SOUTH EAST ELDERS DIVIDED INTO 5 CAMPS

By NBF News

Horse-trading over who succeeds the former national chairman of the PDP, Chief Vincent Ogbulafor at Wadata Plaza may have polarised the party chieftains from the southeast geo political zone into five camps.

Daily Sun investigations revealed that a south east elders forum put up to serve as rallying point, with the objective of pruning aspirants for the position zoned to the South East has broken down, irretrievably.

A meeting of the South East elders scheduled for the residence of the Deputy National President, Ike Ikeremadu was put off to stave off discontent. Daily Sun reliably gathered that some of the party stalwarts had made up their minds not to honour the invitation, on the allegation that the deputy senate president is pushing for the candidature of the former national secretary of the party, Chief Ekwesilieze Nwodo, who is from Enugu State as the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekeremadu.

Those opposed to the alleged move of the deputy senate president premised their position on the fact that Enugu State cannot appropriate two important positions at the same time. A group from the South East forum is also pushing for the former chairman of the South East caucus in the House of Representatives, Mao Ohuabuanwa, from Abia State for the office of the PDP national chairman.

Some senators from the zone, latching on the support of their colleagues in the national assembly, outside the South East, are backing the former senate president, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim. The former Senate president is also relying on the position of a group, 'The PDP national chairmanship candidates for 2008 national convention, who are insisting that a replacement for Ogbulafor should be among the contenders for the office during the national convention of the party, held two years ago.

Members of the group, include the former Senate president, Anyim Pius Anyim, Chied Dan Ulasi, Engineer Ezekiel Izuogu, Mrs Carol Nwosu, Sonny Iroche and Ogbonnay Aja Nwachukwu.