2027: Tinubu, APC teleguiding INEC claims, not true – Senator Kalu 

Senator Orji Uzor Kalu representing Abia North Senatorial District Tuesday dismissed the notion by some opposition political parties that President Bola Tinubu and the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, are behind leadership crises bedeviling them just nine  months to 2027 general election.

Kalu who chairs the Senate Committee on South East Development Commission, debunked the notion while fielding questions from journalists  on the state of the Nation to mark his 66th birthday .

Advertisements

“Claims being made by some opposition political parties on alleged interference in the workings of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC by President Bola Tinubu or our great party, the All Progressives Congress, are to me, frivolous and harmful to Nigeria’s democratic image”, he said.

APC according to him, has no control over INEC, stressing that the electoral umpire, under the leadership of  Professor Joash Amupitan, operates independently.

Advertisements

“The APC as a party has nothing to do with INEC. INEC is an independent body and we have a lot of respect for the Chairman of INEC. 

“He is an erudite Professor of Law… so, let us stop this frivolity. People should take the electoral process and democracy seriously instead of de-marketing the country”, he said.

He also dismissed the  insinuations that the ruling party is coercing politicians, particularly governors, to defect into its fold, maintaining that party membership remains a matter of personal choice and negotiation.

“President Tinubu has never pressured anyone to join the APC or  begged anybody to leave his or her own  party for APC.

“So,  if  a governor decides to join APC, that is his business. When you come, we negotiate; if it is good, you stay; if not, you go your way. Nobody is forcing anybody,” he stressed.

On permutations ahead of the 2027 general elections, particularly speculations that the Senate Presidency may be zoned to the South East, Kalu said he was unaware of any such arrangement, describing zoning decisions as the exclusive prerogative of party leadership.

However, while not ruling himself out, he emphasized that he is not lobbying for any position.

Advertisements