Why Soludo Introduced Free Education and Other Empowerment Schemes by Mefor
By Rose Oranye
Anambra State Commissioner for Information, Dr. Law Mefor, has described Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo as a statesman who is concerned about the future of Ndi Anambra, and the present condition of the state.
Speaking when he received the members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Angels News Network (ANN) Chapel, who paid him a courtesy visit at his office in Awka, Mefor maintained that the governor doesn’t make empty promises like the everyday politician but is more interested in what will become of the state in the next 10-50 years, just as he worries about the welfare of Ndi Anambra and the development of the state.
He says, “Mr. Governor is concerned about what will happen after us as much as he is worried about the present conditions of the people and state. The governor is looking at what our children inherit, and how we make Anambra inclusive enough to carry everyone along. For example, he believes that if we cannot change the state of the Anambra woman frying Akara today, we can do something to ensure that her children do not end up like her. That explains why he believes free and compulsory education is necessary, and he has introduced it from primary to senior secondary school in the state. It’s not just for Ndị Anambra but for whoever lives here in the state. There are other empowerment schemes to augment, like One Youth, Two Skills, digital skill training by the Solution Innovation District, and many others.
“You know that possibly up to 50 percent of Ndị Anambra do not live in Anambra. So what Soludo is doing will also benefit all others who live here because Anambra State is home for all. We are very hospitable people. We have to be accommodating because our people are outside also—in other states, Africa, and the world—and we expect them to be treated fairly wherever they may be. And there are many populist, inclusive policies that Soludo has introduced in the last 32 months. You can see many, ranging from basic programs and projects to infrastructure. No part of Anambra has not been touched deeply.”
The Commissioner commended journalists in the state for the fair reportage the state has received in the last couple of months and urged them to do more, even as he assured he would continue to run an open door policy to enable journalists to get firsthand and verified information.
In their separate speeches, the Chairman of Angels News Network Chapel of NUJ, Comrade Bonvera Onyebuchi Ndubuisi, and Dr. Ifeanyi Obiefuna said the visit was to identify with the Commissioner and the Information Ministry and assured of their readiness to promote the activities of the Ministry and the administration of Governor Chukwuma Soludo.
Highlights of the visit were the presentation of gifts and the chapel’s cap to the Commissioner as an ambassador of the ANN Chapel.
* Oranye is of the Ministry of Information, Anambra State.