Intrigues and ripples have continued to trail the recent presentation
of a shortlist of Delta North aspirants for the governorship ticket of the
ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP), ahead of forth coming primaries to
select a candidate for the party.
With about 20 aspirants from Delta North alone, there was no way the
process of trimming down the number, outside an electoral popularity test that
will be without rancour.
The idea was for the region to put its house in order if the hope to
produce the next governor of the state is to be realized.
This was the basis of Anioma Congress setting up the F.N. Ochonogor
Committee to draw a guideline for a committee screen the aspirants from the
region. The work of this committee gave rise to the Philip Asiodu Committee
which was set up also by the Anioma Congress, to assess the aspirants on the
basis of their vision, experience in governance, structures on ground,
acceptability and resources.
After five months of work, the Asiodu Committee penciled down some
names as the aspirants that had the best prospects of emerging victorious in
the race to be the candidate of PDP. Prominent among them were Senator Dr.
Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa, Former Speaker of Delta House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Victor
Ochei, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, representing Aniocha/Oshimili Federal Constituency,
Dr. (Mrs.) Ngozi Olejeme, the Chairman of NSIFT, Chief Godswill Obielum, the
retired Assistant Commissioner of Police who was included after protest from
Ndokwa nation.
Protest from Ndokwa nation
There were reports that Sir. Tony Obuh and Mr. Charles Emetulu were
also suggested by the governor as his possible choices, but aides to the
governor denied the claim.The work of the Asiodu Committee was not made easy by
the position of the ruling PDP in Delta State which insisted that a
nonpolitical organ unknown to the party structure will not play such a role for
the party.
Besides, the work of the Asiodu Committee was also challenged by
internal issues among some sections of Delta North which questioned the
propriety of the work of the committee.
The former chairman of the party, Chief Peter Nwaoboshi had before
stepping down warned the aspirants not to honour the invitation of the Anioma
Congress screening. Never the less, the Committee went ahead with its work and
invited the aspirants to appear before it and make their presentation.
Consequently, some aspirants appeared while others especially those who
were still in government at the time of the screening stayed away.
The Secretary General of Anioma Congress, Sir, Dan Okenyi told Vanguard
that "what the Congress did was meant to forestall a situation where all
the aspirants who in exercise of their fundamental human rights, will rush to
buy forms and in the end it will prove difficult to disuade them to step down.
According to him: "We reasoned that this opportunity to produce a
governor of an Anioma extraction is greater than the ambition of one individual
because we are in competition with other zones who also believe that their right
to aspire to the same office should not be abridged by any extra constitutional
provisions."
Vanguard learnt that the first sign of trouble came from the Ndokwa
land which insisted that the name of Chief Godswill Obielum be included even
though he did not attend the screening. This presented the first complication
but it was amicably resolved. But the the other aspirants who did not appear at
the screening kicked.
Sen Okowa
The second challenge for Anioma Congress was the presentation of the
names of Obuh and Emetulu, the commissioner for energy, allegedly as the
candidates of the governor.
The Secretary General of Anioma Congress, Sir. Dan Okenyi said:
"Although both men did not attend the screening by the Anioma Congress, we
considered it proper to include them as the governor's choice because as the
number one citizen of the state and his preferences must be accommodated."
He said "We took into account that Sir. Tony Obuh who retired from
service in August came out as aspirant in September. This is after the Asiodu
Committee had finished its work."
Okenyi said "It is wrong for anybody to say that the Congress
wrote a petition against any aspirant or that the process was skewed to prop up
any candidate."
Political savvy
President Jonathan was said to have displayed political savvy in
advising the Anioma Congress led by Obi (Prof.) Chike Edozien, the Asagba of
Asaba to harmonise the two lists and submit it to Governor Uduaghan in Asaba
for onward transmission to Abuja.
The Controversy
As expected, some in the political class which felt aggrieved that
there is an attempt to impose Obuh on the electorate have been sponsoring media
campaigns against him on the suspicion that he is favoured by the governor.
Some of the aspirants that were not favoured have questioned the whole
exercise while those that came through saw it as a moral booster. The exclusion
of any name from the Oshimili / Enuani side of the state was immediately
interpreted to mean that there is an unwritten policy to exclude the people
from this area from governance in the state.
In spite of the denial by the State Government that the Governor did
not present the names of Sir Obuh and Hon. Emetulu, many observers remain
unconvinced that the Governor is not behind what is now called the Obuh
project.
No margin of error
President Jonathan according to sources told the Asagba led Anioma
Congress at the meeting that Delta State is too strategic to PDP and the party
"is not ready to lose Delta or any of the South South States in the
forthcoming election." A member of the delegation who wants his name out
of print said the President clearly told the delegation that PDP will not
gamble with the governorship election in Delta state by presenting a candidate
that is not popular with the people, regardless of the personalities backing
such aspirant."
The president was remarkably surprised to discover that one of his
aides who has been flaunting his Aso Rock connection was missing in the list
presented by the Anioma Congress.
Although the meeting ended on a jocular note, the ripple generated has
been reverberating across the country.
As at now, Abuja and Governor Uduaghan are believed to hold the ace in
the gubernatorial contest.
Reacting, chairman of Anioma Agenda, Barrister Alex Onwuadiamu said,
"what is playing in Abuja is a backlash from the political class which
feels short changed by what it considered as unfair imposition and it has vowed
to fight it within and outside the party."
The battle has come to the stage where those who have the reach to
Abuja will put their best foot forward.
Chief Clement Ofuani who was among the first to declare his intention
for governorship said, "there is no doubt that the Aso Rock should be
looking in my direction as the least controversial and the most cerebral
technocrat that can take Delta State to the next level."
According to Ofuani, "when we talk of equity for Delta North, we
are not asking for affirmative action or for special concessions, we are asking
for a process that is not encumbered or skewed to favour a particular aspirant.
We are asking for fairness to all."
He said : "we want an Anioma politician or a technocrat who is
prepared for leadership and not those who want to grab power through a discredited
political process called 'Ebu wonders,' a process where the views and vote of
Deltans are treated as inconsequential."
Hostile take over
As it is now, neither the Governor nor the PDP can afford to gamble
with Delta State because a hostile takeover by the force that has opposed the
governor throughout his tenure or by an opposition party will not augur well
for the party.
What is obvious is that the snake has been scotched, not killed, its
wound will heal while it bears the bitterness of its near fatality in its fang.
No comments:
Post a Comment