Anambra State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) heads for more unpredictable turns following emergence of three factions in its fold, Special Correspondent, OKEY MADUFORO, reports.
Anambra State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) last week failed to prove bookmakers wrong when it organised parallel congresses. The gladiators even ended up throwing up another faction of the party in the area, bringing the number to three.
Before now, the party had two factions. One was headed by Ejike Oguebego, allegedly under the sponsorship of Chris Uba, the self-styled godfather of Anambra politics, while the other was led by Kenneth Emeakayi, said to be sponsored by Senator Andy Uba, elder brother to Chris.
The congresses, which took place simultaneously at Emmaus House and Marble Arch Hotel, Awka, gave strong indications that the embattled political party that had been neck deep in crises in the past 16 years still has a long walk to truce.
Equally part of the congress of confusion was the action of the 11-man committee from Abuja who was saddled with the responsibility of conducting the exercise. Four out of the 11 members conducted a separate congress at Emmaus House for the faction led by Oguebego, while the committee chairman and the rest of the members supervised the congress held at Marble Arch Hotel.
Deepening the confusion further, officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were observers at the two separate activities.
As if that was not enough, the exercise further produced another faction led by Ngozi Agudosi, who had obtained forms for the post of chairman but was disqualified along with another candidate, Emeka Small.
At the end of the exercise, the authenticity of the two congresses became an issue that caused deep cracks within the Abuja congress committee members.
Committee chairman, Ladi Edo, told reporters: “We are duly mandated by the National Working Committee (NWC) of our great party to conduct the state congress and that is what we have done. We are not aware of any other congress taking place in Anambra State. Whatever those people are doing is a nullity and cannot stand. You can see that the process was peaceful, free and fair and Prince Kenneth Emeakayi emerged the new chairman of the PDP in Anambra State. Anybody that has any protest or complaints should petition the party’s appeal committee.
“I cannot say anything about the rest of the committee members that are not here with us. I am the chairman. The secretary of the committee is also here with me. I do not know where the other committee members are and they did not contact me to say that they were coming to Anambra or not.”
At Emmaus House venue of the Chris Uba-led PDP congress committee, Shettima Abubakar dismissed the claims of his chairman, insisting that the authentic venue for the exercise was where he was.
“I do not know anything on the whereabouts of the chairman. I called him severally and he said he was on his way. I arrived Anambra State, and since then I had not seen the chairman or the rest of the committee members. We could not continue to wait for them. So, the congress had to go on. According to the party’s constitution, in the event of a vacuum, the administrative secretary takes charge and he is here with us. He received us and prepared the grounds for the congress.
“We have held a peaceful congress. Ejike Oguebego won the chairmanship position. He was duly elected. I am not aware of whatever congress that is taking place anywhere in Anambra State. Maybe, another political party is holding its own congress and certainly not the PDP,” he said.
While the confusion raged, stakeholders across the two factions took on one another, insisting that theirs was the authentic congress.
Former Anambra Central senator, Annie Okonkwo, contended that the congress that produced Emeakayi was a nullity, insisting that Oguebego was the chairman of the party.
His words: “As a legislator that makes laws, I cannot be seen to be working against the rule of law. The law says that the administrative secretary should take charge of the congress and he was there with the Abuja Congress Committee. Those people you are talking about always like to impose a system that is anti-party. I do not believe in what you called parallel congress because PDP is one and Oguebego is our state chairman.”
Another chieftain of the party, Senator John Emeka, echoed the stance of Okonkwo that the state congress of the party had taken place, with Oguebego as the chairman, adding that anybody talking about another congress was only deceiving himself since there was nothing like that anywhere.
“Some people derive joy in circumventing the rule of the law and trying to cut corners for their own selfish gains,” he further remarked.
However, Andy Uba, who represents Anambra South Senatorial District, picked holes in the submissions of his colleagues when he described the faction led by his younger brother as a cabal that merely created a situation to rip off unsuspecting party members.
“Which other congress? Those people were out there causing confusion and creating opportunities to make money from people. Whatever they did is complete illegality and does not hold water,” he stressed.
Stella Oduah, who represents Anambra North in the Senate, told TheNiche that the issue of two congresses was not acceptable to the party, adding that no amount of blackmail would stop the Andy Uba-led congress from not being authentic.
Oduah said: “You all saw what happened. People cannot continue to cut corners. People should not be deceived by what some of our party members are doing because they know that illegality cannot have its way. Let them go to Abuja with whatever name and nobody would entertain that anyway.”
Concerned PDP members in the state are not finding the development funny. Their argument is that in the midst of the on-going impasse between the two camps, there is a great deal of uncertainty over the authenticity of their separate congresses. There is also the fear of imminent litigation by the faction loyal to Agudosi, who was disqualified by the congress committee chairman at the Andy Uba-led congress.
The faction had three chairmanship candidates, Emeakayi, Agudosi and Emeka. Shortly before the commencement of the exercise, the committee chairman had announced that based on an Ihiala High Court ruling, the party stakeholders had zoned the chairmanship position to Ihiala Local Government Area, hence disqualifying Agudosi and Emeka.
Agudosi contended that he should be allowed to make his submission by addressing members of the delegates but was turned down.
Undaunted by the tough stance of the party, he announced that he had commenced meetings with his legal team for litigation on the issue, noting that he and his supporters were not in agreement with the two congresses.
“I am already talking with my legal team. We are going to challenge this charade in the court of law. My question is, who are the stakeholders that did the zoning?
“We have a Supreme Court judgment of January 29, 2016 that stated that Oguebego’s executive is authentic, but that his tenure has expired, calling for a fresh congress. How can an Ihiala High court ruling supersede that of the Supreme Court?
“As far as we are concerned, there was no congress in Anambra State. If the party claims that congress was held, then I am the chairman of the party. The congress committee compromised and they merely divided themselves into two for some pecuniary reasons, just to deepen the party’s crisis to their own interest,” he said.
“People did not cast their votes. Emeakayi and the two senators, Andy Uba and Stella Oduah, are killing the party in Anambra State. All these antics are just for Andy Uba to become the governorship candidate of the PDP in Anambra State.”
He asked that with Emeakayi as chairman coming from Anambra South with Andy, what becomes of the position for Anambra Central, his senatorial zone. “Our position is that Anambra Central Senatorial zone should produce the state chairman of the party since they want Anambra South to produce the governorship candidate. After Joseph Okonkwo, the first elected and founding chairman of Anambra PDP, the Central has never produced the chairman. They have produced governors such as Peter Obi and Chris Ngige and never contested for chairman.
“It is unfortunate that our party has created yet another faction led by me; but I believe that it will better the party in due time. Soon you would know the position of the NWC which would ultimately nullify the entire thing called congress,” Agudosi said.