encapsulated in a book titled: 100 Foundational Footprints, disclosed that he had the most austere government ever in the history of the country since his assumption of office two years ago in the state.
He pointed out that he had continued to overcome the tide with a deliberate and determined effort aimed at managing the lean resources even without borrowing a dime.
He said that with the agenda of making the state a liveable and prosperous state, the state is safe and stronger now.
While expressing dissatisfaction with the cash crunch in running the affairs of government and governance, Soludo reiterated that his government needs to demonstrate to the people that it’s all possible and no excuses.
As a measure to show his commitment and resolve to rid the state of the woods, Soludo disclosed that he has not received money as salary from the state government as a way of saving cost and that he had plugged many leakages, doing a lot with little and cutting costs in government.
According to him, “We are giving priority to the alienated areas that have seen nothing amid resource constraints with about N28,000+ per person from what accrues to the state.
He maintained, “Every kobo entrusted in our hands, we will be able to show where it’s going, adding that within the period under review, the government had embarked on massive road construction, working collaboratively with various security agencies towards ensuring guaranteed security of lives and property, law and order, the effective justice system, payment of salaries, youth empowerment, and skill acquisition, free education in mission and public primary and secondary schools, free antenatal treatment and caesarean operation of women.”
Also, the government has embarked on massive reclamation of the environment, construction of Ekwuluobia and Ezi Oko bridges, Okpoko New Haven, ensuring the return of rural and urban pipe-borne water supply, among others.
These he said have been made possible with the team spirit of the three arms of government.
“We have prioritized the construction of a strategic network of roads with about 247 of them asphalted out of 400 kilometres of roads in addition to the flyover at Ekwuluobia and Ezi Okp areas,” he added.
The governor further said within a few months his government would unveil a new Government House close to Ekwueme Square, a feat that would break the curse or jinx of not having a befitting Anambra Government House after 33 years of the creation of the state.
Also, the government embarked on the regeneration of three new cities, provision of massive pipe-borne water across major towns and rural areas, and boosting the state transportation plan while a railway would be constructed to ease commercial and transport systems between the state and neighbouring states.
He pointed out that the rail route would cost over 5,000 buildings to give way, stressing that Anambra’ has to move from being a departure lounge to a destination lounge.
On education, he said over 5,000 teachers have been recruited in the past two years while more would be recruited even as the state had initiated investment into cyber optics for Geographic Information System (GIS) for information management systems and that steps are being taken to develop Africa’s Silicon Valley for digital skills learning in the state.
In addition, the government recently distributed more than 2,000 laptops to teachers to boost their tracking skills across the state.
He called for strategic partnership with the Federal Government, stakeholders, ‘Ndi’ Anambra, captains of industries, artisans, and all groups in the task of moving the state forward.
“If we must go forward we must patronize made-in-Nigeria goods,” he said
On the much-expected conduct of local government election, Soludo said, “We need to build a foundation that will give way for conduct of local government election, the bill is before the state House of Assembly and once it’s passed into law, we will establish the Anambra’ state Independent Electoral Commission.”
In attendance at the colourful event include Nigeria’s former Common Wealth Secretary General Prof Emeka Anyaoku, Governor of Abia State, Chief Alex Otti, two ex-governors of the state, Dr Chris Ngige and Dame Virgi Etiaba respectively, traditional rulers, party chieftains, associates, groups and several others.
Also speaking, the Prime Minister of the Anambra State Association of Town Unions (ASATU), Dr John Metchie, described Soludo’s two years in office as a wonder to behold because his disruptive change mantra reflected in every aspect of development.
Metchie, who is also the President-General of the Umueri community in the Anambra-East Local Government Area of the state, scored the performance index of the APGA-led government with 98% after a critical and thorough assessment of his two years in office.
There is no doubt that the governor is all out to write his name on the sand of time considering his humble background and because as a political czar and global man, he cannot afford to make grave mistakes or fall into the category of past governors of the state with woeful records of performance.
It was not surprising therefore when he inaugurated over 120 committee members headed by a former Minister of Education, Dr Oby Ezekwesili, who helped to fashion the fulcrum or foundation upon which the government took off.
Furthermore, the government apart from courageously and collaboratively with the Federal Government’s Joint Security Operatives took and is still taking the battle to the doorsteps of unknown gunmen who wreaked havoc and held hostage about nine local government areas of the state, he also midwife the Truth, Justice, and Peace Commission headed by Prof Chidi Odinkalu which work and several other efforts helped to appreciably stabilize and enthrone peace in the state.
However, as Soludo works towards finishing well amid observable and emerging bobby traps being set by opposition forces or political mafias in the state and Abuja, it is expected that he is now ever prepared to weather all the storms ahead of his re-election bid in 2025.
There is no gainsaying that the governor’s foot soldiers are ferociously working round the clock with huge funds, oiled war machinery, capacity, and zeal as well as water right strategies in the eye-popping and muscle-flexing game towards ensuring no excuses for the epic battle so that he secures the exalted the number one seat for a second time in office next year.
