Soludo’s Call To Action: Tackling Voter Apathy With Healthy Competition

MAZI EJIMOFOR OPARA 

Let’s set the record straight and debunk the misinformation surrounding our party’s initiatives with such distasteful headline on Punch Newspaper. Anambra’s electoral history speaks for itself – a stark reality of voter apathy that can’t be ignored. In 2021, we had 2.7 million registered voters, but less than 200,000 votes were cast in total. The promise to reward wards and LGAs with highest voter turnout and victory for our Party isn’t about vote buying; it’s about fostering healthy competition within our party to boost voter participation.

As the dominant party in Anambra, APGA doesn’t need inducements to win elections. Our renewed commitment is to mobilize and exploit our electoral strength to hit the 1 million vote marker. To achieve this, we are introducing incentives that promote healthy competition across wards and local governments. If this approach raises eyebrows, it is likely because some other persons or Parties hope to benefit from voter apathy.

In previous elections, the people of Anambra have spoken through their actions that Anambra is APGA land. The Ukwulu Woman who rejected monetary inducements to vote for a party that isn’t APGA remains a classical example in the Nation’s electoral history. We are not naive to a rising phenomenon christened “complacency of the majority,” where everyone assumes others will vote, but only a few do.

Healthy competitions like this where lawful incentives are created would go a long way in changing the narrative.