Follow Us on Google
From Obinna Odogwu, Awka
The member representing Idemili North and South Federal Constituency in the National Assembly, Hon. Uchenna Harris Okonkwo, has knocked the lawmaking body for the way and manner it handled the Electoral Act amendment, saying that it tampered with the people’s freedom of political association.
Okonkwo, who recently defected to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) from the Labour Party (LP), lamented that his efforts to draw the attention of his colleagues in the House of Representatives to that ‘error’ failed to yield a positive result.
He also lashed out at the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), a ruling party in Anambra State, alleging that the party was perpetrating “a lot of injustices” in the state, although he didn’t mention any as proof.
The young lawmaker, who spoke to some journalists at his Ojoto country home in Idemili South Local Government Area during a community health outreach, also revealed that serious efforts were being made to ensure that Mr. Peter Obi clinches the ADC presidential ticket ahead of the 2027 polls.
Excerpts…
You intend to return to the National Assembly for a second term and you already know the situation of things in our country politically. With all these troubles in your party, how are you going about it? Have you moved to another political party?
Other News
Yes, I have moved to the African Democratic Congress (ADC). As you can see, without much identification, the cap I have on says ADC. And that is the party in which I am in. I have formally, officially, and unequivocally defected to the ADC along with my leader, Peter Obi, whom, of course, we are going to make sure we battle so that he gets the ticket of our party to contest in the 2027 elections for the presidency. As for me, of course, it will be a wonderful thing to continue to serve my people in the green chambers. Yes, I will be coming out again to re-contest for the position I currently hold and I hope to be re-elected by my people to represent Idemili North and South Federal Constituency.
I don’t know if you have anything to say about the recent amendment of the electoral act where it is now deemed to be criminal to belong to more than one political party. You are a member of the National Assembly and you are part of those who carried out that amendment. What do you have to say about that?
Actually, this amendment was just passed recently; just a few days ago. I happened to come into the chambers and saw that this was being done. Truth be told, in my opinion, the freedom of association of political parties should not be tampered with because it’s like saying that you are tampering with the freedom of association of friends, alright. No one should ever tell anybody that ‘oh this person should be your friend or that person should be your friend’. Even overseas, there are people that work in multiple jobs. And you will not tell them that ‘oh because you are working in one place and you are working in another place, that it becomes a criminal offence’. And I argued against it but unfortunately, I am a minority. My voice can only echo as loud as a lone someone because they still have a majority party which is the APC, the ruling party that is in charge of the government. Even if we argued against it, they still had their way and passed whatever they wanted to pass. But I really don’t support it. I feel that there shouldn’t be a limitation on freedom of association. Fine, it could stop people from joining different political parties at the same time; at least they know that if they are working for one party, they are working for one party. But there shouldn’t be a limitation on freedom of association because you could be in one political party and have a candidate who is liked in another party and you would want to work for that person. Or you could be in a different party and associate with a candidate in another party or even a member from another party. So, that means what? So, I really don’t agree with it and I think that there should be freedom of association; freedom of political friendship and it should not be truncated by laws like this.
Many political analysts are of the opinion that Peter Obi’s wave in 2023 which helped many Labour Party candidates to win National Assembly seats will not happen that much in 2027; that, candidates in his new party will have to work this time to earn their place. Are you worried or feel threatened by APGA’s rapidly growing popularity in Anambra?
Well, APGA is the ruling party of the state but I don’t think it’s about worrying because if we tell ourselves the truth, and when we put our heads to the streets and to the ground, we know that there are a lot of injustices that are being done by the party. I don’t want to mention names because I don’t believe that everyone in APGA is a bad person, alright. But the methodology of doing certain things is not proper; and for me about fear, I don’t think fear should be part of what we attain in having a political drive. The main thing is, what are you doing for your people? How are you accountable to what is being done in the National Assembly? How are you accountable to your people? How are you accountable to the state? How are you accountable to the system? So, it is beyond just having a presence as a ruling party. And of course, during the time of the Labour Party, we know that everything that occurred with the Labour Party is from the ruling party currently. Whatever influences, whatever interferences have come about because of the ruling party. And it is what it is. Nobody should hide that; nobody should try to pretend. But we are in a stage right now whereby political knowledge should be the number one driver of voting zrather than ‘oh what I received or rather than being coerced into doing what you don’t want to do’. What should be currency now should be political knowledge; it should be knowledge about what is happening in Nigeria; it should be knowledge about how the current government that is in Nigeria is managing our resources and the flamboyance that has been going on within the resource management of Nigeria.
That is more important. And that obviously will truncate any fear or any doubt; and at the end of the day, once we continue to let the people know this is what it is, and this is the truth, then we stand by the truth, I believe that we will be vindicated; not just by the people but also by God.
