2027: APC Chieftain Urges Voters to Look Beyond Party Affiliations in Choosing Good Candidates 

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Enugu 

As preparations continue ahead of Nigeria’s forthcoming general elections, voters have been urged to go beyond party affiliations in choosing the right candidates for all the elective positions. 

A member of the National Assembly in the short-lived third republic, Senator Emma Nwaka, gave the advice in a statement he issued explaining his stance on the unfolding political developments in the country. 

He said that every registered political party in the country had almost concluded the process of selecting their flag bearers for the various elective offices hence the need for voters to start scrutinising them across party lines. 

Nwaka, who is a former chairman of PDP in Abia State, defected to the APC last year with his numerous followers that now look up to him for guidance on coming decisions. 

However, he stated that his main concern as an individual “is on my choice for the next president of Nigeria and the governor of my state, Abia State.”

“It became necessary for me to declare my stand in light of numerous enquiries from those who find my brand of politics relatable and rely on my political compass for direction,” he said. 

Nwaka stated that his choice for President in 2027 remained President Tinubu while for Abia governorship “I am all for supporting Dr. Alex Otti to do a second term of four years as governor.” 

In justifying his support for Governor Otti, who is of Labour Party, the APC stalwart said that using “every political metric conceivable,” Otti’s first term “has ushered in a season of unprecedented infrastructural development in every corner of the state.” 

The former federal lawmaker explained that he needed to clarify his position on the Abia governor because people had been persistent in making enquiries following signals from him. 

He acknowledged that he was present at a couple of events organised by the Abia State Labour Party hence “enquiries have become more urgent and persistent.” 

“I understand their growing concern given that I am a card-carrying member of APC. I agree with my party, APC, that Abia Central Senatorial District should retain the governorship of the state come 2027,” Nwaka said. 

He further noted that under Otti “Abians all over the country, and beyond, have regained a sense of pride in their state,” adding that another four years of the Abia governor “would have established the state on a trajectory of irreversible economic growth and development.” 

Nwaka, who was the chairman of Abia PDP in its heyday, said that “as a son of Isuikwuato, I can attest that Dr. Otti’s administration has done so much for my local government than any other government since the creation of Abia State, whether in terms of infrastructural development or appointments. 

“If as we say, every politics is local, and it is, I do not see why majority of Isuikwuato sons and daughters should cast off this government that has remembered us at this critical moment. 

“This is not the time for politics of identity; it is the time for pragmatism in aligning with vision, competence, capability and capacity which attributes Dr. Alex Otti possesses. His transformational leadership in piloting the affairs of Abia State is unassailable,” he said. 

On his working for the realisation of Tinubu’s second term in office come 2027, Nwaka said that Mr. President has done so much to stabilise the Nigeria economy and needed to complete the job he has started. 

He said, “Any person conversant with the almost comatose state of the economy of Nigeria and the inertia that characterised governance prior to his assumption of office will agree that the President deserves a second term, if for nothing else, for having infused life and renewed hope into every ramification of governance. 

“I believe that before long, the trickle-down effect of his bold and courageous economic reforms will kick in and shall begin to be felt by the generality of Nigerians. 

“The massive infrastructural development at the sub-national levels of governance is no doubt a direct consequence of the removal of the subsidy on petroleum, which had become a cesspool of corruption. 

“The merging of the foreign exchange rate regime, which was also a beehive of monumental corruption, has enabled the business community, local and foreign, to engage in long-term forecast and planning to grow their businesses and, in turn, provide employment opportunities for our youths. 

“We must do away with the penchant to throw away the baby with the bathwater. No government, anywhere in the world is a paragon of rectitude. Government is work in progress, you adjust and fine tune your policies as you move along to align with societal expectations.”