The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) candidate in Enugu State for 2015 election has chosen Mrs. Cecilia Ezeilo, as his running mate.
This was disclosed at the weekend by the Chairman of the party in the state, Chief Ikeji Asogwa.
According to Asogwa, the decision to choose a female running mate candidate is a deliberate attempt to show fairness in the distribution of political positions in the state.
The chairman spoke during the end-of-year party of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Enugu State chapter of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ).
On the cry of marginalization by the Anglican Church in the state, he expressed regrets that the Anglican Church in Enugu requested that an Anglican be chosen to run with Ugwuanyi, who is a Catholic.
Asogwa, who was answering a question on why the party ignored the request by the Anglican Church, said the request came after the party had chosen and submitted the name of the governorship running mate.
The state PDP boss, who was also asked to say who the PDP governorship candidate was said: “Let me say it again that Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi is the Enugu PDP governorship candidate. And I want to say that even before the bishops made their demand, the party had forwarded the name of Mrs. Cecilia Ezeilo, to the appropriate quarters as the running mate to the party’s gubernatorial candidate.”
He explained that apart from the fact that the party had already picked the running mate of its governorship candidate before the Anglican Church made its request, saying such position was not supposed to be based on religious denomination.
The party, Asogwa said, was only interested in and committed to producing leaders with integrity that would deliver the goods, irrespective of religious affiliation.
He added that picking a running mate of a governorship candidate of a party was a serious business involving a lot of consultations.
Anglican Bishops in Enugu State had during a media briefing last week, took exception to a Catholic/Catholic ticket by the state PDP in 2015.
They had argued that since the gubernatorial candidate, Ugwuanyi, was a Catholic, it would have been proper for the party to pick an Anglican as his deputy in the spirit of justice, equity, and fair play.
