The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Ebonyi State Chapter weekend reaffirmed their support for rainbow coalition as candidate for Ebonyi/Ohaukwu Federal Constituency, Barrister Tochukwu Ogalagu, urged his constituents to support President Ahmed Tinubu, Governor Francis Nwifuru, himself for the House of Representatives, and all other APGA candidates ahead of next year’s general election.

Ogalagu stated this during a media parley with journalists in his country home at Ezzamgbo, where he explained his political ambition, grassroots mobilisation, voters’ education and the need for peaceful elections.

Ogalagu, who also declared support for APGA’s senatorial candidate for Ebonyi North, Chief Chikaodili Ojimba, said his position was informed by the need to sustain the state’s governorship rotation arrangement and promote peaceful political participation ahead of the 2027 general elections.

On APGA’s political direction ahead of the 2027 elections, Ogalagu said the party’s leadership had communicated a position on supporting President Bola Tinubu and the recognised governorship candidates in their respective states.

“Before we declared our interest in using All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) as our platform to pursue our political dreams, we were told by the national leader of the party, Gov Chukwuma Soludo that we must support President Bola Tinubu and the recognised governorship candidates in our respective states and that is what we are doing” he explained.

He said his decision to support Nwifuru was also influenced by the need to preserve Ebonyi’s governorship rotation arrangement.

Explaining his support for Nwifuru’s second-term aspiration, Ogalagu said the state’s existing governorship rotation arrangement should be preserved in the interest of political balance and fairness.

He added that political stakeholders should avoid actions capable of disrupting the arrangement, stressing that the long-term implications extended beyond individual political ambitions.

The APGA candidate also commended the administration’s emphasis on human capital development of Governor Nwifuru, arguing that investments in people were as important as physical infrastructure.

“In human capital development, you don’t show structures; you show human beings. When you develop one person, you have developed the nation,” he said.

While acknowledging the administration’s infrastructure efforts of Governor Nwifuru, Ogalagu observed that project completion remained an area requiring attention, urging him to take drastically measures to address the situation.

On his House of Representatives ambition, Ogalagu said his interactions with constituents had convinced him that voters were increasingly interested in candidates’ personal records and contributions to society.

“Voters were becoming more discerning in their political choices. If you see the level of acceptance I’m having these days in politics, you will know that it is because of what I have done for my people,” he said.

“I know some are saying about the situation during election day because both presidential, Senate and House of Representative are one day but to me it might cause no confusion among voters cos our symbol is a local fowl, while the APC symbol is a broom” he explained.

“My happiness is that now the electorates are more wiser and more informed. They will tell you now that they want the candidate, not the political party alone, because parties have misled them for a very long time,” he added.

Ogalagu said his campaign would continue to prioritise grassroots engagement and voters’ education, particularly in rural communities where he said some residents required further sensitisation on the voting process.

He explained that voters would be presented with separate ballot papers for different elective positions and should understand the symbols associated with the parties and candidates they intended to support.

He said party agents and grassroots mobilisers would help educate voters on how to identify the relevant symbols and cast their ballots correctly.

According to him, the initiative was intended to improve voter awareness and reduce confusion during the elections.

The candidate also appealed to his supporters to shun violence and avoid taking the law into their own hands, insisting that political disagreements should be resolved through lawful means and violence does not win elections.

He explained that his experience in the security sector had reinforced his belief in the importance of law and order, warning that political violence could expose supporters to avoidable legal consequences.

“I don’t want anything that will make my supporters to be on their own. That is why I advise them clearly, knowing full well that government is, after God, government.

Ogalagu further said he would not encourage his supporters to engage in confrontations when lawful channels remained available to address political disagreements, saying why will he send people to fight for him when he has an appropriate channel to follow and still get the results.

Ogalagu urged constituents to participate peacefully in the electoral process, understand the voting procedure and assess candidates on their records, commitments and capacity to represent their interests.