Stakeholders of the All Progressives Congress in South-East, weekend, endorsed President Bola Tinubu for a second term in office.
They made the declaration after their meeting in Enugu. Tagged “Izu Umunna”, the stakeholders said their decision to support President Tinubu was anchored on bridge-building, partnership and strategic alignment with the centre.
The meeting, which had governors, party leaders, lawmakers, elders and critical stakeholders from across the zone in attendance, resolved to mobilise votes for Tinubu’s re-election in the 2027 general election. They also resolved to work against a collective political agenda “that rejects individual ambitions capable of fragmenting the region’s votes and weakening its bargaining power at the national level”.
The Governor of Imo State and Chairman of the South East Governors’ Forum, Senator Hope Uzodinma, said President Tinubu had entrusted the political future of his re-election to the South East. He said the region could no longer afford political isolation. He recalled that the South East’s minimal contribution to the APC’s victory in the 2023 presidential election significantly weakened its influence at the national level.
He said while other zones contributed between 34 and 54 per cent of votes to the APC in 2023, the South East recorded about six per cent. He added that the political tide in the region had shifted, noting that APC “now controls three of the five South East states”. He further stated that APC’s representation in the Senate had increased from six to eight senators, while APC lawmakers from the region in the House of Representatives had risen from eight to 23.
In his words, “These numbers give us hope, but they also give us a challenge. The growth we see among leaders must reflect at the ballot box in 2027. Politics is pay as you earn. No zone can produce a president alone, and if we continue to vote provincially, we will remain on the sidelines of national power.”
Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State, in a speech, said the endorsement of President Tinubu and the growing alignment of the South East with the APC was a “paradigm shift grounded in pragmatism.” He said the Tinubu administration had done well in South East, citing renewed attention to the Eastern Railway corridor, gas and energy development initiatives in the region, and the approval of the concession of the Enugu Airport, which he said would position the state as an international gateway for the South East.
Mbah said, “The Renewed Hope Agenda is beyond a political slogan. It is about aligning vision at the centre with delivery at the states. These are not symbolic gestures but strategic decisions that show a federal leadership committed to inclusive governance.”
In his speech, Governor of Ebonyi State, Francis Nwifuru, urged party leaders to prioritise reconciliation and sacrifice, stressing that the influx of new members required effective internal management rather than further party building.
Quoting him, “I want to urge our leaders that we need to forgive one another and make a lot of sacrifices so that those that are joining us now will have a place in our party.”
THE WHISTLER reports that the motion endorsing President Tinubu for a second term was moved by former Senate President Pius Anyim, and seconded by another former Senate President Ken Nnamani.
The stakeholders in a communiqué rejected what they described as ego-driven and divisive politics.
The communiqué read in part, “The people of the South-East Zone categorically dissociate themselves from all activities motivated by the self-serving interests of any individual, however highly placed. We affirm that the progress of our zone and our great party cannot be achieved through narrow personal ambitions or actions that fracture collective unity.
“Any such conduct shall henceforth be regarded as contrary to our shared aspirations and will receive neither endorsement nor support from our zone. The political leadership of the South-East has resolved, in the supreme interest of Ndi Igbo, that never again will we allow personal ego and motivated actions to influence the fate of the Zone. In this regard, the South-East will join other zones in supporting the ruling party, wherein our leaders can effectively negotiate better representation and interests of our people.”
Some figures at the meeting included the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon Benjamin Kalu; former Governors Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and Ikedi Ohakim, as well as several senators, lawmakers and party elders from across the zone.
