The Imo Sstate governor, Rochas Okorocha, has explained why he
recently nominated former Senate President, Senator Ken Nnamani, as national
leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, South-East zone.
The governor was speaking
during the meeting of the South-East zonal leaders of the APC held at the Nike
Lake Hotel in Enugu.
He said his decision to
nominate Nnamani to lead the party in the zone during a recent meeting in
Owerri, the Imo state capital, was simply to ensure that the South-East APC has
an arrow-head leader who is a capable and well respected figure across the
country.
He challenged the leaders
and members of the party in the South-East to “sit down” and plan properly so
that the APC will win the governorship election coming up soon in Anambra
state.
Governor Okorocha
however, urged South -East governors who wish to join the party, to declare
their interest now before it was too late for them to do so.
According to him, “The
APC is a party with lots of promise. The South-West and South-South have better
political fortunes today in APC.
“The South-South, for
instance, hold the position of national chairman. The South-East has only
Minister of Labour and Employment [Dr Chris Nigige], Minister of Science and
Technology [Dr Ogbonnaya Onu] and the Minister of Foreign Affairs [Geofrey
Onyeama].
“When l met with
President Muhammadu Buhari over this matter, he said when he started out his
presidential quest, he had picked Chuba Okadigbo (in 2003) and Edwin Umezoke
(in 2007) as a way of reaching out to the South-East but it didn’t work. In APC
South-East, we have to organize ourselves. The leaders should not be concerned
with who sits on the high table. We should come together to move the APC in the
South-East forward.
“In fact, being a
governor has deprived me of leadership opportunity in APC. Because of the need
to have capable leaders in the party, that was why l advised that Ogbonnaya Onu
and Chris Ngige should not be made ministers so that they can be the leaders of
the party in the zone. I started this political journey with Jim Nwbodo in my
house in Owerri long before now.
“And when the issue of
leadership came, l said we have to look for a capable person among us to lead
this party in the south-east. I felt we needed somebody at this time, a central
voice who will be speaking for us. That was why l had to nominate Chief Ken
Nnamani, a former Senate President and who is credible to lead the party in the
zone.”
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