2027: Atiku’s Loyalist Dumps ADC Ticket, Declares For Tinubu

Ambassador Ephraim Iyke Nwonu, who previously flew the banner of the African Democratic Congress as the House of Representatives candidate for the Ezza South/Ikwo Federal Constituency in Ebonyi State, has officially abandoned the platform to pitch his tent with the ruling All Progressives Congress to back President Bola Tinubu’s second-term bid.

Addressing the press in Abuja on Saturday, Nwonu revealed that despite his official credentials remaining intact on the portal of the Independent National Electoral Commission, he chose to abandon his legislative pursuit out of absolute loyalty to the President and the leadership of his home state.

“I am the official ADC candidate for the Ezza South/Ikwo Federal Constituency on the INEC portal, but I have decided to jettison and sacrifice that ambition because of my unalloyed support for Mr. President and my state governor,” he stated.

He further noted his collaboration alongside fellow regional leaders to secure a resounding electoral victory for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the state governor across his constituency.

Tracing his political roots, Nwonu explained that his alignment with Tinubu stems from long-standing ties originating back to 1992 in the Senate, forged between the President and his late political mentor, Senator Polycarp Nwite, during Nwonu’s tenure as secretary for the defunct Democratic Party of Nigeria in Ebonyi State.

“Senator Nwite appointed me as the secretary of the defunct DPN in Ebonyi State, so I have every reason to be where Tinubu is,” he reflected.

Justifying his political defection, Nwonu highlighted several critical infrastructural interventions executed by the federal administration across Ebonyi and contiguous states, pointing specifically to the Ndibe Beach Bridge linking Afikpo North to Itigidi in Cross River State, a vast 125.5-kilometre transit corridor spanning Cross River, Ebonyi, Benue, Nasarawa, and Abuja.

Additional developmental milestones cited include the ongoing dualization of the Enugu-Abakaliki-Ogoja Expressway, the Onuebonyi–Vanco Junction to Abakaliki–Afikpo road network, the newly constructed flyover at Peat Junction in Onueke, and the Obubra-Noyo-Oferekpe interstate connection as tangible proof of structural progress in the geopolitical zone.

Beyond physical infrastructure, he emphasized that the current federal government has extended a record-breaking 23 national appointments to indigenes of Ebonyi State, marking an unprecedented level of federal representation that he believes dismantles any opposition foothold in the Southeast come 2027.

Dismissing the political weight of Nigeria Democratic Congress standard-bearer Peter Obi, Nwonu asserted, “There is no threat whatsoever. Anyone on the ballot is free to try their luck, but Peter Obi’s ambition poses no threat to Mr President in the Southeast, especially considering what this administration has delivered to Ebonyi State. President Tinubu will win comfortably.”

To support his assertions, he referenced data compiled by his personal non-governmental organization in partnership with the Ebonyi State Ministry of Information during a recent two-day analytical workshop.

“Our findings show that majority of our people now recognise the achievements of Mr President and are ready to reciprocate his goodwill with massive votes,” he concluded.