Prof Chukwuma Soludo, former governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance in the 2021 Anambra Governorship Election, has dedicated his victory to three police officers killed when he was attacked by gunmen in his hometown of Isuofia in the Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State in April 2021 during a town hall meeting.
He gave a victory speech immediately after the Independent National Electoral Commission pronounced him the winner on Wednesday morning.
Prof Florence Obi, the Returning Officer for the Anambra Governorship Election, declared the results at the INEC headquarters in Awka, Anambra State, on Wednesday morning.
“That Charles Chukwuma Soludo of the APGA is now proclaimed the winner and is returned elected,” the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calabar stated on Wednesday.
After a supplementary election in the state’s Ihiala Local Government Area on Tuesday, Soludo, who served as the apex bank governor from 2004 to 2009, was proclaimed the winner. Ihiala LGA was one of the 19 local government areas he won.
Soludo, 61, received 112,229 votes to defeat Valentine Ozigbo of the Peoples Democratic Party, who received 53,807 votes, and Andy Uba of the All Progressives Congress, who received 43,285 votes. Ifeanyi Ubah of the Young Progressive Party finished in fourth with 21,261 votes.
Soludo, who described the victory as a manifestation of the people’s will, vowed to give the rewards of democracy to the people of the state while also reaching out to his rivals in the campaign.
“Let me say with utmost humility and gratitude to God, I accept the results of the 2021 Anambra Governorship Election as declared by INEC. And this reflects the supreme will of the Almighty God and an overwhelming sacred mandate of the people…This is a divine journey whose time has come.
“At this moment we must remember and must continue to remember all those who died during the course of this moment, especially the three policemen who were killed by unknown gunmen during our town hall meeting with youths in my ward. May God continue to grant their soul eternal rest,” he said.
Soludo hailed the judges for standing firm in the face of adversity, including legal fights and intra-party squabbles, on his way to triumph.
“The election itself tested the integrity of our federal institutions. Many times there were tensions, especially as one party boasted that it must take or ‘conquer’ but the judiciary stood for the integrity of the judiciary,” he said.
After the two-term tenure of the existing governor, Willie Obiano, who is also a member of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, expires in March, Soludo is anticipated to be sworn in.
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