*Beg UGWUANYI to fulfil promise to Obeagu Ward

*Anger rages over single form

Protests have continued over the decision of the Peoples Democratic Party in Enugu State to make only a single form available for each of the 17 council chairmanship and 260 councillorship positions in the February 23 local government council election in the state.

The Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission (ENSIEC) in announcing timetable for the council polls, called for nominations by political parties, but stakeholders and members of the PDP in Obeagu in Awgu LGA, have vented their frustration and disappointment over what they described as the refusal of the Augustine Nnamani-led Enugu State PDP to avail their indigenes nomination and expression of interest forms to vie for the council chairmanship position of Awgu LGA.

The people, who recently trooped out in their numbers, staged a protest to the party’s state office in Enugu before marching to the Government House, Enugu, to urge Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi to fulfil a promise allegedly made to them in 2019 that it would be their turn to emerge chairman of Awgu LGA in 2022 council election.

Making their complaints known, a Ward and community leader, Engr. Ani, said “Everyone has the right to contest as long as you have all the requirements. Obeagu has not smelt any political office in Enugu for 37 years. We have also been sidestepped since the inception of PDP in 1998.

“In the 2019 local government election, Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi publicly promised Obeagu people that so long as he remained in power, an Obeagu person would emerge the Chairman of Awgu Local Government Chairman in 2022. So, we are surprised that it seems as if the governor has forgotten his promise or he was miss advised.

“Obeagu is made up of eight villages, namely, Ugwu na Ngwu, Eziama, Amaoji, Agbani, Ebenebe, Ugwuagbom, Amanze, Enugu na ato and Obuo. The area has been seriously marginalised in terms of political appointments and patronages in Enugu State.

“We want to inform the governor that before now, people of Obeagu who felt that they have what it takes to contest for the position of local government chairman of Awgu, had gone to the state headquarters of the PDP on several occasions to purchase nomination forms, but unfortunately none was given to them.

“So, we are here today to inform our peace loving governor to honour his promise since he is a governor who listens to the downtrodden.

“We want to let him know that Obeagu people are not in the minority in Awgu local government. From 1999 till date, we have supported the PDP with every seriousness. I want to shock the people here. In 2019, an Obeagu son was the running mate of the APC governorship candidate, yet Obeagu voted overwhelmingly for the PDP. Our son even lost in his polling unit or booth because Obeagu is PDP 100 percent and we owe no apology to anybody.

“It is payback time as promised by the our governor and we see no reason we should be shoved aside and denied even nomination forms to view for the ticket of the party to lead Awgu LGA. More so when he had given us his words in 2019. He should go back and reflect on what he told ndi Obeagu and Awgu LG in 2019”.

Meanwhile, the people of Obeagu are not the only ones grieving over their exclusion by what many Enugu people see as an undemocratic act of single form syndrome.

“This single form syndrome is destroying internal democracy in the PDP. The system of one single form is very bad because it excludes qualified people and possibly the better candidates. How come we have come to the level of picking party candidates in the government House.

“It is also further reducing the PDP to a one-man (governor) party in the state because the party cannot make its own money through dues and sell of nomination forms. That means that the party will continue to depend on governor and a few people to survive. And he who pays the piper dictates the tune.

“Even worse, the practice is a flagrant breach of the PDP constitution and the Electoral Act. It is an affront to the rule of law”, an Enugu party chieftain, who didn’t want his name in print said.