Anambra 2021: Stakeholders berate Victor Umeh for endorsing Soludo
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Stakeholders in the Anambra State 2021 governorship election coming up on November 6, 2021, have berate a former chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Victor Umeh following his endorsement of one of the governorship aspirants in the party, Prof. Charles Chukwuma Soludo.
Taking to his Facebook page, Mr. Eneh Victor Chigozie wrote in a piece titled “Umeh failed to act like a leader, he has divided APGA more”:
“What Chief Victor Umeh did today by endorsing Soludo publicly is the beginning of the crisis that will destroy APGA by November 6 governorship election.
Senator Victor Umeh is a respected leader in APGA and an elder statesman. Much is expected from him. Despite the fact that he has the right to support any candidate of his choice, but as a leader in the party, he would have not placed his personal interest above the peace of the party.
Presently, APGA is divided between the Aguleri cabal and majority of the party faithfuls who want to end the reign of Ndi Aguleri in APGA. The majority of these APGA faithfuls want to take back their party. They are not against Prof Soludo, they are only against continuity of this cabal through Soludo.
As an elder, Umeh was expected to be the bridge between these two sides. Umeh was expected to call both sides together and broker an understanding that could have led to a consensus, so that APGA would go into the election united.
But he chose to take side and joined in dividing the party more. Out of his selfishness for his 2023 Senatorial ambition, he decided to go with Soludo and publicly endorsed him today.
He has betrayed the respect other Aspirants and their teeming supporters have for him. It is on record that Umeh has never called the party leaders together to brain storm on the possible way to bring various aspirants together and ensure that the party does not go to the poll divided after the primaries.
He failed to do it because he wants to outsmart Oye in the Soludo project.
With the event of today, will Umeh still play a fatherly role in APGA and reach out to other Aspirants for a possible truce when he has identified with an Aspirant?
There is war in APGA already and those who ought to broker peace have taken up arms with one camp against the other.
What the APGA faithfuls who have vowed to take back the party from the Aguleri cabal need now is to see Umeh is a member of the political establishment who always resist change, reforms and inclusion.
His endorsement is a personal one and will not translate to victory because power belongs to the people. Information available to AIF Media is that Umeh will lose the support of Ndi APGA henceforth.
He has just signed his political retirement from the endorsement of Soludo without recourse to the unity and peace of the party.”
On Sen. Victor Umeh’s endorsement of Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, Mr. Ebuka Onyekwelu wrote:
“The raging controversy over Sen. Victor Umeh’s endorsement of Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, while not exactly necessary, is understandably disquieting.
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In fact, to my thinking, Sen. Umeh deliberately wanted it, and made it to be controversial.
While it is not clear why, or what the controversy means for the former APGA National Chairman, we do know that both good and bad publicity are essential to keep any politician relevant.
Sen. Umeh, a respected leader in APGA, as a matter of tact had two options to navigate through Prof. Soludo’s alliance;
Public neutrality, while also giving tacit support to Prof. Soludo, if he is his choice candidate.
- Act statemanly and stand with APGA leaders and the Governor till the last minute, when a candidate emerges.
I am certain that Chief, Sir, Sen. Victor Umeh is well versed in understanding of this measured approach.
His choice to publicly endorse Prof. Soludo and then also publicly alluded that Governor Obiano told him to support Soludo, which he said was communicated through email.
Now, we know very well that no major decision of that magnitude can be, for that matter communicated through email. As sure, as you can be, it is apparent that Governor Obiano is not the only one manning his email, just like most, if not all other public officers.
Now back to the issue in question.
This unusual choice of action by Sen. Umeh is something that is beyond the surface. Not only because the action was completely off the table, but also because there is more to it.
What this means is that Sen. Victor Umeh has more under his sleeves. He is a veteran politician and he knows exactly where he is going.
For observers like myself, the endorsement is neither here nor there and could, matter of fact, infuriate the Governor and Chief Victor Oye, the current National Chairman of APGA. And there are consequences.
It could in fact be that what is now thought to be a big plus for the Prof. Chukwuma Soludo campaign, may actually be a giant minus when the entire details are pieced together and dutifully analysed.
