Despite being in an opposition party, Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo’s triumph was the result of strategy, intellect, and proven performance — against a fractured opposition that simply failed to show up.
Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo’s sweeping victory in the Anambra governorship election was not a surprise — it was a political inevitability. Long before the first vote was cast, the handwriting was boldly visible across the state’s political map: the contest was Soludo’s to lose.
With the All Progressives Congress (APC) fielding a politically deformed candidate, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lying lifeless in its grave, the Labour Party visibly malnourished from structural anemia, and the African Democratic Congress (ADC) still in political incubation and perpetually weighed down by self interest of its national leaders, Soludo’s triumph was both predictable and well-deserved.
*Soludo: The Only Candidate Standing with Substance*
In a campaign season full of noise and emptiness, Soludo towered as the only candidate armed with intellect, results, and vision. His first term achievements spoke louder than rhetoric — from the infrastructural renewal of Awka and Onitsha, to education reforms, fiscal discipline, and economic inclusion programs that touched the grassroots.
“Soludo did not have to over-promise; he only had to remind Ndi Anambra of what they had already seen.”
His “Anambra 2030” Development Vision is restoring the state’s long-lost urban order, while his bold fiscal reforms have placed Anambra on a path of sustainable growth. To many, Soludo remains the rare example of a technocrat who made the difficult transition from theory to delivery.
*APC: National Backing, Local Bankruptcy*
The APC’s participation was a textbook case of how not to run a campaign. Despite federal presence, the party’s candidate lacked the charisma, intellectual depth, and local connection required to convert Abuja’s blessing into Anambra’s trust.
“It was a case of national power without local relevance — a candidate who could not inspire even his own supporters.”
While the APC relied on federal propaganda, Soludo quietly built bridges. He exploited the party’s intellectual vacuum and strategically aligned with President Bola Tinubu and the national APC leadership — ensuring cordiality at the center while maintaining his independence in the state. It was a masterstroke of political intelligence.
*PDP: A Party Begging for a Candidate*
If the APC’s failure was arrogance, the PDP’s was absence. Once the pride of the Southeast, the PDP has now collapsed into irrelevance. At one point, the party literally had no one willing to pick its nomination forms. Party officials were reportedly appealing to prominent citizens to “help salvage the PDP” by contesting under its banner.
Its factional battles, litigations, and leadership paralysis turned it into a political relic — alive in name but dead in spirit. Against such opposition, Soludo’s path to victory was a walk in the park.
*Labour Party: Malnourished by Structure Deficiency*
The Labour Party entered the election hoping to ride on the Peter Obi momentum. But it soon learned that political enthusiasm without structure is like motion without direction. The party’s machinery in Anambra was skeletal, underfunded, and disorganized.
“What Labour had in noise, it lacked in numbers; what it possessed in passion, it lost in polling units.”
Without a clear agenda or strong candidate, Labour’s campaign fizzled out long before election day.
*ADC: The Party That Never Was*
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) continued its tradition of contesting elections it cannot win. With no visible presence, no resources, and no coherent message, the ADC’s participation was little more than a token gesture — a reminder that Nigeria’s democracy remains crowded but shallow. The party is still in the incubator, marred in self-interest of its proponents.
*A Masterstroke of Political Balance*
Perhaps Soludo’s greatest strength lay not only in his governance but in his ability to balance principle with pragmatism. He understood that ideological rigidity achieves little in a country driven by alliances.
“By aligning with the Tinubu administration while preserving APGA’s independence, Soludo showed that maturity is the highest form of political strength.”
Rather than antagonize the center, he chose engagement — securing goodwill and federal collaboration that will benefit Anambra’s development trajectory.
*Conclusion: Soludo, The Thinker-Governor*
Soludo’s victory was not the product of luck or incumbency; it was the triumph of intellect, pragmatism, and performance. While his opponents were struggling to be noticed, he was busy delivering results.
The APC had power but lacked purpose. The PDP had history but no pulse. Labour had emotion but no engine. The ADC had a name but no life.
Soludo, on the other hand, had vision, record, and the rare political intelligence to turn governance into credibility and credibility into victory.
“Soludo’s re-election is not just Anambra’s story — it is a national lesson: good governance, strategic thinking, and bridge-building remain unbeatable in any democracy.”
Bishop C. Johnson is a Political Commentator and Security Strategist
Gatekeepers News is not liable for opinions expressed in this article, they’re strictly the writer’s.
