Ebonyi: PDP haunted by zoning, as APC may retain power 

By Ori Martins

Fresh political indicators have pointed to the fact that the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, might retain the governorship seat in Ebonyi State. 

Although the People’s Democratic Party, PDP’s governorship candidate,  Chief Odii Ifeanyi, is seemingly the most popular in terms of following and crowd pulling, many political calculations and moves are chiefly tailored against him.

In the estimation of Ugba Anthony, a renowned public analyst in Afikpo, the PDP made a fundamental mistake in its choice of candidate for the 2023 governorship election.

“To start with, let me start by giving you a little background analogy of how the previous governors emerged from the three senatorial zones across the state. Between 1999 and 2007, Dr. Sam Egwu from Ngbo, Ebonyi North, was the governor.

“He was succeeded by Chief Martin Elechi between 2007 and 2015. Elechi hails from Ikwo, in Ebonyi Central. Since 2015, the governor here has been Chief Dave  Umahi whose area is Uburu in Ebonyi South.

“The  best thing for PDP to have done would have been to go to Ebonyi North to choose a candidate as that was where the rotation took off from. But the umbrella party didn’t do it. It rather picked Odii, a very popular politician from Ebonyi South. The problem with this is, the serving governor, Umahi, is equally from the south. This is a very big miscalculation from the PDP”.

Ugba pointed out that the  APC appeared to have got its calculation better than the PDP as the broom party took its governorship ticket to the north. He noted that Chief Ogbonna Nwifuru, the APC governorship candidate was from the north just as his deputy running mate, a woman, is from the south.

“The popular demand has been that after Umahi, an Ohazara ward, from the south, power should shift to Afikpo in the north for the purposes of equity, fairness and justice. You have to understand that Onicha and Ohazara are one bloc just as Afikpo and Edda are of the same bloc. The interpretation is that  the  blocs in the north are not very happy with the PDP’s choice of zone in picking its governorship candidate for the Ebonyi State 2023 governorship election”, Ugba explained.

However, a PDP member in the state, Paul Igwe, disagreed with Ugba’s analysis. Igwe submitted that the PDP did the right thing by choosing Odii as its standard bearer for the governorship election.

“The point of the matter is,  the Ebonyi South Zone deserves the governorship slot. In our Igbo traditional setting, if a contribution is organized, after the first tranche, the man who got last is usually allowed to take the first position in the second phase of the contributions.

“That was what exactly happened in the case of Ebonyi South. The zone has all the patience, supported the north and the central candidates in these 24 years, morality demands the south should have some level of leverage and commendation for thier patience. Therefore, the PDP decided to reward the south by restarting the zoning process in its zone. It is in order”.

Odii himself has maintained that he is the candidate to beat in the governorship election. “I am the best of the governorship candidates in our dear state for the 2023 election.

“I have the capacity and courage to lead our people to greatness. Ebonyi State needs a man who understands the problems of the masses and who can have the good as well as godly mind to do what is necessary.

“My mission is to make Ebonyi better and my vision is to ensure I make Ebonyi one of the fastest growing economy in the country. If the economy is rescued then our state is redeemed. This is my mission and vision and we shall realize them together”, he promised.

Informed party sources also said that Senator Egwu, who is the party leaders is from the north and he will provide sufficient leverage for the candidate in the zone by capturing votes and defeat the deputy governor of the APC, while the candidate will slug it out with the governor, who is seeking a senatorial seat. The calculation, indeed, seems to favour the PDP.

On the other hand, the APC governorship candidate, Nwifuru noted that the PDP knew it committed a political blunder by giving its governorship ticket to the south, so, it has lost the election even before March 11, 2023.

According to him, “Let me reliably inform you that the PDP has lost the election even before it is contested. This is because the party is poised to destroy the peaceful order of zoning which has been in the state since 1999. Ebonyi people cannot tolerate this. They will not vote for PDP because its candidate does not represent equity, fitness and justice”.

Nwifuru equally said Governor Umahi has been doing well as could be seen in the massive road construction and bridge erection. He is of the view that Ebonyi State has the best road network in the South East made possible by Umahi. Based on this fact, Ebonyi voters will most likely vote for him than the PDP candidate.

Business Hallmark can authoritatively report that the other top parties in the state, APGA and LP, are not very strong for the contest of governorship election.