The former minister of information under the Obasanjo administration and Chief of Staff to former Governor Chimaroke Nnamani of Enugu State and now the Enugu APGA gubernatorial candidate, Mr Frank Nweke Jnr. has in a media chat with the Enugu Professional Online Publishers (EPOP) stated clearly reasons he dumped PDP for APGA.
In addressing issues of regional integration, restructuring and what ought to be the place of Ndi igbo in the Nigerian Polity he explained that the Igbos are currently facing an existential challenge in the country.
He said;
“It is on account largely, for the fact that this party has not been faithful to the most important document governing its operations and existence which is their constitution and in the fact that for almost 24 years our people have shown fidelity to the PDP by supporting every candidate the party has brought out since it was founded in 1998. This party on account of just the overall view, condescending behavior and oppressive behavior towards a part of the country chose political expediency to change their own rules and constitution.
In 1999 the entire Southeast supported Obasanjo Presidency and Subsequently the Yar’adua presidency, the Jonathan administration and even supported the candidacy of Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi and just when it was time in keeping to their own constitution for our people to take their place at the headship of the party what happened? They began to introduce controversies and all of that and in the end they had their way.”
Mr Nweke further explained that politics is about interest either National interest or group interest and so if we have supported this group for 24 years faithfully and yet it was not long enough time to trust, support or show kindness.
He asked; What is the guarantee that in another 4-8 years that they will do the needful?
“ I saw it coming and I had to look at the choices available to me. For me, the PDP was out of it. For the APC, they have been singularly responsible for dividing our country and our people and promoting religious extremism and terrorism in a way that is unprecedented in this country. They destroyed our economy and this president has called our people names. He has not hidden his disdain for our people.”
He continued;
“So on what basis was I going to join the APC? The APC is dysfunctional, divisive, vindictive, brutal and so incompetent. There is completely no base! So for me, the APC was completely out of it for me”
The former chief of staff, Mr Frank Nweke recounted that in making the decision of joining the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) he took cognizance of the Nigerian history.
He asked the relevant questions on how parties like APGA and APC were formed and how these parties transformed over the years.
For him, the leadership of APGA resonates with him. He enumerated how Michael Okpara and his colleagues used APGA which was formerly UPGA to transform the economy of the Southeast in 1958 and 1967.
In his words;
“As far as I’m concerned the leadership of the then UPGA were visionaries. These men saw ahead of what a lot of people still do not see till today.
The Slogan “Onye aghana Nwanneya speaks to shared prosperity. The concept of shared prosperity is founded on what I have often described as Igbo social cosmology. The Igbos can contribute money to send the children of the downtrodden to school. That is who we are. That is shared prosperity.
In other words, APGA was founded and established taking into cognizance your way of life and your culture and that is how APGA is structured”