…Warns South East Risks Becoming Only Region Without PDP Governor
A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and former Chairman of the Enugu State chapter of the party, Chief Augustine Nnamani, has said the PDP should take full responsibility if Governor Peter Mbah eventually dumps the party.
Speculations have been rife over Mbah’s alleged plan to defect from the PDP to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Premium Times recently reported that the governor’s defection date could be announced after the conclusion of wide-ranging stakeholders’ consultations, which ended last week.
The report also named former governors of Enugu State, including Barr. Sullivan Chime, as well as former Senate President, Senator Ken Nnamani, among other APC leaders in Enugu believed to have influenced Mbah’s possible move.
Mbah’s media aide, Uche Anichukwu, admitted that political consultations had indeed been ongoing in the state but denied that any final decision had been made on the governor leaving the PDP.
However, reacting to the development on Monday, Chief Nnamani said he would not be surprised if Mbah defects to the APC or any other party, stressing that the PDP must be held accountable if it happens.
“Yes, I can confirm that there have been consultations on the future of Enugu State in particular and South East in general, given how the PDP has treated the region. But the final decision lies with the governor at the end of the day based on the aggregations of the feedbacks,” he said.
Nnamani lamented the deterioration of internal democracy within the PDP, particularly its handling of the office of the National Secretary.
“As a PDP devotee, it is painful that things were allowed to deteriorate to this level in our party. The South East PDP had acted in accordance with the directive of the National Working Committee by nominating Hon. Sunday Udeh-Okoye to complete the remaining term of office of the National Secretary occupied by Senator Samuel Anyanwu, who had gone to contest the Imo governorship election. It was supposed to be a routine thing, given the established tradition in the PDP.
“Finally, the Supreme Court, in its considered wisdom, returned the matter to the PDP to decide, saying that neither the court nor the Independent National Electoral Commission had jurisdiction over who becomes party leaders. One expected the party leadership to put their feet down to do the right thing, especially when the NWC and subsequently the PDP Governors’ Forum directed that the South East go back to nominate Anyanwu’s replacement again. But for whatever reason, party leaders kept playing hide and seek,” he stated.
The former state chairman accused the PDP of betraying both Governor Mbah and the entire South East region.
“I have been in this party for so long. Until now, I never saw an entire region thrown under the bus to make one person happy. More so a region like the South East that has successively given the party its all, sometimes even when we had our own sons on the tickets of other parties as presidential and vice presidential candidates.
“Governor Mbah was also betrayed, even by his own colleagues. I say so because I have been in the PDP long enough to know that in matters like this, PDP governors rally around their own. But in this instance, both Mbah and the region were thrown under the bus. The party chose the interest of one man or a few individuals over and above the South East interest and position.
“We must recall that the South East PDP already told the PDP to choose between the region and those narrow interests. So, if Mbah defects, he would only be making good the region’s clear threat to reconsider their future with the PDP if the party continued to disrespect their collective interest and position. And that being the case, the party has itself to blame,” he added.
Nnamani further warned that Mbah’s possible defection would carry far-reaching implications.
“It means that South East, which used to control the five South East states, would now be the only geopolitical zone without a PDP governor.
“It will also be a huge loss to the PDP as Governor Mbah is unarguably one of the most celebrated and outstanding governors in Nigeria as of today,” he concluded.
