The governor, speaking on the telephone from London yesterday, said neither the party nor its presidential candidate has told the Igbo what they should expect by way of reward if it wins the election.
Ikpeazu, a strong ally of Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, said despite the unclear situation, he remained a committed member of the party and would stick with it come what may.
The generality of the Igbo, he added, were also willing to support the party in the 2023 elections.
“Forget all the talks about leaving the PDP. I am not leaving the PDP and I don’t think other governors are planning to do so,” he said.
Continuing, Ikpeazu said: “But the point is that the South East was denied tickets of the presidency in both the PDP and APC. That leaves us unsure of where we are going, what roles we will play in after the 2023 elections.
“That is my concern. That is what I am fighting for. Our votes are for the PDP if we receive assurances of our position in 2023 from the PDP, where I belong in the first place.
“It is not about playing hard with the PDP. It is about knowing what we will be given after the elections. These are things we need to sort out early before we commit to anybody.
“It is not enough for us to vote for the party. It is about where we are going to be positioned after the election. You don’t run blind in politics.
“Yes, truly, we are not happy with the outcome of the primaries, but that does not mean I am planning to leave the PDP. That does not mean my faith is shaken in the party.
“But it is about working things out properly. That is my personal concern. The South East cannot continue to be treated as an outsider in the politics of the country.
“If we don’t have the presidency and the vice presidency, we are asking for something better, something good for the zone.
“We can’t just vote or deliver our state for the fun of it. We must be sure of why we are voting.”
He said Wike and his allies were continuing their discussions with the camp of Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and hoped the situation would be clearer in the coming days.
“I said it on Thursday in Umuahia and I insist that I am not leaving the PDP. My concern is the South East post elections. We deserve better treatment.”
Ikpeazu in an address at an event marking the 31st anniversary of the creation of Abia State on Thursday had asked the PDP to fast track discussions on national cohesion and inclusiveness if the country’s various nationalities must continue to remain as one.
Apparently worried by the lopsidedness of power distribution within the ranks of the leadership of the PDP, he warned against the dangers it poses for the party ahead of the 2023 general elections.
The South East Zone, he stressed, needed a voice in the PDP after being allegedly ignored over the years by the APC.
He said: “Every part of Nigeria including the southern part of Nigeria needs a voice in the Peoples Democratic Party and if the call for our party to be sensitive to the yearnings of my people makes me look like the cry of a child, so be it.
“But I will keep saying it that as we board the train of the PDP, we need to know what is on the table for Nndị Abia and Ndigbo.
“This is because we have suffered under the present APC government where no Igbo man is in the hierarchy of Service Chiefs, no Igbo man is in the top echelon of decision making.
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