Newly elected National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, has emerged a power broker in the party in Imo State, alongside former Governor of Imo State, Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha.
Before Senator Anyanwu’s election as PDP’s national scribe, Ihedioha alone had called the shots in Imo PDP, holding firm the party structure by planting all his allies as officials of the party from the ward to the state levels.
His firm grip of the party in Imo State is said to have placed him in a pole position to decide who gets what in the party, making him a political tingod who will determine the fate of numerous public office seekers in the party.
All that may have changed with the emergence of Senator Anyanwu as National Secretary of the PDP, whose office carries considerable influence and political weight.
Before Senator’s Anyanwu’s new position in the party, a former official of the PDP and one time aide of Ihedioha, Madu Chinemerem, had alleged that Ihedioha, former governors of Imo and Anambra States, Achike Udenwa and Dr. Peter Obi, were opposed to the choice of Anyanwu as consensus candidate of the South East PDP for the position of National Secretary.
Barely 48 hours after the claims, Ihedioha denied the allegations, and pledged support to Anyanwu.
Few days to the PDP National Convention, he demonstrated his support for Senator Anyanwu alongside other PDP chieftains in Abuja to drum support for Anyanwu. The political undercurrents which led to Ihedioha’s sudden realignment and support for Senator Anyanwu was said to have been predicated on several seen and unseen political factors.
However, analysts contend that with his emergence as National Secretary of the PDP, Senator Anyanwu has bounced back as huge factor, a power broker in Imo PDP and in the South East.