Imo state is sitting on the tripods of Owerri, Okigwe and Orlu zones and is blessed with eligible men and women for political positions spread across these zones. The governorship position is taken turn by turn and today every right thinking person in the state knows that it is the turn of Owerri zone to produce the next governor for the state. This is why 95% of the governorship aspirants in the state today are from Owerri zone. It could have been 100% if not that Governor Rochas Okorocha is bent on using his position in the state to foist someone who is not from Owerri zone on the state. And he will not succeed. However, it is up to the people of Owerri zone to ensure that this opportunity does not escape from them. Orlu and Okigwe zones are waiting to see how Owerri would use their opportunity. It therefore follows that Owerri must get it right and win the admiration of others. But there are certain moves and things that can happen and cause Owerri people to lose this golden opportunity. Most of this would be self-inflicted wounds like the recent Mbaise political summit in which some governorship aspirants were invited. Whatever, the organizers had hoped to achieve could not be far from the desire to anoint a particular candidate and pressure others to step down for him. If not this, the summit must have been a plot to destroy the opportunity of Owerri zone that God has given them at this time fo produce a governor for the state. Otherwise, how could a political summit become a battle ground for political office aspirants to try to undo each other before the public.
However, it all points to the desperation to be governor. These are people eager to be governor at all cost. For them it is a do or die affair. But true democracy is not a do or die affair where people wash their dirty linen outside and adopt unwholesome practices to emerge victorious. These must not be done in the name of a summit. Owerri people, especially governorship aspirants, should be careful and not allow themselves to be used as tools to deny our zone of the opportunity of producing the next governor of the state. We must not destroy ourselves for selfish interest. Producing a governor of Owerri zone extraction must be of collective efforts not a battle within us.
One surprise that emanated from that Mbaise summit was the presence of APGA aspirants. These aspirants eager to sell themselves to their people were caught in a trap of trying to undo each other before the candidate from the other party took the opportunity to tell the audience they were not qualified to be governor. By all means those APGA governorship aspirants actually let themselves down by being in such a meeting where a person below them in capacity referred to them before the public as unqualified to be governor of the state.
This is a pitiable situation indeed! Those APGA members that participated in that summit where they attacked themselves and were attacked by the candidate from another party are not worthy to be members of our great party. In that summit, the candidate of the other party referred to one of the APGA guber hopefuls as a “small boy” who should have contested for the House of Assembly position as an inexperienced person. The other was referred to as a distinguished entrepreneur who is a political neophyte that should leave the business of politics to them who are “mafians” that have what it takes to challenge for political positions. What an insult to APGA governorship aspirants! And this attacker got no response from the APGA guber hopefuls. True APGA people with the APGA spirit would not have belittled themselves! They displayed a lack of the APGA spirit which is the spirit of courage, integrity, peace, God fearing and indeed the spirit of the Igboman.
Instead of engaging themselves in meaningful activities of promoting the party as Barr. Humphrey Anumudu is currently doing, these other APGA aspirants are trading words before a gathering of non-APGA members. They exposed themselves to ridicule before the crowed. They and others should emulate Barr. Humphrey Anumudu who is busy moving with APGA wherever the party goes. Anumudu has been mobilizing support for APGA at all levels. He is supporting the wards in holding meetings and the LGAS as well. He doesn’t have time to sit idly exchanging words with people; rather he is busy with the APGA project and has no time for anger or provocation. This is the true APGA spirit. As a mature politician, winning elections has never been a do or die affair for Barr. Humphrey Anumudu. This is because he has the emotional control needed to govern the state.
This shameful outing at the Mbaise political summit is the type that shows lack of political and emotional maturity that can translate into attacking priests, hunting down perceived opponents and demolition of properties belonging to perceived opponents, if elected governor. There is no need for desperation. God will give Imo State a suitable leader in 2019-a leader with emotional stability.
I advise the organizers of the Mbasie political summit and such like it not to allow themselves become tools in the hands of enemies of Owerri zone and thereby, unknowingly, become allies in the grand plan to truncate the God-ordained turn of Owerri zone to produce governor in the state. May God bless Owerri zone and save us from hatchet men and political jobbers.
