The bid by the late Chief Chukwuemeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu to build the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) into a modern-day National Council of Nigerian Citizens (NCNC) may have failed, with the party’s dismal performance at the polls since 2003. Realising this, Chief Orji Kalu, erstwhile governor of Abia State, founded the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA) just before the 2007 election. The party succeeded in making impact only in Abia State. Since then, Igbo leaders have continually bemoaned the fate of the Igbo in the federation.
While the Alliance for Democracy (AD) succeeded in coming up with a reincarnation of the Action Group (AG) in the Southwest at the inception of the Fourth Republic in 1999, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that had emerged the national dominant party moved in powerfully four years later. The trend continued in 2007 , but the courts intervened to retrieve from the PDP the people’s mandate that had been freely given the Action Congress (AC).
The AC now as Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), has consolidated its hold on the Southwest. But, both APGA and PPA appear to have been destabilised. In 2007, there was really no governorship election in Anambra State as the one conducted by INEC was disregarded by the Supreme Court that held that Governor Peter Obi’s tenure would not be up, until February 2010. However, the PDP won all the House of Assembly seats. It was obvious to all that the PPA was declared winner of the Imo governorship election owing to the discord within the PDP. It was a matter of time before the main beneficiary, Governor Ikedi Ohakim, would defect to the ruling party. He did in 2009.
The Igbo political scene has been unsettled since 1999. Different strategies aimed at restoring the relevance of the Igbo as the third leg of the Nigerian political tripod have failed thus far. In 1999, many Igbo leaders, including the late Chief Sam Mbakwe, the late Chief Evans Enwerem, Chief Arthur Nzeribe, Ojukwu, among others, moved to occupy space in the All Peoples Party (APP). However, the strategy failed after the first set of elections. They drifted to the PDP that had better prospects nation-wide.
In the PDP, their fate has not been much better. There has been rancour over all the major positions allotted them. No sooner was the Senate Presidency zoned to the region when every Igbo Senator began to see himself as the potential head of the federal legislature. Then came the PDP national chairmanship. It was attended with so much dissension that the party and polity became very unsettled.
Now, seven months after the inauguration of new governments all over the country. Where do the Igbo stand? What are the new plans to regain foothold of relevance in national politics? How would the death of Ojukwu, the prime mover of APGA politics, impact on the place of the party in the scheme of things? It took a frail Ikemba’s campaign to win the governorship poll in his Anambra State.
Even then, the legislative elections this year did not follow the pattern. The Rochas Okorocha victory is seen more as evidence of the people’s dissatisfaction with the PDP than either the new governor’s sagacity or APGA’s acceptance.
The struggle continues for the opposition parties in the five states of the Southeast. How do APGA and PPA stand? Correspondents in Anambra, Abia, Ebonyi and Enugu survey the political horizon of the troubled region.

http://www.thenationonlineng.net/2011/index.php/politics/31456-2012-can-apga-ppa-upstage-pdp-in-southeast.html

APGA can upstage PDP if they reach out to other influential south east leaders.

I think we need a unified and grown up party with a clear agenda to develop a vibrant economy for the east.

I wish Ekwueme will lead the effort towards forming this platform. His nationalist PDP party has been hijacked and it has failed. We need a new universal platform for Eastern politics. (APGA and PPA needs to merge into a mega eastern unified party).

We need an Alex Samond. Someone who can actually lead a movement!!

mikeansy:

I think we need a unified and grown up party with a clear agenda to develop a vibrant economy for the east.

I wish Ekwueme will lead the effort towards forming this platform. His nationalist PDP party has been hijacked and it has failed. We need a new universal platform for Eastern politics.

We need an Alex Samond. Someone who can actually lead a movement!!

Bro Mike, you raised some strong points. However, don't you think that the two bolded actually conflicts with each other? Ekwueme cannot lead a STRONG movement, especially when it would aim to capture the East first before spreading nationally.
Somehow, my eyes are still on ROCHAS to do this job. I don't know much about him, but I know that he is a grassroots and seasoned politician; someone who is not afraid to play from a NEW foundation and NEW idea away from the center. Ekwueme is a hostage of the center. Our new leader should do the OPPOSITE of what an Ekwueme would do, which is -regional, then national; not the other way round as PDP (under Ekwueme) is trying to do.

APGA can only go far when it launches from the basis of our culture.
Ronald Reagan said that America rules the would by her culture. VERY TRUE.
We can do the same too. Nollywood stories are already proving that.

Sometimes I wish that Rochas would devote more time to designing and growing a new APGA, but that would be unfair of me, because my Imo state folks still need his services first. I am not losing hope that he would find time to do both. We need his political magic to move APGA forward.

Ekwueme is an old man, am not expecting him to lead the movement.

But during formation somebody needs to be an umpire, somebody need to bring people together to plan, craft a political/economic agenda. Ekwueme has experience of forming the PDP he will understand how to form a movement that can appeal to not just igbos but our old allies like the ibibios and also reach out to others near us.

Ekwueme is the one man who has the required liberalism to create a process without influencing the outcome and allow the people's wish to prevail!

I don't know who that leader will be, I just want the leader to proove his mettle through a process. For all I care it can be Rochas or anybody else who demonstrates he has the skill, the fire to stand his ground, the brilliance to recognise when to be diplomatic and ability to inspire our people to achieve our potentials.

The target should not be about ASO rock. The basis of the agenda should be about a strong and solid East that everyone can admire. Everything else will fall into place.

BTW Rochas Okorocha is my Governor, without talking him down; the fact is the man is definitely a populist and welfarist. Are his ideas sustainable? only time will tell.

I don't know if he is very sophisticated politically. I might be wrong though.

mikeansy:

BTW Rochas Okorocha is my Governor, without talking him down; the fact is the man is definitely a populist and welfarist. Are his ideas sustainable? only time will tell.

I don't know if he is very sophisticated politically. I might be wrong though.

I started respecting Rochas after the PDP presidential convention in 2007 (or so). He almost won! lol.
He may be a populist and welfarist, but APGA is not. His political skills are what matters in this process.

APGA has a manifesto, and it can be "upgraded" to appeal to more people outside of SE, but still maintain strong Igbo cultural values. We Ndigbo believe in the golden rule, and every human being believes in it too. So, it can sell if marketed by a savvy politician.

Ekwueme can bring his clout and influence to convince the "nnukwu mmanwus (big masquerades) of Igboland to join APGA and move it forward. Other tribes won't join until those big men join. I doubt that Ekwueme would ever join APGA though. I could be wrong.

Its fair to argue that APGA should upstage the criminal element called PDP. But why only for SE states? ACN won outside of the Southwest. Do you guys know that APGA finished 2nd in Rivers State governorship elections (with of course all the rigging?)


As for Ekwueme, you guys must be joking or choking. Unless he wants to redeem himself before he departs this world, he has never been for the Igbo folks-NEVER.

Onlytruth:

I started respecting Rochas after the PDP presidential convention in 2007 (or so). He almost won! lol.
He may be a populist and welfarist, but APGA is not. His political skills are what matters in this process.

APGA has a manifesto, and it can be "upgraded" to appeal to more people outside of SE, but still maintain strong Igbo cultural values. We Ndigbo believe in the golden rule, and every human being believes in it too. So, it can sell if marketed by a savvy politician.

Ekwueme can bring his clout and influence to convince the "nnukwu mmanwus (big masquerades) of Igboland to join APGA and move it forward. Other tribes won't join until those big men join. I doubt that Ekwueme would ever join APGA though. I could be wrong.

I dont think coming 2nd in PDP primary topples upstaging a sitting Governor. The man is clearly a great campaigner and a people person but in terms of leading, producing results, crafting policies that work mmmmmm. we will see. Have you heard about the size of his Government in Imo State? Well we will see how he gets on in Imo State because you dont know how much I will love to see him succeed. No matter the doubts I have about his approach to things I am still proud to call him my Governor because he won fair and square. He was the people's choice!

I think Rochas and Ekwueme are still PDP guys and friends with the ruling class of the North

Personally I felt Orji Uzor Kalu the only Ibo man who stood up to OBJ should have been supported to wrest power from PDP and later treat his "Phock-up"

PPA, forget it, APGA maybe, For APGA they stand a better chance to upstage PDP in the south-east but they have to come together and device a strategy of winning the people of south east to their side. Rochas needs to prove to the people that APGA is the answer for south eastherns. My fear is that he might go back to PDP, you know they have a way of lobbying people over to their party, APGA the ball is in your court, Let's see what you can do

With massive grassroot campaign led by Rochas nd other Apga chieftains in Abia state Apga wins. Same can also b done in Ebonyi. But for Enugu going by the heavy pdp presence as depoty president of the senate it will b difficult for Apga to win the goven.bt can win other seats in the state.