THE push for who to be appointed as minister and other federal slots from Enugu State has resulted in a face_off between the state Governor, Sullivan Chime, and the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu.
Already, the feud has resulted in the submission of two separate lists to the Presidency for consideration. The list sent by the Governor has the Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the state, Vita Abba and three others on it while Ekweremadu’s list has former Aviation minister, Fidelia Njeze at the top.
Vanguard gathered that other names on Ekweremadu’s list included one of his top aide who recently completed his tenure as Secretary of one of the mandate departments in the Federal Capital Territory Ministry.
The source said the Governor was desirous of using the remaining tenure to build an equitable political balance in which the three zones were represented in major appointments at both the centre and the state. Already, both the governor and the deputy senate president are from the same senatorial zone and the push for the re_appointment of Njeze, from the same local government as the governor runs counter to the governor’s vision.
Infact, the governor’s group believe that the push by Ekweremadu fits into his calculation to foist himself or somebody from his local government as the next governor of the state in 2015 by positioning the governor against the other two zones through the appointments.
Ekweremadu, however, is said to be hoping that the reappointment of Njeze and retention in the Aviation ministry would facilitate the completion of his pet project which is the internationalisation of the Akanu Ibiam Airport in Enugu.
Absence at inauguration
As a result of the feud, the governor and his loyalists were conspicuously absent at the inauguration of the seventh Senate where Ekweremadu was elected deputy Senate president.
Ekweremadu who said he would not be contesting for the Senate after his third term, is said to be using the new opportunity to empower his people for the fight of 2015.
It was also learnt that several other influential members of the PDP and elected governors have been putting pressure on President Goddluck Jonathan to retain many of the former ministers who are their cronies and political god_sons in the Federal cabinet.
Vanguard learnt that members of the PDP Board of Trustees and some members of the National Working Committee had been inundating the President with names of former ministers for re_appointment into the cabinet.
It was further gathered that top PDP lobbyists had advanced the commitment of the former ministers to the election of the President as a good reason for their being retained in the cabinet.
He said: “They have been coming with the stories that these ministers contributed significantly to the election of the President. That many of them were physically involved in the campaigns and such should be compensated for their roles in the electoral success of the party.” Although it was not clear yet if the President will abandon his promise to inject fresh blood into the cabinet, it was, however, learnt that he had given his words to re-appoint many of the ministers.
The source revealed that not less than 75 per cent of the former cabinet members may be re_appointed following the intervention of the party chieftains. The balance of the cabinet members, according to the source, would be constituted by those who could not make their elections.
Source: Vanguard newpaper
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Chime, Ekweremadu disagree over ministerial list
Chime, Ekweremadu disagree over ministerial list
NigerianEye
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Monday, June 13, 2011
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our president should be allowed to take his decisions afterall we all claim to believe in him. Let us do so all the way.
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