Ebonyi APC Stalwart Condemns ‘Unacceptable’ Attacks On Gov Umahi Following Defection

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Ebonyi State, Chief Chaka Nweze, weekend, condemned what he called ‘negative reactions’ toward Gov David Umahi following his recent defection to the APC from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. THE WHISTLER gathered that Chief Nweze was among the arrowheads that enabled the decamping of the under-fire governor to the APC.

Speaking with newsmen in Abakaliki, Nweze said, “It is unacceptable that Governor Umahi should be receiving such verbal onslaughts following his move to liberate his people. Umahi is still serving his tenure with creditable performances, and should therefore be accorded respect as an incumbent governor.”

Nweze, who is the pioneer secretary of the APC in Ebonyi State and former chairman of Ohaozara Local Government Area, called for collaboration among the stakeholders of the state to enable the Umahi administration to deliver democratic dividends to the people.

In his words, “Political leaders in the state, especially those in the opposition, should remain in their political abodes if they are not comfortable with the governor’s decision to defect to the APC. The main opposition party has the right to feel bad over the defection of someone considered as an Iroko within its fold. The party’s leaders and members should remember that the governor has the right to belong to any political party of his choice and at any time.

“He is not the first governor or politician to defect from one party to the other as most politicians currently in the main opposition defected from the APC and other political parties in the country.”

Explaining that Gov Umahi meant well in joining the ruling APC, Nweze added that, “It is time for the Igbo to be heard at the centre and make a deserved, timely stake at the much-desired presidency of the country.”

Our correspondent reports that since the defection of Gov Umahi to the APC, the political tension in Ebonyi State had heightened, especially after he alleged that some prominent politicians from the state were recruiting cultists and militants to destabilize the state. Opposition leaders such as former Senate president Anyim Pius Anyim and former governor Sam Egwu had responded to Umahi in a hostile manner. Umahi has also been sacking political appointees from his opponents’ local government areas, including those from Ivo LGA, which is the constituency of Senator Anyim.