A political support group in Ebonyi State, Anyi Ga Emeya, has rejected arguments against the 2027 governorship ambition of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)'s 2023 governorship candidate, Chief Ifeanyi Chukwuma Odii, popularly known as Anyichuks, insisting that competence and development should take precedence over zoning considerations.
The group made its position known in a statement signed by its coordinators across the five local government areas of Ebonyi South Senatorial District and made available to journalists in Abakaliki on Tuesday.
The statement was jointly signed by Orji Oko Akanu (Edda Local Government Area), Pascal Okochi (Afikpo North LGA), Chukwuemeka Ijeh (Ivo LGA), Okereke Ndubuisi (Ohaozara LGA), and Successful David (Onicha LGA).
The group expressed confidence in Odii's leadership capacity, describing him as a visionary leader capable of accelerating the state's development if elected governor in 2027.
According to the group, Odii has demonstrated commitment to the welfare of Ebonyi people through various philanthropic interventions, including youth and women empowerment programmes, educational support initiatives and community development projects funded from his personal resources.
The coordinators argued that his track record of humanitarian services and investments in human capital development had distinguished him as a viable alternative for the state's future leadership.
"Anyichuks has the capacity to lead the state. Anyone supporting him is someone who has seen the future of Ebonyi State. It is only Anyichuks that can bring about the desired turnaround and make the state the Ebonyi of our dreams," the statement read.
The group further urged political stakeholders, youths and women across the state to avoid what it described as clannish politics and sentiments, and instead focus on leadership qualities capable of improving the lives of citizens.
"We want to encourage everybody, both the youth, the women and the stakeholders, to shun clannish politics and the politics of sentiment. People should look beyond such considerations and focus on the betterment of Ebonyi State and its citizens," the group stated.
Highlighting Odii's contributions to communities across the state, the group claimed that he had continued to support the construction of churches, residential buildings and educational facilities for individuals and communities, while also sponsoring skills acquisition and agricultural training programmes.
According to the statement, beneficiaries of some of the training programmes are expected to receive empowerment packages in the near future as part of ongoing efforts to improve livelihoods.
The group also cautioned Ebonyi residents against being swayed by political campaigns centred on tenure arrangements, insisting that voters should prioritize performance and development.
"Nigerians and Ebonyi people did not vote for slogans or tenure calculations. What the people desire is infrastructure, development and improved living standards," the statement added.
The support group also dismissed the legitimacy of the Ebonyi South Youth Assembly, which recently called on Odii to abandon any plans to contest the 2027 governorship election in the interest of maintaining the state's rotational leadership arrangement.
Describing the assembly as a group of "few elements of distraction," the coordinators challenged its leaders to publicly defend their position through open debate.
"There is nothing like Ebonyi South Youth Assembly. Those making such claims should come forward and defend their arguments publicly," the statement said.
The group further argued that previous governorship contests in the state had featured candidates from different senatorial zones competing freely, noting that former governors contested elections under varying political circumstances without strict adherence to a single interpretation of zoning.
The statement came days after the Ebonyi South Youth Assembly urged Odii to drop any alleged governorship ambition for 2027, maintaining that such a move would violate the state's long-standing principle of power rotation among the three senatorial zones.
The youth assembly, led by its National President, Comrade Odii Njoku, had argued that political stability in Ebonyi State had been sustained through adherence to equity, fairness and justice, particularly the unwritten zoning arrangement guiding the distribution of key political offices.
The group had consequently called on political actors and voters from Ebonyi South Senatorial District to support Governor Francis Nwifuru and preserve what it described as the state's established political balance.
The latest exchange underscores growing political conversations around the 2027 governorship contest in Ebonyi State, with supporters and opponents of Odii's potential candidacy increasingly engaging in public debates over zoning, equity and the future direction of the state.
