PDP: The glory has departed
By Collins Ughalaa KSC
The story of Ichabod – meaning, without glory, where is the glory?, or the glory of God has departed, is told in the book of 1 Samuel 4: 21,22, where we read: “The glory has departed from Israel, for the ark of God has been captured”. Ichabod, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, was born on the day the ark of God was taken into Philistine captivity. His mother went into labour due to the shock of hearing that her husband and Eli, her father-in-law, had died and that the ark had been captured.
The Ichabod story is like the story of the PDP. The party has been stripped of its glory, dignity. It is now a caricature of itself.
There is no iota of doubt that the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has been degraded following its loss of glory. The PDP, a minority party, has suffered several injuries, ranging from electoral losses over the years to their internal squabbles. The minority status of the PDP was pushed further down the ladder following its total rejection by Imo people in the just concluded general elections. It is, therefore, not surprising that the party may want to stage a comeback. A party that won the governorship election last in 2003 has every reason to stage a comeback, more so when they attempted to help themselves by occupying the governorship seat through the backdoor in 2019. Imo people have seen all the sides of the PDP, and there is nothing more to see.
The PDP’s comeback strategy is feeding on the mishap of Imo people and lying to them at every turn of event. The party tried this strategy two years ago, hoping that it could fetch them power, but they failed at every point. They have not learnt any lessons, that is why they are still feeding on the misfortune of Imo people.
The PDP has always taken sides against Imo people, lending support to unknown gunmen hoping that they could get some sympathy. Imo people know those who are sponsoring insecurity, so they continue to reject the PDP and whatever they stand for. This time around, the same PDP is filing behind the number one tormentor of Imo masses, the Idi Amin Dada and Adolf Hitler of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Comrade Joe Ajaero, who has sworn never to allow Imo people have peace. In doing so, the PDP does not care whether Ajaero has made himself a dictator or not, whether his actions are illegal or not, provided they think it will fetch them some attention.
Imo people don’t support their enemies. Those who sponsor insecurity, those who kept quiet while Imo burnt, are enemies of the people and the people know them. It is therefore a matter of serious concern when the PDP tries to make political capital out of any temporary misfortune that befall the people.
In order to shore up it’s battered image, the PDP held a kangaroo press conference where it said it was lending support to Joe Ajaero, the same person who has broken all known Labour laws to wage war on his home state in order to advance his selfish political interests. In their tomfoolery, they bought Ajaero’s falsehood that Imo workers were attacked in Imo State, and they became agents of disinformation.
A good look at the events of the past few days would shed more light on the falsehood peddled by the PDP. On Monday, May 1, Imo workers converged at the Rear Admiral Ndubuisi Kanu Square to celebrate the 2023 Workers Day. The workers were full of joy and praised the governor for his exploits. Speaking through the Chairman of the State Public Service Negotiating Council, Comrade Basil Iwu, the workers confessed that they have benefitted the most from the Uzodimma administration. They went ahead to name the governor’s goodness towards them, including cleansing the payroll system and instituting an automated payment system, resulting to prompt payment of salaries and pensions; free transportation for Imo workers; renovation of the state secretariat, promotion of the civil servants who were last promoted about 10 years ago; approval for service age elongation of 65 years and 40 years of service for Imo teachers and approval of check-off dues to Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP).
The PDP needs to be reminded that a few days to the May Day celebration, the governor had promised that he would commence the payment of gratuities to retired Imo civil servants. The governor assured that the retired civil servants who had passed on would have their gratuities given to their next-of-kin. He had also promised the workers that those who were not captured in the verification exercise would henceforth receive their salaries and pensions in arrears. Beside all these, the governor had two years ago began the payment of 13th month salary to Imo workers As part of his continuing effort to have a harmonious relationship with the Labour in the state, the governor also approved the payment of the consequential adjustment arising from the nationally approved N30,000 minimum wage as well as approved compliance on the payment of the three percent check off dues to industrial unions in Imo State. To cap it all, the governor appointed a special adviser on Labour Matters as a way of creating a harmonious labour relationship. Not resting on his oars, the governor on Thursday, May 4, flagged off a free healthcare programme for Imo workers. The PDP pretends not to see all this, what it sees is the falsehood peddled by Ajaero and his cohorts.
Using insecurity to whip up sentiment is a fruitless venture. The PDP can see for themselves that Governor Hope Uzodimma has liberated Imo communities from bandits. Imo is blessed to have Uzodimma as governor at a time like this. He has spared no efforts tackling insecurity. Who knows what the state may have become. There may be flashes of attacks, but the government is on top of the situation. However, the insecurity witnessed in Imo is nothing that should gladen the heart of the PDP if they mean well for Imo people, but being a party that has lost its glory, they prefer to make political capital out of every temporary misfortune that befall Imo State.
By its constant celebration of any mishap that happens to Imo people no matter how temporary, the PDP has exposed its true colours as a party that delights in the agony of the masses. Otherwise, how could the PDP be celebrating Joe Ajaero who caused temporary hardship on Imo people and not celebrate the liberation of Imo people? How could the PDP lie about the payment of salaries and pensions and pretend not to see the many good things the governor is doing for Imo workers, including regular payment of salaries and pensions, etc?
Ajaero declared an illegal strike on Tuesday, but on Thursday the Industrial Court sitting in Owerri bared the NLC, TUC and their privies from embarking or continuing to embark on strike in Imo. In the interim injunction signed by Justice Nelson Ogbuanya, the Industrial Court also retrained the NLC and TUC or any of its affiliates from stopping, hindering, disrupting or interfering in any manner whatsoever with the provision of services and other work by their members in the civil and public service in Imo State pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice for interlocutory injunction filed in the suit. This development liberates the people who were held hostage by Ajaero and his cohorts, but the PDP feigned ignorance and continued to massage the ego of those troubling Imo people.
The bottom line is that no matter what the PDP says to deceive the people, the discerning Imo public knows that they don’t mean well. The glory has departed from the PDP.
Collins Ughalaa
Special Adviser (Public Communications) to the Governor.
