The South-East must embrace strategic political partnerships and avoid political sentiments and divisive rhetoric if it hopes to realise its ambition of producing Nigeria’s next president
By Moses Okorie
Minister of Works, David Umahi, has described as jokers those predicting the defeat of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 Ebonyi governorship election.
Umahi expressed confidence in the party’s chances of retaining power in the state, dismissing suggestions that the APC could lose the governorship seat in the forthcoming election.
The minister spoke on Sunday in Abakaliki during a town hall meeting organised by the Directorate of Infrastructure, Mobilisation and Sensitisation of the APC Presidential Campaign Council.
He used the occasion to call on the people of the South-East to rally behind President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid, arguing that supporting the President would advance the region’s long-term political interests.
According to Umahi, the South-East must embrace strategic political partnerships and avoid political sentiments and divisive rhetoric if it hopes to realise its ambition of producing Nigeria’s next president.
He argued that supporting Tinubu for another four years would demonstrate the region’s willingness to accommodate other parts of the country and strengthen its prospects of securing the presidency when it is the South-East’s turn.
Umahi also defended the Tinubu administration’s record in the region, citing appointments into strategic government positions, including ministerial offices, service chiefs and senior presidential aides.
He further pointed to ongoing road projects and improvements in economic activities as evidence of the Federal Government’s commitment to the South-East.
The former Ebonyi governor urged religious and traditional institutions, particularly the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), to openly support Tinubu’s second-term ambition.
He also expressed confidence in the APC’s electoral performance in Ebonyi, pledging that the state would deliver 1.3 million votes for Tinubu and Governor Francis Nwifuru in the 2027 elections.
Umahi said Ebonyi had approximately 1.8 million registered voters, stressing that the APC was determined to secure a substantial majority of the votes in the state.