Two days ago, one of the men who pride themselves as the pillars of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Enugu State hosted the PDP candidate for governor in the state, Barr Peter Mbah.
In that meeting, the APC chieftain, who is also a board member of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) boasted that they are the ones who ensure that APC Enugu State keep losing elections. According to him, he and his allies who assembled to welcome Mbah are the people who decide victory in Ezeagu, his local government area.
In a viral viceo, that man said that the truth is that he, and his allies are APC in Abuja (National level), and PDP at the state level. His words “I’m APC at the Federal level but PDP in Enugu State and our governorship candidate is Peter Mbah”.
That man is Ozo Joe Mmamel, a former Commisioner, and a former local government chairman in the state. He has also ran unsuccessfully twice, for the office of the House of Representatives, using the APC ticket.
From his confession two days ago, its obvious he never went there to win election, but to ensure that PDP wins the election.
There are so many men and women in Enugu State APC, who are of this crop, who profess to be APC in the open, but are die-hard PDP members at heart. Their job is to hold key positions in the state APC, so as to checkmate the progress of the party, and perpetually block it from winning any election in Enugu State.
As the national party, it is clear that the APC is on the move to take over the whole South East, but the PDP in their nocturnal meetings, have elected these men to ensure that the heart of Igbo land, which Enugu is, is not taken over by the APC.
They have been masterfully selected, and some of them are the high and mighty of the state, men and women highly respected by all in the state.
Among the list are such highly placed people as a former Senate President, a former governor, and even a former chairman of the party in the state. Yes! They are that powerful.
A cursory look at their history will show one that all these men were all acolytes of another former governor of the state, who is currently a senator. Although this man prides himself as the godfather of Enugu politics, he has since started claiming to support the APC Presidential Candidate, Ahmed Bola Tinubu, a move to secure his Senatorial seat under PDP, keep the APC off the state, and continue to pretend that he is a Tinubu supporter.
He is the brain behind the anti-APC cartel in Enugu State. Joe Mmamel, and at least 95 percent of these APC elements of the state are all members of that ex-govenor’s political dynasty.
As a matter of fact, he handpicked Peter Mbah who was one of his commisioners to be the next governor of Enugu State.
The likes of Mmamel are the reasons why APC have never been able to take a foothold in Enugu State.
According to a chieftain of the APC in the state who preferred anonymity, “He (Mmamel) is a member of old APC. These are the people that sell our party in Enugu State to PDP. They are ever ready to collapse the party for PDP at any given election.
“He (Mmamel) ran election twice in Ezeagu Federal Constituency and even failed in his ward. That’s why we fenced him out of the New APC. He is totally of no value politically. There are many of them like Joe Mammel in Enugu and our Guber Candidate refused to recognize them.
“We call them, TAKEHOLDERS, they have never been stakeholders anywhere in the party.
In conclusion, for the APC to ever win elections and emerge victorious in Enugu State, these people must be kept at bay, they and other pretenders who claim to support the party or its candidates at any level.
John-Williams Egbo writes from Enugu