2015: PDP Moves To Capture Southeast

[TGD]

 HOW to galvanize the Southeast to ensure it is retained as a stronghold of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2015 general elections, was the major point of discussion at yesterday's meeting of the national leadership of the party with stakeholders of the zone yesterday in Enugu.

The meeting called by the National Chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur, The Guardian gathered, was in response to the perceived inroads the newly-formed opposition merger, the All Progressives Congress (APC), had made in the zone as there are serious signals that the people are fast embracing the new political order.

APC had, in the Southeast, formed an Elders' Committee, headed by Ogbonnaya Onu, as chairman, and Steering Committee, led by Senator Chris Ngige, as chairman and Osita Izunaso, as Secretary, to harmonise the zone.

Sources said that 'APC fever' was being embraced by the people of the Southeast, following alleged marginalisation of the zone, which does not seem to get the attention of the ruling party.

Despite the support the zone had given to the PDP since its formation and about 14 years after the party has ruled the country, Southeast still claims to be the "most marginalised zone" in the country, stressing that the way the country is structured, it was not likely to have a bright future with the PDP.

Board of Trustees (BOT) member of the party, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu, recently raised the alarm on how the zone was fast embracing the new opposition merger, describing it as "madness", even as he lampooned the APC as "lacking ideology and weak foundation".

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apart from Enugu, where the party has its structures intact, this could not be said of other states in the zone, where pecuniary interests has factionalised the party to an extent where PDP now controls only three of the five states of the zone.

At the Enugu meeting yesterday,

National Chairman of the party, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur identified what he called "sharing formula" as the problem of the party, urging stakeholders of the party in the southeast to embrace peace and harmony,

He stated that he was ready to make the needed sacrifice to ensure peace and progress of the party.

Tukur said that the supremacy of the party must be respected and restored, assuring that PDP was the only party that could unite the country and as such would not compromise with any issue pertaining to that.

According to him, God has blessed the country with all the natural endowments, stressing that what was required was the right attitude, empowerment in the form of education to transform the endowments into practical realities to solve the countries problems.

He called on party faithful to carry the message of hope further and entrench in their members the new zeal "of reconciliation and objectivity" so that the PDP would endure in her leading role of moving Nigeria further.

Earlier, stakeholders in the zone had decried marginalisation of the Southeast, lack of internal democracy, in-fighting, among others, as problems hindering the PDP in the zone.

They also insisted that though certain members of the party have had cause to leave the party and form the APC, it was not a threat to the dominance of PDP in the zone.

Ebonyi State Governor, Martin Elechi, who derided those behind the party in the zone, said "though they are busy insulting us, we are busy transforming Nigeria, adding that Ebonyi would remain in the PDP forever.

Elechi,  who though said the governors of the party in the zone were behind the reformation and reconciliation going on, advised that peculiar interests of the various states should be considered while doing so.

Iwuanyanwu, while lamenting the plight of the zone in the PDP,  said that making Ndigbo produce a Minister for the Abuja capital territory, which is a common home for all, would make them believe more in the party.

According to him, the Southeast was also a firm believer in the unity of Nigeria, adding, however, that the party should use her overwhelming representation at the National Assembly to ensure the rotation of presidency among the six geopolitical zones of the country.

He said creating additional state for the zone, ensuring speedy completion of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport (with international flights) and completing the Imo Cargo Airport would greatly enhance chances of the party in 2015 general elections in the zone.

Iwuanyanwu decried the attack he has suffered from APC members in the zone, stressing that it would not deter him from working for PDP.

At the occasion, were Governor Sullivan Chime of Enugu state, former National chairman, Okwy Nwodo, Prof Chinedu Nebo, Kema Chikwe, national Assembly members among others.

In his speech, the National Vice Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party(South East) Col Austin Akobundu(RTD) restated that the crisis in the South East Zone were actually not as intractable as they seemed from afar.

According to him, Anambra State would be the test case of their reconciliation endeavours, adding that as time approaches for the primaries and governor ship elections in the state, " we have initiated various stakeholder consultations to ensure that all outstanding issues including ongoing court litigations are resolved on time".

He said he was happy to report that for the first time, stakeholders in Anambra were coming together to find a solution to the crisis.

He, however, stated that to sustain this re-approachment and keep an eye on the ball, it was imperative that the National Working Committee continued to take the zonal leadership into confidence on ways of resolving the Anambra Crises.



The Guardian