Politics

Tension As 18 PDP Candidates Race For Governorship Ticket in Enugu

Published

3 years ago

Apr 17, 2022.

Praise Ben

Tension in PDP, as over 18 candidates now in race for Governorship in Enugu
Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s, the governor of the state, has remained silent, he has not pointed out any candidate as his successor

EDITOR’S PICK

EKO HOT BLOG reports that no less than 18 candidates in the PDP purchased forms for the 2023 Enugu state Governorship elections ticket. This was before the end of sales was declared on Friday.

Those who are said to have purchased the PDP nomination forms include Dr Josef-Ken Onoh, Mr Godwin Ogenyi, and Hon. Chijioke Edeoga, Prof. Bart Nnaji, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, Pastor Beloved Dan Anike, Engr. Erasmus Anike, Senator Gil Nnaji, Capt. Everest Nnaji, Mr Peter Mba, Dr G.O.C Aja, Dr Kingsley Udeh, Rev. Ralph Nwoye, Dr Abraham Nneji, Sir Chinyeaka Ohaa, Hon. Offor Chukwuegbo, Prof Jehu Nnaji and Prof. Hillary Edeoga.

Outside the PDP, the only other political party, where aspirants have indicated an interest in the governorship is the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, where Mr Frank Nweke Jnr, Chief Dons Udeh and Mr Jeff Nnamani have reportedly purchased nomination forms for the governorship position. In the All Progressives Congress, APC, only Dr Dave Nnamani from Isi-Uzo has openly indicated interest to contest the position, using the APC platform.

One interesting feature of the aspirants is that 99.9 percent of them hail from Enugu East Senatorial district, except for Ike Ekweremadu, who is probably the only person in Enugu state that is insisting that there was no governorship zoning arrangement in the state.

Since Ekweremadu declared interest to contest for the governorship, different groups, including political, traditional and religious leaders have in different ways asked him to respect the zoning convention in the state and avoid creating crisis in the state, yet Ekweremadu and his followers have insisted on the contest. His fate will be decided by the PDP delegates, if he succeeds, he will face the generality of the state at the polling units.

One of the current political conundrums in the state is Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi’s unwillingness to openly identify a successor.

The Governor has remained silent on his preferred successor, prompting no less than 18 aspirants to purchase nomination forms for N21 million each, netting the PDP a total of N378 million from Enugu state alone. Ugwuanyi’s silence has spawned a slew of accusations and insinuations, one of which is that the Governor’s proxies met with some of the aspirants outside Nigeria and reached an agreement on who would follow him.

There is also an insinuation that the Governor may at the end of the day fool everybody into believing that he has a successor in mind whereas he has none and will throw the contest open for whoever is the mightiest.

However, there is a belief that among the sea of aspirants are only three members of the Governor’s kitchen cabinet, who are believed to have been mentored by Ugwuanyi and whom the Governor may at the end of the day choose one the three to support as successor.

The three are Dr Kingsley Udeh who is the Governor’s Adviser on Education; Hon. Chijioke Edeoga who has just resigned as the Commissioner for Environment and Dr Ken Onoh who is the Chairman of Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority, ECTDA.

In the case of Udeh, he is generally unknown but his major albatross is his Nkanu west local government council of origin that produced former governor Chimaroke Nnamani who is presently a senator and has picked the 2023 nomination form to go back to the Senate. There is an objection in the state over return of power back to Nkanu west.

Hon. Chijioke Edeoga, no doubt is a consummate politician, he has been around for a while, starting as a council chairman to the House of Representatives, Presidential Adviser and to being a commissioner.

He has the advantage of ‘Ka Isi-Uzo Jee’, a campaign slogan that has thrown up issues of marginalization, discrimination by fellow senatorial constituents and a campaign of productivity by the Isi-Uzo people.

Dr Ken Onoh is however the Man that the moods of the people tend to favour. The people said he is young, charismatic, and has proved that he dares to succeed in a task such as a governorship. With the many feats he achieved in the Enugu Capital Territory, residents believe that it’s a test case of what he can achieve if given governorship.

Onoh’s problem, however, is the law offenders, whom he could not give exemptions in enforcing them to abide by the town planning regulations, but that is where he gained the public support.

FURTHER READING

The Enugu residents said that they want a next governor who could provide the state with water, fix the dilapidated roads, re-event the Sullivan Chime urban renewal model and return the state to a true position of Eastern Nigeria’s capital. They contend that Enugu has down and needs the energy in the like of Onoh to bring back resilience to the state.

Click to watch our video of the week: