Former All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) chieftain and currently, Anambra State governorship aspirant of All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Chike Obidigbo, speaks with Special Correspondent, OKEY MADUFORO, on his aspiration and agenda for the state
Leaving APGA for APC
You know what happened in the last election and the primaries. I was drafted into the race for governorship and those who drafted me came from APGA. After that came all the endorsements from the Local Government Areas to the Senatorial Zones. At a point it was very clear that I was going to be the candidate of APGA in that election.
Even (Governor) Willie Obiano knew that I was going to be the candidate of the party.
After all that happened, it became an opportunity to look at the political terrain to study what the Igbo nation needed. After that study for almost one year, I became convinced that for Anambra State and the entire Igbo land to be part of the national discuss, we must key into the centre.
APGA you know is a one-state party. Decision making in APGA is simple. So, in that process, they make a lot of mistakes.
A national party is a board-thinking party. You most interact with Senatorial people from different ethnic groups and shades of opinion and take a decision that is broad based. A party like the APC is one of them. When issues that have to do with getting the entire ethnic interests to brain storm on a way forward for their people are concerned, the PDP would enter into a caucus meeting; the APC would hold its caucus meetings, but APGA cannot. And Igbo people would continue to lose out in that process.
The Igbo, including Anambra people, must find a way to get proper representation and that informed my choice of the APC. As I talk now, if you give me APGA ticket free of charge, I will not take it
Manifesto for 2017
I have been around the business world. When it comes to the issue of job creation, I will rate myself the best, over all candidates for Anambra State. I have been to both developed and developing world and I have seen it all. What matters is to contribute to the society through my experience. God has packaged me for this moment.
Every year we produce large number of graduates and they go for NYSC.
But at the end of that, they are bundled back to the society as an army of unemployed youths. I can tell you that in the past 20 years, no job has been created.
We should be talking about producing sustainable job for our youths so that we can have peaceful retirement. That is the way to develop and grow sustainable economy for Anambra State. When you move around our state, you will see a lot of opportunities. What we have today is a virgin economy. I do not see recession, what I see is backwardness and we have billions of untapped resources in Anambra State.
Conservatives and imposition politics in APC
I was with Peter Obi before and he drafted me into the race as it were because he knew what I could do.
All the while, I never depended on anybody. I interacted with a large number of people and they believed that I could do it and would do it. And but for what happened, I would have won.
Today I do not depend on anybody or depend on any god father. I will not want any obstructions. So, the issue of the conservatives in APC that would want to impose their favourites cannot affect my ambition. At my age and experience, I do not need them. It is not even the best for our state now.
I have been the Chairman of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and I have nothing to fear about.
What is happening now and the accolades that come to me, are as a result of what happened and my achievements in the past. My company Hadis Andromeda has branches in the four states in the South East. So I do not need any introduction
We have not been able to combine the intellectual capacity of the Igbo man into governance. That explains why a lot of people do not know what politics and governance are all about in most political parties. And they call themselves conservatives in the party.
Our people from the academia do well outside Nigeria and most of them are Igbos. Our people are gifted by God but we do not exploit and integrate them into leadership.
Look at Engineer Arthur Eze and the likes of Emeka Offor. If they can come in and integrate the intellectuals from Igbo land you can imagine what our people stand to gain at the end of the day. Ndigbo as a matter of fact, need projects that can give them everlasting name. When you assemble such well-to-do men and women of Igbo extraction and then create a synergy between the intellectual class and such business men, we can achieve impact. Let us do it in their name and for the progress of Ndigbo.
These are the things that I intend to do as the governor of Anambra State. I do not need any god father to realize this.
The people you call the conservatives or those who say that they are the real builders and owners of the party, will also benefit from it. What matters in our party, APC, is to present a good candidate, win the election, and run a populist government that would spill the party over to other states in the South East.
When we begin to consider those people you talked about, it becomes a problem.
These are some of the problems most political parties in Nigeria have and this should not be the problem of the APC.
I know that God has packaged me for this job in Anambra State. Even in APC, the more the aspirants emerge, God only knows who the governor will be.
Intrigues in APC primaries
Most people believe that there is so much dishonesty and distrust in politics and as a result of that, anything goes.
People do not believe that honesty pays in politics. That was the main problem that we faced while I was in APGA.
We were about 11 aspirants in APGA during the last governorship election and we agreed that we would back or support the eventual winner and we contested happily.
11 of us raised money to promote APGA as our party and to ensure that the party won for about eighteen months.
Suddenly, out of the blues they flew in Obiano who told us that he was in his swimming pool taking his Champaign and they called him to come and rule Anambra State. Even the primaries was funny and everybody knew what happened.
I have said it before that APC primary election should be free and fair or should be seen as free and fair. That is the only way we can get it right.
In APGA, Obiano has frustrated the opportunity for any other person to contest. When Dr. Afoka indicated to contest, APGA attacked him and this is not good.
Today we have the APC Committee for Anambra State governorship election which is headed by former governor, Senator Jim Nwobodo.
I am pleased with the committee. It will help in achieving a level play ground during the primaries. The caliber of those in the committee would also help in getting the South East key into the APC, which is the party at the centre in Nigeria. They will not want to soil their hands with corruption.
My ambition in APC is not a do-or-die affair. If at the end they say I am not the candidate, there will be no problem. If the committee gets it right in Anambra State which is the head of the South East, then we are set for the rest of the zone.
Politics of zoning in Anambra
This concept of zoning was Mr. Peter Obi’s baby and I was among those that promoted it. The man saw a lot of reasons for that zoning and I agreed with him
I do not agree that zoning would promote mediocrity. If you study Anambra politics, you would discover that it makes for spread and equity. At a time in the life of a people they always know what they want in politics and governance. That is exactly what zoning is all about. There is no zone that does not have men and women of integrity that can pilot the state to success.
When Peter Obi invited me to say that he wanted me to succeed him, I agreed and told him that that was the only way to ensure balance.
Even in APC, it has a kind of zoning arrangement and it is of great advantage for Anambra people.
It can also bring out the best out of the people. We contributed money, time and energy to promote zoning. Other states in the South East have adopted the zoning arrangement except Imo State that changed the arrangement at some point.
So if anybody is opposed to zoning, he is not helping the states and the South East in general.
Today Willie Obiano is governor of Anambra State from Anambra North based on the zoning arrangement. If he is not doing well, it does not mean that everybody from Anambra North Senatorial Zone is a non-performer.
So, the North still has the opportunity of providing good governance for the Anambra people. It is my opinion and that of Anambra North that we should be given another chance to complete a two-term tenure of eight years before it goes to another Senatorial zone.
