Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State said the leaders of PDP, should be blamed on his concluded plan to defect to the ruling party at the centre, APC.
The state governor said the PDP leaders should be faulted of being unfair to the South East region of Nigeria since 1999 for their brutal refusal to give the presidential slot to the zone.
He made the statement when a delegation of the PDP's National Working Committee, NWC, led by the National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus met with him.
Umahi has stated that his defection to APC is irrevocable and irreversible since his move to the ruling party at the centre has been made known to PDP leaders at the national level.
NATIONAL PANEL learnt that Governor Umahi met with the party leadership led by the national chairman, Prince Uche Secondus at the Ebonyi Governor’s lodge, Abuja, where he told them his intent to seek pasture anew.
According to NewsDirect, Umahi has also been making efforts to woo other PDP governors in the South East region to go with him to the APC, with Ikpeazu being the first on his list.
The source revealed that effort is being made to have at least three APC governors in the South-east and use it as a canvassing opportunity to convince the APC leadership to give the APC presidential ticket to the zone.
It was gathered that Umahi’s planned defection was hinged on the agreement with the APC that the presidential candidate of the party would be zoned to the South-east.
Meanwhile, the main opposition party has summoned an emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in a move to thwart the alleged decamping plan of Governor Umahi.
It is believed that emergency NEC meeting of the Peoples Democratic Party will also address this concern of the PDP in the Southeast.
It could be recalled that Ebonyi state house of Assembly and the Peoples Democratic party, Ebonyi state chapter gave the national leadership of the Party 7 days ultimatum to zone the presidential ticket to the south east zone.
“Since the PDP has deliberately refused to zone its presidential ticket to the zone, the Igbo will go with any political party that panders to its interest. Check out since 1999, the Southeast has been a backbone of the PDP and nothing to show for it.
“South-south has produced the President of Nigeria in the person of Goodluck Jonathan, Olusegun Obasanjo from the Southwest was president on the platform of the PDP for eight years. The Northwest has had it in late Umaru Yar’Adua and though, he did not win, the Northeast produced the presidential candidate of the PDP in the 2019 general election. Something has to be done to the Southeast for its massive support to the PDP”, the source said.
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