There is now a palpable dissension and tensions within the ranks and file
of PDP in Imo State just days before the March 9, 2019 governorship and
State assembly elections.
According to an insider who requested to remain anonymous, tensions are
rising between PDP leaders and members in Imo State loyal to Atiku
Abubakar, the PDP presidential candidate and elements of the party
structure loyal to Emeka Ihedioha, the party’s governorship candidate in
Imo State.
It will be recalled that Emeka Ihedioha, reportedly got in the bad books
of Atiku for not backing his presidential bid and for backing that of
Aminu Tambuwal. After Atiku succeeded in picking the party’s ticket,
Ihedioha tried to make amends but that was said not to have proved very
successful.
Ihedioha is also being blamed for the quantum votes APC got in Imo State
in the just concluded presidential election. The source points out that
even in Anambra where Governor Obiano openly backed Buhari, APC was able
to score only about thirty thousand votes as compared to the comparatively
huge number the party scored in Imo State.
The source said that APC’s performance in Imo State “proved that either
Ihedioha still did not fully back Atiku in the election or that he is not
the vote-getter he claims to be. That’s why we fear that, like 2015, he
might again take us all down with him in this election”.
When asked what they will gain by not backing Ihedioha in the governorship
election, the source said that “one of the other governorship candidates
we are considering backing has promised to decamp to PDP once he wins the
election. And we trust him more than we trust Ihedioha”. He refused to
name the candidate when pressed to do so. He, however said that Hope
Uzodinma and Uche Nwosu “are not and can never be in consideration”.
It will be recalled that PDP has some history of not backing its
governorship candidate since they won that office with Achike Udenwa in
2003, sixteen years ago. In 2007, PDP abandoned Ararume and backed Ikedi
Ohakim and he won. In 2011, PDP abandoned Ohakim and backed Rochas
Okorocha and he won. In 2015, it was said that had PDP fully backed
Ihedioha, he would have defeated Rochas, especially given that Rochas had
abandoned APGA and decamped to an APC that was very unpopular in Imo
State.
From this latest disaffection amongst leaders and members of PDP in Imo
State, it remains to be seen whether there will be a repeat of the party
working against itself in the governorship election as it has done in the
past and thereby succeeded in losing the election.