By Celestine Okafor (Editor-in-Chief)
The Campaign Organization of Chief Ben Etiaba, the governorship candidate of Action Alliance (AA) in Saturday's gubernatorial election in Anambra state, has raised serious protest over the exclusion of the AA candidate and indeed the candidate of other political parties for the election in the governorship debate organized by Arise News Tv scheduled to take place today (Monday, November 1, 2021).
The Etiaba Campaign Council and its political platform AA are querying the criteria adopted by the management of Arise News TV for the scheduled debate for the governorship candidates in Anambra.
The Campaign group is also wondering the reason for selecting only the candidates of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Prof Chukwuma Soludo; that of the People's Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Valentine Ozigbo, and the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Andy Uba, for the Monday TV debate.
In a statement on Sunday night, October 31, 2021, by Ifeanacho Atusiubah, the Director of Media and Publicity of Ben Etiaba Campaign Council (BECC), the organization contends that the selection of only Soludo, Ozigbo, and Uba for the governorship debate, out of all the party candidates standing for the election, was an act of gross injustice, unfairness and bad faith on the part of the management of Arise News Television, organizers of the debate.
According to the Action Alliance and the Campaign Council of its candidate, the Arise News decision on such a very sensitive matter in a governorship election week in the State is clearly sending a dangerous signal of undisguised "arrogant" partisanship in favor of "preferred candidates" for the electorates of Anambra state.
While calling on Arise News management to urgently reverse itself from such perceived injustice against the Anambra voters and the deprived party candidates, the Etiaba Campaign Council however wondered in whose interest the organizers of the debate are serving?
The Campaign Organization expressed their strong protest and grievances thus: "The attention of Ben Etiaba Campaign Council has been drawn to an Arise News proposed Governorship debate between Three out of the Eighteen Governorship candidates in this Saturday’s election in Anambra State.
"One wonders the basis for Arise News decision on such a very sensitive matter in a governorship election week in the State.
"Is it the channel’s agenda to set the scene for a predetermined election outcome this Saturday in the State, or are they arrogant enough to feel justified in selecting preferred candidates for the electorate in the State?
"Elections are always about the future and never about the past and past performances. If this assertion is true, whose interest then is Arise News in Anambra to serve today, and indeed this week?
"What right do they have to tell Ndi Anambra which candidates are superior going into the election on Saturday?
"Ndi Anambra, why are we surprised that our land is very restive presently if we continue to allow impunity to reign and if they continue to trample on the sensitivity of the people?
"Once again, can Arise News honestly tell Ndi Anambra whose interest they are serving in Anambra this week?
"Our candidate, Chief Ben Etiaba, is in this race to fight for, and to protect the interest of the masses in Anambra State. If we let this impunity go without protest, it signals our unseriousness and unpreparedness in this governorship race this Saturday.
"According to Saint Francis of Assisi, “All the darkness in the world can never extinguish the light of a single candle”.
"Action Alliance will continue to stand up to defend the interest of Ndi Anambra over and above the interest of a few that have held us down as a people for decades.
"We are better than this as a people for Anambra State remains the ‘light of the Nation’' ", the statement said. NNL.
