Pix: Ngige

In the face of the transparent governorship primary elections in Anambra State, in other political parties, the state was thrown into mourning on August 21, 2013 when it was announced that Senator Chris Ngige has been presented as consensus governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the November 16 election.

This was mainly so because no primaries have been held to select the candidate of the party,

This is moreso since, on August 22, almost all the newspapers that circulated in Anambra state that day had a picture of Chief Bisi Akande, interim national chairman of APC and Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State raising Ngige’s hand as the party’s candidate.

As expected, some aggrieved and disappointed party members had troop out to demonstrate in some parts of Anambra State, as they condemn the  APC for not allowing primary election to take place, before pronouncing Ngige as the candidate.

Some of their placards read: “APC is not democratic; APC, you have shot yourself on the legs; Ngige is not our choice; APC give us primary election; We will swim or sink with Godwin Ezeemo’ Please save Anambra now; Ngige, don’t enter house through the window; Abuja can’t choose for us; Ngige come home and face us in the primary; We don’t want sponsored governor in Anambra State again and  Godwin Ezeemo talk now,”

When Godwin Ezeemo released a statement demanding a primary election, the aggrieved people felt that something will be done. And it’s more gratifying that the APC has decided to hold primary election on Monday, September 2.

My advice is: Ngige should come back to Anambra State to test his popularity with the people, in a free and fair election. Ngige must think less of these greedy sponsors, as Anambra can’t progress with that. Ngige must understand that Anambra governorship is not a do or die affair. To all politicians, do not mortgage Anambra to these heartless moneybags again.

Anambra people must reject all form of godfatherism. We must learn from what happened in 2003.