By Azuka Nnabuife
Members of the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations of Nigeria paid a courtesy visit to the Commissioner for Information and Value Reformation, Dr. Law Mefor, in his office at the Jerome Udorji Secretariat, Awka.
Speaking during the visit, the Chairman and leader of the group, Mr. Olanrewaju Yisa O., said they were in the state to monitor the local government elections and discovered that many negative stories about the state, particularly those concerning insecurity, were false.
He expressed gratitude to the Governor and described him as a “silent achiever and impactful” leader whose administration had countered negative narratives about insecurity in the state.
“Before coming, many of us carried information from social media about killings and kidnappings in Anambra. To my surprise, the situation is not as it is being portrayed. What we have seen is the beauty of what the governor is doing,” he said.
Mr. Yisa said that the coalition, which was visiting Anambra for the first time, was seeking the Ministry’s platform to tour the state, see government projects firsthand, and tell the world about the work being done by the Governor.
Responding, the Commissioner for Information and Value Reformation, Dr. Law Mefor, explained that democracy was a work in progress and not a one-off event. He said citizens must remain committed to democracy and ensure that government continued to discharge the responsibilities for which it was chosen.
Dr. Mefor stated that democracy was defined as government of the people, for the people and by the people. He noted that because democracy was by the people, it depended on those who chose to live by it, adding that those who would govern must be selected by those to be governed.
“Many people are not fans of democracy. Some say that Nigeria and Africans are not suited for democracy. By citing our level of development in terms of education and civilisation, they believe that the tenets of democracy cannot be fully applied here, saying that those who exercise their democratic rights are not qualified to hold those rights,” Mefor said.
The commissioner described Governor Chukwuma Soludo as a democratic leader, an activist and a unique governor who had seriously transformed Anambra State. He said Anambra remained an example of how democratic government should be practised.
Those present were members of the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations of Nigeria.
Azuka Nnabuife is of the Ministry of Information and Value Reformation, Anambra State
