Former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Professor Charles Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) has finally won the Anambra governorship election.
Soludo won 19 out of the 21 local government areas of the state on his second attempt to become governor after his first shot in 2009 under the banner of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
The former banker polled 112,229 votes and was declared as the Governor-elect at exactly 1:51 am by Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) after a supplementary poll in Ihiala Local Government Area.
Declaring Soludo the winner, the Vice-Chancellor, University of Calabar (UNICAL) and Returning Officer, Anambra governorship election, Prof Florence Obi said, “That Charles Chukwuma Soludo of APGA, having satisfied the requirements of the law is hereby declared the winner and is returned elected,” said the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Chief Returning Officer for the poll, Professor Florence Obi, in announcing the outcome on Wednesday morning.
Candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (Mr Valentine Ozigbo) and Young Progressives Party (Senator Ifeanyi Ubah) each won a local government.
But the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Andy Uba, was unable to win any local government in the election.
Ozigbo had 53,807 votes while the other two frontline contenders – Uba and Ubah scored 43,285 and 21,261 votes respectively.
Speaking in his hometown Isuofia in Aguata Local Government Area shortly after being declared the winner of the election, Soludo attributed his victory to God.
He said: “With utmost humility and gratitude to God, I accept the results of the 2021 Anambra governorship election, as declared by INEC.
“This reflects the supreme will of the Almighty God as an overwhelming sacred mandate of the people.
“When we received the massive clamour by the people of Anambra to serve them, we persevered till this divine moment.
“This is a divine journey whose time has come. To God be all the glory and adoration.”
(CHANNELS TV/THE NATION)
