By Clement Udegbe
THE 2019 gubernatorial and presidential elections are just a few months away. Political parties and their juganauts are planning, projecting and posturing into what may be. But for my beloved Imo, it has become confusion galore!
Apart from the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, that has learned the hard way from their past wrongs, the other two main parties, namely the All Progressive Congress, APC, and All Progressive Grand Alliance, APGA are in turmoil.
The PDP has Hon. Emeka Ihedioha as flag bearer, while the fate of the other two still hang in some uncertainty.
APGA Logo
APC, inspite of the huge sums spent by the incumbent governor, Rochas Okorocha, largely to foist his son-in-law Uche Nwosu upon the people, he lost to Senator Hope Uzodimma who crossed from PDP to APC. The time for primaries has expired, there is lamentation every where in the camp of Okorocha, a carpet crosser, who came into Imo politics carrying the Holy Bible as a Pentecostal, in his right hand and Charity work for children of the less previlaged on his left hand.
He even preached to those who must listen to him at the Government House Chapel. But that was for his first two years in his first tenure.
Soon after, he changed. But few Imolites knew, even some of the very elect did not care to ask God who he was. And so, he got a second term by defeating men like Emeka Ihedioha and The Capt. Iheanacho of APGA. As soon as he got the second term mandate, he dropped the Bible and took hold of the Holy Quran.
Instead of getting turbanned , he chose to turban his son in law, his candidate for 2019. But he forgot that God is the master who rewards the deciever with a great sense of humor.
For example, God chose a carpet-crosser to displace Okorocha, a carpet crosser; Chose a man from his own area Orlu, to defeat his own candidate from Orlu, and finally used the same court system that Okorocha despised to seal the fate of his annionted.
The fool says in his heart that there is no God, but He who seats in heaven laughs at him.
I lament for Rochas who blew the chances God gave him on the altar of wrong presumptions about Imo people. It’s not about party politics, its about God and Imo people’s covenant with God.
Whoever will lead Imo State hereafter must never forget that there is a covenant between Imo and God, and that the blood of humans, babies, and animals will never upturn the covenant sealed with the blood of the Lamb, over Imo.
The greater lamentation is the case of APGA in Imo State.
Many of us including yours sincerely had always hoped that APGA will rise up to the occasion in 2019 to weild influence over Imo from where it will work with Anambra to takeover Abia, Ebonyi and finally Enugu to emerge the Party for Ndigbo. Those of us who saw Biafra as Child Soldiers, and the level of human endurance, patience, and the lives lost, the pains of defeat in that war,had wished that APGA will as OJUKWU pleaded before he transited become the ralying point for Ndigbo. We hoped that APGA will with time narrow its gap with IPOB and give Ndigbo what is uppermost in the heart of every Igbo true son-a free, fair, justice and home where the dignity for human labour and effort will count.
But the biggest undoing of APGA was by Peter Obi when he chose Willie Obiano and handed over APGA and Anambra to him.
Although, one cannot blame Obi entirely for trusting Obiano, but he took that decision and will be held accountable until it is resolved one way or the other.
As it is today, Obiano and Obi are not on the same page. Tthey are more like water and oil.
Second, Obi had to leave APGA and moved over to PDP, a great loss to the party whose leaders did not seem to care about the bigger picture.
Third, as I write, the party (APGA) is in near limbo in the state as a result of how the last gubernatorial election was conducted in the state.
The party claimed a very new carpet crosser Chief Ararume won the primaries , but the majority of the contestants refused the process and had to protest and formed what is now known as N-APGA! This situation Bianca Ojukwu has described as the darkest hour for APGA.
My wonder then about Obiano is if God chose him as Governor on a platter using Obi, who told him that the path he is treading presently is the way foward in Imo? Is biting the fingers that fed him the wise thing to do?
I lament for APGA and Obiano because it will go down in the history of Igbo politics that he midwived the darkest hour of APGA.
I am so sad, because of the money lavished by these relatively honest and more dedicated aspirants and pillars of APGA before one man jumped in causing their boat wreck!
They say politics is dirty but all attempts to wash it clean in Igbo seems to be failing. I lament the use of Igbo sons and daughters as thugs. I lament greed in Igbo politics. I lament lack of fear of God in Igbo politics.
In Imo State, APGA’s failure has given room for only APC and PDP to compete and since a divided house cannot stand, PDP will have its way come 2019.
With the rising profile of the PDP on the ladder of the presidential contest in 2019, God may be arranging a befitting triumph for the righteous over Anambra State. If the Atiku-Obi ticket sails through, it will still be a great lamentation for me, for what great joy it would have been if APGA had been so strong in Anambra and Imo states.
The real question for the now is : Can Ndigbo really start and nurture a political party in this generation?