Ekwunife-Soludo Diatribe Unfortunate But Necessary
Like a market place, political campaign is a platform for politicians to project their policies and intentions as well as how they intend to address the needs of the masses.
During campaign, the masses especially, the electorate expect to hear political parties and their candidates speak to their manifestos, how it will affect them and strategy to implement them.
For the incumbent, it provides the opportunity to spotlight the achievement of his administration since assumption of office, what he has been able to do and what he would do if reelected.
On the other hand, it is an opportunity for the opposition to criticise the policies of the government, how they have diminished the living standards of the people and provide alternative plan of action.
So, it is expected that the opposition will engage in propaganda and propositions while the incumbent should remain on issues.
So, it became disappointingly regrettable that the the Nov. 8 governorship election campaign became interesting with trivial issues which had no bearing on the welfare of the people.
Some people said that the governor who unarguably had been enjoying a comfortable advantage in the race went about throwing tantrums, jibes and jabs at opponents instead of projecting the gains of the his administration.
The governor without provocation attacked his opponents on different from ranging from engaging in fundraising adventure, to not having the requisite academic qualifications to govern Anambra and having questionable degrees.
This was considered by many as an effort to suffocate the political space and stampede opposition out of the contest.
But the response by Sen. Uche Ekwunife, the deputy governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) seemed to be a blessing in disguise.
In a video of less than five minutes, she jolted the dramatis persona back to reality and brought sanity into the political space.
The essence here is not to confirm or dismiss the authenticity of the claims, but to expose how careless talks and banter which are irrelevant to the interest of the masses could hurt the society.
Ekwunife’s salvo after the allegation of certificate authenticity, even though equally off the mark, threw up issues of marital fidelity, and chastity, children paternity and DNA challenge around the first family.
The wife of the governor who had enjoyed remarkable privacy even though a public figure had to crawl out of her shell to respond through her aides and personally with threat of litigation all in a bid to convince the people that she remained her respected self.
Undoubtedly, the wife of the governor proved herself to be a woman of virtue and values but only she can attest to the inconvenience she suffered as a result of that muddy political splash on her family.
A major revelation from the unfortunate tango was that the Ekwunife’s and the Soludo’s have been close family friends for a long time.
The question on the lips of many is, if both families had been close friends, why should they wash their dirty linen in public, why should politics tear them apart.
This is more curious when one has his hands on the levers of power while the other is not even a candidate but just a running mate ?
Why should the governor who is on cruise level to victory be the one throwing stones and stoking animosity where there should not be by leaving out issues and attacking persons who are no lesser citizens of Anambra.
People say that every Anambra son or daughter has the right to aspire to be governor under a constitutional democracy and the choice of who wins lies with the electorate.
The unpalatable exchanges between Ekwunife and Soludo, even though avoidable and unfortunate, has proven to be necessary for civility to return.
People now talk more carefully and cautiously, and mutual respect has returned among the gladiators and the masses are beginning to hear the conversations that affect them.
Having held sway for over 46 months the professor should have the tolerance to have his administration criticised and demonstrate by defending it.
Nobody will be voted on the strength of his or her ability to take others to the cleaners but their ability to speak to
the developmental needs of the people.
