Osita Chidoka, the former minister of Aviation, has emerged as frontrunner as the National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party and the local chapter of the party in Anambra state may have concluded plans to nominate him as the candidate of the party in the forthcoming re-run of the Anambra Central Senatorial elections.
This followed the nullification of the election of Sen Uche Ekwunife by the Court of Appeal sitting in Enugu following a suit by the the All Progressive Grand Alliance candidate, Chief Victor Umeh. The court ordered for a fresh election, but in a surprising twist, Senator Ekwunife we used to belong to the PDP, last week decamped to the APC and vowed to win the primary of the party and also the subsequent election.
The push for the candidacy of the former Aviation Minister comes on the heels of a quest by the PDP to present a credible alternative to Uche Ekwunife who has abandoned the party.
Osita Chidoka is seen as a capable politician with a rising profile whose brief stint as minister earned him positive reviews.
Prior to that, he was the head of the Federal Road Safety Corporation (FRSC) and served three Nigerian Presidents from President Olusegun Obasanjo, President Umaru Yaradua and Goodluck Jonathan, in different capacities.
Osita Chidoka holds a Graduate Diploma in Maritime & Ports Management, National University of Singapore – 2002 Certificate in Global Strategy and Political Economy, Mansfield College, Oxford University – 2004 Masters Degree in Transport Policy & Logistics, School of Public Policy, George Masons University, USA – 2006.
