Barely two months to the Anambra State Governorship Election, the candidate of the Young Progressives Party, (YPP) Senator Ifeanyi Ubah, has challenged Professor Charles Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) to a public debate.
Senator Ubah, who represents Anambra South senatorial district in the 9th Senate, called for the debate on Sunday in a statement, while reacting to Prof. Soludo’s claim concerning the governorship position in Anambra state.
Senator Ubah’s statement which was made available to Journalists on Sunday is titled, “Anambra 2021: Senator Ifeanyi Ubah Challenges Prof. Soludo To Provide His Manifesto Within 48hours And A Public Debate Within 7 Days Of Presentation Of His Manifesto’.
Prof. Soludo on the other hand had claimed that Anambra state was too sophisticated for a school certificate holder to aspire to govern, although INEC’s requirement for such contest is a senior secondary school certificate (SSCE), either awarded by WAEC or NECO.
According to Senator Ubah in his reaction, he confirmed to have “watched with keen interest, the mudslinging and needlessly disruptive comment made by Prof. Chukwuma Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance to the effect that WAEC Certificate holders cannot govern Anambra State.
The statement issued by Senator Ubah, who has initiated several impactful bills in the senate explained in detail the kind of Governance he wishes to offer his people in the South-East Nigerian state.
“To the glory of God, having recently graduated with a 2.2 LL.B Hons from the Prestigious Baze University Abuja, by dint of hard work, I do not consider it necessary or feel the obsessive compulsion to flaunt my University Degree as it is not a prerequisite to contest for Governorship.
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“Prof. Soludo’s statement is a game of misdirection which seeks to distract us from focusing on robust policy arguments and constructive debates that will resolve the palpable crises of governance in Anambra State.
“I sincerely retain the belief that the era of ‘textbook grammatical grandstanding’ and theoretical politics is over in Anambra. Our people now want a leader with practicable ideas and dynamism to move the state forward. Ideas that will proffer sustainable solutions to the socio-economic problems beclouding the state due to bad governance brought to the fore by the present government.
“In this regard, I am challenging Prof. Soludo to an open public manifesto debate with me. Let us put our manifestos out before the court of public opinion and adjudication so as to let the people decide their preferred candidate whose agenda resonates with the layman and electorate.”
“Elections and the debates that follow should be solely focused on issues that will be beneficial to the electorate, not about throwing everything, including the kitchen sink at each other.
“Our conduct during this pre-election period reflects our ability to perform our duties dutifully if/when elected into public office. I wish to implore every one of us to do the right thing with respect to ensuring that our campaigns are bereft of calumny and conducted in a proper and sane manner. I am assured that such a move will further solidify our democracy and entrench purposeful narratives that will change the tide of our polity positively,” the statement concluded.
Zainab Sa’id
