BY CHIKWENDU EMEROLE
There have been heightened clamour by a cross section of the state for a power shift. This has come to be known as the Imo state charter of equity. It is expected when put to use, it will produce a governor of Owerri zone extraction for the state. Much as Owerri people leverage on certain crucibles mainly as the zone yet to produce a governor since the present democratic dispensation, Okigwe makes case for one more turn to complete her eight year tenure. The discussion continues.
Owerri zone is known to have great arrays of formidable sons and daughters who can throw their hats into the gubernatorial ring. They come in different sizes, shapes and strength.
This report centers on the capacity, public perception, antecedents, unique selling points (USP), prospects, and rating of prominent Owerri zone sons and daughters who can take over from Governor Hope Uzodimma in 2027.
Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha
There is no doubt that whenever the issue of Owerri zone governorship race comes up, he is the first name that comes up.
He is one who has been in the political field for over twenty years holding one high office or the other.
He contested for the governorship position under the PDP in 2015 against the then incumbent governor, Senator Rochas Okorocha. He failed. He had a repeat in 2019 under the same PDP. He was declared the winner by INEC, sworn in and had a brief stay before the Supreme Court sacked him and was replaced by Senator Hope Uzodimma.
No doubt, he had a blue print for his botched administration. Many saw his ouster as a combination of many factors chief among which was despotism, arrogance, disdain for people around him who mostly aided him at one point or the other.
He sought again for the PDP guber ticket in 2023 but had to withdraw in very controversial circumstances.
He went on to resign from the PDP with his Rebuild Imo faction of the party.
Presently, Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha is seen as an internally displaced politician, IDP. Many Imolites are of the opinion that he should allow another Owerri zone person the opportunity to contest because he has earned for himself a heavy political baggage which definitely weighs him down along every political paths. Most people see his attempts at the governorship office as a clear example of how practice makes one imperfect.
Also, some argue thay Ihedioha has been the most “beneficial” politician from Owerri Zone, having been Deputy Speaker, Speaker of the House of Representatives, and later, Governor of Imo State.
According to them, the dividends of these high-level positions he has attained have not really translated to the benefit of the people of Owerri Zone.
Also, his inability to hold on to the governorship of the state, which he lost to Uzodimma, may compel Imolites, especially the people of Owerri Zone, not to entrust him with power again.
This has also portrayed Ihedioha as a political weakling, having also allowed Senator Samuel Anyanwu to snatch the soul of the Imo PDP from him.
The odds are definitely against him in the race.
2.Sen Ezenwa Onyewuchi :
He is one politician who has enjoyed political grace.
He is a successful political gambler who has benefitted from the odds. From no where, no resources, (he was said to have been personally annointed with all administrative and campaign expenses paid by Chief Martin Agbaso for his, Onyewuchi’s Federal House race under APGA in 2011 ).He won the Owerri Federal Constituency seat as a result of the APGA hurricane in 2011 in the state.
In 2015, he cross carpeted to PDP following the Peter Obi’s sojourn to the party as Atiku Abukakar’s Running Mate. Again, it was the same wave that took him to the Senate. He was to return to the Senate a second time not because of his good performance but the Peter Obi’s magic wave band in the Labour party.
Recall that his party, the PDP rejected him at their primary election because of his very poor performance record.
No doubt, Senator Ezenwa Onyewuchi is a shifty politician with no record of hard-work, reward for his followers, track records services to his constituents or even to his immediate Orji community.
For example, no road is known to have been attracted by him even the one leading to his palatial country home.
Onyewuchi prides himself as one who has empowered his people through various empowerment programmes for the people of Owerri Zone, but investigation reveals that that most of the projects are sponsored by the Federal government.
Also, most of the beneficiaries of his empowerment programs are either his cronies, allies, or relatives of his friends.
Onyewuchi is not popular in Okigwe and Orlu zones. His political tentacles have not extended beyond the confines of Owerri Zone.
He is said to be a serial political party defector and holds the highest record of the most political party defector in Imo State, if not in the South East.
Since 1999, Onyewuchi has romanced APGA, PDP, Labour Party, and now the APC. Some say he will quit the APC if he fails to achieve his guber ambition.
Such acts paint him as inconsistent, devoid of any political solidity, and an “obey the wind” politician, a description that captures his political behavior and puts a question mark on his credibility
It will be difficult for his media handlers to whitewash him and present him to the Imo electorates as a gubernatorial material with all the odds against him.
Chief Jerry Chukwueke
He is the most colourful politician in the state.
A smooth talker which he combines with an American accent, he plays politics with the skills of a gifted football dribbler who gets the spectators’ applause but unfortunately, do not score goals.
He earns himself the political nickname, “great mobilizer” and he does well mobilizing for others.
Chukwueke is best known for politics of entertainment. He is one politician in the state that has contested for every position in different election year without going into the ballot, except when he dramatically contested as the Vice Presidential candidate of APGA. This was the nearest he came to the ballot.
No doubt, he played the surrogacy role for the reelection of Senator Hope Uzodimma. Would that earn him the APC ticket?
Suprisingly, he is less seen at state’s official functions unlike before.
Not many people will trust him with a ticket going by his political antecedents.
Also, his political tentacles do not go beyond Owerri North LGA, and this may be a minus to his governorship ambition on the basis that Governor Hope Uzodimma’s successor should be someone popular in Okigwe and acceptable in Orlu zones.
Prince Dr Alex Mbata (PAM)
He is a young man and a new face in Imo state politics.
A very successful billionaire businessman, many said he came into the murky waters of the state’s politics with open mind devoid of the jungle experiences that characterized the political terrains.
In terms of community development services, he tops the chart with verifiable personal community projects across the state especially in Owerri zone.
He is the best known philanthropist who in 2021, carried what is still regarded as the mother of all humanitarian works in empowerment which cost him over half a billion naira of his personal earnings.
He is also the only one among the lot which constructed public roads to assist in the economic and social developments of the state.
Aside the Imo State government, Mbata is rated the highest human development investor in the State from the private sector.
Adjudged to be humble with no political baggage, Mbata is said to be political bridge, based on his extensive political goodwill he enjoys beyond Owerri zone.
Should he decide to run for the governor, he will be a great asset to his party because he is unblemished in all ramifications.
However, many critics are of the opinion that he must as a matter of political safety, guard himself with men of trust to avoid a repeat of the callous conspiracies against his 2023 senatorial bid.
Count down to the 2027/08 gubernatorial election in the state, he is a bright and sellable candidate for Owerri should he decide to throw his hat into the ring.
Sir Jude Ejiogu
A former Chief of Staff and Secretary to the State government, he is a known face in the state’s politics.
A seasoned ex banker, Ejiogu has not made any sucesssful political journey since leaving government.
He ran as one of the governorship aspirants in the APC in 2019 party primaries.
He was a member of the anti Rochas coalition then in spite of the fact that he had his political breakthrough under Senator Rochas Okorocha’s patronage.
Since leaving government, he has not made any significant impact in the politics of the zone apart from regular mushrooms gatherings in his Emekuku village country home.
No doubt, he doesn’t have what it takes to go into the race but will be an asset to anyone he backs because of experience in political organizations.
He is also known not to have the fianancial muscle to vie for an expensive project such as Imo guber.
Chief Henry Njoku (Harritex):
Henry Njoku is a businessman.
His first political adventure was when he ran for the House of Representatives for Owerri Federal Constituency, 22 years ago, in 2007 to be precise, on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
He lost the party primary to Rt Hon Ernest Ibejiako.
His defeat was not necessarily a rejection of his candidacy by the party’s delegates, but more a conspiracy from the party’s elites and some leaders then.
He went on two more times, to contest for the primaries in the same position without success
Since then, Njoku paled into political insignificance and irrrlevance until 2023.
He was alleged to have planned and worked against the former state’s Deputy Governor, Prof Placid Njoku
Much as he tried to deny it, the allegations stuck on him.
The rumor came again during the 2023 election. His desperation to be the Deputy Governor was known by all political actors in the state.
The only qualification he brandished was his personal relationship with the Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma.
It was strongly believed that his ambition led him to mismanage the trust and confidence reposed in him by his kinsman, Prince Dr Alex Mbata who appointed him the Chairman of his senatorial campaign council.
It was further alleged he (Harritex) did not allow the DG of the campaign council, Rt Hon Goddy Dikeocha (a more experienced, bright and honest politician) to drive the campaign activities of PAM.
Chief Henry Njoku was said to have adopted the same script used to betray his federal house ambition for his brother PAM whom he feared his win would put to rest his deputy governorship ambition.
In other words, he holds the blame for Mbata’s inability to win the Senate race for Owerri zone, and there is a general belief that if he can’t deliver a Senatorial candidate, can he deliver himself to be governor?
Emerole, who writes from Owerri, is Secretary, Owerri Zone Concerned Patriots