From Geoffrey Anyanwu, Enugu
Frank Nweke (Jr) is the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) for the 2023 general election in Enugu State.
He was Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Special Duties and Youth Development and Minister of Information and Communications, just as he was Director General, Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG).
In this encounter with Sunday Sun, the APGA guber candidate spoke about his prospect in the race, his agenda for Enugu State, the potential of the state and how to harness them for the good of the people and his heartbreak over the mess in Nigeria.
He blamed the unsafe state of Nigeria to what he called inept and despotic leadership. Excerpts:
The campaign for the governorship election has started. How has it been so far and what would you say your prospects are?
The campaigns have been on to a good start. Of course, you will agree with me that it is not a one-off event. We have 260 wards in the entire state and we are making every effort to make sure that we visit each of these wards, talk to our people and make our case to the electorate. I’m supremely confident that I will come out victorious and that the All Progressives Grand Alliance will form the next government in Enugu State.
One would have expected that you remain in the PDP to take part in the primary, but you pulled out to run on the platform of APGA. What informed your decision?
I cannot be in a party that will not respect its own constitution. I cannot be in a party whose flag bearer has stated clearly that people from certain parts of the country are not needed. I cannot be in a party that has no respect for the electorate and played a major role in the destruction of this country and in bringing us to where we are today. It is that simple for me. And so in making a decision of a party to associate with, it was fitting that I went for one that is ‘our own’ – Nke a bu nke anyi (This is our own). The philosophy of the All Progressives Grand Alliance is centred on the concept of ‘shared prosperity,’ which is a goal I intend to pursue if elected as the governor of Enugu State.
You made up your mind to contest this election, what plans do you have for Enugu State? You recently unveiled your manifesto. Can you share the key areas of focus?
First of all, let me restate that my agenda for Enugu is very simple. I’ve spoken about leadership quite often. Leadership, whether it is in an organisation, a family, a community, a club, or wherever, is critical. If you do not have vision and discipline in leadership, if you do not have respectful and responsible leadership, you are not likely to make much progress. The second thing I spoke about is the issue of governance. Governance then means that you must recognize the machinery of government that is in place and then consciously find people who have the capacity, who have competence, who have character, to work with you to deliver governance. You must also have the personal discipline as a leader to allow the people you have selected to do their work. The third thing I spoke about is the issue of our security. No development can take place in an atmosphere of insecurity. Daily there are skirmishes in different communities. In just the past week, students of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and several others were abducted, with a ransom of N300 million requested. I will ensure the security of all Enugu residents using strategic intelligence gathering from communities, providing support for the security agencies, engaging the force at the federal level and taking advantage of the available technology in this 21st Century. The fourth thing is the matter of human capital development. Our greatest resource as a people in this state, is our citizens, young, dynamic, passionate, innovative, highly, highly driven. We must invest in the education sector, we must invest in the health sector because if we do not do this, we can only reap chaos and we can see it already manifesting. We must prepare the right labour force for the investments we want to attract to the state. The fifth is the issue of economic transformation. We must diversify this economy to help us become more productive and to ensure that people have work. We must make investments in our agricultural sector. We must intentionally restructure our industrial base. These were the areas on which substantial progress was made in the past in the Eastern Region, in the old Anambra and even in more recent years in the current Enugu State. We will restore the dynamism of our manufacturing sector. We will create an environment in which both domestic investors, citizens of Enugu and external investors who want to come into Enugu, can come with ease. This has to do with ensuring security, the right policy environment, and the right regulatory environment and, of course, basic infrastructure. Which is the sixth thrust I shared – we must pursue environmental sustainability and infrastructural development. Our roads will be salvaged and upgraded with a focus on roads that connect farms to market. This is essential to guarantee food security. We have to make water available for our people. This is a core part of my manifesto and one I have taken the time to study and design a solution for. Enugu will have water in the first 12 months of my administration. We must also clean up the state and make it appealing for guests while also reducing the health hazards that the current level of filth exposes us to. Finally, I talked about technology. We have a vibrant community of young people who are driving technological advancement in the state. We will give them the right support and our goal is to make Enugu become a major hub for technology and innovation in the country and indeed Africa. These things aren’t rocket science. We must keep it simple and focus on the basic needs of human existence. These are the things we must do now as a foundation. And then subsequently build upon it.
What potential do you think Enugu can harness under the right leadership that you are advocating?
Enugu is unique in so many ways. Enugu is richly blessed by its geography. The very fact that we’re located as a gateway to the other Eastern states, the North, the South and even the West is a great advantage for trade and logistics. We are also blessed with a predominantly young population, with about 12 tertiary institutions within a 20km radius. We have so much talent and youthful vigour which with the right education, healthcare and the right innovation support can actually become a major powerhouse and contributor to the transformation of our economy. Enugu is blessed with rich agricultural lands. If you go to the Enugu North Senatorial Zone, at Uzo-Uwani and Igbo-Eze North, we have hectares and hectares of rich arable land. If you go towards Ezeagu, you have these beautiful valleys and hills where you can engage in ranching activities. Even in Uzo-Uwani, we are blessed with rich mineral deposits, oil and gas deposits and many more. You proceed to the eastern parts, Ugboka, Mgburugbu, Nkerefi, and Akpawfu. We have rich agricultural land that is underutilised and mostly untapped. Of course, you still have the coal deposits for which Enugu was always known. In the midst of all of these is our rich scenery, the waterfalls we have all over the state. All of these combined with the clement climate here constitute very important opportunities for hospitality and tourism. Enugu has great potential which can be tapped and activated for the benefit of the people through strong and visionary leadership that is disciplined and knowledgeable.
You’ve served this country as a federal minister. In your own assessment, what do you think brought us to this level as a country and what is the way out of it?
I look back at my time in the Federal cabinet under President Obasanjo with some nostalgia. Nostalgia because of the amount of transformative work that was done at the time. Our economy was growing at over seven per cent, we paid off our foreign debts, significant reforms on anti-corruption, pension, healthcare, telecoms and banking sector. I had the privilege of working with one of the statesmen that has come out of Nigeria, highly detribalised and a hard worker. He has strong faith in Nigeria and believes in the people and my own faith in Nigeria was reinforced in so many ways. And so, I am heartbroken that in less than 20 years, everything I have spoken about has been reversed. Nigeria owes over $103 billion now. Our economy is prostrate, our country is deeply divided, unemployment and underemployment are at an all time high at above 50 per cent. Insecurity is at unprecedented levels. It goes back to what I was saying earlier about leadership. We had one man who believed in the country and then, we have another who came with a personal agenda for a subset of the entire nation. The result is what we see today and no one is safe, because of inept and despotic leadership. Where Nigeria is today, this country needs an individual who has the character, capacity and competence to lead. Someone whose background is verifiable and who has the fear of God in his heart. That is what this country needs if it is going to survive. We do have a significant opportunity to elect such leaders in this election cycle. My prayer is that Nigerians will open their eyes and recognize this, and make the right decisions at the polls in 2023.
There have been reports of attacks on political parties during their meetings. Are you worried about the spate of violence and what would you advise?
I’m disappointed that in this 21st Century political context, it is being reduced to the kind of violence you’ve just described. Your opponents are not allowed to have their party meetings? Your opponents are not allowed to campaign? You destroy their vehicles and their billboards. It is such a shame and I think that the sooner people understand that times have changed, especially with the recent amendments to the Electoral Act, the better it will be for all the parties. But I do have confidence that the security agencies know what to do and how to forestall any action that would lead to the loss of lives and property or perpetuate fear in the minds of people. I want to state clearly and if I may speak on behalf of APGA as well, we would continue to focus on an issues-based campaign. We have zero tolerance for any kind of violence. There is no ambition that is worth the shedding of human blood. Look at it this way, the government exists for the people. If you get all our people killed, who are you going to lead or govern? It’s that simple, and I think that if everybody will look at things from that perspective, then we can all choose to do the right thing and shun violence.