When PDP’s campaign train stopped at Enugu

The campaign train of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is
gradually but steadily moving across the nation. It stopped in
Enugu, the Coal City state last Friday when the presidential
flag bearer, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, wooed voters.
All roads led to Nnamdi Azikiwe Stadium venue as the
teeming supporters in various PDP regalia trooped out with
dances to the expansive arena. The turn-out was a further
proof that Enugu is a PDP state as all the streets in the state
were literally empty.
The crowd at the stadium had waited endlessly as the event
was initially billed to commence at 10 am. During the long
wait, the gospel artistes and Masters of Ceremony had a swell
time in their effort to fill the gap arising from the late arrival of
the President. The two outstanding gospel singers who
performed on the occasion, Felix Ndukwe and the Delta State-
born Sammy Okposo, gave the audience a full dose of their
stuff.
The singers intermittently sang praises of President Jonathan,
Governor Sullivan Chime and Enugu PDP candidate, Ifeanyi
Ugwuanyi.
President Jonathan finally arrived the venue at exactly 2.15
p.m. He was accompanied by his wife, Dame Patience, Vice
President Namadi Sambo, National Chairman of the party,
Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, Deputy Senate President Ike
Ekweremadu, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives,
Emeka Ihedioha, Chime and Ugwuanyi.
The rally also had in attendance the entire PDP hierarchy from
the governors to members of the party’s National Executive
Committee, National Assembly members and candidates to
the governorship candidates of the party in this year’s general
elections.
Others who graced the occasion were former Senate
presidents and elder statesmen including former Vice President
of Nigeria, Dr Alex Ekwueme.
Political observers argued that even though the event has
come and gone, many issues came to the fore during the rally.
Some of them include:
Deconstructing Buhari
Many of those who listened to President Jonathan’s speech
were in agreement that it was merely targeted to deconstruct
the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress
(APC), Muhammadu Buhari.
Critical observers agree that substantially, his unscripted
speech was in response to previous statements made by the
APC flag bearer in various occasions. President Jonathan
accused Buhari of deceiving the people by promising that he
would revive the economy without correspondingly explaining
how he would achieve that.
The President wondered how Buhari could develop the
economy when he could not do so in office as Head of State
between 1983 to 1985.
“Is it now that Buhari cannot even remember his own phone
number that he can change the economy”, he asked.
President Jonathan who said although he did not like to go
personal during campaigns, said that “sometimes certain
things demand that certain things must be said”.
The President said that the APC candidate belonged to the
medieval age, adding that Buhari’s intention is to run the
Federal Government like a medieval king.
His words: “We cannot run the government as if we are in a
medieval age; we cannot run a government where somebody
said he would throw people into jail.
“You are not a medieval king- a medieval king can throw
somebody into jail but we have to follow the rule of law
because we cannot go back to the old days”.
President Jonathan was not done yet as he read the speech
made by former Head of State, Gen Ibrahim Babangida (rtd)
after overthrowing Buhari on August 27, 1985. The speech he
read was to justify the fact that Buhari does not keep his
promises.
Gen Babangida in the portion of the speech read by Jonathan
justified the overthrow of the APC flag bearer by pointing out
that Buhari did not live up to the promises he made to
Nigerians when he overthrew a democratically elected
government headed then by Alhaji Shehu Shagari.
The President quoted Babangida as saying: “The initial
objectives of Buhari’s intervention was betrayed as there was
a general deterioration of standard of living in the country”.
Many observers argue that Jonathan’s hard knocks on Buhari
made him to gloss over what in practical terms he would do
for the South East people and indeed Nigeria when he is re-
elected for a second term in office.
But the state governor, Sullivan Chime assured President
Jonathan that people of the state and indeed the entire South
East would support his re-election bid.
“The traditional rulers have told you that you have no
business campaigning in Enugu. We are here to support you.
We are here to celebrate our governorship candidate,
Ugwuanyi”, he told the President.
Handing over guber flag to Ugwuanyi
One of the items members of the party at the rally and
particularly people of Enugu State were anxiously waiting for
was the official handover of the 2015 governorship flag of the
PDP to Hon Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi. The anxiety over the flag was
obvious considering the struggle for the governorship seat.
Before the rally, there were still pockets of doubts over the
actual candidate of the PDP in Enugu State. Recall that one of
the contenders to the Lion Building, Senator Ayogu Eze had
claimed to be the PDP candidate in Enugu after holding a
parallel governorship primaries in Filbon Hotel, in the New
Haven part of the state.
But with Friday’s rally in Enugu, the struggle for the PDP flag
became history as the hierarchy of the party led by President
Jonathan officially handed over the flag to Ugwuanyi, who is
about rounding off his third term in the House of
Representatives.
When the real flag-off ceremony rolled off the ground, Muazu
who was called up to the podium after Ikeje Asogwa and
Governor Chime had presented their addresses added to the
profile of Ugwuanyi. The national chairman of the party said:
“this is one of the most popular candidates I have ever met in
this period of electioneering in our country”. He called on other
aspirants who had run against the candidate to join hands
with him and the party while also urging Ugwuanyi to work
with all party faithful whether they had run against him or
not. He paid tributes to elder statesmen in the South East
region such as Nnamdi Azikiwe, Nwafor Orizu, Chukwuemeka
Odimegwu Ojukwu and others who have contributed
immensely to the development of the country.
He thanked people of the South East for their show of support
and solidarity for the PDP which has made the party grow in
leaps and bounds.
Muazu thereafter formally handed over the party’s
governorship flag to Ugwuanyi, declaring that it was a flag of
victory from the PDP. Hon. Ugwuanyi enjoys overwhelming
support of Enugu PDP stakeholders, and the party faithful,
many of whom have constituted over 100 support groups
working to actualize his ambition.
Recall that the party stakeholders in the three senatorial
districts of the state had long adopted him as consensus
governorship candidate before the primary election.
A chieftain of the party and former member of the House of
Representatives, Hon USA Igwesi described the handover of
party flag to Ugwuanyi as a confirmation of victory for the
PDP in Enugu State.
He said that the development showed that the PDP believes in
the popular will of the people, adding that with Ugwuanyi’s
candidature, the ruling party could go to sleep as far as the
governorship election is concerned.
“In my entire political career, I have never seen any politician
who has enjoyed the support of his people like Ifeanyi
Ugwuanyi. This is unprecedented in the history of Enugu
State. The support is so overwhelming that even members of
other parties are solidly behind him. He is just waiting to be
crowned the next governor of Enugu State and I am sure he
will not disappoint the people”, he said.
Chairman of the PDP in Amachalla/Ikpuiga ward, Mr Hyacinth
Urama praised the PDP for ensuring the maintenance of
internal democracy in the party.
He said that the handover of the PDP flag to Ugwuanyi has
proved that truth will always prevail.
“The PDP is a family and when members of a family take a
decision, it is binding on all of them. In democracy, it is the
majority that carries the vote”, he said.
Speaking with newsmen after receiving the flag, Hon.
Ugwuanyi thanked the party and the people of Enugu State for
the confidence reposed in him and assured that he would
consolidate on the current gains and take the state to the next
level of development.
The Enugu PDP governorship flag bearer who promised a
robust campaign enthused: “The presentation of the party’s
flag to me by the President and our National Chairman is a
call to duty, a charge to work hard with my governor and the
rest of the team to deliver Enugu State to the PDP 100 per
cent as has been the tradition; and that I will surely do, God
being my helper”.
Absence of Ayogu and his supporters
Many curious supporters were quick to notice that Ayogu Eze,
the Senate Committee chairman on Works was conspicuously
absent in the PDP rally. It was observed that few members of
the PDP who still show solidarity to the Enugu North Senator
were also not near the crowded stadium venue of the rally.
The lesson
What many took away from the rally was that Enugu is a PDP
state and that the coming governorship election would not
change the overwhelming support people of the Coal City state
have for the ruling party. It is stating the obvious that no
other party has what it takes to dislodge the PDP in the battle
for the Lion building.
However, critical observers who monitored the rally argue that
the main challenge is how to convert the large turnout to
actual votes. Many insist that what is important is for the
teeming supporters to ensure that they get their permanent
voters’ cards that will qualify them to vote in the next gover­
norship election.