Thursday, March 28, 2024

2019: Gang-up against Okorocha over successor

…as Gov meets brick-wall on son-in-law’s choice

Divisions rend Imo APC, PDP, APGA

There have been alignment and realignment of political forces in Imo State, as preparations heighten for the 2019 gubernatorial election. As the struggle rages, Imo’s Governor Rochas Okorocha is believed to be scheming to install his son-in-law, Uche Nwosu, who is his Chief of Staff, as successor.
Undoubtedly, Okorocha’s ambition to handpick his succes­sor, findings have shown, is already pitching him against his strong political allies but he seems un­deterred, even as some of his close political confidants have vowed to resist any imposition of a candidate by the governor.
Lamenting over the situation, a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress, who pleaded not to be named, said Okorocha as the leader of the party in the state, “is creating a path that will lead to an implosion that may even deny the party the governorship seat in 2019.”
“He has run the party in Imo State in a manner that has scared away other serious and major stakeholders, who joined the party with him to liberate the state from the grip of the PDP (Peoples Democratic Party),” the source added.
But feelers at the weekend showed that Okorocha, who had since 2011, kicked against the zoning principle, might succumb to pressure. He is likely to now consider a candidate from Mbaise in the Owerri zone, where agitation for power-shift has been high, to succeed him as governor.
A source said the governor planned to install one Frank Nneji, an Mbaise-born banker, as governor, while his son-in-law becomes the deputy governor. However, there is believed to be serious resistance against this move too, as the governor’s critics said he solely handpicked the candidates without any consultation with other stakeholders in the ruling APC.

ARARAUME KEEN, BACKED BY UWAJUMOGU
Analysts say the governor may meet with brick-walls in Senator Ifeanyi Araraume’s camp, where there is determination to ensure that, this time round, the senator picks the governorship ticket. Araraume, a chieftain of the APC, had taken shots at the governorship seat three times without success. But this time, he is having the backing of some serving senators, particularly Senator Benjamin Uwajumogu, a former State Assembly Speaker, from Okigwe zone. Uwajumogu, who won the senate seat with the support of Governor Okorocha after some legal battle, is aligning with Araraume to battle Okorocha over what sources described as “the governor’s politics of exclusion.”
The source said that the governor had continuously exhibited an overbearing and domineering control over the party, and had elevated the concept of exclusionism in the Imo APC to a state art. This has led to factions in the APC, which, sources say, now have strong political taproots. While one faction is led by Governor Okorocha, the other is spearheaded by Araraume, and both, it was learnt, had put the party in a deep crisis.

THE CAMPS
Imo APC under Okorocha has leaders like: Chief Hilary Ekeh, the deputy governor, Prince Eze Madumere; current Speaker of the House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Acho Ihim; Rt. Hon. Ugonna Ozurigbo, Hon. Chike Okafor, Hon. Austin Chukwukere, Ugwumba Uche Nwosu, Sir George Eche, Engr. Emma Ojinere and Prof. Nnamdi Obiaraeri.
Araraume’s camp too parades APC leaders like Senator Uwajumogu, Prof. Anthony Anuwkah, Senator Osita Izunaso and other aggrieved former aides of Governor Okorocha. The like of Chief Jude Ejiogu, former Secretary to the State Government, and a former House of Representatives member, Hon. Uche Onyeagocha, are lone rangers of sorts. Onyeagocha and other aggrieved members, for instance, recently defected to the All Progressives Grand Alliance. Other stakeholders now run on different paths but united by a common factor, which is to ensure that Okorocha does not get his successor on the Imo APC governorship ticket, against the 2019 election.
The Imo APC is now a divided house where things are gradually falling apart, unfolding events have revealed. The absence of party stakeholders such as Senator Araraume, Hon Onyeagocha, Senator Izunaso, and Senator Uwajumuogu at Okorocha’s elaborate 55th birthday celebration, held recently, is a testimony that there is indeed a crack on the party’s wall. It further gives credence to the belief that the party is being gradually shredded by divergent interests, which may rub off on its electoral chances in 2019.

 

The Imo APC is now a divided house where things are gradually falling apart…The absence of party stakeholders such as Senator Araraume, Hon Onyeagocha, Senator Izunaso, and Senator Uwajumuogu at Okorocha’s elaborate 55th birthday celebration held recently, is a testimony that there is indeed a crack on the party’s wall

OATH-TAKING ALLEGATIONS
Even some members of the APC, who have governorship ambition, have reportedly gone diabolical, to stop Governor Okorocha, by all means, from installing his choice candidates in 2019.
But the governor recently warned politicians in the state, especially those with governorship ambition, against “administering oaths on Imo people” who are either members or officials of their political parties.
He decided to issue this warning, following reports from certain party officers that a governorship aspirant from one of the political zones in the state had subjected them to oath-taking and that, while most of them refused to take the oath, a few of them allowed themselves to be cajoled into taking such a fetish
action.
The governor also advised members and officials of the political parties not to subscribe or allow themselves to be subjected to oath-taking for any reason by any politician or aspirant, “because it is ungodly to do so.”

IMO PDP ALSO IN DISARRAY
Uncertainty now also pervades the Imo State chapter of the PDP as stakeholders in the camp of Senator Hope Uzodinma may head to the APC where the situation is already tense.
The move is predicated on a recent meeting a former national chairman of the PDP, Ali Modu Sheriff, held with Vice-President Yemi Osibanjo. Senator Uzodinma is a close ally of Sheriff.
The meeting, which could be a prelude to Sherrif’s return to the APC, a party in which he was a founding member, will rub off on the state chapter of the PDP, as Senator Uzodinma’s men in the party are likely to follow him to APC, along with Sheriff.
Uzodinma and his camp in Imo PDP, having lost out in the battle for the soul of the party, now in the grip of loyalists of Senator Ahmed Makarfi, may see a relocation to the APC as inevitable.
The Imo State chapter of the PDP has three different factions, led, respectively, by Barr. Charles Ezekwem, Barr. Nnamdi Anyaehie, and Hon. Greg Owuamalam.
Ezekwem controls the followership of Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, Chief Achike Udenwa, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, Hon. Jones Onyeriri, Hon Obinna Onwubuariri, Hon. ThankGod Ezeani, Hon. Alphonsus Irona, Dr. Mrs. Kema Chikwe, Prof. Jude Njoku, and Hon. Mayor Eze, among others.
Barr. Nnamdi Anyaehie’s camp also parades leaders like Senator Hope Uzodinma, Rt. Hon. Goodluck Opiah, Hon. C.C Iwuagwu, Chief Cosmas Iwu, Prof. Walter Ofonagoro, Prince Lemmy Akakem, Dr. I.D Nwoga. Dr. Iky Njoku, Hon. Ngozi Ogbu. Dr. Mrs. Love Ineh, Chief Dona Nwoga, Hon George Eguh, Hon. Macdonald Ebere and Chief Philip Uwazuruonye; while Hon. Greg Owuamalam’s has leaders like Senator Bright Nwanne and Dr. Alex Obi on its side.

 

Araraume, a chieftain of the APC, had taken shots at the governorship seat three times without success. But this time, he is having the backing of some serving senators, particularly Senator Benjamin Uwajumogu, a former State Assembly Speaker, from Okigwe zone

APGA TOO
Investigations have equally revealed that the APGA in Imo State, like the state’s APC and PDP, is in crisis. The party is sharply divided between the Chief Victor Oye and Chief Martin Agbaso groups. Just like in Anambra State, where APGA, in the build-up to last Saturday’s governorship poll had ‘produced’ two candidates, there is strong indication that Imo State may face the same problem in 2019.
The ongoing internal squabbles in the PDP, APC and APGA are giving Imo State politicians with 2019 aspirations, sleepless
nights.
Most of the aspirants, who are deeply worried over the situation, are finding it difficult on the next move. Further findings revealed that most of the aspirants were afraid that the ongoing internal crises in APC, PDP and APGA, if they defied requisite solutions, might make the parties less viable in 2019.
Some of the aspirants, who believe that they are wasting their time and resources in these parties ridden with seeming unending internal crises, are considering the possibility of joining less raucous parties like Labour Party and Mega Party.

 

Investigations showed that most of the politicians are joining these parties en-mass, in order to secure their tickets ahead of the 2019 general elections. More so, some politicians, who are still in the APC, PDP and APGA, have sent their foot-soldiers to the Labour Party, and other new parties to protect their interests, while they fight to the finish in APC, PDP and APGA, as the case
may be.
This condition, it was learnt, might also jeopardise the electoral chances of these smaller political parties, if they failed to place a benchmark on the quality of contestants on their respective platforms.
A chieftain of the Labour Party in Imo State, Sir Ikenna Chukwuocha, said nobody could hijack the party in the state, arguing that the party’s 2019 contestants were not the run-of-the-mill type.
“As far as the 2019 general elections are concerned, Labour Party is a party to beat. By the time APC, PDP and APGA are through with their internal war, a governor has already emerged from Labour Party. This is no speculation, but the reality on ground,” Chukwuocha boasted.

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