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Governor Soludo Where is Our Dubai?

The governorship election that saw the emergence of Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo as the governor of Anambra state was a tightly contested one. There were a number of bigwig and perhaps better and more loved politicians that participated in that contest. In the end, Charles won and became the governor.

The philosophical stone that won the election for Soludo was his promise to make Anambra the Dubai of Africa. Many of his supporters including yours faithfully insisted that he would replicate in Anambra what he did in the Central Bank. Everybody queued behind Soludo because we all wanted Dubai and believed he was the most qualified to give it to us. I remember having an interview few days to the election with Hon Pete Ibida on Soludo’s candidacy and how optimistic the seasoned legislator sounded on Soludo’s ability to bring Dubai to Anambra.

This year, 2025, makes it 4 years Soludo becomes governor and as the people of the Anambra prepare for a possible renewal of his mandate, the question many are asking is “WHERE IS OUR DUBAI”? Has Soludo delivered or renege on this promise to Ndi Anambra?

The State of Anambra State under Soludo

No government, no matter how well it has performed can meet every expectation. Therefore, no one expects governor Soludo to satisfy everybody in Anambra. However, there are certain scorecard for measuring the performance of governments. While these vary from environment to environment, some musts on the list usually include security, cost of living, respect for human rights and infrastructure. We briefly look at Soludo’s leadership using this scorecard.

Infrastructural Development

In Nigeria, infrastructural development means a lot to people and usually enjoys pride of place in leadership scorecard. However, this a misplacement of priority, which portrays a very poor understanding of what democracy is all about. It is on record that the worst governments in history provided their people with first class infrastructures. Hitler’s government, remains unrivaled in infrastructural development, yet it is one of the worst governments in recent history. So, while Soludo’s government has done some work in the area of infrastructural development, as already pointed out, this is a bad indices for judging a democratic government. Tyrants are sometimes the best providers of infrastructures.

Human Rights

There have been misunderstandings between Soludo and some individuals and groups in Anambra state. However, none of these has degenerated into the use of state power to intimidate and hunt down oppositions. So, on the whole, one can with some level of certainty say that Soludo has a good record on human rights. Governors in Nigeria, particularly in the Southeast are known to murder opposition politicians who criticize their policies but Soludo has maintained some modicum of decency, a good representation of his decent academic background.

Cost of Living

The number of people that died in Ukija while struggling to get some morsels rice to feed their families last Christmas is a good indicator of the economic situation of many families under Soludo’s leadership. But then, is Soludo responsible for this? Obviously, he is not. The economic hardship many families are currently suffering is not an Anambra but a national problem. Hence, the more important question is whether the governor has done anything to ameliorate these sufferings?  I am not sure there is any programme by Soludo’s administration tasked with this responsibility. His government has rather been accused again and again of overtaxing a people that are already overburdened with the heavy weight of inflation.

Security

This is perhaps one area almost everybody thinks Soludo’s administration has failed. It is not as if Soludo is the one who brought insecurity to Anambra. In fact, in the run up to his election, there was so much insecurity in the state that the election was almost postponed. However, things seem to have gone from bad to worse since Soludo became governor. There has been none stop in killings and kidnappings throughout the state. So, in a way, those who criticize the governor for the galloping insecurity are right that he has lived bellow expectation.  Dubai cannot be built on the foundation of insecurity.

Again, is Soludo totally to blame for the escalating insecurity? I don’t think so. The insecurity in the Southeast is a geopolitical problem that requires geopolitical solution. It can be interjected that Anambra is not the only state in the Southeast and that Anambra is the hardest hit among all the states. But this analysis will be wrong. In terms of events, Anambra has not seen half of what has occurred in Imo state. Southeast insecurity is linked to Biafra and the states that have been worst affected are those states that are more militant about the Biafran struggle. Anambra, Imo and Abia top on this list. Enugu and Ebonyi are always trailing from behind and this is because, the politics of the struggle, from Ojukwu, through Uwazurike to Nnamdi Kanu has revolves around Anambra and Imo. So, it is realistic to see more incidents in these two states.

The only area in the ongoing insecurity where Soludo can be squarely blamed is his slack in efforts to secure the release of Nnamdi Kanu. Throughout his campaigns and the early days after his inauguration, he was very vocal and worked assiduously for Kanu’s release. Then suddenly, he stopped. Lots of reasons have been offered to explain his sudden lack of enthusiasm in Kanu’s freedom. Some associate it with a deal between Southeast governors and the presidency in connection to 2027 general election. Others argue that it has to do with the huge security fund the governors are getting from the FGN which will be slashed if Kanu is freed and security returns to the zone. Whatever is the case, Soludo has to understand that his reelection bid may rise or fall on Kanu’s freedom.

Does Governor Soludo Deserve Re-election?            

Democratic election like religion is matter of conscience and conscience, they say, should not be forced. Therefore, I am not here to tell people to vote for or not to vote for governor Soludo. The work of a writer is to point out reasons why individual leaders deserve to be supported and then allow the people to make their choices. Hence, why Soludo may not have given Ndi Anambra the Dubai he promised them, there are reasons to believe that it is not entirely his fault. Also, there are reasons to think that he is doing and can still do a number of things that will help him keep to his promise. Rome was never built in a day and governor Soludo can still redeem himself in areas he has not done so well. Is this an invitation to vote for Soludo in the next governorship election? Not quite. I leave that to you and your conscience but then, remember that any choice you make today has consequences tomorrow.

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