By James Ezeh
The race for the governorship of
Anambra State seems to have been done and dusted as Governor Willie Obiano’s
second term bid received a huge boost Monday when
Anambra women numbering well over 350,000 gave him a historic endorsement at
the Alex Ekwueme Square, Awka.
The women who came together under the aegis of
South East Women of Substance, Anambra State chapter also adopted Governor
Obiano as their Grand Patron, praising him for his great achievements in the
past two and a half years in office.
Speaking through their leader, Chief Samson Umejidike, the women who were
marking the organization' s 15th Anniversary with a Summit under the theme –
The Role of Women in Governance, explained that their endorsement of Governor
Obiano was justified by his sterling performance.
‘Anambra has been very peaceful since Obiano took
over,’ Chief Umejidike observed, pointing out that the state’s wealthy citizens
no longer move about with private security as was once the case.
‘Traders in Onitsha transact business without the need of private security.
Criminals have been chased out of the state. And this is because of Willie
Obiano’s approach to governance,’ he observed urging the women to give the
governor a resounding applause which they quickly obliged.
Chief Umejidike therefore assured Governor Obiano
of the support of the Anambra women as he prepares to seek the people’s mandate
to continue the good work he had started in the state, saying, ‘’He has done
well and he will be given a chance to do it again. All the women of Anambra are
behind him. We shall support him until he completes his second term.’’
Also addressing the women who were drawn from the
326 electoral wards in the state, the Royal Father of the group Igwe MacAnthony
Okonkwo who is the traditional ruler of Alor in Idemili South Council Area
commended Governor Obiano’s performance in office and urged the women to
support him for a well-deserved second term.
Similarly, in her own address, the Governor's wife, Chief (Mrs)
Ebelechukwu Obiano described women as nation builders that the society could
not do without. She commended the women for their massive turnout which she
observed was indicative of their appreciation of the achievements of Governor
Obiano.
Accepting the honour done to him, Governor Obiano
described the event as the largest gathering of women in South East Nigeria and
thanked the women for coming together to endorse him for a second term in
office.
Said he, ‘I am delighted that women in Anambra
State under the platform of Anambra Women of Substance deemed it fit to make me
their grand patron. And you did not only make me your grand patron but endorsed
me for second term.
The governor went on to explain that his
government had rolled out some plans to alleviate the sufferings of the Anambra
woman and cushion the effects of the current recession on the family.
He explained that his administration had
suspended taxes and levies that affect market women and also made education
free from primary to junior secondary level.
‘You should all join cooperatives so that you can
benefit from some of our programmes for women. Some of you here benefited from
the N1.5bn that we disbursed to small businesses recently. 60% of the
disbursements went to women.
Very soon we are going to disburse more
money to the women for them to get more actively involved in agriculture. I
want you to organize yourselves in cooperatives so that you can benefit from
this.
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