From Obinna Odogwu, Awka
Former Deputy National Secretary of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Jerry Obasi, has made some revelations on why the party stopped Prof. Chukwuma Soludo from contesting in the primary election of the party in 2013.
Obasi, who recently dumped the party for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), revealed that Soludo’s disqualification that year was majorly as a result of the supremacy contest between the then governor, Mr Peter Obi, and the then National Chairman of the party, Chief Victor Umeh.
The former APGA scribe, who was also the secretary of the primary election committee that brought in Obiano, alleged that Soludo who had brighter chances of emerging the party’s governorship candidate was disqualified so that Umeh could tighten his grip on the party and sustain the same even after leaving office.
Obasi, in this interview with Sunday Sun, also spoke on other issues of national concern. Excerpts:
Why did you dump the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)?
First of all, I must thank APGA for the opportunity it gave me to serve. I must also thank the founder of the party, Chief Chekwas Okorie, and also the National Leader of the party, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, though late. In fact, my journey to APGA and out of APGA is not by accident, but naturally, one has to evolve within the level he’ll evolve, politically and otherwise. I joined APGA with a forethought that it would be a formidable party that would grow from the regional party, so to say, that would have regional colouration to a full blown national party. APGA has won election to the House of Representatives in Taraba State, won election in Niger State to the House of Representatives; it has also won election in Kano State to be councillor and has also won election in Bayelsa State to the House of Assembly and so on and so forth. That gives it a national colouration. But looking at the kind of leadership APGA has had, in fact, I am at a loss why APGA should have that kind of leadership. And APGA has refused to grow from Anambra State to elsewhere. But we joined the party to give it a national outlook. For instance, the person who is the National Chairman of APGA had no membership card; he became a member of APGA the day he became the National Chairman of the party. He was a member of the PDP. And APGA which we look at to address certain levels of injustices that have been meted out to people politically, but it has served as a place where injustice is manufactured. This Soludo who became Governor-elect today, in fact, I congratulate him. We forgive Obiano for the sins he has committed politically for choosing Soludo as his successor because it was Soludo that was robbed for him to become governor. But given the kind of politics we play here, he saw and knew that Soludo was the crème that Anambra people needed politically and that the person of Soludo was supposed to come to garnish the Nigerian political space and governance. And I wish and pray that Soludo will follow that trend and not disappoint Anambra people and Nigerians at large who look at him so highly. In fact, with the level of decampment from APGA to other political parties, especially the APC, no prophet will go home and come back to say that APGA would have returned in Anambra State, but thank God it happened like that which now means that the vision of those that founded APGA including my humble self must not suffer for nothing, but I had to leave because of the level of injustice in APGA, because of the way APGA was going. And I had to find myself in PDP because I needed a national party from where a lot of issues have to be addressed; a lot of injustices have to be addressed. And I have to play a more national politics than the so to speak pseudo local politics. And again, APGA does not believe in internal democracy. APGA does not obey orders of the court, but because of the fact that we’re in Nigeria, the conscience of the judiciary has been mortgaged; the conscience of the law has been lost. Our electoral jurisprudence has been buried in the pockets of some persons who carry ATM cards around to pay a willing judge whatever fee he feels. So, I left APGA because of the level of injustices in the party. Today, I am happy to be in the PDP because I want to grow in national politics. Again, I want to meet with my brothers in the person of Senators Anyim Pius Anyim, Sam Egwu, Obinna Ogba, Ama Nnachi; the likes of Livinus Makwe and others. I want to also help in advancing the presidential bid of my elder brother, Anyim Pius Anyim, whose presidency would address our so many socio-economic and political problems, most especially security. There had been pockets of lobbying for me to leave APGA before now, but I insisted on remaining in APGA. If in my life my wife or anybody could serve me the way I have served APGA, I will die a very happy man. And I pray and also wish to serve the PDP the way I have served APGA or even better because I gave APGA my best, but received nothing in return. For instance, I was a state chairman who wanted to run in an election to be governor, but ended up deputizing somebody who came into the party. But it’s unfortunate that it was after the election that I was told that the party raised the sum of N50 million for Senator Anthony Agbo, but in the end I received no Kobo from that funding. And when I asked Agbo he said that no money was given to him. It was in a little quarrel with Chief Victor Umeh, with all due respect, that he told me about that money. And I told him to call Agbo to know whether he gave me Kobo from that money; that I never even knew until he said it to me. I had to go to the house of Senator Agbo at Apo Legislative Quarters in Abuja. It was in a very heavy quarrel that Agbo accepted that he only received N10 million away from the N50 million he received. But I was a state chairman at that period and I was deputizing him. I was supposed to be the soul and image of the party. I have suffered this kind of injustice in the name of the party. Even those who are in APGA today are in APGA because of the fact that there is nothing they could do, but I have a lot of options; that’s why I left for the PDP where I think I may be treated better. APGA is a party where people will stay and after suffering to build the party with their own resources, life and everything, people will be brought from Ariaria Market or Idumota or from Tarzan to come and chair the party; to come and hold one lofty post or the other in the party. I will remind you of an incident where the Deputy National Chairman of the party (South), Uchenna Okogbuo, pleaded with the then state chairman of APGA in Abia State to be given local government position in the party, but the guy refused and told him that due process has to be followed only after some months for the then National Chairman, Sir Victor Umeh, to return the same Uchenna Okogbuo as National Vice Chairman (South East) to the post today as the Deputy National Chairman (South). That is the kind of party APGA is; whereas people that have been working in the party, labouring for the party will end up to regret. It is unfortunate.
You earlier alleged that Prof. Soludo was supposed to be on the ticket that produced Chief Willie Obiano as governor in 2013. Can you throw a little more light on it?
First and foremost, Soludo was arm twisted and was disqualified even without any offence of his. This is because you cannot tell me the reason to disqualify Soludo, a former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor and a professor of economics. But he was disqualified to the surprise of all of us in the party. In fact, at that point, Soludo’s disqualification brought so much disaffection to the party. We were surprised that Soludo was disqualified to contest that governorship primary election. He was not even given the opportunity to even contest the primaries because they knew it would have been difficult to defeat him at the primaries. So, his disqualification created room for Obiano and other candidates like Senator Uche Ekwunife to come in. In the primary that brought in Obiano as candidate, I sat as secretary to Chief Martin Agbaso even though I was drafted into that committee very late. But the unfortunate thing is this, all the members that served in that committee that brought Obiano as candidate, nobody today is in his good book; nobody today is his friend. I was in that committee, Ifechukwunyere, Martin Agbaso (as chairman), A. D. Musa, and others were in that committee. None of us is in Obiano’s good book today. That’s the kind of party APGA is.
Are you saying that Soludo was disqualified to pave the way for Obiano?
He was short-changed; as bad as it was.
Who takes the blame for that Soludo’s disqualification which you said was unfair? Is it Mr Peter Obi who was the governor then or your committee?
The committee that disqualified Soludo was not my committee. It was the screening committee. My committee was the one for primaries. I was not in the committee that disqualified and pushed Soludo out. So, the blame has to go to, first and foremost, Chief Victor Umeh who gave the instruction or who called the shots. But I know that as it stands now, Soludo would have forgiven him, but I know he may not forget the shame, the high blood pressure, the disgrace, the opprobrium that had brought to him. I know he will have forgiven Umeh and all those that contributed to that misdemeanour, but he won’t forget in a hurry. He even went to court, but I knew that some Catholic priests, traditional rulers and some heavyweights in Anambra intervened. And I think, part of the agreement in that arrangement was what brought Soludo today as the preferred candidate for Obiano. It is a good thing that Obiano has conscience because even if it is agreed at certain levels, if Obiano was not a good person he would have still reneged on that. But Obiano from day one had said that his preferred candidate was Soludo which now means that, by and large, Obiano also has some good thoughts for Anambra people. This is because if Obiano had allowed some 419 people to come from nowhere to govern Anambra State, then I think the state would have been on the pedestal of 419 yellow page by now. But even when I hold nothing against Obi, he also has a chunk of the blame because Obi who was supposed to take charge of the party at that time was not taking the charge properly at that material time. Even though as a party, Obi did everything to make sure that APGA was progressing, but simple things he was supposed to do to hold APGA together he could not do; and before he could understand what was happening, it was late. Though, I felt maybe it was the heat or he was under some sort of political spell. And it is quite sad and unfortunate; notwithstanding the fact that APGA won Anambra State on a very promising note, but APGA is not without its headaches. Today, if you call Bianca Ojukwu she will tell you her stories. If you call the major elements in APGA they will tell you their stories. If you take a census, state by state, of major stakeholders of APGA, you would have seen that APGA is in a very dangerous spot. Today, in my home state of Ebonyi, where is APGA? From the time we left APGA to now, you will now see that it will be difficult for somebody to even come and buy a form in APGA to say he wants to run for governorship because they know that APGA is already in the pit of political hell.
You were an insider in APGA during the reign of Peter Obi and the early times of Willie Obiano. Do you have an idea of what went wrong that made their relationship go sour? At what point did they start quarrelling?
What happened was this. Peter Obi had his dream, his political geography for APGA whereas Chief Victor Umeh had his own political geography for the same party. And you know very well that history has it on record that Obiano worked for Peter Obi as a director in Fidelity Bank before he moved to Texaco or whether from Texaco to Fidelity Bank. In the midway, Obi had his own idea of what he wanted for APGA and his special candidate as at that time was not Obiano. Obi wanted one of his appointees, Idigo. Obi wanted either Idigo or Obaze. But Umeh had wanted an APGA that would continue to be under his watch even after being National Chairman. But unfortunately, those things today are no more. He would be tolerated in APGA as one of the major players in the party. Yes, I give it to him. Umeh played a very strong role in keeping APGA together, but he contributed also 90 per cent in destroying the party the way it has been destroyed to the level that it has been destroyed today because APGA is supposed to control, at least, four out of the five states in the Southeast or at least three. But it happens not to be so. The issue of Obi and Obiano, Chief Victor Umeh was in the middle of it and it was clear, but at a point, Obi didn’t know what to do because Obi was between the devil and the deep blue sea. And you know that before then, there was a struggle to take the soul of APGA. If you remember, Obi brought Maxi Okwu against Umeh and Umeh was fighting blue deer, but in the end what happened, happened because the state chairmen who were in the majority at the NEC were in support of Umeh, but Peter Obi was just in control of the NWC at that time leaving only one person behind, Ogbenetus Ogbenetus, who was on the side of Victor Umeh. The NEC at that time was with Umeh which at that time I was the spokesperson or the chairman of all the state chairmen at that time. At a meeting held at my instance in Abakaliki then, at Ebonyi Hotels, we agreed that we were going to support our National Chairman, Umeh. All the entreaties from the Obi group didn’t come to pass. And by and large, that helped to return Umeh as the National Chairman even though till today I benefited nothing from that singular effort. I was punished for that singular effort, but I thank God, as I said, for all the opportunities I was given to serve in the party. And I am also happy that I never betrayed the party. And before I left APGA, I consulted widely among my friends in APGA and said ‘I have to leave this party and I am leaving for the PDP where I want to join my brothers in the PDP to develop my state of Ebonyi and contribute in developing Nigeria as a republic.’ Then in the end, you now see that most of the problems, even the one of Peter Obi, the one of today, the major contributor of these problems is Chief Victor Umeh. He is the chief-in-chief in the building of APGA that he met and the chief-in-chief in destroying the same.
What are your expectations from Soludo? By March 17, he would be sworn in as the governor of Anambra State? How do you expect him to rebuild the party? What is your advice for him?
For me, I am happy in the PDP. I have moved on. I have begun work in the PDP. I have formed a volunteer group to reconcile the aggrieved members of the PDP in my place; and even to move beyond Ebonyi State; to do the same in other states where there are members of the party. And also ensure that members of the other political parties join the PDP. The first assignment is to take over Ebonyi State which we shall do by God’s grace because the APC has no catchment area in the Southeast and South-south. So, anybody in the APC who is dreaming of taking over anywhere in the Southeast is joking except in the Supreme Court. But to cast electoral votes, no! Not in the Southeast; and not anywhere in Ebonyi; not anywhere in my ward. But my advice for Soludo is this, as the only governor that APGA has, first and foremost, he has to form a truth and reconciliation committee; and it will be founded based on truth because he was once a victim. And he is not new to the developing problems of APGA. And for me, I waited till APGA won Anambra State before I made my exit public. So, let it not look as if it is because APGA wins or loses that I want to leave or stay. No. It is straight out of my own conviction and volition. I believe in principles. So, Soludo should rebuild APGA to the benefit of those who are still in the party because there are a lot of grievances in the party. And again, he should make direct inroad to the widow of the leader of the party, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, and make sure that he is on the same page with her, and that he brings her back to her rightful place in the party. All her entitlements that are due to her that the party has refused to give her because of a certain stance that she had taken that is based on truth or truism, they should quickly do that to ensure that she is happy. If not anywhere, at least in APGA because if Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, in his demise, people treated the wife like this, she wanted to go to the Senate; this was a ticket that she was supposed to be begged to have and strangers were brought in; people were killed in Nnewi. Nobody talks about those people who were killed in Nnewi on the day of the primary election before the 2019 general election. You will be surprised to hear that a lot of people were killed; those who were supporting her at Nnewi. They were maimed and today they are no more. APGA should try to appease the families of those people who were killed. It happened at the APGA primaries contested by Bianca Ojukwu at Nnewi. There are also a lot of people who have died working for the party. Nobody talks about them. Soludo should set up a panel that will ensure that on record time these persons are compensated. The essence of a political party is for people to be better and not to leave people worse than they came. The essence of democracy is for people to be happy. APGA was so bad that a sitting Deputy Governor had to leave; commissioners resigned and left, House of Assembly members left, and even Obiano’s ward chairman left.