Abia 2027: Anosike pledges monthly open forum with security chiefs

Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate in Abia State, Dr. Kelechi Anosike, has promised to establish a monthly “Meet Your Governor” forum at which residents can take their problems directly to the governor, security chiefs and other relevant officials for immediate intervention.

Anosike made the pledge at his campaign office in Umuahia when members of the Kelechi Anosike G’eme Karia Movement visited to brief him on their activities.

He said his administration would be founded on accessibility and people-centred governance, insisting that Abians would not be kept away from their governor by aides and bureaucratic barriers.

“I can’t be the governor Abians cannot access. I will be very accessible,” he said.

“Many people appoint special assistants who receive their mails, read them and decide who should see the governor. That is very wrong. Nobody reads my mails for me. You read your mail yourself.”

Anosike said the frequent disconnect between the government and the governed begins when those familiar with the people and their challenges are abandoned after an election.

“Part of the problem is when you appoint people who were not part of your campaign and neglect critical stakeholders who worked with you. If you don’t use those involved in the system, they won’t know the people, and there will be a disconnect.

“I will be accessible both to the support groups and the entire people of Abia State,” he said.

Explaining how the proposed forum would operate, the candidate said it would bring the governor, deputy governor, police, Department of State Services and other relevant agencies face-to-face with residents seeking redress.

“We will hold the Meet Your Governor Forum at least once a month. There are people crying daily because of injustice, with nobody to address their cases. There is oppression and intimidation going on daily which, if any governor heard about it, could be resolved on the spot.

“We will go to the Michael Okpara Auditorium or any other big hall. The governor, deputy governor, police, DSS director and everyone who can help resolve the problems will be at the high table to hear the people’s complaints.

“If you don’t attend to and solve the people’s problems, what are you doing in government? Government is about the people,” he declared.

Anosike also restated his commitment to welfare-oriented governance, saying his proposed microfinance bank in Aba would provide interest-free loans to residents.

“When I tell people that I am a welfarist, it is not politics. That is my makeup and my nature.

“When we said we would establish a microfinance bank in Aba to provide interest-free loans, we were not merely making a promise. I am not going to do it with my personal money; it is state money because government is for the people,” he said.

He criticised the absence of adequate economic empowerment programmes and promised that his administration’s interventions would reach every ward.

“Any government that cannot provide for the people should leave governance alone. The kind of government we want to bring will reach every ward,” he added.

Earlier, Director-General of the Kelechi G’eme Karia Movement, Comrade Kelechi Nwosu, said the group had established structures in all 17 local government areas, 184 wards and 4,006 polling units in the state.

“We are working to deliver over 80,000 votes and planning a one-million-man march across the 17 local government areas, starting from Umuahia North. We will work hard for the emergence of Anosike,” Nwosu said.

He requested a branded campaign vehicle, office accommodation and the group’s inclusion in the State Campaign Council.

Ugwunagbo Local Government Area coordinator, Comrade Azubuike Moses, appealed for mobilisation support, while the movement’s woman leader, Mrs. Juliet Kalu, pledged to recruit more women and urged the candidate to pursue his ambition without fear or intimidation.

Responding, Anosike praised the group’s sacrifices and commitment, describing it as outstanding among the support groups campaigning for him.

“I thank you for your work, commitment, sacrifices and conviction in this project. I am a believer in destiny and the divine organisation of things. There is a reason for everything.

“In law, we say equity, like nature, does nothing in vain. Of all the support groups working for this project, this group stands out as the best. You have done marvellous work,” he said.

Expressing confidence in victory, the PDP candidate declared: “Come February 6, we will be in Government House. We are determined to take our state back and do the right thing.

“We have been in power and now know what it is to be outside power. We want to take back power and do the right thing. Everything we are doing is intentional.”

He promised to provide the movement with a branded Sienna vehicle and office accommodation and charged its members to establish a visible presence in every ward.

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