By Nduka Maxwell
Recently, I read that one of the strategies of Mr. Andy Ubah’s campaign is to generate actions that will give Anambrarians the impression that he has the momentum in this latter part of the Anambra governorship race. None of these actions are organic or real, rather they are poorly choreographed by Mr. Ubah and his campaign team. Since his campaign is not well funded or properly structured, he has opted to use distractions and seemingly shiny objects to get attention. The Uba campaign is not well funded because he is having personal financial troubles and has tried unsuccessfully to sell off some of his properties to fund his campaign. In addition, he has not been getting the expected funding from the national APC or APC governors because they do not support him.
This is not surprising considering that his opponent, George Moghalu is Rotimi Amaechi’s candidate in the Anambra gubernatorial race. When George Moghalu was outsmarted and cheated out of a chance to win free and fair by Andy Ubah in the Anambra APC governorship primaries, he refused to accept defeat and has been mounting a legal challenge ever since (the case is still awaiting a ruling). The minister of transportation and former governor of Rivers State is standing by Mr. Moghalu as he challenges Mr. Ubah. It is for this reason that Mr. Andy Ubah has been starved of funds from the National APC leadership and governors; which has left his campaign poorly funded.
Mr. Andy Ubah’s claim to have momentum has been interrogated and found to be false. Instead, what has been discovered is that Mr. Ubah and his campaign are generating artificial and fake “momentum” by paying people some sums of money, and promising others even larger sums of money to decamp from their political parties to his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC). As these defections hit the news, it makes it appear as though he has grassroots support.
Mr. Andy Ubah does not have grassroots support in Anambra. Sons and daughters of Anambra are wary of Andy Ubah and the Ubah brothers because of their penchant for violence, destruction, and degradation at the expense of Anambra and Anambrarians. The voters of Anambra do not want Andy Ubah and they will prove it come November 6 at the governorship polls.
Numerous politicians are skint or hard up financially because the Muhammadu Buhari-led government has destroyed the Nigerian economy and caused hardship from border to border. So Mr. Ubah has been seeking out politicians who are either financially hard-up or greedy and has given some money and promised others even larger sums to decamp to APC.
Reports on the ground indicate that Mr. Uba has promised some politicians like Hon. Lynda Chuba-Ikpeazu N500 million to decamp from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC). There was a moment in time in politics in Nigeria that people would promise people appointments, contracts, or slots for appointments. It shows the state of the rottenness of the brand of Andy Uba’s and the Uba brothers’ politics that people are being promised raw cash which he expects to draw from Anambra state’s treasury should he win.
In the final analysis, the Ghana-must-go-driven defections do not depict real momentum in the race, but it shows who is who. It shows who Ndi Anambra can trust to hold the line and fight for their interests, and who will bow down and roll over and allow the needs and agendas of the Fulani APC national party to come before the needs of the sons and daughters of Anambra. There is a saying that goes “with friends like these, who needs enemies?”. With people like Mr. Andy Uba, the Uba brothers, Hon. Lynda Chuba-Ikpeazu, and Senator Stella Oduah, does Anambra and do any Anambrarians need enemies?
All Anambra voters need to vote on November 6 in the gubernatorial poll and make a statement for their future and the future of their children. Are they going to choose the people who see the entire Igbo tribe as a dot on a map to be wiped out, or will they choose a leader to govern the state and move Anambra into the greatness it is capable of? Hopefully, they will do the latter and rescue Anambra from falling into degradation and handing over the state to Fulani elements whose plan is genocide and robbery.
Nduka Maxwell is a journalist and lecturer at the Enugu State University. He believes in developing the democracy of Nigeria.
