By Special Correspondent
In what now appears to be a matter of weeks, Imo voters will once again head to the polls to decide who becomes their governor, for the next four years.
It is a battle between the incumbent governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, who is battling to complete the remaining four of his tenure in an executive position, and political heavyweights from other political parties, bent on removing him from office, chiefly of whom are the candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP, Senator Samuel Anyanwu Samdaddy and his Labour Party counterpart, Chief Athan Achonu.
But while Uzodimma has the candidates of other political parties to contend with, there are still players, especially those within his own party, the All Progressives Congress APC, who may have axes to grind with Uzodimma, and may work against his reelection bid.
Topmost on the list is a former governor and like Uzodimma, a former Orlu zone senator, Rochas Okorocha.
Okorocha became an open rival of Gov. Hope Uzodimma following the governor’s decision to recover every property of the state looted by Okorocha and his cronies while in office.
It can be recalled that Okorocha had at a point, tried to bulldoze his way into a property seized from his wife by the state government and would become the first former governor to be humiliated publicly by the people of the state, and later arrested by the police for trespassing on government property.
Despite efforts by the party leadership to bring both men on the same page, it has remained obvious that Okorocha may never accept Uzodimma, and have refused to endorse Uzodimma’s reelection bid.
Okorocha have even publicly shown inclination for the PDP candidate, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, who he referred to as the light in Imo State.
Despite his lack of political followership in the state, occasioned by his failed term as governor, Okorocha may still try to be a clog in Uzodimma’s ambition to win Imo governorship election with his massive financial war chest.
Despite coming for the APC campaign flag off which is most likely by compulsion because of those who were attending including the Vice President Shettima, it is doubtful that Okorocha will in all sincerity, support Uzodimma.
Another former senator, in the person of Ifeanyi Araraume is another man who is not particularly pleased with Gov Hope Uzodimma, and may work towards ensuring his reelection bid fails.
Despite being a member of the APC, Araraume have been alleged to be backing the ambition of the PDP candidate Samdaddy.
Recently, some of his top lieutenants were spotted in Samdaddy’s residence sparking speculations that Araraume was working for the National secretary of the PDP, against his party’s candidate, Gov Hope Uzodimma.
Araraume had in a press release, denied the allegations, but like Okorocha, has refused to endorse his party’s candidate.
Araraume probably blames Uzodimma for his humiliating defeat at the hands of a political greenhorn, during the Okigwe Senate rerun, to find a replacement for the seat left vacant by the untimely death of late Senator Benjamin Uwajumogu.
It is also assumed that he might blame Uzodimma for his failure to clench the NNPC top job for which he dragged former president Muhammadu Buhari to court for giving him the boot.
Interestingly, both Okorocha and Araraume have been in alignment and appear to be best political buddies since the emergence of Senator Hope Uzodimma as governor.
There are those who believe that Araraume’s misfortunes at Uzodimma’s hands is because of his alliance with Okorocha as it could be recalled during his defection announcement from the All Progressive Grand Alliance APGA to the APC, that an aide to Uzodimma, Mrs. Nnoham, had warned Araraume against his romance with Okorocha, promising him openly that he would not get anything if he stayed with Okorocha instead of pledging loyalty to Uzodimma.
From the opposition front, aside from those trying to take away his seat and their supporters, Uzodimma seems to become a darling to some critical players in the state as he is rumoured to even have the blessings of Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha, who’s followers have dumped the PDP and trooped into APC to support Uzodimma.
There might still be others in Ihedioha’s political family who are nursing one grudge or the other against Uzodimma despite being in the same political party with him and may work against his reemergence but it’s yet to be seen if they’re efforts would yeild fruit or become wasted.
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I’m simply Mercy being Merciless with the truth.
