By Julius Peter, Abuja
The Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has urged traditional rulers, religious leaders, political stakeholders and residents of Ebonyi State to take active responsibility for determining the political future of the state and the country, warning that silence and political apathy could undermine their collective interests.
Umahi made the call on Sunday, November 1, 2026, during a town hall meeting with stakeholders from Ebonyi State, organised by the Directorate of Infrastructure, Mobilisation and Sensitisation of the 2027 All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council at the Christian Ecumenical Centre, Abakaliki.
The meeting, which attracted serving and former senators, members of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly, serving and former members of the State Executive Council, Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) leaders, traditional rulers, presidents-general and other prominent personalities, ended with a unanimous endorsement of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Governor Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru for re-election in 2027.
Speaking at the gathering, Umahi maintained that political participation should not be regarded as the exclusive responsibility of politicians, stressing that traditional institutions and religious organisations also had important roles to play in shaping governance, promoting development and influencing leadership choices.
He particularly challenged traditional rulers in the Southeast to abandon the perception that involvement in politics was inconsistent with their traditional responsibilities.
According to him, traditional rulers, whose responsibilities include maintaining peace, promoting unity and facilitating development in their communities, should be actively involved in political conversations that determine the future of their people.
“It is only in the Southeast that our traditional fathers will say they don’t play politics. Politics is about democracy; it is about development, and our traditional fathers are about development. They are about making the right choices,” he said.
The Minister also called on religious leaders to move beyond making observations and criticisms from their pulpits and become actively involved in the processes that produce responsible leadership.
He argued that the influence of religious institutions should be deployed towards encouraging political awareness, accountability and responsible participation in democratic processes.
“If the religious leaders only stay on their pulpit to tell us what we are not doing right, they are missing it. They have to be part of the foundation of our leaders. And they say that the only way for evil to thrive is for good men to keep quiet,” Umahi stated.
Reflecting on the political history of Ebonyi State, the former governor said the people had remained silent for too long on issues affecting their collective interests, insisting that the time had come for them to speak with one voice and make deliberate political choices.
“We have kept quiet so much as Ebonyi people. So, the essence of our coming is: choose you this day the path that we should follow. We are not going to express sentiments here. We are people that God has liberated,” he declared.
Umahi further maintained that the development and advancement of the state would depend largely on the willingness of its people to participate actively in political decisions rather than leave their future in the hands of others.
“You can’t keep quiet and be able to get that which belongs to you. We have been liberated, but the choice to be free is in our hands. And no matter the sentiments, the future of Ebonyi State is in the hands of Ebonyi people,” he added.
Earlier, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Community Engagement (Southeast), Hon. Chioma Nweze, Esq., called for greater political unity among the people of the Southeast, urging the region to deploy its collective voting strength to secure a stronger position in national political negotiations.
Nweze observed that the inability of the Southeast to consistently align its votes with the winning political platform had weakened its bargaining power and limited its capacity to influence decisions at the centre.
She argued that the region could address some of its concerns, including complaints of marginalisation, more effectively by participating in the political process as a united bloc.
“As Southeast people, our votes can only swing in our favour if we vote in a bloc. We have always negotiated from outside the room because we don’t vote for the winning party, and marginalisation is hard to fix from outside the room,” she said.
The presidential aide stressed that the region needed to move from the position of political spectators to active participants in national decision-making.
“We have to be able to take our seats. We have to have a voice inside when decisions are taken. We have to have the leverage to ask for more if we can go to the centre and say, these are the votes we bring; we need more appointments,” she added.
She urged the stakeholders to appreciate the importance of political unity and strategic engagement, noting that collective electoral participation could strengthen the region’s influence in the distribution of national opportunities and appointments.
The high point of the town hall meeting was the unanimous passage of a vote of confidence and endorsement of President Tinubu and Governor Nwifuru for re-election in the 2027 general elections.
Moving the motion, former Senator Julius Ali Ucha said Ebonyi State had continued to benefit from the present Federal Government, particularly through the appointment of Umahi as Minister of Works.
He noted that the responsibility entrusted to Umahi had provided Ebonyi with an opportunity to contribute meaningfully to national development while attracting attention to the state.
Ucha consequently moved that eligible voters and political leaders in Ebonyi State should adopt the APC as their political platform and support all its candidates in the forthcoming elections.
The endorsement, he said, should cover President Tinubu, Governor Nwifuru, candidates for the National Assembly and those contesting seats in the Ebonyi State House of Assembly.
Seconding the motion, Senator Anthony Agbo praised Umahi’s political resilience, leadership capacity and contributions to the development of Ebonyi State, describing him as an outstanding political figure whose achievements had brought honour to the state.
Agbo said Umahi had demonstrated the leadership potential of the Igbo people and shown that individuals from the Southeast could occupy strategic positions and make significant contributions to national development.
“Senator David Umahi, you are a phenomenon. You are a mighty man. There is no political weather that is shaking you anywhere. You have displayed that primordial traits of the Igbo person that distinguishes an Igbo man, and through you, people have come to understand what an Igbo man can do in leadership,” he said.
The former senator further commended the Minister for remaining politically resilient despite opposition, arguing that his accomplishments had strengthened his standing in the country’s political landscape.
“Everybody wants to be like you, and those who cannot be like you must attack you. But I tell you, your personality has grown so mighty that it has become so impervious to the blunt teeth of the opposition. So, I commend you. You are a great and mighty son of this state, and you have made us proud by doing what the Napoleons could not do in the history of this country,” Agbo declared.
He expressed confidence that Umahi’s contributions would remain significant in the political history of Nigeria, irrespective of prevailing political differences, before formally seconding the motion.
Putting the motion to a vote, Umahi urged the stakeholders to move beyond verbal endorsements and translate their resolutions into practical political mobilisation across the state.
He declared that Ebonyi would massively support President Tinubu’s re-election in 2027 to enable him complete his constitutionally permitted eight-year tenure and consolidate on the infrastructure and development projects initiated by his administration.
The Minister specifically linked the state’s support for the President to the completion of ongoing federal infrastructure projects in Ebonyi, the initiation of additional projects and the attraction of more federal appointments to the state.
He also declared support for Governor Nwifuru to complete his eight-year tenure, while expressing his position that the governor should continue in office for a second term, describing this as the preferred political direction for the state.
Umahi further stated that the next governorship election should favour the North Senatorial Zone, with Nwifuru returning for another term.
He urged political leaders, traditional rulers, religious organisations and grassroots mobilisers to take the message of the meeting to every community and household in Ebonyi State.
“That Ebonyi State will massively vote for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to complete his eight years in office and for all the projects in Ebonyi State to be completed and for new ones to be initiated, and for more appointments to Ebonyi State,” he declared.
On the governorship election, he stated: “That the next Governor of Ebonyi State shall come from the North Senatorial Zone and shall be Francis Ogbonnaya Nwifuru to complete his eight years. That we will take this message from door to door, that Ebonyi State is APC and we will vote all APC candidates from top to bottom.”
The resolution received overwhelming support from the stakeholders, who affirmed the motion with enthusiastic applause and loud ovations.
The meeting underscored the APC’s determination to strengthen its political structures and grassroots mobilisation in Ebonyi State ahead of the 2027 general elections.
It also highlighted the emphasis being placed on the Southeast’s political participation and the need for the region to build stronger alliances at the national level.
With the endorsement of Tinubu and Nwifuru, the stakeholders signalled their preferred political direction ahead of the 2027 polls, while Umahi charged them to sustain the mobilisation and ensure that the resolutions reached at the meeting translated into electoral support.
Francis Nwaze, FIPMD, Senior Special Assistant to the Honourable Minister of Works (Media), issued the statement on November 4, 2026.
