In a major political shift in Enugu State, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has received Hon. Sunday Umeha, the lawmaker representing Udi/Ezeagu Federal Constituency, and over 1,000 defectors from the Labour Party (LP), into its fold.
The defection took place during a mini-rally held in Ibagwa-Aka, Igboeze South Local Government Area over the weekend. Chief Joshua Ogbonna, a business mogul and prominent LP financier in the area, led the mass defection, which also included the local government structure of the Labour Party.
Umeha, elected under the LP banner, said he had already resigned from the party and registered with APC at his ward. He cited internal crises within the LP at national and state levels, and the need to align with the central government, as reasons for his switch. He becomes the first APC member from Enugu State to occupy an elective office since the party’s formation in 2014.
“There are numerous benefits in plugging into the centre. APC has delivered more for the Southeast, including landmark projects like the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway and the Second Niger Bridge,” Umeha said.
APC Enugu State Chairman, Barr. Ugochukwu Agballah, while receiving the defectors, declared the defection as unprecedented, describing it as a “total collapse” of LP’s structure in the region. He vowed that APC was primed to end PDP’s 26-year dominance in the state by 2027.
“This broom will sweep away the forces that have kept Enugu in bondage for decades. With this mass defection, we are one step closer to reclaiming the Lion Building,” Agballah stated.
Barr. George Ogara, who represented the Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology, Chief Uche Nnaji, at the rally, said the event marked a turning point for APC in Enugu. “The number of grassroots members joining today has not been seen before in our political history. It’s a revolution,” he declared.
Chief Ogbonna, speaking on behalf of the defectors, recounted the opposition they faced ahead of the rally, including the seizure of their hired buses, which forced many attendees to arrive on motorcycles. He emphasized readiness to mobilize APC support in a ward-to-ward campaign across Igboeze South.
“This is just the beginning. We are going full throttle and Igboeze South will be fully APC before the next election,” Ogbonna said.
The APC also received the donation of a new Enugu North Senatorial Zonal Campaign Office by party stalwart Barr. Peter Okonkwo, further consolidating its growing base in the region.
