Abia APC adopts Tinubu as sole candidate for 2027 poll
The Abia State chapter of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has passed a vote of confidence in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his people-oriented leadership. The state chapter also
The Abia State chapter of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has passed a vote of confidence in President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his people-oriented leadership.
The state chapter also adopted the President as its sole candidate for next year’s presidential election.
The party affirmed House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu as its leader in the state in recognition of his efforts to boost its profile and turn around its fortunes across the state.
APC said it took these decisions at a stakeholders’ meeting in Bende in preparation for the party congresses and national convention.
Speaking at the meeting, Kalu said the ultimate goal of the meeting was to deliver victory for President Tinubu in next year’s general election.
He said: “Everything we have come to do today boils down to one thing: delivering His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR. Let me say it again. All we came to do is to make sure that the structures that we set up within the party, be it at the ward level, local government level, or state; at the end of the day, we will deliver President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“I want to move a motion: that Abia State APC wholly adopts the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as our sole candidate for the coming election.
“Those in support that we are passing a great vote of confidence in our President, and as a party in Abia State, we are adopting him as the sole candidate for the office of the President, come 2027 say, aye! Those against; they are not here. You can now see that Mr. President has been adopted as our sole candidate. “This motion was seconded by the Welfare Secretary of the National Working Committee (NWC).”
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Reflecting on the just-concluded electronic membership registration, the Deputy Speaker said that contrary to the speculations and pessimism in some quarters, the Abia APC recorded significant progress with over 160,000 memberships, expressing gratitude to the members for their commitment and support.
Kalu said: “I thank you all most profoundly for coming out en masse and supporting the membership registration. When we were doing this membership registration, the national chairman would call me, wake me up every morning, and he was the last person to speak to me every night.
“He was worried about our state, simply because we don’t have a sitting governor like other states. But I assured the national chairman that I was canceling my trip overseas, returning to base for us to work together as stakeholders.
“Some people who are not members of our party claimed that we don’t have the numbers. The National Working Committee (NWC) panicked, wondering if the President would have sufficient soldiers of the party with the capacity to deliver the 25 per cent or more during the election. But I assured Mr. Chairman that we would use this to prove a point that, though we don’t have a governor, we have a Deputy Speaker.
“There are leaders who lead from their bedrooms, and there are leaders who lead from the battlefront. I decided to cancel my holidays throughout the parliamentary holiday season and return to base.
“When we crossed 50,000, I told them that we would get 100,000, but they doubted me. And we crossed 100,000. When we crossed 100,000, I told them that we would get to 150,000, and they doubted me again. And we crossed it and went to over 160,000 today. Let nobody lie to you. Be strong. Be courageous.
“We have all it takes to deliver to Mr. President more than the 25 per cent. His party’s sitting at over 160,000 now will do so. Our challenge was that the NIN machine was not enough. If we had more NIN machines, our party would have more than 1 million people in this state, and that is the truth. What restricted the registration was the inability to capture most people who were lining up every day, and the network issue with the machines.
“Between now and one year, when the election comes, we will satisfy Mr. President with the number of members of this great party of ours. It’s a promise. We are not relenting. We are marching forward. We are not looking back. We are pushing because the train has taken off. I want to thank you for what you did. Tell the person beside you, thank you.”
The Deputy Speaker also preached unity and peace among party members, saying the days of factionalisation were over.
Providing an insight into the forthcoming ward congresses of the party, Kalu said he had secured the nomination forms for the party and that they would be distributed soon.
“Let me preach unity. Let me preach peace. Everybody is important in this party. Let me say it again: everybody is important in APC. Please, I beg of you. We are marching forward, but that march will only be to accomplish the result we have set to achieve if we march together. We must come together. Everybody is important.
“Let us treat everyone with that sense of importance. We don’t have factions in this party. So, don’t come and tell me about factions. Anybody maintaining a faction is not a member of our party. It’s part of our resolution today. Anybody who wants to maintain factions is not a member of APC. We must be together if we are going to win massively in this state. We must be together.
“When they call you and say, you belong to my faction, please run. Tell them that the leadership of the party said zero faction for APC. Whatever comes, we will share it equitably and fairly. Anything that comes, we share it with respect. We must work together.
“Let me also announce to you that the congress is coming up on Wednesday. That is the ward congress. In other states, governors will pay for the form and bring it back home.
“It our state, we don’t have an APC governor. So, I went and paid for it. But this form is not my personal property. I brought it for you. It’s for you. It’s not for me to now decide it must be this person or that person. I say we have passed that level. Where we are now, I play my role in the hierarchy of government today,” Kalu said.
One after the other, the APC members extolled the leadership qualities of the Deputy Speaker and applauded his numerous contributions to the growth of the party in the state.
They unanimously affirmed Kalu as their leader in Abia State.
The affirmation came on the heels of a motion moved by Senator Nkechi Nwogu, who once represented Abia Central, and it was seconded by the member representing Ukwa East and Ukwa West Federal Constituency of Abia State in the House of Representatives, Chris Nkwonta.
The meeting was attended by many party stakeholders, including the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkiru Onyejiocha, many erstwhile senators, like Dr. Nkechi Nwogu, Senator Chris Adighije, the member representing Ukwa East/Ukwa West Federal Constituency of Abia State, Chris Nkwonta; former member of the House of Representatives, Emeka Atuma; another former member, Sam Onuigbo; the National Welfare Secretary of the party, Chief Donatus Nwankpa; over five former Speakers of the State House of Assembly, including Christopher Ewerenmadu, Stanley Ohajuruka, Martins Azubuike, among others.
