By Anthony Isibor
The elder statesman who just turned 85 told Realnews in an exclusive interview in Lagos that Obi “actually practices what he preaches in governance and the difference is clear”.
He said that Obi could not be faulted on the money, he said, he left in the Anambra state treasury.
“Not even his successor has said it didn’t happen, so at least it’s possible for government to be run without all the corruption.
“He was not profligate, he was thrifty with government funds the way he would have been with his own funds, which was why, you know, many times we met at the airport, I go and sit in my business class this thing… the governor goes to sit in his economy class and he was consistent in that for the eight years he was there, that tells you of the quality of the character.” he said.
Professor Anya added that politicians should act in all fairness and equity and consider the push for Nigerian president of South-East extraction.
According to him, all the other five geopolitical zones, except the North-East have had a president come from it.
He, however, commended former Vice President Atiku Abubakar for his display of statesmanship and patriotism when he said “he is prepared to stand down if it is zoned to the southeast”.
“That’s the mindset of a statesman. He is prepared to sacrifice his personal interest in the national interest because he knows if the southeast takes charge of Nigeria by pulling together the peoples of Nigeria, they have the capacity to do it.
“If, all you need is the gesture that we’ve just talked about from Atiku, multiply it 3 to 4, 5 times, you see a sea change; people will suddenly say “is that possible, and people will now become more receptive.
“What Atiku has done could be multiplied and once it is accepted that it is in the national interest, let’s pay the debt that Nigeria owes and let’s harness all the talents that are available in Nigeria. Lagos, the east, the southeasterners have developed Lagos at the expense of southeast.
“It’s easy to transfer what has happened in the southwest, the western corridor of Nigeria from Lagos down to Sokoto, you can do the same thing from Port-Harcourt down to Maiduguri, and you now find a country that is united at different levels where there is work for people and where people move freely, that is possible and that is where we should be going,” he said.
Anya also said that the Igbos are capable of ruling the country efficiently if given the chance, adding that “the people of the zone are capable of recreating the wealth like they have done over the years in every part of the country”.
“One, they are the people spread all over the country so there is no area of the country where they have…they are not in a position to improve. Second and more importantly, the area of the economy like I said earlier the micro economy is the area the southeasterners are strong in. They have illustrated it here in Lagos where we live in.
“Like I said in the paper, we were all given 20 pounds at the end of the civil war, but you know, in Anambra for example, at least 10 people have multiplied that 20 pounds to the point that they are billionaires.
“Those who can do such things need to do it for Nigeria at the national level and as I also said, there are good men all over the country, it’s leadership that can draw them all together and work in the national interest.
Prof. Anya is the founding Director-General of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group.
He was the Chairman of the Governing Board of the Nigerian National Merit Award and former President of the Nigerian Academy of Science
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