The President of Anambra State Indigenous Lawyers Forum, Barrister Joe Nwokedi, has urged Anambra State governor, Prof. Chukwuma Charles Soludo to focus his attention to improving on the legacies and investments made by Mr Peter Obi during his eight years reign at Agu Awka.
He said Soludo’s preoccupation should be on how to move the state forward and not rating Obi’s investments as ‘worth next to nothing’.
Nwokedi who spoke during his appearance on Arise TV morning programme, disclosed that Anambra State had its glorious era under Peter Obi.
Nwokedi said: “We were all there when Peter Obi was the governor and when that investment was made, we were all aware of it. We appreciated and applauded it as a welcome development.
“There were also some other investments and we were aware that the governor was thinking about the future not just the present. You don’t just run a government as if everything will end up with you. And when others were embezzling, he was investing, and when others were engulfed in several billions of money as debts incurred for the state, Peter Obi was saving money, investing and, left without a single debt for Anambra State; instead he handed money to the governor that succeeded him- Willie Obiano”.
While commending the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi for encouraging foreign investors in the state, Nwokedi noted that “Obi finished his tenure about 15 years ago and a governor came after him… we expected him to move on, we had high hopes and we supported him believing he would take the state to further heights.
“During the time of Obiano, most Anambra people were not comfortable with his own style of leadership; we were still yearning for that era of Peter Obi- there was an integrated development in infrastructures; roads, schools, hospitals, and the state’s economy. We thought that Soludo will re-enact that Peter Obi style and take Anambra to greater heights”.
Disappointed at Soludo’s anti-Peter Obi comments, Nwokedi said, “When he began to say all these things knowing we are in election period, and peter obi is running for a presidential election…he’s supposed to provide support for him especially since he has done well.
“We are not supporting him because he is from Anambra State but because I’m convinced that he performed”.
He recalled that “As soon as obi came in as governor of Anambra, he began to position the state and laid a formidable foundation on what his predecessor did. “We began to witness good governance and he gave us peace of mind in terms of security. What Soludo should do is to improve on that not to lambast the investment that was made. Somebody made an investment and you are saying it’s worth next to nothing”.
While dismissing Soludo’s position that Obi cannot win the election, Nwokedi said that Soludo is not in the position to determine who wins an election or not. “I’m sorry to say this, he is my governor, but he cannot determine who wins election or not. Elections have not been conducted, you don’t know the minds of everybody. You might use your old style to try to measure the outcome of election but the world is changing. People are coming out to decide what they want irrespective of religion or tribe”.
He further stated that “Soludo is still engrossed in tribal politics and that’s where he’s getting it wrong, he has not evolved otherwise, he would have known that that structure he keeps referring to is no longer there. Peter obi is not contesting election as Ohaneze Ndigbo candidate but as a Nigerian for Nigerians”.
