Governor Hope Uzodimma has not thrown his weight behind any aspirant from Imo State gunning for the House of Representatives primaries scheduled for Saturday, May 16, 2026, or for any other elective position for that matter, a statement by Oguwike Nwachuku, his Chief Press Secretary Special Adviser Media has said.
If anything, the statement stressed, “the Governor is strongly routing for a free, fair and transparent democratic process that will throw up Imo candidates for all the elective offices in the country on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 general elections.”
Nwachuku said that “this clarification has become necessary following a report on social media (Facebook in particular) where one Iheanyi Daniel Enwerem, mischievously credited the Governor to be backing a particular House of Representatives aspirant for the primaries.
“Relying on Governor Uzodimma’s remarks on the United Nations proposition that women and the youth be encouraged in politics, and the willingness of the APC to take the proposal seriously, the reporter, out of selfish consideration, singled out one of the numerous women aspirants in Imo State and wrote, “Uzodimma backs the return of Hon. Princess Miriam Onuoha to the Green Chambers of the National Assembly.”
He said further that “the report is not just an outright misrepresentation of Governor Uzodimma at the APC Stakeholders meeting of Thursday at the Banquet Hall of the Government House Owerri but designed to cause disaffection and hurt the feelings of other aspirants.
“The Governor remains committed to an APC primary process in Imo State that will enthrone fairness, inclusiveness, true democratic representation, and guarantee a sense of belonging that will strengthen the unity within the Party.”
For the avoidance of doubt, Nwachuku said, the Governor’s position is reproduced verbatim from his Social media handle:
“Ahead of the commencement of our Party’s Primary Elections, I convened a stakeholders’ meeting with all aspirants, the Party leadership in the State, Party leaders, and other critical stakeholders, where we harmonised strategies and addressed the realities necessary for the successful conduct of the exercise.
“In my remarks, I strongly admonished against the “do or die” approach to the primaries, emphasising that the process must remain peaceful, transparent, and driven by the overall interest of the Party.
“I reminded all aspirants that, inevitably, only one candidate will emerge for each available position, and as loyal Party members, we must unite behind whoever emerges victorious.
“I further reiterated that zoning remains a vital practice adopted to ensure fairness, inclusiveness, and true democratic representation.
“It is, therefore, in the best interest of all stakeholders that we respect and abide by the zoning arrangement in our various constituencies, as it gives every group a sense of belonging and strengthens unity within the Party.
“Consequently, I advised aspirants whose ambitions run contrary to the established zoning framework to respect the arrangement in the collective interest of peace, equity, and Party cohesion.”
The public, mainly APC members, stakeholders and particularly the aspirants, are therefore advised to take the report for what it is – fake and mischievous, Nwachuku concluded.
