In the face of prevalence of policy somersault and deceleration of development tempo in Nigeria and sub-saharan Africa, “deconstruction of Anambra State” is certainly a fall-out of the mission of the man of the moment in the South-East of Nigeria whose brand of governance is an epitome of leadership transformation. This kind of leadership policy is neither based on donations nor gratifications. Reflecting on the principle of democracy as a government of the people, by the people and for the people, not a charity project but a peoples’ project devoid of ethnic consciousness, clannishness and sectarianism, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, Executive Governor of Anambra State argued that “Anambra State must be liberated. The common threat we face today must be overcome by all of us”. This maxim is now afloat in Anambra’s new political culture provoking convocations and conversations at village squares and Newspapers stands where intriguing questions are asked, interjected and interrogated: “Is Professor Chukwuma Soludo an Utopian? Is his vision accomplish-able? Where is his blue-print leading to in a difficult terrain, Nigeria?” But the people are only reflecting on the phenomenon and novelty of Soludo’s state craft that can stand the test of posterity and historicity, not for political gains of the moment.
Crafted in a mission statement is a conceptual and concrete renewal of hope from a visionary leader whose idea of a new Anambra State is encapsulated in five transformational theoretical framework namely: sustainable environment and urban development; public service reform; revised justice system and security architecture; infrastructure and economic transformation; and human capital and social development. The deconstruction in process is also tackling the previous problematic and inherent gaps in international best practices and standards in public policies.
The five pillars for the development of Anambra State constitute, therefore, not only the aesthetics and logic of Governor Soludo’s critical thinking but also his Neo-liberal reconstruction of the socioeconomic space in the context of historical and cultural reality. Reflecting on his speeches show the nuances of a great thinker and stoic economic philosopher. Governor Soludo’s thought that “before you go to bed, ask yourself what changed today” is an eloquent assertion of Karl Jaspers and Kwame Nkrumah’s idea that ‘thought without action is empty and action without thought is blind”. Like President Nkrumah, the Governor is always guided by his manifesto and the reports of his team. His ideas and the implementation architecture have so endeared him to the literati (teachers and the intelligentsia), the proletariat (working class) and sagacious rural leaders and farmers that his party APGA worn majority seats in the just concluded state Assembly elections.
The transformational leadership, a signpost and spotlight of modern Anambra state is scaling up of private public partnership (propping individuals and private companies for public investment) and eliciting international development institutions for aids and grants in support of major reforms in the civil and public service, justice system and security architecture, all with the vision of making the state a sustainable livable society land marked with mega and smart markets, trading and investment centers. The new vistas to behold is a socio-political space where all the institutions and arms of governments have been galvanized to set in motion the vision of economic, political, social and technological transformation of Anambra State.
Gone were the days of knee-jack approaches to governance but today by the hindsight and foresight of the philosopher king, Professor Soludo, Anambra State is gradually being transformed, aided by MOU’s with UNDP and other International investments institutions and empathy for culture, history and tradition of Anambra State in terms of re-investing her entrepreneurial and business values.
The backward integration programme has Governor Obiano’s 50-year Development Plan (2021-2070) as an enabler and critical foundation for the systematic and dialectical deconstruction of Anambra political economy and cultural history. Some leaders would discard his predecessor’s mileages but Soludo’s uncanny scientific and artistic reconstructive mechanism leverages on Obiano’s development plan on
economy and social service, governance, law, institutions, environment and infrastructure, identity, value and culture and so on. These developmental variables of the modern Anambra State would sum up to the fact there is no good vision without experience and that there is no wisdom by chance. Hence, transforming the state to a liveable home land means trans-formative backward integration of entrepreneurship, infrastructure, justice system, institutions, human capitals, industry and social values.
Written by MADUABUCHI DUKOR
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