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Former Governor Orji Uzor Kalu who contested the
2007 Presidential election under the PPA is oiling
his political machine to launch another bid come
2011 .The traditional age-grade retirement ceremony,
Igbotonma Cultural Festival in his lush country home
in Igbere which ordinarily ought to be a local
traditional festival involving mainly families, was
turned into a forum to attempt rebuilding his
political relevance and try new allies, after the
huge setback suffered from the humiliation of EFCC
corruption trial.
Several meetings were held under the guise of the
traditional festivities .It was during one of such
meetings that Orji told his audience that he
believed he could beat Yar’Adua silly in 2011. He
pointed out that Yar’Adua was sick and incompetent
and was there for the plucking
He outlined his electoral strategy – he recognises
that he must hold Abia and Imo states because
retaining their control would be crucial to his
ambition
Orji Kalu strongly believes his PPA can take over
Anambra state where a governorship election is due
next year. His major strategy has been to keep APGA
disunited and fractious to further weaken Peter
Obi’s chances while planning to sponsor a spoiler
candidate inside PDP to ensure the party never
becomes strong enough to pose an electoral challenge
A lot of his success would depend on Maurice Iwu
retaining his position as INEC Chairman .If he holds
Abia and Imo [by influencing pending Court
judgments] and gets Anambra in 2010, then the rest
of the South East would melt like butter in 2011
To show his seriousness in taking Anambra “from the
back” as he did in Imo, on Wednesday January 7, Orji
paid a visit to Anambra political Godfather and oil
magnate, Chief Arthur Eze at his Enugu mansion and
offered him the Governorship of Anambra state on a
platter. Arthur would nominate his cousin and former
Vice
Chairman of defunct Triax Airlines, Dr Okey Eze as
Governorship candidate and pump in money, which,
with Orji’s grassroots support, would take control
of Anambra state. He also assured Arthur Eze that he
had concluded negotiations with the judges on the
Abia/Imo cases and only needed some more money to
pay them off. He lobbied Arthur to contribute money
for PPA retaining Abia/Imo. Arthur Eze’s cousin who
was in the meeting cautioned his brother against
getting involved in political financing again
considering what the business mogul suffered in the
hands of President Obasanjo for being close to
General Sani Abacha. Obasanjo, Arthur’s cousin
reminded them, dried up the man’s business contacts.
He warned his brother
not to antagonise Yar’Adua at the centre by
financing Orji Kalu and wondered aloud why Kalu
should approach his cousin for funding if, as he [Kalu]
boasts, he is a self-made billionaire.
Another peg in Kalu’s strategy is to use the media
to keep IBB out of the race and sow discord in AC to
frustrate former Vice President Atiku’s prospects
Kalu said in one of the strategy sessions that
Tinubu and Oshiomole would eventually break with
Atiku and would form an alliance with him for the
Presidential election.
He also plans to nudge the Abia State Government to
challenge the ruling of a Federal High Court in
Umuahia which nullified the report of an
Administrative Panel of Inquiry he set up during his
Government and which indicted several leading
Nigerians including President Yar’Adua, Vice
President Goodluck Jonathan and former President
Obasanjo. The court threw away the report as being
malicious since none of the indicted persons was
ever given an opportunity to defend themselves. The
indictment however formed one of the grounds for
disqualification in the petition General Buhari to
the Tribunal seeking to quash President Yar’Adua’s
election .The suit that nullified the panel’s report
was filed by the governorship candidate of the PDP
in Abia State who was also indicted alongside
President Yar’Adua and VP Jonathan
Among dignitaries who attended the traditional
events in Igbere were general Babangida, Govs Aliyu
Babangida, Adams Oshiomole, Ikedi Ohakim, Chief Ojo
Maduekwe, etc.Akwa Ibom State Governor Akpabio was
on his way to the event when another South South
Governor was said to have called him back, hinting
at Kalu’s ulterior motives
Orji never misses a moment in public to drop the
President’s name as his friend and even alludes to a
chieftaincy title he was given by the emir of
Katsina [Garkuwan Katsina] which he claims makes him
and President Yar’Adua [who bears the title of
Mutawallen Katsina] equal members of the Katsina
Royal family. Yet he never misses an opportunity in
private to ridicule the President’s performance in
office or putting impediments to his political
career [as shown by indicting him with an
administrative report not withstanding that the
President never had any dealings with the Abia State
Government
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