WITH the primaries of the Labour Party, LP, for the nomination of its candidate set for April 5, 2025, the battle for the soul of Anambra delegates has begun. In the race are notable politicians, who had passed through that road before.
At the last count, five persons have shown interest in stopping Governor Chukwuma Soludo from being re-elected. They are Mr. John Nwosu from Nnewi, Dr. George Moghalu also from Nnewi, Engineer Barth Nwibe from Igboukwu in Aguata Local Government Area, Mr. Val Ozigbo from Amesi, also in Aguata and Senator Tony Nwoye from Nsugbe in Anambra East Local Government Area.
Most aspirants from Anambra South
Incidentally, four of the aspirants are from Anambra South Senatorial zone where the incumbent Governor Soludo comes from, while only Senator Nwoye is from Anambra North.
In the November 2022 governorship election that produced Professor Soludo, LP was not particularly on ground, as the new face of the party, Mr. Peter Obi, a former governor of the state, was still in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. However, everything changed when Obi joined LP, such that the party won over 90 per cent of the votes in the state in 2023 during the presidential election with Obi as the candidate. And for the first time in Anambra State, LP won two senatorial seats, five House of Representatives seats and many House of Assembly slots.
Crisis in LP
However, the leadership crisis that crept into the party at the national level also affected the party in Anambra, such that many people are wondering whether LP can still achieve the level it got to in 2023. Although its National Chairman, Julius Abure, had since stabilised in his position after fighting a legal battle of wits, LP’s popularity appears to have waned across the country. The main oxygen of the party, the Obedient Movement, does not seem to be leaning so much on the party now.
LP’s optimism
But the governorship aspirants for the November 8 election in Anambra are very optimistic that LP is the most popular, and the party to beat in the election. Their optimism is hinged on what they call the shortcomings of the present administration in the state. They list insecurity, brutality by government revenue agents against the people and over taxation as issues they would use as campaign tools. Below are the aspirants.
I’ll do one term if elected – Nwosu
Nwosu has picked the LP nomination and expression of interest forms from the national headquarters of the party. Describing the exercise as his first step towards the journey to the Agu Awka Government House, Nwosu is not new in the governorship race in Anambra State as he had aspired to govern the state on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, and was indeed a member of the Board of Trustees, BoT, of the party.
An ICT expert, he has been very outspoken on the insecurity in Anambra State and has often argued that Governor Soludo has not done much to solve the problem.
Although Soludo’s latest approach to tackle insecurity through the recently established Agunechemba outfit has started yielding positive results, Nwosu said the action came too late and he was quick to add that it was the criticism that made the governor act.
“It was perhaps the concerted criticisms from the opposition that prodded him to act. His initiatives came too late for those who lost their lives. We are still not certain if his security initiatives are sustainable or just a response geared at winning electoral votes. We are already witnessing some lapses”, Nwosu said in a recent interview.
Coming from Anambra South as Soludo, the question arises about the possibility of another governor from the South doing only one tenure to complete the two terms of eight years for the zone, Nwosu said he was even the first person to announce that he would do only four years.
“I’m the first to acknowledge the trust deficit that exists in our body politics. Yet, I can only speak for myself in terms of my four years commitment. That is a promise, a commitment and an undertaking cast in stone,” he assured.
On the possibility of an understanding between him and another Nnewi – born aspirant, George Moghalu for one to step down for the other before the primaries, Nwosu said: ‘Democracy is about pluralism and equal opportunity for all. Anyone, who is prima facie qualified to run should run. The primaries remain a vetting process. It would be ideal to have a gentleman agreement. But where that is not possible, the only option is to go to the field and allow the people to decide. After all, it is the people who will give the ultimate electoral mandate.
“There will only be one LP candidate after the April 5, 2025 Labour Party primaries. If it’s me, I will expect my fellow aspirants to rally round and support me. If it is someone else, I will also do the same. Committing to that support is in the best and long term interest of the party.”
Coalition against Soludo
However, Nwosu does not rule out a possible coalition among the opposition.
According to him, “talks about such a coalition are ongoing. The common denominator is the collective will to bring the present administration to an end. Anambra’s interest supersedes any personal interests or ambitions. If it will take a coalition of Like Minds to get rid of Soludo and his cabal, so be it. I’m ready to be part of that coalition. We must all get involved in rescuing Anambra.”
Why LP’s party to beat – Moghalu
Moghalu is the immediate past Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority, NIWA and the first national auditor of All Progressives Congress, APC. He has also picked the LP’s nomination and expression of interest forms for the November 8, 2025, governorship election.
He was a founding member of the APC, having been a member of the defunct All Nigeria People’s Party, ANPP that joined the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, and others to form APC.
Speaking after receiving the forms, Moghalu expressed high optimism about his chances of winning the party’s primary and the November 8, 2025, main election. Moghalu said that he has all it takes to unseat Soludo in the election.
Moghalu was on the governorship ballot in 2003. He has remained an active politician since 1999 but the turn of events was in 2021 when he participated in the APC primaries, which was won by Senator Andy Uba. He went to court to challenge the outcome of the primaries and won, as the court declared that APC never had a candidate in the election because of faulty primaries.
On why he left the APC, a party he was among the key founding members, Moghalu said: “As a politician, I have not decided to quit politics. And in the light of that basic fact, it’s me who will decide what I intend to do. If you remember, by the time I resigned from the APC, I said that I was open for consultation across the country, talking with my colleagues, my people, my friends, and my political associates. Thereafter I returned to Anambra State to continue the consultation with a lot of people, my supporters and followers. I also called my campaign council to a meeting, saying, now that I have resigned from the APC what do we do? After all these consultations it became clear to me that for me to realise the ambition that I have, the viable platform is the Labour Party. On October 1, 2024, I then declared for LP. It’s not about the party failing or not. It’s about my decision and the decision of my collective team.”
Why Nwoye’s right choice for Anambra – Aide
Nwoye, a medical practitioner and a grassroots politician, was the governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, in the 2013 governorship election and was also APC candidate in 2017. On both occasions, he almost won, but infighting within his party denied him victory.
He was also a one time state chairman of PDP and had a massive following in Anambra. He was also a member of the House of Representatives for Anambra East and West and is currently the Senator representing Anambra North on the platform of the Labour Party. With the massive empowerment he had embarked on over the years, both as House of Representatives member and senator in the entire state, Nwoye may strongly challenge for the ticket of LP.
For now, the senator is still consulting and doing background work. As an experienced politician, he sure knows when to strike. But one drawback Nwoye might have is the fact that he comes from Anambra North, which produced Governor Willie Obiano that handed over to Soludo from Anambra South.
Those in Nwoye’s camp are arguing that the current situation in Anambra State, which is facing serious security challenges, requires a vibrant politician and a performer to put things right in the state, adding that Senator Nwoye will be the right choice for Anambra people. “I can confirm to you that Senator Tony Nwoye will contest the 2025 governorship primaries of the Labour Party and eventually the governorship election in November”, one of his trusted aides said.
Will Ozigbo make it this time?
Ozigbo was the PDP candidate for the November 6, 2021 Anambra State governorship election. He moved to the LP in August 2022 and was received by Mr. Peter Obi. Since joining the Labour Party, Ozigbo has been very visible at functions across the state. Sometime last year, some groups under the Obidient Movement said they would support him to clinch the LP ticket because, according to them, he has the necessary qualities needed to transform the state for the better.
“Valentine Ozigbo stands out as a beacon of hope for Anambra. A consummate politician, business leader, entrepreneur, and philanthropist, Valentine Ozigbo brings over 30 years of experience in corporate transformation, power, hospitality, energy, banking, and philanthropy.
“His remarkable achievements, including his tenure as the President and Group CEO of Transcorp Plc, where he led transformative projects and garnered international recognition, demonstrate his capacity for visionary leadership.
“Val Ozigbo’s commitment to youth development, community building, and good governance aligns perfectly with the values of the Obidient Movement”, the group said.
LP’s a new reality in our polity – Nwibe
Barth Nwibe, an Engineer, is also from Anambra South senatorial zone as Soludo. He aspired to be governor in 2017 on the platform of APC, but did not get the ticket. He didn’t aspire in 2021, but he is showing interest in the LP ticket for 2025.
Expressing optimism about getting the party’s nomination, Nwibe said: “I have journeyed through Nigeria’s political space and a new reality has come into the country and that is the Labour Party. The party with the presence of Mr. Peter Obi in it is a new vista of hope for those of us who play the politics of development and not the politics of finding jobs. Some of us are successful in what we are doing. We are professionals at various levels and sectors in life and it is my belief that we should come in to help better our society.”
As it stands, all eyes are on LP in Anambra State, being the state of Peter Obi. As the aspirants have all said, LP is the party with the largest following in the state and they are all prepared to make sacrifices to ensure that the party forms the next government.
