The African Democratic Congress (ADC) House of Representatives candidate for Ezza South/Ikwo Federal Constituency in Ebonyi State, Ambassador Ephraim Iyke Nwonu, has dumped the party and joined the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Nwonu announced his defection on Saturday in Abuja.
According to him, he decided to leave the race to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election and Ebonyi State Governor Francis Nwifuru.
Although his name is still on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) portal as the ADC candidate for the constituency, he said he had chosen to give up his ambition.
“I am the official ADC candidate for the Ezza South/Ikwo Federal Constituency on the INEC portal, but I have decided to jettison and sacrifice that ambition because of my unalloyed support for Mr. President and my state governor,” he said.
He added that he was joining other APC leaders in Ebonyi State to work for the re-election of President Tinubu and the governor.
Nwonu said his relationship with Tinubu dates back to 1992 through his late political mentor, Senator Polycarp Nwite.
He explained that Nwite appointed him secretary of the defunct Democratic Party of Nigeria (DPN) in Ebonyi State.
“The federal road and bridge projects across Ebonyi and neighbouring states played a major role in my decision. The Ndibe Beach Bridge, the Enugu-Abakaliki-Ogoja Expressway dualisation, the Onuebonyi-Vanco Junction to Abakaliki-Afikpo road, the Peat Junction flyover in Onueke, and the Obubra-Noyo-Oferekpe interstate road are clear examples of the projects this administration has delivered,” he said.
He also claimed that Ebonyi had received 23 federal appointments under Tinubu, describing it as the highest number of appointments the state had received from a federal administration.
Speaking on the 2027 election, Nwonu dismissed suggestions that opposition figures, including Peter Obi of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), pose a challenge in the Southeast.