Southeast Back Seat In National Politics, Unacceptable – Ganduje

National Chairman of All Progressives Congress(APC), Alhaji Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has said that the seeming back seat position taken by the people of South east geopolitical zone in national politics is no longer acceptable to those of them in th APC and other Nigerians.

He said that the people of South East are an important part of Nigeria, very nationalistic and domiciled in every local government in country vwith sizable population but regrettably at the back seat of the country’s politics. He therefore likened the east to still been under rural electrification politically and which must be connected to the national political grid.

“This zone, the South East is a very important part of Nigeria. There are five states in the zone and we are praying for at least one more state for the zone.

“Politically,the south east is under the rural electrification. Infact, you are using generating set politically and this is not acceptable.We must take you to national grid.
“You are highly nationalistic and found in every local government area in Nigeria but holed up in one party.It is not acceptable.

“The late Ikemba Nnewi and EzeIgbo Gburugburu, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu took the Igbo to the center of national politics when he returned after his pardon by President Shehu Shagari.

“You have to do that again”,he said.

Ganduje who was in Awka,the Anambra state capital on Saturday to open the new secretariat of the state APC and according to him rub minds with the state stakeholders on the way forward said all the strategies to ensure the success of APC in the state had been worked out and that they had seen the commitments from the wards, local governments and the state.

He said that the APC is politically solid without factions and that all members including the entire National Working Committee (NWC) members of the party who came with him had taken an undertaken that it would no longer be business as usual.

The party he said would now be active throughout the year and are as proactive as they are visionary, focused, internally democratic at both wards, local government, state and national levels and fully aware of the party’s progress.

He described the President,Bola Ahmed Tinubu as an articulate and committed Nigerian who believes in her unity, equity and progress and can see future endowments and even weaknesses.

The President he said is taking Nigeria to the next level and that the results of Tinubu’s reforms are positively becoming manifest in the economy which he said had improved significantly, then the currency and security.

“Now, we are asking for your cooperation to capture Anambra on November 8,when the governorship election holds”,he said

According to Ganduje, Anambra is dear to the APC and remains one project that must be accomplished.

He promised a level playing ground for the 10 aspirants jostling to clinch the party ticket in the April primaries, while appealing to those who lost to cooperate with winner to win the governorship election since all of them can’t be governor at the same time.

But the party’s National Secretary, Senator Surajudeen Ajibola Bashiru who also spoke said that they had come to issue the state governor and his All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) a yellow card and had reserved the red card till the election on November 8, when they would be booted out of the government house,Awka.
“We have come to issue a yellow card to Prof Soludo. The red card will come on November 8,2025. We are going to give APGA and Soludo red card that day.
“They can abuse us. But what we resolved and know is that the APC will be in greater majority in the South East by November.
“Already we have Imo and Ebonyi and the addition of Anambra in November will make the conquest complete. Bye,bye to Soludo”,he said and accused him of running a rudderless government at Agu-Awka.

Earlier, the state chairman of APC, Hon Chief Basil Ejidike said that they had articulated a blue print for the state chapter and which has been its tool and guide the “Anambra 2025” project.

As part of the instruments towards building a strong and virile APC,oil and maintain its structures in Anambra,Ejidike said the state chapter had embarked on a tour of the state’s 326 electoral wards and 21 local government areas.

He said the APC had become the beautiful bride and the most sought after political party in the state because of the chapter’s genuine activities, adding that every known political heavy weight in the state today belongs to APC.

He told Ganduje that the issue of appointments from the state made by the Federal government without recourse to the party has remained inimical to its growth and success, describing it as a major challenge.
The non party members beneficiaries of these appointments he said do not reckon with the party at the state level whereas those bonafide members who had made sacrifices for the party and are still making are neither rewarded nor adequately appreciated.

“Many of those who have gotten juicy federal government appointments in the past were mainly non party members drawn especially from our rival APGA.

“This trend has not in any way served as a source of inspiration or motivation to party members and is thus threatening our strength and enthusiasm of emerging victorious in the Anambra 2025 project. But we’ll excel this time around”,he said.