Activist launches book on Anambra 2013 guber election

 

The general election in Anambra State, particularly the governorship election has always been interesting as the state has many moneybags who throw in their weights during elections in the state.

Thus elections in the state have been full of intrigues and intensive political tussles, which are alien to other states of the federation.

Therefore, when recently one of its illustrious daughters, Dr Ijeoma Nwando Okereke rolled out a book on the 2013 Anambra State governorship election, many applauded her efforts in the belief that a political encyclopedia has been born that would bring an insight into those Anambra political intrigues.

The 310-page book entitled: “Anambra 2013: A Positive Change, How it All Began,” chronicled the summary of the pre-election, election and post-election proceedings, the zoning issue, the activities of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and some remarkable political issues from 1998 to 2013.

Though the turn-out at the book launch may not have been like that of political meetings or rallies in the state, where people are hired and given branded clothes to wear and transport fare at the end; it nevertheless attracted some high calibre persons from the state.

Renowned author and monarch of Ndikelionwu, Eze (Prof) Chukwuemeka Ike and his wife and some other authors were present at the book launch, which was chaired by a clergyman and President of Hephzibah Organization, an NGO that helps the less privileged and empowers the youths on skill acquisition, Rev. Dr. Chukwukaodinaka Oraagu.

Aside Rev (Dr) Oraagu who represented the former gubernatorial candidate of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) in the last election in the state, Chief Godwin Ezeemo; the National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and a senatorial candidate in the forthcoming general election, Chief Victor Umeh made the book launch to become more successful with his huge donation delivered by his representative, the Director General of his Campaign Organization, Obele Chuka Obele.

The chief launcher and former Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters who incidentally is a senatorial hopeful in the 2015 election, Chief Dubem Obaze performed creditably well at the launch to the admiration of the audience who were of the view that his likes are meant for such exalted positions.

The First Lady of the state, Chief (Mrs) Ebelechukwu Obiano who was the special guest of honour was represented by a senior special assistant in the government, Mrs Amaka Ezike, while the immediate past governor, Chief Peter Obi was represented by Mr Patrick Obi.

Also in attendance were other notable personalities, including some former council chairmen and the book reviewer, Dr. Nathaniel Ikeadi.

Commending the author, Mrs Obiano, Prof Ike and the chairman of the occasion, Rev Oraagu agreed that she did the state proud, saying that her work would go a long way in reshaping democratic process in the state.

Mrs Obiano who unveiled the book described it as a “marvelous book,” urging politicians in the state to read it and learn from the mistakes of the past so that future elections in the state would turn out better.

The chief launcher, Chief Obaze noted that Dr Okereke and her team worked tirelessly to sensitize the people of the state on the electoral processes, adding that her putting all that transpired in book form was highly commendable.

He urged the author not to relent, but to continue to do same, stressing that by the time she does that again and again, the state would have become the political mirror of the nation.

Dr Okereke’s classmate in the secondary school, Pastor (Mrs) Lozie Elijah Irozuru, described her as a woman full of many gifts; noting that “she is a publisher, a writer and helps to impact the gospel.”

She said: “We were classmates at Girls High School Aba, she was a disciplined and an intelligent girl, and I have been following her works.”

Former Managing Director, Anambra Broadcasting Service (ABS), Lady Chinwe Nnebedum, recalled that the author already has written seven books which were selling fast in the market and, therefore, commended her effort in the new book.

Lady Nnebedum urged people in Anambra State and beyond to ensure that they obtained a copy of the book on Anambra 2013, just as she advised Ndigbo to embrace the reading culture, saying “we are proud for you, Anambra is proud of you and Nigerians will celebrate you; hold fast to what you have and sustain it.”

Earlier in her address, the author, who is also the founder of Wake-Up Call Youth Empowerment Foundation, explained that her book was drawn from reports in the national dailies, observations, facts and statistics recorded during the 2013 election, particularly by the WUC Team, noting that they were at the helm of the exercise.

Her words: “Our team was on ground during the election, creating awareness and ensuring that the electorate were taught what to do during the election. We campaigned to ensure that people came out en masse for the voters validation exercise, voting on the day of election, and maintaining peace before and after the election.

“The sum total of these encounters and many more are what I documented in this 310-page book, “Anambra 2013: A Positive Change, How It All Began.” The book also drew from the reports in the dailies, observations, facts and statistics during the election, especially from Wake-Up Call team, which was at the helm of the project.

“As the grassroots people of the 2013 election in Anambra State, we considered it imperative to have a documented summary of what transpired during the election which my team supervised. That was what informed the writing of this book. Also, being an author and publisher who has written books on several topics, I have no doubt that anyone who lays hand on it, including the actors and players in the elections, will grasp what happened, and reflect on their actions during the period.”

Speaking on the concept of the book from the beginning to the end, she said: “My team and I analyzed the contestant’s interests from all the angles. We recorded various activities, party manifestos and candidates’ speeches with our own observation, and documented them into a book. Suffice it to say that we started from 1999 to 2006, from the time of Dr Chinwoke Mbadinuju to Chief   Peter Obi, what happened during their tenures of office and summarized them. To achieve this feat, a lot of time and money have been expended on the project which involved flawless technology, colour separation, colour printing and graphics design, SMS, among others.”