From Aloysius Attah, Onitisha
Chief Johnbosco Onunkwo, an Engineer, is the Chairman, Reconciliation Committee of the All Progressives Congress’ (APC) governorship primary election in Anambra State. In this interview, the founding chieftain of the party in Anambra and former governorship aspirant talks about efforts so far in the reconciliation process and stated that the party with the quality of its candidate and running mate will win the forthcoming election in the state.
How did you emerge the Chairman of the party Reconciliation Committee?
You all saw what happened in that primaries and you know that I contested in that election and Aguata Local Government Area had the highest number of aspirants in that election. We had Val Ozigbo, Chukwuma Umeoji, myself and all of us were talking together until the primaries. I appeared to be the youngest contestant but the oldest aspirant in the party.
I contested for governorship and Federal House of Representatives positions before now. In 2023 House of Representatives seat and 2025 in the gubernatorial primary and two previous gubernatorial primaries before this last one. When I was telling them something about our party, they did not understand it because I know the party very well as an old foundation member of the party.
Can you say all these positioned you as the right person to reconcile all the aggrieved party members?
After the primaries of April 5th in Anambra State, I was called to lead the reconciliation committee of our party and the National Chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, made it clear to the party that the reason I was called to lead the committee was because of my commitment to the party, as one of the longest serving members and one of the most committed members of the party and also an aspirant. He said I represent the old and new members of the party and a legacy member of the party from AC to ACN and now the APC and that I have the mandate to reconcile the members.
But I must say that reconciliation is not an easy task. When I was called to lead this reconciliation committee, I thought that the call was to reconcile me with the party as an old member because I don’t know who should be more aggrieved than me in this party. But in the wisdom of our National Chairman and with the approval of our candidate, Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu, I was called upon to make peace in the party and I had to accept the task.
At that point some may have felt that you have compromised?
Yes, that was why my acceptance to take up this job came to people as a surprise. They felt that I have been settled, or that I collected money and people were confused. Even my fellow aspirants were asking me what was going on, but they later knew that I did not collect any Kobo to do this job.
The committee members are 18 in number, which included former ministers, senators and members of the House of Representatives, to tell you that it is not a small committee. All of them agreed that I should head the committee due to my profile as a founding member of the party in the state. After they investigated, they discovered my commitment and my sacrifice to the party, they said ‘yes go and lead the process.’
It is all about party loyalty. You may recall that in one of the primaries when Senator Tony Nwoye won, I supported him, and in 2019 House of Representatives during the primaries which I won, I was impressed upon to leave the ticket because Nze Chidi Duru was there, I left the ticket for him.
Even in the other primaries which Andy Uba won, I was among the two aspirants that collapsed their structures to work for Andy and I also provided logistics for that election in support of the party.
I ran in 2023. I got the ticket because there was no competition and I am one of the persons who has been deprived of the privileges in this party, despite the fact that I have contributed immensely to its growth.
Without police protection and few agents, we had over 5,000 votes in the Aguata Federal House of Representatives election and that is the vote that they gave to us and the party. Had it been the process was free, fair and transparent, we would have emerged victorious in that election.
I must say that the reconciliation has been far reaching and a lot of people and factions have seen reasons for us to come together to work for the party. The committee has been in contact with all the aspirants and their structures and we have been talking to ourselves to see reasons why we should be at the Anambra State Government House come November 8th gubernatorial election.
Why the party members are not happy is simply because we are not in charge in the state and once the APC comes in, people will begin to appreciate being card-carrying members of the party. Even our members who have left our party for other parties are coming home and that is very symbolic ahead of the coming election.
Do not be deceived by what some people are saying about this election because we are good to go and that has emboldened us as a party. Both the candidate, Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu and the running mate, Sen. Uche Ekwunife, are encouraged by the results so far and the spirit of the APC is back and ready to wrestle power from the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in the state.
There are some aspirants that are now candidates of other parties?
Yes, but their souls are in the APC and they know that even as candidates of other parties, they cannot have their way and we have been holding talks with them to join forces with us to restore our party. We cannot continue to lament over what may have happened in those primaries and the only person that should be fighting is me because I am more aggrieved than all of them. Dumping the party for another party would not help us, and as it is often said the party is always supreme.
You have an incumbent governor who is from your Aguata Local Government Area. Do you think your candidate can unseat him?
Why not? He cannot be there in perpetuity and this is a democratic process, so there must be a contest and we shall challenge it to the end. People should not be carried away by all this propaganda by his media handlers who feel that he has done well. It is only the Anambra electorate that would decide. They talk about what APGA has done for Anambra State and they forget so soon what the APC government has done for us in Igbo land and the state in particular. When the campaign proper starts, they will come to terms with what our party has done, is doing and will still do for the people of the state. Our brother, Governor Charles Soludo, should go back to the classroom or international institutes to lecture and proffer economic solutions because he is not built for execution or implementation. Governance is about the people and not theories and figures. We are human beings and the policies that you make that cannot impact positively on the market woman at the grassroots cannot work.