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GODWIN SOLUDO AND THE ANAMBRA SIRENS
Nigerians hardly agree on anything. There are so many agendas in the country, so many diverging interests and so many diversionary tactics. However, a rare common ground is found in the fact that Nigerians agree that many of the country`s problems since independence in 1960 were engendered or exacerbated by poor leadership.
Nigerians almost unanimously agree that many of the men saddled with leadership at different levels since 1960 when Nigeria gained independence, and since 1999 when it returned to democracy have simply not been up to scratch. Nigerians agree that many of them have failed to be proactive about addressing Nigeria`s multifaceted problems.
Whenever elections come out, the hope which is always so brutally suppressed is that Nigerians can get it right by electing leaders who can hold their own when leadership becomes tough as it is always wont to be in Nigeria.
So far, this has however always largely failed to materialize as corrupt mediocre after corrupt mediocre continues to straddle Nigeria`s halls of power.
Anambra State is counting days to the swearing in of Mr. Charles Chukwuma Soludo, professor of economics, eminent public intellectual, erudite scholar and former governor of Nigeria`s Central Bank as the fifth governor of the state since Nigeria returned to democracy in 1999 and already, the air is thick with celebration and expectation. In many ways, Mr. Soludo, a man of many firsts, is about to bring yet another first to Nigeria`s power equation as it is supremely doubtful that any man with his intellect and background has become either governor or president in Nigeria since the country returned to democracy in 1999.
Mr. Soludo`s victory in the November 6, 2021 polls was a victory of fortitude over several painful failures. Having persevered to allow Anambra voters elect him, it will be interesting to see how he will approach the arduous task of governing Anambra.
How Mr. Soludo performs as governor would either further solidify his status as a towering public intellectual as well as confirm his legacy as a public servant, or imperil all he achieved in the various positions he held before now. Unlike many states in Nigeria, Anambra State is used to good governance and its people who have shown themselves increasingly sophisticated with each election would settle for nothing less. In fact, given Mr. Soludo`s antecedents, the people of Anambra State would expect him to do more for them than all their previous governors combined including the excellent Mr. Peter Obi. The expectations of the people and how Mr. Soludo navigates the expectations will define his legacy.
In 1999, upon Nigeria`s return to democracy, Anambra State endured four years of the puzzlingly poor administration of Mr. Chinwoke Mbadinuju until it became clear as day that the Peoples Democratic Party was determined to turn the state into its playground.
During the 2003 general elections, the PDP unexpectedly slipped to defeat. Even when the current Minister of Labour and Employment Mr. Chris Ngige was smuggled into the Amawbia Government House through the backdoor, landmark judgments from Nigeria`s highest courts booted him out in 2006. The inimitable Mr. Peter Obi took his place and weathered another PDP storm in 2007 thanks to the iron clarity of the Nigerian judiciary. Mr. Peter Obi went on to give the Nigerian political class a lesson in good governance from 2006 -2014
The defiantly unique nature of politics in Anambra State has since set the tone for what happens in the state and this is surely set to continue with Mr. Soludo and even beyond him.
Mr. Soludo was governor of Nigeria`s central bank for many years but he may yet find governance in Anambra State nothing like he has ever witnessed before. He would have to prove that he can translate his impressive credentials into an excellent performance as governor in one of Nigeria`s more eccentric states. To do these, he must keep away many distractions which like sirens would seek to lure him to failure.
Kene Obiezu,
