By Francis Ede
The governorship election to determine who occupies the Lion Building in Enugu, after the tenure of Governor Sullivan Chime, is some weeks away. And this is even as some political parties and their candidates are engaged in last minute strategic manoeuvers to get the votes of the people of Enugu State to accomplish their dreams.
But one candidate, who stands shoulder high above the rest and whose optimism, confidence and determination to win the election is nurtured by the day, is Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Gburugburu) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Indeed, teachers, students, farmers, traders, civil servants, the clergy, youths and women groups, leaders of thought in the state are all falling over themselves to drum support for him through mass rallies and other sundry campaign methods.
The euphoria that greeted his emergence, first as the adopted consensus candidate of his party and secondly when he finally won the primaries against the Speaker of Enugu State House of Assembly, is yet to abate among the people of Enugu, as they eagerly await to give him their total mandate by February 28, 2015, the scheduled date for the governorship election nationwide.
But why is Ugwuanyi the people’s choice? Firstly, Enugu State is traditionally a PDP state, much more than any other state in the whole of South East geo-political zone. The state has maintained its lead as the strongest anchor of the party from the onset of the political dispensation in 1999. While some of the states have wavered from one political party to the other, Enugu has remained firmly in the hands of PDP and this is not about to change as Hon. Ugwuanyi is expected to latch unto this solid foundation and have an ease ride to victory.
Secondly is the incumbent power, which PDP and its candidate or candidates enjoy in the coming general election far much more than any other political party. The PDP candidate is assured of a well-oiled political structure and election apparatus from the ward level upwards to facilitate mass mobilisation of voters for a smooth victory. All elective and appointive positions, both at the council areas, state and Federal government belong to PDP members and their supporters. And it is imperative for this group of people to endeavour to deliver the candidate of the party.
Thirdly is President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election bid. The fact that the president is vying for a 2nd term in office on the platform of PDP and with the South East zone as his main political base, and having regard that Enugu State is the strongest PDP state in the zone, it therefore, goes without any shade of doubt that voters in Enugu State will be voting massively for President Jonathan in the presidential election and Hon. Ugwuanyi in the governorship election and indeed, for all the PDP candidates to all other elective positions that are billed to take place during the general elections.
This point is made poignant by the fact that Enugu is the place the president will kick off his presidential campaign for the South East. This will, no doubt, rob off well on Hon. Ugwuanyi’s own campaign effort.
Fourthly is the excellent performance of Governor Sullivan Chime in office in close to eight years, which has laid a solid foundation for both human and infrastructure development. Most voters in the state believes that there is a great need for consolidation, confident that Ugwuanyi’s emergence as the next governor of the state will guarantee this. As Governor Chime has testified that Ugwuanyi has the capacity to expand the frontiers of this meaningful development in the state.
Fifthly is Ugwuanyi’s antecedents as a member of the House of Representatives, representing Igbo-Eze North/Udenu Federal Constituency. He has posted an impressive record in the course of his legislative duties and this stands him out among other candidates to the governorship election. As chairman of the House of representative Committee on Marine Transport for the 6th & 7th assemblies, he led other committee members to initiate and sponsor bills, whose passage into law have tremendously transformed the maritime sector of our nation’s economy, bringing increased business and enhanced revenue to the benefit of Nigerians.
He has also made landmark achievements in attracting constituency projects to the state. This include the selection of the University of Nigeria as one of the four universities in the country that benefited from the establishment of Maritime Institute. He also pushed for the establishment of an Inland Container Depot (ICD) at Obollo Afor, in Udenu LGA of Enugu State and the designation of Obollo Afor as a Federal Government of Nigeria Trailer Park. These are all aside other projects that he used the influence of his office to attract to other parts of the state.
And his personal charisma and kindness has made him a toast of the voting public, taking into cognizance his exceptional aptitude and talent for service to humanity. He has already promised to run an inclusive and consultative government based on continuity of programmes, ideas and projects initiated by Governor Chime’s administration, so as to maintain the tempo and momentum already established by the award winning Governor Chime.
Lastly is the quality of other candidates to the governorship election in Enugu State. There is, no doubt, that people of Enugu State have willingly aggregated their individual and collective interests in the candidature of Hon. Ugwuanyi, the consensus among voters is that he is the right man for the job. And this, in many ways, have affected the caliber of candidates available to other political parties to field in the coming election, as most capable and well-qualified aspirants have since stepped down their ambitions to allow Ugwuanyi, the people’s choice, to emerge. As a leader of one of the numerous support groups recently put it, “we wish Enugu State Goodluck-Gburugburu.”
Ede, a public affairs analyst, wrote in from Enugu.
