The governorship candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP), Sir Paul Chukwuma, has described the suspension of Bernard Udemezue, the member representing Ayamelum Constituency in the Anambra State House of Assembly as a clear signal that Anambra is steadily descending into a dictatorship.
The News Chronicle correspondent in Anambra reports that Udemezue was suspended for three months by the House on Tuesday after the House Committee on Ethics presented its report on the recent conduct of the lawmaker, especially his vituperations on social media.
In a statement on Tuesday, Chukwuma accused the Soludo-led administration of systematically silencing dissenting voices within the legislature while ignoring urgent issues of insecurity and governance in the state.
He alleged that the state legislature has lost its independence, pointing to what he described as Governor Soludo’s restriction on debates over security challenges in Anambra.
“The level of insecurity has gone beyond alarming, yet the House has not debated it. Even when its member, the late Hon. Justice Azuka, was kidnapped, the matter was never mentioned in plenary,” he lamented.
The YPP candidate further criticized the alleged inaction of the judiciary, citing the unresolved industrial action of the Anambra State Judicial Service Commission and the intimidation of the Anambra State Parliamentary Association over labour-related demands.
He also faulted the governor’s executive style, claiming that State Executive Council meetings have become ‘a one-way lecture’ where commissioners are treated ‘less than assistant clerks.’
According to Chukwuma, insecurity and governance failures under Soludo have left residents, traders, business owners, lawyers, and lawmakers vulnerable.
On Hon. Udemezue’s suspension, Chukwuma argued that the move was meant to silence dissent.
“This action points to Soludo’s grand plan to intimidate other State House of Assembly members and shut down opposition and criticism in Anambra State,” he warned.
Chukwuma, however, called on Anambra citizens not to lose hope, promising that YPP would restore order and security if given the mandate.
“If all these are happening in Soludo’s first term, what then will happen in the unlikely event that he gets a second term?
“Anambra people must rise up. YPP is driven by the desire to restore joy in Anambra. We will fix this state and hand it back to the people,” he declared.
