The recent pronouncement by the Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodimma, that the governors of the South-East Region endorsed President Bola Tinubu for the 2027 presidential election does not represent the position of the generality of the people of the region.
The House of Representatives candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress for Nkanu East/Nkanu West Federal Constituency of Enugu State, Barr Ike Elshadai, stated this during a chat with THE WHISTLER in Enugu on Tuesday.
Quoting him, “Assuming that South-East governors collectively endorsed President Tinubu, the people will still be the ultimate deciders. Governors can rally round to make their own pronouncements in their capacity as individual persons, but at the end of the day, democracy is about the people. Even the thirty-six state governors cannot overwhelm the majority of Nigerians in any election. The year 2027 will boil down to how the people feel about the incumbent irrespective of the positions of governors.”
He said Gov Uzodimma might be speaking on his personal ground because one of the governors in the region, Gov Alex Otti of Abia State, was quick to counter him. “It therefore doesn’t show that there was any such collective deliberation. Even if that were to be the case, it also brings about the capacity of one person to be speaking on behalf of the generality of the people of the state”.
He interrogated the capacity of a governor to enjoy full support of the entire people of his state. In his words, “Have you ever seen where governors took one position, and the people followed that line? In South-East, not many of these governors can say that. It is a political statement.”
He made a reference to a statement credited to the presidential candidate of NDC, Mr Peter Obi, when he reacted to APC having thirty-one governors. Obi had replied, “Make it thirty-six; I will dash him the rest five”. Obi had argued that he won elections without having a councillor on his side.
Ike said, “Our history shows that no one person has ever been a spokesperson for the Igbo. It was the reason why the British found it difficult to control us during the colonial era. It is unlike the North where an Emir’s pronouncements stand for his people. Even if the governors made the statement, what water does it carry? Since when did we start seeing governors speak for their states on every matter? Let’s agree that their people gave them mandates; it does not mean that these governors control the will of their people. Rather, there should be consultations on specific issues. What consultations were made between the governors and their people before those assertions were made? It is not surprising that they share blind loyalty to the party. You cannot say that all of those states are actually APC. We are not even talking about how they came into the party: whether their election processes were organic or fair.”
On claims that the ruling All Progressives Congress deserves South-East support due to the establishment of the South-East Development Commission, the Reps candidate said, “Even with the South-East Development Commission, we are not better off now than before. It is true that some states in the Eastern Region have done well. The governor of Abia State is an example. But as a group, what can we boast of? When we talk about development, I don’t agree that people should cite instances of boreholes and streetlights. Those things were there even before now. Then how do streetlights cascade to the living index?”
He referenced some accusations of ethnic bigotry against the Tinubu administration, and asked, “How many Igbos are in key positions? We are quick to celebrate an ideation, but we don’t wait to see the result. I’m yet to see a tangible result of South-East Development Commission. Before now, there were similar bodies said to be executing such for the benefit of South East. How well did they fare?
“We talk about living index; is South-East better now? I don’t agree. How has security fared in the region? Food inflation is about 17.6% higher than before. How many persons can say they can now afford food better than before? These issues are affecting the whole of Nigeria. It is all about party people playing blind loyalty to sentiments. In some states, there might have been some improvements, but not to say that the FG has done the best they could do. There are certain aspects that nothing has been done.”
(The Whistler)
