By Chief R. C. Okeke
It’s that time of year again, when political parties can elect their best candidates through party primaries in order to compete against opposition parties in the General Election. All eyes are on the Anambra Central senatorial district, where the state ruling party, the APGA, failed to win senatorial elections. The upcoming election may be even more difficult for APGA, given that the party is competing against the APC and the PDP in the presidential election. Given the likelihood of Senator Uche Ekwunife receiving the PDP ticket, it is in APGA’s best interests to approach the election strategically if it is to win.
The APGA, Anambra’s state ruling party, has a mandate to be tactical in order to disrupt the election and win. To that end, the party’s leadership must educate the delegates who will vote in the primaries to vote only for candidates who can win the general election. Anyone could win the primaries as long as the party backs the candidate! However, winning primaries is not the ultimate goal.
Three candidates from Anambra’s ruling party are running for the Anambra Central senatorial seat. Hon. Dozie Nwankwo MHR, Sen. Victor Umeh, and Chief Uzuegbuna Okagbue, the youngest of the three, are the members. Without a doubt, they are all qualified to represent the party in the 10th Senate. They have political experience and, truth be told, any of them can win the party’s primary election.
The question now is who among them can win the state ruling party’s primary election. Who can quickly mobilize and amass the necessary goodwill and resources?
I met with three of them separately and discussed their chances of unseating the incumbent senator in the main election scheduled by INEC next year.
I must say that Chief Uzu Okagbue has a good chance of flying the party’s flag high in the coming election, having known Anambra people and studied the politics of Anambra Central during my 12 years in Awka, the state capital, before relocating to Abuja. He is intelligent, focused, goal-oriented, and an eloquent speaker. He is young and resilient. We all assumed that as ex-Governor Willie Obiano’s immediate past Chief of Protocol and Deputy Chief of Staff, he was effectively the governor’s minder, operations manager, cordinator, and human resource manager, all of which didn’t leave him time or require him to speak to the public. However, his dedication to the cause of the ongoing consultations has been exceptional, demonstrating his oratory skills. His consultation also covers his contacts and reach, which are important factors in determining one’s chances of winning. Sen. Umeh and Hon. Nwankwo have not been seen much in this regard. It also reflects their level of acceptance. The APGA should not take chances with Nwankwo and Umeh.
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In the upcoming party primaries, which I learned will take place next week, APGA, as the State ruling party, faces a difficult choice: either give its ticket to someone who will win the general election or give it to someone who they will still finance but who will lose to the incumbent. Politics is the truth. Sitting on the fence is not an option.
I’m sure Anambra Governor Prof. Charles Soludo will not take such chances, because Anambra needs money to start development projects, not to fund individual elections.
On that note, I’d like to appeal to the APGA Anambra Central senatorial district delegates to vote wisely. My point is that our politics require a breath of fresh air.
A vote against Uzuegbuna Okagbue is one that is not in the party’s best interests. The truth is that with Uzuegbuna Okagbue on the ticket as the party’s candidate, APGA has a better chance of winning the General Election.
