Deputy Speaker, Kalu Advocates Honesty, Integrity in Politics

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in EnuguDeputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, has said that politics should be played with ethics and moral principles in order to serve the masses better without deceits.He stated this at the annual family thanksgiving of High Chief Ikechi Emenike, the Abia State 2023 governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), held at St. John Methodist Church Umukabia Okpuala in Umuahia North Local Government Area of the state.Kalu, who represents Bende federal constituency in the National Assembly, said that he has come to know Emenike as a different kind of politician with high principles and moral rectitude.“I’ve met many people in politics but I have met a man who is different. He is High Chief Ikechi Emenike. I met a man who is honest and gives you his word,” he said.To buttress his assessment of the politician he holds in very high esteem, Kalu recalled his experience in 2023 when he was seeking a second term ticket and all hope seemed lost.According to him, it was Emenike that came to his rescue by giving him the second term ticket without any conditionality and which eventually led to his emergence as the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives.Kalu noted the party structure was firmly in Emenike’s hands in 2023 and “he gave me ticket without giving conditions, without taking any gift whether in cash or in kind.”“I’ve tasted and I’ve seen that the Lord is good through him (Emenike),” he said, adding that he would never allow anybody to speak ill of or even scratch the man he referred to as “our leader and our big brother”.Meanwhile, Abia APC has continued to solidify the walls of its newfound unity having effectively ended factionalisation in its ranks.Addressing party members after the thanksgiving service, Emenike stressed the need for the Abia APC family to close ranks and work towards the 2027 general election with unity of purpose.He told the over 2,000 party faithful comprising wards and local governments leaders that the party could not afford to lose the Abia governorship election again given its numerical strength and calibre of politicians in its fold.The 2023 governorship flag bearer said that he would not present himself for the governorship contest again but would support whoever emerged as the Abia APC governorship candidate after the primaries.He stated that members must show strong commitment and demonstrate unity of purpose to ensure that APC moves into Abia Government House, for the first time come 2027.“We have the numbers to win every elective position in Abia and 2027 would afford us the  opportunity to do it,” he said.The Abia APC leader told the party faithful that aside securing maximum votes for President Bola Tinubu, the ultimate goal of the party in 2027 is to win the Abia governorship poll.According to him, if the party recorded victories in National Assembly elections and failed to take the governorship seat, the political dividends that would accrue to party members would be limited.He called on the ward and LG leaders of Abia APC to ensure that members were fully mobilised to participate in the party’s e-registration of members, emphasising that nobody should be denied registration.The Chairman of Abia APC, Dr. Kingsley Ononogbu, regretted the party’s loss of the 2023 governorship poll in spite of its vantage position, adding that the party has already learnt its lesson from that electoral outing.He said that the party has been welcoming new members who have been coming in droves from other parties, including the ruling Labour Party, thereby swelling its ranksOnonogbu stated that despite being in opposition Abia APC still remains the most attractive party, adding that it is a sign of good things to come for the party in 2027.