Soludo’s Leadership Could Lead to APGA Losing Anambra – Chekwas Okorie

In this interview with CHIBUIKE CHUKWU, pioneer National Chairman and founder of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Chekwas Okorie, discusses the impending Anambra State governorship race, Governor Charles Soludo’s chances, and other national concerns. Taken from

According to what you previously stated, the APGA, APC, and Labour Party would compete in the November Anambra State gubernatorial event. Considering that the PDP was once the state’s and the country’s ruling party, does it mean you don’t take them seriously?

I am not even aware of the PDP’s nominee for the same November gubernatorial election as I speak to you. The number of people who are familiar with the PDP candidate in the election is likewise unknown to me. Hence, it is about the present reality rather than the celebration. But we are talking about today, and the PDP ruled Nigeria for 16 years. To the best of my knowledge, the PDP still exists in Anambra State today. I have several friends who are significant members of the party, but none of them appear to care about the events there; some of them are even unaware of their candidate. Due to the PDP problem, people are unsure of who is funding whom. Because they are unsure of their target audience, even the known PDP stalwarts in Anambra are not participating in the campaign. It is therefore for a valid reason and not malicious intent that I exclude the PDP from my counting prior to the election. And anyone in Anambra will tell you that they are likewise unaware if the PDP is running for that office.

Given your extensive background in political party management and the Nigerian political landscape, even if you are not a member of the PDP, what do you believe to be the issue with the once-dominant PDP?

They should have built on their 16 years of power over the nation. As someone who has managed a political party for a considerable amount of time, I can basically tell you that the PDP’s indiscipline and lack of party control are its main problems, which again verges on a lack of internal democracy. PDP forgot that a party is respected if it has complete control. In a system of political parties, the party is in charge. The goal of the party is to position each member where they belong, regardless of how powerful you believe you are or how much money you believe you can afford to get away with doing certain things. You have the freedom to leave that party if you don’t want to be a part of it. Political party membership and disenrollment are entirely optional. This party (PDP), however, sat down and catered more to the wealth of their disobedient members. Furthermore, there were (and still are) blatant instances of anti-party activity that, even when I was the party chairman, would never have been accepted for a day. However, they persisted in turning the other face. When Rivers State’s former governor assembled a group of five governors, whom they dubbed the G5, the PDP was there. In the 2023 election, they were also obviously against the party’s bid for the president. They all opposed their party, but the former governor of Rivers State’s was the most notable. He didn’t pretend to be anti-party, and nothing came of it. Because of this, the PDP adopted a culture of indiscipline. A party starts to fall freely when it is in that circumstance. Also in free collapse has been the PDP. If you look at the PDP as a whole, they are now going to beg people to come around. They are everywhere, sending prominent figures like Professor Jerry Gana, appearing on television, and pleading with Peter Obi to come and accept their presidential ticket. Who would have seen this coming? Once a popular choice, the PDP presidential ticket is now being begged for by Peter Obi. Along with others, the governor of Bauchi State is pleading with Peter Obi to come and accept their ticket. They are telling him that if he accepts the ticket, he will undoubtedly become president and win the election. Of course, they want to use him to improve the party’s reputation. The PDP has therefore declined to this degree. All of this is taking place in the open. They themselves and everyone else are aware of it, but it’s regrettable that they haven’t begun to solve it. Some of them think they are taking action to address the issue, but as long as they are unable to demand accountability from those stubborn members of their party—a necessity for any party with any semblance of discipline and control—their problem will continue to exist. Moreover, 2027 is very near. It’s unfortunate that some who don’t want the party to exist are still there while disguising their anti-party actions.

The All Progressives Congress, particularly the presidency, has been the object of Governor Charles Soludo’s romantic interest. It has been attributed by others to panic and desperation for reelection. Considering that the only APGA state is Anambra, what do you think about this?

The loss of Anambra State could be attributed to Soludo. The reason for this is that Soludo had the chance to reconcile with APGA. I went directly to him because the party was already in danger when he joined APGA. You’re coming in at a very fortunate time, I told him. The argument in APGA is not yours, and you did not start it. As such, you cannot be assigned to any group. As the sole governor, you have thereby assumed the role of the party’s de facto leader. And that you might have a discussion with these divisive leaders at the roundtable by using your position and leveraging it. I told him, “The house divided against itself cannot stand.” If you want me to also play a part in that reconciliation as the party’s founder and past chairman, I would be available. In my opinion, our chat was both fruitful and healthy. He also said it before I left him. We went over all of these for three hours at his residence in Enugu. When you read the closing paragraph of my book, it essentially extolled Soludo and the prospects for APGA’s future growth. In essence, the chapter’s caption, “A New Vista Beckons,” extolled Soludo’s virtues, his background, his profile when he assumed office, and the hope that he would not only succeed as governor but also bring about peace in APGA. But instead of pursuing any of those options, he chose to set up camp with one of the groups and spent a staggering amount of money on this. But what has he done with the party’s soul now that he’s cornered it? It was intended for you to run for a second term, I informed him. By virtue of your right of first refusal as an incumbent governor, you will be able to run for a second term without having to spend this type of money. It will not be taken away from you. A sensible member of the APGA would not oppose the sole governor, who would serve as the foundation for future electoral triumphs. However, he was not impressed by all of that. After a while, he was able to take control of the party, and the chairman he had elevated to the position of chairman actually went back to his official role as PA to him. In addition, he has stopped talking and bouncing around television houses. The party has not improved or grown, and they have all returned to their cocoon in Awka. In Anambra, instead, the party is split up into a number of opposing factions. What would you do with your house like that? The president’s announcement that the party had endorsed him during his visit to Anambra was motivated by the same desperation; in fact, he was the first to do so twice, before the APC. Because the president is a party man, it goes without saying that I know Tinubu cannot be duped now. He is aware that it is not an elected official’s responsibility to support any individual on behalf of a party. The governor should not make such an announcement if a party has made such a decision; rather, the national chairman of the party should. He understood he was only entertaining the audience. The president is adamant about running for a second term, so playing about and gambling with a state like Anambra will make him appear less politically adept than he has been given credit for. If he wants to, let him go and move into the Villa.

Do you believe that the governor has done enough to persuade Ndi Anambra to reelect him in November, aside from the divide within the ruling APGA in Anambra?

I don’t get very encouraging information from that place, though. Additionally, I knew that the November election this year might not favor Saludo because most of the roads are in poor condition, the rainy season would have arrived, as I had long predicted, and some of the roads I saw being commissioned would be washed off because I didn’t think they would withstand a serious rainy season. And as the rain continues, the majority of these roadways are collapsing. The thing is being used by his opponents against him. Some roads have been constructed, but they are so bad that not even the rain can do them justice. And this infrastructure is the only thing the administration can truly take pride in. Nothing more, nothing comparable to what Peter Obi said and did in the areas of health, education, and everything else. All that exists are those roads, and they aren’t surviving the season. His chances of winning a free and fair election are just low.

Obi’s opponents have something to discuss because of Soludo’s harsh criticism of Obi. How do you feel about this, as the former head of the party that nominated the two guys to be governors of Anambra?

Attacking Peter Obi is a political setback for Soludo. I mean, what benefit does it serve him to criticize Peter Obi? I fail to see what political rationale he has for attacking someone who has become so popular. It is therefore not in Soludo’s best interest to attack Peter Obi. From a local champion to a major figure in Nigerian politics, Obi has advanced to the national level. It is therefore equivalent to attacking Chief Odumegwu Ojukwu or someone else attacking Nnamdi Kanu when you go to attack someone like that. These individuals already have their names engraved in the public consciousness. It is therefore politically stupid to start targeting these individuals. You can continue doing what you are doing and ignore them, but don’t assault. He cannot receive additional votes for that attack. It will deduct from whatever he would have received instead.

What is your opinion of the ADC coalition after leaving Anambra? Given that Atiku Abubakar, Rotimi Amaechi, and Peter Obi are all supposedly vying for the presidency, some claimed that personal goals could destroy the alliance before the 2027 election date.

First of all, I have no idea that Peter Obi is an ADC member with a ticket. The PDP wouldn’t have been rushing to get him to come over if he is.

Yet, desertion is possible.

You cannot sign up for a party overnight, and before you can say “Jack Robinson,” you will be defecting once more. Before they can have good reason to depart, some persons at that level stay for a while. You don’t come in now and go out tomorrow. Therefore, he does not possess a card and is not a member of ADC. I still think he works as a freelancer. He still is predicted to belong in labor. In reality, he hasn’t left the Labour Party, and he hasn’t joined any other. I am unsure if Peter Obi will be an ADC card-carrying member because if he is, the PDP and other groups that have been pleading with him to come and run won’t have been showing up. But under its current chairman, David Mark, the ADC has made it very clear that there will be no preferred candidates and that the convention will be open to everybody. The assertions that democratic practices will be let to unfold are comforting. A party’s presidential primary is, of course, a delegate election. In order to gain nominations, a candidate must strive to obtain as many delegates as possible. That’s my perspective on the matter.

Do you have any faith or confidence in INEC as a political player in Nigeria ahead of the general election in 2027, considering that many people think the electoral umpire tampered with the last election?

For someone like me, the word trust is too strong, but I can’t say I don’t trust either. The reason I say this is because technology was permitted to play out to a considerable degree during the most recent election. Unfortunately, the next thing we heard at the presidential level was that something had gone wrong. This glitch only happened at the presidential election level, which raised many questions, especially since the National Assembly election and the presidential election were held on the same day and at the same time. The typical Nigerian has no issue understanding the purpose of that malfunction. Thus, this is a responsibility of the National Assembly. The new Electoral Act is not yet in effect. I am aware that the changes have been taken to make sure that issues like glitches don’t happen again, that the elections are resourced, and that the results are sent straight from the polling places so that voters can see the results instantly. The next election may be more credible if these things are implemented, however they are some of the things we have not yet seen. The only thing we can hope for is that more people will vote because even the last election’s turnout was poor. Regardless of the outcome of the most recent election, it was evident that Peter Pbi and Atiku Abubakar received up to 13.7 million votes, according to INEC records. After that, Tinubu received 8.9 million votes to win the election. More Nigerians who cast ballots opposed Tinubu’s election as president, which is the most straightforward explanation. Only 8.9 out of 13 million people cast ballots for him, indicating that our system needs to be reviewed. He didn’t have the support of the majority of people, thus that triumph was, in all seriousness, illegitimate. That is why I agree with a former vice president who stated—and I have been suggesting—that our election should be conducted according to the norm used in multi-party democracies, which states that the victor is the person who receives 50% plus one vote. You have therefore received the majority of the votes. That someone with 8.9 million votes will be ruling over 13 million people who rejected him is not going to happen.