Former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Chief Okwesilieze Nwodo, has stated that Ndigbo will not remain political slaves to other zones of the country.
Newsonline reports that the former governor of Enugu State, Nwodo, said the emergence of Peter Obi was the right part for the people of the South-East for the 2023 general election.
Okwy Nwodo said it was an insult and a clear sign of taking Ndigbo as political slaves that made the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC, and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, ignore the call that they give their presidential tickets to Ndigbo.
Nwodo said since the return to democracy in 1999, Ndigbo has supported other geo-political zones of the country and contributed to national development. He regretted that instead of showing reciprocation, Ndigbo have been taken as political slaves.
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Nwodo said: “Igbos will not remain political slaves serving other geo-political zones in Nigeria. I know that politics is dynamic. This is a period of political alignment and re-alignment for the Igbo politicians so that our common interest can see the light of the day.”
The former National Chairman of PDP stated that Ndigbo will form an alliance with progressive parties and regions that have the interest of Nigeria at heart to ensure Peter Obi of Labour Party emerges as the president of the country come 2023.
“The Igbos would be looking for allies who can meet their irreducible minimum to remain part of Nigeria’s political system. While they look for that in the major political parties, they have a big plan B in other parties. I know that the two important Igbos would be on the ballot paper for their political parties. The one that is most promising is Mr. Peter Obi, of the Labour Party. Dumebi Kachikwu, the younger brother to the former Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu, also secured the ticket of the African Democratic Congress. So, if we do not get anything from APC and PDP, we can get something through other political parties.
“So, this is a period of negotiations, alignment, and re-alignment. The Igbos will not just give up like that. We are not happy about how we were treated by APC and PDP, but the game is still on, it is not the end of it yet. I am happy that we have alternatives to remain relevant in Nigeria politics.”
The former Enugu State governor in an interview added that: “For those of us who have been campaigning for South-East presidency, we are not happy that some of our leaders in PDP and APC didn’t join in this struggle. If you are talking about two PDP Governors in South East who campaigned for South-South aspirants, what about the Senate Majority Whip, Orji Ozor Kalu, and Governor of Imo State, Hope Uzodinma, who campaigned for Ahmed Lawan, when we had strong aspirants from South East in their parties? Our Igbo political leaders didn’t do well this time, especially when they knew that it was the turn of South-East to produce a president for the country in 2023.“
