By Ishaya Ibrahim, News Editor
Mr. Valentine Ozigbo, former banker and Managing Director of Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, has won the primary election of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Anambra State.
He will therefore fly the party’s flag in the November 6 standalone governorship election.
In a fiercely contested poll Ozigbo polled 62 votes to beat Dr. Obiora Okonkwo (58 votes) and Senator Uche Ekwunife (44 votes) to the second and third positions respectively to clinch the ticket.
Two votes were voided out of the total 218 votes cast.
While Barrister Emeka Etiaba SAN and Dr. Tony Nwoye polled stepped down, Hon. Chris Azubuogu 10 votes Mrs. Genevieve Ekwochi (3 votes), Dr. Godwin Maduka (5 votes), Walter Ubaka Okeke (2 votes), Dr. Ifedi Okwenna (1 vote), Lady Chidi Onyemelukwe (2 votes), Mr. Valentine Ozigbo (62) and Dr. Winston Udeh 12 votes
The Amesi, Aguata-born politician, hails from Anambra South, the senatorial zone that has the brightest chance of producing the next governor of the state.
Celebration has already erupted in Amessi in particular and Aguata generally.
In an exclusive interview with TheNiche on May 29, 2020, Ozigbo vowed that if elected governor, he would transform Anambra and se a standard for governance in Nigeria.
With his victory in the PDP primary poll, he is only one step away from fulfilling that vow.
In the global financial system, Ozigbo, a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and four other professional bodies, is a big name.
The immediate past President and Chief Executive Officer of Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc (TRANSCORP), a diversified conglomerate with strategic investments and core interests in the hospitality, agribusiness and energy sectors, Ozigbo worked previously as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Transcorp Hotels Plc.
He also worked in the banking industry, gaining over 17 years of experience with NAL Merchant Bank, Diamond Bank, Continental Trust Bank, FSB International Bank, Standard Trust Bank and United Bank for Africa, most of the time managing leading global multilateral institutions in their intricate relationship with the Nigerian financial institutions.