2023: APC must include Ogah and other authentic APC candidates in ballots to secure winning in all Abia leadership positions, Emenike not a good product – Oriaku insists.
Ahead of the 2023 main elections, ex-chieftain of the All Progressives Congress from the southeast zone, Hon Chima Oriaku, has mocked the leadership of the APC over mass defections of majority of its party members and teeming supporters in Abia state to opposition parties necessitated by controversies surrounding the outcome of its concluded primary elections in the state.
He opined that APC has failed to deepen democratic process in its electoral activities as demonstrated by the party leadership during its primaries in Abia state, and also regretted that the leadership of the party negated the basic democratic principle at the recently-conducted primary elections for its tickets to aspirants jostling for elective political seats in the forthcoming elections.
Mr Oriaku who contested for State House of Assembly seat ticket for Osisioma Ngwa south constituency at the just-concluded 2022 primary elections conducted by leadership of the All Progressives Congress across state constituencies in Abia, spoke in an interview with newsmen in Aba during the weekend.
Our correspondent recalls that Chima Oriaku had in August 2022, announced resignation of his membership of the All Progressives Congress in Abia state, and cited unlawful replacement of his name with co contestants despite winning the primary election convincingly as the rationale behind his decision.
He announced his resignation from the party in a letter dated and addressed to the chairman of Amaitolu Umuojima, Ward 2, in Osisioma Ngwa Local Government Area of Abia State.
According to Oriaku in his letter which read partly, “Kindlytake this as a notice of my resignation letter from the All Progressives Congress (APC) with immediate effect.
“My resignation is predicated on the gross injustice meted to me after the primaries, as my name was substituted with another person without recourse to my victory”.
However, while expressing his feelings during the interview in Aba, Hon Chima Oriaku, also posited that the purported endorsement of Abia factional APC leader, Chief Ikechi Emenike as APC gubernatorial candidate for the 2023 elections in the state by national body is a misnomer, and which have continued to cause mass exdous of defections of party major leaders and power brokers, and critical party stakeholders, and as well as mammoths of supporters across the electoral wards and local government areas in the state to other political parties ahead of the main elections.
He asserted that Emenike’s purported and illegitimate recognition as governorship candidate by the Independent National Electoral Commission would cause the party huge damages and loss as it pertained the forthcoming gubernatorial elections in Abia state come 2023, adding that Emenike lacked the requisite capacity and electoral values to secure a win for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the upcoming elections in the state.
Oriaku maintained that Emenike had remained the clogs in the wheel of progress and development, and electoral success of the progressive party in Abia state since formation of the party in 2015, and frowned in strong terms the purported harmonization of interests of party members that was stage-managed by Mr Ikechi Emenike and his hirelings, and as well as the alleged manipulations of the results of the concluded gubernatorial primary elections won overwhelmingly by the immediate minister of state for mines and steel development, Dr Uche Ogah who was elected as the winner and authentic gubernatorial candidate of the party in Abia for the general elections in 2023.
Words: “I’m disappointed with leadership of the APC at national and state levels, with their defiance to stick with her rules in upholding democratic principles, and ideology at the concluded primaries held by the leadership of the party in Abia.
“We also condemn a situation where the authentic winners cum candidates who democratically emerged during the processee rare being wrongly and unlawfully substituted with co-aspirants who failed to pick the party’s nomination during the just-conducted exercises. Where have you seen such happened in advanced democratic climes?
“Me, fellow majority of the APC members and my teeming supporters in Osisioma Ngwa south don’t align ourselves and subscribe to such bad precedences, and APC is about to sink if they fail to address the fundamental issues and crisis which were occasioned by the fallout of the concluded execrise.
“It’s unacceptable and a rape on the nation’s democracy for the leadership of the party to attempt to subvert or truncate the collective will of the majority of party members and entire Abia people, whom affirmed their strong belief in the capacity and expertise of Uche Ogah by choosing him the ex-minister during the recently-conducted gubernatorial primaries.
“It’s Mr Ikechi Emenike had benefited immensely more than every members in APC in terms of federal appointment, offer of federal employment slots, federal board appointments and as well as federal agencies. Mr Ikechi Emenike’s wife is currently Nigerian Ambassador o United State of America, but despite all these gestures the factional Abia party leader of the party has thwarted many opportunities and chances of the Abia APC to form a government in Abia, and he has remained undeterred in his trade in stock; causing crisis every electioneering outings of the party.
He encouraged he authentic governorship standard-bearer of the All Progressives Congress, Uche Ogah to pursue the current legal redress to a logical end, and however submitted that should APC desires to emerge victorious in the 2023 Abia governorship seat elections, its leadership must withdraw name of the factional gubernatorial candidate, Mr Ikechi Emenike who have and before now, was rejected by ANPP, PDP and was also rejected by party members and entire people of Abia, and include name of the ultimate winner and authentic Standard-bearer, Uche Ogah’s in the lists of names of candidates that successfully emerged during primary elections conducted by registered political parties across the Nigeria federation.
“Rightly since his sojourn into the murky water of Nigeria politics, his ambition to become Governor of Abia state had eluded him, and coupled with his desperation and hunger for political power which he had longed for”.
Recall that Uche Ogah had on 26th of May 2022, emerged as the Abia governorship standard bearer of the All Progressives Congress in the recently-concluded gubernatorial primary elections for the forthcoming 2023 general elections in Abia state.
Ogah was declared the winner of the just concluded gubernatorial primary elections after he scored 141,952 votes to beat his closest rival, Paul Ikonne who scored 27,054.
Other gubernatorial aspirants includes, Chief Ikechi Emenike who polled 9,446, Emeka Atuma with 7,429, Obinna Oriaku with 5,553, Alex Otti scored 2,41, and Daniel Eke who got 1,953 at the keenly contested direct primaries.
On the same day, the factional APC leader in Abia state and Pro-chancellor Chairman of the Board, University of Nigeria Nsukka, UNN, Chief Ikechi Emenike and few of party members loyal to him, organized a parallel gubernatorial primaries wherein, he emerged as factional governorship candidate of the party for the coming 2023 general elections in Abia state.
However, both candidates (Ogah and Emenike) are already in court seeking judicial interpretation on the authenticity of the exercise conducted by the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abia state.
Continuing while asked on next step following his unlawful substitution of name, and recent resignation as member of the APC in Abia, Hon Chima Oriaku, disclosed that he’s currently consulting with family, major political leaders and critical stakeholders, and as well teeming supporters across the Osisioma Ngwa south state constituency, as he further assured to announce his next move as soon as he concludes the ongoing wide consultations with constituents ahead of the 2023 general election in the state.
