PDP, S’East Govs Disagree With Ekwueme Over Jonathan

Former Vice president, Chief Alex Ekwueme is under ‘hot Scrutiny’ over his recent remarks and preditons concerning president Goodluck Jonathan and his election bid.

Dr Alex Ekwueme

Punch reports that the South-East leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party and the South-East Governors’ Forum have come for the former Vice President, disagreeing with him on his recent prediction that President Goodluck Jonathan might not get a block vote in the South east geopolitical come zone February 14.


Goodluck Jonathan who got massive support and vote in 2011 has been said to have taken the zone for granted this time around according to Ekwueme, hence his negative remarks that GEJ might risk all the his vote from the zone to another presidential candidate who has plans for the zone.

Ekwueme, who is one of the founding fathers of the PDP, also made it known in a recent interview that president Jonathan did not fufil his 2011 promises to the zone, he has also aggravated the situation by taking the South East zone for granted despite the massive support showed to him last election.

However reacting to Ekwueme’s remarks in Umuahia, the National Vice Chairman of the PDP, Col. Austin Akobundu ( retd.) said that the former Vice President’s “prediction was incorrect and did not reflect the realities on the ground.” He further said that come what may, the South-East will always remain a very strong support base of Jonathan, assuring the President that the zone would still give him 100 per cent support as was the case in 2011.

“I have serious respect for Chief Ekwueme but he should realise that the PDP is dynamic and he should not expect the party to still be what he saw in 1998. The South-East is totally behind Jonathan and nothing can change this. Anybody making any prediction to the contrary is out of touch with the realities on ground.The South-East is better off with the PDP than any other party,” Akobundu said.

Akobundu further suggested that the former Vice President must have spoken out of anger connected to the outcome of the primaries. He made it known that the PDP in the zone had set up a reconciliation panel to reconcile all aggrieved members, explaining that post-primary crisis exists in all political parties

Meanwhile, the South-East Governor’s Forum said the zone would not relent in its support for Jonathan.The Chairman of the Forum and Governor of Abia State, Chief Theodore Orji, said anybody predicting failure for Jonathan in the zone must be on his own “because the people are united in their support for the President.”

Orji speaking through his Special Adviser on Political Matters, Chief Abraham Ama, said, “It is unfortunate that Ekwueme has lost touch with the realities of the moment.”  The governor however noted that Ekwueme “is a man highly respected among Ndigbo” nonetheless, his predictions about the fortunes of the President in the forthcoming presidential election did not reflect the mind of the people.

He made it known that president Jonathan has the full support of the south East zone because the zone cannot afford to vote any other candidate.

“The APC here sounds like Boko Haram, and you cannot see any well-meaning Igbo son in theAPC. Rochas Okorocha knows he has missed the way, and Ogbonnaya Onu cannot even win in his ward. So, no other party is recognised here.”

It would be recalled that just few days ago, the presidential candidate for the All Progressives Congress was honored massively during his campaign  in Aba, Abia state, with the title of Ogbuagu1 (The Lion Killer) of Aba by Enyi of Aba.