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  • Imo guber poll: I will raise minimum wage to N80,000, says APGA candidate

    Imo guber poll: I will raise minimum wage to N80,000, says APGA candidate

    The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) governorship candidate in Imo State, Tony Ejiogu, has promised to raise the minimum wage of the workers to N80,000 if elected the governor on November 11.

    Ejiogu, who disclosed this during the flag off his campaign in Owerri, Imo state capital, said the current N30,000 minimum wage is not realistic in today’s Nigeria, adding that he would raise the internally generated revenue (IGR) and harness other sources of revenue to increase the quality of lives in the state.

    He also promised to restore security in the state as part of his priorities when he assumes office as the governor.

    Ejiogu said: “My priority is to restore security to our dear state so that we may once again enjoy the simple pleasures of life and feel safe.”

    He equally expressed sadness with the level of poverty in the state and country in general and vowed to harness the agricultural potential of the state to make food abundant to the people.

    He added: “Imo State has the highest literacy rate at 97% in Nigeria, according to the NBS. The secret to this is that we feed our children well. Let me remind you that we cannot disconnect the intellectual capacity of a child from how well he is fed. Yet, today, we face one of the worst food insecurities in our lands.

    Read Also: Imo Gov: Okorocha, Araraume collapse support structures for Anyanwu

    “Sadly, even Ohaji Egbema, Ngor Okpala, Mbaise, Oguta and Ikeduru, all areas known as our food baskets for generations can no longer produce enough for themselves because of insecurity. Therefore, we shall set out to make food abundant again, by making it safe for farmers to return to their farmlands, harnessing our agricultural potential fully and making the right investments so that our people can have more than enough to eat.”

    He said he would tackle the issue of unemployment and ensure that graduates roaming the streets are able to find meaningful employment.

    The governorship hopeful noted: “The root of poverty, which is widespread in our state today, is unemployment. Shall we ever complain too much about the lack of jobs today? Who among you here today does not have a brother, sister, son, daughter or cousin who finished university several years ago but has no job to wake up to every morning? Our dear State churns out one of the largest number of graduates yearly, but nearly 6 out of 10 are not able to find any meaningful employment.”

    “These problems are surmountable, but because we have voted individuals into political offices who lack the necessary capabilities to tackle these, we find ourselves grappling with them for so long, while the solution to these problems lies within our reach.My dear people, freedom beckons.

    “A breeze that will change everything about us and our beloved state. Shall we not embrace this wind of redemption?”

    Speaking also, the Anambra State Deputy Governor, Dr. Onyekachukwu Ibeziem, who represented Governor Chukwuma Soludo, urged the members of the party to speak with one voice and take back the state.

    He said: “We did it in Anambra State, we must do it in Imo. Vote and guard your votes.”

    Also, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe said: “We are going to take over Imo just like the way we took over Abia. We are noted for chasing away unperforming governors from office. Join hands with us to vote Hope Uzodimma out of Douglas House come November 11.”

    APGA National Chairman, Sly Eze Okenwa noted that the party had been winning elections until former governor of Imo State, Senator Rochas Okorocha threw away the mandate given to him by the party.

    “Okorocha took our mandate and threw it into the bush, through the mercy of God, He has appointed for us another leader, another librator, Tony Ejiogu. We are advised to come out and vote and after voting protect the votes.”

    The highlight of the event was the handing over of the party flag to the standard bearer,Tony Ejiogu and his deputy, Chris Ejike Uche.

  • Imo guber and Uzodinma’s validation

    If any evidence was required to confirm the political stature of Senator Hope Uzodinma, the APC governorship candidate in Imo State, the result of the Saturday, February 23, presidential election in the state, was the litmus test. Though Abubakar Atiku, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, won in the state, President Muhammadu Buhari, who flew the flag, of the All Progressive Congress, APC, can beat his chest that he garnered the 25% that contributed to his victory. That feat was achieved in spite of the fact that Atiku won in 25 of the 27 local governments in the state; the only exceptions being Ideato South and Oru East.

    Those who are not familiar with the story of the APC in Imo State will be wondering why Buhari’s performance, in the state, should attract attention when, in reality, it pales into insignificance compared with the sterling performance of the president in other states. The answer lies in the crisis that engulfed the party, as a result of the insistence of the governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, that his son in-law, Ugwumba Uche Nwosu, must succeed him; a stance that led to the implosion of the party in the state and threw up Senator Hope Uzodinma as a redoubtable political gladiator. He is even seen in some quarters as possessing messianic qualities. Since Uzodinma snatched the gubernatorial ticket of the APC from the grip of Okorocha, a battle for supremacy has been raging between the two. In this battle, Okorocha has maintained that his in-law, the youthful and charismatic UcheNwosu, has greater credentials, than Senator Uzodinma, to succeed him.

    But the presidential election has cast a huge doubt on that claim. Uzodinma, predictably, delivered his local government of Oru East to President Buhari, a success he recorded without losing any polling unit in his ward. On the contrary, Okorocha’s son in-law is reported to have lost his polling unit on the way to losing his ward and local government to Atiku. It is also noteworthy that Uzodinma delivered his local government without the controversy over kidnapping of electoral officials and other issues that trailed the announcement of the result of Okorocha’sIdeato East Local Government.

    Whereas it could be preposterous to assume that the battle for supremacy between Uzodinma and Okorocha (by proxy), has been settled, what is not in doubt is that, by this performance, Uzodinma has left the presidency and everyone else, in no doubt that, as far as the governorship contest in Imo State is concerned, he is a greater electoral asset than Uche Nwosu. To appreciate the significance of this discussion, it is important to take our minds back to President Buhari’s campaign in Owerri, last January, at which Okorocha refused to acknowledge Uzodinma as the flag-bearer of the APC. Instead, he continued to prop up his son in-law, UcheNwosu, the governorship candidate of another party, in Imo State. It was under that atmosphere that President Buhari, though he had earlier raised Uzodinma’s hand, took the unusual step of asking the Imo electorate to vote their conscience, not hamstrung by party, ethnic or religious biases. But with the outcome of the presidential elections emphatically substantiating the political invincibility of Senator Hope Uzodinma, perhaps the time has come to rein in on Governor Okorocha; to subjugate personal survival beneath overall party interest and throw his political machine behind Uzodinma, the official candidate of the party which membership Okorocha professes.

    The situation would have been different if Uzodinma had been a political or an impostor. But that is far from the case. When it comes to electability, on the two occasions that Uzodinma won the senate seat, he defeated Okorocha’s political machine directly or indirectly. For instance, in 2011, in spite of the sentimental attachment to the Odimegwu Ojukwu-led All Grand Progressive Alliance, APGA, Uzodinma floored the APGA candidate in Okorocha’s senatorial zone, to announce his presence on the national political scene. It could be said that Okorocha was just making his grand entry into Imo politics. But the same could not be said for 2015 when Okorocha, as governor could not roll back the all-conquering Hope political machine, as the senator coasted home to yet another victory thereby becoming a ranking member of the red chamber!

    In aspiring to become governor of Imo State, Uzodinma hopes to bring to the office the legislative experience he has acquired, his network of political associates, his experience as an entrepreneur and investor and the courage that inspired him to wrest the Imo State chapter of the APC from the iron grip of Okorocha. Ironically, it is the angst of a bruised ago coupled with the fear of reprisals against his family that has driven Okorocha to implacable hatred for Uzodinma, so much so that he does not care if the APC gubernatorial baby is thrown away with the fleeting dirty water of party intrigues. This is the more important when it is realised that Uzodinma is running against some formidable opponents; opponents who, in their own rights, possess what it takes to rule the state. Among these, the APGA candidate, Senator Ifeanyi Araraume and the PDP candidate, Senator Emeka Ihedioha, both stand out for recognition. Araraume is a veteran of the gubernatorial project who, as serving senator, is credited with some outstanding accomplishments. Ihedioha has an intimidating list of projects he attracted to the state and an equally impressive list of people-empowerment initiatives that confer on him, reliable electoral capital.

    For Okorocha to continue to ignore these facts is not only perplexing but unfortunate. Perhaps, the way to go about it is to reassure Okorocha that Uzodinma, for all the care in the world, is not his most dreaded nemesis. Besides, it will pay him well, to imbibe one of the personal rules of General Collin Powell, former chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States as well as former Secretary of State of the United States which says: “Never let you ego stand with your position on an issue so that when your position falls, (as it does so often), your ego does not fall with it”. But that is precisely what Okorocha is doing. That is what is overheating the polity in Imo State. And that is what is placing the electoral fortunes of the APC in jeopardy, in the state.

    What is surprising, in all these, is that Okorocha seems unwilling to, or incapable, of learning from history. When Obong Victor Attah, one time governor and undeniably, the visionary architect of the comprehensive transformation of Akwa Ibom State, attempted to foist his son in-law, on the state, as his successor in 2007, he failed woefully. That was the genesis of the rift between him and his eventual successor, Obong Godswill Akpabio. A careful reading of the political barometer in Imo State shows that Okorocha is strong-headedly headed in that direction. Yet, he still has a chance to retrace his steps and obtain some soft landing. However, in the event that he passes up the opportunity, his party may do well to mobilize all the resources at its disposal to disperse the clouds of destabilization that are ominously hanging over the state due to his desperation.

    Lastly, and this point is significant, it is all too obvious that Senator Uzodinma has successfully debunked the mischievous claim, before the presidential election, that he was campaigning for Atiku Abubakar. Besides, the result has unequivocally established Uzodinma’s electoral value, a fact that should convince the party of the need to throw resources into his campaign. This, to put it in proper perspective, is Uzodinma’s shining moment, his continuing electoral validation and APC’s brightest chance, in the Southeast.

     

  • Drama as Buhari counters Oshiomhole on Imo guber

    THERE was a mild drama yesterday at the All Progressives Congress (APC) rally at the Dan Anyiam Stadium in Owerri, the Imo State capital President Muhammadu Buhari asked party members to vote for a candidate of their choice in the governorship poll.

    The counsel ran contrary to that of the party’s National Chairman Adams Oshiomhole, who had earlier told the crowd that the party was not in alliance with any political platform.

    He told the party supporters in clear language that they should vote for the party’s standard bearer in the governorship race, Senator Hope Uzodinma.

    The Action Alliance (AA) candidate, Uche Nwosu, enjoys the backing of Governor Rochas Okorocha, who is contesting the Imo West senatorial seat on the APC ticket.

    Nwosu, who was at the APC rally, had adopted Buhari as his presidential candidate.

    President Buhari, who broke his silence on the crisis rocking the party since the party’s governorship primaries, urged APC members to vote for any candidate of their choice across party lines irrespective of inter or intraparty squabbles.

    Before coming to the Dan Anyiam Stadium, the governor had hosted the President at the Government House. Nwosu was present; Uzodinma was not. He was at the stadium, waiting for the President.

    The emergence of Uzodinma “in controversial circumstances” at the governorship primary pitted the governor against the APC national chair.

    Nwosu, who jostled for the APC ticket, defected the AA, a decision that polarised the local chapter of the APC in Imo State.

    The state chapter of AA has not only endorsed Buhari, it promised to secure one million votes for him.

    At the stadium shortly before Buhari’s address,  Oshiomhole, while presenting the APC governorship candidate, had thrown jibes at the governor, who was seen keeping himself under check.

    The party chair said: “The APC is not in alliance with any party; we are capable of delivering the President. We have come to present a new hope to Imo people; Senator Hope Uzodinma will win and restore good governance in Imo. APC will win in Imo State.”

    The mug look on the governor’s face when Oshiomhole presented the party flag to Uzodinma, betrayed his disapproval of the senator’s candidature.

    Okorocha said that the President had always demonstrated his love for the Igbo and would continue to show his love for the Igbos.

    He said: “My President, you are a man of destiny. Your victory, come 2019, has been signed and sealed. You love the Igbo. And you have always demonstrated that. You took Chuba Okadigbo and Edwin Ume Ezeoke at different times to be your running mates. It will be wrong for anybody to say that you don’t love Ndi-Igbo. Whoever says that is lying from the pit of hell.

    “Mr. President, you were forced to look elsewhere. So, it is not right that Buhari does not love Ndigbo. He shall continue to show us love. You have shown your capacity and capability in fighting corruption. There is nothing you can do to please the elite of Nigeria. Continue to work for the ordinary Nigerians while protecting the interest of the few elites.

    “Let me remind you sir, I am Owelle Rochas Okorocha, I am the founder of APC in Imo State and I am the only governor in the whole of Southeast from APC. As it stands today, those that challenged us, those that came with the Army and Police and DSS are now sitting boldly as the owners of the party. Let me say to you that, it is Iberiberism Chapter I vs I.”

    In Abia State, the Enyimba International Football Stadium, Aba, the state’s commercial hub, stood still as residents and APC supporters from the 17 local government areas, trooped out to be part of the President’s campaign.

    They defied the sit-at-home order issued yesterday by the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), which asked them observe a mini sit-at-home from 6am to 4pm.

    President Buhari who came in the company of former of Abia governors Orji Uzor Kalu and Ogbonnaya Onu (Minister of Science & Technology), Senator Ken Nnamani, former Ekiti governor and APC Deputy Chairman (South), Otunba Niyi Adebayo, Senator Chris Ngige, Oshiomhole, House of Representatives member (Isiukwuato/Umunneochi), Nkeiruka Onyejiocha, former Labour & Productivity minister Emeka Wogu and Senator Nkechi Nwaogu, among others.

    President Buhari vowed to continue to tackle infrastructural problems and ensure that Nigerians do their businesses without stress.

    He urged the people of Abia State to ensure victory for the APC in the forthcoming elections.

    Buhari said: “I’m impressed with all the speakers because they’ve articulated what this administration is able to do. When we came in, we approached governance with three point agenda of security, economy and fight against corruption.

    “We tried to justify these by trying our best within the time available to us from 2015 to now with the resources available to us. You can all recall that the production of 2.4 million barrel per day was cut short to half a million barrel per day. In the world market which is outside our control, the cost of petroleum per barrel went down from $40, $38, $28 per barrel.

    “It is in this context that I want you to see how this administration has been committed to development of this country. Upon all these, we are doing the roads now, we are doing the railways which was neglected and virtually killed and we are doing power which is one of the projects I’ve came here to commission today.

    “I assure you that if we get infrastructure correct; the roads, the railways and power… it all depends on who is in the government.

    “We have identified this and we are committing available resources to make sure we get the infrastructure right and we are doing as much as possible to secure the country so that we can properly manage it. I thank you for your commitment and I expect you to this time around, vote APC.”

    Oshiomhole, who could not hide his joy over the reception given to the campaign train, said that it was an indication that Abians have embraced the APC’s Change Mantra.

    He stressed that the Buhari government has done well in the southeast geo-political zone through some of the completed and ongoing developmental projects the APC government is doing in the zone.

    “I’m very happy at the testimonies I’ve heard today about what this administration has done in Igboland and Abia State in particular. You can bury the truth ten meters deep, but you cannot kill the truth”, Oshiomhole said.

    He went on: “The truth is that in this state, PDP has governed for 19 years just as they controlled the country for 16 years. In those 16 years, this part of the country that was most loyal and committed to voting PDP was abandoned and Federal dual carriage road in the zone was turned to a cassava farm.

    “No one could commute from Aba to Port Harcourt. Everything was destroyed under PDP. My message is simple, the beauty of Nigerian democracy is that if you elect by mistake, it cannot last for more than four years. The last mistake of 2015 must now be corrected in 2019.

    “What we need in leadership are men and women who can serve Nigeria as their constituency. The development literature of the Federal Government in South East is very clear. It’s not rocket science. The Ariaria International Market Power Plant is there for all to see. The basis for sustainable economy is to build durable infrastructure and President Buhari is ensuring that.”

    Uzor-Kalu lambasted the PDP-led administration in the state for what he described as total neglect of infrastructure in the state and none payment  salaries and  pensions which he said has left many people who served the state with all their hearts in perpetual poverty.

    Kalu who is the Senatorial candidate of APC for Abia North District also blasted former president Olusegun Obasanjo for his constant criticism of President Muhammadu Buhari.

    “I always call the PDP administration in Abia State liars because in this state, they rumoured that I was dead and gone and I’m alive today to the glory of God. Again I call them liars because they always pay Abia civil servants on radio.

    “When I was governor, there was free education, our darling team Enyimba which was why I built this stadium became champions of Africa twice. In my days, workers and pensioners never begged for their monies.”

     

     

    “I heard a man called Olusegun Obasanjo attacking Mr. President and this man Obasanjo forgot that it was him that brought corruption to Nigeria as a president.

    “He was the first President who started thwarting democratic processes in Nigeria. My Problem with him was when he called me and some other persons to support his third tenure bid and I refused and urged others never to accept it. He turned himself into a dictator. How can someone compare Obasanjo and Buhari? Buhari wants the Judiciary to be perfectly independent.”

    The party’s governorship candidate, Dr. Uche Ogah, urged the President to disregard any information that there is another party in Abia capable of winning elections outside the APC. He declared Abia as an APC state.

    Ogah said: “Abia people have resolved to unanimously move to APC and there is no other party that can stop it. You’ll get our votes in Abia and the mistake of 2015 will never repeat. We shall be first in giving you votes. We’ve felt your love through numerous Federal Government projects here.

    “We’ve told our people that the mistakes of PDP will be corrected in Abia as we move into Government. Thank you for remembering our infrastructure in the South East. Our roads are now better and what else can we say that to appreciate and show you real love during the elections. Our people are tired of PDP.”

     

  • APGA risks exclusion in Imo guber

    •Party fails to elect candidate

    The All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) may not field a candidate for the 2019 governorship election in Imo State.

    This is because the party could not conclude its governorship primary after two days of chaotic attempts.

    With the development, it may fail the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) deadline.

    Delegates were asked to go home by the committee in charge of the election at about 8pm after waiting for the whole day to cast their votes.

    One of the aspirants, Sam Amadi attributed it to failure of the State Working Committee to meet the guidelines and legal requirements for the election.

    He maintained that high level irregularity trailed the election even before it was conducted.

    Amadi added that delegates were stranded, waiting to cast their votes before the election was called off by the NWC of the party.

    Amadi said the party would have to observe the guidelines of INEC, which specified parties must present candidates by today.

    He hinted the party has concluded plans to opt for a consensus candidate to represent the party.

  • Imo guber: I’m not aware my SSG is running – Okorocha

    Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo state, has dismissed as misleading, the claim by the Secretary to the State Government Sir George Eche that he was the one that asked him to purchase APC nomination form to contest the governorship election.

    The Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr. Sam Onwuemeodo, in a statement made available to journalists, described the claim as totally false, insisting that the governor is not aware of Eche’s plan to contest the governorship election.

    Read Also:Imo APC disowns Uzodinma

    According to the statement, “to say the least, the claim is totally false. It is not true. The governor never told Mr. Eche to go for the 2019 governorship either directly or through a proxy. In other words, the governor is not aware of Mr. Eche’s governorship aspiration”.

    It continued that, “If Mr. Eche is actually contesting the governorship, he is doing so as an Imo man or as a Nigerian exercising his constitutional right and that has nothing to do with the governor. Before now, what Mr. Eche had told the governor he was going to Contest is the House of Representatives for Aboh Mbaise/Ngor Okpala Federal Constituency and if he has changed his mind for another position, the governor does not know.

    “It is also important to advise Mr. Eche to stop further dropping of the governor’s name. If he has decided to Contest for the governorship of the State, he should do so without dropping the governor’s name.

    And for the sake of emphasis, the governor is not under any pressure over the governorship bid of Chief Uche Nwosu. Nwosu has collected his nomination forms, and will face APC delegates for the primary and if he wins the primary, he will face Imo electorate in the election proper. And if Imo people elect him to be their governor, so shall it be.

    “That is to say, Uche Nwosu’s fate over the governorship of the State will be decided by the Almighty God first, then APC delegates for the primary and Imo people at the main election. So, the issue of the governor being under pressure over Nwosu’s governorship aspiration is neither here nor there”.