BY RITA NWORIE,
ABAKALIKI
Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has dismissed the presidential ambition of the Nigeria Democratic Congress candidate, Peter Obi, declaring that the South-East has no presidential candidate in the 2027 general election.
Umahi described Obi as a “nobody” compared with prominent political figures from Ebonyi State, including himself, former Senate President Anyim Pius Anyim, former Minister of Education, Senator Sam Egwu, and former Chairman of the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Chief Elias Mbam.
The former Ebonyi State Governor made the remarks on Sunday during a town hall meeting organised by the Directorate of Infrastructure, Mobilisation and Sensitisation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council in Abakaliki.
He urged the people of the South-East to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027, arguing that the region should strategically support other zones to improve its chances of producing Nigeria’s president when it is eventually its turn.
“There is no way an Igbo man, after waiting for 60 years, will want to be president for only four years. There is nobody that can accept that. The North has not accepted to be president for four years,” Umahi said.
He also called on religious and traditional leaders, particularly the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), to openly declare support for Tinubu rather than remain politically neutral. “CAN should not keep quiet. Let us toe the path that will sustain our freedom,” he urged.
Umahi maintained that the South-East had been fully integrated into the Tinubu administration, citing his appointment as Minister of Works, alongside other ministerial and strategic appointments, as evidence of the region’s growing political inclusion.
Taking a swipe at Obi’s supporters, he condemned attacks against those who do not support the former Anambra governor, asking: “Who is Peter Obi better than? Is he better than Sam Egwu? Is he better than Elias Mbam? Is he better than the lion of the South-East, myself? Is he better than Anyim Pius?”
The Minister pledged that Ebonyi would deliver 1.3 million votes for President Tinubu and Governor Francis Nwifuru in 2027, insisting that the APC would retain power in the state. “We have 1.8 million registered voters in Ebonyi State. If we are not donating 1.3 million votes for the President and the Governor, we are doing ourselves a disservice,” he declared.
