By Dennis Obinni<\/p>\n
The current political atmosphere in Ebonyi State is socked in tension<\/p>\n
with many of the observers shouting in bewilderment as to how the
\npolitical alignments that held many as enemies and some as friends
\ncould all of a sudden break.
\nRight now, there exist two political groups. One is the protagonists
\nof the consensus candidature of the immediate past Minister of Health,
\nProfessor Onyebuchi Chukwu which has the evident blessing of the
\nincumbent governor Martin Nwancho Elechi. The other group is made up
\nof the antagonists of the Elechi\u2019s endorsement. The development has
\nsharply turned around the alignments in the state such that even some
\npoliticians who were not in talking terms have united to stop the
\ngovernor from going ahead with what they call political
\nhighhandedness. It is akin to war against a common enemy.
\nThe incumbent deputy governor of the State, Engineer David Umahi\u2019s
\ngrowing followership is the benefactor of the circumstances. His
\ncampaign office has turned a beehive of activities like it is the
\nPDP\u2019s State secretariat. Even those Umahi might have stepped on their
\ntoes as the State PDP chairman while labouring to midwife the 2011
\ngovernorship elections that gave Elechi the second tenure have shelved
\nthat aside and jumped into the boat speeding against the Elechi\u2019s
\nposture.
\nThe turn of events has reverberated many bits and pieces including
\nthe issues about the N15 billion Bond the Elechi-led government is
\nseeking from the Nigerian Stock Exchange with the Speaker of the State
\nhouse of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Chukwuma Nwzunku, before now seen as a
\nstooge of Elechi boldly writing to President Goodluck Jonathan asking
\nhim to stop Elechi from securing the Bond. The Speaker is insisting
\nthat the governor should account for the N16billion Bond his
\nadministration first took than asking for another N15 billion Bond at
\nthe twilight of the administration. The Chief Press Secretary to the
\nGovernor, Dr. Onyekachi Eni had labored to brief the press as to how
\nthe N16 billion Bond was spent but the House of Assembly is saying
\nthat accounts of that nature should not be given on pages of newspaper
\nbut through the appropriate committees of the House with the deserved
\ndetails. Or is anybody hiding somthing? with erThe wave against the
\ngovernor\u2019s bid is such that he tends to have been embattled hence he
\nrecently declared that the situation was like a boat in a stormy sea.
\nHe said it was militarization of the polity alleging that policemen
\nwere imported into the state.
\nKeen observers of the imbroglio however query how the governor who is
\nthe chief security officer of the state could be talking of
\nimportation of police like he has lost control of the machinery of
\ngovernment.
\nThe questions further raged during the weekend when Elechi lost his
\ntemperament on the occasion of a rally the state government organized
\nin support of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan\u2019s second term bid. The
\ngovernor threw caution to wind referring to his deputy governor, Umahi
\nas an armed robber and sorts of unprintable foul language for the fact
\nthat Umahi is contesting for the governorship against the wish of his
\nboss, Elechi. Even as no one had excused the governor for that act
\nsome adduce that he was so infuriated by the sudden interweave such
\nthat even his supposed political allies who were invited to the
\noccasion tailored to demonstrate to President Jonathan that he was in
\ncharge of the state\u2019s political structure failed to honour their
\ninvitation to the rally for the reason of the allegation that he,
\nElechi has thrown up impunity in his approach to the 2015 governorship
\nelection, so set the ruling PDP into a divide, and losing a greater
\nchunk of the party faithful to his deputy. More so, the solidarity
\nrally held with the visible absence of a number of key stakeholders in
\nthe area including the former governor of the state, Dr. Sam Ominyi
\nEgwu and the 2015 governorship aspirants. Only the former Minister
\nof Health, Professor Onyebuchi C hukwu, the governor Elechi\u2019s choice
\ncandidate for the governorship was at the event. Others who were
\nnoticeably absent at the rally include, Senator Paulinus Igwe Nwagu,
\nall the PDP House of Assembly members loyal to Speaker Chukwuma
\nNwazunku, and many of the National Assembly members.
\nThe verbal attack of the deputy governor which has thrown up questions
\nas to why he could so show aggression against his deputy in the public
\nin a programme broadcast live in television and radio stations has put
\nto question the essence of the attitudinal change policy of the
\ngovernment and the personality of the governor. Watchers of the
\nsituation said it was undemocratic and most unexpected of an elderly
\ngovernor to have publicly referred to his deputy as an armed robber, a
\nman he had described as all conquering Dave Umahi and chose him as his
\nrunning mate in 2011. Anyway,a second Republic Senator, Ofia Nwali
\nhad while reacting to the approach of Elechi in the 2015 elections
\nsaid that the policy of attitudinal change would not need to be
\nassessed by radio announcement but would be felt when it is really in
\nplace.
\nJust last week, no fewer than 50 thugs suspected to be having been led
\nby the Youth Leader of the State branch of PDP, Comrade Chinedu Ogah,
\na close political ally, bite dog of the governor attacked the
\nofficial residence of the state house of assembly Speaker Chukwuma
\nNwazunku. It was gathered that the thugs forcefully invaded into the
\nspeaker\u2019s residence and ordered his relatives including the wife,
\nchildren and residential servants to park out from the official lodge.
\nProperties including money were allegedly stolen. The Police Public
\nrelations Officer of the state police command, Asp Chris Anyanwu
\nconfirmed the attack adding that the police have arrested some of the
\nthugs, Comrade Ogah and some members of the house of assembly for
\nallegedly leading the gangsters to ransack the speaker\u2019s residence.
\nThe state government has till date not said anything about that act of
\nviolence. Yet someone is talking of militarization and cannot point at
\nany act of violence from the camp of the antagonist of the
\nendorsement\/ impunity of the government against a greater number of
\nthe Ebonyi PDP family.<\/p>\n
As the political situation tightened against the governor, he, Elechi
\nlast week sacked , the wife of one of the PDP\u2019s governorship aspirant
\n, Mrs. Eucheria Nwali and 27 others local council officers. Sources
\nclose to Government House Abakaliki revealed that the sack of the
\ncouncil officers, being among the 64 Development Centres Coordinators
\nestablished in the 13 substantive council areas may not be unconnected
\nto the crisis in the State Chapter of the People\u2019s
\nDemocratic Party where those opposed to endorsement of the
\ngovernorship aspirant of the governor were seen as opposition
\nelements aganist the government. The announcement of the sack of the
\nCoordinators was signed by the State Commissioner for Local Government
\nand Chieftaincy Matters, Chief Celestine Nwali, the most recent
\npolitical anchor man of Elechi. The suspicion is that the governor may
\nalso sack some of his commissioners especially those believed to be
\nsupportive of Umahi.<\/p>\n
Already, the Clerk of the house of assembly, Mrs. Rose Nwokporo,
\nyounger sister to the wife of the governor has been relieved of his
\nposition, obviously because she is on the part of Nwazunku.<\/p>\n
How these things will eventually play out remains to be seen. For now
\nthe visible thing is that many more have been angered including the
\nsacked Coordinators, the sacked Clerk of the house of assembly, and
\nprominent Ebonyi leaders of thought who feel that they should have
\nbeen consulted in the making of the successor of Elechi. Such include
\nDr. Sam Egwu who handed power to Elechi, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim,
\nAmbassador Frank Ogbewu, Senator Ofia Nwali, Senator Igwe Nwagu,
\nSenator Ngiji Ngele, members of federal House of Representatives, the
\naggrieved 11 members of the house of assembly etcetera etcetera .
\nEnds.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Dennis Obinni The current political atmosphere in Ebonyi State is socked in tension with many of the observers shouting in bewilderment as to how the political alignments that held…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4191,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33470","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles-opinions"],"yoast_head":"\n