The Enugu State governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr Peter Mbah on Saturday received a rousy reception at the 2022 Cultural Day of the Association of Enugu State Development Unions (AESDU), Lagos State, held at the General TY Burutai Sports Complex, Nigerian Army Cantonment, Ikeja, Lagos State.
Dr Mbah, who was described by the President General of AESDU, Chief Linus Igbudu as the first incoming governor of Enugu State to grace the annual cultural day, was lavished with endorsement speeches by Igbudu and various leaders of the association as their preferred candidate for the 2023 governorship election in the state, citing his rising popularity and wide acceptance across the state, phenomenal achievements as a leading entrepreneur and business innovator, as well as the exceptional quality of his manifesto to Ndi Enugu.
Dr Mbah thanked the unions for the rousing reception and endorsement, promising that his administration, when elected, will sustain the rich cultural heritage of the state, grow the GDP of the state sevenfold, making it the preferred destination for business, living and leisure, while urging Enugu business persons and investors to get ready to invest at home, taking advantage of the varied business incentives to be unleashed by his administration.
•You defected for your selfish political interest, group replies Edeoga
Meanwhile, the Enugu Good Governance Group has faulted claim by former Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate in Enugu, Chijioke Edeoga, that he defected because of Atiku Abubakar’s emergence as PDP’s presidential candidate.
The group insisted that Edeoga left the PDP to pursue his “desperate personal ambition” to govern Enugu State.
It equally faulted Edeoga on the claim that he only congratulated, but never pledged his support to the PDP governorship candidate in Enugu, Dr. Mbah.
The group was reacting to Edeoga’s interview published at the weekend wherein he said that he reconsidered his position to support Mbah following the failure of the PDP to zone its presidential ticket to the South East in line with the principle of rotational presidency in the party’s constitution.
In a statement issued by its national coordinator, Odinaka Okechukwu, yesterday, the group said: “The sequence of events clearly shows that Hon. Chijioke Edeoga was very stingy with the truth in the said interview. While Atiku Abubakar emerged the presidential candidate of the PDP on 28th May 2022, Edeoga issued a personally signed statement on 6th June 2022, where he not only congratulated Mbah, but equally called on his supporters and Enugu people to support the PDP candidate. That was a sequel to Dr. Mbah’s visit to him after the governorship primary election.
“Edeoga wrote: ‘Peter Mbah has reached out to us and stretched out a hand of fellowship; we are disposed to supporting him. In view of the foregoing, I hereby urge all my supporters and the people of Enugu State at large to rally behind Mr. Peter Mbah for the tasks ahead.’
“So, Atiku’s emergence as PDP’s presidential flagbearer, which happened many days before Edeoga’s declaration of support for Mbah, could not have been a factor in Edeoga’s decision to renege on the support he pledged or jettison a pact he earlier signed along with other aspirants from Enugu East zone to support any among them endorsed by the governor and the party faithful. He only joined the Labour Party to pursue his selfish political interest, not Igbo interest”.
The group likewise, faulted Edeoga’s claim that he decided to pursue the Enugu governorship seat to do things differently from tbe PDP in Enugu State.