Ex-Imo Speaker, Nwagwu, declares for Senate

After months of mounting pressure from All Progressive Congress (APC) stalwarts in Owerri geo-political zone as well as from non-party elders in the zone, friends and associates, the former speaker of Imo state House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. (Bar) Kelechi Kennedy Nwagwu, has formally declared that he will be vying for the Imo East Senatorial seat under the APC platform.
The former speaker explained that after wide consultations and in deference to the persistent clamour from well meaning people in Owerri zone, he has resolved to contest for the Owerri Senatorial seat. He said that his emergence is a popular decision of Owerri people, pointing out that he is contesting to win.
“Having bowed to the wish of my people who have reposed implicit confidence in me, I can without unequivocation tell you that I am in the race to win. Owerri Zone has suffered terribly these past years due to poor and selfish representation in the National Assembly, “Nwagwu said.
He stated that representation is all about service to the people and also being focused and bold enough to agitate for good things for one’s people. “The National Assembly is not a place you send dullards and lilly-Livered people to represent you. Truly, the best is meant for National Assembly politics”, he posited.
He stressed that he is going to the senate to ensure that the people of Owerri Zone are hooked up to the national politics, adding that his emergence as the senator for the zone after the election, will automatically signal the end of poor representation, neglect of the zone and non-provision of adequate infrastructural and other needs of the zone.
It would be recalled that for months, Kelechi Nwagwu, erstwhile Speaker of Imo State House of Assembly, has been under intense pressure to declare his interest to contest for the Owerri Senatorial seat in 2019. His associates have even promised to procure the APC nomination form for him and also take care of 60% of his campaign expenses if he accedes to their clamour for him to contest.
According to them, Nwagwu is the best candidate for the Owerri Senatorial seat among even other contestants from other political parties. “We are not even looking at political parties but individual qualities. The legacies Nwagwu left behind in the Imo State House of Assembly as Speaker, have become guiding principles for successive presiding officers of the House. He is also bold, humble and focused. He has consistently lampooned Governor Okorocha’s recklessness and mal-administration in Imo State not minding that they belong to the same party. Despite threats from the government, he has never compromised This kind of fearless and honest man is whom we need in the senate,” they averred.
The proponents of Nwagwu’s senatorial ambition further stated that his zero tolerance for corruption which is in tandem with President Mohammadu Buhari’s anti-corruption stance, is an indication that benefits accruable to Owerri zone will be in safe hands if Nwagwu becomes the Senator for Imo East. “As at today, he is the Chief Executive Officer/Convener of Advocacy for War Against Corruption Initiatives, a non-governmental organization devoted to fighting corruption at all facets of human life. To have devoted his time and resources to fighting corruption tells us the kind of honest person he is. He is our best for the Senate come 2019,” they stated.