BOTH Senator Ayogu Eze and Honourable Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi have many things in common. Apart from being bred by the Nnamani Chimaroke Ebeano political family, the duo hail from the same Nsukka zone.
Eze who is the chairman, Senate Committee on Works,is from Umuida in Enugu-Ezike and represents Enugu-North Senatorial District at the Upper House while Ugwuanyi, from Orba in Udenu Local Government Area and chairman, House Committee on Maritime, represents Igboeze North/Udenu Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives.
Indeed, if there are two intimate friends who politics in recent time has torn apart in Enugu State, they are Senator Eze and Honourable Ugwuanyi.
For instance, in 2011 general elections, the two politicians rode in the same vehicle throughout the electioneering campaign in Enugu North Senatorial District.
Today, it is becoming obvious that the once bossom friends (Senator Eze and Honourable Ugwuanyi)are in a great divide over who occupies the Lion Building (Government House) in Enugu in 2015.
As it is, both Eze and Ugwuanyi are already in court to seek redress as both are still laying claim of being duly elected as candidate in their PDP primaries which were held in three different venues in Enugu on November 8.
The third leg is the case of Professor Onyeke Onyeke and Chief Sam Onyishi who had also gone to court to challenge PDP claim of having Ugwuayi as its standard bearer for 2015 governorship election in Enugu State.
However, since Professor Onyeke, a one-time state legislator, is not currently in political office, his dissenting voice is not heard so much. The third-republic lawmaker who had his primary at 82 Division alleged that he was also disenfranchised by the state chapter of the PDP.
The story of Onyishi, a business mogul is also not at front burner largely because of his enterprise that had occupied him.
Nigerian Tribune investigation revealed that the inability of the state wing of the PDP to carry along all the major actors in its last minute reconciliation exercise might have led to the current squabble in the party.
Again, for Eze and his loyalists, they strongly believe that he is the most experienced among the aspirants having been in politics since 1992 when he served ex-governor Okwesilieze Nwodo as Special Adviser.
For Ugwuanyi and his supporters, he is the aspirant in a best position to win the governorship poll because of his goodwill.
To this end, both Eze and Ugwuanyi faithful have been trading words since the PDP parallel primaries were held in the state.
The state chapter of the PDP, had since dismissed the claim by Senator Eze that he was the person elected as the governorship candidate of the party in the state saying that Honourable Ugwuanyi is its flag bearer.
The questions are: why did King Asara Election Committee ignored the delegates list certified by court? Why did the delegates who voted in previous PDP primaries of state house of assembly, National Assembly suddenly disfranchised from the governorship primary conducted by the same party?
As it is, none of the warring faction is ready to shift ground.
For instance, the state’s chapter of the PDP led by Ikeje Asogwa has consistently dismissed Eze’ candidature.
Speaking through the State’s Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Dr Okey Eze, the party said: “ The attention of the Enugu State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has been drawn to the misinformation being spun in the media by one of the former gubernatorial aspirants of the Enugu PDP, Senator Ayogu Eze, who claims to have emerged the PDP flag bearer in the December 8, 2014 gubernatorial primary election of our great party.
“The Enugu State Chapter of the PDP, in liaison with the national headquarters chose the Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium, Enugu as the venue for the PDP gubernatorial primary election. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), security agencies, and all delegates were duly informed of the venue for the election, and they attended and performed their respective role”
But in a swift reaction, pro- Eze group under the auspices of “Senator Ayogu Eze Governorship Campaign Organisation” said, “The allegation by the PDP in Enugu State that its candidate forged the result of the December 8, 2014 governorship primaries in Enugu State were all lies,” describing the allegation as wild and contempt of the court.
In a statement, titled, “Who’s afraid of Sen. Ayogu Eze”, the organisation insisted that its choice was the duly elected candidate in the December 8 primaries.
The group maintained that its candidate was elected by the authentic delegates elected on November 1, 2014 and validated by an Abuja High Court.
They wondered why the PDP in Enugu State rushed to court on December 9, a day after the primary to stop its candidate from parading himself as the candidate.
“Why did they rush to court to stop our candidate if they truly believe the result of the election was forged?” the organisation asked in the statement signed by its Director of Legal Services, Kingsley Onyeke.
The organisation said, “The panel that conducted the kangaroo primary that Mr. Asogwa referred to in his reckless statement admitted in the full glare of the press that it came with a forged delegates list”
“It is the likes of Mr. Asogwa and all the people involved in subverting the will of the people by forging a delegates list after the PDP in Enugu State had told the whole world it did not participate in the congress that brought the delegates that should be handed over to the police.”
Describing the allegation by Ikeje Asogwa, whom the organisation said is not the chairman of the PDP in Enugu State, as part of the desperate campaign to intimidate its candidate out of the 2015 governorship race in Enugu State, the group said its candidate would never succumb to blackmail.
“Our candidate is determined to unfold his programme of physical transformation and spiritual rebirth for the people of Enugu State and no threat or blackmail will take him off that course,” the organisation said.
The organisation said it was refraining from going into details in its response since the matter under discussion is a subject of litigation at an Enugu State High Court as well as a Federal High Court in Abuja.
It described Mr. Asogwa’s “misguided allegation” as an affront on the judiciary, which it said “is the only institution that can make a pronouncement on the matter as it stands now”
But despite the ongoing litigations, the Ugwuanyi’ PDP has gone ahead to pick a running mate from Ezeagu Local Government Area of the state who many believe could spark another round of controversy.
The nomination of Ugwuanyi ‘s running mate, although a woman, to many observers, has further marginalised the Greater Awgu particularly the Oji-River axis in state political equation even after one of their sons in person of Engineer Onwuegbu withdrew from the gubernatorial race for peace to reign.
Nigerian Tribune
