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The founding fathers of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) set out to create a platform from which the aspirations of Ndigbo could be propelled and which could offer them a political pedestal upon which they could favourably compete on the national stage.
In 2006, after a long three-year battle over the 2003 elections, APGA took over the governor’s seat in Anambra State and has held the reins of government in the state till date. APGA also won the 2011 gubernatorial election in Imo State, and had representation across multiple states and ethnicities.
Sadly, today, APGA is a shadow of its former self, a fact that laid itself bare during the 2019 general election. APGA’s performance was nothing short of abysmal, with the party losing all senatorial elections in the South East.
The party had barely a year before recorded a landslide victory during the Anambra governorship election. APGA became a beautiful bride with most aspirants in the South East and beyond queuing up to vie for various political offices on the party’s platform. The party’s greatest challenge, however, proved itself in the management of the dreams and aspirations of its teeming new members. Those dreams quickly turned into nightmares in the process of the party’s 2018 primary elections. Selfish interests, greed and other unmentionables grew like thorns and strangled the good wheat in the field.
The party’s leadership had assured all aspirants under the APGA banner of a credible and transparent process but ended up conducting what turned out to be mega auction sale of the party’s tickets, which were invariably sold to the highest bidders. Mercenaries came to the helm and, with the arrogance of people without conscience, proceeded to make merchandise of the collective dreams of so many, but most especially, their Igbo brethren who had run to the party for refuge, believing that here at last was the place to aspire in an honest and fair manner.
‘Nke a bu nke anyi’ became the cover under which unsuspecting men and women were fooled into buying nomination forms, exorbitantly priced delegate’s forms and parting with various sums of cash under different guises.
The primaries were neither free nor fair, with most aspirants being subject to a ‘wetin you carry’ process, which saw many of them having to sell their lands, having to borrow money or even being sponsored by their communities but they were nevertheless denied the chance of being voted for in a fair competition. There were cases where multiple certificates of return were issued to party candidates in the same constituencies. In several instances, no primaries actually took place, and since so much money had been collected from so many aspirants, there was a dilemma as to who to deliver. APGA aspirants in Imo State were worst hit by this situation, which they were later to label a ‘ponzi scheme.’ This resulted in a mass exodus of our party members and APGA in Imo State today is in ruins. Sadly, we lost another golden opportunity of expanding our frontiers beyond Anambra State. The situation of the party is not much different in Enugu, Ebonyi and Abia states.
My own perspective regarding this state of affairs is simply that the script for the destruction of APGA was written by certain merchants within our party in cahoots with their hidden masters; and in October 2018, the planned, orchestrated destruction of APGA was put in motion at its party primaries in a series of brazen betrayals that were designed to create so much chaos, disenfranchisement and dissent that the party would implode before the 2019 elections.
Even worse, the party’s chairman and his cronies exhibited nothing but disregard for the widespread dissatisfaction and outrage among party members and aspirants over the sham processes, callously flaunting wealth generated from their despoliation.
The grotesque lifestyle of APGA national chairman, Victor Oye, and his cohorts was a further affront to the sensibilities of the afflicted. These people did not lift APGA. In the years they have been in charge, the party did not increased in stature and influence. Now people are disenchanted with what is going on. They want a change. The embattled national chairman, rather than heed the calls for his resignation, is gunning for reelection. The situation on the ground now is a case of APGA versus APGA. Our party is haemorrhaging. Our members are leaving in droves, while many who remain are watching silently in bewilderment as events unfold.
This state of affairs has been made even worse by the autocratic attitude of the leadership, which has embarked on a suspension spree of party members. The crime of those so suspended is their temerity to criticise the system of party administration. Party stakeholders (my humble self included) who commit the cardinal sin of proffering useful contributions to help in ameliorating the monumental damage that has been wrought on the party are continually vilified.
As we head towards the APGA national convention, it is the overwhelming desire of our party members to bring some closure to the painful memories of the 2018 primaries and to rekindle the hope of a brighter future for the party. An APGA with the same leadership that does not address the grievances of enraged members as well as its major stakeholders will not be anything to reckon with in 2021, when the next gubernatorial election takes place in Anambra State. This is why I make this impassioned plea to the national leader of our party, Governor Willie Obiano of Anambra State, to intervene before the situation gets much worse.
The governor must rise up to the task of justice, integrity, and exemplary leadership in the interest of the survival of APGA. Our party currency has been devalued, and the party itself ridiculed before the entire nation. We are now branded a ‘cash and carry’ party, wherein unless an aspirant on our party’s platform, regardless of his or her qualification to serve, is prepared to borrow, beg, he or she has little hope of clinching the party’s ticket.
I enjoin you, as leader of our party, not to align yourself with the orchestrated moves for reelection of the current APGA leadership to perpetuate itself in office. It is imperative that I bring it to your attention once more that the largely discredited APGA primary elections completely shattered the comforting perceptions of the combination of stability, fraternity and decency that have always rallied our people behind APGA as ‘nke anyi.’
It is time to heal the injuries of the walking wounded and, in order to do so, you will need to align your perspectives and, ultimately, your decisions with the greater aspirations and expectations of the majority of APGA faithful, many of whom have laboured hard and made great sacrifices for the growth and advancement of our beloved party.
Your Excellency, most political pundits are of the opinion that the process at the forth-coming APGA national convention is one that has been orchestrated ostensibly to reinstate Oye. We should remember that our chairman lost his polling unit, his ward and his local government to another party during the February 2019 elections.
I warn that we will continue to stagger blindly towards a self-inflicted deadline while clutching at each other’s throats. There is an urgent need for you to demonstrate that you do not support and neither do you condone those gross violations and impunity. Propriety and posterity demand that you withdraw your support for Oye’s second term bid.
Finally, and most importantly, I implore you not to allow this legacy of Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, which he spent his last years on earth nurturing, to crumble in your hands. Kindly do not avail history of the opportunity to record you as overseer-in-chief of the last APGA administration in Anambra State. The time to act is now, because APGA is dancing daintily into the twilight.
•Amb. Odumegwu Ojukwu writes from Nnewi, Anambra State
