Nkanu clan is in political disarray, as a dozen aspirants purchase or warm up to buy governorship nomination forms.
At last count, about 10 aspirants plan to purchase the N21m forms from the Clan. Thus, they are set to pour in more than N200 million to the coffers of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Among the prominent ones are Prof Bart Nnaji, Mr. Peter Mbah, Chief Chinyeaka Oha, and Rep Offor Chukwuegbo.
Political strategists from Nkanu get more worried as younger elements rush to also pick up the forms.
Enugu Metro learnt that the younger politicians are working on the tacit encouragement of the party leadership in the State
Concerned citizens of Nkanu said this is a familiar playbook for knocking out any group by the party leaders.
“They dangle the governorship slot before our young politicians ” one stakeholder familiar with the strategy said.
“There are two things that these young people do not know. One is that each one of them enjoys the same promise of support from the same leaders. The other is that this support makes them fight to the bitter end, convinced that they are the anointed.
“But how many persons can a governor or party chairman anoint? They’re merely using them to further leave Nkanu in disarray,” he said.
One of the young aspirants told Enugu Metro in confidence that the Governor encouraged him to run.
Another told friends that the governor promised to make him the “surprise of the century.”
However, he is yet to purchase nomination and interest forms, implying that he may have seen the light.
An analyst and top politician from Nkanu lamented the development which he termed “divide to conquer” strategy.
“With over 10 aspirants from Nkanu eager to purchase nomination forms or who’ve already done so, we’ve become sitting ducks.
‘A 2018 Plot against Nkanu’
“Look at the force (Sen.) Ekweremadu is generating now. Add this to the unhidden support by Nsukka zone for Isi-Uzo. What do you see? We need no prophet to tell us Nkanu is doomed?” he said.
He told Enugu Metro that Lion Building perfected the unfolding strategy “to reduce Nkanu to size” in 2018.
According to him, this was when Governor Ugwuanyi, to the consternation of many, decided “to resurrect Chimaroke Nnamani from political graveyard.”
By returning the former Governor to the Senate, Gov Ugwuanyi foreclosed the possibility of an Nkanu governor in 2023, he said.
“Many of us saw through this at that time but we didn’t talk. We know that Chimaroke will not sacrifice his Senatorial seat to Isi-Uzo, so as to allow Nkanu get the governorship slot. Our Governor read him quite well.
“The strategy of supporting young people from Nkanu to buy nomination forms is the final nail in the coffin. Those young men will fight and dissipate the votes needed for Nkanu to pick the PDP nomination.
“We know that the ultimate strategy is to divide delegate votes from Enugu East and West and then use block votes from Nsukka to install an Isi-Uzo candidate.
Asked what the way out is, he said he will not tell.
“But I assure you there will be consequences if Ugwuanyi wants Nsukka to rule for another eight years through the back door.”
Nkanu in political disarray as aspirants multiply
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