Chief Sir Ejike Uche, is a household name in national politics, as the Deputy National Chairman of APGA. EJIKE Uche a worthy Knight of St John’s International (KSJI) was instrunmental to the coming of Okorocha into power as state governor. He served as Okorocha’s first commissioner for Housing and later Public Utilities in the life of the present government. However, the Arondizuogu-born politician is not in the same APC boat with the number one citizen of the state. In an exclusive interview with Trumpeta editorial crew, Chief Uche opened up on several issues concerning state and national matters. Excerpts:
On the Recent High Court judgment sacking Umeh. Umeh said he will not abide by the decision of the court while Maxi Okwu faction has gone ahead to be carrying out executive function. What is the present position?
Ans: Thank you, first let me correct an impression. There is no faction in APGA. The authentic leadership of APGA is that of MAXI OKWU. This does not mean there is no other group claiming to be incharge but it is that of Maxi Okwu led executive that emerged through due process, had a convention that was supervised by INEC who handed them the certification of convention, the court in Awka up held it, the court in Abuja also upheld and validated it. Now somebody said he is not abiding by that judgment. I don’t know when Nigeria has turned to a point where a judgment of a court has become a matter of choice. I think democracy has to do with independence of the judiciary and judgment of the judiciary must be binding. I don’t see how a person will wake up and say he will not abide by the decision of the court if that happens somebody may wake up one day to say he no loner accept this country as Federal Republic of Nigeria. So there is no choice on the judgment of the court because it is binding and anything on the contrary is a contempt of court. That is what Umeh and his group have done by their so called NEC meeting. When you erode the judgment of the judiciary you have erode democracy.
What is the way forward?
Ans: In APGA we want peace. A party that has been in court for 10years, it doesn’t augur well for such party. Our saving grace is that APGA is a mass movement. It is in the heart, eyes, nose and body of every Igbo man as a mark of identity. It is another cat with nine lives. Recently My Chairman, Maxi Okwu recently said he is ready for reconciliation and peace when Umeh was asked, he said he doesn’t want peace that he believes in the court. Maybe he is the owner of that court. If he doesn’t want peace then how can we move forward. As the authentic APGA, we are watching them hoping that in no tune they will realize their mistakes and return for real reconciliation because APGA Chairman Maxi Okwu is a man who believes in reconciliation.
As former commissioner who is part of the group that brought Owelle. What made APGA to loose Imo State to APC?
Ans: Sincerely it is quite unfortunate; you are not wrong to say that I am part of the people that brought Owella to his seat. If you go through the video of our campaign you will see I was marvelous I was at my best. You see Igbos say, “Ana adu onye oshi ji odu ya ewere obi na api mbazu” (as you advice a yam thief he will be using his heart to plan on how to steal another yam). We never knew Okorocha had another thing in mind though people were warning us that we will be disappointed and betrayed for staking on the man. He came to APGA knowing that is where he can get relevance and actualize the ambition that has eluded him. I don’t know, APC, you remember, I said it, that APC is dead on arrival. I was out in 2011 to help my party. I did not come as a desperado because I left an executive job with bigger financial returns to take up the job with merge salary just to render service to the people because I have something to offer. I was working for APGA and the people of Imo not for Okorocha. I love APGA because it is the main and the in thing. In APGA I rose from state editor to my present position. I have paid my dues. So I was working for APGA not Owelle. You know I didn’t know him because he is only known, as a man who moves from party to party and we didn’t know he was fliting with party just for presidential ambition. His joining APC, I wish him luck, that is the beauty of democracy he can move and associate with any party but before you do that you must surrender the mandate to the party that owns it, leave their structure and move out and build your own.
Okorocha is rumoured as romancing and sponsoring a candidate to run for governorship under APGA to destabilize the party, how true?
Ans: Once beaten, twice shy. We will be idiotic to allow another buffon to come into our party to destroy APGA. The damage done by Okorocha has thought us a lesson. If you are coming to APGA now, we will be watching you, your body language. Any Nigeria can come to APGA. I don’t think anybody can ally with somebody like Okorocha. You see he cannot be deceiving people all the time. You know when a king talks and the people laugh, you know it is unfortunate. The ovation Okorocha was receiving before is he getting it again?
The rumour that Maxi Okwu court was bank rolled by a S/E Governor.
Any relationship between Maxi and Okorocha?
Ans: Please disregard such malicious rumours. They are speculative. How do you think that Rochas having called APGA a cultural organization and described it as a myopic party, coming to sponsor a candidate in the same party.
I learnt he is even using one northerner to see if he can come back to APGA, why use a northerner. If he wishes to come back to APGA tomorrow, we will receive him but first we will observe him and he will be made to puss through serious trial for anti party activities and by the time it is over, it may be in 2019.
How do you describe the character of a man that told Igbos that APGA is the best and same person comes to tell you that APC is now the light of Ndi Igbo?
Ans: I don’t want to be insultive to Rochas because he is our governor but I told him, we will take back our mandate and we have taken it back. He is holding only the carcass as APGA has taken from him the soul of governance in Imo but he does not know. My brother Imo is a sophisticated place and any person of such character can be described as a social miscreant that is what I term such unreliable fellow, miscreants, you don’t take their works seriously. Most unreliable.
As National Officer, the Anambra Governor and Ondo Governor joined PDP National Chairman to meet the Members of the National Assembly. Is there a fuse of APGA, labour party to PDP?
Ans: I don’t think such speculation is correct. Does it mean we will surrender our certificate of registration or that Labour Party will surrender theirs? There is no question of fusing into PDP. You see, you work with people on agreement. There maybe working agreement now. APGA under Maxi Okwu has reached a resolution that our party will support President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015 and elect him as the president of our great country Nigeria because he is our best option. APGA for now don’t have a candidate and as you know running for presidency is not a Childs play. Looking at some of this unreliable personalities we are talking about, are those the kind of character we will present for presidency? They will disgrace the Igbo race. In life, ones background has a lot of role to play in ones character. Like if it is in the north, the Hausa insignia, roundabouts gates and designs can makes the Hausas clap hands. In life ones background will bring him out no matter the grandstanding, no matter your level of education and oratory your background will influence your actions. Igboman is a sophisticated person. All these people roosting corn and other menial jobs most of them have degrees. You can’t be deceiving them with all these flowering languages he crames in the night and comes in the morning to rabble people. It cannot work in Imo. For a person to be afraid of working with those that have knowledge for fear that you can’t deceive them easily is unfortunate it depicts the background of the fellow.
APGA is in alliance with Jonathan, Assuming Rochas emerges presidential candidate of APC what will be the position of APGA?
Ans: Well APGA as he described us is a cultural organization and we as a party do not see Okorocha as being capable of being the president of Nigeria. From the little deceptive performances we have seen in Imo, we don’t adjudge him as capable to be a president. It is even good he exposed himself here as a governor. Assuming he did not become a governor most Igbos would have been clamoring for him ignorantly to run for presidency, thank God, he would have embarrassed and disgraced the Igbo race and that would have been our waterloo.
You worked with Rochas as a member of his EXCO what is your assessment of his administration in the area of his policies and programmes?
Imo State belongs to all of us. At one time at the exco, I raised the issue of development and growth because they are two different things. Development has to do with qualitative polices like free education, it is an indices of development while growth is like all the structures like Heroes Square all the cenotaph of the Emirs what has it impacted on the common man? Has it put food on the table of the citizens? You build Bongo Square, Heroes Square which benefits only the elites and his family members who handle the contracts of those elephant projects. In terms of ethics, Agric, employment, it is zero. The poor masses that voted him into power are dying in penury and he is busy deceiving people with oratory. You see there is need for a template for all our governors so that there will be a structured program instead of somebody waking up and start something that is not sustainable different from what others are doing. Igbos need ideological frame work like that of the Yorubas. You can see the mess in Imo State as all the policies are being reversed. How can I assess Okorocha with Mbakwe? Mbakwe built industries, Amaraku power plant, Adapalm, Avutu farm Imo Airport, Concorde etc and what has Okorocha done? To sell all those things so how do I begin to assess him? Let Imo people do the assessment. Okorocha don’t like working with people with ideas who can advice him, those who know more than him because he is afraid people will know that he knows little or nothing about governance.
What is the way forward for Imo people
Ans: APGA has many people coming for governor and what we will do is to get the right person, somebody who will tell you good morning and you discover it is still morning hours not somebody who will say one thing and do the opposite. Somebody who is with education and pedigree, a man of consistent positive character. Not people who will call my people my people, sing wonderful songs but are not Christian in heart. Who use all sorts of sweet words on people but at the back, he laughs at the people. Imo needs industry, Agriculture because we are highly educated. Free education is not the thing. After school how do you give the youths jobs? You sack employed Imolities, is that governance? Mbakwe led foundation for development and this man is destroying what his predecessor added to the development of the state. Since Okorocha came in as governor the water in Owerri has nor functioned despite all his noise about Imo water board. Tell me how can you compare Okorocha with Mbakwe? It is not possible.
On the National level. There is a window for cross carpeting which is affecting governance, what is your view as the 2nd in command in APGA?
Ans: All the things the past Chairman of APGA, Umeh was pursuing, we will continue from it. The problem is that most people are not democrats, the sit tight syndrome and desperation for elective position is over heating the polity. Look at how cross carpeting has cause Amaechi and Rives State a lot of tension. I think the right thing is that we will use the coming national conference to insist that anybody who is cross carpeting should surrender the mandate to the party that owns it and then go and build his or her own structure. Nigerian politician must begin to reason on the level of ideology and national interest instead of selfish and parochial interest. APGAs position is that if you cross to another party, you will give us our mandate. I learnt Rochas is saying he is still an APGA. When I hear it, I laugh and ask is it the APGA he calls cultural organization? He is empty and will learn his lesson in a hard way. Remember what brought tribalism in Nigeria, it was the cross carpeting in the west by Awolowo.
What kind of person would you present to imo people as governor in 2015?
Right now, there are so many aspirants, showing their interest, we would go to any length even to the moon to make sure we do not make the mistake of 2011.
Principally, we would settle for someone with integrity, whose word would be his bond. We will shun anyone that would toe the line of cowboy syndrome, talking more, doing less thereby deceiving the sophisticated imo people. We would look for one who is development oriented and not growth oriented. We would settle for one who would respect the rule of law by obeying court judgement and orders so that the imo people would have him in confidence.
Finally, we would install a man via people’s manadate who has genuine fear of goo and not abracadabra christianity. That is it.
