There is no doubt that the forthcoming gubernatorial election in Anambra State will be a litmus test for the ruling party, the All Progressive Grand Alliance and the incumbent governor, Mr. Willie Obiano. Surveys by The Point had shown that the state is already politically tensed with different political activities from political bigwigs, who are hell-bent on truncating Obiano’s second term bid for office.
Recall that since the creation of the state in 1991, only the immediate past Governor Peter Obi, who governed the state on the platform of APGA, had been able to go the hog of two terms successfully.
Based on certain antecedents in Anambra State’s political calculations, observers believe that the forthcoming gubernatorial election may not be a smooth sail for Governor Obiano.
For instance, Obiano, who is the only governor on the platform of APGA in the country, believed to have attained power on the wings of former Governor Obi over three years ago, may now have to proof his mettle in Anambra State politics, as there is now a wide gulf between him and his former godfather.
Apart from this, the incumbent governor is likely to face stiff opposition from the two other major parties in the state: the All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party. This is due to the fact that both parties parade a number of political juggernauts, who could turn the table in any election in the state against the incumbent.
Observers also believe that Obiano was voted into power in 2013 as a political neophyte. They argued that he secured the office on the strength of being the choice of Obi, who was adjudged to have done well in his two terms as governor. But since he has parted ways with the former governor and a number of APGA chieftains, who worked tirelessly to get him elected, he has to rely substantially on what he has done in the last three years.
A former chieftain of APGA in Anambra State, George Nwoka, said, “Obiano is going to face an uphill task in his second term bid. The governor is facing opposition, because most of the developmental projects initiated by him are concentrated in his Anambra North senatorial zone, which had not produced a governor until Obi zoned the slot to the area.
“In addition, he has been accused of not running an inclusive administration. People say his kinsmen occupy most of the sensitive positions in his government. Most people in the state believe that the governor allows his wife to be the dominant force in the running of the administration.”
PDP’S ATTEMPT TO RESURRECT IN ANAMBRA
Despite the crisis it is facing at the national level, the PDP in the SouthEast is leaving no stone unturned to capture all the states in the zone, with the belief that such feat will signal its resurgence ahead of 2019.
Political pundits opine that the combined forces of Obi, Senators Andy Uba and Stella Oduah, Chief Chris Uba, and Senator Annie Okonkwo, will clearly make the PDP a formidable platform in the state, despite its defeat by the APC at the centre in the 2015 general elections.
Meanwhile, Anambra PDP has reiterated its determination to push the APGA out of the Government House, Awka, in 2017.
The state PDP Organising Secretary, Prince Samben Nwosu, said that the PDP, in a move to actualise the dream of taking over Anambra, has reconciled all factions in the party to a united big family, under one strong indivisible umbrella.
Nwosu explained that Anambra is primarily a PDP state, adding that the APGA in power merely capitalised on the crisis and factionalisation, which rocked the PDP in the past.
“I am happy to inform you that every shade of interest has been taken care of in the newly constituted and inaugurated executive council, which has automatically taken care of issues of our party splitting into many factions.
As a result of that, many of our members who are on sabbatical in other political parties have started discussing with us to facilitate their return,” he explained He disclosed that another factor that would help the party regain power in Anambra State was what he called the colossal failure of the incumbent APGA government to address the issue of power, roads and infrastructure, especially in the industrial town of Nnewi, the headquarters of Anambra South senatorial zone
APC AND ‘BUHARI’S BOYS’ AGAIN IN ANAMBRA
With the successive victories of the APC in Edo and Ondo states gubernatorial elections last year, all eyes are on the party in Anambra State, to see how it would fare in the forthcoming Anambra gubernatorial election.
Political watchers are keen to see whether the party, with its special squad, called ‘the Buhari Boys,’ will repeat the same feat performed in Edo and Ondo states.
Meanwhile, politicians from Anambra State have opined that the state is in dire need of alignment with the ruling party at the centre, for its citizens to enjoy dividends of democracy.
Dr Chike Obidigbo, a chieftain of the APC, was of the opinion that Anambra has to be aligned to the centre to be able to gain the desired strength to address the challenges facing the state in particular, and the South-East zone in general.
Obidigbo added that an APC governor in Anambra would be in a stronger position to address the issues of troubled economy of Anambra State, lack of federal presence in the South-East, lack of jobs for the youth of the South-East extraction and low number of appointments of people of South-East extraction into federal agencies.
It was also said that some political juggernauts in the APC, who are now tagged ‘the Buhari Boys,’ are also keen to give all it takes to see Anambra ruled by APC come 2017.
According to a competent source close to the ‘Buhari Boys’, who however pleaded anonymity, the team which ‘magically’ delivered both Ondo and Edo states last year, has gone back to the drawing board, strategising to ensure that it repeats the same feat in Anambra State.
KEEN INTEREST FROM EXTERNAL FORCES
In what appears to be an external interference in the Anambra poll, the Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha, has indicated that he will ensure everything possible is done to see an APC governor take over Anambra State in the coming gubernatorial election.
He added that the entrance of prominent Igbo sons, like Orji Uzor Kalu, Ken Nnamani, among others into the APC had boosted its chances in the region.
Okorocha, stated that the SouthEast geopolitical zone could not afford to be outside the APC in the current dispensation, especially when the Igbos were known for taking wise decisions.
Obiano is going to face an uphill task in his second term bid. The governor is facing opposition, because most of the developmental projects initiated by him are concentrated in his Anambra North senatorial zone, which had not produced a governor until Obi zoned the slot to the area
A chieftain of the APC, who doesn’t want name mentioned, also told The Point that Imo State APC is already working to ensure that APC takes over the affairs of Anambra State in the forthcoming gubernatorial poll.
“Our party is not relenting at all, because we want to see Anambra governed by the APC. We are always in touch with our people in Anambra, to see where we can be useful to them.
We are one party and we will give them the necessary support, even our governors too will ensure that Anambra election is won this time,” he boasted to The Point.
OKORIE WAGES WAR ON APGA
One of APGA’s founding fathers, Checkwas Okorie, in a chat with The Point, said that APGA is dead in Anambra State, adding that he and his party, the United Progressive Party, are coming to take over the state.
“What I foresee is that the UPP will take over the government of Anambra State, by winning the election this time around,” he said. Okorie added, “As I am talking to you, some parts of APGA had collapsed into the UPP. More than 50 per cent of Anambra APGA has collapsed into the UPP.
I want you to get me right, I have nothing against Obiano as the state governor, but the point remains that he is an inheritor of the problem that has befallen the party since 2004 till now, and that was why the party is in court.
You will remember that there was a time the media in Nigeria were persuaded to think that Chekwas Okorie was the problem in APGA, but since 2012 that I founded another party, the problem of APGA still remains till today and there are even fresh cases in court as we are talking.
“So, is it now clear to Nigerians that Okorie is not the problem of APGA. 27 media organisations witnessed and reported the declaration of APGA for the UPP in Enugu on November 4, 2016. All APGA leaders thought they had betrayed me, and were asking for forgiveness before media men. It was an emotional re-union and I embraced them back.”
OBIANO’S MOVE TO RECONCILE WITH OBI
Meanwhile, with the situation of things in Anambra State politics, Obiano, having realised the intense heat on him, has begun moves to reconcile with his estranged godfather, Obi, as a means of scaling through in the poll.
A source in Anambra APGA confided in The Point, “Indeed, Obiano appears to have started making overtures to reconcile with Obi. For instance, his statement at a recent stakeholder’s meeting, held at the Governor’s Lodge, suggested that he regrets his fight with Obi.”
Admitting that the rancour was unnecessary, Obiano said, “My brother, Obi, laid a solid foundation for my administration. He is a great leader and I owe him gratitude. There is no doubt that without him, we won’t be where we are today. Our feud with him was uncalled for. He is a good man.
“I must thank my brother and predecessor, former Governor Obi, who, as the first APGA governor, laid a solid foundation for my administration to continue the journey for a better Anambra State.
When we took over the reins of leadership, we realised that my predecessor had done a lot of work in the aspect of setting the fundamentals, or what I call the enablers.”
However, the consensus is that the battle ahead for the soul of Ndi Anambra appears to be a titanic one, which no one knows where the pendulum will swing.
