Doctor Ben Nwoye, a lawyer and the Enugu State Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC) is a vibrant young man who believes that his party is a mass movement poised to take over power from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), after March 28, 2015 presidential election. In this exclusive interview with Sunday Sun in his Enugu GRA office, he said that unlike the previous elections when the East shunned Gen Buhari, the party’s flag bearer in the presidential election, “Igbos have become wiser and they are ready to give the APC presidential candidate their votes in large number this time around.” Excerpts. The political arena is getting hotter by the day, what are the chances of your party in Enugu State which is regarded as a PDP state? So far, so good, it has been great and wonderful. The era when Enugu State was regarded as exclusive for PDP is gone for good. Number one evidence is when our presidential flag bearer, Gen Muhammadu Buhari came to the state for campaign recently, well over 250,000 party supporters and fans trooped out to welcome him. It has never happened before.
For the first time since the inception of the 3rd Republic, Enugu people now have choices. They can now choose between APC and PDP. It was not so before now. The PDP had been bragging for many years that there is no opposition in the state. We have deconstructed that mystery. They have been oppressing our people and because they have no avenue to express themselves, they took it as normal. But the position is so vibrant now and it has been proven that the wind of change blowing across the nation has caught up with Enugu people. People are now talking in the state, expressing their anger. This is a state where the minimum salary of mere N18,000 is not paid. The people have found their voice. Teachers, nurses, court workers etc. are asking why? The market women, the religious people, traditional institution, everybody is now saying that this is time for change, positive change which the APC represents. It was not so before. Since 1999, the type of discussion we are having now, we never had.
That was why on the 10th of January 2015, well over 250,000 people came from all corners of the state to welcome the next president of the country, our candidate, Gen Buhari to Enugu State. Such a scene was never seen before in Enugu on Buhaari. It was unheard of in this state, but it happened. Remember that on the 31st December 2014, a priest, Rev Fr. Ejike Mbaka, told his congregation of more than two million people at the Adoration Ground, Emene to chorus “change” three times and everybody shouted “change”. Those were people from different part, of the country and beyond. Nobody believed that this was possible. But the truth is that people are tired of PDP. They want change. The Governor of Enugu State, Barrister Sullivan Chime has done well in the area of road construction in Enugu city. There are now good roads in Enugu urban but life does not start and end in the city. Indeed, majority of our people are living in the rural areas where he has neglected completely apart from few roads in his Udi community. So, what about health issues, education, water supply and other indices of development?
As for rural development, Sullivan administration had done very badly and he has to be told so. He forgot our rural people and rural roads. The rural areas are where food stuff is produced. How do they evacuate their agricultural produce? In the area of agriculture, he didn’t fare well. These are things APC government in the state will focus on when we come to power. The unemployment rate is too high in Enugu state. Indeed, it is said that we are one of the worst hit in this regard. Again, we should ask about his contribution in the area of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR). Enugu is now a begging state. He couldn’t build a single industry in the state for the period of eight years he has been in power. It should not be so because agriculture alone can give a lot of money to the state, areas like palm oil which our founding fathers used to build all these edifices we see around which have stood the test of time. But APC government will correct all that if by they vote our people, we take over Lion Building come May 29th this year.
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