For his consistent efforts to return Anambra State on the part of progress through innovative, courageous and effective leadership, inspite of numerous distractions, for making transparency and prudence the watchword and foundation of his administration, Prof Chukwuma Soludo is ANAMBRA PERSON OF THE WEEK.
Governor of Anambra State, Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, CFR, is gradually but steadily delivering on his election promises to ndi Anambra.
He has actually proven that despite distractions, his only desire is to see results in concrete terms. His vision to make Anambra a prosperous state has started yielding fruits and the wheel of governance is moving in every aspects. The picture is becoming more clearer by the day.
Hitting the ground running from the first day,one can confidently say that the governor has restored hope and confidence to the state. Anambra is taking its pride of place once again in the comity of States and at the same time becoming the darling of international organizations whose absence were felt in the last eight years of the last administration.
To start with, Soludo has courageously faced insecurity head-on. This is true if we take into cognizance the fact that some governors in the zone and even elsewhere have abdicated their responsibilities as chief security officers of their states, choosing instead to outsource or hand them over in the hands of God .But here is a Chief security officer who understands his functions rather than pride in his official appellation by choosing to lead from the front , taking the war to the dens of these miscreants tormenting the peace of the good and industrious people of our State . Today , Anambra is becoming hellish for hoodlums who have held Igboland to ransome . There is no doubt that the State is actually returning to its glory as a peaceful haven and this may actually be the reason the just concluded presidential and national assembly elections in Anambra was held in a most peaceful atmosphere. Even opposition parties can attest to this fact
The Governor’s approach to dealing with criminality, with the support of state security agencies, deployment of modern security technology and recent employment of about 2,000 able-bodied men into the Anambra State Vigilante Group is yielding positive results.
On the State finances,Soludo who inherited mountain of debt as a result of the recklessness of the last administration is succeeding in restoring the state on the path of financial stability. This is also commendable particularly when it is obvious that some other chief executive are borrowing away the future of the State they lead , while he has continued to plug leaky holes in the state account as well as exploring other creative ways of generating revenue. His strategy is simple; dismantling the corrupt system of revenue collection in the state. Plans to modernize levies collection and remittances at the private and public transport parks for drivers of urban buses and shuttles, tricycle riders and commercial motorcyclists are underway. Today, the finances and Internally Generated Revenue of Anambra State are being well managed with high standards of transparency.
The traffic jam nightmare that has made economic and social activities very stressful and wasteful for most people has improved significantly. Thanks to the relentless joint efforts of a rejuvenated Anambra Road Traffic Management Agency, Operation Clean and Healthy Anambra, Anambra State Joint Enforcement Team and others. Incidents of driving against the traffic, abandoned vehicles and other traffic bottlenecks have reduced.
In a spectacular move,today, the Governor is involved in over 260 roads projects making Anambra state a one large construction site. These roads scattered all over the state are currently at various degrees of completion expected to be delivered within the next 24 months. Solar powered streetlights are also coming back to replace the money gulping diesel lighting system for night security.
The Governor is ending the era of hospitals without doctors, nurses and consultants with the recruitment of over 400 medical personnel in the general hospitals across the state. He is not stopping at just the employment of personnel but has moved a step further in embarking on renovation of some of these General hospitals. Knowing full well that health and education are two most important indices to measure development, he has equally swung into action in the education sector with the recruitment of 5,000 teachers at a go to teach in public primary and secondary schools. The recruitment process was 100% merit based and transparent as the government went for the best, no matter where the applicants came from.
Also, 5,000 Anambra youths are currently undergoing various trainings in a special one-youth-two skills programme and will be empowered with billions of naira to start their own businesses and create wealth. This is a game changer in youth employment in the State.
As the Governor is empowering the youths to be leaders of tomorrow through quality education and skills acquisition, he is also not neglecting the leaders of yesterday who served the state as civil servants. For Governor Soludo, pensioners deserve their rewards. To this end , pensioners who had not received their gratuities since 2018 have be paid off and effort are in top gear to clean off backlog of gratuities owed prior to 2018.
Soludo’s urban renewal drive has seen him restore sanity in our major cities. The once neglected Okpoko is receiving attention and looks good to become the new face of Anambra emerging real estate market.
In the area of Agriculture, the government is working towards ensuring food security for Ndi Anambra by launching the regenerative Agricultural system that will boost massive food production. Over 20,000 organic coconut seedlings from Malaysia have been distributed to farmers. The economic benefits will begin to materialize soon.
As for electricity supply, the government is signing an MOU with the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC) to ensure that there is 24-hour provision of power to boost socio-economic activities, especially in the three major cities of the state.
And to cushion the effect of the harsh economic situation in the country, Governor Soludo in December 2022, approved an increase in the salaries of Anambra State civil servants by 10%, with a N15, 000 Christmas bonus for every worker.
On all fronts, Governor Soludo has demonstrated a sense of humanity anchored on responsibility, accountability, prudence and transparency.
According to the governor, these are just the foundation upon which the coming development projects will rest on.
With Soludo, Anambra is working
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