June 14, (THEWILL) – Governor Dave Umahi on Monday, said that Ebonyi people would massively cast their votes for the All Progressives Congress (APC) and not the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 presidential election.
The governor was apparently reacting to the growing popularity of the Labour Party and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, in the South-east.
Umahi contested the presidential ticket of the APC, but lost to Tinubu, after polling 38 votes. He has since accused APC delegates in the south-east of selling their votes.
Speaking at the swearing-in of new commissioners and aides at the government house in Abakaliki, Ebonyi capital, Umahi said the states that LP has helped should vote for Obi.
According to Umahi, the APC was instrumental to the infrastructural and economic development of the state and the people would identify with it at all times.
“Our party is APC and not the Labour Party. We will not vote for the Labour Party. We will vote for APC. The states that the Labour Party has helped should vote for them.
“The agenda of God for Ebonyi state is Ebonyi state agenda and that is what you should be telling them when they come to ask you, who will you vote for. Tell them not to look for our votes, our votes belong to APC.
“Let the states which the Labour or any other party helped vote for it as Ebonyi has been liberated and risen.
“The APC presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, started with one state and used it to liberate his people.
“We should do the same in Ebonyi and make people negotiate with us with our massive number of votes”, he said.
He noted that he has decided on his consensus candidates for the forthcoming local government area elections in the state and urged that his wish be respected.
“The stakeholders should meet and decide where the councillorship positions should be zoned. We want to elect people who are popular and are capable of winning elections for us”, he said.
Umahi berated LGA leaders for the dismal number of registered voters in their areas with some recording as low as 2,000 voters in the ongoing registration exercise.
“It is very unfortunate that the different local government areas in the state are yet to witness high turnout of voters’ registration in the state, apart from Afikpo south that has so far registered over 71,000 voters, others are yet to make any meaningful impact.
“I will sack commissioners and other appointees from local government areas which record fewer than 30,000 before the end of the continuous voters exercise.
“I hereby direct the deputy governor, among other stakeholders, to meet immediately and appoint five people in each registration centre who shall serve as polling administrators”, he said.
The governor congratulated the new commissioners on their appointments and urged them to contribute positively, as the administration anchors in 2023.
The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Cletus Ofoke, said that the new commissioners were appointed to fill the vacuum created by the previous appointees who resigned to seek elective offices.
The new commissioners include Celestine Nwali for Capital City Development; Romanus Nwasum for Infrastructural Development and Chris Uchaji, Solid Minerals Development.
Beatrice Eze is the new commissioner for Culture and Tourism and Mathias Adum, the commissioner for Lands and Housing.
The governor also swore in Rita-Mary Okoro as the new state Head of Service. He also swore in two special assistants and seven LGA development centre coordinators.
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