2027: I’ll Commit My Energy, Resources to Mobilising Support for Obi to Shame Soludo – Senator Umeh

By TONY OKAFOR, AWKA

Senator representing Anambra Central Senatorial District, Victor Umeh, has accused Governor Chukwuma Soludo of working against the political interests of the Igbo people by campaigning for President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Umeh, who vowed to mobilise Ndigbo and other Nigerians in support of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, also recalled his role in Soludo’s emergence as governor in 2021, saying that he personally helped prevent attempts to rig the election against the then All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate.

The senator spoke on Friday in Igbakwu, Ayamelum Local Government Area of Anambra State, while reacting to Soludo’s decision to support Tinubu’s re-election bid rather than Obi’s presidential ambition.

He described Soludo’s position as a betrayal, insisting that the governor should not use his office to undermine an Igbo son who enjoys considerable political support across the country.

Umeh, who was APGA’s collation agent during the 2021 governorship election, said he risked his life to ensure Soludo emerged victorious despite opposition from influential quarters.

“Soludo didn’t make it himself until he came to APGA, and for my involvement, he wouldn’t have become governor.

“I was the one that made it possible for him, even when they wanted to rig him out. I marched to Ihiala and stopped the rigging plan of the APC, challenging a serving general of the 82 Division, Enugu,” he said.

The senator expressed disappointment that Soludo, having benefited from the political support he received in 2021, was now working against Obi, whom he described as a prominent political figure from Anambra State.

He also questioned Soludo’s earlier assessment of Obi’s electoral prospects ahead of the 2023 presidential election.

According to Umeh, Soludo, in an article published on November 14, 2022, predicted that Obi would not secure 25 per cent of the votes in more than two states.

Umeh argued that the outcome of the election showed that Obi performed beyond the governor’s prediction, adding that Soludo ought to have reflected on his earlier position rather than continuing to criticise the former Anambra governor.

He called on Soludo to apologise to Nigerians and the Igbo people over the article, which he said was unfair to Obi.

Umeh said he would commit his energy and resources to mobilising support for Obi and other Nigerians backing his presidential ambition in 2027.

“For this 2027 general election, I will spare nothing in my breath to mobilise Ndigbo to vote for Peter Obi and all Nigerians who are supporting him,” he declared.

The senator also accused Soludo of undermining the traditional Igbo spirit of brotherhood, saying the governor’s political posture was creating the impression that Igbo people did not support one another.

He recalled how Igbo people living in northern Nigeria before the civil war depended on fellow kinsmen for accommodation, settlement and assistance whenever they arrived in unfamiliar communities.

According to him, the spirit of solidarity and mutual assistance among the Igbo people was responsible for their survival and success in different parts of the country.

“What we needed to do in the 60s was to go to the motor parks, board a vehicle to northern states like Kano, Maiduguri or Sokoto. When you landed there and saw somebody speaking Igbo, the person took you in as a brother and settled you down.

“That’s how our people related because that love was there, which Soludo is destroying today,” he said.

Umeh further maintained that Soludo’s endorsement of Tinubu would not automatically translate into the support of Anambra people for the President, insisting that voters should be allowed to make their choices independently.

He said the governor had desecrated the trust reposed in him by the people of Anambra State by opposing Obi, whom he described as a son of the state enjoying national recognition.

The senator, who is also the NDC candidate for Anambra Central Senatorial District, maintained that Soludo’s political standing would not match Obi’s popularity.

He urged Anambra people to rise against what he described as attempts to use the governor’s office to influence their political choices.

“Our people must rise against him,” Umeh declared.