Nkechinyere Ewa
The Ebonyi State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Stanley Okoro Emegha, has called for peace, unity and reconciliation among party stakeholders in Onicha Local Government Area ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Emegha made the call when he met with party stakeholders and leaders from Onicha LGA in the state’s Southern Senatorial District at the APC State Secretariat, Waterworks Road, Abakaliki.
The meeting was attended by serving and former political office holders, community and opinion leaders from various autonomous communities in the council area.
The stakeholders reviewed the challenges and prospects of the party in Onicha and considered strategic interventions to strengthen the party’s structures ahead of the 2027 elections.
Addressing the meeting, Emegha urged party leaders to put aside personal political interests and work collectively for the success of the APC.
He particularly cautioned against further factionalisation of the party in the area, stressing that the APC remained “one united and indivisible family.”
The state chairman also commended APC candidates from Onicha for their efforts in reaching out to the electorate, but urged them to intensify their grassroots engagements.
According to him, stronger engagement with the people would help consolidate the party’s support base and make its campaign activities easier ahead of the elections.
A former Commissioner in the state and APC stakeholder from Onicha, Odi Njoku, dismissed suggestions that the opposition could take over the local government in 2027, insisting that the APC remained firmly in control of the political structures of the council.
Njoku said all elected and appointed government officials from Onicha were members of the APC, describing any attempt to weaken the party’s dominance as unrealistic.
“We cannot blame anybody for holding whatever opinion he or she wants to hold, but it is not true. In Onicha Local Government, all the elected officials of government and appointed officials are all APC.
“Somebody wanting to be used as a spoiler is out of it. The result, we will prove our stand when it comes in 2027. So, there is no hope for any opposition in Onicha Local Government,” he said.
Chairman of Onicha Local Government Area, Hon. Ikechukwu Ogbofia, appreciated Emegha for convening the meeting, saying he had earlier met with stakeholders in the area where they unanimously agreed to work together in peace and harmony.
Ogbofia assured the state party chairman that similar meetings would be replicated across the electoral wards in the council before the commencement of campaigns.
Former Deputy Governor of Ebonyi State, Prof. Chigozie Ogbu, also pledged the commitment of Onicha stakeholders to resolving their differences amicably.
Ogbu assured the party that the people of Onicha would mobilise massively behind all APC candidates during the elections.
The meeting ended with a resolution urging all APC candidates from Onicha LGA to immediately intensify grassroots engagement with the electorate, while the state party leadership explores further measures to strengthen unity and resolve outstanding issues in the council.