There were indications on Friday that
Enugu State Governor, Sullivan Chime,
has dropped his bid to go to the Senate
in 2015.
Chime, whose tenure expires in 2015,
had been locked in a contest with
Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike
Ekweremadu, over the seat of the
Enugu West Senatorial Zone.
The governor had already been
screened for the Peoples Democratic
Party senatorial election primaries by
the party’s screening committee.
However, a few days to the primaries,
reports emerged that Chime would no
longer be participating in the election.
Following enquiries by our
correspondent, the Chief Press
Secretary to the Governor, Chukwudi
Achife, confirmed the development on
Friday.
Achifeconfirmed to our correspondent
that Chime was no longer running for
Senate.
Our correspondent gathered that the
development followed a peaceful
agreement between Chime and
Ekweremadu.
Sources in the Enugu State PDP told
our correspondent that, in line with the
said agreement, the governor will
produce most of the party’s key
candidates, including the flag bearer
in the governorship election.
In exchange, Chime had to drop his
senatorial bid.
It was learnt that the peace deal
became imperative after an
acrimonious battle for the control of
the PDP in Enugu State, between
Chime and Ekweremadu, threatened to
undermine the party’s fortunes ahead
of the 2015 elections.
The battle came to a head after the
former Enugu State PDP chairman,
Chief Vita Abba, resigned
unexpectedly.
The party’s State Executive
Committee, which is loyal to Chime,
immediately appointed Chief Ifeanyi
Asogwa as chairman to replace Abba,
but the deputy chairman, Elder David
Aja, who is a staunch Ekweremadu
loyalist, protested, arguing that he
should be the chairman.
Ekweremadu appeared to have handed
over control of the party after the PDP
National Working Committee endorsed
Aja as acting chairman, giving him the
powers to conduct the ward and
national congresses in the state.
Although the SEC, which is loyal to
Chime, insisted that the congresses
did not hold, Aja, backed by
Ekweremadu, forwarded names of
delegates elected from the exercise to
the PDP national leadership.
Following the development, both
camps went to court to advance their
positions, with an Abuja Federal High
Court upholding the ward congresses,
even as a related suit is pending
before an Enugu High Court.
Before the current peace agreement
came into effect, there were fears that
the PDP might not be able to present
candidates in 2015 as a result of the
protracted legal dispute.
The chairman of the All Progressives
Congress in Enugu State, Dr. Ben
Nwoye, had at a news conference
declared that the PDP would not be
able to present candidates in the state.
However, the absence of major
protests after the state house of
assembly primaries is an indication
that peace has returned to the Enugu
State PDP.
Enugu State Governor, Sullivan Chime,
has dropped his bid to go to the Senate
in 2015.
Chime, whose tenure expires in 2015,
had been locked in a contest with
Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike
Ekweremadu, over the seat of the
Enugu West Senatorial Zone.
The governor had already been
screened for the Peoples Democratic
Party senatorial election primaries by
the party’s screening committee.
However, a few days to the primaries,
reports emerged that Chime would no
longer be participating in the election.
Following enquiries by our
correspondent, the Chief Press
Secretary to the Governor, Chukwudi
Achife, confirmed the development on
Friday.
Achifeconfirmed to our correspondent
that Chime was no longer running for
Senate.
Our correspondent gathered that the
development followed a peaceful
agreement between Chime and
Ekweremadu.
Sources in the Enugu State PDP told
our correspondent that, in line with the
said agreement, the governor will
produce most of the party’s key
candidates, including the flag bearer
in the governorship election.
In exchange, Chime had to drop his
senatorial bid.
It was learnt that the peace deal
became imperative after an
acrimonious battle for the control of
the PDP in Enugu State, between
Chime and Ekweremadu, threatened to
undermine the party’s fortunes ahead
of the 2015 elections.
The battle came to a head after the
former Enugu State PDP chairman,
Chief Vita Abba, resigned
unexpectedly.
The party’s State Executive
Committee, which is loyal to Chime,
immediately appointed Chief Ifeanyi
Asogwa as chairman to replace Abba,
but the deputy chairman, Elder David
Aja, who is a staunch Ekweremadu
loyalist, protested, arguing that he
should be the chairman.
Ekweremadu appeared to have handed
over control of the party after the PDP
National Working Committee endorsed
Aja as acting chairman, giving him the
powers to conduct the ward and
national congresses in the state.
Although the SEC, which is loyal to
Chime, insisted that the congresses
did not hold, Aja, backed by
Ekweremadu, forwarded names of
delegates elected from the exercise to
the PDP national leadership.
Following the development, both
camps went to court to advance their
positions, with an Abuja Federal High
Court upholding the ward congresses,
even as a related suit is pending
before an Enugu High Court.
Before the current peace agreement
came into effect, there were fears that
the PDP might not be able to present
candidates in 2015 as a result of the
protracted legal dispute.
The chairman of the All Progressives
Congress in Enugu State, Dr. Ben
Nwoye, had at a news conference
declared that the PDP would not be
able to present candidates in the state.
However, the absence of major
protests after the state house of
assembly primaries is an indication
that peace has returned to the Enugu
State PDP.
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