APGA’s future shaky

Forum 1 year ago

APGA’s future shaky

THERE are fears that the ruling All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, in Anambra State might face harder times if its electoral fortunes do not improve after the March 11 governorship and House of Assembly elections.

Before the commencement of the 2023 general elections, APGA was the third largest political party in Nigeria after the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as it controls a state, Anambra, and has elected members in some states and national assembly.

Since 2006 when Mr. Peter Obi was sworn in as the first governor produced by the party after three years of legal battle, APGA has held sway in Anambra State till date.

It was also the political party that took Owelle Rochas Okorocha to the Imo State government house, although he defected to the APC after using APGA to climb the political ladder.

Before the 2019 general elections, there were serious signs that APGA might retake Imo in view of the popularity it gained and interest shown by notable politicians in the state. Surprisingly, mistrust led to the abysmal performance of the party in that state. Even in Abia, Dr. Alex Oti came close to winning the governorship on the platform of APGA, but certain factors made him lose. He actually won but was rigged out.

At the end of Peter Obi’s tenure in 2014, Chief Willie Obiano took over and the party still had a firm grip on the politics of Anambra State, controlling the state House of Assembly and producing five members of the House of Representatives.

Obiano handed over to Professor Chukwuma Soludo who is trying to reposition the party, but his efforts appear to be meeting a brick wall due mainly to the emergence of Mr. Peter Obi as the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, and the departure of the former national chairman of APGA, Senator Victor Umeh.

Umeh had tried to secure the ticket of APGA for Anambra Central for the 2023 election, but the leadership of the party allegedly frustrated him. He eventually joined Obi in the LP and he is today the senator-elect of the party for Anambra Central.

As things stand, it would appear that LP is gradually taking the position of APGA in terms of grass root following, going by the number of votes secured during the February 25 presidential and national assembly elections. While LP and Obi polled over 50,0000 votes in the state, APGA secured only about 3,000 votes. LP also won two Senate seats and six for the House of Representatives. This is despite all efforts made by the state government to frustrate LP during the campaigns.

For instance, residents of Awka woke up one day during the campaigns to notice that the giant flex mounted by LP and bearing the pictures of Peter Obi and Victor Umeh on the popular UNIZIK junction flyover, was pulled down and replaced with that of APGA, with the message, “Anambra is APGA”. All major roads in the state are also decorated with APGA signs

Lamenting that the action of the state government was aimed at frustrating the LP, Umeh said: “We paid N1 million for our billboard to be hoisted on that space, and the billboard had my face and that of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi.

“The advertising company also paid the Anambra State Signage and Advertisement Agency (ANSAA) for the billboard.

“That billboard has been there since December, and the contract was to expire after the election”.

One week to the House of Assembly poll, every attention is now shifted to the 30 state constituencies in the state. Incidentally, APGA, LP, PDP and APC have candidates in all the constituencies. If APGA does not secure a comfortable majority in the election, it means a serious problem for the executive arm of government might be rearing its head.

However, Soludo has assured of his determination to see APGA grow even beyond the state.

“As the leader of APGA, I have the primary responsibility to protect and promote all APGA candidates because I need a team to work with. As Governor of Anambra, I implore ndi Anambra to come out en masse on Saturday to vote for APGA,” he said.

His position against Peter Obi has not helped him in the state.

The people appear more disposed to Obi and this is posing great challenge to him. Will APGA die under him? Soludo’s popularity waned at the time the Obi phenomenon is gathering momentum before the February 25 Presidential election now being challenged after electoral body INEC broke their own rules on electronic transmission of results and Voter suppression in many parts of the country. It is now on record as the worst election in Nigeria. Yet, Labour Party appears the party in the area and Soludo now has an uphill task to remain afloat with APGA.