By Danlami Nmodu
Some stakeholders from the South Eastern part of the country have been making moves “to strengthen the position of the Ibo once again in Nigerian politics”,Newsdiaryonline.com has been told. Highly placed political sources said that, for instance, some groups including clerics, traditional rulers, businessmen and youth of Ibo extraction have been meeting and resolved to urge ex Governor Orji Uzo Kalu of Abia state to return to political turf which he seems, in their view, to have abandoned from for some time now.
As a practical demonstration of this new political calculation,a top national executive member of the Peoples Progressive Alliance, PPA revealed that big politicians from the South East as well as some youth groups have alreading been meeting with Kalu,telling him to come out and provide leadership to the Ibo people . “They are saying that the Ibos cannot continue to be without a strong political front any more”, the insider revealed.Those wooing Kalu now are not just politicians alone but they also include businessmen and some others described as core professionals who are telling the ex governor “bluntly that they want him to return to politics.”
One eyewitness told Newsdiaryonline .com in Abuja that the pressure on Kalu grew even bigger as three bishops came in a delegation including some traditional rulers from the South East that held a meeting the former governor in the federal capital territory this week. Among the series of meetings being held to woo Kalu back to politics was the one held last Thursday.
It was also learnt that some businessmen and professionals from the South East are scheduled to hold further meeting with Kalu in Lagos on Friday. An informed source in the political circle said the Lagos meeting can best be described as a follow up in series of moves of late to make Kalu change his mind.So far, sources said that the former governor has been consistently telling those wooing him that he has opted out of politics.
Perhaps in expectation of the sea change the may soon take place,PPA insiders said already moves are being made to restructure the party to make it a formidable front for the Ibos .”The party Structures will soon be rejigged in order to put the it on a sound footing .The aim of this repositioning is to make PPA an eastern party strong enough to go into political alliance in the future”.
One of the insiders expressed optimism that these moves will indeed strengthen the party.But Kalu is said to have remained non- committal in the face of mounting pressure.When Newsdiaryonline.com contacted the former governor , he simply said he is a “retired person who should be allowed to rest.”
