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From Okey Sampson, Umuahia
Although, not holistically enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution, however, as a result of the homogeneity of the Nigerian nation, “zoning” of political offices, overtly found its way in the country’s political lexicon. Thus, this arrangement, described in some quarters as “gentleman’s agreement”, has, where it is religiously pursued, complimented the Federal Character imbeded in the Constitution.
In Abia State, her founding fathers, even before the state was created came out with a working document they dubbed Abia Charter of Equity. By this, power was to rotate to all the component parts of the state.
Through to type, this arrangement has seen power seamlessly move from one political zone to another. First, was Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu from Abia North, who governed the state from 1999 – 2007, when he handed over to Senator Theodore Orji, from Abia Central zone. Orji in turn, in 2015, handed over the reigns to Gov Okezie Ikpeazu, the present governor.
However, when it was believed in some quarters that power having gone full the Abia political orbit, should move back to Abia North where it began in 1999, an argument came from the three Ngwa Local Governments (Isiala Ngwa North, Isiala Ngwa South and Osisioma Ngwa), that it was their turn to taste power, to bring it at par, the number of years power resided in “Old Bende”. But the people of Abia North and majority of the elders of the area are vehemently opposing this, insisting power must shift to Abia North in 2023.
Curiously, these agitations are within the cubicle of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) – a party that has remained relatively peaceful and united in the state over the years.
If these agitations are not healthy for PDP in the state, their handling by the leadership of the party, has not helped matters. The leadership of the party in Abia, kept studied silence over the agitations, until recently.
Before the leadership of the party could come out with what is seen more or less as a damaging and crisis-ridden decision on the burning zoning issue, some prominent and founding members of the party, had already voiced their stand.
First, was the former governor of the state who handed over to the incumbent, Okezie Ikpeazu, Senator Theodore Orji. In a statement, the former governor, now senator representing Abia Central, declared his total support for power shift to Abia North.
He warned that anybody working against a power rotation arrangement that is in tandem with the Abia Charter of Equity would be embarking on a dangerous political voyage.
Former Senate President, Adolphus Wabara on his own, warned against thwarting the charter of equity propagated by the founding fathers of the state for the rotation of the governorship seat among the three three senatorial zones in the state.
Wabara bluntly cautioned that PDP may get protest votes in Abia in 2023, should the party fail to cede its governorship ticket to his Ukwa clan or Abia North zone.
“If the Ukwa clan should not be considered because it belongs to Abia South senatorial zone where power currently resides, then power should move back to Abia North where it started from in 1999.
”No single person has the authority to decide the next governor of the state. The party caucus, elders and stakeholders will have to meet.
“Gov. Ikpeazu’s successor may be micro zoned to the governor but that should only happen after the right thing has been done in line with the constitution of our great party which is macro zoning to Ukwa or Abia North.
“Abians will vote PDP 85%, but if the governorship ticket is not ceded to Ukwa or Abia North in line with power rotation arrangement, there will be a protest vote.
”Abia is not ready for Ngwa back to back thing. What they are doing now is exactly why PDP lost Plateau State to APC in 2015. Ukwa or Abia North should produce Ikpeazu’s successor”, Wabara cautioned.
He said anything short of allowing power to come to Ukwa or rotate back to Abia North in 2023 would spell doom for the PDP.
Perhaps, capitulating under the pressure of it’s chieftains, the leadership of PDP in the state, stoked the already raging fire in the party by its “strange” decision of zoning the governorship ticket to Abia North and Central at the same time.
Giving reason for this decision, chairman of Abia PDP, Asiforo Okere said, “We have looked at the agitations from the two zones. We looked at the area of interests and the number of aspirants from the two zones. What the party is looking for is a candidate who has the capacity and acceptability to run. There are so many parameters we put on the table before arriving at this decision”. However, those parameters were not made public.
Elders and leaders of the party appear not to be at home with the zoning arrangement. They picked hole from it, from all corners.
Enyinnaya Abaribe, the Senate Minority Leader was the first to react.
In a statement, he urged PDP supporters in Abia State to disregard the document, saying it was geared towards imposition of candidate.
“My attention has been drawn to a document signed by the State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Dr Alwell Asiforo purporting that the Abia State PDP has zoned the governorship seat to Abia North and Abia Central and wish to assure all Abians who are desirous of an end to imposition in Abia State to disregard the purported zoning”.
While claiming the document was issued to exclude him from the gubernatorial race, a development, he said was unconstitutional, Abiribe went further to say, “By virtue of section 42(2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 as amended, no person or body can exclude Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe from contesting and winning the 2023 elections in Abia State”.
Other prominent leaders of the party in the state, including Wabara, Orji, Onyema Ugochukwu, former SSG, Eme Okoro and Abia North youths have all voiced their opposition to the zoning formula.
Orji warned that no attempt should be made through any manipulative zoning to put the state on fire.
Orji, who had earlier been rumoured to have settled with his successor for the governorship ticket to be given to an Ngwa man from Abia Central, debunked that when he insisted his earlier stand that power must shift to Abia North, remains sacrosanct and unambiguous.
Wabara, reacting said, “The governor and the party chairman cannot stay in the comfort of their offices and zone the position of Abia governorship without due consultations.
He dismissed the zoning as “unilateral, childish and laughable”, adding, “I may not be a founding father of PDP but I am a founding member of the party. In 1998 when we funded this party, I did not see the likes of Okezie and Asiforo there.
“The governor is our leader. Let him tell us where the decision on zoning was taken. Although I may not be on the same page with him, others and I should be in the meeting where zoning will be discussed”.
Wabara was emphatic that they were not invited to such a meeting, adding that he wasn’t even sure any of such meeting held at all. “So, you can’t come from behind and say you are zoning to two districts at once.
“He cannot read our constitution upside down and use excessive force because he is the governor. No, that won’t work!”
The PDP BoT scribe recalled that the governor said he had seen two transitions, but asked rather, “was this how his predecessors handled their own? They made pronouncement and we followed. We did not follow blindly. We followed because they consulted widely.
“The governor said that very soon he will show the way. By the time he shows us the way, he will now realise the full error in zoning governorship position to two senatorial districts with the flimsy and illiterate excuse that there are so many aspirants from both zones”.
Wabara said he still stands by what he said before, that if things were not done the right way, PDP will lose Abia State.
Equally exasperated by the zoning arrangement, a BoT member of the party, Chief Onyema Ugochukwu described it as imposition and unacceptable.
Condemning the zoning arrangement in a statement titled, “That Abia State PDP May Survive”, Chief Ugochukwu said it was unfortunate that the party executive announced a zoning formula, which was totally strange in relation to the ordinary meaning of the word “zoning”.
The veteran journalist disclosed that to make matters worse, the party executive took the zoning decision without engagement of the statutory organs of the party, such as the state caucus, thereby “making it for all intents and purposes, an imposition”.
Chief Ugochukwu said the matter was made childish by the party executive announcing a zoning formula, which appears strange in relation to the ordinary meaning of the word “zoning””.
“We have had the controversy over the zoning of the governorship ticket of the party, which has pitted members in inter-ethnic vituperations, and has severely polarised the party, with members exchanging brickbats across the widening ethnical fault lines”.
The PDP BoT member expressed dismay that in the midst of all the controversies, there were reports that a “Chairman had been appointed for the PDP State Elders Committee, outside a meeting of that organ of the party, which amounts to a breach of party constitution. And then there are stories, so far unconfirmed, that a governorship candidate has been anointed for the party”.
Ugochukwu cautioned that from what had been happening in recent time, Abia PDP was heading for crisis and called for urgent action to return the party to the part of democracy.
Former Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Dr. Eme Okoro, and leader Abia North PDP stakeholders, dismissed the zoning as “a child’s play which lacks any scientific basis”.
He announced Abia North Senatorial zone’s total rejection of the zoning arrangement.
“Abia North won’t succumb to this despotic process. It will not be tolerated. It will not be accepted. It will not be condoned”, Okoro stated.
Some Abia youths under the aegis of Abia Youth Vanguard (AYV), have equally faulted the decision of the PDP, describing it as “a smokescreen for the actualization of the self succession agenda of Ngwa people.”
They described the arrangement as “weird and shorn of sincerity with the capacity to throw the ruling party into a destructive crisis.”
Its Chairman, Comrade David Onwuneme said, “if both the governor and PDP believe in the Abia charter of Equity, the governorship should be zoned solely to Abia North because it is their turn.”
AYV urged PDP to rescind the decision or be ready for protest vote in 2023, insisting that Abia would not tolerate anything that will truncate the charter of equity in the state.
