In Anambra, who dares wins!

By Levi Obijiofor

THERE must be something hugely rewarding, financially attractive and politically uplifting for a politician to be elected as the governor of Anambra State. Or how could anyone explain that, in the Anambra wing of the People's Democracy Party (PDP), nearly everyone wants to be selected to represent the party in next year's governorship election. At the last count, about 47 men and women have been given the nod to contest the right to represent the PDP in the governorship election scheduled for 6 February 2010.

How could anyone explain that the most immediate past governor of the Central Bank is also reported to be contesting the PDP primary? If you think the number of PDP politicians lining up to contest the plum position of governor is outrageous, you should keep in mind that quite a number of the candidates were thrown out of the contest because they failed to scale certain aspects of the screening hurdles.

The governorship election in Anambra State will be a spectacle to watch on 6 February 2010. There will be a lot of intrigues. Politicians will plot to eliminate or out-manoeuvre their opponents. In a contest such as this, anything is possible. No amount of shedding of tears would be sufficient to fix personal damages that would accompany the loss of the governorship election. The wounds will take time to heal. Think of the huge amounts of money the losers must have invested, the physical dangers to which the candidates must have exposed themselves during the election, and the army of foot soldiers and thugs who were consistently remunerated before and during the election. The stakes will be high before, during and after the 2010 election.

Only past and present governors of Anambra State, including those closely associated with them, understand very well the forces that are driving this unusually high interest in the governorship of Anambra. A major factor must be the large amount of money and political influence that would accrue to the winner of the election. The PDP, it was reported, will conduct its primary on Monday, September 28, 2009. Going by reports, many of the candidates for the party's primary are determined to turn the event into a dog's breakfast (pardon the clich?) because they all want to win by fair or dishonest means. In Anambra, whoever dares wins.

The PDP, with its antecedents, is the perfect platform for these political chameleons to settle old scores and reopen new ones. Many of the candidates are warming up either to secure the prized title in Anambra or to assist their preferred candidate to win. It could turn out to be a messy affair, just as nerves were strained in the past fortnight during the screening of candidates seeking to contest the party's primary. Was it not former President Olusegun Obasanjo who said that elections must be fought as do-or-die contests? Although he spoke with specific reference to the 2007 federal elections, that principle still defines the spirit of elections in Nigeria. The forthcoming governorship election in Anambra will be fought against the background of factional allegiances, accumulated anger and feelings of abandonment.

For far too long, particularly during the eight years of Obasanjo's misrule, the people of Anambra had watched helplessly as PDP kingmakers converted the state into a wrestling arena where governors and political godfathers fought out their selfish interests in the streets. For eight years, the PDP and federal politicians ignored the economy of the state and the welfare of Anambra people. Now, PDP governorship candidates are creeping around like hyenas seeking to return to the Government House in Awka, the state capital. Apart from Chris Ngige who left a legacy in the form of commendable network of roads, the past governors of Anambra State can be described as ghastly politicians. In February 2010, the people of Anambra must use their votes wisely.

There is a general perception across the country (not only in Anambra State) that, within the PDP, words like fairness, justice, rule of law, equity, and observance of election processes have lost their meaning. It is a question of morality. In Anambra as in other states, the PDP is perceived, rightly or wrongly, as the evil machine that pumps out tricks to suit the climate for every election. Against this background, does anyone expect the PDP primary scheduled for next week to produce a fair result? The PDP kingmakers are known to adopt devious strategies to select mediocre aspirants to represent the party at presidential or governorship elections. That may well occur in the current effort to select the PDP governorship candidate in Anambra.

Contesting elections is now seen by PDP flag-bearers as a routine event. Election outcomes are frequently pre-determined. Once nominated to represent the PDP, you can be rest assured that the party, which behaves like the great godfather of Nigerian politics, will fight to ensure your victory at the election. This is the notion that underpins public perception of the PDP as the home of political gamesmanship. Didn't someone describe the PDP as a party that harbours men and women of questionable credentials? Here is the paradox that dogs PDP politics. When PDP politicians lose at their party's primaries, they become inconsolable because the party's primary is usually the last obstacle before the main event - the election. Driving this arrogance is the belief that, with the PDP badge, victory is guaranteed at any election.

It is this philosophy that is driving some state governors and legislators to abscond from their parties in order to join the PDP ahead of the 2011 federal elections. Perhaps it is better to wear the emblem of the party that guarantees you victory in election rather than to hang around a political party that offers you uncertainty. Many politicians who recently abandoned their parties say the PDP symbolizes the ticket to electoral triumph. This may also have prompted the abnormally large number of candidates seeking to represent the PDP in the governorship election in Anambra in 2010.

Regrettably, Anambra people will be the losers in the PDP plot to recapture the state. Politicians and financial godfathers looking for investment opportunities are currently circling Anambra in the manner of sharks looking for a prey to swallow. There are too many political preys in Anambra at the moment. The most volatile and most dangerous prey is the morally depraved candidate who would offer his or her services for a fee to the "political investor" - the godfather.

The people of Anambra State have learnt a bitter lesson from the complicated business arrangement between former Governor Chris Ngige and his godfather Chris Uba. Ngige's cardinal sin was that he entered into a pact with a political investor known as Chris Uba. A political investor is like any other business person. He seeks opportunities for the best returns on his investment. A political investor is not interested in the goodwill of the greater population. This is why the people of Anambra State must be worried about the PDP's plans to capture the Government House in Awka at any cost.

As February 2010 draws nearer, we can expect more dramatic events in Anambra - unexplained disappearances, abductions and perhaps staged rescue missions. The news is not all that bad. Anambra State will record a boom in the economy and the level of unemployment in the state will be reduced significantly. Consider this. Many unemployed graduates will be recruited by politicians as their personal security guards. The rest will join the band of criminals who specialise in kidnapping high profile people and their relatives. As politicians spend money for the services of their guards or as politicians pay ransom for the release of their relatives, the state's economy will experience a surge. Everyone will benefit from the carnival atmosphere.

Any candidate who wants to win the governorship election in Anambra next year must consider this advice: Make sure you win by all means in the first round. There may never be a second chance. Although election petition tribunals may nullify election results and order fresh elections, the final outcomes never differ from the previous results. The 2007 experience is still fresh in our memories. Whoever wins in the first round is more privileged to win in the second round.

Robot  # 1 | 25.09.2009 07:32

...Read the full article.

ariteni  # 2 | 25.09.2009 21:59

"As February 2010 draws nearer, we can expect more dramatic events in Anambra - unexplained disappearances, abductions and perhaps staged rescue missions" Why write this type of thing? Are you delibrately painting a scary picture? Please stop defaming the peace-loving industrious people of Anambra. Have you forgotten that PDP has only ONE ticket? And that 30 or so would be out of the race and all the stress would go down once PDP picks a candidate? What is expected of you is an analysis of PDP vis a vis PPA, APGA, AC. Is it true that the candidates of these mushroom parties stand no chance at the Polls? Has Obi performed well enough to demand a 2nd Term? Or should we go and beg Ngige who "performed" well with a stolen mandate to come back and do same with a legitimate mandate this time around? I agree entirely with you that Anambra Governorship is HOT GAME. Whoever aspires to lead such wealthy sophisticated and enlightened people should first show his muscles in a Primary or an election.