(SINL NIGERIA) Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu has expressed strong optimism that the All Progressives Congress (APC) will win the Abia State governorship and sweep the Senate, House of Representatives, and State Assembly seats in the 2027 general elections.
The declaration came on Saturday in Abuja as APC stakeholders from Abia State purchased and formally presented Kalu with the Expression of Interest and Governorship Nomination Forms, pleading with him to run for governor of Abia State.
Levinus Nwabughiogu, Chief Press Secretary to the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives made this known in a statement on Sunday.
Speaking after receiving the forms, Kalu assured the stakeholders that the APC would deliver victory across board.
He said: “I want to thank you for bringing this form and I want to assure that at the end of the day, the story must change in Abia State, and we will work with the party to make sure that that happens. I have said it time and again, it has never happened before that the political party has received so much interest from those who want to lead: from House of Assembly to the House of Representatives to the Senate to governorship. It means that gradually, people are beginning to understand what APC stands for.
“We will not allow this dream to die. We will fight till the end. We will win the House of Assembly positions. We will win House of Representatives. We will sweep the Senate seats and win the governorship. We will win for the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.
Kalu however stressed that delivering massive votes for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s reelection remains his priority.
“The most important thing for me is to make sure that this man who has come as a reformer, who has come to leave legacies, that it is seen visibly, that our people of the South East, starting from Abia State are standing solidly behind him. Every other thing to me is secondary”, he said.
Earlier in their separate remarks before the presentation of the forms, three APC stakeholders who represented Abia North Senatorial District, Abia Central and Abia South lauded Kalu’s legislative record at the National Assembly, leadership and developmental strides, saying they want it replicated in Abia.
Chief James Uko Igwe, SAN, who spoke for Abia North, said with Kalu’s track record, there is no better time to plead with him to run for Abia governor than now.
“Your contributions as Deputy Speaker have been outstanding. You have been a statesman, galvanizing efforts in Abia State. I inspected projects across our constituency last year. There is no better time than now for you to bring that spirit of statesmanship, unity, and consensus-building to the state level. That indelible mark that you have made at the national level, we want those marks to be made in Abia State. There is no better time than now.
“Accordingly, as professionals, we knew that all you have done is to work for the people. You are not thinking about yourself, not about your pocket, and then we felt that we are in a position to obtain the nomination form for the gubernatorial election of our party, for the APC to contest the election in Abia State. And we proceeded, and amongst ourselves, we have brought this form to present to Your Excellency”, he said.
Similarly, Major General Jack Nwaogbu, (Rtd) who spoke for Abia Central said that Kalu through his efforts revived APC in Abia State.
“In the past seven months, there has been a very huge rejuvenation of the party as a result of the party being given back to those who own it, the masses, and that was made possible by His Excellency and other people, the good hearted and good minded party leaders in Abia State. So, I have a strong belief that the person who has been able to unite other politicians, the person who has been able to make this possible, it’s only good that that person takes up the mantle of governance in Abia State and push forward the good governance and dividends of democracy that we so much desire in Abia State. It is on this note that I identified myself with this group, and I so wholly support the idea that our Deputy Speaker should please consider and accept our request for the governorship”, Nwaogbu said.
On his part, the former Deputy Speaker of Abia State House of Assembly and former member of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Uzo Azubuike who spoke on behalf of Abia South said the Deputy Speaker has proven his capacity through tangible impact, adding APC needs a frontline leadership that can mobilize and enhance the fortunes of Abia State.
“Your Excellency, you have brought developments. You have generated employment. You have attracted appointments. You have empowered and positioned people. And we feel, Sir, you are the best thing that will happen to our party as APC, because we know that in 2023, our State, and indeed entire south east, gave very low votes to the President. And even in such situation, the President has continued to patronize our people, but we are afraid that if in 2027, we are not able to join other Nigerians to deliver substantial votes for the President, he might not be as kind and generous as he has been within this period.
“So we feel duty bound to have a leader that will lead from the front into this battle and ensure that seamlessly, we generate massive votes for His Excellency, the President in his election, and ensure too, that we give him lieutenants that will work for him at the federal level and at all levels. And we are convinced, Sir, that it is only the leadership of Rt. Hon. Benjamin that can deliver that in Abia State as of today”, Azubuike said.
