• Promises to immortalise late senator

By Aloysius Attah, Onitsha

Anambra State Governor Chukwuma Soludo has welcomed about 10 support groups of the late Senator Ifeanyi Ubah into the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). These groups, previously aligned with the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Young Progressives Party (YPP), collapsed their structures into APGA on Tuesday, April 8.

The defection occurred three days after a contentious APC primary won by Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu. One aspirant resigned from the APC hours before the primary, while two others withdrew, citing irregularities and manipulation.

The International Convention Centre in Awka hosted the event, packed with Ubah’s supporters from all 21 local government areas, causing traffic gridlock in parts of the capital.

Leaders of the support groups addressed the crowd, including Soludo and APGA officials. “We are all happy at what is happening in Anambra State under Governor Soludo, and that is why we decided to join APGA,” they said, noting that Soludo’s vision matched Ubah’s plans for the state following his death in July 2024.

Soludo, addressing the defectors, pledged to immortalise Ubah for his contributions to Anambra. After a minute’s silence for the late senator, he recalled their political ties.

“In 2019, Ubah was poised to win the APGA ticket but was disqualified and joined the YPP. Most people who went to YPP with him were APGA members,” he said. He offered a posthumous apology for Ubah’s past treatment by APGA leaders and promised to name at least one road project after him.

Chuks Kamen Ogbonna, leader of the defecting groups from APC, urged APGA to embrace them. “I speak today not just as Kamen Chuks Ogbonna, but as a vessel of a legacy—the legacy of Senator Dr Patrick Ifeanyi Ubah, a giant whose footprints remain indelible in the sands of Anambra’s history,” he said.

“With me, I bring the dynamic Ubah Political Family, a formidable army of believers in progress, who today lay down the banner of opposition to embrace the banner of partnership under the great umbrella of APGA.”

He praised Soludo’s security efforts. “Mr Solution Governor, you solved the puzzle surrounding insecurity in the southeast by going after the fake native doctors,” Ogbonna said.

“Today, other states in the southeast are following your example by registering genuine traditional medicine practitioners to identify and prosecute the fake ones.”

He vowed to mobilise support for Soludo’s re-election in November 2025 to sustain his achievements.