2027: Shettima assures South-East of project completion, seeks votes

…As Nwifuru pledges Ebonyi support for Tinubu By Jeff Agbodo, Abakaliki The All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign train on Monday arrived in Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, to canvass support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid ahead of the 2027 general elections. Vice-President Kashim Shettima, who represented Tinubu at the rally, assured the people of Ebonyi State and the South-East of the completion of ongoing federal projects if the President is re-elected.

Shettima also said the Tinubu administration had strengthened security in the South-East, particularly Ebonyi State, creating a safer environment for residents. He urged the electorate to come out en masse to vote for Governor Francis Nwifuru and other APC candidates in the forthcoming elections. In his remarks, Governor Nwifuru pledged the support of Ebonyi voters for Tinubu’s re-election, assuring the President of massive votes from the state.

He said the South-East had suffered infrastructure deficits under previous administrations but maintained that the Tinubu government had changed the situation through projects across the region and other parts of the country, many of which are being supervised by the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi. The governor appealed to the Federal Government to connect the southern part of Ebonyi State to the national electricity grid to improve power supply and support industrial development.

He also urged Tinubu to approve and ensure the completion of the proposed railway project linking Ebonyi to Aba in Abia State and Port Harcourt in Rivers State. Nwifuru highlighted some achievements of his administration in the last three and a half years, particularly in the health and education sectors. He said his government had provided medical equipment and revitalised primary and secondary healthcare facilities across the state’s 13 local government areas.

The governor also disclosed that work had commenced on the Abakaliki cement factory project, expressing optimism that its completion would create employment opportunities for young people. On education, he said his administration had recruited teachers for primary and secondary schools, adding that 314 beneficiaries of state scholarships had graduated with master’s degrees from overseas universities and commenced doctoral programmes in the United Kingdom.

Also speaking, Umahi said Ebonyi State remained an APC stronghold and urged residents to support Tinubu’s second-term ambition to enable the administration to complete ongoing infrastructure projects. The minister listed several federal projects in the state, including the Afikpo-Cross River Ndibe Bridge, the Abakaliki-Afikpo road dualisation and the proposed superhighway linking Ebonyi, Enugu, Kogi, Benue, Nasarawa and Abuja.

Umahi said the Federal Government had awarded several infrastructure contracts worth billions of naira in Ebonyi, adding that the South-East had received increased attention through road construction projects under the Tinubu administration. He also described his appointment as Minister of Works as a significant development for the South-East, saying the region was benefiting from the administration’s infrastructure programme.

Other dignitaries at the rally included the Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari; South-East campaign coordinator and Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah; Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodimma; Senator Adams Oshiomhole; Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu; and the APC National Deputy Chairman, Dr Ben Nwite.

Former Senate President and former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Pius Anyim, and Senator Osita Izunaso were also present.