Chime, Ekweremadu On War Path As PDP Suspends Commissioners, SSG, Others

IGNATIUS OKPARA, Enugu

The perceived ongoing frosty relationship between Governor Sullivan Chime of Enugu state and Deputy senate president, Ike EKweremadu, Friday took a new twist, as the chairman of Peoples Democratic Party PDP in Udi council area of the state, Hon. Uche Ogbodo announced the suspension of secretary to the state government SSG, Mr. Amaechi Okolo, two serving commissioners, as well as two special Advisers to the governor from the party.

Enugu Governor Chief Sullivan Chimechime

Ogbodo, a loyalist and close associate of senator Ekweremadu, made the suspension pronouncement while briefing newsmen on some recent political developments in Udi, which is also Governor Chime, hometown.

Meanwhile, the suspension announcement of the Governors’s aides came barely few hours after some members of the party in the council area who tagged themselves PDP stakeholders had earlier announced the purported suspension of same Hon.(Ogbodo) from the party.

Suspended alongside the SSG, according to Ogbodo, are the state commissioner for youth and sports, Hon. Chijioke Agu, his counterpart in the ministry of Commerce and industry, Dr, Jude Akubilo, special Adviser to Chime on education, Mr. Sunny Agu and Barrister OAU Onyeama, who is also an aide to the governor.

Ogbodo, stated that the Governor’s aides incurred the wrath of the party for always conveying illegal meetings of the PDP, which they don’t have the powers to do.

He also alleged that the suspended members have been engaging in series of acts capable of tearing the party apart if allowed to continue. According to him, the only way to have sanity in the ruling party in Udi and state in general was for its leadership at all levels to make discipline its watch word.

The Udi local government PDP helmsman, equally accused some state government officials from the council area, especially the commissioner for sports of declaring a political war on him because of he (Ogbodo’s) close relationship with senator Ekweremadu, which he said, dated back to when the upper chambers of the National Assembly NASS lawmaker, was the secretary to Enugu state government SSG some years ago.

He however, condemned what he described as politics of bitterness currently going on in the state PDP.

Said the politician: it has come to a stage where members are victimised because they visited, or had something to do with the Deputy senate president DSP, whom he said, is one of the leaders of the party in the state.

“The truth is that some of the so called stakeholders, are not comfortable with my relationship with the Deputy senate president, Ike Ekweremadu” he stated.

African Examiner reports that there had been alleged lingering political war between Governor Chime and the DSP over who occupies the Enugu west senatorial district seat at that NASS, come 2015.

The position is currently being occupied by senator Ekweremadu, who is also speaker of the ECOWAS parliament.