Iheanacho Nwosu, Abuja

Ahead of the national convention of the All Progressives Congresses (APC) scheduled for this weekend, aspirants and different interest groups have begun intense lobby for inclusion into a Unity List allegedly endorsed by the Presidency.

Last week, at a meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and APC governors, it was agreed that each state should come up with a Unity List that will be adopted at the convention.

The governors were mandated to meet with stakeholders in their states and agree on a list.
A chieftain of the party told newsmen that there is intense lobby going on in most states, for inclusion in the list.

He declared that the lobby is intense in the South East, a development he attributed to the recent adoption of three National Working Committee (NWC) members by APC stakeholders from the zone.
A fortnight ago, at a meeting at the Ladi Kwai Hall in Abuja, former Abia State governor, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu announced that the South East has resolved to return the National Vice Chairman (South East) Emma Enekwu, National Organising Secretary, Senator Osita Izunaso, and the National Auditor.
APC has zoned the three offices to the South East.

Enugu, Imo and Anambra states are expected to fill the offices.

A stalwart of the party, who declined to be named, has, however, explained that he was at the Abuja meeting and that the zone was yet to agree on common candidates.

“The meeting was very stormy. Many people believed that such an important zone meeting should have taken place at the zonal headquarters, which is Enugu.

“The meeting was hurriedly put together; which informed the poor attendance of party stakeholders from the South East.

“Former Senate President, Ken Nnamani, who attended the meeting, left midway into the meeting.
“He did not know the agenda of the meeting before coming and when he knew what they were up to, he left the meeting. He was not in support of the decision to adopt anybody because he has his own preferences.

“(Imo Governor) Rochas (Okorocha) is the only APC governor in the South East for now.
“Whether you like him or not, there is no way you can hold such an important meeting without his knowledge and you expect the decision from that meeting to be binding.

“You are a journalist. Go and find out the details of what happened at the meeting where the three NWC members from the South East were supposedly endorsed. There was a reason why that meeting was called at a very short notice, so that reason was to force through the supposed endorsement of those officers.

“One interesting thing about that meeting was that several people indicated their interest to vie for the offices.

“They discovered that if the states were allowed to decide the fate of these NWC members, none of them will come back.

“That was why they rushed that endorsement; on the argument that the NWC positions were not state, but national positions.”

The source also claimed that some leaders of the party from the region, opposed to the return of the three members, are already pushing for other candidates from their states.

He also noted that although majority of party stakeholders from the South East believe that Okorocha has not done much to help the fortunes of the party in the region, they are not confident in the ability of the three current NWC members from the zone to represent them anymore.

“We have decided that we don’t want any of them. We are not taking away their right to contest.

“But, they should not be forced on us. We have decided on those we want to represent us and are working to get them into the Unity List.”