Lagos — Mrs. Njideka Ugochi Anyadike contested the 2007 governorship election in Anambra State under the platform of the African Democratic Congress (ADC). Recently, she spoke with journalists in Lagos on her mission to change the face of Anambra State, saying that men's dominance is no threat to her governorship ambition in the 2010 election.

In 2007, you contested the governorship election in Anambra State and lost, you are now warming up for another contest next year.Do you believe that you possess what it takes to win such contest in a male dominated race?

First let me tell you who am I, in case you don't know. I'm from Nanka in Orumba North of Anambra State. In 2007, I ran for governorship election to take up the mantle of leadership of Anambra State under the African Democratic Congress (ADC). I have not stopped, I'm still going on for the 2010 election and this time, I'm running to win. So, concerning my qualification, I'm a graduate of French and I have my Masters in Business Administration in Banking and Finance. I retired in 2002 as an Assistant General Manager in the bank and since then I have been managing a financial consultancy and property firm. I also attended a Bible school. I have a Diploma in Theology and Bible Studies. I run an international fellowship- The Remnant. In the organisation, we try to empower people using the principles in the Bible on how to run our daily life. You know some people go to church and quote the Bible but they don't know how to apply them when they have challenges. I'm also into socio-cultural groups. I'm one of the leaders of Ndigbo Lagos. I'm also the Vice President of Umu Ada Ndigbo (The Professionals). And I also attend some Imobi meetings of Ohanaeze because I'm burdened for not only Nigeria, but Ndigbo and particularly Anambra. I'm a steering committee member of League of Anambra Professionals and also the prayer leader. With prayers we have gone so far and we about to develop the state even without government. We want to bring development to Anambra State and create wealth and job opportunity for the teeming citizens who cannot find employment elsewhere through the establishment of different industries. I was a council member of Nigeria Chamber of Shipping for some years and I'm a founding member of the board of Centre for Value in Leadership.

Yes, from all these things I have told you it has shown that I am contributing into making this country work. I'm also a public commentator. But I have found out one thing, that while those of us in the struggle were trying to get solutions to the problems, the people authority who got there most times through dubious means are not ready to listen because they are not committed. You will know those who are committed by what they do. Trying to get the grass root working, Taking care of the people. Most of the people that you have put in authority are people who have never care for the masses.

They are people who are elites. I know I belong to the elites but I also have a soft spot for the masses. I use my position to try to improve the lots of the masses. I'm a voice of the masses. I have always been and it is internalised. And until we get people like that in authority, we can never make it.

So, by my education I'm qualified. By my height I'm qualified. By experience I'm qualified. And I have enough compassion, I'm burdened enough. If you don't have burden and passion you cannot do this job, otherwise midway you truncate it. When you get there you backslide and start doing it the same way other people are doing it. I want to do it the right way. In fact, I want to change, transform this nation by starting from one small place like Anambra State, if we get it right then the whole nation will get it right. That is why I'm running and I believe I can do it. God has given me the resilience and the strategy to do it.

What do you think were responsible for your defeat in the 2007 governorship election?

There was no election. It was annulled. Because I could have made it if we went through the tribunals. We didn't have an election. the exercise was annulled by the court. So, there is no question of me been defeated.

Do you think you can do it differently from what Governor Peter Obi's administration is doing now in Anambra State?

But you see it's not only in Anambra, in the whole of Nigeria the level of rottenness has been so high and a rebuilding process must start. And in that process it's like building a vehicle, the person who will do the frame is different from the person who will do the engine etc. but it's only one car that you are talking about. Dr Chris Ngige was brought for a particular purpose, he did it. And Obi was there for a particular purpose and he has done it. My own is different. My own is that I will deal with the people. Do things that will impact on the lives of individuals. So, Obi has done a number of good things nobody is perfect not even me. I cannot be perfect but I have where I'm going to. I want to lay the foundation of a great nation through Anambra State. I want to lay a foundation where you will have basic things working. You know we don't have water all over the place, people don't have quality basic education and people don't have power supply always. But I know that it's the Federal Government that will do some part of it. I could also decide to use Independent Power Plant (IPP) or solar energy to augment but I will make sure that we have the fundamentals in Anambra. And then have the human capacity built. Once human capacity is rebuilt and they are retrained and they think right you are going to have a different kind of nation because a nation is built based on the attitude of the people. And that is where I'm starting this campaign. I have my plans; I have the first stage, I want to work on the psyche of the people. Even other parties will benefit from it to re-orientate people's mind. It's true that the leaders are bad but also the people are bad. And I know by my faith the Bible says that righteousness exalts a nation and that if you are not righteous yourself you are not going to get the kind of leader you are looking for. So, people have to change and stop doing things the other way round.

It's not the governor that tells the clerk to sit on somebody's payment, to sit on the file, it's not and it's not their boss they feel that that is their own way of collecting it, they have a lackadaisical attitude to work. You need to address all these things. We are not ready in this country for blessing. So, I want to set a record by talking to people by preaching to them. By touching their hearts and they will get it right.

The politics in Anambra State is volatile. As a woman, don't you think that men can be a threat to your ambition?

Do I sound like somebody who is frightened by anything? I have been there before and I'm going there again. That means that it does not matter to me and I don't want to be looked at as a woman in this case, I want to be seen as somebody who is competent to do what I have to do. My own is to look at the problem. What most people are not looking at is that they are not looking at the root cause of the problem. If you don't look at the root cause of a problem, the foundation will not be strong, any storm can shatter it.

But that thing that you think is a disadvantage is actually an advantage for me because all the women are looking up to me to lead and even the men are fed up with themselves. They are fighting. There is ego problem, I am the lamb who is there to turn things around. You know as a woman, as a mother you see, even in the same Igbo land when there is a problem, it is the Umuadas (daughters of the soil) that come out to say this is what is going to happen and the men respect that even though the woman does not own any property in her father's house nor in the husband's family yet when such things happen they listen.

Don't you know about that? And when you remember the Aba women riot in 1929, they were the once who confronted the colonialists who were using the warrant chiefs to suppress them, bringing out all kind of taxes and they revolted and something happened.

That is, as a woman I want to put our place in order so that women can also come in from time to time. I have noticed one thing that in anything you are doing when you are doing macho and you continue doing it alone if you don't have combination you are not going to go far. God created men and women to be complementary. I remember about the re-orientation, this is part of what I'm going to address. And any way, the problem is not as bad as that because when people hear me out, the Igwes, president generals, elders, the people that matter, they want to hear me. And I'm already dealing with them and they have accepted me, they respect my opinion in Anambra.

I have a very good image in Anambra right now and men deal with me and most of my life I have been doing things with men. So, I think they are also used to me. It's not a major problem, I'm not saying that the problem is not there but it's not a threat to me at all.

Today, Anambra State government is battling with insecurity problems like armed robbery and kidnapping. What security programmes do you have for the state?

Yes, security is a major issue in Anambra now more than ever before and I will tell you also that part of the reason why this thing is hanging is the same reason why security issues are still hanging in Nigeria. Lack of sincerity, because if the security operatives want to combat the evil doers they can do it but there is no sincerity. When you arrest people some people will go and bail them.

As a governor I will do a lot and part of it will be equipping and adding to whatever the police have in Anambra State. I have always dreamt about constant policing not a reactionary policing, we have to be proactive. Give the police enough vehicles to be monitoring at least two people at any given time. Let them be driving around, I feel is more effective than all these road blocks. Allow them to be moving around it will reduce even crime rates to 50 per cent to start with because people are not sure when they will appear, where they will appear from.

If you add some incentives to the welfare of the police because checking their packages I mean it's so pitiable people who just go out there and sacrifice their lives for our safety, they don't have much in term of salary, in terms of welfare, in terms of working conditions and you know that they are not supposed to even complain otherwise it becomes a mutiny. There are few police men that are sincere. Some body was giving me a report somewhere along Benin-Ore road in the vehicle he was travelling, they were asked to alight because of contra-band goods. They seized the goods but one of the travellers, a lawyer confronted them and told them that they are not going to pay for this that if you need to hold the people responsible for contra-band go and stop them from bringing them in. So, at the end of the day the police officer was confessing to the man that you know we have N98 million revenue to generate. And that is why they are doing it openly collecting N20 and some people are even shot dead in the course of meeting target. So, first of all that has to go. By the time they have the right equipments and they are well motivated and they are retrained they are going to police the nation very well. And then you use the vigilante groups, the policemen in Anambra, I know they have trained some vigilantees but you make sure that they are now helping the police in doing some of these things.