Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State has denied endorsing any candidate for the November 16 governorship election in the state.
The state Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism, Chief Joe-Martins Uzodike, spoke on behalf of the governor at a briefing in Awka on Sunday, describing as mischievous attempts to associate a candidate with the governor.
He said rather than back any candidate, Obi had continued to preach against election of a governor via a godfather.
He said the only thing Obi had insisted on in the spirit of fairness was that Anambra North should produce the next governor of the state.
There has been speculation that Obi had changed his stance to support a candidate from Anambra North to back a former Central Bank Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, from Anambra South.
Uzodike, however, mentioned four aspirants, whom he described as qualified for the job from Anambra North Senatorial Zone.
He said, "Today, a number of them have come out, with competitive advantages to rival the best of other zones. We have the Secretary to the State Government, Mr. Oseloka Obaze, an international civil servant; we have Dr. Chike Obidigbo, a renowned industrialist; we have Mr. Tony Nnaecheta, who was an ex-Managing Director of a bank; we have Chief Willie Obiano, who was an Executive Director in a bank, among others. With this array of people from the zone, nobody can say the area lacks quality people."
Reacting to Senator Chris Ngige's comment on the controversy surrounding the evacuation of some destitute persons from Lagos to Onitsha by the Lagos State Government, the commissioner said he would not join words with the senator.
He recalled that Ngige had reportedly not made any statement in the Senate or sponsored a bill, only to support the unjust evacuation of his people.
The commissioner said, "The man has remained dumb in the Senate. Today, he is prancing all over the place with logistics provided by the very people that perpetrated injustice against his people, to defend that injustice."
