Virtually everyone in the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Imo State was elated when the party announced a meeting between party leaders, aspirants and the people’s governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, CON. Some clarity was to finally come regarding the ruling party”s Primaries in preparation for the local government elections scheduled for Saturday, September 21, 2024.
That meeting took place on Tuesday, August 27, 2024, at the party’s state headquarters located on Okigwe Road, Owerri. At the meeting the governor announced a preference for consensus as the means for choosing the party’s flag bearers at the the local government and ward levels.
The truth, however, is that where a consensus could have been reached, it would already have been reached. The fact that virtually no LGA or Ward has settled on one candidate tells us something not only about the keenness with which our compatriots are seeking these offices, but also about the expectation that the governor should help point the way forward.
Perhaps never since 1999 when the current exercise in democracy commenced has the local government elections loomed so consequential. The Nigerian Supreme Court’s declaration of the independence or autonomy of local governments moving forward, has raised the stakes for all actors in the political arena. With huge sums of money and enormous political power to be controlled by these third arms of government, sharks, barracudas, and some democrats are circling around in pursuit of the coveted tickets of the APC.
The governor’s call for consensus is quite noble. However, there are various ways to reach consensus, some of which might ultimately prove disastrous for party cohesion going into the election proper.
Consensus does not mean unanimity. Consensus generally means where no one disagrees, which is different from where everyone agrees (unanimity). You do not need 100% agreement to reach consensus. Seventy-five percent or more would give you consensus. The beauty of consensus as I believe the governor envisions it, is that it bodes well for much more cohesion as the ruling party faces other parties on September 21st.
In light of the autonomy certified by the Supreme Court, it has become very important that the local governments are in alignment with the state governments – the state governments are after all, the current federated units in the Nigerian federation. While financial autonomy sounds good, the federated units (the states) must have some political and legal control of governing units within their boundaries.
Senator Hope Uzodimma is not just the governor of Imo State, but by the shear strength of a force of nature, he is also the Governor General of the Southeast, with APC controlling the Federal Government. He knows every section of Imo State and he is steeped in the political history of each local government area in the state. As I said, there are several ways to reach a consensus, but as the September elections approach, the party’s nod for any aspirant will get us quicker to a consensus with the least acrimony.
The governor is the leader of the party in the state and in the region. The people of the state have entrusted in him the responsibility and powers to manage the governance affairs of the state for at least the next three years.
I call on the party leadership, led by Senator Uzodimma as the Party Leader, and Dr. McDonald Ebere as the state Party Chairman to let us know through the appropriate party channels, the aspirants around which consensus can be built.
It’s time to harmonize. We are fired up and ready to go.
The writer, Dr. Ugorji Okechukwu Ugorji, is an APC chieftain in Imo State and the Acme Leader of the party in Aboh Mbaise LGA.
