By Louis Amoke
Last week, the Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission (ENSIEC) released the final results of the 2017 local government elections conducted to elect chairmen and councilors for the 17 council areas and 260 electoral wards in the state, respectively. The latest results, which were the outcome of the by-elections in Eke and Obioma wards in Udi Local Government Area, saw the candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Ezeako Lawrence and Mr. Chijioke Ikechukwu, emerging as winners. Announcing the results of the bye-election, Dr. Mike Ajogwu (SAN) held that in Eke ward, Mr. Ezeako of the PDP polled 1,625 votes against his only contender, Mr. Philip Eze of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who scored 384 votes. He added that in Obioma ward, Mr. Chijioke of the PDP scored 1,763 votes to defeat his only rival from the APC, Onyema Hyginus, who polled 31 votes. Describing the bye-election as credible, free and fair, the ENSIEC Chairman commended the electorate and the security agencies for the peaceful conduct of the exercise, adding that the winners will be issued with Certificates of Return. Dr. Ajogwu advised the winners to be magnanimous in victory, and urged the losers to join hands in the development of their areas in particular and the state in general.
With the latest results, the exercise came to a peaceful conclusion with the PDP winning all the 17 Chairmanship seats and 260 Councillorship positions, a victory that reaffirmed the party’s strong footing in the state, evidently made possible through Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi.
The governor’s good works and humble disposition have endeared him and his administration to the people of the state. He has institutionalized a culture of governance that is inclusive, endearing and also impacts positively on the lives of the people of the state in all spheres of development, despite the drought in the state’s finances, occasioned by the nation’s economic challenges.
Interestingly, Enugu State under Ugwuanyi has experienced peace, good governance and security. Apart from the over 10 massive road projects that were executed across the three senatorial districts of the state in the first two years of the administration, in addition to the over 35 development projects that were simultaneously executed in the 17 Local Government Areas, Ugwuanyi has awarded road projects in some satellite areas and communities such as Abakpa Nike, Amurri, Awgu to ameliorate the hardship being encountered by the people of the areas due to deplorable condition of the roads.
Besides, he ensures regular payment of workers’ salaries and retirees’ pensions. His remarkable achievements in education, health, investment promotion, empowerment, water supply, agriculture and sports, have also brought enormous goodwill to the PDP-led government in Enugu State. All these, no doubt, contributed immensely to the overwhelming victory of the PDP in the just concluded council elections in the state.
The landslide victory was quite commendable and outstanding, considering the fact that this was the first time since 1999 that the PDP in Enugu State went to the polls as an opposition political party at the national level and still won 100 percent. The victory shows the level of goodwill, solidarity and support the party and the government enjoy from the people of the state.
Prior to the November 4 council elections, predictions were made that the PDP would sweep the polls, overwhelmingly. The prediction was based on the fact that the government was popular and acceptable to the people, having kept faith with the promises it made to them. It was also based on a critical evaluation of the engagement of the political parties in campaigns, which is the most tedious aspect of the electoral process.
It is on record that Ugwuanyi, at the pre-election stage, led the PDP to prosecute an intensive, sustained and vigorous campaign in the 17 councils, traversing every nook and cranny of the state, canvassing for votes. The rich and well attended campaign rallies were anchored on the sustenance of good governance, continued service to the people of the state, as well as the need to deepen and advance development in the rural areas, to give the dwellers a sense of belonging as the true heroes of democracy.
Intensifying efforts towards total victory at the polls, Ugwuanyi, personally took the PDP campaign to the streets, markets and peoples’ houses, urging the electorate to come out en masse to vote for the candidates of the party. It is pertinent to note that while all these were going on, other political parties showed less commitment to campaigns, resulting in their poor performance at the polls and the overwhelming victory of the PDP.
It is good that the elections were adjudged peaceful, credible, free and fair by not only the independent monitors but also by 37 out of the 40 registered political parties in the state. The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) was the first to commend the Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission (ENSIEC) for organising peaceful and credible local government elections in the state, “in spite of some failed plots to undermine the exercise”.
Speaking after monitoring the elections, the National President of NANS, Comrade Chinonso Obasi, told journalists that they were pleased with the conduct of the elections, and applauded Ugwuanyi for providing the enabling environment which gave the electorate the opportunity to exercise their franchise.
The NANS President explained that despite the complaints by the opposition over the alleged late arrival of election materials, the swift intervention of the electoral body by extending the polls till 5 pm addressed the issue satisfactorily, adding that “our observations from the polling units visited showed that the exercise was successful, peaceful and in accordance with the commission’s guidelines”.
Also, political parties in Enugu have congratulated the ENSIEC for the peaceful, free and fair conduct of the elections across the 260 electoral wards of the state. The parties also applauded Ugwuanyi for providing the enabling environment and the “needed support and funding to the commission to discharge its constitutional mandate without any interference whatsoever”.
From the above narratives, it is clear that the PDP witnessed a well- deserved victory at the just concluded council polls in Enugu State. Therefore, it is expected that the winners will maintain the tempo of good governance being championed by the governor.
Amoke writes from Enugu State