A one time Governorship aspirants undre the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party in Anambra State, Dr. Obiora Okonkwo has revealed his intention to contest the November 6, 2021 election on the platform of another political party following his loss of the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, during the party’s primary.
A group, Anambra Rescue Committee, ARC, made this known while observing that Anambra people are desirous of having Okonkwo as the next Governor of the State and are therefore urging him to enter the race immediately.
Leader of the group, Mr. Azubuike Anazor, who spoke with reporters in Onitsha observed that the ongoing political developments in the State had shown that the November 6 election would, from all indications, produce a Governor that might not be generally acceptable to the people, which is why someone like Okonkwo is needed to be in the race.
Anazor said: “The recent Gubernatorial primaries of the major political parties in the State – PDP, APGA and APC have resulted in the imposition of candidates and manipulation of the electoral process by vested interests actuated, not by altruistic motives and intentions, but by the egregious desire to foist on our dear state a leadership that will serve interests not in tune with the wishes of our people for good governance.
“The result of these untoward practices and maneuvers at the parties’ primaries is what we are witnessing today. There is palpable confusion suffocating the political landscape.
“There are endless litigations and counter litigations, alliances and misalliances. These litigations and counter litigations promise to go on and on and even beyond the Novembers 6 election day.
“This state of affairs, if not arrested now, will compel our people to accept all manner of persons as Governor and Deputy Governor without their requisite critical support, endorsement and imprimatur.
“It is against this backdrop that we, the members of the Anambra Rescue Committee (ARC) comprising 22 patriots from the 21 Local Government area of the State have decided to intervene with a view to salvaging our Anambra from an imminent but inexorable slide and a return to the pre-2003 years of bad governance, incompetence and lax administration.
“We in the ARC rationalized that if we do not decisively intervene now to squelch the present descent into anarchy and confusion, history will not exonerate us from a willful sin of omission.
“We are intervening to rescue our dear State from an imminent shipwreck which will, if allowed to occur, throw our State back to the years of holocaust and result in the reversal of all the goods we have witnessed since 2003.
“Our State needs a credible, competent and urbane leader with the capacity, reach, viable programme of actions and policies and who is generally acceptable to our people as the Governor.
“We find these qualities in Dr. Obiora Okonkwo and we hereby publicly urge him to re- enter the race for the Governor of Anambra State under the banner of any of the registered political parties.
“We call on all Anambrarians, irrespective of their political persuasions or leanings and their membership of any of the existing political parties, to rally round Dr. Okonkwo if and when he accedes to our request to rejoin the race.”
