Over the years, the evolution of participatory politics in Anambra State has recorded a trajectory of mind and resource maturity. However, political electioneering was left in the hands of career politicians alone. But as the Anambra 2021 gubernatorial election was approaching, the realization that the choice of who governs the state must not be left in the hands of these politicians alone hit some elites and gave birth to a political movement – the kind that, arguably, has never been recorded in the history of the state.
At the forefront of this movement was a team of technocrats and professionals led by Late Chief Joe Anatune, Onwa n’Awa – the Big Joe. It started as a team that had Chief Anatune, Honourable Andy Okafor, Barrister Leo Chiegboka and Professor Okey Ikeanyibe. They unanimously chose Mr Okey Emmanuel Odewaiwai as their scribe. The movement will later become Soludo Promoters Forum, SPF.
Their first meeting held on June 30, 2020 at Chief Anatune’s office in Ikeja, Lagos State. The agenda of that meeting was “to come together and persuade Prof Charles Chukwuma Soludo to accept and contest the gubernatorial election in the 2021 Anambra State election and to organize a political association that would mobilize Anambra elites towards believing, and getting involved in sensitizing and mobilizing Ndi Anambra to choose Professor Soludo as their governor having believed that the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria had all it takes to revolutionalize governance in the state.
Their third agenda was to tackle the elite apathy in the political elections which, hitherto, had seriously bedeviled the state’s democracy. Indeed, the group wanted to literally drag Anambra elites into the field of politics.
Finally, the founding facilitators of SPF agreed that the most strategic way to achieve their objectives was to launch SPF in all the twenty-one local government areas in the state and afterwards replicate same in the communities. The first
inauguration which was first held in Aguata Local Government Area and in Nkpologwu to be precise on August 22, 2020 soon became a state-wide wave and was hugely embraced by elites, industrialists, business moguls, town union leaders, host traditional rulers and indeed stakeholders across the social and political divides. Consequentially members made remarkable sacrifices to realize the objectives of the forum as they volunteered their resources to the activities of the forum.
Indeed, there is no gainsaying the fact that the SPF support programmes went to a large extent in securing victory for Governor Soludo at the Anambra 2021 gubernatorial polls.
Again, it was in the original plan of SPF that the forum should partner with Governor Soludo after the election to offer him maximum support to fulfill his People’s manifesto. Unfortunately, the cold hands of death snatched the founding Leader, Chief Anatune on April 30, 2022 – just some weeks after the inauguration of Governor Soludo. It was a death that shook the forum members below the belt. But as in the words of the Bible, SPF wept, but not like people without hope.
After giving the Late Chief Anatune a befitting funeral, Hon Andy Okafor took up the mantle as the new National Leader, and with the support of the management committee and the management Team, SPF is now recharged to step into the second phase of its mission – to strategically play a stakeholder role in promoting Governor Soludo’s Solution Agenda. Consequently, the SPF National Management Team considered it most expedient to change the forum’s name from Soludo Promoters Forum to Solution Promoters Forum, SPF.
The SPF 2023 National Convention is the historic gathering that will launch into the second phase of the forum. The SPF Technical Committee, Board of Patrons and ultimately the Management Committee have been set up and would be launched at the event as the necessary structures required to delve into this new phase.
The 2023 National convention holds tomorrow, Saturday December 2, 2023 in Awka, Anambra State. It will also feature the launch of the “SPF Zero-Hunger-Zero-Poverty Solution Initiative”. Reverend Father Professor Godfrey Nzamujo of Songhai Integrated Centre, Porto-Novo, Republic of Benin will be the Guest Speaker.
Written by OKEY EMMANUEL ODEWAIWAI
Comments are closed for this post.