UKWA EAST AND WEST COUNCIL AREAS OF ABIA STAND STILL FOR APC

By UGOCHUKWU EKE

The people of Ukwa East and West council areas of Abia state stopped what they were doing for two days to give their support for the All Progressives Congress (APC), President Mohammadu Buhari and High Chief Ikechi Emenike.

Emenike the Abia state APC leader who kicked off his tour of the 17 local government areas of the state with a visit to Ukwa West last saturday witnessed an unprecedented turn out of party members shouting and singing APC songs.

The Abia APC leader who left Ukwa West very late returned to Ukwa East the next day being sunday where party enthusiasts were already waiting for him where he addressed various groups on the need for them to support the party.

Speaking with party excos made up of chairmen and their excos, local government excos and party youths from the area, Emenike urged them to get prepared for the forthcoming elections as they are determined to take over the state.

Emenike who addressed youths which is comprised of 50 youths with coordinators per ward who are within the ages of 22-34 years and 50 members with a total number of youths came to over 500 youths with the name Emenike Youths.

The next people Emenike met were teenage youths who are made up of 50 strong young men from each of the wards and they are within the ages of 18-21 years, while the last groups was 30 Emenike Daughters numbering over 300.

Emenike later in the day also met with over 150 stakeholders who are within the ages of 55-80 years who are mainly retirees of school principals, professors, permanents secretaries, judges among others at the home of Rogers Wabara where he charged them to get their PVCs.

Emenike explained that the tour of the 17 local governments of the state is to ascertain the membership strength of the party in Abia state, “I am overwhelmed by the huge followership the party was already enjoying at the grassroots in our state”.

He told the people of Asa and Ndoki that the aim of the tour was to make consultations to know if Abians really want change, adding that the consultation tour would be taken to all the local governments across the state.

Emenike stated that the various structures would further strengthen APC in Abia grassroots as no party could exist without structures and charged the various party structures to register and obtain their permanent voter cards (PVCs) to enable them vote and bring about the desired change in Abia.

He said, “The change we talk about can only be effected with votes. If we don’t have the capacity to vote we can’t bring change, APC supporters should utilize the extended registration period to get their PVCs and mobilize their relatives, friends and neighbours to do so”.

Emenike said that APC is a party that plays people-oriented politics hence the change the party intends to bring about in Abia would not be achieved by fighting but through the electoral process whereby the people would use their votes to usher in the government they crave for.

He said that the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has not moral right to come to the oil producing area of the state to ask for votes given the degree of deprivations they have left in the oil communities.

The Abia APC leader said, “If you register and vote you will get the government you desire and there will be development in the state, stakeholders, who are elders and opinion moulders, should play active part in the electoral process”.

Emenike insisted they are the core Buhari supporters in the state who are poised to help Mr President in his fight against corruption saying, “Remember that Buhari had said if we don’t kill corruption, corruption will kill us, so we must kill corruption at all cost”.

He said that the major concern of the APC in the state is for them to over the government of the state so as to give the people of the state the true dividends of democracy and turn around the fortunes of the state and its people.

In his response Dr Tom Otuka who spoke for the stakeholders, youths and teenagers said that the ruling PDP has failed the people of Ukwa East and Ukwa West, “So we are now looking upto the APC to come and save us and end our sufferings”.