- VP lauds Governor’s contributions to nation-building
From Isaac Ojo, Ifeoma Ejiofor
It was assemblage of who is who in Awka, the Anambra State capital on Tuesday as Governor Charles Soludo was inaugurated for his second term in office.
Also inaugurated for a second term in office was his deputy, Dr Onyekachukwu Ibezim.
Topping the list of eminent personalities who graced the occasion included VP Kashim Shetima, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, former President Goodluuck Jonathan, and Oni of Ife, HRM, Enitan Ogunwusi
Other are former Governors Chris Ngige, and Mrs Virgy Etiaba, as well as Sen Uche Ekwunife, Chief Osita Chidoka, Igwe Alfred Achebe, Igwe Chidubem Iweka, chairman Anambra State traditional rulers council.
The business Community was not left out as Chiefs Arthur Eze, Emeka Offor, Cletus Ibeto, Obi Jackson and clergies too numerous graced the occasion.
The Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Alhaji Kazim Sheriff has on Tuesday stressed the need for strategic partnership between the states and federal government.
The Vice President who was speaking during the inauguration of Gov Charles Soludo’s second term at Dr Alex ‘Ekwueme Square, Awka said that the states need to key into the developmental strides of the federal government.
He highlighted some of the projects the government at the center has embarked upon in Anambra State and other Eastern States of Nigeria.
In his post inaugural speech, Gov Soludo said that his dream of making Anambra State African Dubai Silicon Valley is still very much on course, noting that under his watch, Anambra is back to the winning ways.
He thanked the people of the State for giving him an overwhelming victory in November 8 Anambra State governorship election even as he assured Ndi-Anambra and residents alike that he would continue to make democratic dividends available to them.
He however stressed the need to put an end to unnecessary agitation which has rendered the South Eastern part of Nigeria hostage back for the past few years.
Meanwhile, VicePresident Kashim Shettima, applauded Anambra State Governor Charles Soludo’s contributions to nation building, saying he has helped in fostering unity, and strengthening Nigeria’s political, economic, and social institutions with his practical commentaries on the state of the nation.
He described Prof. Soludo as a man of ideas and honour who, despite coming into office at a time many politicians had started mortgaging integrity for relevance, and sowing seeds of discord, has remained committed to national growth and development.
Senator Shettima, who represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the inauguration, noted that the President’s policies have benefited immensely from Soludo’s constructive advice.
“The policies of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, have benefited from the candour, specialist insight, and patriotic counsel of this distinguished economist, this restless thinker, this public intellectual of uncommon range, both in open fora and in private conversations. And that is how it should be.
“That is what it means to be in the business of nation-building. It means placing the welfare of the federation above the vanity of partisan fences. It means understanding that Nigeria is too precious a vessel to be abandoned to the storms simply because the rowers wear different colours,” he stated.
Observing that Prof. Soludo’s convictions transcends seminar halls, VP Shettima said the Anambra Governor is “a reminder that leadership can unify without shouting, persuade without humiliating, and stand firm without surrendering its soul,” especially in a season of needless divisions.
“It is therefore no surprise that his people have welcomed him again and entrusted him with another term to hold the rudder of this great state and guide it farther into safe and prosperous waters,” he stated, declaring that “the people of Anambra are today renewing not just a mandate, but a covenant with competence.
“And as Dr Onyekachukwu Ibezim takes this oath once again beside him, the state is also affirming that leadership is not only about the brilliance of the man at the top, but also about the steadiness, loyalty, and discipline of those who help translate vision into order, and order into progress,” the VP added.
The Vice President identified some of the lessons learnt from Prof. Soludo, including “that differences in political parties need not be invitations to hostility” but opportunities for collaboration.
“Professor has shown, too, that it is possible to see beyond the dangerous shenanigans that so often pass for politics in our clime, and to keep faith with the higher calling of public life,” he said.
On the Governor’s “practical commentaries on the state of the nation,” VP Shettima noted that whether on the economy or political matters, they “have become such permanent tenants in the media space that, once the Professor clears his throat, half the country reaches for a pen and the other half braces for impact.”
He pointed out that Prof. Soludo’s maturity of purpose has nurtured a “cordial and productive relationship between Anambra State and the Federal Government.”
He said the outcome had been a stability of engagement that has allowed the Governor “to demonstrate that he came not to be consumed by the old habits of power, but to prove that genuine change is possible in a land where many others only gamed the language of change.”
Under Prof. Soludo’s watch, according to the Vice President, deliberate effort has been made “to restore order to public life, strengthen security, and confront the criminality that had cast a shadow over parts of the state.”
He expressed confidence that Governor Soludo’s second term would be a return to consolidation and building higher on foundations already tested, even as he assured that the “Federal Government remains committed to partnering with states led by men and women who understand that the ultimate meaning of power is the improvement of human life.”
In his inauguration speech, Governor Soludo expressed determination to serve the state with all seriousness, promising that his team will build on the achievements made in his first tenure, with transformation and development as the main agenda.
He said Anambra State has witnessed a lot of progress in the health, education, financial, agricultural and many other sectors under his leadership, just as he thanked the people of the state for their overwhelming support during the gubernatorial election last year.
“The unprecedented 73 percent of the votes you cast in our favour was more than ordinary votes but an affirmation of love, patriotism and partnership of rebuilding our homeland. We will never take your historic support for granted,” he said.
The Governor thanked President Tinubu and Vice President Shettima as well as their wives for their support.
“Progressives are working together,” Governor Soludo said, thanking members of the APC in the state for supporting him, just as he pledged to work for all in order “to build the Anambra of our dream”
He also said the state has a clear destination, and that “by 2030, Anambra will transit into an African Dubai, Taiwan and Silicon valley.”
Dignitaries who attended the inauguration include former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan; former Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Chief Emeka Anyaoku; former Governor of Anambra State, Dr Chris Ngige; Deputy Governors of Delta, Kaduna, Enugu and Abia States, and the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, among others.
