Constituents rise against Senator Chukwu's proposed defection to APC

Stakeholders in Enugu East Senatorial district have raised objection against their incumbent Senator, Kelvin Chukwu, on his planned defection from the Labour Party to the All progressives Congress, APC.

Close aides to Senator Chukwu had revealed the Senator's plot to officially announce his resignation from the Labour Party and defection to the APC on the floor of the Senate this week.

Chukwu's proposed defection is in continuation of the mass defection of the Labour Party elected members in Enugu state into the APC and the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, respectively, with the two House of Representatives members of the district, formerly of the LP, defecting to the APC, last week.

In an open letter addressed to Senator Chukwu, a stakeholder in the Constituency, Prince Ozoemena Nnamani expressed disappointment in Chukwu's plot, reminding him that he was voted for the 2023 election out of sympathy of his late elder brother, late Barrister Oyibo Chukwu who was murdered few days to the election he was the Senatorial candidate of the LP before, his younger brother, Kelvin, was selected to replace Oyibo.

Nnamani also told Kelvin Chukwu that if members of his constituency wanted to vote for the APC, they would have voted for a princess and daughter of Nkanu clan who ran for the same election under the APC, but that they did not for sympathy reason.

Parts of the letter reads: "You were not voted into office because you were the most popular or most influential candidate. You were voted for out of sympathy, following the tragic death of your brother, Barr. Oyibo Chukwu, who was brutally murdered just weeks before the election.

"The people chose you, not because you were the strongest politician, but because they believed continuing with your brother’s legacy was the most humane and honorable path. That vote was a vote of grace, not entitlement.

"If Enugu East had truly wanted APC back then, they would have voted for the then APC candidate, a woman and Princess of Nkanu land whose family name carries weight and love across communities. But we chose you, and we gave you a chance to prove yourself.

"But instead of honouring that grace, instead of using that sympathy and love for the good of the people, you have chosen to use it against the people. Instead of showing gratitude through action, you’ve shown it through silence and party jumping.

"You wore the Labour Party like a borrowed cloth, used it to win, and now you toss it aside like it means nothing. That is betrayal. Not just to a party, but to the people who believed in you.

"Is this how you repay the people who handed you the seat you never earned through sweat or grassroots struggle? You have forgotten the grace that brought you in. You have forgotten the love that sustained your campaign. You have forgotten the voices that fought for you even when you had no political structure.

"And what have we gotten in return? No proper representation in the Senate, no visible bills sponsored in your name, no employment for our youths, no poverty alleviation programs, and the worst insult of all, even the road leading to your own house is a disgrace to your name and the Senate office you hold.

"If you truly respect the people who gave you that seat, return to the mandate, build, empower, represent, speak, act and deliver. Because if you don’t, then come 2027, we will not need to shout. We will simply be silent and that silence will be louder than any campaign slogan."