From Magnus Eze, Enugu
Bianca Ojukwu, Nigeria’s former Ambassador to Spain and widow of late Biafra leader Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, has praised the people of Anambra State for keeping faith with her husband’s legacy by giving the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) a landmark victory in the just-concluded governorship elections.
She congratulated the governor-elect, Prof Charles Chukwuma Soludo, noting that, with his victory, the people of Anambra have not allowed Ojukwu’s legacy to die.
Ojukwu, who had in an emotion-laden appeal on the eve of the elections invoked the spirit of her late husband to lead APGA into the electoral battlefield, expressed satisfaction not only with the conduct of the elections but also with the fact that it was ostensibly violence-free.
She thanked party supporters and well-wishers who thronged to her residence to jubilate over the news of the party’s victory at the polls.
In her statement shortly after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced Soludo winner, Ojukwu said: ‘I am exceedingly grateful to the good people of Anambra State for their steadfastness and resolute commitment to the survival of Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu’s legacy; for breathing back hope into a political heritage that was slowly inching towards an eclipse, and for giving us the chance to live another day. After almost 16 years of governance in the state, Ndi Anambra has given us yet another fresh mandate.
‘This victory presents our party with another golden opportunity to prove to the citizens of Anambra State that our party’s welfarism agenda and commitment to the grassroots remains firmly in place and that we are dedicated to correcting the misdeeds of the past as we usher in a new era of dynamism in governance.’
According to Ojukwu, Soludo had proven by his past records that he is capable of bringing rapid development not only to Anambra but to the whole of the South East region.
She expressed the hope that the governor-elect would demonstrate a clear commitment towards repositioning the APGA by reviving internal democracy, equity and transparency in the workings of the party, in order to rebuild confidence and goodwill.
Noting that Soludo’s emergence as governor heralds a new dawn for Anambra, Ojukwu appealed to the APGA members who have left the party in anger to keep an open mind, adding that ‘in due course, we hope that they will return and join hands in the process of rebuilding our party.’