Anambra 2021: Group adopts sports for political mobilisation

…Roots for Prof Soludo

A political pressure group, Anambra Demand for Soludo (ADS), has flagged-off a football competition among all communities in the state aimed at creating awareness on the need for emergence of Professor Chukwuma Soludo as the next Governor of the state.

The Football Competition tagged “Anambra Demand for Soludo Maiden Tournament ” will feature teams from all the 179 communities in the state at local government area level, from which the best 18 players would be chosen for career development.

Speaking with journalists shortly after the opening match of the tournament between Ozubulu and Ichi at St Matthew Field, Ozubulu, Chairman of ADS, Jude Emecheta, said they considered it proper to use sports as a tool for political education.

Chief Emecheta added that the competition was conceived to harness budding talents at grassroots and use a political brand name to mobilise youths to participate actively.

“Some of us have passion for football and we want our youths to showcase their talent .We want to redirect their mind and energy for positive ventures. Again, we decided to play with a name that could make youths to come out to play,” he said.

Emecheta, who is also the Managing Director of Anambra State Signage and Advertising Agency(ANSAA), stated that prizes had been lined up for winners as follows, First prize N500,000; Second prize – N300,000; and third prize – N200,000 respectively.

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Commenting on the competition, Paulinus Onyeka, Liaison Officer to Governor Willie Obiano, said it was staged to mobilise support for Prof. Soludo’s emergence as the next Governor of the state.

“We are using the competition to tell the world about Prof Soludo, so that everybody will say he is the man to follow. We want somebody that will consolidate the developmental strides made by Governor Obiano,” Onyeka stated.

According to him, the choice of the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria is largely due to his profile and managerial capacity to deliver.