Ebonyi 2019; How They Stand In The Three Senatorial Zones

Amidst intra-party wrangling and last minute efforts to patch up matters including possible substitution of candidates, there are strong indications that the 2019 General elections in Ebonyi State will be very tough and close to call. The emergence of Senator Sonni Ogbuorji as the gubernatorial Candidate of the All Progressive Congress APC and the careful selection of some veteran politicians by the APC as their party Candidates for the election have made the election more difficult.

For instance, in Ebonyi North Senatorial Zone, the people of Izzi clan have resolved to produce the next senator for the zone, thereby pitching their tent with APC which has zoned the Senatorial seat to them. After due consultation, the APC gave the senatorial ticket to a political gladiators from Ebonyi LGA, who was  a one-time LGA Chairman, two term House of Reps member ana two time Commissioner, Chief Mathias Adum. The DP Candidate and former Governor of Ebonyi state, Sen. Dr Sam Egwu may be in for a major fight, even as his support base in Ohaukwu Local Government Area has been drastically infiltrated. As things stand now, the PDP will find it difficult to win the Zone.

In Ebonyi Central, the scenario may not be different. The two major power Blocks in the zone namely, the Ezza and Ikwo have been completely taken up by the APC. The Senatorial Contest is going to be squared between the incumbent Senator Obinna Ogba of the PDP and a former two time Senator Julius Ali Ucha of the APC. Both of them are from Ishielu Local Government Area of the state, but Ucha has an edge because of his ethnic origin as an Ezza man. Obinna Ogba will attempt to make inroads in his Igboasa home base and part of Ikwo. Ucha will take up parts of Ishielu , Ezza North and Ezza South and share the Votes in Ikwo with Ogba. But in the House of Reps tussle, Chinedu Ogah of APC will traunce Laz Ogbee of PDP based on the superiority of wards in Ikwo clan as against Ezza South. Ikwo has 20 electoral wards. Based on this calculations, PDP may likely loose.

In Ebonyi South,the Candidates running for the Senate are relatively unkwon but the APC Candidate, Nweze Onu is a marverich of sorts. He defeated other political heavy weights in the party primaries to clinch the ticket. Those he defeated were Princess Ann Agom Eze and Hon. Christopher Omo Isu. He hails from Uburu in Ohaozara Local Government Area, the same place where Gov.Umahi comes from.This senatorial zone is the same place Umahi’s top challenger, Sen. Sonni Ogbuorji comes from. In the same vein, the PDP Senatorial Candidate, Mike Nnachi come from Afikpo South Local Government Area, where Ogbuorji comes from. So the political equation is a balance of forces on the ground. If the APC can move fast to harness the greviances which emanated from Gov. umahi dictatorial primaries which left the likes of Dr Dennis Ekumankama, Hon. Abia Onyike, Hon. Linus Okorie of the House of Reps and the Agwu Nwogos among others in the lurch, chances are that the table can be turned against Umahi and the ruling party in the state. This is against the background that Ivo, Afikpo South and Afikpo North have already gravitated towards APC and Okposi  and ugwulangwu in Ohaozara Local Government Area as well as Onicha, Isu and Abaomege/Ukawu may be withdrawing their support for Umahi , based on ruthless dealings from the governor. In which case, Ebonyi South may equally elude the PDP.

In our next analysis, we shall survey Gov. David Umahi’s politics, administrative style and marchiavellian philosophy of life and how these attributes have combined to bring about the rise and fall of his political empire.