Governorship Shift To Anambra South Is Non-Negotiable & Beyond “Nwadi-Ani” Or “Ndi-Nnem Ochie” Sentiments

(Onitsha, Eastern Nigeria, Tuesday, 19th Jan 2021): The attention of the Int’l Society for CivilLiberties & Rule of Law, Nigeria’s leading research and investigativerights and democracy group; has again been drawn over attempts by some personsand groups to change a central referee at the middle of a crucial footballmatch. This is with respect to elective Governorship shift in Anambra State. Intersocietyhad on 24^th Feb 2020, released the result of an investigationcarefully conducted by Democracy & Good Governance department of theOrganization headed by Barr Chinwe Umeche. We hereby renew our strong butpersuasive call on all Governorship aspirants and electorates from AnambraCentral and Anambra North Senatorial Districts to allow and support theemergence of a popular and credible Governor from Anambra South as the nextelected Governor of Anambra State in the forthcoming Nov 2021 GovernorshipPoll..

By Law, Equity & Fairness, Next Anambra Gov Must ComeFrom South: Intersociety had afterits careful study of the position of Anambra’s Governorship Seat and itsrotation among the State’s Three Senatorial Districts since 29^th May1999, found that ‘going by the 1999 Constitution which is the grundnorm orchief basic law of the country since 29^th May 1999, the AnambraSouth Senatorial District, beyond all arguments, sentiments and excuses, is thenext Senatorial District to produce the next Governor of the State in theforthcoming Nov 2021 Governorship Election’. Anambra South is made up of Ihialasub zone (Ihiala and Ekwusigo LGAs), Nnewi sub zone (Nnewi North and NnewiSouth LGAs) and Old Aguata sub zone (Aguata, Orumba North and Orumba SouthLGAs). The call of ours was made and is still being made in line withprinciples of equity, fairness and collective security as well as the spiritand letters of Sections 14 (4) and 42 of the Constitution of Nigeria 1999 asamended. 

Condition Under Which Anambra South Cannot Produce NextGov: The only way the Anambra SouthSenatorial District will legitimately and credibly be denied the nextGovernorship Seat of Anambra State is whereby the Senatorial District declinesor indicates unwillingness and inability to field candidates in any or all ofthe three dominant political parties in the State.  The decision by the Anambra South SenatorialDistrict in this respect must be collective and endorsed by all the TraditionalRulers, President-Generals, Secretary-Generals and Village Heads in all thecommunities of Aguata, Orumba North, Orumba South, Nnewi North, Nnewi South,Ekwusigo and Ihiala LGAs as well as all traditional chief priests/primeministers and indigenous clergies of the Catholics, Anglicans, Pentecostals andthe African Instituted Churches in all the communities. The resolutions, ifany, shall also be communicated to the incumbent Governor of Anambra and 30members of the State House of Assembly and their speaker and the State’s threeSenators and 11 members of the House of Reps, in addition to same beingadvertised in ten major newspapers and television outfits. 

Legal & Conventional Permissibility: In our analysis of the Anambra Governorship seats(since 29^th May 1999), the Doctrine of Necessity and provisions ofthe country’s 1999 Constitution were duly considered.  For instance, in the eyes of the Doctrine ofNecessity, Dr. Chris Ngige was ‘Anambra Governor between 29^th May1999 and 17^th March 2006’. This is because ‘nature abhors vacuum’. Butin the eyes of the ‘Case-Law’ and provisions of Section 287 (2) of the 1999 Constitutionand relevant others, he was an interloper Governor having had his governorshipjudicially declared null and void. Going by same legal and conventionalpermissibility, Mr. Peter Obi’s eight years tenure, built on judicialinterpretation of then Section 188 (2) of the 1999 Constitution, was legallyand conventionally counted to have lasted from 17^th March 2006 to 17^thMarch 2014. This is notwithstanding the fact that his tenure saw Mr. NnamdiEmmanuel Uba spending about 17 days in office (29^th May 2007 toaround 15^th June 2007) and Dame Virginia Etiaba holding sway forthree months (Nov 2006-Feb 2007) during his unlawful impeachment.

HowAnambra Governorship Seat Had Rotated Since 29^th May 1999: Witha four year tenure, renewable once, if re-elected; the State was governed forfour years (29^th May 1999-29^th May 2003) by Dr.CC Mbadinuju from Ihiala sub zone of the Anambra South Senatorial District;nearly three years (29^th May 2003-17^th March2006) through doctrine of necessity (later declared by courts as an interlopergovernment) by Dr Chris Ngige from Idemmili sub zone of the Anambra CentralSenatorial District; eight years (17^th March 2006-17^th March2014) by Mr. Peter Obi from Anaocha sub zone of the same Anambra CentralSenatorial District; and eight years (17^thMarch 2014 -17^th March2022) by Mr. Willie Obiano from Omambala sub zone of the Anambra NorthSenatorial District.

AnambraSouth About To Be Shortchanged By Another Eight Years:Therefore, on account of minimum of eight years term each taken by the AnambraCentral (plus additional three years) and the Anambra North, the Anambra Southwas short-changed by four years and is about to be shortchanged for anothereight years. In other words, while Anambra Central occupied the elective seatof the Governor of Anambra State for eleven years, legally and illegally, by 17^thMarch 2022, the Anambra North would have stayed in the same office for eightyears; all as against Anambra South which took only four years.

No Room For “Nwadi-Ani” Or “Ndi-Nnem Ochie” Sentiments: The Anambra Governorship shift to the South must bedevoid of ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’ or quipping up sentiments on the groundsof “Nwadi-Ani” or “Ndi-Nnem Ochie”.  Thatis to say that ‘if A is presently holding forth for another Senatorial Districtas a Senator representing the District and is interested in vying for AnambraGovernorship, same A must not trespass but wait for the turn of A’s SenatorialDistrict. Snatching the Anambra Governorship by ‘clever’ and under the disguiseof “Nwadi-Ani” or “Ndi Nnem Ochie”; thereby paving the way for same SenatorialDistrict with eleven years of uninterrupted occupation of the same seat (29^thMay 2003-17^th March 2014) is not only unfair and greedy, but mustalso not be allowed.

Constitutionality Of the Governorship Shift In Anambra: Sections 14 (4) and 42 of the 1999 Constitution arevery clear and unambiguous as it concerns governorship shift or rotation inAnambra State. While Section 42 prohibits all forms of social, economic,cultural and political discrimination, Section 14 (4) provides that: “thecomposition of a State, a local government council or agencies of suchGovernment shall be done in a manner as to recognize the diversity of thepeople within the area (senatorial district balancing or rotation) and conductits affairs in such a manner as to promote a sense of belonging and loyaltyamong all the peoples of the area and the Federation of Nigeria”.

Binding Agreements On Governorship Rotation In Anambra: From available records, there are binding andirrevocable agreements on Governorship Shift in Anambra, popularized under theAdministration of Mr. Peter Obi. As recently as 2017 when Anambra was closeto the last gubernatorial election, Dr. Alex Ekwueme, as he then was, togetherwith many other influential leaders of thought in Anambra, advanced the zoningprinciple and declared publicly that Anambra North be allowed to complete theirsecond term. In the same 2017, a numberof some non-partisan stakeholders and groups met at different fora and resolvedthat only political parties that selected their candidate from Anambra Northshould be considered by Anambra voters. Participants included the Anambra Unioncomprising politicians, academics, retired public officers, etc.

Also,the Anambra State chapter of Ohanaeze Nd’Igbo, at a joint meeting withtraditional rulers and President Generals of all the autonomous communities ofthe State on May 16, 2017 at Awka, enjoined all political parties to pick theirflag bearers from Anambra North for the then coming Anambra Governorship poll.Anambra State Association of Trade Unions (ASATU), representing all communitiesand towns in the State, through its President, Chief Alex Onukwe, said theybelieved in the sanctity of zoning as the basis of political power sharing inthe State. Anambra Traditional Rulers used the opportunity of their two-dayyearly seminar to drum support for zoning. Speaking through Igwe Dr. EmekaIluno (Ifite-Dunu) and Igwe Austin Ozoemena (Isiagu), the traditional rulers stressedthat zoning “will not only engender peaceful politicking, but will also reducecost and campaigns of calumny”.

Aslately as March 4, 2020, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, former Commonwealth scribe andChairman of the Anambra State Traditional Rulers Council, Igwe Nnaemeka A.Achebe, the Obi of Onitsha, led the Elders Council in a meeting with GovernorWillie Obiano where this issue, among others, was agreed and communicated in apress release. The Council reiterated its position on the rotation of theoffice of the Governor among the three senatorial zones in the state, and henceits expectation that the next Governor of the State will come from the AnambraSouth Senatorial District. These are just to mention but a few.

Signed:

For: Int’l Society for CivilLiberties & Rule of Law

Emeka Umeagbalasi, BoardChairman &  Chinwe Umeche, Esq.,Head, Democracy & Good Governance

Contacts:Mobile/WhatsApp: +2348174090052, Email: [email protected],Site: www.intersociety-ng.org