By Imoleayo Oyedeyi

Ifeanyi Odii

Ifeanyi Odii, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate for the 2027 election in Ebonyi state, says he will serve only one term if elected governor.

Speaking in Lagos on Saturday during a media parley, Odii said he had already mapped out what he intended to achieve within four years in office.

“I’ve told God and myself that I want to be the first governor who will not seek re-election after four years. What it means is that I have already packaged what I want to do in Ebonyi within four years,” he said.

The PDP governorship candidate said Nigerian politics is gradually shifting from party loyalty to personalities and competence, adding that his aspiration has continued to attract support across political divides.

‘PARTY POLITICS HAS FAILED US’

Odii said his growing support base and acceptance among the people of Ebonyi are making the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government in the state jittery.

“Today, in Nigerian politics, it is becoming about personality, no longer party. As far as I’m concerned, we are getting a lot of traction, and the government in power is already jittery,” he said.

“We have a lot of people resigning from the opposition party and joining us. As I’m talking with you, so many structures are collapsing, including some of the parties.

“We’re not talking about party politics anymore. Nigeria will now develop based on who you are, what you have done, and what you are bringing on board.

“Party politics has failed us. What is going to lead Nigeria to be a prosperous nation will be based on individual ideologies.”

‘NO ZONING IN EBONYI’

The governorship candidate argued that competence, rather than political arrangements, should determine who becomes the next governor of Ebonyi.

He maintained that there had never been any documented zoning agreement in Ebonyi and questioned claims that such an arrangement had been breached.

According to him, although there were claims that since the state’s capital was situated in Abakaliki, the first governor should emerge from the Afikpo zone, but it never happened.

“There will not be a zoning issue anymore because our people are very civilised today. We know clannish politics is one of the things that has actually kept us from developing,” he said.

“Going by the Abakaliki bloc and the Afikpo bloc, the Abakaliki bloc has been in power for 20 years, while the Afikpo bloc has been in power for just eight years. So, who is actually short-changing the other?

“I’m not contesting based on any zone. I’m contesting because I’m a bona fide son of Ebonyi state who believes competence should be what we need, not incompetence.”

Odii also painted a grim picture of poverty in the state, claiming that a majority of residents lived below the poverty line.

“In every 10 Ebonyians, from my little data—I’m not quoting any person; I’m speaking based on my findings—you have seven below the poverty line,” he said.

Referencing a recent APC rally in Abakaliki, the state capital, Odii alleged that the large turnout reflected the level of poverty in the state.

“That’s why if you go to Ebonyi today and want to mobilise 100,000 people by paying them N2,000 each, you’ll see the crowd. That tells you there is poverty,” he said.

“If you can mobilise that number of people within just a few days, it tells you that if every one of them was gainfully occupied, you would never see such a turnout.

“If you go to Anambra and want to mobilise people that way, it will not happen. That’s the truth. Because how much is N2,000? Many people in Anambra make as much as N200,000 a day. But in Ebonyi, N2,000 can get you to mobilise 100,000 people in one day.”

Odii said his campaign had focused on educating voters, particularly women and other grassroots residents, on the importance of making informed electoral choices.

“What we’ve done is to go and explain to our uneducated grandmothers and market women why, over the years, their children have not been able to succeed,” he said.

“We are telling them to come out and vote for good governance, vote for the future of their children, vote for education, vote for healthcare, and vote for job creation.”

The PDP governorship candidate attributed low voter turnout to public apathy, saying politicians often exploit poor participation during elections.

“Imagine a polling unit with 1,000 registered voters, and on election day only 10 percent come out. They take advantage of that. The others stay away because they believe their votes will not count,” he said.

Source: TheCable