“There’s no such thing as a vote that doesn’t matter.” —Barack Obama

 

By Cosmas Omegoh

 

Loud echoes of joyful acclamation are still ringing out from Anambra State after the curtain finally fell on the state governorship election last week.

Delightful exchanges of hi-fives and back slapping by the people are yet to cease. Everyone knows the reason for this mood swing: Ndi Anambra just came out from choosing a new man to govern them. And that man is Prof Chukwuma Soludo, the former governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).    

In the days leading to the election, everyone had waited for the arrival of November 6, 2021 with bathed breathe. But it has come and gone – folded irretrievably into history, and holding Prof Soludo, then the candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) as the history maker who clinched the coveted prize. Right now, he is the Anambra State governor-elect. If things stay the same, he would be sworn in in March, next year, when his predecessor, the incumbent governor, Chief Willie Obiano will be completing his tenure.  

According to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) state Returning Officer, Prof Florence Obi, who is also the vice chancellor, University of Calabar, Prof Soludo in a low turnout contest, netted a total of 112,229 votes. 

He dusted the candidate of the People’s Democratic (PDP), Valentine Ozigbo, who scored 53,807 votes, and that of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Andy Uba, who polled 43,285 votes. Other candidates trailed behind the trio with insignificant votes.  

Many observers adjudged the Anambra State guber contest as free and fair, affirming that Soludo won fair and square. They saw no significant intervention of any sort from any quarters. Or where there was, the impact was minimal and of no major effect to influence the course of the election.

Again, judging by what many saw, the people of Anambra State, as many that found the courage to march out for the election, spoke with their voices and their votes. 

The people’s will was allowed a free rein; their wish counted. Such is the beauty of the election that left everyone a winner – an election in which all the stakeholders proved that democratic values can be further deepened in Nigeria with the collective will of all and sundry.

It would be recalled that before the election day,  there were uncertainties, apprehension, as the cloud of fear threatened to eclipse the Anambra outing. First, there was the threat that the election would not hold as the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) one week sit-at-home was scheduled to begin on the eve of the election; then followed some violent skirmishes leading to loss of lives.

That was why thousands of security personnel had to be thrown into the ring to keep the peace just as this was helped when the IPOB called off its sit-at-home order.

As it turned out, the November 6 election did not go against the grain of book makers’ prediction. Crystal ball watchers left no one in doubt that Soludo was well on his way to singing the victor’s song. Their prophecy found fulfillment.  

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It needs to be said that certain factors safely worked in Prof Soludo’s favour and they stand out for everyone to see. First, there is the Governor Obiano factor. Governor Obiano had launched the incumbency factor, brought it to bear and it worked. Then there was the legendary the late Chief Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu factor ably amplified by his widow, Bianca, who put Governor Obiano on his toes when it appeared the governor was on slumber on the Soludo project. Indeed,  Ndi Anambra eagerly desire to preserve the Ojukwu legacy and striving to sustain the APGA he founded is one of such. So, APGA represents fire in the belly of the Anambra electorate. 

Yes, election and electioneering have come and gone with Prof Soludo as the winner.

Going forward, he has sustained his deserved man-of-the-moment personality, a freshly found status that has seen his name grabbing bold headlines much more than before. He is being both intensively and extensively discussed. Everyone is talking about Soludo in the same way so much is being talked about him. So all eyes are on the man, the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN) trained economist governor-elect.

To say that there are humongous expectations from him is to put things rather mildly. To say so is to say in the words of the good books that “to whom much is given, much is expected.”

Now is time for this distinguished professor to roll up his sleeves, and “hit the ground running.” And that needs to be seen and felt soon. Nothing less!

Recall that in September 2009, when Soludo attempted a shot at the governorship of Anambra State, he allegedly told Ndi Anambra that he would make the state the “Dubai” of Nigeria. That sounds ambitious, or rather like words inked on the marble. Even to the blind, such seems indelible. Or could those words be merely empty, coming from the average Nigerian politician breathlessly crusading and canvassing for the votes – purely at the expense of the helpless and hapless citizenry? It is everybody’s guess.

Time might have changed, because time, they say, changes everything, including man. But for Prof Soludo, his words of yesteryear still stand before him straight as an arrow. They look him in the face and offer him the challenge of life. They hold him captive. For him, the appointed hour of destiny is here. It just arrived – the hour to act wisely, the hour to change the face of Anambra for the better. Will he stand up to the hour, or plunge into the plains plasticine? Time will tell.

For the average Anambra person – and indeed, everyone who has followed the trajectory of Prof Soludo, the stakes are very high – very high. That he must know. They want to see jobs created, growth in the economy of the state; they want to experience peace and harmony. They want to see the average trader in Ochanja, Onitsha Headbridge and other markets, empowered, civil servants smiling, the curves of the health, education, and many other sectors of the state’s economy looking up. That will be the Soludo touch everyone is waiting to see.  Also during his last campaign, he had added to his Dubai promise to make Anambra become a Silicon Valley. 

Born on July 2, 1960, Soludo hails from Isuofia in Anambra State.

In his private and official life, Soludo has been things many would wish to be; he has seen things from various enviable levels.

 Soludo has been a visiting scholar at the International Monetary Fund, the University of Cambridge, the Brookings Institution, the University of Warwick, and the University of Oxford, as well as a visiting professor at Swarthmore College, USA.

He has also worked as a consultant for a number of international organisations, including the World Bank, the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, and the United Nations Development Programme.

Soludo is a core professional in the business of macroeconomics. He obtained his three degrees and then professorship at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN).

He graduated with a First Class Honours degree in 1984, an MSc Economics in 1987, and a PhD in 1989, winning prizes for the best student at all three levels.