I have no apologies for our actions in Enugu, says Chime

Mr. Sullivan Chime, Enugu State governor, is wondering why the endorsement of Mr. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, as the governorship choice of the state Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Enugu North senatorial district, should be generating so much angst from party men. Explaining to a group of journalists “why and how we took this decision,” the governor, who assumes a position of finality, as regards the controversial outcome, said the national party should be thankful to Enugu PDP for adopting a less acrimonious and more harmonious approach to picking a “well-accepted” choice for the governorship race in 2015. KODILINYE OBIAGWU, the Southeast Bureau Chief, was there.


On whether approach was planned or just a brainwave under the circumstances

IN the past one week or thereabouts, we have been meeting. The party primary is in November and the purchase of forms will begin this month, October.

  In line with our practice in the PDP in Enugu, we have commenced consultations to see if we can agree amongst ourselves on who should actually represent us at all levels, from House of Assembly to governorship. We started with the governorship, which should have been the most difficult one.

  During the activities leading to the 2011 elections, we had an understanding within the party that at the end of my second term, the position should go to the North that has not produced a governor on the platform of the PDP.

  So, about two years ago, the caucus of our party met and a request was made for us to formalize that arrangement, and we reaffirmed the decision that the governorship should go to the North.

  In keeping with that decision, we, last week, summoned a meeting, of who-is-who from the Enugu North senatorial district. Although we called it a caucus meeting, everybody was invited given the importance of the issue. All the persons who had indicated interest in the race were present. There were elected officials, government officials, both state and national, and past and present leaders.

  At the end of the deliberations, a motion was moved for the endorsement of one of the aspirants for governorship. There was no counter motion. At the end of the day, many of the contestants stepped down for Hon. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi. The truth is that only one nomination came up and everybody unanimously endorsed him.

Insinuations that the governor led the discussion and managed the outcome

  I was there just like an umpire; I didn’t participate in the deliberation. Mine was just to guide them or coordinate what was happening. So, everybody who wanted to speak was given the opportunity to speak.

  People who had expressed concern earlier, thinking that they were actually called to come and endorse a particular candidate, after hearing from their kinsmen changed their views.

  Interestingly, Ambassador Fidel Ayogu, who moved the motion and the former deputy governor, Okechukwu Itanyi, who supported it, were contestants. Their motion was unanimously endorsed.

  As the person who coordinated it, when I asked if anyone was against that motion, there was not a single hand raised.

  Hitherto, they had been coming to me, trying to give reasons why a person should be governor. My response to all of them then was that it’s the people who would decide. And that whoever was agreed upon, it would be my burden to start leading that person and that I wasn’t going to nominate any person.

  At the end of that meeting, it became my burden to ensure that we got support from the other zones. We called a meeting of Enugu East senatorial district and everybody was there. The people of Enugu West met and they moved a motion and it was unanimously returned that Ugwuanyi would be our candidate.

  We have affirmed it again at the state’s caucus meeting, where all the zones came together and reiterated what they said earlier and formally endorsed him as our consensus candidate.

Protests against the decision

  It is a surprise that the outcome of the meetings have been misrepresented. I have heard of some people threatening to go to court. This was a case of people coming together to express their desire and pick the person they want as governor.

  The point has to be made that we have not elected a governor; we have not elected or selected the PDP candidate. We are saying that as the PDP family in Enugu, this is our number one choice. At the appropriate time, he will buy form and be subjected to the primary.

  On the day of primary, he could probably be the only candidate. There could be other people who will see reasons to queue behind him or behind others. Nobody is being cowed to support him.

Attraction in this approach that PDP in Enugu adopted in picking its candidate

FOR the first time in the history of Nigeria, we will be producing a governor who will be returned unopposed. It is not by our might, it is not by any phony means. Really, we did that during the last council elections where all the 17 council chairmen were returned unopposed.

  It has never happened anywhere else but in Enugu. We are looking forward to this one happening. The success of this depends on the way you run the party and keep the people together to have implicit trust in what you are doing. We preach peace, togetherness, and selflessness.

Method looks undemocratic in Enugu regarded as a one-party state

  What we have done is enshrined in the constitution of our party. I don’t see why any party at any level should be against negotiation. We cannot, under any circumstance, be described as undemocratic.

  That is the most democratic thing you can do if you can get your kinsmen to agree that this is our leader; nobody is being coerced into doing that. This is what lobbying and campaigning is all about.

  So, if you can get people to say this is our choice or your candidate, then nobody can stop you from doing that. We are not doing this in contravention of any rules or constitution of the party. The truth is that we are actually doing what the party’s constitution encourages, which is to dialogue and talk to each other.

  We are only pleading that anybody who feels aggrieved should look at the larger interest of the people and queue behind every other person. Ugwuanyi is just a popular choice; anybody will endorse him any day, any time.

Feeling that Senator Ayogu Eze, from Enugu North, is apparently leading the dissent against emergence of Ugwuanyi

  The thought that he said that he didn’t know why the meeting was called is very laughable. Everybody was invited to that meeting. How many of them will say that they were ambushed?

  I don’t have any apologies for not telling them in advance why they were being called. If you had informed them in advance, probably Nsukka would have been on fire by the time we came to the meeting. People would have been lobbying, moving money around and doing funny things.

  We know one another; there is no stranger in our midst. The important thing was to ensure that everybody was present; why we came there was immaterial.

  This is a family matter, we know one another; you don’t need time to lobby anybody. And the surprise aspect was the beauty of it. Everybody saw the thing happening, and it happened.

Endorsement of Ugwuanyi seems to run against the interest of the national party’s warning

  If such a statement was made, then it is unfortunate. I never read it and I don’t believe the statement was made. Under the constitution of the party, we are encouraged to talk things over, come together and discuss rather than be at war.

  The party can never be against any level of the party coming together to agree on a candidate. The party should be concerned if any level of the party picks a candidate and debars others from buying the forms. But if we say, this is our candidate, it doesn’t stop anyone from buying the form, but he will be doing so knowing the person we will like to vote for.

  We have endorsed the president as the consensus candidate; it will not stop him from going for the primary. But if we go there, it will be a mere formality. Any other person coming out will be coming out to ridicule himself because the party has spoken.

  Constitutionally, the party cannot stop anybody from buying form. But our endorsement is a statement to whoever that is aspiring that the party has spoken. But if you like, buy your form, go for primary, what you find there, you take it.

  No one is challenging or going against the party directives. I am sure they did not understand what happened, and I am not even sure whether what they said was directed at Enugu.

  The party should encourage what we have done in Enugu. They should be congratulating us; that is the least we expect and not anybody directing us not to do anything.

Many aspirants, even from Enugu North, suppressed their aspiration, waiting for your anointing, or else they would hurt their political ambition

  Yes, initially when this thing started, people were coming to me, ostensibly for my endorsement, for what you called anointing. And I kept on reminding them that in Enugu, we don’t anoint. We allow people to speak.

  We kept on telling them that when the people speak, it will be my business to champion that person’s cause. The people in the East, West and North have spoken, nobody said no. If there is another district, we surely will like to go there.

  So, we don’t have issues. We thank God, we give glory to God for this; it is a feat actually and we are happy we have achieved and attained that feat.

  Our prayer is that we will be able to sustain it, and look forward in eight years’ time when we will be agreeing also on a consensus candidate from the East that will succeed Ugwuanyi. That is the kind of politics I will like us to continue to play in this state.

The sort of person looked for as successor

  I already knew the person. Ugwuanyi fits the bill. He fits in perfectly as the person that I will like to take over from me. He is widely acceptable; he is a kindhearted man and a team player.

  He has all it takes. He has been in the House of Representatives for nearly 12 years. So, I think he is eminently qualified to be governor.

  In Enugu, we don’t have opposition; we have only the PDP. So, once the party has spoken, the people have spoken. We expect Ugwuanyi to win and in February 2015; we will just be going there to throw the yes or no votes.

  I don’t expect any serious-minded person to contest against him; but we are not stopping them from doing so. We are just saying that is our wish and our prayer