Young Progressive Party (YPP) governorship candidate in Anambra State, Paul Chukwuma, has accused Governor Charles Soludo of allegedly using state-backed militias and public funds to compromise the forthcoming governorship election in the state.
Speaking on ARISE News on Wednesday, Chukwuma alleged that the governor has made “all the necessary arrangements to violate various provisions of the Electoral Act,” adding that he is “poised to scuttle this election.”
He said, “I have absolute confidence in the system, especially with INEC and the security agencies. Inasmuch as I’m very confident that I’m going to win this election, and this confidence finds expression from the robust campaign we’ve run in Anambra State, which has resonated very clearly with the grassroots in Anambra. But I must quickly point out that the incumbent governor, regardless of whatever assurance he may have given, is poised to scuttle this election to the extent that he has made all the necessary arrangements to violate various provisions of the electoral act.”
According to Chukwuma, the governor has allegedly mobilised state resources and armed groups to intimidate opposition supporters and influence the polls.
“As we speak, the governor has made arrangements even in my local government. My local government is Anambra East… the governor is using the local government chairman, the so-called mayors of the various local governments, to ensure that the state militia, which the governor is funding, are used to scuttle this election. They have made reservations in hotels across the state to camp these chaps,” he alleged.
Chukwuma further accused the governor of “weaponising hunger” and misusing taxpayers’ money to buy votes, insisting that the people of Anambra were “tired” of the current administration.
“The governor has shamelessly opened the vault of the state. His only confidence in this election is on the state militia and the taxpayers’ money that he has kept all these years and refused to do anything for Anambra. The governor has weaponized hunger and he intends to rely on this to scuttle this election,” he said.
He maintained that the state’s worsening security situation contradicted the governor’s claims that Anambra was safe. “The governor will shamelessly come to national television and will be talking about, you know, litany of lies. I watched the governor on national television talking about that, you know, that security has been in place. But as I can talk to you today, every day, including yesterday, two days ago, people are being kidnapped on daily basis. Even a community representative of a community has just been kidnapped,” he said.
Chukwuma added that Anambra was “broken” under the current administration. “The governor has not done anything. Anambra is broken. So the issues at this election are enormous,” he said.
The YPP candidate, who is a lawyer claimed that most communities in Anambra lacked basic educational and health infrastructure. “In Anambra State today, we have about 76 communities that you will not find a single government primary or secondary school,” he said.
When pressed for exact figures on schools and healthcare centres in the state, Chukwuma responded, “I won’t be able to give you the actual number of the schools because even as we speak, some schools are closing down while some schools, you know, are coming on stream, even as we speak today. In my community now, we have schools that have been more or less abandoned, and the community is trying to use community effort to bring it back to life.”
On the governor’s much-publicised “Soludo Solution” initiative, Chukwuma dismissed it as mere branding without substance. “It’s a different thing. I see that sign board, that badge littered everywhere, even around the refuge bins in Anambra State. I fixed a road that has been dilapidated for three years… I am campaigning at the grassroots and I need, you know, assets for people to come back and vote for YPP,” he stated.
Chukwuma urged security agencies to “verify and investigate” his allegations, maintaining that Anambra citizens deserved a transparent and credible election.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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