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From Uchenna Inya, Abakaliki
The senatorial candidate of All Progressives Grand Alliance(APGA) in Ebonyi North senatorial zone for next year’s general election, Chief Chikodiri Ojimba and the Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate, Sen. Onyekachi Nwebonyi are bickering over next year’s general election and alleged power rotation in the zone.
While Ojimba accused Nwebonyi of violating alleged written agreement of a single term for any elected senator from any of the four local governments; Abakaliki, Ebonyi, Ohaukwu and Izzi LGAs that make up the zone by contesting for a second term in 2027 general election, the senate Deputy Chief Whip and candidate of the All Progressives Congress(APC) for the next year general election,, challenged Ojimba to make such agreement public.
Addressing journalists in Abakaliki, the state capital, Ojimba who urged Nwebonyi to withdraw from the 2027 race honorably for not keeping to the said agreement, also accused him of non-performance as a representative of the zone in the Senate.
He alleged that the senate Deputy Chief Whip was jittery over his decision to run for the 2027 Ebonyi North senatorial race and boasted that he will defeat him before the conclusion of the election on the election day.
“I think it is high time we tell ourselves the truth. When we give you mandate, you should bring it back to the owners. It is not a settlement,we didn’t do apprenticeship to say that we are settling him. If we vote for you, you should account for the votes we gave you.
“I want you to hear me very clearly, it is not a hidden agreement. It didn’t start now. It started in 1999 when Dr. Sam Egwu was elected the Governor. In that 1999, Nguji Ngele was elected the senator of the zone then and went to the Senate for four years and handed over to Chris Nshii because of that particular agreement. After four years, Senator Nshii handed over to Anthony Agbo and he handed over to Chris Nwankwo after his own four years in the Senate.
“Then, after years, senator Chris Nwankwo came out and handed over to Sam Egwu in 2015. All these people followed the four years agreement except Sam Egwu who was allowed for second tenure and it is not a hidden agreement. All the stakeholders of Ebonyi North zone including Governor Francis Nwifuru who is from the zone is aware of this agreement.
“I ran election in 2019 when I noticed that the then state government was changing the agreement for senatorial position of Ebonyi North. I asked them this four years agreement and they said they want to settle Sam Egwu, that Sam Egwu was a former governor and I said no! If Sam Egwu was a former governor, let him approach those who are contesting against him and plead with them and not to neglect other aspirants and the agreement.
“I opposed him strongly of which you were aware of. I contested that election, stood alone with the youths without stakeholders because the then governor used all the stakeholders against me and it pained me because the then governor was from Ebonyi South zone and not from Ebonyi North.
“So, I told them the truth, lets maintain the agreement that is written which is in ground which all the stakeholders of Ebonyi North are aware of. It is a punk document and I am surprised Nwebonyi is vying for second tenure because I told him then as a party Chairman that what you are protecting now, will be against you tomorrow. I also told the then governor and Sam Egwu that what they are protecting today will be against them tomorrow.
“That issue of Sam Egwu that returned to the Senate in 2019, is the cause of the problem in Ebonyi North senatorial zone today. And you can see it is now playing out and it is my turn to serve my people and there is no two ways about it and I don’t know why anyone who is going on contest should be scared about it more especially those who are already occupying the seat. If you are doing well, why should you be scared of going for a contest?
“For example, is Alex Otti afraid of going for a second term? Is Peter Obi scared of going for election? Why can’t we emulate what is going on in other places? I want to know why? Call will be coming here and there step down, step down and you are saying that you are doing well what you have the mandate and find of the people.
“Nobody has gone for second tenure in the three local government of Izzi clan and Nwebonyi and governor Nwifuru are aware of this. Why is becoming different now? Nwebonyi knows he is not going anywhere. Was he not a party Chairman? Was he not a Commissioner or does he want to tell me that as a lawyer for long time, he doesn’t understand English on the agreement that was written and signed on the Ebonyi North senatorial zone? This is my turn to represent the district and anybody that comes against it, God will come against the person.
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“It is better for him to withdraw, it is better because as a deputy Chief Whip who keeps law, if he can’t keep the laws of his place, how can he keep the laws of the National Assembly? So, he should create a legacy for others to learn or he should maintain the one on ground by withdrawing from the Ebonyi North senatorial race in next year’s general election”, Ojimba stated.
Dismissing Ojimba’s claims, Nwebonyi said he has no rival in the senatorial race and urged the APGA candidate to face his business.
“Let me start by saying that I am not the first senator from Eboinot who is asking for a second term. Senator Samuel Egwu did a second term.
“I, Senator Nwabonyi, by the grace of God, will do a second term. And I want to let you know that I have no rival as far as Ebonyi North senatorial zone is concerned because going by the political permutation of Ebonyi North senatorial zone, I have not seen anybody who is capable of challenging me.
“Not because of my power, but because of my achievements because you can bear witnesses that I have set standards in terms of representation in Ebonyi North zone. This is the only senator in three years that has attracted over 400 kilometers of road, federal roads, as a principal officer that is traversing from Cross River through Ebonyi, to Benue, to Nassarawa, and to Abuja.
This is a senator in three years that has completed 10 kilometers of concrete road. No senator has even done half of that, and of that standard. This is a senator that has over 500 students in his payroll, under my scholarship scheme. We started even before I became a senator. No other senator in Ebonyi North zone has done that.
“This is a senator that has empowered over 10,000 farmers, many of them today are millionaires. As a result of farming pools, another incentive I gave them, I redirected their minds towards agriculture. This is a senator that has been most visible in the national politics.
“Tell me there’s a senator from Southeast that has made federal presence more than me. The answer is no. Therefore, I have no rival.
“And I want to advise that even in journalism, there are steps to promotion. As a journalist, you start as a reporter, you graduate to an editor, before you become an MD of a media house.
“How can somebody who has never been a ward councilor, has never been a House of Assembly member, simply because he’s selling chippings, and government is patronizing him, he said he wants to be a senator.
“Senate is not for business moguls. Senate is for intellectuals, those who have made names in different fields of life. For example, I’m a lawyer by profession. I’m 20 years old. Before you know me as a politician, you know me as Barrister Nwebonyi.
“And I made my mark, I made my millions in the private sector. So I’m not in politics to make money. Like the businessmen are thinking, politics is not an avenue of making money.
“So they better face their business because when you come into it, you will spend more than what you get because I’m spending more than what I get as a senator. And they are witnesses to that. So, as far as I’m concerned, I have no rival in Ebony State”, he stated.
