A 2019 Senatorial candidate for Imo East, Barr Chyma Anthony has urged voters in the southeast of Nigeria to reject the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) if it does not zone the presidential ticket of the party to the south.
This comes as backlash continues to build up after the Party’s zoning Committee led by Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom recommended that the party leaves its presidential ticket open to everyone.
While reacting to the backlash that has followed the recommendation, Ortom said that his zoning committee will present the report to National Executive Committee of the party, saying it is the NEC that has the final authority on the zoning of positions.
Reacting to the development, Barr. Anthony, who has joined the 2023 senatorial race to represent Imo East district in the Red Chambers, accused the PDP of trading the interest of the south, and in particular the people of the southeast, who have been loyal supporters of the party since 1999.
Anthony in his statement on Tuesday in Abuja accused the PDP of ingratitude and acting with a short memory of history of the voting pattern of the people of the southeast. He said the southeast have in the past voted overwhelmingly for the PDP and should not be traded off for the selfish interest of some groups.
He also said the people of the region are not cowards and cannot be cowed into accepting an open contest for the PDP presidential ticket in order to satisfy the greedy yearnings of a few.
Anthony therefore urged the people of the southeast to reject the PDP for any other political party that considers their interest first. He said if this development is coming from the APC, it will be understandable as the southeast have voted minimally for the party since its inception.
“As far as I am concerned, there are no cogent argument for the presidential candidate of the party not be zoned to the South.
“I wondered why the PDP had decided to jettison zoning when on popular demand it is the turn of the South and particularly the southeast to produce the next president of Nigeria.
“The Igbos has made a lot of emotional investment in the PDP which has not yielded much.
It is our love for PDP that blinded us so much that despite our brothers’ Late Dr Chuba Okadigbo and Late Chief Ume-Ezeoke, being chosen by President Muhammadu Buhari as running mates in 2003 and 2007 respectively under ANPP, we still did not show the actual solidarity that we should have.
“These two were amongst our best brains yet we followed a party that abandoned our own in 1999 at the last minute. Even this time being the opportunity for the party to right its wrong by micro zoning to southeast, yet it throws it open. What does that tell us?” Anthony queried.
He further described the decision of the party to throw open the contest as a negation of justice, describing it as an injustice committed by the party against the devoted and loyal people of the southeast of Nigeria.
He added that the people of the region will en masse vote any party that considers the southeast in picking its presidential candidate, even as strong indication have emerged of the APC picking its presidential candidate from the south and likely from the southeast region.
“I therefore urged the voters of the southeast to dump the PDP in 2023 should it jettison zoning and consider another strong party in the region like the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) as we cannot be loyal without a reward,” Anthony said.
