Posted by By KINGSLEY EMEREUWA on
Chief Godfrey O. Onyemaobi remains a political force anyday. In his political sojourn, he has been a legislator of the old Imo State House of Assembly, during the Second Republic, where he represented the defunct Nigeria Peoples Party (NPP).
Chief Godfrey O. Onyemaobi remains a political force anyday. In his political sojourn, he has been a legislator of the old Imo State House of Assembly, during the Second Republic, where he represented the defunct Nigeria Peoples Party (NPP).
In the stillborn third Republic, his son was elected into the old Abia State House of Assembly, courtesy of the doggedness of this grassroots mobilizer.
When the present republic was being conceived, he was one of those that midwifed the birth of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and bravely worked for its victory in the state.
However, things fell apart between the Afara chief and the state governor, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, shortly after the latter relieved him of his juicy appointment as Economic Adviser. The parting of ways between Kalu and Onyemaobi forced the latter to join forces with the Abuja group in 2001 to fight the governor's camp.
In this interview with Daily Sun Chief Onyemaobi, who has since mended fences with Governor Kalu, gives reasons he parted ways with Kalu, the support he gave to the Abuja group and why he later went back to Kalu.
He traces the crises in Abia PDP to the ambition of a few who were not originally with the party and who have placed their individual ambitions above the survival of the party in the state.
The meeting
This is political gathering, the stakeholders are meeting to see how to re-build this party, so that the alleged problem the party is facing here can be corrected.
There is no need pretending. There are problems. And the problem is such that will be tackled when everyone brings out his minds to tackle such, and within hours you will see us come out with a solution. People are complaining. Those in Abuja are writing petitions here and there, saying they are the stakeholders and should determine what happens in the state. This is not true. That you are a member of the National Assembly or a minister of state or a board member does not confer on you authority to be a stakeholder of the party that sent you there. There are people who sent you there, those people are the real stakeholders and not you.
Somebody brought you out and gave you a ticket before you won the election. So, who are the real stakeholders? Unless, the national (PDP) goes to find out those who are the real stakeholders and listen to them, the problems in Abia State will not be solved.
Reconcilation with Governor Kalu
You are right. I always speak my mind as I am not afraid of anybody. I spoke my mind and told the governor let us sit back and reflect. I wrote letters to him. For us to go out and meet the people, that whatever the problems were, we should hear from them and look for a solution. We can talk and shout and abuse ourselves but at the end of the day, we shall come together. He took my advice and started reaching out to everyone. But the more he went out to them, the more the problem lingered.
For me, I said okay, what am I still fighting for? What I thought was their problem had been solved by the governor as far as I am concerned. Still, they continued fighting him. So, for me there was no point fighting again, so I decided to sit back in my house. I shouldn't break my head. I am not fighting an election, neither am I holding any state or Federal Government appointment. I lost three of my medicated glasses fighting for this party and at the end of the day what is my benefit? Nothing. But I am not complaining. Here I am because I still believe in the Peoples Democratic Party till tomorrow. So, all I am saying is that we should do things rightly. That is all I am saying and I will stand before anybody and defend whatever I am saying and you will see at the end of the day, I will be exonerated.
The opposition
Who are those fighting the governor under this tag of concerned stakeholders? Mao Ohubunwa who didn't contest the first election. He hadn't any particulars. Photocopies were what we used to push him through. Quote me and go and ask him today. Is it these new entrants who didn't know where PDP was formed. Are they the people the national chairman ought to be listening to? No. I beg to disagree. That group there in Abuja is made up of irrelevant people. The only person who is there and fought for this party with us from beginning to end is Chief Tony Ukasanya, the former state chairman. Vin Ogbulafor left the party and went to then APP because of his blind gubernatorial ambition. He contested the 1999 election against us and lost. By hook or crook, he was made a minister, and he jumped into the PDP. Today, they are the alpha and omega in PDP. The very same people who fought PDP to a standstill in this state.
Vincent Ogbulafor
When they brought him out to be secretary, we applied sentiments because he is from my town. I said okay he is my townsman. I cannot oppose him. I worked for him. That was when the crisis started because it was perceived that the governor didn't want him as National Secretary. And for me, I said he is an Umuahia son, like me and since those who brought him believed he would do a good job there, I said I will support him. But today ask me where is Vin? He is fighting everybody, including those who made him. Everybody is now feeling important. They don't even want to talk about the survival of this once great party first of all. They are all looking for their personal ambition.
Each of them in that their group wants to be governor and they are all pretending. Without the party, can anyone of them be governor or even president? You must have a platform and that is the party. Let the party be alive first and then you can talk about your ambition. But in Abia, they are putting their ambitions first before the party and that is the crisis we are having here.
PDP Congress
Time for congress is near. If you say you are alpha and omega, come out during the congress and stand in your ward and win your ward. They should desist from encouraging parallel structures. Each ward has where all the members meet and hold elections. They must make sure, they assemble there and that is the beginning of party politics, the ward level.