Ebonyi Governor Umahi defects to APC to pursue Presidential ambition

Umahi defects to APC after meeting with President Buhari

Sources at the Presidency has confirmed it, his staunchest allies have confirmed it, but Governor Umahi and his media aides have denied defecting to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.

But Punch reports that the Governor’s defection is likely to be confirmed this week.

Punch reports that Chinedu Ogah, who was the director of Ebonyi Youth Assembly during Governor Umahi’s first term and now a House of Representatives member representing Ezza South/Ikwo Federal Constituency, had confidently confided in the newspaper that Umahi had already dumped the Peoples’ Democratic Party, PDP for the ruling APC.

Hon. Ogah asked Punch to be quoted anytime, anywhere.

Rumours that Umahi defects to APC started after he was said to have held a series meetings with several leaders of the APC, including the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Friday.

This development will come as a shocking surprise to many, as Governor Umahi had been a strong leader of the PDP in the South East. His defection now places the State in the hands of the ruling party without the hurdles of winning an election. This will now make Ebonyi the second state under APC besides Imo.

The speculation is that Umahi is defecting to the APC to bolster his shot at the Presidency come 2023, even though he presided over South East’s poorest State without doing much to improve its fortunes over the past 5 years.

Read also, Are there moles in Ebonyi Government?

According to a member of the APC and spokesman of Alaigbo Development Foundation, Chief Abia Onyike, who spoke to Punch, the defection of Umahi was very true, and that it was inspired by Umahi’s Presidential ambition.

Onyike stated: “Governor Umahi’s defection is very true. With the influence of people like Senator Obinna Ogba and the other National Assembly members, he appears uncomfortable in the PDP as the party can no longer give him the edge he enjoyed ab initio. That was a fallout of the state congress boycotted by the Abuja group, which petitioned the national leadership of the party. So, he had no option but to look elsewhere.

“The PDP is no longer ready to allow him to produce the National Vice Chairman of the party in the yet to be organised zonal congress. He wants to be in the APC to pursue his presidential ambition.”