Governor of Ebonyi State, Engr Chief David Nweze Umahi has performed the APC Registration, Revalidation Exercise in his Onuofukuru polling unit in his country home, Umunaga Uburu, once again giving reasons for his defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC)
The Governor who was accompanied by the former National Vice Chairmam of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), also a pillar of APC in the South East, Deacon Austin Umahi, reiterated that joining the party at the centre shall bring more dividends of democracy to the people.
According to him, the people of the southeast region have had enough of being at the periphery of national reckoning and have therefore taken the decision to move to the centre and be part of the decision making process.
He therefore urged those fanning embers of hate and discord and enemies of peace in the state to turn a new leaf, adding that his administration is unwavering in its commitment to bequething to Ebonyi State the best records of develoment in quality and in quantity.
Also speaking during the event, the former National Vice Chairman of PDP, Chief Austin Umahi who also performed his registration/Revalidation excercise, said the decision to move to the party at the centre, (APC) was borne out of the dire need to reposition South East to its usual political culture of national mainstreaming in political governance.
Meanwhile, Governor Umahi has been vindicated in his reasons for joining APC as many Igbo leaders are throwing their weight behind APC saying that Ndigbo in the history of political develoment have never belonged to a Minority Party.
One of such leaders is Executive Secretary, National Council for Democratic Development (NCCD), Prince Nwaeze Onu.
Onu, a former senatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress for Ebonyi South in the 2019 general election, in a statement made available to journalists in Abuja, described as “bold and patriotic” Governor Umahi’s decision to join the All Progressives Congress.
According to him, by joining the APC from the opposition PDP, the governor has set the pathway for the South East into the mainstream national politics and enjoined other governors from the zone to follow suit.
The statement read in part: “National Council for Democratic Development (NCDD), a socio-political advocacy group, having watched keenly, recent political developments, has cautioned politicians of Southeast extraction to avoid making the call for the emergence of the next president from the zone a sectional agenda as they need other zones to achieve the feat”.
“We also call on the Southeast stakeholders to build the APC as a strong brand and use it as a launch pad to achieve their dream of producing the next president,” noting that the zone has a great future with the APC because President Buhari has been fair to the zone, and as such he deserves massive cum genuine support from the zone”
Referring to the groundswell of support the defection of Governor Umahi has elicited among the leaders of the South East region, Ebonyi State Commissioner for Information and State Orientation, Orji Uchenna Orji s described the governor as a leader who has seen the future.
According to the Commissioner, by taking the bold step to build bridges between the zone and other parts of the country, Chief Umahi was living with the dreams of the sage, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe whose political ideology was that of integration. 