The former Anambra State governor Mr Willie Obiano with wife, Ebelechukwu
By NewsBits
The Obi of Awka Ancient Kingdom, Eze Uzu III, Chief (Dr.) Austin Ndigwe, has faulted recent outburst by Mrs. Ebele Obiano, wife of the former governor of Anambra state against incumbent Governor Charles Soludo, asking her to stop blaming the governor for her failure in recent National Assembly election.
Dr. Ndigwe said Mrs. Obiano should rather blame “ingratitude and greed” for her unsuccessful quest to occupy the Anambra North Senatorial district seat, which was clearly won by Mr. Tony Nwoye of the Labour Party. According to the monarch, the inability of the former governor and his wife to recognize those who helped them in their times of need, would continue to hunt them.
Recalling how he mobilized financial support for Obiano when he was invited from his base in United States of America to contest the governorship election, Ndigwe said the former governor turned his back at his sponsors and helpers less than three months after his inauguration as governor.
The Advocate reports that Mrs. Obiano who contested the senatorial election on the platform of All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, had taken to her Facebook few days after losing the senatorial election where she lambasted Governor Soludo for “total lack of support he allegedly accorded her senatorial quest”, which ultimately paved the way for her humiliating defeat at the polls.
According to Mrs. Obiano, Soludo refused to release any financial help to her campaign and even stopped picking her calls completely before the election.
“In fact, Soludo set me and my husband up and frustrated us completely. This is a man me and my husband did everything possible to make the governor of Anambra state. We campaigned fervently for him and made funds readily available. As soon as he became governor he changed to a monster and started biting the fingers that fed him,” she was quoted to have said in her outburst on the social media.
Reacting to her comment, Obi Ndigwe, a founding member of APGA, said it was wrong for the Obianos to complain of being abandoned or neglected by the incumbent governor when those who made it possible for him (Obiano) to become governor after spending their hard-earned resources, were treated with scorn throughout his regime.
He said: “I was surprised to read Mrs. Obiano complain of being neglected by Governor Charles Soludo as if she has forgotten so soon how her husband turned his back at those who sponsored his governorship contest only to show high level of disregard to them.
“Obiano and his wife forgot the popular saying that what goes around comes around. This is exactly one year after they left office and for them to complain of neglect or lack of care by their successor so soon, showed that they have been caught up by nemesis.
“Telling Soludo that God will judge him when he has done nothing wrong to you is laughable. Obiano and his wife should realize their mistakes and apologize those they offended because the sin of ingratitude has devastating consequences.
“Obiano was invited from USA to contest the governorship election under APGA, but he could not pay N2m for his nomination form. I provided the fundand filled the form with Chief Ilozumba then Commissioner for Works for him. I also transferred the sum of N10 million through my Special Assistant to Mrs Ebele Obiano for the governor’s inauguration. The transfer was done through a Diamond Bank cheque. I did this because Obiano and his wife could not afford to finance these at the inception. We worked very hard with the support of Martin Agbaso to launch his campaign.
“When Obiano couldn’t get funds to settle his personal bills in America and set out for his campaign, I got a renowned Anambra contractor, Anayo Nwandu to raise N30 million to him. After settling their bills in US, they returned to Nigeria for the governorship campaign which they emerged victorious.
“We worked very hard with Peter Obi, who spent a lot to ensure Obiano’s success only to turn his back on him (Obi) less than three months after his inauguration. Obiano had the effrontery to instruct his aides to shut the door against Obi and all those who helped him to become governor for no reason. Why should they complain so soon that Soludo has neglected them when there is nothing like that? They should leave Soludo alone and face their matter with the anti-graft agency, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, which has seized their travel documents to prevent them from returning to US.”
Continuing, Ndigwe, who sounded a note of warning to the Obianos to stop distracting Governor Soludo, asked them to return the money spent for their campaign and inauguration to the donors before complaining of being neglected and abandoned.
“It is unfortunate that Ebele Obiano will summon courage to accuse the governor of neglect and calling him a ‘monster’ when she and her husband were sponsored to the office and became ‘tiger and leopard’ and (allegedly) chased their sponsors away throughout their eight years in office. Obiano could not have been governor without Peter Obi, but they forgot all that he did for them.”
Ndigwe, however, advised the Obianos to be grateful to Governor Soludo for not prosecuting them for the alleged mismanagement of the state’s internally generated revenue, which he said, was under the direct supervision of Mrs. Obiano for a period of four years.
