By PETER OKOLIE

The Governorship Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Imo, Sen. Samuel Anyanwu, said he discovered during his campaign that Imo people have lost confidence in Gov. Hope Uzodimma’s government.

Anyanwu said this at a news briefing in Owerri on Thursday.

He said that he saw in his state-wide campaign tour that “the people have lost confidence and do not believe in the present Imo Government”.

He said that he also found out that he remained the only credible alternative to the Government House, among all the contestants.

“Having gone round the 27 Local Government Areas of the state in the course of my campaign, I realised that Imo people have suffered deceit for almost four years,” he said.

He argued that all the state roads, including internal roads in Owerri capital city, were in deplorable condition.

He further described Owerri as the dirtiest city in the South-East, with heaps of decomposing waste in every nook and cranny of the town.

“The only campaign material, which the governor has been using are the Orlu-Owerri Road and Okigwe-Owerri Road, which are federal roads.

“The 27 local council offices are in comatose and overgrown with grasses,” Anyanwu said.

The PDP governorship hopeful claimed that at least 2,000 Imo people lost their lives and over 800 houses destroyed as a result of the lingering insecurity.

He further said that all the primary health centers in the state were lying comatose.

“I discovered that the last time a medical doctor was employed was in 2009 and we currently have barely 23 doctors in the state.

Anyanwu said that Imo was the 13th most indebted state in the country with a N217 billion debt profile.

He said that all the public schools visited had no chairs, roofs, teachers nor motivation for the teachers to do their job.

“When I went to Imo State University, I discovered that students do not have electricity, water and public toilets.

“Most of them indulge in open defecation in the surrounding bush.

“If you go to Orsu and Oru West Local Government Areas, you cannot find a young man between 18 and 40 on the streets because of insecurity.

“The first cardinal responsibility of any government is to protect lives and when any government cannot do that, that government has failed.

“The honourable thing to do is to resign because people have lost confidence in that government,” he said.

Anyanwu, therefore, appealed to the electorate to entrust their votes to him.

He assured them that he would appreciate criticism and implement people-centered policies that would enhance the lives of the people, if elected.

“I will not be a wasteful governor but one who would manage resources prudently.

“I will improve on what my predecessors did rather than destroy them in the name of politics.

“I will re-introduce Imo Road Maintenance Agency to help ensure proper maintenance of our roads.

“We are going to declare a state of emergency on our public primary schools and give them a facelift to compete favourably with private schools and ensure that parents have good options,” he said.

He further promised to train and retrain teachers, especially on ICT and as well ensure their welfare and promotion as and when due.

He promised to establish Community Guard Initiative that would engage about 13,200 to assist security agencies with information on crime fighting and prevention.

“I can assure you that by the time we conduct local government elections, at least 1,501 Imo people will be employed,” he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Anyanwu is one of the 17 candidates seeking to unseat Gov. Hope Uzodimma of APC. (NAN)

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