The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Bishop Hassan Matthew Kukah, has urged Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo to sustain his style of leadership in Anambra State and beyond.
Bishop Kukah made this statement during the Thanksgiving Mass held to mark Professor Soludo’s three years in office as governor at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Awka on Sunday.
He said Soludo should not view himself as being in competition with anyone in the state.
Bishop Kukah further emphasised that governance is not about competition but about consolidation, stating that successive governors in Anambra have all contributed to the growth and development of the state in their unique ways and styles.
He used the event to urge Nigerians to be more vigilant, noting that about 240 priests have so far been kidnapped amidst insecurity in the country.
He equally appealed to the people of Anambra to continue supporting the governor, mostly through prayers, to enable him to actualise his vision of making the state a destination point and a secure homeland in Nigeria, irrespective of tribe, ethnicity, and religious affiliations.
Responding, Governor Soludo acknowledged that he is not in competition with anyone, emphasising that he needed to improve on the achievements of his predecessors.
He noted that he has been working round the clock to deliver his mandate for Ndi Anambra with empathy and compassion.
“My Lord Bishop, we are not in competition with anyone. What we are doing is to improve on what the past governors have done, not to compete with them.
“I remember people asked me to build roads to the ‘Ngige standard.’ I always joke with Ngige about it, telling him that mine will have a better stone base. We must not forget my predecessor, the late Dr Chinwoke Mbadinuju, who built the Alex Ekwueme Square, Anambra State University, and more. It’s not because schools were closed that we now say he did nothing,” he added.
Other dignitaries present during the event included the governor’s wife, Dr Mrs Nonye Soludo; the Deputy Governor of the State, Dr Onyekachukwu Ibezim; the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Hon Somtochukwu Udeze; the Member representing Ihiala Federal Constituency, Hon Pascal Agbodike; ASATU National President, Barr Titus Akpudo; and the Commissioner for Information, Dr Law Mefor, among others.
ALSO READ FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE
and then