Recently, the Anambra State Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance {APGA},Chief Mike Kwento, spoke with our correspondent ,ABUCHI IFESINACHI,AWKA , at Otuocha during a political rally on some contemporary issues affecting the party.
Excerpts
As the party is preparing for next year’s general elections, what are you doing to reconcile aggrieved members of the party?
Let me tell you, you may say we have aggrieved members. In politics, in democracy, there are issues of agreeing or disagreeing that is what makes it democratic. If we are agreeing without disagreeing, you know that something is wrong somewhere. These are all elements of democracy.
What effort is the party leadership making to move it to other states in the country?
If you come to my vehicle, I will show you some flyers from the North, from Kaduna. APGA in Kaduna, southern Zaria you know will make up 180% of the population of northern Zaria population of Christians and that of the Igbo speaking people. We have a concentration there and now they have all awaken to make sure that they deliver APGA government in Kaduna, talk less of Imo and Abia. I bet you, I may not be able to say it categorically how many states we will capture, but I tell you we will capture other states in Nigeria.
What is your strategy?
The mechanism is that people are tired with what is happening. And people would now want a change, change is something that is constant in life whether you like it or not. Even when APC is making noise, they are changing to APGA. Few days time I will be going to Delta when we will be receiving APC members in their numbers.
Recently, APGA launched her JJJ project, what does it represent?
The rationale is that when a man is doing his best, he is open and can take all the shocks as it is coming in the system, you now find out that there is a need to give him support irrespective of his party affiliation. So JJJ is Join Jonathan’s Journey not Join PDP Journey. It is an individual affair. I remembered in 2011, we endorsed him in our convention. We gave him our mandate and that mandate still subsists. It has not been withdrawn.
But people are quick to ask what they benefitted from the mandate you gave him in 2011 to deserve another one?
Our benefits are numerous. one, the issue of one man one vote has come to stay whether we like it or not. It is one of the benefits, people see benefits as something that enters their pockets. If it is not there, they don’t see it as benefit. But when benefit is hollistical it goes everywhere and it becomes difficult to pick it here and there. Secondly, the issue of second Niger Bridge which we are much concerned. Now he has embarked on it and so many other numerous projects he has embarked on.
Recently, the Supreme Court upheld the election of Governor Obiano of Anambra State, what does it mean to the party?
By the Grace of God, the Supreme Court which is the highest court in the land has spoken and they spoke in favour of APGA. The detailed interpretation is that His Excellency, Chief Willie Obiano, the Governor of Anambra State will be in office till 2018.I will say that a serious life wire has been injected to APGA. So between now and 2018, he will right all wrongs and I will appeal to you to be closer to the party, to the government and to the people of Anambra State. You can see that this government has performed in the area of security especially in Onitsha and its environs.
Will this victory translate to the development of the state?
Even without victory, people can agree with me the quantum and quality he has already put in place in his 100 days in office. He was able to curb the excess rascality all in the name of robbery and kidnapping. Today, it is a thing of the past in less than six months. So I wonder what he is going to do when he completes one year in office. It is going to be fantastic. Look at the three fly-overs along the Awka section of the expressway. His tenure will bring about the first designed, built and delivered capital city in the eastern part of the country.
On the welfare off civil servants…….
The Governor has a human face and because he has a human face he knows that in all the constructions, the highest is the construction which we refer to as human infrastructure, construction of the stomach.
