2023: ENUGU EAST SENATORIAL DISTRICT ENDORSES EKWEREMADU FOR GOVERNOR.

2023: ENUGU EAST SENATORIAL DISTRICT ENDORSES EKWEREMADU FOR GOVERNOR.

The 24th of October was indeed as day of renewed hope and setting of a new chapter as the people of Enugu East senatorial zone, during a courtesy visit to the Enugu residence of Senator Ike Ekweremadu, former Deputy President of the Senate, endorsed him as the next governor of the state.

 

The group known as Nkanu Ezuo Movement which comprises of Enugu East, Enugu South, Enugu North, Isi-Uzo, Nkanu East and Nkanu West LGAs consisted of both Stakeholders, Religious leaders, Business moguls, Youths who were in support of the movement.

In a speech made by the leader of the group, Engr. Paul Onyenachi Nwankwo, he told Ekweremadu that they were all gathered there to recognize and identify with him as a hope of the nation, and for the entire people of enugu state from the primitive and dysfunctional thinking system of their society.

Nwankwo said, “we are here of our own accord and volition, and our decision is born out of conviction that you, like the biblical david and Moses have been sent by God to deliver his people from the political philistines and Egyptians of our time. Ever since we have been crying that we need a political messiah to lead us through the dark ages, we have been looking for a philosopher that will emancipate us from the socio-economic deprivation and maladies afflicting our people.

 

“We have been searching a political psychologist to heal our people from the political marginalization facing us from the political goliath of our time. Interestingly, we wish to say unequivocally that you posses all qualifications of the political astuteness, doggedness, dexterity needed to perform this herculean task of liberating us and the good people of Enugu state.

“Your political antecedents since 1999 speaks volume of itself. We have watched you climb the political ladder of success with the kind of speed that only God granted Elijah, and we concluded that it can only be the hands of God that can do this. Hence, we see God taking us to the promised land through you.

“We have not come here to bore you with barrage of challenges, but to have a picture of our challenges and see why we are passionately ready to align with your divine mandate of liberation. We observed with keen interest the magnitude and quality of project you have attracted to enugu west and other senatorial zones in the state as a legislator.

“One can only imagine the level of development enugu state will experience if you have an executive power as a governor. It is on the premises of these good works of yours that we are relying on your philosophy of fairness and justice in attracting democracy dividends to demonstrate our unaligned support in the actualization of your divine mandate to give the people of Enugu state a good sense of belonging in the scheme of things.

“Also, your tactical, diplomatic and practical approach in the resolution of issues, as well as your bridge building capacity across party lines in your relationship with fellow legislators, party faithful and leaders, religious, traditional and opinion leaders across board that is and will always attract everyone to you. We saw your intervention in resolving the issue of electronic transmission of results, in the recently passed electoral act by the national assembly.

“Your name is already in the book of Nigeria’s history as the only legislator who became a principal officer and deputy president of the senate for 3 consecutive and uninterrupted terms for complete 12 years. Its suffice to say that no other legislator has achieved this feet. And God did this for you as a result of your ability to stand tall to meet the high, and bend low to meet the low whenever necessary. We are proud of having you from enugu state, and from south east Nigeria”, he said concluding his speech.

Speaking on when their journey with Ekweremadu which he said began in 1999, Hon. Barr. Kenneth Nyama said “Our people are not people that you will come to start preaching to about your project, because you don’t preach to someone who is already converted, you only preach to the unbelievers.

“The people of Nkanu west already know your works. You can be rest assured that this movement , and Nkanu Ezuo as a socio-cultural organization, are here today to beg you that we are in your hands, and you will be our governor come 2023. We are joining the rest of enugu state, to beg you that come 2023 you have to become the governor of Enugu state, because we are sure that you will be fair and equity will reign in the state as it has already started already”, Nyama said.

Rev. John Ukeh who was present at the event expressly made it clear that “Am a reverend father, am not a politician but I know what is good and I also vote. Ekweremadu doesn’t say his not a catholic, he helps the catholic church. I have seen good things, and I say what I see, but I won’t join politics, but I stand here to say Ikeoha, am in support of you”.

One of the members of the group who was also present in the event, Mr Uche Nomeh, made it clear for all present that Ekweremadu by every standard was a Nkanu man, stating that all the while he has known him he has lived his life Nkanu land.

“What we came for is to show the resolution of our people at Nkanu that Ikeoha, we are with you. Whenever you call on us we will move with you. We are not asking you to go because of what you will get from it, why we are begging you is that we know you will take care of us very well. On your own personal ground I don’t think you need anymore political office, but this is to liberate people. Just with your legislative power every part of Enugu felt you, and we want you to occupy the lion building for us come 2023”, Nomeh said.

The women group were not left out in their solidarity with Ekweremadu, as Ijeoma Egbue, one of the women present in the event told all present that she have known Ikeoha as a great philanthropist as he always came into Nkanu and picked little kids to make them stand on their feet.

“Let me not start calling names of people you’ve helped in Nkanu, but everyone knows what am talking about. And this is the reason why we are supporting you. On behalf of all the women in Nkanu I stand here to say that wherever our husbands follow you to go, that is where we will follow you to” Ijeoma said.

Responding to all the numerous outpour of love and solidarity from the people, Ekweremadu told them that what they were all there to rewrite a new chapter in the history of the state and which he called the non discrimination chapter.

“its very wrong to discriminate against people because they are male or female, or because of their background or religion. If we go back to the bible and check back from the days of moses who was picked at the bank of a river, to the best of his status in the house of Pharoah was an adopted child, but the worst is a slave. So whichever way you look at it he doesn’t have a place there. But from there he rose to be the leader of Israel.

“That someone hates and despise you will never change your destiny. It doesn’t matter your circumstance and where you are, I believe God can anoint you. The time for your liberation has come. Even now in our time, Goodluck Jonathan was a man from an inconsequential part of the country which no one have ever heard of, but he rose from there to be a deputy governor, and from there he became a vice president, became a president even without running an election.

“Coming down to my own story, I come from Nku, in Aniri, one of the lowest local government in Enugu state, but that didn’t stop me from being what I am today. I cannot begin to read all my history to show you how God made my rise from where I was, and that is why I can never look down on anybody.

“So if by the grace of God we succeed, I will never look down on the downtrodden. I will never preside over the discrimination of anybody in any part of enugu. So everyone that are here and those that follow me are entitled and opportuned to be councilors, local government chairmen, commissioners, rep members and senators irrespective of where they are from and because you are not the one that created yourself.

“You cannot determine the circumstances of your birth. That is why both the bible and our constitution recognizes that fact that nobody should be discriminated on any grounds. What we just need to do is to be begging God so that what we are asking for comes to pass” Ekweremadu said concluding.

In a closing remark made by Hon. Barr. Tony Nwafor, he assured Ikeoha that the time comes, right from the primaries, they are going to be his your soldiers and will be there to show him how loyal they were to him.

“To show that what we are here for is not sentiments but that we sat down and saw that Ikeoha is our most qualified candidate, am from APC, but I left my party today to come and show my supports for you, the same with some other people.

“We thank you because anytime we come to you you always make out time and that is the hallmark of a true leader, you make out time and listen to the high and the low and for this we say thank you,” he said concluding.