Jude Ndukwe: Orji Uzor Kalu’s futile defection and APC’s puerile jubilation

7 years ago

Jude Ndukwe: Orji Uzor Kalu’s futile defection and APC’s puerile jubilation

The recent defection of Orji Uzor Kalu, former governor of Abia State, from the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), has kept tongues wagging on the motive(s), appropriateness or otherwise of it and the timing of such a move.

While a lot of people have naturally believed that Kalu took that decision in order to be adorned with the garment of sainthood by the ruling party since he is facing corruption charges by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and have his trial truncated, others think it is self-seeking, self-serving and self-redeeming more than any story of regional integration of Ndigbo to Nigeria’s mainstream politics.

After all, Timipre Sylva had very damning corruption charges against him in court by the same EFCC, yet, he was the ruling party’s anointed candidate in the last governorship election in Bayelsa State. The late Abubakar Audu also had corruption case bordering on some humongous amounts hanging around his neck for which he was being tried, yet, he was the anointed candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in the last Kogi governorship election.

So when people conclude that Orji Kalu ran to APC for cover, and maybe, for canonization, they might not be blamed seeing the trend of events in this regard in the party over time. Not even his own explanation that his family was already in APC and that he had only gone to join where his family is would suffice or assuage his doubters most of who feel betrayed by the defection of someone they had seen as one of the indefatigable fighters for his people.

It is even more heart-rending to know that Kalu abandoned the Progressive Peoples Allaince, PPA, a party he himself had formed and nurtured to prominence. What could be the attraction in another man’s house that would make a man abandon the one he labored to build from scratch to finish only for him to leave his family members stranded in it as he himself moves to another even if he would be given just a servant’s quarters to live in there?

Many think that Kalu’s family members earlier joining the APC was nothing but a premeditated action that would serve as a decoy for him to move over should he feel left drenched in his own PPA, hence, having lost the Abia North Senatorial zone election held on March 28, 2015, and having lost his bid to reclaim via the Election Petition Tribunal what has now become an unpopular mandate, the former Abia State governor can be said to have been left drenched in the rain indeed.

Rather than jump ship, one would have thought that Orji Kalu would be gracious enough to deploy his wealth of experience in politics, his now fading clout and dwindling popularity to strengthen his PPA and use it to mentor younger and budding politicians who see him as their hero into maturity.
He would have even gone into strategic alliance with other parties of his PPA’s similar capacity to impact more on the nation’s polity.