AHEAD OF the gubernatorial primary election of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ebonyi State, Governor David Umahi has endorsed the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Francis Nwifuru, as his preferred successor.
Umahi announced the decision on Saturday at Okposi, in Ohaozara Local Government Area, during the burial ceremony of late Dandy Omoke, a one-time chairman of of the council.
Umahi, while introducing the Speaker at the event, described him as the next governor of the state.
Nwifuru, who represents Izzi West Constituency, has been the Speaker of Ebonyi State House of Assembly since 2015.
He is currently serving his third tenure. He was first elected into the assembly in 2011 under the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Nwifuru was subsequently re-elected under the same platform in 2015 and in 2019 before he defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2020 with Umahi and 15 other members of the House.
The endorsement was further disclosed in a statement signed by the Special Assistant to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Francis Nweze.
According to the statement, the governor assured that the Speaker will consolidate on the divine mandate leadership in the state.
Umahi also appealed to the people of Ebonyi south senatorial zone and the entire people of the state to support the candidacy of the Speaker “for the sake of equity, justice, and fairness”.
“2023 elections will be based on ticking the ballot boxes and not about promises.
“It is a fact that my performance in office and that of others would be used by the APC for campaigns,” the governor said.
'Niyi worked with The ICIR as an Investigative Reporter and Fact-checker from 2020 till September 2022. You can shoot him an email via [email protected]. You can as well follow him on Twitter via @niyi_oyedeji.