Obiano broadcasts to Ndi-Anambra on Anambra state @ 25 (Happening now)

Here Comes Our Finest Hour!
A Special Broadcast to mark the 25th Anniversary of Anambra State by His Excellency, Chief Willie Obiano, August 27, 2016
Ndi Anambra ekenem unu!
Twenty Five years ago today, our beloved Anambra State came into being. Since then, Anambra has evolved through different stages of growth and remains one of Nigeria’s most important states. This state is blessed with great people, great flora and fauna and a great culture. Our sunny attitude to life has prepared us for the dynamics of a fast changing world. We are like the great Iroko tree; we grow well wherever we choose to sink our roots! Our success is not determined by the kindness of the seasons but by an absence of fear and a deep belief in God!
Ndi Anambra, we are the children of great men and women… the offspring of undisputed pioneers! We know the heritage that powers our excellence. We carry the pride of some of Africa’s greatest achievers. The future looks to us for direction! And we gaze straight into the eyes of Time without blinking; without a tremor in our hearts! For we are the light of the nation! Chukwu kesili anyi ike!
Umu nnem, today, at the dawn of the twenty-fifth Anniversary of our state, I have the honour of reminding you that we are the children of Olaudah Equianoh, the first African to buy back his freedom from his slave masters and boldly speak up for the abolition of the slave trade. We are the children of the Great Zik of Africa whose gift of the mind and the tongue sounded the death bell on colonialism in Africa. We are the offspring of Sir Louis Odumegwu Ojukwu and his son, the great Ikemba Chukwuemeka whose courage and valour ensured the survival of our people from the threat of extinction. We come from the lions of Michael Iwene Tansi, Cardinal Francis Arinze, Chinua Achebe and Kenneth Dike among others; too many to mention here. Our future looks bright with the amazing gifts of youths like Chimamanda Adichie and the boys and girls that astonished the world at the World School Debating Championship in Singapore!
Ndi be’anyi, I stand in the shadow of all these great pioneers and pathfinders as I address you today!
Truly, it can no longer be debated that greatness is our heritage! There is no adversity or setback that we cannot overcome. All we have to do is invoke our faith in God Almighty and remember the children of whom we are!
Ndi Anambra, when I took the oath of office on March 17, 2014, I asked for the love that saw our parents through the adversities of the Biafran War. I quoted the French philosopher, Victor Hugo that “To love another person is to see the face of God.” Umu nnem, at this juncture in our journey, we must invoke that love that preserved our people when the War took away everything of value from them. We must strive to see the face of God by showing love to one another, supporting one another and having the grace to say “sorry” when we are wrong. That is the spirit of the age. That is the spirit of Anambra!
Umu nnem, as our state turns 25 today, we have come to the hour of decision! We have come to that moment in history when we must either pull together to reclaim our greatness as a people or pull apart and accept our failure as efulefe! Tufiakwa! Chineke ekwena ife ojo! There is no place for failure in our worldview. Neither is there a room for “average’ in our ambition! So, we reject the temptation to merely make up the number among Nigeria’s 36 states. Today, on the 25th Anniversary of our beloved state, we invoke the pioneering spirit of the Great Zik on the continent of Africa!
Today too, as the Governor of this state, I extend a hand of fellowship to Ndi Anambra both at home and in the Diaspora. I implore you to rise above the political, religious and ideological walls that separate us and join hands with me to dream up a better future for our people. I remind you today, that the ties that bind us are stronger than the gulf that separates us!
Brothers and sisters, I salute the contributions of all the great men and woman who managed the affairs of our state as military administrators and governors before me. People like - Joseph Abulu, Chukwuemeka Ezeife, Dabo Aliyu, Mike Attah, Rufai Garba, Emmanuel Ukaegbu, Chinwoke Mbadinuju, Chris Ngige, Virgy Etiaba and Peter Obi! Anambra would not have stood any chance at all if you had not answered the call to serve! Ekenem unu! 
Ndi Anambra, this is our finest hour! This is the moment we have been waiting for. We have finally shrugged off the dark clouds of violent crimes, insecurity and lawlessness! The turbulent days of bitter politics and brazen god-fatherism   are all behind us. Umu nnem, before us lies a whole new world of hope! Hope for a great future carved out with focus and vision! Hope for immense prosperity founded on brotherhood and love!
 Brothers and sister, I have a reason for hope. When I realise that the most modern office building in all of Lagos is owned by our own Ernest Obiejesi Azudialor, I see a reason for hope. When I remember that we have attracted over $4bn investments in two years to Anambra State, I see a ray of hope. When I see the three iconic flyovers dotting the landscape of Awka and Amawbia, I see the beauty of hope. When I remember that Upper Iweka was once a den of robbers but has become an island of peace, I see the colour of hope. When I recall that our children have continued to dominate in WAEC and NECO Examinations for three successive years, I see a window of hope. And finally when I watched our own Chimamanda arrest the attention of the world last Friday at the World Habitat Day in the United Nations, I saw a whole new universe of hope! Umu nnem, there is hope for Anambra State!
Ndi Anambra, as we roll out the drums to celebrate the Silver Jubilee of our beloved state, I urge you to join hands with me to bring the hopes and wishes of our people to fulfilment. I urge you to bring your dreams home, I urge you to bring your naira and your dollars home. For though we have only 4,844 square meters of land, Anambra State is big enough for everyone, no matter the size of our dreams! 
My Team and I are intensely focused on driving my Economic Blueprint, the Four Pillars of Development in order to position our dear state for an uncommon economic growth. So far, we have successfully placed our beloved state on the Agricultural Map of Nigeria. Agriculture is the number one Pillar of my Blueprint. We shall soon begin to make the same impact with Industrialization, Trade & Commerce and Oil and Gas which make up the remaining Pillars of my Blueprint. I have no doubt that the Four Pillars of Development hold the key to the future of Anambra State.
However, in order to add momentum to our overall economic drive, we have also adopted a new development strategy known as the Anambra Economic Transform Programme (AET-P) to enhance the integrated development of Anambra State. This strategy was developed to match our new public sector efficiencies with the growing interest of the Private Sector in order to achieve a set of clearly established goals. These goals include - (1) Jumpstarting the immediate operations of the Onitsha Inland River Ports to serve as a catalyst to our domestic economy. (2) Upgrading the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway into a world class highway with ultramodern ancillary services that will boost our IGR. (3) Diversifying our economy by tapping the huge agro-potentials of the Anambra River Basin and finally (4) Accelerating the construction and subsequent operation of the proposed International Cargo and Fuelling Airport in Umueri.
Brothers and sisters, I am very confident that the Four Pillars of Development will change our economic landscape in the next 25 years and bring our people to a vantage position to drive development in West Africa and beyond.  
Let us join hands and build a state that will be the envy of Africa in the next 25 years! Ndi Anambra, this is our finest Hour!
Happy Silver Jubilee Anniversary!
Thank you
Willie Obiano
Governor