Law Mefor: Why Governor Soludo Deserves Second Term

Anambra State Commissioner for Information, Law Mefor, tells Chuks Okocha why Prof. Charles Soludo deserves a second term in office. Excerpts:

Your Governor, Prof. Charles Chukwuma Soludo, is due for a re-election battle in November next year. Do you think he has done enough to get re-elected?

More than enough! There is no battle whatsoever. The administration of Prof. Chukwuma Charles Soludo, the Governor of Anambra State, can be summed up as a promise kept. What’s more, it’s all happening in just 30 months, and almost everything he promised in his ambitious and visionary gubernatorial manifesto has been completed to 80 percent or more with very little and no borrowing, with over one year left as the balance of his first tenure.

Are you saying that Soludo has not borrowed like some other governors?

It should be noted that the State House of Assembly authorised Soludo to borrow N100 billion, but Mr. Governor has refused to access the loan thus far. He has demonstrated exceptional leadership and governance of the state within its limited resources. Clever fiscal management and discipline earned him a national award as Nigeria’s most transparent and fiscally disciplined governor.

 So you are saying Soludo came prepared to govern?

Yes, of course. On his first day in office, Soludo began by visiting the Okpoko slum in Anambra State. Since then, the area has been transformed from a run-down area to one that now has a hospital, paved roads with gutters, street lights, and more. Once one of the worst urban slums in southern Nigeria, Okpoko is now a haven, a sophisticated urban residential area, and a remarkable example of urban renewal.

What of security because we keep reading of unknown gunmen terrorising Anambra State?

The so-called unknown gunmen had besieged eight local government districts before Soludo’s arrival as Governor: Aguata, Ihiala, Ekwusigo, Nnewi North, Nnewi South, Ogbaru, Orumba North, and Orumba South. The criminals’ camps were destroyed, and they were smoked out of their hiding places. They continue to make incursions in isolated bushes in pockets, primarily in Anambra South and Imo State. Eventually, these remnants will all be defeated to bring total peace and security to Anambra State. For the first time in the state’s history, Soludo created a Ministry of Homeland Affairs and selected a Commissioner to lead it to address security from a comprehensive perspective. To prevent any revival in criminal activities, Mr. Governor recently appointed a Special Adviser on Community Security. The Soludo administration is also resetting to administer the security sector in a way that can be perceived as a combination of bottom-up and up-bottom coordination, furthering both kinetic and non-kinetic methods that have been used to address security challenges in the state. The ASWAMA Law, the Traditional Rulers Law, the Prohibition of Open Grazing Law, the State Land Law, and other historic laws were enacted or amended and implemented by the Soludo administration to advance justice administration and make the promotion of law and order and expeditious administration of justice top priorities.

 But there is bound to be insecurity amongst a hungry populace. What is Soludo doing to guarantee food security?

Under Soludo’s leadership, regenerative agriculture has become a state policy. The goal of the strategy is to eradicate GMO foods and create organic, nutrient-dense, nutritious, natural foods efficiently and sustainably. The Governor’s wife, Dr. Nonye Soludo, has also been a champion for the administration of Soludo’s Farm-to-Feed agro policies and organic agriculture, leading to the emergence of fruits markets aka Solution Arenas in the state. As part of an effort to reduce poverty and promote economic growth, Soludo initiated the purchase and distribution of certain economic trees, including Palms, Ukwa, Ogbono, Akilu, Guava, and Soursop, in addition to the extensive purchase and distribution of coconut and oil palm seedlings to Ndi-Anambra. In Anambra State, the Soludo mantra is “farm-to-feed,” meaning that every accessible piece of land should be used for farming to deal completely with food insecurity and free families from want.

What is Soludo doing to make Anambra State investment-friendly?

With the holding of the Anambra Investment Summits 1 and 2 and the Export Emporium, the industrial sector in Anambra has kicked off. Africa’s largest drug distribution hub has been established in Oba, Idemili South drug market, a project that aims to relocate the well-known wholesale drug market from the bridgehead in Onitsha to Oba. More than 100 pharmaceutical enterprises, a pharmaceutical school, and other facilities would also be housed within the 200-hectare Anambra State Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Hub in Ogboji, Orumba South Local Government.

But what is he doing about the bad roads?

Soludo declared a state of emergency on road construction to fulfil his promise in his People’s Manifesto to transform Anambra into a livable and prosperous homeland. As a result, an astounding 500 kilometres of roads have been awarded, with more than 300 kilometres already asphalted and delivered in the last 20 to 30 years. In their own right, the iconic Ekwulobia Flyover and Bus Terminal are models of both contemporary buildings and historic constructions. Another watershed legacy project is the Aroma Flyover that connects old and new Awka. The development of state-of-the-art mega bus terminals in Onitsha, Awka, Nnewi, and Ekwulobia, all jutting up, is the driving force in the transportation sector. Nwa Agu Agulu to Nnobi to Nnewi and Ozubulu to Ekwusigo are turning Anambra into a mega-one-city state combined with the dual carriageway’s construction from Amawbia to Agulu and Uga to the Imo State border and existing Onitsha – Enugu Expressway. Chinua Achebe International Cargo and Passenger Airport in Umueri now has direct access to the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway and the airport is now being kitted by the Soludo government with equipment to permit night landings.

I heard that the Anambra Government House used to be a contractor’s working base?

See, after 31 years of abandonment, Anambra State can today boast a state-of-the-art government house and a lodge. A 2.22-kilometre surrounding fence, guest houses, gate houses, police posts, and other internal features including driveways, parking lots, walkways, drainage systems, water supplies, green spaces, etc. are all part of the new government house that is almost ready.

What is Soludo doing in the area of education?

Free education from nursery to senior secondary school has been put in place, and Anambra State teachers and students have won prestigious national and international awards, including the presidential 2024 Best Teachers Award in Nigeria. The primary factor in this achievement is the recruitment of the most qualified teachers through a transparent and competitive system free of the accursed “man-know-man.” With the hiring of 8115 teachers, Anambra State has ended the era of schools without teachers and classrooms without qualified teachers.

But health facilities are said to be lacking?

By hiring more than 1000 multi-form medical personnel to manage the government’s medical facilities, including medical officers and consultants, nurses, chemists, medical lab scientists, lab technicians, radiographers, and others, Soludo has put an end to the period in the health sector where hospitals lacked physicians and other medical professionals. Pregnant women have been provided with free prenatal care and delivery as well as free CS delivery. In addition to the five brand-new general hospitals that Soludo constructed in just 30 months, the general hospitals in Ekwulobia, Enugwu-Ukwu, and Umueri were upgraded to modern reference medical facilities. As previously stated, there is now a general hospital in the Okpoko slum near Onitsha.

Critics accuse Soludo of being an elitist governor?

Governor Soludo is a man of all Ndi-Anambra. Being the first governor of Anambra State to visit Olumbanasaa, where a hospital and other benefits of democracy and good governance have been delivered, was a historic accomplishment for Soludo. Under Soludo’s administration, no region in Anambra State is left unoccupied or undeveloped.

What of the issue of gender balance in the administration?

Women Affairs is given priority attention in Anambra State under Soludo, which includes the creation of a sexual and gender-based violence section for timely reaction and intervention in SGBV-related matters and the designation of a court for juvenile SGBV cases through advocacy. Additionally, a situation room has been set up to monitor and submit reports of SGBV to the Federal Ministry of Women’s Affairs. The government established working hotlines for reporting instances of gender-based violence. To address issues about gender-based and child violence, a legal unit has been established in collaboration with the Ministry of Justice.

Has there been any gains in the culture sector?

The just-concluded Anambra Iri-Ji Festival was a magnificent spectacle in the fields of culture, entertainment, and tourism. At Agulu Lake in the Anaocha Local Government Area, a top-notch tourist and recreation park is coming up. The feat in the history of Nigerian entertainment, Anambra State Fun City is a unique hub. To provide Ndi Anambra, particularly those who are returning for Christmas, with a unique experience, Anambra Christmas Village has been set up this year close to the Fun City.

Has the Governor started paying the minimum wage?

Anambra is proud to have been one of the first states to enact the new minimum wage under Soludo, and Mr. Governor makes sure that salaries are paid on schedule on the 25th of each month. Indeed, Soludo is dedicated to covering retired civil servants’ pensions and gratuities. To guarantee that retirees receive the benefits they are entitled to, Mr. Governor has carefully paid the pensions and gratuities of all retired civil servants since taking office in March 2022. He has also been progressively clearing the backlog of gratuities from 2018 to 2022. After the new minimum wage was implemented, he also enacted an increase in his pension.

So you are saying Soludo is a new lease of life?

Governor Soludo is bullish on all fronts. Throughout the state, solar-powered street lights have taken the place of the previous, pricy diesel-powered ones. To the delight of Ndi-Anambra, Soludo has also implemented the potable water plant in the state capital and throughout the communities. With the greatest of style, Dr. Alex Ekwueme Square in Awka has been rebuilt, and the One Youth, Two Skills Solution (1Y2SS) has transformed and benefited over 8,000 young people through its empowerment programs to address the complex problems of youth unemployment and insecurity, ultimately ensuring a bright future for everybody. Before our very eyes, Soludo’s promise to turn Anambra State into a destination rather than a starting point is becoming a reality. As a promise made and fulfilled by Governor Soludo, who accomplished so much with so little and without taking out a loan, we must all value our livable, prosperous, and tranquil motherland! “Your tax money is working for you!” is Anambra’s Soludo Solution.