There are indications that leadership of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) may have decided on reconciling gubernatorial aspirants of the Party in Enugu State.
It is was learnt that the former God of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, who recently joined PDP from APGA is the man favored to the job.
Obi is respected among his Igbo people and beyond and is seen as one who approach the reconciliation with clarity of onjectives.
The party is said to be worried by the lingering crisis in the party in the state over the governorship primary.
Hon Ifeanyi Ugwuany emerged the party’s standard bearer for the 2015 governorship ticket f on the primary held at the Nnamdi Azakiwe Stadium Enugu, which was supervised by the party’s accredited representatives and the Independent National Electoral Commission.
However, Senator Ayogu Eze held a parallel primary with his group at Filbon Hotel Enugu. stronghold of the party.
TheRainbow learnt that the former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi, may be heading the reconciliation team for the state.
The party,s primary in the state was marred by conflicts which arose largely from the boycot of the state ward primaries in the state by the mainstream leadership of the party.
The situation arose as a result of the sudden resignation of the party’s state chairman Mr Vita Abba, under suspicious circumstances, a few weeks before the party’s primaries.
Although abba cited his internet in the party’s House of Representatives ticket for Nsukka Local Government Area for his action, party insiders believe he was induced to resign by the group loyal to the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu.
Abba’s resignation disorganized the well-orchestrated plans of Gov Chime-controlled party leadership in the in the state, as the Ekweremadu groip who used the lacuna created by his resignation to disorganize plans by Governor Sullivan Chime deny him (Ekweremadu) and his colleagues at the National Assembly of another opportunity to run for re-election on the party’s ticket.
The Ekweremadu group, ostensibly backed by some persuasions in the national leadership of the party, used the position of David Ajah as a deputy chairman of the party and the subsequent boycott of the ward primaries by by Chime Group to literarily take over the nomination process of the party in the state.
The national leadership chose to work with Ajah as the acting chairman of the party in the state, during the ward congress despite strong protests by Gov Chime Group, who had subsequently withdrawan from participating in the ward congresses.
However, After several meetings at the Presidency, Gov. Chime and Ike Ekweremadu resolved to work together, with Chime sacrificing his senatorial ambition to allow Ekweremadu emerge as the party’s candidate for Enugu West Senatoril zone.
For this reason, Ekweremadu also agreed to support Gov Chime-backed consensus candidate of the party, Honourable Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi.
Ugwuanyi was adopted as the party’s consensus aspirant in the state a late September.
However, Senator Ayogu Eze who had all along worked with Ekweremadu had other plans. During the party’s ward primaries, he was allegedly given the concession to make up the list of delegates from Enugu North Senatorial Zone, while Ekweremadu was only interested in the list of delegates from Enugu West, which is his turf.
While the governor and Senator Ekweremadu did not reckon with
Eze, the senator who chairs the works committe I the Senate was said to have reached across to the people of Enugu East senatorial zone to mop up the delegates that emerged in the area during the ward congress. It was those these delegates that he alleged gathered at Filbon Hotel Enugu to declare him winner of the ticket.
Although overwhelming percentage of the party faithfuls in the Enugu state appear to be solidly behind Ugwuanyi candidacy, the resort to court cases by Senator Eze and another contestant Sam Onyishi, the party believes, may not do it any good.
PDP has held similar reconciliation meeting in Lagos, during which Senator Obanikoro agreed to support Agbaje despite his misgivings.
Vice President Namadi Sambo led the team that reconciled the Lagos PDP aspirants, which include Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, Deji Doherty, Ambassador Tokunbo Kamson, Mr. Babatunde Gbadamosi, and Mr. Jimi Agbaje, who won the party’s ticket for 2015 governorship election in Lagos State.
The fear of the party is that that the party might lose what is up for it for the grabs because legal skirmishes.
The task before Obi and his team is how to get the disgruntled aspirants on board to make them work towards the overall goal of winning the state come 2015.
Vanguard
AgbajeAyogu EzeIfeanyi UgwuanyiIke Ekweremadu
– See more at: http://therainbowonline.net/agbaje-obanikoro-resolve-work-together/#sthash.Ag1rF4lH.dpuf
