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*Says APGA needs APC for seamless prosecution of Nov. 6 governorship poll
By Ikechukwu Okaforadi
T he Director General of Voice of Nigeria (VoN), Osita Okechukwu, has hinted that the All Progressive Congress (APC) may adopt Chukwuma Soludo as its candidate for the November 6 Anambra governorship election if the leaders of All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) agree to fuse into APC.
Speaking to journalists yesterday in Abuja, Okechukwu, who is also a chieftain of APC, emphasized that APGA needs APC for a seamless and successful prosecution of the November 6 governorship election in Anambra State.
“My take is that if the two parties – APGA and APC – come together under one bloc, it would then be possible for us to weigh the two flag bearers, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo and Senator Andy Uba, on the scale of which of them could better win the election in terms of acceptability, integrity, public service record, capacity and vision for good governance,” the VON DG stated.
Note that Prof. Charles Soludo has emerged the candidate of APGA for the November 6 governorship election in Anambra, having defeated eight other aspirants at a primary election held in Awka, Anambra State capital.
But giving an inkling on the prospects of possible collaboration, Okechukwu said APGA and his party have been longtime political allies, starting from 2013 when part of APGA was led to join APC during the merger stage.
Okechukwu maintained that APGA and APC have a history of long cosy political understanding dating even back to 2013, saying “…we cannot in 2017, forget how President Muhammadu Buhari more or less saved His Excellency Wille Obiano from his traducers, hence his re-election.”
The party chieftain said it was that background of cordial relationship that informed his recent counsel to APGA leaders to fuse into APC as a pragmatic step towards successful and seamless prosecution of the November 6 governorship election in Anambra State.
According to him, “That suggestion was made from the prism of the pragmatic Zikist political model, which joins us with APGA. Pragmatism is the best strategy for Ndigbo to kill two birds with one stone, because if APGA fuses into APC that will gift APC with three states in the Southeast geopolitical zone – a milestone.”
“With three strategic states of Southeast in APC’s kitty, that is a halfway stroke to Ndigbo’s ambition of achieving Nigerian President of Igbo extraction in 2023.
“Therefore, I implore them to kindly consider the fruit in APGA joining APC to win the Anambra governorship. Other details will be cordially harmonized.”
Okechukwu, while faulting the claim by Chinedu Obidigwe that APC was plotting a forceful takeover of Anambra State, insisted that the feasibility of his suggestion could be seen from the political understanding between the All Peoples Party (APP) and Alliance for Democracy (AD) in 1999.
He recalled: “we must recall that in 1999, based on strategic thinking, AD and APP were merged for the Presidential election.
“But, although the powers that be wanted Chief Olusegun Obasanjo of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), every stakeholder in APP and AD, and indeed all progressive Nigerians saw the political understanding as a win- win offering on the ballot. So, with the benefit of hindsight, I am seeing the same opportunity for APGA and APC in Anambra State.”
Obidigwe, the National Coordinator of APGA Media Warriors, had in a statement to journalists, criticised Okechukwu for asking APGA to integrate fully into APC and join the mainstream of Nigeria politics so as to help Igbo pick the Presidential seat in 2023.
But, Okechukwu told reporters in Abuja, yesterday, that APGA was missing the point by seeking to remain as a big fish in a small pond of regional politics that has only earned it just one state out of the entire federation.
He insisted that APGA can, apart from solving its intractable myriad of post-governorship primary litigations join its old ally, APC, to win the governorship, instead of doing the same thing the same way and expecting a different result.
