Tag: #AnambraDecides2025

You have just inaugurated your campaign council and what does that portend for your ambition?

Yes, I have just done that and you can agree with me that my campaign is grassroots based. Some weeks back, we inaugurated the State Campaign Council and today we inaugurated the campaign councils in the 21 local government areas of the state. By the time they get home, they will inaugurate the campaign councils in the 326 Electoral Wards in the state and then the polling units campaign council and what we are doing is to take the campaign to the grassroots so that the people we are talking about will be involved in what we are doing.

In the time past, most candidates did interface with the grassroots but all of a sudden, the grassroot is being factored in, may we know why?

It is not all of a sudden. The truth about it is that every election is grassroots based, because every election ends at the polling booths or polling units and even those of us operating at the state must go back to our polling units on the election day.

For example, I have a polling unit in in Uruagu Ward 1, so on the election day I have to go there and vote so it is about the people and those who designed the electoral structure have the people in mind because if the election have to be held at the state level it means that people at the local level will not participate. So, the election is now taken to them and it is all about the grassroots.

How sure are you that the members of the campaign council would protect your votes?

I have implicit confidence in the caliber and quality of the persons in my campaign Council and I am very confident that they will justify the purpose for which they were set up and there is nothing to fear about that.

Most candidates chose their running mates from Anambra Central Senatorial District, but you chose to go to Anambra North Senatorial District?

This is due to political exigency and nothing more. People consider voting strength which is also part of it, but then if we are going to choose a running mate, you have to put a lot of factors into consideration. You need to talk about who would add value to your ticket; you also look at experience and also look at gender balancing.

You also look at political base and voting population and these are the issues and after those considerations I set up a committee to go hunt for a suitable running mate and after that they came up with this consideration and brought somebody that I find very interesting and quite experience and knowledgeable.

Talking about the zoning arrangements, you are from the South and the incumbent is from the South, are you going to do one term?

Yes, and the Constitution provided for a four-year term and the second four years is at the liberty of the people and if they decide to elect you; that is if they so wish and it is not a right and it is not an entitlement but s gift from the people in appreciation of the services that you rendered to them.

I am going for four years and that is it and I know people talk about if I go for four years that I would want to do another four-year there by denying Anambra Central Senatorial District their turn but that is not correct. I will only go four years because I am a beneficiary of the zoning arrangements.

And what makes me credible is the fact that rather than destroy a process that I was a beneficiary of, I have to encourage and sustain it for posterity. This is because I know that the South is already doing four years and what is left for the South is another four years so that the Central would have their turn. I shall work towards that and do four years and four years is enough for me to achieve what I have in my program and keep to my electoral promises. Let me say it and let it be noted. Anybody who cannot achieve anything in four years, if you give him even twelve years it is not possible that he can achieve anything in that eight or 12 years.

Are you not worried that the Labour Party has been in crisis and by election the party’s candidates were disqualified?

I am concerned but not worried because the truth about it is that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), is the umpire and it is the Commission’s responsibility to regulate the electoral process. If they come out and say that the Labour Party has no candidate it is incumbent on us as a political party to either agree with them or disagree with them and if we disagree with them, we challenge their decision at the law court and whatever the court says we abide by this.

You may have escaped this by whiskers by not getting a nomination from the Abure faction of the party?

He signed my form and I should think so because at the time that I was elected at the primary election, Abure was still National Chairman.

If Abure signed your ticket, don’t you think your candidacy is under threat?

No, it is not a threat at all. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), has come up with a position on that. Don’t forget that one or two people came up to challenge me about the primary election. You see, primary is a process and not an event. It only ends on a particular day but it starts two or three months before. From the process of advertising the sale of forms then screening of candidates with clams and objections before we go into the voting proper. If there are more than one candidate there would be voting and if it is only one candidate we go by affirmation and all the while Abure was the National Chairman of the party.

How come it only affected those that were contesting for the by election?

Because from what I heard they have concluded the process before the court judgement and that is mere speculation because I don’t know exactly what the judgement said.

The on-going coalition appears to have made your presidential candidate Mr Peter Obi to be one leg in the Labour Party and another leg in ADC, how do you look at the coalition?

Let me start with the first question that you asked about my leader. That is not correct and I’m sure that you were around here on the 11th of last month when we had our flag off and our leader Mr Peter Obi was there and spoke extensively on this issue. He said and I quote ‘I am a member of the Labor Party and I remain a member of the Labor Party and will participate in the process to elect a labor party governor in the person of Chief Dr George Moghalu,’ who he said is his candidate for the November 8 election and it is no longer an issue of joining ADC until it comes into effect. He added that ADC is for the 2027 Presidential election and that is what the coalition is all about. And until such a time in future when he remains a member of the Labour Party.

About the coalition; one thing that I know is that I am not a native doctor neither am I a suit sayer neither can I predict tomorrow. For now, there are political heavyweights in ADC who have come together to build a political platform which they intend to use for the 2027 general election. What I will say here is just wait and see and to what extent can they make sacrifices and dump their ego to build a formidable coalition. I remember when we formed the APC, the political parties merged to form the APC and the best bet is let us wait and see and watch things emerge.

Let’s look at the Anambra gubernatorial election and you are a candidate, what gives you this conference that you will win the election?

I am coming with a very accepted program which I have resented to Anambra people and the fact also is that the incumbent has not done well and because I believe it is God’s time.

Are you relying on the influence of Mr Peter Obi and the Obidient family?

Certainly, he is a political leader and was governor of Anambra State loved by the people. The same Peter who midwifed the other two candidates in the last two elections had 85 percent of the votes casted in Anambra State during the presidential election and that is very significant and also scored 600 and something thousand votes at the presidential election. Is that enough evidence to prove to you that his presence as my leader would contribute greatly to my ambition.