The governorship candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance in Abia State, Prof Gregory Ibe, has stated that he joined the governorship race because of the lack of development in the state.
He insisted that the state of things in Abia was capable of making any resident of the state angry after considering that salaries, pension and gratuities were not being paid, while many roads are now death traps.
Ibe spoke in Umuahia, the state capital, on Saturday during a meeting with the leaders of the Christian Association of Nigeria in the state.
He pointed out that his desire to bring about societal change inspired him as a private individual to assist people by setting up an NGO called Gregory lyke Foundation as far in the year 1991 when Abia was created.
He said, “God prospered my handiwork. I quietly began to partner government in executing social interventions in education, health, infrastructure and sports. You recall one such partnership occurred during the COVID-19 lockdown.
“When I saw that the people in power lack the ability to develop our state, I decided to leave my comfort zone as a technocrat and step into the dirty waters of politics in order to help my people.
“Currently I am a consultant to 15 nations of ECOWAS Commission, the World Bank and United Nations. I am also a consultant to seven federal ministries.
“But for the sake of liberating my people from the under development I am willing to sacrifice all that.”
Ibe, who is also the chancellor of Gregory University, Uturu, also revealed that his ambition to govern Abia has also attracted the wrath of political class in the state against him.
He also revealed that there was nothing the cabal in the state had not done to stop his state liberation mission and in a desperate bid to stop him, began spreading false rumours about him.
“They attacked my health with juju and began to circulate evil reports that I have been amputated. They enlisted the partnership of some aggrieved politicians who went as far as falsifying someone’s WAEC certificate and alleged it is mine. In order to make people hate me they lied that I am being sponsored by former governor T.A Orji.
“They even went as far as deploying money that would have been used in bettering the life of our people in funding some collaborators to go to several courts against me. But no
matter what they did, the God of Ndi Abia said NO!
However, despite the varied attacks on him, God has kept on preserving him.
He bemoaned the state of the country 32 years after creation.
Hinting on his plans for the state, he said, “The new Abia that I want to lead our people into after May 29, 2023 is a state where no one and no community will be left behind. There will be even development from South, Central to North with unique innovative projects in every Local Government Area as you will see when you read my manifesto.
“Apart from the job of repositioning Abia in all sectors, one of the first assignments undertaken with the support of Sen Abaribe will be the release and rehabilitation of our son Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.
“With the support of my collaborators in the United Nations we shall adopt available political solutions in liberating Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.”
Responding, the CAN chairman in the State Apostle Emmanuel Agomuo, assured Ibe that the church will continue to pray for a peaceful election and development of the state.
He urged Abia residents to come out in their large numbers to exercise their civil responsibility during the forthcoming governorship election and vote for the candidate of their choice.
The clergyman expressed hope that Abia people will not allow any political party to rig the election.
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