Umeh blasts Ekwunife, others over exclusion of S’ East from rail project

The Anambra Central Senatorial Candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Senator Victor Umeh, has condemned the aloofness of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Candidate, Senator Uche Ekwunife, and other National Assembly members, following the exclusion of the South East Zone from the multi-million dollar China loan for rail line project in the country.

Umeh spoke at a two-day debate organised by the Anambra State Association of Town Unions (ASATU), Anambra Central Senatorial District for National and State Assembly candidates of all the parties, tagged: “One-on-One with my candidate.”

He said the South East lost out because of poor representation and charged the voters to ask those NASS members why they did not kick against the exclusion, if they canvass for votes.

According to him, the exclusion was done in 2017 and when he assumed office as a Senator in 2018, he pushed for an approval to include Eastern Rail Line from Enugu through Aba to Port Harcourt in the project.

The former National Chairman of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) pointed out that his first sponsored bill was for the construction of a standard rail line in the South East Zone.

He expressed dismay that South East had no representative in the country’s security apparatus, a situation he revealed he challenged stoutly, creating an uproar in the Upper Chamber until it was brought to the attention of President Muhammadu Buhari.

According to him, as a member of the National Constitution Conference in 1994/95, he tackled marginalisation of Igbo, brought the people into reckoning, despite lamenting that South East Zone is structurally shortchanged with only five states with 95 local councils.

Umeh said he, Peter Obi and Enyinnaya Abaribe were the only top personalities to attend the funeral of Kanu’s parents’ funeral on February 14, 2020, amid threat of arrest and prosecution over supposed sympathy for The Indigenous People of Biafra IPOB.

Umeh disclosed that he was the only one who challenged the proscription of IPOB, which he described as illegal and was detained by the Directorate of State Services (DSS), but was released after it was a discovered that he was framed up because of his pro-Igbo stance.