2027: Nwifuru Threatens to Sack Ebonyi LG Chairmen Who Fail to Deliver APC Victory

Ebonyi State Governor, Francis Nwifuru, has threatened to remove any local government chairman who fails to deliver victory for the All Progressives Congress in his council area during the 2027 general elections.

Nwifuru issued the warning on Wednesday in Abakaliki, the state capital, while inaugurating the newly elected chairmen and vice-chairmen of the state’s 13 local government areas.

The governor said the council chairmen would be held responsible for the electoral performance of the APC in their respective councils, directing them to work towards securing total victory for the party.

He warned that any chairman whose council failed to deliver for the APC would be removed and replaced with a councillor.

Nwifuru said the directive was not being issued secretly, stressing that the chairmen were expected to take the party’s 2027 electoral campaign seriously.

He also urged the newly inaugurated council leaders to prevent opposition parties from gaining political ground in their areas.

The governor, however, cautioned the chairmen and their deputies against allowing personal rivalry to affect the administration of their councils.

Addressing the vice-chairmen, Nwifuru urged them to support the chairmen and remain actively involved in the affairs of their respective councils.

He likened their positions to “spare tyres inside the car boot,” explaining that they should be prepared to assume responsibility whenever the substantive chairmen were unable to perform their duties.

Nwifuru also pointed to the political journey of his deputy, who previously served as a local government chairman, as an example of how effective grassroots leadership could lead to higher political responsibilities.

According to him, her performance as a council chairman helped demonstrate her capacity for greater responsibilities before she eventually became deputy governor.

Responding on behalf of the newly inaugurated chairmen, the Afikpo Local Government Area chairman, Timothy Nwachi, thanked the governor and other party leaders for the confidence placed in them.

Nwachi pledged that the chairmen would justify the trust reposed in them and work towards securing a landslide victory for the APC in Ebonyi during the 2027 elections.

Among the newly inaugurated council chairmen are Osborne Umahi, son of the Minister of Works, David Umahi, and Chidi Nwode, a relative of the governor’s wife.