By Dickson Okafor
Mr. Uchenna Okonkwo Okom is former Chief Whip, Anambra State House of Assembly, and deputy director-general (operations), Dozie Nwankwo Campaign Organisation for the November 6 governorship election in Anambra State. In this interview, he declared that Dr. Chidozie Nwankwo of the All Progressives Congress (APC) would solve the problem of insecurity in Anambra State, if elected governor.
You are the campaign director of Chidozie Nwankwo, an APC aspirant, what do you think are the chances of the party, considering that the APC is not well accepted in the South East?
Dr. Chidozie Nwankwo, popularly referred to as ‘Overdoz’, is the choice of the people, and the APC, by the grace of God, will clinch the governorship seat in Anambra. Only those who do not understand the pattern of political events in Anambra State or are lazy to really find out the position and choice of the electorate believe that APC is not popular in the South East; the party already controls Imo and Ebonyi states.
The people of Anambra State are now wiser; it is no longer about the party because all the political parties are the same. Someone can be in one party today and tomorrow, he will be in another party. The question we should ask is, where is Anambra today compared to 16 years of PDP rule? There are no motorable Federal Highways under the PDP government. For 16 years, the Second Niger Bridge was used as a political bait by PDP to get Igbo votes when they knew that they were not going to build the bridge. Today, the bridge is near completion, courtesy of APC administration under President Muhammadu Buhari within six years.
What makes Dozie Nwankwo better than the other aspirants?
Dr. Nwankwo is an asset to the APC and better than his opponents. He is an accomplished businessman and an industrialist who grew from within the business community of Anambra State. He has contributed immensely to business development in Onitsha as a market union leader. He took up the battle against criminals that exploited traders and that has endeared him to the minds of Anambrians. The slogan of APGA, ‘Nka bu Nkanyi’ (This is our own) is mere propaganda; this time around, Anambrians are saying, Chidozie Nwankwo is truly our own because he broke the cabal that held Onitsha Market by the jugular in the 1990s.
The governorship race is beyond market politics; how do you think your candidate will fare?
Market politics, like other forms of politics, is the art of managing human beings. If Dozie Nwankwo was able to do it in the market arena even in the manner in which he did it in Onitsha, he can do better as governor. Also, when God is with you, whatever you put your hand in will succeed because. Nwankwo is a man of God and he hears from God before doing anything. The idea, revelation and inspiration to take up this project came from God.
What effect do you think the power of incumbency will have in the election, especially as there are people like Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, an aspirant on the platform of APGA, also in the race?
Prof. Chukwuman Soludo, former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is a great Anambrian, but unfortunately, he is running on the platform of APGA whose fraud has been exposed. Throughout the eight years Peter Obi ruled Anambra State, he did not conduct local government election; Isn’t that a fraud? Our people are desirous of ending the idea of one state party because it has gone out of fashion. People are jettisoning it. Since 1960, the Igbo have never played regional politics, instead we play at the centre. That was why Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe emerged as the first President of Nigeria and Dr. Alex Ekwueme became the first Executive Vice President of Nigeria. Since the advent of the slogan, “Nka bu Nkayi”, Anambra has not made a significant impact on the nation’s politics. But now, Anambrians are saying enough is enough, we must go back to national politics.
What will Dozie Nwankwo bring to the table, if elected governor?
Dozie Nwankwo is a generous man who is disturbed by the increasing rate of unemployment in the state. He is bothered by the state of the economy and the lack of infrastructure in Anambra. Most of those vying for the governorship seat are just doing window dressing with emergency social and charitable organizations. Dozie Nwankwo established a non-governmental organisation (NGO), known as Kingdom Care Foundation (KCF) in 1987 when he had not thought of going into politics. He is a man who blesses people especially the downtrodden with what God has blessed him with. Under KCF, he has touched millions of lives not only in Anambra but South-East and Nigeria. He owns one of the largest industrial parks in West Africa situated in Ogun State, he employs over four thousand Nigerians with over 25 offices across Nigeria and overseas. He has an answer to the lack of a steady power supply because he generates power supply in his industrial park by gas turbine and a lot of foreigners set up industries in the park which he hopes to replicate in Anambra; in fact, he will kill insecurity through job creation.