Press Release From the Office of the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives
May 14, 2026
2027: Deputy Speaker, Kalu Tells APC Aspirants to Remain Committed, Insists Abia Must Get Closer to Centre
Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, PhD, CFR, has urged all aspirants of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abia State, especially governorship aspirants, to remain committed to their ambitions, compete openly, and avoid complacency.
Speaking when he received one of the frontline aspirants, Dr. Eric Opah in his Bende country home on Wednesday, Kalu asked the aspirants not to give up, promising his full support across all levels.
He said: "Let me tell you, anybody who has picked a form, keep trying to be on the ballot paper. Don’t give up because Benjamin Kalu is not going for Governorship. That’s my message to everyone. Tell them push, nobody should relent because the same fire we started this fight with, we’re not going to drop it. I said the fire we started this struggle with, we are not going to drop it. We will push it like that till the end. It is only in that fire that we can make somebody governor. It is only in that fire we can make somebody House of Assembly member. It is only in that fire we can make somebody House of Rep member. It is only in that fire that senators will emerge. It is only in that fire that the President will emerge with our contribution from Abia State. We’re not going to relent, we’re going to support. Thank you, my brother, for coming to tell me formally in my place of birth that you are running."
Kalu said he had previously received formal notifications from former Minister of State for Science, Technology and Innovation, Chief Henry Ikoh and Mascot Uzor Kalu, saying the party’s door remained open to everyone.
The Deputy Speaker however suggested consensus first as a mode of primaries, then, direct primaries if needed, cautioning against moving the ticket outside Abia Central Senatorial Distric
