Ozobu, the Agba 1 of Umuagba kingdom, who spoke to Daily Sun at his Enugu residence through Igwe E.C. Anichebe described Kalu as a prominent Igbo leader and one of the leaders in the country who is completely detribalised.
“He is the type every Igbo man would like to represent us in the National Assembly. He is a very fearless man who always represents and protects the interest of the downtrodden and the masses.
“At this material time, that is the type of person we want in Nigeria, who can help to make the country better. So, we are supporting Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu to go to the Senate to represent his people and Ndigbo in general.
Going by his antecedents, I have no doubt that he would do his people proud and restore the respect of the Igbo man.
“So, the people of Abia North should be wise and forget about party leaning for now. A political party is just like a vehicle that will take you to your destination; therefore, you must look for a vehicle that is in good shape and not one that will pack up along the road. You must board a functional vehicle that will take you to Abuja and still be valued by people and that vehicle is Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu,” he said.
Ozobu insisted that the Abia North senatorial district election scheduled to hold on March 5 should not be looked at from party consideration by the people of the zone and Ndigbo in general.
His words: “There is nothing like political party at this material time. What we are looking at is who-is-who, who is this man, who is he, what can he do? The issue of party does not arise in this election. We want quality representation. Going by the dictates of the time, we want a man who can rise above personal interest to look for the interest of his people and that man is Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu.
“So, I urge the people of Abia North senatorial district to please do Ndigbo a favour by supporting his aspiration because I know his going to the Senate will pay them more as well as help Igbo nation in general.
“I am saying this because of his antecedents. He has been governor of Abia, we know how he helped to protect the Igbo cause. He is not a warmonger who causes crisis everywhere, so, if he goes to the Senate, he will do very well.”
The foremost Ohanaeze Ndigbo chieftain noted with dismay that Ndigbo have been further marginalised going by the present political equation at the centre, particularly in federal appointments.
He said, “the Orji Kalu I know has the capacity to remedy this anomaly as he has friends also in the North where power currently resides.”
Looking at current agitations by Igbo youths using various Biafra groups to remedy the Igbo marginalisation, he said: “I believe in the oneness and unity of this country, what I think should be done is for people at the centre to have a rethink because everybody is important in this country. If anybody thinks that the Igbo man is not important in the Nigerian polity, that person is making a very big mistake.
“But I know that a person in the calibre of Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu has cultivated long standing relationship under the tripartite arrangement of the Federation. He has a lot of friends in the North, the same in the West and in the entire Southern Nigeria.
“So, this type of character and personality is who is required at this time to launch the Igbo back to the mainstream of the country and help rebuild the damaged past of the country.
“We don’t need to fight for this, all we need to do is to build bridges across the nation and Orji Uzor Kalu I know can help to do this.”
From Petrus Obi, Enugu
Former Minister of Health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, has dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Chukwu registered as a member of APC at his Ugwuegu Ward in Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi State last Friday, in the presence of scores of his supporters and APC members and officials.
The former minister who achieved global acclaim and recognition following his brilliant and effective handling of the Ebola outbreak in Nigeria in 2014 may have left the PDP in protest against the shabby treatment he allegedly received from the party as a gubernatorial aspirant in 2014.
Although the professor of surgery could not be reached for confirmation, his former Special Assistant on Media and Communication, Dan Nwomeh, said he was aware of the development.
Chukwu’s defection to the APC, an opposition party in Ebonyi State, is expected to generate a major transformation of the political landscape in the state as several of his supporters and loyalists, key politicians in their own right, are expected to join him in the APC.
It was gathered that Chukwu’s defection was with the full knowledge and encouragement of top APC leaders at the national and state levels.
