The Governor of Ebonyi State, Engr. David Umahi, CON has moved the campaign venue for Abakaliki Local Government Area in the ongoing Divine Mandate Campaign Council Local Government rallies to a different venue to enable the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP National Campaign Council to use the State Facility – Pa Ngele Oruta Township Stadium, Abakaliki on January 26, 2023.
According to Francis Nwaze, FIPMD
Special Assistant to the Governor on Documentation and the State Campaign Council Deputy Director, Directorate of New Media, this was contained in a letter from the Ebonyi State Director General of People’s Democratic Party Campaign Council, Chief Austine Edeze dated January 20, 2023, and addressed to His Excellency Engr. David Umahi, the Governor of Ebonyi State.
In the letter, the opposition political party requested the approval of the Governor to use the Pa Ngele Oruta Township Stadium for the rally, “May we refer to the above subject matter and notify your Excellency that His Excellency Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the PDP Presidential candidate is scheduled to be in Ebonyi state for the party’s Presidential campaign rally slated for the 26th day of January, 2023.
“We request your Excellency’s approval to use the Pa Ngele Oruta Township Stadium for the rally. We shall pay the necessary fees and abide by rules and regulations prescribed for using the facility.”
The letter continued; ” We further request for adequate security and your usual hospitality during the rally.”
In response, Governor Umahi approved the request marked “N” and “K” for the relevant ministries to take note and handle while the Commissioner of police is to handle the request on security.
The Governor directs the Commissioner for Youths and Sports to move the All Progressives Congress Campaign already scheduled for the same date to another venue, “Commissioner for Youths and Sports, lets us move our campaign to another venue to allow PDP use the venue.”
Recall that the Governor a fortnight ago had approved the release of the stadium for the Labour Party Presidential Rally which they had applied for. He maintained that no political party should be denied access to the government-own facility, “No Political party should be denied access to government-owned facilities for any lawful activity, provided they fulfil the demands of the existing executive order in the state for the use of such facilities.
“The commissioner for youth and sports, the Labour Party applied that they want to use the stadium on the 11th. They must be allowed to use it but they must comply with my executive order.
“No party should be denied the use of our facilities but the laws of the state must be obeyed,” he reiterated.
The Governor while speaking at Ohaukwu in an APC Local Government Rally on Saturday, January 21, 2023, noted that the state has nothing to fear and is very willing to make the Pa Ngele Oruta Township Stadium available for any political party that followed due process to get access to the stadium, “let me tell you that we have nothing to fear and that’s why we have directed that any party that wants to use our facilities, especially our stadium, we no longer have one, we have the biggest stadium in Nigeria. Now you have money to pay, you have a refundable deposit to pay and to pay into our IGR, however, if a party cannot pay, all that is required is that their party will communicate with me or my deputy and we will pay the money personally for them.
“Our father, Dr Sam Egwu requested that they want to do a presidential rally in Abakaliki on January 26 and I said, he built that stadium even though we have elevated it to another level but because of the fear of God, we must give it to him free of charge. And we have moved our rally that supposes to hold on the same day in the stadium to another venue and so, any other party that wants to hold a rally in that stadium, we can move for them.
“Power belongs to God, we are not into struggle, if God can do it for us in 2015, He will do it again in 2023. Let me tell you, our party is APC, our presidential candidate is Asiwaju and Shettima, there is no vote here and vote here, it does not work.
