Anambra 2017 as litmus test for APGA
Though the founders of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) had envisaged registering a political party that would work towards appealing to the electorate across the country, the party has only one out of the 36 state governors and is threatened by
The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) cannot in all honesty claim to be enjoying the present state of its existence. The reason is that for over a decade, it has been engulfed in one kind of leadership battle or the other, going in and out of court due to chains of litigations.
Moreover, there could be some eventualities which may adversely affect APGA if, for any reason, it fails to clinch victory in the gubernatorial election in Anambra State slated to hold later this year.
Presently, APGA, just like some other crisis-infected parties in Nigeria, cannot say with certainty, that it has lived up to the dream of its founders. The party is said to have literally become the whipping boy or dumping ground for politicians, who were denied tickets by their parties during previous elections.
Pundits believe that such aggrieved politicians would always remember APGA at the last minute, but after contesting and winning on its platform, they would rush out and rejoin their former parties.
Through this method, a good number of APGA members, either by commission or omission, have reportedly bent the “rules” and ignored the “regulations,” thereby making the party a jungle for seeking political relevance.
The bottom line is that many observers think that after the forthcoming gubernatorial election in Anambra State, APGA may go into extinction in the event that it loses out.
Recently, a faction of APGA, led by its former acting national chairman and former deputy national chairman, Chief Chris Ejike Uche, including Sunday Obasahon, one-time deputy national organizing secretary/ leader of APGA in South-South, Adekunle Sonubi, ex-leader of the party in South- West and Alhaji Sadie Masalla, a former deputy national chairman of the party in the 19 states of the North, declared for the United Progressive Party (UPP).
Now, it seems the UPP has the intention to profit from the APGA’s endless crises and shine like a “true Igbo and national political party.”
The ceremony, though regarded by many as “alliance of old folks,” those who joined UPP said they declared for the party after they were convinced that “APGA was no longer a true national political party, considering the discordant tones that have played up over the years.”
At the ceremony, UPPs national chairman and its presidential candidate for the 2015 elections, Chief Chekwas Okorie, said with the influx of prominent people into his party, the Anambra State governor, Willie Obiano, should forget his second term ambition.
According to him, “Obiano will not return as second term governor and it’s not his fault. I’m not against him but he is an inheritor of a dying party.”
According to Okorie, “A lot of negotiations, interactions and discussions have taken place for us to get to where we are today. There have been that desire by Nigerians, not just Ndigbo, that APGA and UPP must find a way to unite to give Nigerians a truly progressive party. I want to assure you that a truly progressive movement has started.”
Chief Chris Ejike Uche, who also addressed the gathering, said, “We are well represented here and we have merged APGA with UPP and where ever you have APGA, it is the carcass of the party. To tell you the power behind this merger, the deputy national chairman, North, Sadie Masalla and the national welfare officer, Evang Chinyere Okeke, are with us.”
On his part, Dr. Isa Jega, who recalled that he was chairman of APGA in Plateau State in 2001, declared: “I’m Jega of UPP today. This marriage we have here today is a divine marriage. I thank God for today because it is a remarkable day in the history of democracy in Nigeria.”
Also contributing, Obasahon likened APGA to a dead horse, noting that “we are aligning our supporters with UPP. I make bold to say this because we are going to test this party with the coming Anambra election. I have the inclination that in 2017, APGA will cease to exist.”
In like manner, Alhaji Masalla announced that all the 19 northern states branches of APGA are now in UPP.
Before the latest “marriage,” a group of members of the National Working Committee (NWC) of APGA, at a meeting suspended the troubled national chairman, Victor Oye, over alleged anti-party activities.
He was replaced with Chief Nwabueze Okafor in acting capacity. And ever since, it has been suspension galore for the party.
Before now, Okafor was the national vice chairman of the party political in the South-East zone. The matter is still pending in court.
Arguably, APGA is battling for survival from different offensives as recently, a group of leaders from the South-East met in Awka, capital of Anambra State. They were said to have revoked Oye’s suspension and accused Okafor of anti-party activities. They later appointed Chief Smart Ihuoma as Okafor’s replacement.
The alleged suspension took place less than a week after Ihuoma led a delegation of the South-East executive of the party, to pledge support and loyalty to the Okaforled leadership.
Daily Trust on Sunday recalls that Ihuoma, who briefed newsmen during the visit where they presented a wrapper and staff of authority to Okafor, had said: “We need to strengthen the party to enable it deliver in elections and not what the former leadership of Oye can offer. Oye does not understand the workings of APGA as a national party. That is why the leadership of the South-East has come to show solidarity to Okafor to encourage him in the drive to take APGA to the next level.”
But Okafor had disregarded the said suspension and maintained that he remained the acting national chairman of the party. He said he was not sure those who held the meeting at Awka, were genuine members of the party in the region.
While the dust raised over the authentic national leader of the party was yet to settle, the Anambra State chapter still got entangled in another round of leadership logjam which, like a bolt out of the blues “manufactured” two individuals, each claiming to be the state chairman of the party.
During an early morning meeting at the party’s secretariat, a faction of the State Working Committee (SWC) suspended indefinitely, its chairman, Chief Norbert Obi and appointed his deputy, Chief Tony Elee to pilot activities of the party.
The suspension of Obi was contained in a statement signed by 17 members of the 24-member SWC. The statement was read by the state legal adviser, Sylvester Ezeokenwa, accusing Obi of ineptitude and gross incompetence.
As the controversy was about to die down, the embattled Chief Obi, led by the three vice chairmen, found his way into the state secretariat to nullify his alleged suspension.
Announcing the resolution of his own group, Obi insisted that he remained in charge, adding that he had not violated any part of the party’s constitution.
Obi, therefore, enjoined members to ignore the earlier announcement by those he regarded as “a few members of the party who were apparently driven by misinformation and lack of deep knowledge of the constitution of the party.”
With the problems in APGA, the questions on the lips of many people are: Is UPP going to make any headway into Anambra State in next year’s governorship poll? Is Governor Obiano going to achieve his second term ambition on the plank of the crisis-riddled APGA? Is the party still going to be relevant in the South-East in future elections?
It’s only time, occasioned by the continued realignment in the two parties that will tell.