Soludo: Who the cap fits, let him wear it

By Chuka Nnabuife

On Friday, April 11, 2025, Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Charles Soludo, was given an award as Nigeria’s Governor of the Year 2024 by the Management of Vanguard Newspapers.

According to the Lagos-based mainstream newspaper’s management, the governor got the award for Good Governance. The award ceremony took place at the Eko Hotels and Suites in Lagos on April 11, 2025.

One month earlier, Gov. Soludo had received The Sun Newspaper’s ‘Governor of the Year 2024′ for what the management of the newspaper identified as his credible leadership and excellent performance in governance.

The Sun Newspaper appraised Soludo’s leadership style as yielding good dividends to Anambra people as his governance has led to remarkable achievements in infrastructure and noticeable sociopolitical transformation in Anambra state.

Similarly, on March 15, 2025 at the Eko Hotels and Suites in Lagos, Prof. Soludo received the Year 2024’s ‘Governor of the Year on Urban Renewal’ award of Daily Independent Newspaper.

The newspaper’s Editorial Board and Management underscored his government’s distinguished efforts in transforming Anambra State’s infrastructure and aesthetics, citing some of his notable achievements in urban renewal projects, economic development and human empowerment.

These, among many laurels that have been going the way of Gov. Soludo, have drawn the attention of many who thitherto had not paid enough attention to what the professor of Economics is doing as helmsman of Anambra State. They now have cause to pause and watch. There have also been many raised eyebrows, gybes and wagging tongues. Some ask why it is only Soludo that the red rugs roll to? Some argue that it is because the governor is running for re-election on November 8 this year.

The truth is well beyond all those conjectures. The governors activities in Anambra State are clearly ‘speaking’ for him.

Mayor of Onitsha South, Local Government Area, Emeka Orji’s appraisal of the flurry of awards aptly captures the trend. He described them as corroboration of the governor’s feats in governance and hard work.

Infrastructure development is among the areas where the governor’s footprints are etched. Through his gusto in infrastructure such as roads and public buildings, he has recorded the completion of over 300 kilometers of roads which has remarkably improved rural-urban and intra-urban connectivity as well as facilitated access to the grassroots within the state, and built several office and facilities of public importance.
On human capital development, Anambra State, under Soludo has employed over 8,000 youths comprising over 5,000 teachers; 1,000 health professionals among others.

Soludo has also evolved a youth empowerment program with visible results. The ‘One Youth, Two Skills Solution’ program, initiated by the Ministry of Youth Development under his regime has trained and empowered over 8,000 youths in the last two years with startup funds provided to the young ones as they commence business.

Another program, dubbed the Solution Innovation and Digital Incubation projects has so far trained 25,000 youths in digital skills through “Level-Up Anambra” and “Code Anambra” initiatives.

His Solution Government’s systematic approach to economic growth aims to draw the masses out of poverty through covert and overt empowerment s. One of them is the distribution of over one million high-yield, hybrid coconut and palm seedlings as well as some other profitable cash crops such as ogbono, ugiri and others that, upon maturity could be bringing rich proceeds to their owners. Through distributing the plants freely to hundreds of thousands of homes in the state, the government plans to empower Anambra homes with crops that would ultimately make them rich. The government describes the scheme as a well “thought through” plan to drive away poverty and promote agro-industrialisation.

These, go along with a visible keenness to improve the ease of doing business in the state through such things as the ‘Anambra Business City’, land ownership facilitation and a zestfully pursued urban renewal project. In urban renewal, the state dualises major roads in Awka, Onitsha, Nnewi, and other key cities,

There is also, Gov. Soludo’s innovative approach to tackling knotty homeland security issues through the innovative ‘Anambra State Homeland Security Law 2025’ which strengthens local vigilante groups and fosters deeper government collaboration with security agencies in investigations and operations to tackle criminal activities.

The governor’s unprecedented action of recruiting 8,115 teachers, rehabilitating public schools, and employing thousands of young health workers are part of the feats.

Undoubtedly, the awards are heading to the head that the crown fit. Giving such honours to people like Soludo also gives society an opportunity to build up itself in the right direction.

Plato’s discourses on honoring great men as contained in his works, ‘The Republic’ and ‘The Laws,’ are quintessential. Hence, they are influential in the development of Western philosophical thought of honouring great men in the modern world as discussions on leadership, ethics, and civic responsibility find them very relevant today.

Plato emphasised the importance of recognising and rewarding individuals who contribute remarkably to the advancement and well-being of society.

In ‘The Laws,’ Plato reasoned that honours and rewards should be given to those who have made significant contributions to the state. His scope for such laurels range from political leaders to military leaders, judges and other public officials. He idealised that such honours would serve as a motivation for others to strive for excellence and prod them to contribute to the well-being of society.

In ‘The Republic,’ he urged recognition for such special agents of positive change in a manner that makes the rest of society identify their demonstration of exceptional virtue and wisdom. Plato referred to such individuals, “philosophers,” who should be recognised for their wisdom and their ability to make decisions that benefit the greater good.

Prof. Soludo has already said that the awards will motivate his government to deliver more democratic dividends to the people of Anambra State.

The historical and evergreen reggae artiste, Bob Marley has a lyric: “who the cap fits, let them wear it.”

The line is from great Bob Marley’s song of the title, “Who the Cap Fit”. Released in 1973 on the album “Catch a Fire”. The message is simple though deep: those who do great things deserve to be honoured, openly, especially in this time of scarcity of people who aspire to do outstanding service to humanity.