The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the South-east has described the statement credited to Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State that Ndigbo would be better served in the APC as an affront to Ndigbo, whose kiths and kin were recently deported to Igbo land from Lagos State, which is the strongholds of the APC.
A statement by the party’s National Vice-Chairman (South-east), Col. Austin Akobundu (rtd), yesterday said Okorocha should have first of all, reconciled the despicable incident of deporting 76 Nigerians of Igbo extraction from their country to their supposed homeland before making the verbose and unguided utterance which of course gave him and his new party away as an amalgamation of impostors.
Okorocha was quoted to have said in the United States of America, while attending the Imo State congress that the political fortunes of Ndigbo were better served in the new party, adding that the wellbeing of Ndigbo remains paramount to him.
Questioning why Okorocha had not considered it expedient to ask his mentors at APC hierarchy why they deported some Nigerians in their home country even when the party was at its embryonic stage, Akobundu emphasised that the likes of Okorocha were out there to sell Ndigbo to their masters for a pot of pottage; even when it was glaring that the APC had nothing to offer to Igbo man or woman.
“Okorocha’s profligacy and licentiousness in politics are well known. In 1998, prior to the commencement of the fourth republic Okorocha had a romance with the then All Peoples Party (APP). When he saw the tide was not in his favour he joined the PDP in 1999 and made a futile attempt to contest the Imo State governorship poll then.
“In 2003, Okorocha founded the Action Alliance (AA), which he abandoned later and rejoined the PDP. For him to contest the the state governorship in 2011, Okorocha nested with the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) from where he became governor under doubtful circumstance,” he said.
“Now ever-roving, Okorocha has once more found favour with a new political party that neither has the interest of Ndigbo at heart, as Okorocha tried unsuccessfully though to hoodwink our brothers and sisters in far away US into believing, nor has any good agenda for Igbos at home and in the Diaspora except deporting them from their assumed strongholds.
“APC is totally alien to Ndigbo and Igbos will reject it in 2015. Having embraced PDP, a party whose score card as recently published by different federal ministries, departments and agencies shows 80 per cent performance in all sectors in the two years of President Goodluck Jonathan’s first term, Ndigbo cannot but continue to support PDP in order to make Igbo land and Nigeria a model for development.
“In the South-east where Okorocha was referring to, the three state governments have been a cynosure of all eyes as the governments have maintained peace, delivered on their promises in providing infrastructure, security, health facilities etc and carried the people along in the governmental activities unlike the loquacious Okorocha who continually causes disaffection amongst the people of Imo state.
“When he is not fighting his subordinates and masterminding their impeachment, he is trading words with contractors who had insisted on due process. Such character is not the one to lead Ndigbo to their promised land. Who is sure if Okorocha will not abandon APC at the shortest possible time if his masters in Lagos, where the party claims it is making a good showing, scuttles his ambition?
“Ndigbo should ignore Okorocha and his APC and embrace PDP for the realisation of their political, economic and social objectives. PDP is neither a tribal party nor two-man show where decisions are taken at the bedroom of godfathers and imposed on the generality of the people.
[ThisDay]