PETER OBI IS NOT THE SOUTH-EAST – APGA WARNS THE PRESIDENCY

We, at the ALL PROGRESSIVES GRAND ALLIANCE (APGA) NIGERIA, will warn of the absence of a PDP Presidential campaign machinery in the South-Eastern States for President Goodluck Jonathan.

We re-iterate that the PDP machinery may not take APGA’s efforts at campaigning for the President for granted. One would have thought the APGA’s goodwill and co-option of the PDP Presidential candidate will engender a co-operative, co-ordinated APGA and PDP campaign on behalf of the Presidency, on APGA’s turf. Such is non-existent.

Rather, we are witnessing a cold, distanced and underhanded effort by the PDP Presidential campaign team especially in the South-East, to benignly use the APGA endorsement of President Jonathan to the APGA electorate, to undermine APGA candidates across the South-East, usurping our endorsements to possibly write-in, or rig in other PDP candidates to power, as if the APGA electorate voted for all PDP candidates after voting for Jonathan. That result will be FALSE, and a huge fraud and disenfranchisement of the electorate in the South-East.

Such will constitute a total disregard, including stepping on and messing up the APGA Goodwill for President Goodluck Jonathan.

The ALL PROGRESSIVES GRAND ALLIANCE (APGA) NIGERIA, warns of the implications of this gaping PDP campaign absence to any electoral results declared in the South East. This yawning chasm may not translate into a sudden sweeping magical victory for the PDP in the South East. It will not work, and APGA will thoroughly resist such.

APGA warns that any attempt to re-enact the Alliance for Democracy (AD) endorsement of Obasanjo in the South West in 2003, which translated into a routing victory for the PDP will be stiffly resisted. All, now know that the South-West then, never voted for PDP candidates, even though they (PDP) candidates were declared winners. APGA warns that such effort will fail woefully in the South-East, and will totally undermine the President in the South-East. APGA is the South-East, the South-East is APGA. A stitch in time saves nine.

APGA will alert President Jonathan that his reasoning to position Peter Obi, as deputy campaign director of the presidential campaign, though well-intentioned, may hurt the South-East campaign in the long-run, as The PDP has no campaign apparatus, independent or in conjunction, in the South-East, and has not made attempts till date, to build any. We warn that Peter Obi IS NOT the face of the South-East, nor does he have structures to deliver the votes in the South-East.

His benign strategy of riding the known APGA horse to victory and dumping it, will fail. It is a well-known Peter Obi move, USE and DUMP. Also, riding APGA’s popular tail to any PDP victory in local elections in the South-East besides the Presidency, will fail. This strategy is harmful and detrimental to all politics in the South-East. The electorate here thoroughly resents it, and will strongly guard their identity. President Jonathan may never recover from the disappointment.

The ALL PROGRESSIVES GRAND ALLIANCE (APGA), NIGERIA, will not tolerate any rigging in of unpopular candidates, or Party in the South-East.

We, in the APGA refuse to play against ourselves. Our strategy is known and not hidden: To vote APGA candidates in all the State and Federal elections, and Dr. Goodluck Jonathan of PDP for President. We will warn the PDP not to take APGA’s strategy and vote for granted.

We will alert that PDP State Governments in the South-East states are highly unpopular, and may witness a backlash should votes read otherwise.

The APGA will continue to warn of the dangers of personalizing the Presidential campaigns thinking that there is a Peter Obi magic in the South-East. There is none. It also doesn’t help not opening up to structures which reach the electorate in the South-East states, who continue to campaign and mobilize the electorate for President Jonathan. The time for action is now.

The APGA electorate may not be taken for granted.

Because at the APGA, we remain our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers. Our word is our bond. The APGA will deliver its part of the bargain. Others should keep theirs. ALL should honor same.

Vote for the ALL PROGRESSIVES GRAND ALLIANCE (APGA) candidates, in all the Local and State Elections, and Dr. Goodluck Jonathan for President.