8 Reasons Why Nature Will Go Against Andy Uba on Nov 6 Governorship Election

From HHARRISON ANYAEEGBU (AWKA)

Momentum is defined as the impetus gained by a moving object. Mr. Andy Uba would have people believe he is on the move and has momentum in the Anambra governorship race, but all signs and actual metrics on the ground say otherwise. Mr. Uba is trying to create the idea that he has the momentum primarily in two ways; one is by pushing a false narrative that federal might will win him the election, and the other is by using Ghana-must-go schemes and promises of huge sums of money to get people to decamp from other political parties to All Progressives Congress (APC).

Although some people are decamping to APC because they have been intimated and harassed by the government, and are under EFCC investigation, a few are defecting to APC because they believe Mr. Uba’s lies that he has federal might behind him. The reality is that federal might will not win Mr. Andy Ubah the governorship in Anambra for the following reasons:

• Mr. Ubah does not have the support of APC leaders and APC grassroots. Former governor of Rivers State and current minister of transportation, Rotimi Amaechi does not support Mr. Ubah. Mr. Amaechi is aligned with George Moghalu, an APC member and governorship aspirant in Anambra who is currently challenging Mr. Uba’s candidacy in court. The Federal High Court in Abuja is set to deliver judgment on that suit.

• APC governors do not support Mr. Uba in the race. Mr. Ubah has tried to obtain funding from them for his campaign but so far only the governor of Imo State, Mr. Hope Uzodinma has made a monetary contribution to the Andy Uba campaign. Other APC leaders are also not supporting Mr. Uba.

• President Muhammadu Buhari is thinking hard about his legacy and considering his failings on the economy, infrastructure, and security, and has been told by his top team that holding free and fair elections from here onwards is important to securing his legacy. So Buhari has opted to allow the November 6 Anambra governorship poll to hold without federal interference or “federal might”.

• For obvious reasons, President Muhammadu Buhari and the national APC leadership are working towards a situation where their party wins the presidency in 2023 through the will of the people at the poll. They, therefore, are of the impression that holding free and fair elections from now onwards will help them buy goodwill from Nigerians and appease the international community who hold a dim view of President Muhammadu Buhari and the ruling party.

• The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu has told President Buhari that free and fair elections should be held in the Anambra governorship poll on November 6. INEC officials will not engage in activities that undermine the democratic process, rather they will strive to conduct the elections properly.

• The United States condemned the acts of violence, corruption, and intimidation in the 2019 elections in Edo and Ondo states, and further announced they would impose visa restrictions and bans on government officials and individuals who undermined the 2019 elections, and prevented the conduct of free and fair elections. In 2020, officials and politicians involved in election rigging in Edo, Ondo, Bayelsa, and Kogi elections in 2019 were banned from the United States of America and given US visa restrictions. The US State Department made this announcement in September 2020. Since then, political office holders, elected government officials, and other Nigerians are being careful to uphold fair democratic processes in Nigeria because they do not want them and their families to be banned from the United States of America, and other countries and placed on international watch lists.

New INEC technology in the form of Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) which was deployed in the Isoko South 1 State Constituency by-election in Delta State held in September 2021. BVAS ensures efficient human recognition through a biometric verification mechanism, using both facial recognition and fingerprint of voters. With BVAS coupled with the electronic transmission of election results, the outcome of the election cannot be manipulated by any so-called “federal might”. The Senate has told the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) that it may transmit the results of the November 6, 2021 governorship elections electronically in Anambra State.

• Anambrarians are fully engaged and are determined to elect a governor who will take them into a prosperous and secure future. In the final analysis, the will of the people will prevail because the democratic process will not be hindered.

In summary, Mr. Andy Ubah does not have federal might and will not come November 6, 2021. Although, Mr. Andy Ubah and his family have terrorized Anambra and in their lust and quest for power over the years, Anambrarians want to drastically move away from the politics and the negative occurrences of the past and chart a new path by electing a leader with a vision who has articulated his plans for the state and has a demonstrated track record of delivering on stated objectives. There is a level of hope and expectation that is different from past gubernatorial elections in Anambra, and this is good news.

Harrison Anyaegbu is a journalist, blogger, and an Editor at the South East Media Bureau, a coalition of journalists committed to entrenching good governance in Anambra State.