AS the ruling All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) finally took to the roads, officially that is, to launch their governorship campaigns, the buzzword in the Labour Party (LP) is “Labour leads, others follow.”
This is an allusion to the fact that the LP officially flagged off its campaign on September 12 while the APGA and APC flagged off on October 7 and October 8, respectively.
It would seem that the APGA appropriated Awka, the administrative state capital, as the APC and LP found space in Onitsha, the commercial capital of Anambra.
However, a source in the campaign directorate of the LP said, “if we had our way, we would have held our flag-off in Awka. The truth is that we were denied the use of the Alex Ekwueme Square in Awka. So, we resorted to the playground of the Basilica of the Most Holy Trinity, Onitsha.”
With 41 days to the November 16 governorship election, APGA’s party hierarchy presented its candidate, Dr. Willie Maduabuchukwu Obiano and his running mate, Dr. Nkem Okeke, to the people. As
APGA’s National Chairman, Chief Victor Umeh, raised their hands at the Alex Ekwueme Square in Awka, he promised supporters that the “party will win the election.”
APGA’s selling point is the performance in the last eight years of its incumbent governor, Peter Obi. According to Umeh: “Obi is an exceptional governor. He did many monumental things in the state. In education, he returned schools to the Churches and he is supporting them to rebuild the schools.
“In the health sector, he accredited many health institutions. He has built over 800 kilometres of roads, and it is the same story in all the sectors.
“It is time to replace him after eight years, and we have someone whose work will be as good as Obi’s and who will continue with his policies. Willie and Nkem have the pedigree to replicate Obi’s magic in Anambra State.”
While flaunting his achievements, Obi reminded Anambra people that nothing is more important than for them to elect “a good person who will continue to build on the achievements of the past.”
“Before I became governor, Anambra worked with militias; today, the state has recognised security agencies,” he said.
“In Anambra, we had no accredited hospitals; today, it is different. We had no foreign investments, but today, three South African companies are in the state, two of them are on the list of Fortune 500 companies. Our schools lacked basic infrastructure; today, it is different.”
What will Obiano offer? In his manifesto, he promised to continue to do what Obi is doing and has built the theme of his manifesto on the performance of Obi.
He cites his articles of faith as “continuity, forward ever” and sums his manifesto thus: “In the first 12 months of my administration, we will work tirelessly to continue, complete and commission all ongoing projects in the state.”
He noted how passionate and enthusiastic he is to continue “the programmes of the present administration; building on the enviable foundation of Governor Obi. Continuity will be the guiding strategy and theme of my administration.”
“I also intend to adapt the state current strategy, christened Anambra Integrated Development Strategy (ANIDS). Today, ANIDS is and shall continue to be the driving force behind the rapid development taking place across all sectors.”
On September 12, when Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah, the LP governorship candidate, flagged of his campaign, he stated in his speech, “My Freedom Plan For Ndi-Anambra” that he has not come to preach the gospel of continuity.
“Things will have to change. Must we continue the era of kidnappers, no council elections, lack of jobs for our youths, unaccountability?” he asked.
As he unfolded his “agenda for the development of Anambra over the next four years,” Ubah stated that “among the crowd of aspirants clamouring to lead this state, I am the only one who has single-handedly, and without government support, created thousands of jobs for Nigerians and empowered thousands of Anambra youths.”
He promised to create more jobs, 40,000 of them “before my first 100 days in office as the governor,” claiming that he has a master plan for that.
Women and youths, the focus of his job creation efforts, would be empowered, he pledged.
There are master plans on erosion control and on the state capital, Awka, hinged on the implementation of “the Awka Capital Development Law passed by the 7th Anambra State House of Assembly.”
Ubah also undertook to retain the production line that had churned out such illustrious indigenes of the state, like the Rt. Hon. Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, Prof. Chinua Achebe, Dr. Alex Ekwueme, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, and Dr. Chuba Okadigbo.
He said: “To their memory, and in line with my convictions, my administration will reposition and transform the education sector so that our educational institutions, both secondary and tertiary, will become centres of excellence.”
Amidst the campaign promises, it is certain that LP Ubah’s promise that his “administration will conduct democratic elections in the local government system within 12 months in office to ensure that credible persons are chosen by the people of Anambra State to direct the affairs of the third tier of government” will win some converts even with the APGA family.
One major fault of the APGA regime is the failure to conduct local government elections in the last eight years. Plans to conduct the council election in October were almost in place before the polls were postponed till December, after the governorship election.
As the APC, like LP, besieged Onitsha to launch Dr. Chris Ngige’s gubernatorial campaign, the refrain was, “this is a man who was tested and found worthy.”
The high point of the flag-off was the array of APC personalities led by the National Chairman of the party, Chief Bisi Akande and another leader of the APC and former governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, that gathered to appeal to the people of Anambra.
In the entourage were Governors Adams Oshiomhole (Edo), Rochas Okorocha (Imo) and Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti) and former governor of Abia State and National Chairman of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu.
Ngige was variously described as “the man who ended godfatherism in Anambra,” “the candidate that can be trusted,” the man with “passion for the people, and as a public servant, he will never forget his antecedents,” and “a product, which does not need much advertising.”
The APC party leaders recalled Ngige’s developmental strides in his truncated tenure as governor of Anambra, saying that, “he will continue from where he stopped,” just as Fayemi stressed the need for “Anambra to elect a governor who will deliver in all sectors.”
Looking forward to another tenancy of the Government House, Awka, Ngige announced free education at primary and post-primary levels, and free medical treatment for pregnant women in the state.
Noting that, “today, there is a lot of kidnapping, armed robbery and other social vices, and our people no longer come home from Lagos and other places,” he vowed that, “we are going to sweep away kidnappers and robbers.”
Perhaps, top on his bill is the promise “that an airport will be started in the Omambala axis of Anambra North senatorial zone by December 2014’ quality and anti-erosion roads would be built, while a 25,000-capacity ultra modern stadium would be completed in Awka.”
Ngige, who is looking forward to using his performance during his shortened three-year tenure as governor, tabled before Anambra people what he called a 12-point agenda.
It contained the usual rhetoric on issues like security, health, education, water, agriculture, transportation, electricity and development of infrastructure, among others.
Touting a welfarist programme, he explained that the total implementation of his plan would uplift the welfare of the people and development of the state.
While free primary and secondary school education would be the norm, school fees at the state university would be reduced by 50 per cent.
Meanwhile, qualified and deserving students would be beneficiaries of the state’s educational scholarships in tertiary institutions.
An APC government, Ngige said, would provide mass housing for civil servants and “we will ensure food production and food security via sound agrarian policies and ensure that the state becomes net exporter of agricultural produce,” all of which would create employment opportunities for Anambra people.
Like Ubah, Ngige also cashed in on Obi’s failure to conduct local council elections and said that, “local council elections will be conducted in 2014.”
One feature of the flag-offs and governorship campaigns is the ease parties reap from the farm of ‘decampees,’ real or imagined. Almost every party lays claim to a harvest of “supporters from other parties crossing over to our party.”
The LP has shown success in this area. The party has had an offer of people crossing over from various parties, especially the ruling APGA.
The story is still being told of a particular set of APGA former chairmen from 17 local councils who joined the LP.
However, it was learnt that this set of chairmen offers its patronage to the highest bidder. A source disclosed that, “this same chairmen offered themselves to Prof. Charles Soludo in 2010 and later shifted their allegiance to Senator Andy Uba. They were not impressed with what Uba offered them and they left.”
“Today, they have gone elsewhere. Many of these people, who say they are decamping, were not even members of the party they claimed to be leaving. It is funny. It’s all a game by the parties.”
At the Ekwueme Square, some of those who decamped to the APGA, said they were joining the party because “this is the party of the people,” while citing “the wonderful work Obi is doing in the state.”
Mr. Ifeatu Obi Okoye, a former chairman of the PDP and former Director of Mobilisation of Ifeanyi Uba Campaign, claimed he left the LP for APGA, because “in Labour Party, there is euphoria, but no vision and character.”
Others who joined included Anayo Obiakor, the chairman of Democratic People’s Party; Chief Arthur Obi Nwandu, former governorship aspirant of the PDP and some former members of the State House of Assembly.
Defending the large crowds at LP’s rallies, the deputy media director of the Ifeanyi Ubah Campaign Directorate, Chijioke Ibeleme said:
“Ubah is with the grassroots in Anambra. If we take the census of political actors in Anambra, we will see that the migration from all other parties to the Labour Party has consistently been in droves.
“No person can deny this fact. Look at the people endorsing Ubah; the workers, the Nigeria Labour Congress at both the state and national levels; the widows, the physically challenged, okada riders, motor unions, etc.”
Author of this article: By Kodilinye Obiagwu
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