Ahead of today’s
senatorial primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Governor Emmanuel
Uduaghan of Delta State, yesterday, withdrew from the Delta South Senatorial
race. He said his decision is in the interest of peace and security of the
state.
The withdrawal,
which some observers described as a masterstroke has nipped in the bud what was
a panning out as a pitch battle between the governor’s camp and that led by
Elder statesman, Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark, Senator James Manager and
ex-militant, Tompolo.
It was gathered that
Uduaghan dropped his bid after a tripartite reconciliation meeting brokered and
hosted by President Goodluck Jonathan between Thursday and yesterday in Abuja.
The truce in
Delta came as PDP stalwarts in Rivers including 19 governorship aspirants
warned that President Jonathan may lose two million Rivers’ votes in the 2015
election if former Minister of State for Education, Mr Nyesom Wike is imposed
as the governorship candidate in the state. Specifically, they threatened to
defect to opposition parties if the president and the PDP hierarchy failed to
resolve the lingering crisis rocking the party in Rivers.
Meanwhile, less
than 24 hours to PDP’s National Assembly primaries, Governor Sullivan Chime of
Enugu State appears to have sacrificed the ambitions of his former aides on the
altar of the truce he reached with Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu.
Briefing newsmen
in Asaba, Uduaghan said he has to offer himself as a sacrifice to sustain the
peace and security in the state.
The governor,
who aspired to represent Delta South Senatorial District after his second term
on May 29, 2015, a move that would have hurt the ambition of serving Senator
Manager, said he is quitting because the election is not ‘’do or die” and there
has been ethnic tension which seemed to be ‘’threatening peace and security of
the state.”
Insisting that
he would do everything to stop anything that would threaten the peace and
security of the state, he said he came in at a time when the state was being
faced with a lot of security issues ‘’but the state is much more peaceful now
than I met it”.
He also said his
withdrawal would give him the leverage to manage the affairs of the state in
the transition period as well as ensure the re-election of president Jonathan.
Uduaghan,
however, described Senator James Manager as a friend and brother, adding that
he was not forced to withdraw from the race.
At the Abuja
meeting, sources said the President was touched by Uduaghan’s ‘’sacrifice’’ and
he ‘’asked Senator James Manager to work with the Delta State Structure to
ensure that the candidate favoured by the majority of PDP stakeholders emerges
as the party’s governorship candidate and the party approached the 2015
elections as a united front in Delta.’’
Some members of
Chime’s kitchen cabinet, including his Commissioner for Enugu Capital
Development Authority had few weeks ago resigned their positions to enable them
participate in the PDP National Assembly primaries.
They reportedly
had the blessing of the governor to run for the offices of their choice. But
following the reported reconciliation of Chime and Ekweremadu, the governor was
said to have asked his aides to withdraw from the race.
Making their
positions known at different fora, yesterday, those affected by the
development, said they were going ahead to seek the people’s mandate.
One of them,
Engr. Ikechukwu Ugwuegede, who prior to the recent development, was known to be
Chime’s preferred candidate for the Nsukka/Igbo-Eze South Federal Constituency,
said his ambition remained on course.
Ugwuegede
resigned as the commissioner for Enugu Capital Territory Develop-ment
Authority. At a news briefing yesterday, Ugwuegede said: “I want to inform my
supporters that my aspiration is still very much on course. We urge our
supporters and delegates to remain faithful and assure them that with their
support, success and victory will be ours at the polls. Be not dismayed or
discouraged by anybody. Ensure that you participate at the PDP primaries taking
place at the Government Field
Nsukka.”
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Politics