Lawrence Nwimo, Awka
Labour Party (LP) governorship hopeful in Anambra State, Valentine Ozigbo, has advised people of the state to beware of voting wrong candidates in the forthcoming governorship election.
Ozigbo said the people cannot afford to repeat their mistakes and should hold themselves accountable if they vote the wrong governor for a second time.
Addressing members of the Osisioma Foundation on Saturday in Umunya in Oyi Local Government Area of the State, Ozigbo urged them not to sacrifice the overall best interest of the state on the platter of selfish gains.
He lamented the pitiable condition of the state, but expressed optimism that it could be remedied with the right person in power.
Citing Proverb 29:2 and Matt 5:16, Ozigbo, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2021 governorship election, regretted that a state known as light of the nation has been enveloped by darkness, forcing the light to go dim.
He said, “The condition we found ourselves is caused by both the leadership and the citizens who voted them into power. That’s why you must hold yourselves accountable if the state makes the mistake of voting in the wrong governor for a second time.
“The situation doesn’t call for blame game, but rather opportunity to right the wrongs. It’s time for confession of sins and seeking God’s forgiveness.
“As a light of the nation, it’s time to raise the light so it can shine. We must get the recruitment process right, including deemphasising personal interests and pursuing the best interest of the state.
“We must place character of the leader above money, denomination and political affiliations.”
Describing Anambra as a State blessed with both abundant human and natural resources, Ozigbo identified education, health, poverty alleviation, security as critical areas of priorities.
“If the state must be developed, some critical sectors like education, health and security must receive priority attention. I have consulted with Anambra people at the local, national and in diaspora and understand what they are yearning for.
“I have aggregated the needs of the state which I intend to address using the sectoral and partnership approaches. I’ve chosen to be a purposeful politician and not transactional politics which majority practice,” he added.
Earlier, the founder of Osisioma Foundation, Dr Chike Obidigbo, expressed disappointment over what he described as failure of Governor Chukwuma Soludo in delivering on his campaign promises of making Anambra the Dubai of Africa.
Obidigbo, an erstwhile ardent supporter of Soludo, said the governor failed the teeming people of the state who took him by his words.
“I’m not ashamed to say I’m a staunch supporter of Soludo because he promised to turn Anambra to Dubai of Africa. But he’s disappointing us.
“Anambra has all it takes to become the Dubai of Africa, but the problems of the state and Southeast in general are man-made which can only be solved by good leadership.
“The youths in the state are suffering because the government has failed to provide opportunities for them to develop their potentials,” he decried.
Obidigbo, an industrialist, however, revealed that his foundation was not endorsing any candidate but would only throw its weight behind whoever is with the right agenda for the betterment of the state.
“We’re not endorsing any candidates because we’re not a political party. We’re here to listen to what he has to say so we can avert the mistakes of the past.
“We’ll only endorse the candidate that has what it takes to make the State great; that’s the criteria (sic) for whoever we will support,” he added.
