Kenneth Udeh
The Ariaria International Market, Ariaria Aba was on standstill as the campaign train of the All Progressive’s Congress (APC)for Saturday’s Aba North/South bye election led the leader of party in Abia State and Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Orji Kalu made a triumphant entry into the Ariaria International Market, Aba ,Abia State.
The entry of the APC campaign team set the Market agog as businessmen, traders, artisans and customers expressed joy at the sight of APC entourage as it transitioned through the major streets in the market.
The jubilation of theMarket’s tempo was amplified when Senator Kalu emerged through the sunroof of his black Toyota SUV as they chanted various words of praises for the Chief Whip and former Governor of the state in solidarity for the party’s candidate Hon. Mascot Uzor Kalu.
The APC entourage stormed the popular market with an expanded motorcade to campaign for its candidate, Hon Mascot Uzor Kalu in the Saturday’s House of Representatives,Bye election.
The massive crowd at the market gave Senator Kalu and his team a boisterous welcome as they were warmly received, expressing their joy some artisans waved from the balcony of their shops, while others surged to catch a glimpse of Senator Kalu.
Various Chants of “APC everywhere you go”, “Our Leader is here”, rented the air following the arrival of Senator Orji Kalu and his team.
Addressing the Mammoth crowd at 66 power line Ariaria venue of the campaign, the minister for State for Mines and Steel, Uche Ogah charged the audience to sustain their zeal by voting enormously for the party on Saturday.
His words; “Our party has done a lot for the good people of Aba and the Southeast, recently President Muhammadu Buhari performed the groundbreaking ceremony for the Eastern rail corridor on March 9th.
“That project will generate employment during and after it has been completed, this shows the love of President Buhari and the APC towards our region and it will improve the economic activities in the region.
“Currently the stable electricity you enjoy in the market is an initiative of the APC through President Buhari and this has benefitted over 37,000 shops located within the Market from the 9.5 megawatts (MW) gas-based power plant.
“I urge you all to come out and identify the broom symbol on the ballot paper and vote for the APC.
On his part, Former Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Azubuike Ihejirika (rtd), lampooned the People’s Democratic Party in the state, describing the party as a failure. He said the level of decay in the market is evidence that the party has failed, urging the people to vote for the APC if they want the market to take a new look.
“If the votes are counted, your votes will count. This is not the time that after counting, they will go behind and rewrite the results. We will vote and we will win. When I was coming here I was disturbed by the level of decay here and as we got to that junction, I heard a small boy saying that this road was built by Orji Uzor Kalu while he was a governor and no government has added to it . There was another place we got to, everywhere was rotten and smelling. I never knew Ariaria is this bad. I used to hear that the road in Ariaria is bad.
“ This Ariaria was the best market in West Africa before 20007. . If there are people that would leave their personal things to deteriorate and go bad like this, then, I need not make friends with them. Those I have a relationship with are progressive people and APC is that party with progressive people. APC is the only Party through which good things can reach the people”.
General Ihejirika also revealed how the PDP pleaded with him to remain in the PDP. According to him, the PDP were worried to know why he had to leave the party for the APC
“There is this thing that gets me angry about some people. When I joined the APC, so many of them in the PDP came asking me why I left them? I was bold to tell them that I see no progress in what they do, in their governance for the people. Many of them in the PDP agreed with me. So many of these PDP people that came to me, admitted that the state is not progressing but if they are before their masters and the public, they will praise the bad government to keep their daily bread. We will follow APC because they have the vision”. He concluded.
Senator Kalu in his address decried the poor performance of his Senatorial counterpart,Senator Eyinnaya Abaribe describing his 16 years at the Senate as a waste, stating that the people of Abia South had not benefited from him.
Kalu challenged the Governor and leadership of PDP to emulate him by taking their campaign through the market Streets and Interacting with the Market traders. He urged the people to troop out en masse and vote massively for the party that the party has done a lot in terms of infrastructure.
Also present was the flag bearer of the party; Mascot Uzor Kalu tasked the people to rescue themselves from what he described as the shackles of the PDP in the state by voting for the APC.
Mascot divulged that Governor Ikpeazu and the Senator Abaribe coveted Federal Government intervention funds meant for empowerment to private use.