Southeast Nigeria. Photo Credit: Daily Post A few hours before the 2023 general election commences, the election in the Southeastern part of the country remains sceptical as fears of commotion are something we can just discard from the region.
The southeastern part of Nigeria consists of five states which include Anambra, Enugu, Imo, Ebonyi and Abia State. For the first time since 1999, the Southeast seems to be a battleground for political parties in the presidential contest as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) always sees the region as its stronghold. Two factors will be changing the narrative.
One, the presence of two states under the control of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and secondly, the crisis that rocked the PDP in the region which split the party into hostile groups, one of which is a group that migrated to the Labour Party with Peter Obi as the presidential candidate.
Anambra State is supposed to be a battleground between the PDP and the Labour Party but the latter party may win the state because of nepotism. This is a strong word that ought not to have been used but, in reality, there is no better way to state the fact.
The Governor of the state who enjoys massive support from the residents has shown support for the presidential candidate of PDP, Atiku Abubakar but the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi will enjoy the fact that he hails from the state. Nobody can take that away from him, regarding Anambra State, though he has no tangible political advantage over others.
Imo and Ebonyi States are fierce battlefields as Governors of the APC-controlled two states in the Southeast would want to deliver their states, but the fact that Labour Party candidate, Peter Obi hails from the region would put the two parties in a neck-to-neck contest in the two states.
Enugu state governor has allegedly declared support for his party's presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, despite the political differences over time but the Labour Party will surely frustrate the chances of PDP in the state because the resident will want to support Peter Obi who hails from the region.
Abia State is under the control of PDP and the state governor allegedly remains silent on whom he will be supporting in the presidential election. However, irrespective of whom his support is given, Peter Obi's Labour Party stands a chance of winning or frustrating the voting dimension of the state because of the mood with which his Igbo people are regarding the presidential contest.
Above all, there is the possibility of a low turnout in the Southeast as the secessionist group, Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), has threatened to deal with anyone who chooses to violate its Sit-at-Home order which was given by its new leader, Simon Ekpa.
Category: Forum
Tag: Southeast Nigeria igbo news Nigeria news today
Written by Ejiro Hassan (ejiro)
Published 2/24/2023 10:28:32 AM