Barely a month to the Imo State governorship poll, Chief Tony Chukwu (Onwegi ihe kariri Chineke) has advised the candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Athan Achonu, to step down for the incumbent governor and candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Hope Uzodimma.
He gave the advice at the Imo State Council of Elders’ meeting held at his residence in Umeze 1, Ehime Mbano Local Government Area of Imo State.
He based his position on the agreement by Imo Elders to reinstate rotational governorship which stipulates that Imo governorship position shall rotate among the three zones in the state with Governor Hope Uzodimma as the incumbent being allowed to complete his second term in office.
He argued that strict implementation of the agreement has become imperative to entrench peaceful rotation of the office as it is being done in Abia, Anambra, Enugu and Ebonyi States.
“We are all brothers and sisters brought together by God and should live in peace and harmony. We must, therefore, avoid anything that threatens to bring a crisis to our dear state. The rotation of the Office of the Governor as developed and endorsed by 411 elders from across the state must be upheld as sacrosanct,” he stated.
He specifically urged Okigwe people present at the meeting to engage in massive grassroots mobilization for the APC so as to deliver a resounding, landslide victory for Governor Uzodimma as clear evidence of total support and strategic partnership with Orlu Zone.
He reminded them that Okigwe zone with only six LGA’s cannot produce a governor on its own and would need the active collaboration of Orlu and Owerri. He reiterated the fact that it is the number and percentage of votes from Okigwe that would determine the level of support it would get from Orlu when it is time to seek their support after the tenure of Governor Uzodimma.
He opined that Okigwe could not, therefore, afford to waste its votes, and thereby sacrifice its collective interest and future for the ambition and personal interest of an individual with a clearly predictable outcome. He advised Senator Achonu to step down, support Governor Uzodimma’s re-election bid and run after the completion of his tenure.
He concluded by asserting that Governor Uzodinma has more than justified the mandate given to him by his unprecedented service delivery in the state and needs a stronger mandate from the people to continue fighting and delivering for them.
Other leaders and elders who spoke at the meeting took cognizance of the exceptional performance of the Governor in office, his incumbency, his constitutional entitlement to re-election, the imperative/importance of the rotational consensus and endorsed him for a second term in office, urging the Imo electorate to vote massively for him in the November 11, 2023, Governorship election.