2015: Okorocha rejects APC VP Ticket

An indication emerged yesterday that there may be a disagreement over the zoning of the presidential and vice presidential slots in the All Progressives Congress, APC, as the Imo State governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, yesterday insisted that he would not interested in the vice presidential slot.

Rather, the governor disclosed that with the pressure mounted on him, his preference would to have shot at the presidential ticket of the opposition party come 2015.

Reacting to the speculation as published in one of national dailies (not National Mirror) that Governor Okorocha and his Rivers State counterpart, Rotimi Amaechi, would slog it out for the Vice President’s slot in 2015, Okorocha, through a statement signed by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Sam Onwuemeodo and made available to National Mirror in Owerri, insisted that he has no intention to contest for the vice-presidential slot of the party as being speculated in some quarters.


The statement reads in part: “The truth of the matter is that Governor Okorocha is not in the VP race in the APC.
There has been unprecedented pressure on the governor by Nigerians from all walks of life to vie for the Presidency and he has been consulting on that.

His consultations have not been on the VP slot but on the presidency and at the end of the consultations, he would decide whether to throw his hat into the ring for the presidential race or not.”

Onwuemeodo also said that “pressure is also on the Imo governor by well meaning citizens of the state, including the artisans, farmers, traders and students, to ensure the completion of the transformation he has begun in the state by seeking re-election in 2015. And the governor is also yet to decide on that.”

Saying that it was good for the stakeholders said to have met and considered the governor for the VP race, the statement added that the choice shows the qualities in the governor and what his administration has been doing in Imo, saying: “While we appreciate that, the fact remains that Governor Okorocha is not in the race for VP for 2015.”

NATIONAL MIRROR