By Luminous Jannamike

ABUJA — Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship candidate in Abia State, Dr Kelechi Anosike, has pledged to redirect development from Aba and Umuahia to neglected rural communities, unveiling a policy agenda centred on security, local government reform, agriculture and infrastructure.

The proposal seeks to make rural communities safer, better connected and more economically productive through targeted investments in roads, electricity, water supply, agriculture and local governance across the state’s 17 local government areas.

Anosike, who spoke with journalists in Abuja, said the centrepiece of the programme would be the establishment of the Abia Rural Development Agency, ARDA, a specialised body to coordinate rural roads, electrification, water projects, market infrastructure, agro-processing zones and other development projects across the state.

The proposal comes amid growing debate over how best to spread development beyond major urban centres and strengthen economic activity in rural communities, where inadequate infrastructure and insecurity have continued to constrain growth.

He said security would be the foundation of the programme, arguing that investment, farming and commerce cannot thrive where communities live under the threat of crime.

“No investor will establish a business where lives and property are unsafe. No farmer will cultivate large-scale farms if there is fear of kidnapping, banditry, theft, or violent crime. No community can prosper when its people live in fear,” he said.

According to him, the administration would work with security agencies, traditional rulers, community leaders, vigilante groups and local governments to strengthen community-based security across the state and improve the effectiveness of the Abia State Homeland Security structure.

He also pledged support for surveillance technology, communication equipment, intelligence-gathering systems and rapid-response mechanisms to tackle kidnapping, illegal camps and other criminal activities that have disrupted farming, trade and investment in some communities.

“Our goal is simple: every Abia community must be safe for residents, farmers, traders, students, workers, and investors,” he stated.

Anosike also promised a deliberate push to improve rural infrastructure, including a commitment to construct or rehabilitate at least one major rural road in each of the state’s 17 local government areas every year.

“We cannot build a prosperous Abia if prosperity stops at Aba and Umuahia. The real Abia lives in our villages, farms, markets, and communities. That is where our government will go,” he said.

He argued that development in Abia has for too long been concentrated in a few urban centres while many rural communities have remained underserved despite their contribution to the state’s economy.

“A child in Arochukwu deserves the same opportunities as a child in Umuahia. A farmer in Umunneochi deserves the same access roads as a trader in Aba. Under our administration, development will no longer have an urban bias,” he added.

The PDP candidate also pledged to operate a democratically elected, financially responsible and fully functional local government system, saying councils would be repositioned as drivers of grassroots development rather than mere extensions of the state government.

He said local governments would play a greater role in service delivery, community empowerment, rural security coordination and development planning, which he described as critical to ensuring that projects and services reach communities more effectively.

The wider rural development programme, he said, would focus on road construction and rehabilitation, rural electrification, potable water supply, modernisation of rural markets, agro-processing and industrial clusters, healthcare and educational infrastructure, community security networks, housing projects and economic empowerment initiatives.

Beyond infrastructure and local governance reforms, Anosike said the strategy would also support increased agricultural production under his proposed Operation Feed Abia and Back-to-Farm Initiative.

“Agriculture remains one of the fastest pathways to job creation, wealth generation, food security, and economic diversification. Yet agriculture can only thrive where farmers feel safe enough to return to their farms and invest in production,” he said.

To support that vision, he promised improved seedlings, stronger agricultural extension services, easier access to credit, mechanised and climate-smart farming methods, storage facilities, commodity aggregation centres, market linkages and support for agro-processing industries.

The plan also includes the establishment of agricultural processing hubs across the state to reduce post-harvest losses, create jobs and improve the competitiveness of locally produced goods.

Anosike said improved security, stronger local governments, better infrastructure and increased agricultural output would help reduce poverty, expand economic opportunities and slow the migration of young people from rural communities to urban centres.

“No community will be left behind. Development will not stop at Aba or Umuahia; it will extend to every village, every ward, and every local government area,” Anosike said.