By Joshua Chibuzo Andrew, Owerri
Barely few months to the Imo state governorship election slated for 11, November, 2023, four serving House of Representatives members of Imo PDP extraction have left the opposition party for the ruling APC.
This is coming a few weeks after the National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, emerged as the consensus candidate of the party for the forthcoming Imo governorship election.
It would be recalled that the coast was clear for Senator Anyanwu when the immediate-past Governor of Imo state, Emeka Ihedioha, voluntarily withdrew from the party’s guber primaries.
Henry Nwawuba who is currently representing Mbaitoli/Ikeduru federal constituency at the Green Chamber had earlier defected to APC after collapsing his structure to the candidate of the ruling party, Akarachi Amadi, few days to the Mbaitoli/Ikeduru supplementary election held on the 15th of April, 2023.
Meanwhile, the trio of Jerry Alagbaoso, the three-time member representing Orlu/Orsu/Oru-east federal constituency, Bede Eke representing Aboh-Mbaise/Ngor-Okpala federal constituency and that of Owerri federal constituency member, Ikenna Elezianya, have pitched tenths with the ruling party in the state.
The new APC converts are expected to work for the Governor Hope Uzodinma’s reelection on 11th of November, 2023.
Reacting to the development, the Media Aide to the Imo state PDP guber candidate, Ikenna Onuoha, he described their exit from the opposition party as good riddance.
According to him, they are a set of frustrated members of the party who could not win their reelection and decided to look for means of recovering the huge amount they might have spent during the election.
He said, “tell me how a right-thinking PDP member should join a party that is generally rejected by Imo people. Their exit from the PDP is of no effects to the success story that the party will record in the November 11th election.
“I want to tell you without equivocation that all of the serving federal lawmakers of PDP extraction who defected to APC did so because they heard that the speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has been penciled down as the Chief of Staff to the incoming President of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“Most of them who thought they are in good terms with the speaker and who still want to be politically relevant may have thought the best way to curry favour from the would-be Chief of Staff is to defect to APC.
“You should know that all of them lost in the last election and they knew before now that their people did not want them again. They decided to join the party that has been rejected by the masses so that they will continue to be rejected.
“Their relevance in the PDP does not make any meaning. If it makes meaning, and they are rooted and grounded in their various constituencies, why didn’t they win their election? Why did they fail woefully? So their exit it’s not going to distract the party in any way. Infact, instead of the party to continue to parade names that will not add any meaning to the party, it’s better for them to exit the party. So that we will know those who will be important in the party eventually. Most of them cannot even control their families, let alone contribute meaningfully to the party. It’s a pity, my brother.
“None of them is leaving the PDP because of the outcome of the governorship primaries. They are looking for an alternative to recover the money they spent during the election. That was what led to their defection.”
Asked about the party’s reconciliatory move with the immediate-past Governor, Emeka Ihedioha, he said nothing has gone wrong between the two.
He described Emeka Ihedioha as a true party man who is committed in seeing that power is returned to the party.
He further disclosed that the immediate past Governor is working hand in hand with the guber candidate to recover the stolen mandate of the party, urging people to disregard such sensational news of the party’s guber candidate.
