Anambra 2021: APC is party to beat, says Nwankwo

As preparations for the gubernatorial election in Anambra State, gathers steam, aspirants are already neck deep in the race for the Government House, Awka. An aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Chidozie Wilson Nwankwo, in this encounter with Emmanuel Udodinma, speaks on his ambition and sundry issues

 

What informed your interest in the governorship election of Anambra State?

It is about service to my people and nothing more. Most people are of the belief that politics is dirty and that it is for only criminals and that explains why people who have no business in governance are in power and everybody will continue to complain about bad governance. The only way to ensure good governance is for the right people to be in charge of affairs. If we continue to stay on the fence things will continue to go bad and we will always have ourselves to blame. Our people need good governance and populist governance. So I have offered myself as that instrument of change and to restore the confidence of Ndi Anambra in governance.

 Some people are saying that you are too new in politics and that you cannot withstand the challenges in the field?

It is not about being new in politics. We do not have to go to school to become a politician because it is all about delivery and I will surely deliver on record. Though I have not been into active party politics, I have been around and I have made meaningful contributions to politics without making noise about it. So for somebody to say that I am new in politics, they are making a mistake.

The choice of your political party, the APC, seems to be the problem?

Let us make it clear that the APC is the party to beat in this coming election in Anambra State and the belief that APC is not on ground is wrong. What the APC government has done so far in Anambra State is enough reason for Anambra to vote for the party. I do not need to count the achievements of the party or the number of political appointments which Anambra people are holding in the APC-led government at the centre.

There are political parties that have been in power by happenstance and they got it on a platter of gold and they still feel that it is going to be business as usual. But in this election our dear party is moving on and at the end you will discover that our party is very much on ground.

There is the need for Anambra to connect to the centre and benefit bountifully from the government. This our low ranger status does not speak well of Anambra State; the number one state in Southeast and Nigeria in general. Anambra people love APC only that some desperate politicians have been feeding them with lies but those lies have been uncovered.

But your party is the one that has been accused of not being democratic in the conduct of its primary elections and with the calibre of aspirants in the party and horse trading; how can you overcome that?

The party has a constitution and guidelines for the conduct of the primary election and it is followed to the letter and there is nothing ambiguous about it. Only those who are afraid of losing the election allege that the process is unconstitutional. If you want to contest, throw yourself into the race and take it as it comes.

For me, I have confidence in the electoral process and his Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari, has always championed this. As for my fellow aspirants, I have nothing to fear about because it is all about delegates and if you canvass and campaign well, nothing can stop you from winning the primary election.

It is not about names or how much money you have; it is about your capacity and acceptability by the party members and those who are boasting that some powers that be would hand over the ticket to them are also joking because we are contesting to win and we must go with our best.

Don’t forget that the ruling All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) wants to remain in power and the Peoples Democratic Party PDP has been out of power for so long and they want to come back. So we cannot as a political party present an unpopular and unacceptable person as our candidate or even impose an unknown factor as a candidate.

You have this mantra: A new Anambra is possible; what exactly do you mean?

Of course it is possible and it can be achievable. All that we need is to prioritise our needs and work towards that goal. As a man in the private sector, I know that the private sector drives the economy of any country and Anambra as a state is not an exception. Anambra State has all that it takes to succeed and when we exploit our rich resources and put it to good use, we shall excel. We need to bring in multinationals to come over and invest in our state so that our people will be employed and the revenue accruing from there will jump start our Internally Generated Revenue by more than 70 per cent. These companies would also support us in providing social security and other basic infrastructure for our state and with that our over dependence on Federal Allocations would be less. Whatever we get from FAC would be channeled to areas like health, education and works. Again, before the creation of the current Anambra State, when Enugu was part of the state; the Onitsha main market was providing a source of revenue to pay salaries but today it is not the case. So, you see that we did not prioritize our needs at the beginning and the question is does it mean that Onitsha Main Market is not growing? At what point did we get it wrong? Who are those managing our resources? These are unanswered questions about Anambra State and once these questions are answered, a new Anambra State would become possible.

Your success story in the private sector is being celebrated by so many people and one wonders if it is possible in governance?

Vision is the starting point and it is more important than strategy. Your vision drives your strategies and gives you a benchmark to measure your performance. If you have the right vision, it basically takes care of the strategies but if you think about strategies first; it will inhibit your vision. I started business with only N10, 000 which I got through long term savings and some assistance from my family and I knew I have to work hard to make the business successful. Same would be the case when I get to the Government House, Awka. You must have financial discipline and make sure that what you are putting out there is not just for the fun of it but sustainable and for the good of the people. Why people fail in government is because they put the strategy first before the vision and midway they become overwhelmed by the trappings of power, governance and politics. This is our bane in Anambra State and we need to get it right now.

 As a businessman and a manufacturer, what is your take on the recent developments at the Onitsha River Port?

That explains why I said earlier that the APC is the party to beat. This would have a multiplier effect on commerce and industry in the Southeast and South-south.