Enugu North to produce governor in 2015 – PDP stakeholders

Following a peace meeting organized by the Peoples Democratic Party stakeholders in Enugu, the state’s North Senatorial zone has been picked to produce the next governor of the state.
The meeting was attended by two strong political forces, Governor Sullivan Chime and Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu.
A former Senate President and indigene of Enugu State, Ken Nnamani, who spoke to journalists at the National Judicial Institute, venue of the ongoing National Conference said, “Enugu State does not seem to have any succession problem because we have a conventional understanding
that when Enugu East completes its eight years, it goes to Enugu West and after Enugu West, it is only proper that governorship power should go to Enugu North. It is not written anywhere but it is conventional.

“Why do we do this? We localise the competition. For Enugu North Senatorial District, the problem of who becomes the governor is localised there. Therefore, it cuts down the cost of having to campaign, run around and all those things. Can you see the wisdom behind that? I think we are observing it and we seem to have no problem.”
On the likelihood of Chime and Ekweremadu to clash over candidates and who gets what, Nnamani responded: “I don’t like to discuss individuals, but I can tell you that there is no polarisation in Enugu State because I have access to Ekweremadu, I have access to the governor and we are talking.
“We have had our first meeting and we will still have meetings as time goes on. We don’t have succession problem in Enugu State”
He also dismissed the allegation of threats on the lives of those wanting to contest against the candidate of Governor Sullivan Chime.
“I am not aware of any threat at all. The days of threats, to me, are gone. We don’t have such things now. I am not aware of any threats at all”, he stressed.

But recent pronouncement by Governor Sullivan Chime that his successor would come from Enugu North, specifically Nsukka zone, has heightened tension.
Enugu North, which has about 40 per cent voting population, is the only zone that has yet to hold the governorship position for at least four years since its creation in 1991.