The political climate in Anambra State further charged up on Wednesday morning following the lifting of the ban on political campaigns for the November Governorship Election by the Independent National Electoral Commission – INEC. In his inaugural campaign appearance on Channels TV’s Morning Show on Wednesday morning, the National Chairman of APGA, Barrister. Sly Ezeokenwa said that Governor Soludo easily outpaced his predecessor with over one thousand kilometers of road in three years, as against Obiano’s paltry one hundred kilometers of road in eight years. “In just three years in office, the governor has constructed close to one thousand kilometers of road in Anambra State, out of which over five hundred have been asphalted. It is unprecedented in the annals of Anambra State by any government. Even in eight years, for context, the previous government could not even do maybe some hundred or something kilometers,” Ezeokenwa said.
When Olumide Macaulay, the host, probed him to respond to why we haven’t seen any serious industrial renaissance in Nnewi under Soludo’s led administration as one would expect from a former CBN Governor, Barr Ezeokenwa simply said that he was wrong because the governor is working towards creating an enabling environment that will help businesses to thrive. The presenter, however, insisted that performance must be measured in tangibles, not promises.
However, the comment by the APGA National Chairman, which is viewed as a deliberate attack on the former governor, Chief Willie Obiano, aligns with Governor Soludo’s claims that he met an “insolvent State.” In fact, during Governor Soludo’s first media appearance as governor, which he made on Arise TV, he claimed that Obiano left a paltry sum of a few hundred million in Anambra State coffers. This claim was later revealed to be false as the former governor left tens of billions in the state coffers for his predecessor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo.
Why Soludo’s government or the current leadership of APGA throws shade at Obiano, who remains a member of APGA, is unclear. Former Governor, Chief Obiano, approved Barr. Sly Ezeokenwa’s nomination as the National Legal Adviser of APGA, and also fought tirelessly for the emergence of Soludo as Anambra’s governor. Many wonder why it is now so easy and convenient for the same Obiano to be ridiculed at every turn by the same people, and with whom he shares the same political party.
Ebuka graduated with a second-class upper-division degree in Political Science from the University of Calabar in Nigeria. He furthered his education by obtaining a Master's Degree in Political Science with a specialization in Government and Development Studies from Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Awka, Nigeria. His academic background and professional experience have equipped him with a deep understanding of political dynamics and governance issues.