Speakership race: We’ll resist plot to stop Benjamin Kalu, says group

The Igbo Mandate Movement Group (IMMG) has condemned the recent attempts by several politicians to “truncate the opportunity” of the south-east to produce the next house of representatives speaker.

The group stated this in a press statement which was duly signed by its coordinator, Igboeli Arinze and its secretary, Cletus Anosike.

The statement condemned the recent press release by what it called a faceless and unregistered coalition of Northern Patriots Front, South West Professionals and Coalition of Arewa Group on emerging issues of the Leadership of the 10th national assembly, with the coalition accusing Hon Benjamin Kalu of betraying the All Progressives Congress, APC in the past general elections and thus was not to be rewarded with the position of speaker.

They had also allegedly accused Kalu of disloyalty as well as lacking the experience and knowledge for the position.

Responding, the coordinator berated the group, describing it as a pseudo coalition noting that it was only responding due to the fact that the statement was targeted at Kalu.

He alleged that it was only Kalu who had stood by the party’s guber candidate and presidential candidate while others campaigned for themselves alone.

The group also alleged that despite the unpopularity of campaigning for the APC’s presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, it was only Kalu who had remained resolute that he was attacked while his campaign office was burnt in the runoff to the 2023 elections.

“Naturally, we as a group do not get involved in exchanging brickbats with unknown and faceless groups such as the aforementioned but for the fact that some of the issues allegedly raised by this pseudo coalition is an obvious affront on the person of Honorable Benjamin Okezie Kalu, Spokeperson of the 9th Assembly and our sole candidate for the Office of Speaker in the 10th Assembly,” the statement read.

“This satanic coalition, in its futile bid to misinform the general public and cast aspersions on the Integrity of the Honourable Benjamin Kalu did allege that the likes of Kalu betrayed the party in the course of the run up to the elections, thus like a Kangaroo court also gave a judgement asking that Kalu shouldn’t be allowed to lead the House of Representatives as Speaker.

“Let it be on the records that no sitting legislator in the SouthEast nor those who aspired to represent their constituencies in either chambers of the National Assembly did as much as Benjamin Kalu in the runoff to the elections.

“While a number of candidates campaigned with the sly slogan “Vote for me for Senate and vote for whosoever you like as President” Benjamin Kalu was known to have started and ended all his campaigns with “Vote for me for Rep and vote for Bola Ahmed Tinubu as President” the evidence is there that even in places deemed as hostile territories and audiences alike, Benjamin Kalu never shirked from campaigning for Tinubu not even when threatened by hired assassins who were sent to silence him for projecting the APC Presidential Candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

“Again, while other leaders shied away from receiving our President-Elect when he came to Abia State, Benjamin Kalu was one of the few leaders from Abia who welcomed the President Elect and drove with him to the Umuahia Township Stadium where the President Elect met with party faithful.

“It will be recalled also that the Hon. Kalu, 45 days to the election day, granted an interview projecting the Presidential candidate Sen. Bola Ahmed Tinubu as likely to win the 2023 general elections and maintained such stance despite the backlash from certain quarters in the Southeastern region.”

The statement added that Kalu possesses enormous goodwill in the south-east region and was needed by the APC to ingratiate itself to the region.