By News Maker in Abuja
Sir Humphrey C. Nsofor, National Coordinator of the South East Elders and Youths Alliance for Tinubu 2027 (SEEYAT ’27) and former Majority Leader of the Anambra State House of Assembly, has urged Ndigbo to support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a second term in the 2027 presidential election.
Nsofor said continued support for the Tinubu administration would position Ndigbo to benefit more from ongoing federal government projects and policies, stressing that the South-East and other parts of the country had witnessed significant infrastructure development in recent years.
According to him, projects such as the Second Niger Bridge and the Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway have contributed significantly to easing the movement of people, goods and services across the region. He noted that improved road infrastructure was particularly important to Ndigbo, whose businesses and commercial activities extend across virtually every part of Nigeria.
The former lawmaker maintained that the benefits of improved infrastructure could already be seen in easier transportation and reduced difficulties associated with movement between major commercial centres in the South-East and South-South.
Nsofor said he was not opposed to any Igbo person aspiring to political office, but advised Ndigbo to learn from the political strategy of the late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe. He recalled that after Azikiwe’s unsuccessful presidential bid in 1979 under the Nigerian People’s Party (NPP), the elder statesman entered into an alliance with the ruling National Party of Nigeria (NPN), through which an Igbo leader emerged as Speaker of the House of Representatives.
He said the example demonstrated the importance of strategic political engagement, arguing that political alliances could help ensure that a people were represented and carried along in government.
Nsofor also appealed to Ndigbo in the Federal Capital Territory to support Senator Philip Aduda, the APC senatorial candidate in the FCT, as well as other candidates of the party ahead of the 2027 elections.
He made the appeal on Monday while speaking against the backdrop of political consultations involving Ndigbo in the FCT, including a visit by political actors to the palace of Dr. Uche Egenti, Onyendu Ndigbo and traditional ruler of the Igbo community in the FCT, on Sunday.
According to Nsofor, Aduda had demonstrated commitment to the welfare and political inclusion of Ndigbo both while in office and outside elective office. He particularly cited his alleged role in facilitating opportunities and appointments for members of the Igbo community across the six Area Councils of the FCT.
He explained that legislators could primarily make laws, move motions and persuade the executive to implement policies, rather than directly execute government projects. Nsofor therefore said Aduda’s interventions on behalf of Ndigbo should be viewed within the constitutional limitations of the legislative office he previously occupied.
He further recalled the long-standing agitation for the Second Niger Bridge, noting that although the project had been conceived and publicly advocated under a previous administration, its eventual completion and commissioning took place under the APC-led federal government. He described the bridge and major road projects in the South-East as important interventions that have brought relief to travellers and businesses.
Nsofor consequently called on Ndigbo to adopt what he described as a strategic approach to politics by supporting the government at the centre and maintaining constructive engagement.
He expressed the belief that if Ndigbo support Tinubu and APC candidates, including Aduda in the FCT, the government and elected representatives would have greater incentive and political responsibility to do more for the people.
