ENigeria Newspaper reveals six Labour Party (LP) legislators allegedly betraying the effort of the party and its candidate, Chijioke Edeoga at the ongoing elections petitions tribunal.
Informed sources in their circle revealed that the six legislators who were elected into office on the platform of the Labour Party (LP) are allegedly secretly hobnobbing with the Peoples Democratic Party at the behest of the embattled Governor of the state, Peter Mbah.
Governor Peter Mbah is in a major bottleneck, trying to prove his innocence in the alleged National Youth Service Corp (NYSC) certificate scandal which has cast a dark spot on his image and questions his educational qualifications presented to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
While all the odds appear to be against the governor, ENigeria Newspaper reports that the six legislators mentioned in this report are already said to be exploring possible ways to help the governor get a soft landing by way of repairing his already tainted image within public spaces including social media.
Despite constituting the majority of the Enugu State House of Assembly, the recalcitrant legislators have consistently frustrated House plenaries consistently, but allegedly formed a quorum with the other ten PDP members, hence depleting the number of the LP which originally had majority members of 14.
READ THE ACCOUNT BELOW:
LP Legislators Betraying Edeogha, Hobnobbing Peter Mbah, PDP
There are indications that some legislators who won the House of Assembly elections on the ticket of the Labour Party in Enugu State have perfected plans to betray the party and hitch the wagon of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
This is even as the sitting of the House has been haphazard since its inauguration on July 14, 2023.
The information available to our correspondent has it that, although with 14 out of the 24-member House of Assembly, the Labour Party has found it impossible to coalesce into a formidable force in the House, mostly because of the activities of six of the members who have allegedly been romancing with the executive arm of the government, led by Governor Peter Mbah.
The romance between the PDP-led government, and their 10-member House minority members on the one hand, and the six Labour Party legislators, on the other, has become so strong that they have started making utterances suggesting that they do not care one way or the other, about the strong cases the party has before the elections petitions tribunal.
Already, some of these people (names withheld for strategic reasons) have started approaching some Labour Party members, persuading them to refrain from making social media posts capable of undermining the government of Peter Mbah.
Four Labour Party influencers who spoke with Enugu Monitor said they were shocked that the Labour Party legislators have moved on and away from the course so quickly and are even calling on members to begin to romance with the PDP-led government.
Hon Ejike Eze
“I was shocked to the marrow when Hon Ejike Eze, my representative, called me to advise me against speaking up against the PDP or making posts promoting the Chijioke Edeoga course. I was surprised because this was a man we nearly put down our lives to ensure that he emerged victorious. I did not know what to tell him,” a Labour Party member from Igbo Eze North Local Government Area told Enugu Monitor.
Hon Pius Ezeugwu
Also speaking, another member from Opi revealed that he has been approached by the member representing the Nsukka East Constituency, Hon Pius Ezeugwu who pleaded with him to tone down his posts that are against the PDP.
“He told me to stop criticizing the PDP. He said that elections have been won and lost and that they are trying to move on. From his tone, it was very clear that his heart is with the PDP and no longer with the Labour Party,” said a member of the party from Nsukka.
Hon Jonson Ani
Another House of Assembly member who was mentioned as hobnobbing with the ruling party against the interest of the Labour Party is Hon Jonson Ani, who represents Enugu North State Constituency.
Our investigations revealed that it was between these people that the plan to cede the Speakership of the party to the PDP, even with the Labour Party having an overwhelming majority membership of the House.
We further gathered that during the elections held to select the principal officers of the House, these members defied the party to take sides with the PDP, a development that cost the LP all key positions up for contest.
With the position of Speaker firmly in the hands of the PDP, it has become difficult for the House of Assembly to assert its independence as sittings have become the prerogative of the people at the Government House.
Since the inauguration of the House, it has been able to hold its sittings only nine times, the latest being the one on August 31, 2023, where the members were called for the session because the government wanted to introduce a Bill for an Act for electric power generation. This was pursuant to the removal of power generation from the exclusive list.
The House is also expected to hold another session on September 1, 2023, where they are expected to rubber-stamp the Bill.
When “Precious Eze’s Blog” reached the Chairman of the Labour Party in Enugu State, Casmir Uchenna Agbo, he told us he was not aware of the story and that we should go ahead and publish if we are convinced of the information available to us but could not confirm if the news published herewith is either true or false.
This is a developing story, more is coming soon. For more News Updates, CLICK HERE
Source: ENigeria Newspaper
