Anambra State All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) governorship candidate, Prof. Charles Soludo, has said the resort to violence will not solve the challenges confronting the Southeast. “Shooting is not the solution. You must organize and have a platform to discuss,” he told Anambra State indigenes resident in Lagos.
The APGA standard-bearer warned that if insecurity continued for a long time, the Igbo land would become desolate.
Soludo, a former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), explained his mission in politics, saying he wanted to plough back to the society that has given him relevance.
The eminent economist promised to run an administration that would foster probity, transparency, and efficiency.
“President Olusegun Obasanjo invited me to be the Economic Adviser and Head of Economic Planning and, later, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria. I put up a policy that created 12.2 million jobs. I did bank consolidation and, since then, no money has been trapped in any bank. We put an end to failed banks.
“My children said I have done enough and discouraged me from going into politics. But God created me here. As an itinerant tribe, you are not respected by your host if your home state is not prosperous. I said if I fail, let me fail while trying, not that I should not try at all. We must build on the foundation that has been laid.”
Soludo, who spoke in Igbo and English, acknowledged that the journey to power is difficult. But he expressed confidence that he would triumph at the poll on November 6.
The APGA flag bearer said he would not emulate the Lagos development model, saying this may not be sustainable. He said: “Lagos is not sustainable if this trend continues, with all this traffic. The population now is 20 million. The East can become the new land of prosperity.”
According to him, the sustainability of Anambra State is the sustainability of Igbo land.
Soludo, who once fired salvos at APGA in 2011 when he sought to run on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), explained that his main mission of APGA is the resurrection of Igbo identity.
He fired salvos at the All Progressives Congress (APC), whose candidate, Senator Andy Uba, is mounting an aggressive campaign, saying: “Anambra is not Imo.”
Soludo also chided prominent Igbos who had served in successive administrations, saying that despite holding strategic positions, there are no motorable roads in Igbo land to show for it. But he praised past governors of Anambra for leaving behind good legacies.
The former CBN boss lauded Chinwoke Mbadinuju for establishing a university, Chris Ngige for constructing a network of roads, and Peter Obi for his acumen.
Soludo said Anambra required a master plan, promising to harness its human and material resources towards its development. He stressed: “Anambra is the second state with the smallest land size. Lagos is reclaiming land from the ocean. Anambra is shrinking because of erosion.
“Anambra needs a master plan. I will be the Chief Marketing Officer for anything that is made in Anambra.
“I want to plant one million palms a year. I want to promote the agro-processing industry. On education, Anambra should produce products that are productive at home and exportable abroad. “I want to be the chief servant. I don’t know it all. I will ask for your advice, support, and guidance.”
Remove Ads
