By Muhammad Mamman
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ikwerre Local Government Area, Rivers State, has boldly pledged to consign former governors Rotimi Amaechi and Celestine Omehia to political obscurity after the 2027 general elections. The audacious declaration came from Obinna Ekem, Director-General of the Ikwerre APC Campaign Organisation, during a rousing speech at the grand finale of their rally in Omagwa community on Sunday, ahead of the August 30 local government elections.
Ekem exuded confidence in the APC’s imminent triumph, predicting a clean sweep across all 13 wards in the upcoming council polls, buoyed by fervent support from local residents. He asserted that Ikwerre remains a staunch APC stronghold, undeterred by the presence of Amaechi and Omehia, who have aligned with an opposition coalition.
Casting a critical eye on Amaechi’s tenure as APC leader in Rivers State, Ekem blamed his “poor leadership” for the party’s repeated electoral setbacks. With Amaechi’s defection to the Action Democratic Congress (ADC), Ekem declared the APC reinvigorated and poised for victory. Looking ahead to 2027, he vowed a landslide win for President Bola Tinubu, dismissing the opposition’s alliance as inconsequential.
Ekem urged President Tinubu to focus his energies on national heavyweights like former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and former Senate President David Mark, assuring that the Ikwerre APC would neutralise Amaechi and Omehia locally.
Echoing this resolve, Rivers State APC Chairman Tony Okocha, backed by the party’s national secretariat, rallied Ikwerre residents to resist any opposition dominance in the forthcoming council elections. He promised a more transparent and credible process than the nullified October 2024 poll conducted under suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, which was overturned by the Supreme Court.
