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Soludo’s Call For Relocation Of Investment To Anambra Stirs Controversy
Published
10 months agoon
By
EditorA few days ago, Anambra State governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo went on an investment drive in Lagos.
During a town hall meeting with Anambra people resident in the state, Soludo advised them to consider relocating their investments back home, as part of the think home philosophy.
Soludo told them that Anambra State was ready for business and investments, adding that investing in the state would be in their own best interest.
The Governor went further to state some of the achievements of his young administration, and his plans to develop the state, and how all hands must be on deck for that to be achieved.
He enjoined them to reflect deeply on it and do everything possible to contribute to the growth of the state.
“This is the same question I ask myself everyday. And we have a responsibility to leave Anambra State better than we met it. Your host (Lagos) will never respect you if you don’t have a livable and prosperous homeland,” Governor Soludo reiterated.
Just days after the call, two Anambra indigenes, a comedian, I Go Tuk, who is also known as Ogbuefi Main Market and a Radio personality, Ifeanyi Orakwue, also known as Huge Man, made podcasts, berating the governor for such a call.
Ogbuefi Main Market in his podcast berated Soludo for the bad roads in the state, saying that if Soludo must think of advising Anambra people in Lagos to return home, he must first fix the bad roads in the state, as investors will need roads to come into the state, and move their wares about.
On his part, Orakwue decried the level of insecurity in the state, saying that any state that cannot ensure the security of people and businesses had no right to call for investments.
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He went further to narrate that nightlife in Anambra has died totally because of insecurity.
Mentioning streets in Onitsha where he lives, Orakwue said he recently had a need to rush his daughter to hospital one evening at about 6 pm, but he was surprised that after he left the hospital and drove home, all the streets were already totally empty, while shops had closed.
He said even in his estate at 3-3, Nkwelle Ezunaka where soldiers were in charge of security, he got back at about 7 pm to find that the gate had been shut.
He said his enquiry showed that the decision was because of the level of insecurity in the town, adding that as early as 6 pm, businesses in the commercial city of Onitsha had closed, and queried if that was the kind of place Soludo wanted Anambra indigenes who are enjoying the beautiful atmosphere that Lagos offered, to leave and return home.
Both Ogbuefi Main Market and Orakwue concluded their podcast by advising Anambra people not to listen to the governor, or heed his advice, but to continue to do their businesses in Lagos, pending when Soludo would fix Anambra State, and make it ready to receive the level of investment Soludo was seeking.
The reaction of both men to the call by the governor have in the past one week generated controversies, with many berating them for demarketing the state, while some others have sided with them, claiming that their stand was in order.
Reacting to the call by both men, Mr Ejimofor Opara, the media and publicity secretary of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), in a podcast on Facebook, which was made to counter those by Orakwue and Ogbuefi Main Market, said that there was no society that was entirely devoid of crime, noting that even Lagos has its fair share of it, yet Anambra indigenes have continued to invest in the state.
READ ALSO: Naira Crisis: Pity Nigerians, Soludo Tells Buhari
Reacting to Ogbuefi Main Market, particularly, Opara said he was recently in Lagos, and took out time to visit many areas where Igbo indigenes were living in squalid areas that didn’t have roads and were mostly flooded, yet they managed to reside in the place.
He wondered why anyone would de-market Anambra on the grounds of roads.
Also, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr Chris Aburime came down hard on both Orakwue and Ogbuefi, claiming that Soludo’s visit to Lagos was a serious business that should not be reduced to the level of comedy.
He said: “This wasn’t a jamboree, but serious business. The mission was simple and unambiguous.
“He came to Lagos to seek partners in progress in the quest to build a prosperous, livable and secured Anambra State that all can be proud of.
“At least, if it is true that heavens help those who first help themselves, Anambra’s own sons and daughters must be sought out first as investors to join hands with the governor in the task of state building.
“Beyond political pandering, Governor Soludo is a leader in a hurry to transform Anambra State for good and leave it better than he met it.
“He has no luxury of time to waste. So, he would stop at nothing to enlist support wherever it could be found.”
On the other hand, there are some indigenes of the state, who saw nothing wrong in the what Orakwue and Ogbuefi said, claiming that the level of insecurity in the state was high and needed to be attended to, despite Soludo’s claims of having whittled it down drastically.
Mr Ifeanyi Okolo, a businessman and commentator on public affairs said: “This noise they are making and abusing Ogbuefi Main Market, can they dispute that roads in Anambra are not bad? What the two men gave are advice that the state government should take and try to work on, to make the state better.
READ ALSO: ‘Headless Mob Killed Christ’: Soludo’s Easter Message Sparks Controversy, OBIdients Allege Mockery
“In the case of Orakwue, he gave an account of how he took his child to hospital and how all the shops had closed at 7 pm because of insecurity.
“So, do you expect that he should tell lies to please the state government and claim that people stay out until midnight, when that is false? They should rather work with the advice of both men.”
Meanwhile, Governor Soludo doesn’t seem to be oblivious of the problems enumerated by both Orakwue and Ogbuefi.
He had assured that even though he had done more in the area of insecurity and road construction, more would be done.
Speaking to Anambra State stakeholders in Lagos, Soludo said: “On the chaotic nature of Onitsha, my government is determined to resurrect Onitsha by returning it to its former glory as the biggest commercial city in the South-East and beyond.
“Concerning security-related issues, my administration has drastically reduced the menace of killings and kidnapping to the barest minimum with the security architecture put in place by his government.
“I commend security forces: the Army, the Navy, the Police, the States Vigilante Group and other paramilitary agencies for their dogged efforts in contributing to the successes recorded so far.
“I assure you that law and order has been greatly restored in the state compared to the impunity that held sway before we came into office,” the governor said.
PUNCH
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News
JUST IN: Crisis In UniAbuja As ASUU Faction Declares Indefinite Strike
Published
35 mins agoon
May 2, 2024By
EditorThe University of Abuja branch of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has declared an indefinite strike.
The union announced its decision on Thursday during a congress held at the permanent site of the institution.
Sylvanus Ugoh, the chairman of UniAbuja ASUU, did not immediately respond to TheCable’s inquiries on the development.
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But Abubakar Kari, the UniAbuja student affairs dean and ex-convener of ASUU’s national political committee, said the varsity’s branch of the union issued a communique declaring “total and indefinite strike” over a lingering disagreement with the UniAbuja management.
The dispute, he said, borders on four issues including ASUU’s interest in a multi-stakeholder microfinance banking venture, promotion procedures in the absence of a governing council, election for faculty deanship, and alleged illegal appointments.
More to follow…
News
Why Abia Policeman Dropped His Rifle, Uniform, Walked Away From His Job – Report
Published
5 hours agoon
May 2, 2024By
EditorAn investigative journalist known as 99% Oppressed on X.com has raised concerns about the situation of a police officer, Ugochukwu Nwaso, attached to the Abia State Police Command.
According to the journalist who also claims to be a private investigator hated by all security agencies in Nigeria, Nwaso, a corporal in the force, resigned for yet-to-be-confirmed reasons.
In a tweet directed at the Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, on Wednesday, the journalist who tweeted as @PIDOMNIGERIA, highlighted concerns about mental health issues and toxic work environments within the police force, emphasizing the need for those challenges to be urgently addressed to prevent further incidents.
The journalist noted that all efforts by his fellow policemen to convince Nwaso against his action proved abortive as he was resolute in his decision.
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The journalist wrote, “Hello @Princemoye1, are you aware that a corporal in the Nigerian police @PoliceNG force, Ugochukwu Nwaso, attached to Abia State Police Command, went to his station in Umuahia, dropped his rifle, dropped his uniform, and all the things the Nigerian Police gave to him. He packed all his personal belongings in the station and left.
“He said that he is no more interested in being in the force. All efforts made to persuade him to change his mind proved abortive. What is the Nigerian police force doing as regards depression, mental health issues and toxic work environment?
“So many police officers are battling one mental health issue or the other without the authorities knowing. Some are battling depression, that triggers them to commit murder. While some are being frustrated by their superiors at their place of work. They make life unbearable for them. The work is so toxic to them, that they easily transfer their aggression to innocent citizens whom they are paid to protect. Corporal Ugochukwu Nwaso a trained young man, who knows how to use firearms, will now be an ordinary civilian on the street.”
In response, the State Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Maureen Chinaka, refuted the claim.
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She stated that the information was untrue, asserting that the officer in question was currently on active duty and had not tendered his resignation from the Force.
She wrote, “This information is false. I want to clarify that Copral Ugochukwu Nwaso, serving at Eziama Division, Abia State Police Command, is currently on duty at his division and has not resigned from the force. He is still very much in service and stationed at his Division.”
Affirming the claim, the journalist went ahead to present a police wireless message by one Supol Eziama, confirming Nwaso’s resignation.
The police wireless message revealed that Nwaso resigned following a misunderstanding with a fellow police officer, ASP Onyinyechi Nwuju.
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He wrote, “ASP Maureen Chinaka, @MaureenChinaka before @PIDOMNIGERIA posts anything on X, there must be evidential receipt at hand. You can ask about me if you want. But because you said my information is false, attached here is a Police @PoliceNG wireless message, confirming my claim about Corporal Ugochukwu Nwaso. Deny this if you can, I will post more evidence. @Princemoye1.”
The police wireless message read, “Be informed that today, at about 1530 hours, one F/NO. 520044 CPL Ugochukwu Nwaso dropped his rifle, uniform and packed his belongings and left the station that he was no more interested in the force following a misunderstanding with W/ASP Onyinyechi Nwuju. All efforts made to bring him back proved abortive. Above for your information please.”
In May 2023, a police officer, Corporal Fauzziyah Isiak, lamented how the Nigeria Police Force detained her after she put in her resignation.
Isiak, who narrated her ordeal on X.com, said after she submitted her resignation letter she was called into the office and was detained even as she disclosed that she was on her menses.
The officer, who was also an entrepreneur at the time, lamented the treatment she received for wanting to resign. She said she never saw her plight coming as she never thought she’d be put in detention without interrogation.
The Nigeria Police has condemned the assault on two yet-to-be-identified students of the Delta State University of Science and Technology, Ozoro, by some unidentified men suspected to be police officers.
This follows a viral video on X (formerly Twitter) which generated several reactions from police operatives.
The video, posted by an X user with the handle, ‘Ughellivibes’, on Monday, showed two scenes where some young men were being beaten with batons by police officers as onlookers gathered.
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Reacting to the incident, the Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, condemned the act, stressing that the Force did not support any indecent and unprofessional conduct.
He, however, urged the Delta State Police Command to look into the incident and bring the perpetrators to book.
He said, “Look into this. We should be able to justify our actions always. The beating is condemned, not professional. Like I always say, the police have powers to arrest, search, enforce the law, and apply minimum force to carry out their operations, but such must be done with decorum, professionalism and proportionality. We don’t support any indecent and unprofessional conduct. No way.”
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Reacting to the incident, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Bright Edafe, demanded that members of the public provide the command with details of the victims.
Edafe wrote: “Please, whoever knows the victim should send him this number 09155570008 or any of our CRU lines.”
Efforts to contact Edafe to know more about the progress the police had made proved abortive, as several calls and texts sent to him were unanswered as of the time of filing this report.
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