A likely scenario in Imo, come 2019

The 2019 governorship contest in Imo State promises to be the most intriguing, most enthralling and most captivating. There are obvious reasons for this. The eight years of Owelle Rochas Okorocha as governor of the state has witnessed more than enough drama. In 2011 when Imolites, guided by the church, decided to throw away the regime of Ikedi Ohakim to the trash can, Okorocha came in, armed with oratorial prowess, rhetoric and rhapsodies. His trade-mark gap-toothed smiles were charming and infectious. His seeming simplicity and populist revolutionist mantra of a Rescue Mission, seized Imo citizens.

But eight years down, Imo has become a caricature among other states. The economy of the state has been totally and mindlessly destroyed. Over N3.5 trillion has been lost to the state’s much-touted urban renewal programme.

Our celebrated heartland has become harsh-land. Everywhere, you are confronted with indelible marks of decay and depreciation. Bad roads, uncompleted and abandoned projects. Environmental degradation; in every street and road you are encountered with heaps and heaps of refuse oozing out putrid, offensive stench. Statutes and effigies that have nothing to do with the wellness of the citizens have become the landmarks of a people.

Imo roads are the worst you can get anywhere in Nigeria. Whenever it rains, the entire state, particularly the major cities are submerged. In Okorocha’s eight years of rudderless leadership, more jobs have been lost in all the four former regimes added.

Perhaps the worst atrocious transgression committed by Rochas was his attempt to foist his political dynasty on the people. He rode roughshod on the goodwill of the people. He never cared about any other person’s opinion or feelings. He saw himself as the be-all and end-all.

But as William Shakespeare says in Julius Caesar, ‘There is a tide in the affairs of men, which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune. Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries.’  And so, courtesy of Okorocha, Imo citizens became united by misery, bound by grief and suffering. Then they decided, without dissenting voices, that Okorocha and his hold on the state must be broken. Whether in All Progressive Congress(APC) or the Peoples Democratic Party( PDP) or the All Progressive Grand Alliance(APGA) what mattered was that new blood should be injected into Douglas House Owerri.

These and many other infractions gave  rise to the high number of aspirants  jostling to rule Imo State. According to the final list released by the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC), 68 aspirants would slug it out for in the 2019 governorship election. This is the highest number since the creation of the state.

Considering the political base, the frontline candidates include Hon. Emeka Ihedioha of the PDP, Senator Ifeanyi Ararume of APGA; Hope Uzodinma of APC and Uche Nwosu, Okorocha’s anointed successor who decamped to the Action Alliance(AA). A look at the major candidates reveals that all have what it takes to rule Imo  and  give the citizens the best governance. However, Rt. Hon Emeka Ihedioha appears to have an edge over all other candidates. If the peoples’ will is not sabotaged, it will take a miracle to stop Ihedioha from becoming the next governor of Imo State. There are obvious reasons for this:

One, he has been the most loyal, dedicated and consistent in the pursuit of his ambition among all candidates. Of all the major governorship aspirants, Ihedioha is the only one that has not jumped ship. He has remained a loyal and committed member of the PDP right when he joined the party at inception. From Uzodinma, Araraume, Nwosu and others, they have always been driven by the rustling wind of inconsistency. What this means is that Ihedioha can be trusted. Even when he lost the 2015 election to Okorocha, he did not succumb to pressure to join another political party. Any candidate who has remained loyal and committed to a cause deserves to be elected.

Another reason why Ihedioha will become governor of Imo State in 2019 is that the Imo Charter of Equity favours him. This charter of equity is a political arrangement by the forefathers of Imo politics who felt that to ensure peace, justice, equity and fair-play in the sharing of the highest level of political offices in the state, especially the governorship seat must rotate among the three senatorial zones of the state: Orlu, Okigwe and Imo.

All the senatorial zones have unanimously agreed that the governorship should go to Owerri zone. Ihedioha is from Owerri zone and the only notable candidate as such. He is widely accepted among the zones. In fact in 2015, it was believed that because of his general acceptance, he clearly won the governorship election but was rigged out by the powers that be.

Nonetheless, it would have been a herculean task for Ihedioha in this coming election if the political dynasty of Okorocha had not been decimated. Today, Okorocha has lost grip of his empire and his followers has scattered, leaving Ihedioha as the most popular and favourably-disposed all the candidates. Another factor that would ensure victory for Ihedioha is the resurgence and growing influence of the PDP given the colossal failure of the APC-led government in not meeting the expectation of Nigerians, particularly Ndigbo.

This is added to the overwhelming acceptance of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, PDP presidential candidate has received from the south-east. He would surely leverage on this to advance his forays the more.

Looking at the candidates’ political structure and base, one can state without equivocation that his structure and political base is second to none. In 2015, one of the reasons many said he didn’t win with a landslide was because his political base small, weak and fragile. Such can no longer be said of him.

Virtually all the parties in Imo State are bedeviled with large-0scale controversies. Only the PDP has a little disagreement and the elders of the party have assured that it would be resolved. This gives Ihedioha an added advantage over all the other parties.

Emeka Ihedioha is an asset to Ndigbo. With his interests include capacity building and enhancement of national stability through a consistent, patriotic, dedicated service to the nation he would surely lift Ihedioha appears to be the only one with unblemished record. Such an intelligent, well-connected land versatile performer is what Ndi Imo need today to pull them out of the economic doldrums that Okorocha and his travellers have plunged Imo into.

Nwamadi wrote from Apapa, Lagos.