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bezim renominated as deputy
By Aloysius Attah, Onitsha
Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State has secured the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) nomination for the governorship election on 8 November 2025. The party held its primary election on Saturday at Alex Ekwueme Square in Awka, where Soludo ran unopposed.
Returning officer Hon Uche Nwegbo announced the results. “Total delegates for this election is 3,260, 3,175 is accredited delegates, 3,172 is the total votes, while 04 votes were invalid,” he said.
“The total yes-votes garnered by the governor is 3,168, while there were no, no-votes. So, in line with the INEC guidelines and with the powers conferred on me as the chief returning officer for this election, I, Uche Nwegbo hereby declare the governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo as returned, as the candidate of our party.”
In his acceptance speech, Soludo promised to keep working hard for APGA and Anambra’s people.
“We as a party have grown from strength to strength. We are the first registered progressive party in Nigeria and our people have taken APGA as their own. Anambra is APGA and APGA is Anambra,” he said.
He expressed gratitude for the support. “I want to say that I am humbled by this historic display of solidarity to be able to the flag of our party again, and I want to say that I accept thus nomination whole heartedly,” Soludo added. “Anambra keeps rising with the progressive leadership that we have had through APGA, and I will continue to appreciate the leadership of the party.”
He praised the peaceful process. “I do not think that we have ever had this kind of peaceful election where everything was orderly and in one hour everyone was able to cast their votes,” he noted. “In 2021, Anambra interviewed all the candidates and employed me, and all through the journey, three years down the line, you have been able to give us support.”
Soludo highlighted his achievements. “That is why we have been able to do what we do, which people say is magical. We are doing this without borrowing one Naira and I know we will continue us to do even more and we continue to ask for your prayers,” he said. “We are only at the introductory stage, Anambra has not seen anything yet.”
He thanked supporters across the state. “I appreciate citizens, captains of industries who have been supporting us and we will keep growing higher and higher,” Soludo continued. “I appreciate the support groups, especially all that endorsed us for a second term. They are still coming up with more donations to the campaigns, and I thank those market women who are still eager to donate to our campaign.”
Soludo predicted a landslide win. “Many political parties have declared support for us and never in Anambra State have we ever had a consensus like what we have today,” he said. “We will not only win all the 21 local government but the 326 wards. Someone said we should even aim for all the polling units in the state. We want to make a statement.”
He confirmed his running mate. “In 2017, I gave a lecture which I titled ‘If it is not broken, why mend it’, and it became popular. Today I want to say that, I am renominating Dr Onyeka Ibezim as my deputy governorship candidate for the election. If it is not broken, why mend it. I want to say that the battle has only began,” Soludo concluded.