Dissecting Ifeanyi Ubah’s manifesto for Anambra south

BY CHIDI OMEJE

As we strive along in this great task of consolidating Nigeria’s democratic credentials, we must be guided by the understanding that great nations are built by leaders who inspire followership and followers who are committed to patriotic ideals and common good. Our greatness as a people is predicated on our resolve to put the right people in the right positions at every time material.

There is no doubt that we are currently facing serious challenges in our socio-economic and political life as a nation; it is certain that we are confronted with the despicable antics and shenanigans of some self-serving politicians who have held us hostage for a long time now and that we are denied our fair share in a country abundantly blessed by the Almighty. Without doubt, our dear country will ultimately firm her nationhood on a solid foundation of vibrant political institutions that are being forged out of the doggedness and commitment of our long-suffering people.

More importantly, our hope as a country indeed lies in the quality of laws made by the Legislatures. This is obvious because the Legislature is the focal point of our democratic system. It is the sacred responsibility of the legislative arm to enact good laws and pass resolutions that would bring about total transformation of our dear country. In order for us to get it right, only men and women of proven capacity, competence and integrity must be entrusted with that sacred responsibility of making the laws for our country.

As we go to the polls this weekend, I present to you the summary of pledge made by Dr ifeanyi Patrick Ubah to the enterprising people of Anambra South Senatorial zone, the good people of nambra State, to Ndigbo and the generality of Nigeria. Dr Ubah is presenting himself to represent Anambra South Senatorial zone at the Senate under the platform of YOUNG PROGRESSIVE PARTY (YPP).

A business man par excellence, astute administrator, consummate politician and renown philanthropist, Dr Ifeanyi Ubah has all it takes to turn around the fortunes of the long-suffering people and impact positively on their lives. His disposition to the ideals and philosophy of service is rooted in the precepts of pragmatism, service to the people, welfare of the people and above all, the fear of God.

As the representative of Anambra South Senatorial zone, Ifeanyi Ubah will be a veritable catalyst for progress and development. He will champion the enactment of good laws and passage of progressive resolutions that will bring about total transformation of our zone and state. As a very successful businessman, he sure will deploy strategy and tact; as a practicing politician, he will deploy his clout and pragmatism; as an administrator, he will be astute; as a Christian, he will have the fear of God and as a good son and ambassador of Ndigbo, he will most certainly be vibrant, assertive, dogged and rugged in projecting and defending the interest of his people.

Ifeanyi Ubah’s vision as a Senator is to influence social, economic and political transformation of Anambra South Senatorial zone, Anambra State and South East in general through good legislation, exemplary leadership and service to the people. He is determined to initiate, sponsor and support progressive bills and resolutions that will positively affect the lives of the people of Anambra South Senatorial district and Anambra State in general; to attract, where possible developmental projects to the senatorial district and to the state. A grassroot man who understands the challenges, hopes and aspirations of his people, Ifeanyi Ubah will, through the instrumentality of the bills he will initiate, sponsor and support at the Senate, impact positively in the lives of the good people of Anambra South Senatorial zone and Ndigbo.

Ifeanyi Ubah’s main focus in his quest to be at the Senate is the recovery and repositioning of Igbo economy. He will be interested in revamping the Eastern economic corridor that has been decimated with official policy of the government since after the end of the civil war. He has also never hidden the fact his ‘primary constituency’ is Ndi Afia. He is proud to uphold and support the profession that made him who he is, and that is trading. We as Ndigbo and Anambra people in particular are by nature, traders and economic giants. We are wired to succeed in our economic and commercial venture. We dominate trade and commerce in Nigeria and Africa as a whole. Ndigbo contributes up to 60% input in the Nigerian economy basically through trade and commerce. No wonder therefore that his avowed determination is to protect, sustain and improve our opportunities in trade and commerce. We are all witnesses to the various anti-trade policies targeted at our people by the Federal Government and even some state governments in states where Igbos are residing and doing their business.

A lot of government laws and policies that stifle our endeavors as traders and business people are abound, and so, time is nigh for Ndigbo to put their bold and courageous feet forward at the highest law-making body to challenge some of those draconian policies and propose and support progressive bills that will open up opportunities for our teeming business men and women across the country.

On education, he believes that we must invest in our children’s education. Investing in good education will ensure that every child is given the opportunity to develop his/her full potential and become part of the educated and skilled labour force of the future. He has pledged his commitment to the raising of standards in our schools and universities and promised to initiate bills that will make resources available for continuous training and development programmes for teachers and lecturers, thus providing opportunities to update knowledge and skills at work.

As a son of teachers – his parents were both school teachers – who understands the indispensability of the teaching profession, Ifeanyi Ubah will stand for the restoration of pride and dignity to the teaching profession by giving it the recognition it deserves in the senate. It will indeed be his cause to see that an environment that fosters understanding and co-operation between management and staff at all levels of education in our zone and state is created and sustained.

Renowned for his abiding interest in human capital development, the Chairman of Capital Oil and Gas, Ifeanyi Ubah is quite aware that NdiAnambra and Ndigbo in general are endowed with talented and highly industrious womenfolk who will excel in any situation they find themselves or position they are entrusted with. And so, issues affecting women in our locality are quite dear to him. As a proud son of his mother, husband to his dear wife and father to his lovely daughters, Ifeanyi will leverage on his experience and understanding of the issues affecting our womenfolk to doggedly fight for them at the Senate.

He will stand for the increase in opportunities for our women and young girls to fulfill their potentials and discourage the recourse to anti-social activities and their consequences. I will at all times ensure that our women are adequately represented at all governmental and private sector strata of the society.

Ubah believes that the future of our country lies with our youth. The quality of development of any nation depends greatly on the quality of the youth. He believes that this problem can be tackled head-on by providing opportunities for training and fostering adequate and sustainable economic growth. As a private businessman, Ifeanyi Ubah has created a niche in the provision of sporting and social amenities for the people of our state, including the state-of-the-art stadium, FM radio station, establishment of professional football club, etc; all geared towards improving the lives of our people especially the youths. As a Senator of the Federal Republic, he will at all times cause or support the youth to be given a sense of security and impetus to face the future by harnessing their evident talents to more productive endeavor.

The highpoint of his pledge is that as a Senator of the Federal Republic, he will see to it that at all times, our women and youths are empowered through training, capacity building, skill-acquisition, mentoring and positioning, for their overall development and that of their families and by extension, the society. What more can we ask from our representative?

Omeje wrote in from Ozubulu, Anambra State.