Mr. George Moghalu, the Labour Party (LP) candidate for the November 8, 2025 Anambra governorship election, yesterday – Friday, July 11 – kicked off his governorship campaign with a pledge to run a more decent administration where there would be no place for “aka odo” (pestle for weaponised tax collection) syndrome.
Speaking before a capacity crowd of supporters and party leaders, including former Governor and presidential candidate of the party Mr. Peter Obi, Senator Victor Umeh and Senator Ben Nwoye, among others, at the All Saints Anglican Church Cathedral, Onitsha, Moghalu, a former Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), promised to work with fear of God and according to the the Labour Party (LP) manifesto.
Pursuing the theme of decency in the conduct of public affairs, which he lamented is lacking in current governance processes in Anambra State, Moghalu pledged: “We will not use aku odo (pestle) to drive tax. We will not use security operatives to extort or kill opposition. We will not use any crude manner to rule the state and above all, we will institutionalize agriculture, skills acquisition, manpower development and revolutionize education.”
“By the time I assume office as governor of Anambra State, I will make sure that nobody applies aku odo on the people to collect tax and revenue because that is an outdated system of service,” Moghalu emphasized. “There is no reason for anybody to use aku odo to collect tax and revenue at a time when we have means of technology to do our job.
“Anambra must be better off again as we are coming to provide good governance, to create jobs, uplift the education sector because our children deserve to be in quality schools, we are going to upgrade the health sector because our people deserve quality health care services and again we are going to provide quality infrastructures and ensure good road network to enhance esse of doing business. More importantly, we are going to delve into agriculture to make food available for the people. We have a lot to offer Ndi Anambra when we get on board.”
He, however, warned that victory would not come easy given the incumbent Governor’s obvious desperation to return for a second term in office, noting that a lot of work would have to be done all stakeholders in the November 8 Anambra governorship electoral process to make victory possible.
Said the Ohamadike Nnewi: “Our victory won’t come on platter of gold, we have to work hard to be able to defeat the incumbent Governor, so you have to go down the ladder to your wards and polling booths to mobilize people to vote for Labour Party at the polling booths believing God that victory is ours.”
In his own remarks, Obi along with Senator Victor Umeh, Senator Tony Nwoye and other members of the National Assembly as well as State House of Assembly members, who graced the occasion with their exalted presence, urged the electorate to vote for the Labour Party candidate for the Anambra top job come November 8 this year.
Obi assured that the Labour Party would rekindle the quality leadership his administration was credited with between 2006/2007 and 2014, if elected in the November 8 governorship election.
Addressing the mammoth crowd at the flag-off of Dr. Moghalu, the LP flag bearer, and his running mate, Prof. Ifeoma Okaro’s governorship campaign, Obi disclosed that while the Labour Party is part of the ongoing coalition movement for the future of Nigeria, with his loyalists and followers in the LP and Obedient Movement currently in the African Democratic Congress (ADC) for the coalition against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) towards the 2027 presidential election, he is still in the LP and would campaign with Moghalu, the LP candidate till the very end.
According to Obi, it is high time bad governance was stamped out of Nigeria, starting from Anambra State in 2025 down to Nigeria at large in 2027.
“I am calling on Ndi Anambra to vote for Moghalu as a good man and Labour Party as a vehicle for driving towards our ambition because we are part of the coalition for future and we are in ADC for the coalition for presidential election but in Labor Party for Anambra governorship election,” Obi further clarified.
In his own speech, Senator Victor Umeh representing Anambra Central Constituency, described Obi as the soul of progress in Nigeria, while Moghalu who is a man of integrity was carefully chosen by the LP as its candidate to replicate Obi’s magic wand in Anambra State.
In an interview with newsmen, Hon. Uchenna Okonkwo representing Idemili North/South constituency in the House of Representatives, appealed to Ndi Anambra to elect Moghalu as the next governor and go to sleep with their two eyes closed.
