Anambra deputy gov: APGA devalued me but APC approached me with tangible offer

Nkem Okeke, deputy governor of Anambra, says he was devalued by the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), hence his defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Okeke spoke during a press briefing in Awka, the state capital, on Friday.

The deputy governor defected to the ruling party on October 13 and was hosted by President Muhammadu Buhari at the presidential villa, Abuja.

Okeke said he left APGA because Willie Obiano, the governor, hardly listens to his input and contributions.

The deputy governor said he did not switch parties for personal enrichment but to seek a wider space to contribute to the development of the state and Nigeria.

“I am a technocrat, I want to partner the centre leadership to serve my country in a way to leave legacy for my children like my father did for me. I want posterity to remember me for good,” he said.

“I have heard people asking me to resign, but I will never resign. The decision I made to join the APC is in my interest, the interest of my family and also in the best interest of members of my constituency, Njikoka, who I represent.

“I have people who have advised me that the position I hold is not for me alone, but for the people of my constituency, so I represent them.

“I was elected on the same ticket with the governor of Anambra state, and I did not beg him to choose me as his running mate for a second time. It was he who came to me and said I will run with him for a second term and we won.

“I would not resign from the APGA-led government and would remain in office as deputy governor till the end of the tenure on March 17, 2022.”

Okeke dismissed the reports that members of the state house of assembly are planning to impeach him following his defection.

“We have a crop of seasoned professionals in the state assembly who cannot look away for any price to ruin the peace and revert the state to anarchy,” he said.

“It is my political right to seek relief if I am choked. What matters the most is my service to my people and the country in general.

“APGA devalued me all the years I have been in the party; I am an accidental politician. I do not believe to operate on demerits, so people who priced me off the shelf with tangible offer approached me, it is not my fault.”

‘ANAMBRA STANDS A BETTER CHANCE UNDER APC’

He said APGA has failed to put in place legacies that would outlive the party, adding that Anambra and the Igbo stand a better chance with APC.

“Governance is not about building structures; it is all about developing talents and enabling them to perform, it is not about political inducement,” he said.

“I have wealth of knowledge about administration and governance, I have been a two time commissioner, I know what the people need, I have talked to (Andy) Uba, he listens. Our state will be better off now if Uba is elected governor.

“At the moment, the fastest way the people of south-east will restore their lost glories and occupy their political position in the centre of governance of the nation is through the APC.”