Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State
Anambra 2021: PDP chieftain, Okoli lauds Obiano, APGA for choosing Soludo
[From CHINEDU NWAFOR, Abakaliki]
Chief Handel Okoli, a founding member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has lauded the Anambra State Governor, Chief Willie Obiano and the leadership of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) for choosing the former Central Bank Governor Prof. Chukwuma Soludo as the Party’s Governorship candidate for the November 6, governorship election in the State.
Okoli, a former Senior Special Assistant to President Olusegun Obasanjo from 1999 to 2003, described Soludo as a man of character.
This was contained in a statement signed by Mr. C.Don Adinuba the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, who disclosed that Governor Obiano had last week described Soludo during his marking his 61st birthday cerebration, as humble and home conscious, despite his global achievements.
Obiano had added that Soludo’s prodigious attainments upon his humble parentage and modest upbringing represented the authentic Igbo spirit which made the Igbo people excel in various human endeavours, no matter the odds against them.
Speaking to Journalists in Awka, Anambra State capital, Chief Okoli, said: “As a friend who has watched Soludo at close quarters for decades, I know the assessment of the erstwhile CBN governor could not have been more accurate.
“Soludo has always been immersed in local affairs, right from the time he was an economics professor in the United States in his 30s through the time he was a scholar at Oxford and Warwick in England to the time he was at the Brookings Institution in Washington to his consulting scholar years in Ethiopia to the period he was Chief Economic Adviser to President Olusegun Obasanjo and Chairman of the National Planning Commission to the period he was the Central Bank governor.
“His endless solidarity with the ordinary people has endeared him to our people and inspired a generation of successful people as well as young and struggling folks who now believe that they too can make it to the top with competence, hard work, honesty and integrity.
“Despite his accomplishments in diverse areas and his ever busy schedule, I am aware he still finds time to visit the Oye Market in Isuofia, where he is at home, especially with market women. I was stunned to learn that he was the returning officer during his town union elections.”
“Soludo has for decades been awarding scholarships to mostly indigent students up to the doctoral level and playing a leading role in community development without talking about them in public.”
