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Former governors of Abia State, Senators Orji Uzor Kalu, Theodore Ahamefula Orji and other political stakeholders in the state have unanimously endorsed the reelection of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for second tenure.

The political leaders made up of political office holders from 1999-2027, known as Team 1999-2007, who met in Umuahia, the state capital, at the Azikiwe residence of former governor Orji also vowed to drag the governor of the state, Dr. Alex Otti to court for running the state from his Isiala Ngwa South local government area residence.

The political leaders who expanded the team to accommodate those that served the state during Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu said that the lawsuit to be filed against Otti would be to compel him to move to Government House in Umuahia and stop running the affairs of the state from his private home.

In a nine point communiqué signed by Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, chairman; Senator Orji, 1st vice chairman and Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, 2nd vice chairman, and read by the former national chairman of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Victor Ike Oye, members were urged to redouble their efforts and work for the re-election of President Tinubu.

The team who also commended President Tinubu for appointing ex-Governor Ikpeazu as Ambassador designate, asked aggrieved members to forget the past and forge ahead to work for the growth of the group.

Speaking earlier, leader of the team, Senator Kalu said the group is a social cultural organisation with the aim of bettering the lots of Abians.

“The team has three ex-governors from the three senatorial zones of the state. People have called us names and accused us of doing nothing in the past 24 years, but if nothing was done, will there still be Abians?”

Describing the team as one family, Kalu urged members to forget the past and work for the future.

“I created Senator T. A Orji and he created Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, so if there is any difference between them, we are going to resolve that so we can move forward.”

Senator Orji thanked Senator Kalu and others who attended the meeting, promising they would do everything possible to move the state forward.

He urged all the members to forget the past and work for the good of the team and the state.

Former Speaker of Abia State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Chinedum Orji thanked Kalu for accepting to lead the team and his father, Senator Orji for hosting them.

He urged all members to close ranks in order to move the group forward and ensure a resounding victory for President Tinubu in 2027.

Other speakers, including chief Don Ubani, secretary of the Team; Eme Abali MBA and Mrs. Felicia Dimgba, all eulogised Kalu and Orji for the able way they have been piloting the affairs of the group.

They said it was unfortunate that someone would wake up overnight and boasted he was going to retire them from politics and vowed to resist any of such moves.

Not less than 50 schools in Abia-North Senatorial District have attained various stages of completion following the reconstruction works facilitated by Senator Orji Uzor Kalu representing the zone in the 10th Assembly.

Full construction works in each of the five Local Government Areas have since commenced on the school structures as captured in the 2024 budget submitted by Kalu.

Most of the schools were built during the lawmaker’s tenure as governor of the state but have since been abandoned by subsequent administrations.

With 25 legislative bills standing in his name, Orji Uzor Kalu, a first time senator from Abia State, who made his entry to the Senate in 2019, has been rated highest in bill sponsorship among other senators from the South East.

As reported on Tuesday by OrderPaper.ng Nigeria’s parliamentary multimedia platform, Kalu has sponsored more bills at the nation’s apex parliament than his Abia State counterparts.

Using the 2019-2022 cumulative legislative tenure of the 9th Senate and Kalu’s bills, the Senate chief whip exceeded his colleagues by 67 per cent compared with Theodore Orji (10 bills) and Enyinnaya Abaribe (two bills) who have spent eight and 12 years respectively at the Red Chambers.

Asides discharging his constitutional elected responsibility with his bills driving streak, Kalu, the 62-year-old lawmaker representing Abia North, has also bagged prestigious awards from notable organisations in recognition of his infrastructure and empowerment drive for his constituents which has been described as superlative coming from a first time senator.

As published by OrderPaper, some of Kalu’s notable bills among the 25 include: A bill for an Act to amend the administration of criminal justice Act 2015 and other related matters bill 2020; A bill for an Act to establish the national food bank and to provide for matters connected with or incidental to the foregoing, bill 2021; A bill for an Act to alter the constitution of the Federal Republic Of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) to provide that the Federal Government and the state governments shall have concurrent legislative powers on railway, and to provide for matters related thereto 2021.

Kalu a chieftain of All Progressives Congress (APC) was elected to the Senate in 2019 in the National Assembly.

In the report, the media organisation x-rayed the legislative performance of the 12 Abia lawmakers in the National Assembly. OrderPaper Nigeria highlighted the scorecard of senators and members of the House of Representatives from the state. The piece was focused on their performance in the area of bill sponsorship over the last three years (2019-2022).

The new Senate bill makes provision for free education for students from primary to junior secondary school levels.

The Nigerian Senate has commenced the processing of passing a bill that recommends a fine or imprisonment for parents and guardians who default in enrolling their wards for primary and junior secondary school education.

Proposed by Senator Orji Kalu (APC-Abia North), the bill titled, ‘Compulsory free Universal Basic Education Act 2004, Section 2,’ mandates governments at every level to provide free, compulsory, and universal basic education for every child of primary and junior secondary school age.

The proposed piece of legislature, which has already passed the first reading on the floor of the Red Chamber, also recommended free meals should be provided for every child in the country.

According to the act, “Every parent shall ensure that his child or ward attends and completes his primary school education and junior secondary school education by endeavouring to send the child to primary and junior secondary schools.”

It further states that “stakeholders in education in a local government area shall ensure that every parent or person who has the care and custody of a child performs the duty imposed on him under section 2(2) of this Act.”

The act specified that any parents found contravening the earlier prescription should be liable, on the first conviction, to be reprimanded.

Reading further, the act says, “On a second conviction, a fine of ₦2,000 or imprisonment for a term of one month or both; and on subsequent conviction, to a fine of ₦5,000 or imprisonment for a term of two months or to both.”

However, the Senate has amended the proposed fines previously stated in the act and introduced stiffer financial penalties for any defaulter.

The amendment states that “Section (4) (b) of the Principal Act is amended by deleting ₦2,000 and inserting ₦20,000. Section (4) (c) of the Principal Act is amended by deleting ₦5,000 and inserting ₦50,000.

“Section 3(2) of the Principal Act is amended by deleting ₦10,000 and inserting ₦100,000.”

In addition, it noted that “A person who receives or obtains any fee contrary to the provisions of subsection (1) of this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding N10,000 or imprisonment for a term of three months or to both.

“Every parent shall ensure that his child receives full-time education suitable to his age, ability and aptitude by regular attendance at schools.”

A group which draws its members from the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, Concerned Nigerians for Sustainable Democracy, has called on the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu to zone the office of the Senate President to South East.

The group urged the APC, the president-elect and other well-meaning Nigerians to ensure that the South East zone gets the Senate president’s office in the 10th Assembly.

At a press conference in Abuja, the convener/coordinator of the group, Dr Amos Gizo, said insecurity will be tackled if the South East gets the office of the Senate president, adding that the people from the region will feel they are carried along.

“At present, as we face the transition, there are negative agitations to truncate the will of the people where Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been voted by the majority votes to lead the nation yet, some other antidemocratic elements are calling for an interim government, military coup and a stoppage of the swearing of a new government on May 29th, 2023.

“We are calling on all well-meaning Nigerians to rise against these elements of anti-democracy and ensure that Democracy thrives and a smooth transition to swear in the President-Elect Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu to take over in order to minimize the myriad of problems facing the country.

“The South East has two APC governors (Imo and Ebonyi) and one APC governor-elect of Ebonyi. South-South has one APC Governor (Cross-River State) and one Governor Elect in the same Cross River State.

“The South East has produced six APC senators-elect in the 2023 election from five states. South-South has six APC Senators-Elect in 2023 from six states.

“From 1999 till date, South-South has produced Vice-president and President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in the person of President Goodluck Jonathan, none from South-East

“The South-South has produced two APC National Chairmen – Chief John Oyegun and Adams Oshiomhole, none from South-East.

“The South South has also produced the National Secretary of APC in the person of Senator John Akpan Udodeghe. South South has produced a Senate Majority Leader in the person of Senator Victor Ndoma Egba. Currently, South-South has the deputy Senate President, HE Ovie Omo-agege. South Senate President from 1999 under Obasanjo and nothing more till date.

“Since then, the South-East has not produced any other top leadership under APC. Presently, there is a need to dilute the Peter Obi Phenomenon in the South-East.

“The need to give the South-East a sense of belonging since 2015 till date. APC need to douse the IPOB/ESN and general insecurity in the South-East. South-East is in the majority in terms of population spread across the federation against the South-South. Our position is to strengthen democracy, reduce political tension, reduce security threats and keep Nigeria one,” the group said.

“We are not mindful of the fact that democracy is a game of numbers but we are equally mindful that Nigeria is a cosmopolitan and a multi-religious state that needs special handling in the spirit of keeping the Nigerian state one.

“This world press conference desires all attention and with all seriousness to avoid an avoidable crisis,” the group added.

The Coalition of APC Support Groups on Wednesday wrote a formal letter to the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, urging the ruling party to zone the Senate President office to the South-East in the spirit of fairness.

In the letter, signed by the CASG National Secretary, Mazi Peter Okoroafor,  the coalition expressed optimism that zoning the prestigious office to the region ahead of the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly would douse agitation and unrest among their people.

The coalition’s plea came barely three days after the National Vice Chairman of the APC (North-West), Mallam Salihu Lukman, called on northern senators contesting the post to step down to balance the Muslim-Muslim ticket approach of the party.

According to him, it would be insensitive to have a Muslim Senate president after producing a president and his deputy, who share similar faith.

At least, eight senators had indicated an interest in the race.

They include Senators Jibrin Barau (Kano Central), Sani Musa (Niger East), Orji Kalu (Abia North), and GodsWill Akpabio (Akwa-Ibom North-West).

Others are Senators Osita Izunaso (Imo West), Peter Ndubueze (Imo North), Abdul’Aziz Yari (Zamfara West), and Ahmad Lawan (Yobe North), amongst others.

Drumming support for the South-East in Wednesday’s letter to the APC National Working Committee, the coalition urged the Adamu-led NWC to consider adopting the senator-elect for Imo West, Osita Izunaso, as the next Senate President, being the most senior ranking lawmaker from the region.

The letter partly read, “While not objecting to the emotional argument of geo-political consideration, it behoves the NWC to lean on the balance of justice and equity, and insecurity challenges to concede the Senate president position to the South-East geo-political zone, where undoubtedly character and competence is remarkably in abundance.”