APGA chieftain blames Soludo for lack of support for party’s candidates
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Anambra Governor Charles Soludo has been blamed for the loss by All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) to Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate Peter Obi who carried the state by a tsunami.
APGA Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) National Operations Director, Afam Enemokwu, accused the party hierarchy of failing to support its candidates, including Peter Umeadi, who lost the presidential contest to Obi in the state.
Enemokwu alleged the party leadership, led by Soludo, failed to do the needful to ensure the victory of APGA candidates.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Tuesday declared Obi won all Anambra councils with 584,621 votes, followed by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate Atiku Abubakar who got 9,036.
Umeadi won 7,388 votes but got zero in Polling Unit 017 in Agu Awka Ward located at Government House, which Obi won.
Enemokwu insisted the APGA leadership is to blame for the poor result.
Said he: “Our presidential candidate is more qualified to win the election, because he has all it takes to be President of Nigeria, but we did not do what we were supposed to do before now due to lack of funds, which is the only problem we had in the presidential election.
“No doubt, Umeadi actually showed in his personal capacity that he could do it, but the party and the Governor, who was elected on APGA platform, has not shown him any support; in fact, the party leadership abandoned him.
“Well, since the inauguration of the APGA Presidential Campaign Council, which cuts across all levels of the party, we were not invited for a meeting, we were not given direction, there is no funding, so the APGA faithful are disappointed and frustrated that nothing, as it used to be, has come from the people up there.”
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Soludo singled out for blame
“From day one, particularly the Governor sidelined me and the presidential candidate. The Governor is not interested, he has not even received me,” Enemokwu said, per reporting by The PUNCH.
“I went to see him, my name was listed in the manifest, he knew I was coming, his Deputy Chief of Staff even called me and said my name was in the manifest. I went and stayed for three hours but the Governor refused to see me.”
But Soludo’s Press Secretary Christian Aburime, denied his principal abandoned the party and its candidates.
“It is not true that Soludo abandoned APGA and its candidates. As the leader of the party, on which platform he became the Governor, the onus lies on the Governor to support his party’s candidates and that is what he is doing,” Aburime explained.