Some aggrieved leaders of the All Progressive Congress, APC in Imo State are regrouping in Abuja to appraise their opposition to the policies of the Rochas Okorocha government which they said has impoverished the people of the State.
They are also strongly opposed to his plans to install a successor in 2019.
This is coming on the heels of a planned mass protest in Owerri spearheaded by a former Speaker of Imo State House of Assembly, Hon.Kelechi Nwagwu.
Nwagwu had last week reeled out the “sins” of the present government of Imo State and vowed that he will get more than one million Imolites to protest on the streets of Owerri.
Based on the foregoing, some major stakeholders in the APC in Imo State especially those aggrieved with the governor have been meeting in Abuja to appraise their plans ostensibly geared towards nipping in the bud a pro Okorocha ally taking over Government House, Owerri.
It was not ascertained as at press time if the APC group is working with the Nwagwu group who are working seriously to stage the mass protest in Owerri. Nwagwu is not yet a member of the APC though close close to him said he has “political sympathy” for the party after his sojourn in the Peoples Democratic Party and the Labour Party.
In the last two months, anti Okorocha forces had increased in the state notably a group called ImoZurukwuo, an assemblage of aggrieved stakeholders in the State who are pushing for the enthronement of a people oriented governor and not an Okorocha lackey for 2019.
Last month, fiery human rights activist and a leader of the party in Imo State, Hon Uche Onyeagocha had announced his resignation in the Special Development Council, SDC constituted by the State government. He had also fired salvos at the State governor alleging among other things his plans to install his son in law and Chief of Staff, Uche Nwosu as his successor.
Serial governorship aspirant, Senator Ifeanyi Araraume has not frontally confronted the governor on 2019 but analysts see the recent dissolution of the State Executive Council, SEC as part of plans to ” weed out” some persons seen not to be sympathetic to the Okorocha succession plan. Araraume’s son, Ifeanyi Jnr was Commissioner of Internal Resources and Pension Matters. before the dissolution of the Council.
Araraume has been the rallying point for some APC aggrieved stakeholders though the likes of Onyegacha who is pushing for an Owerri Zone governor has not openly aligned with him.
A little power play had ensued last month between the governor and Araraume over who heads the Isiala Mbano Local Government chapter of the All Progressive Congress, APC. Isiala Mbano is Araraume’s local government and he is said to direct the affairs of the party in the area.
The National Working Committee, NWC of the APC had returned Araraume’s ally as party chairman turning down the man imposed on the LGA by the Governor.
Hon Uzoma Obiyo, a communications expert and another APC stalwart had s joined Onyeagocha last month to drum opposition against the governor. Obiyo is a strong advocate for an Imo State governor of Owerri Zone extraction and is reported to be an interested person for the governorship contest.
However, this newspaper was unable to ascertain who is co- ordinating the anti Okorocha forces in the APC outside Imo State. Though most of the stakeholders are driven by a common interest which geared towards having a 2019 governor that will not come from the governor’s camp.
However, a youth group in support of the governor is planning to stage a counter protest to that organised by the Kelechi Nwagwu group. The group, according to reports said they will use the protest to showcase the achievements of the Okorocha government in Imo State in the last six years.