Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia, on Monday confirmed that the Peoples Democratic Partyโs (PDP) Governorship Candidate, Prof. Uche Ikonne, is ill.
Loading ...Ikpeazu made the confirmation in a local radio programme, monitored by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Umuahia.
The governor, however, said that Ikonne was โrecovering gradually and progressivelyโ.
According to him, Ikonne attended some rallies organised by the PDP in Abia, including the Nov. 24, 2022, launch of the partyโs state-wide campaign at the Umuahia Township Stadium.
He further said that Ikonne left the stadium for a gala night, organised in honour of the G-5 Governors in his (Ikpeazu) Umuobiakwa country home in Obingwa, โwhere he managed to give a speech and then he took illโ.
โIt is unfortunate that he is lately indisposed but I want to report some progress and the progress is that Ikonne is recovering gradually and progressively.
โHe has left the hospital and is going through convalescence.
โI am sure that he will be strong enough in the future to join,โ the governor said.
Ikpeazu urged residents of the state to keep hope alive, assuring them that Ikonne would soon bounce back.
He contended that his absence from the political space this time โwill not define the progress of the campaigns or agenda of PDP in the state.
โIt might be the wish of detractors that Ikonneโs absence will linger,โ he said.
He recalled that when he was ill himself, โpermutations changed and people were allocating positions to themselves.
โIโm sure they even appropriated my wife to themselves,โ the governor said.
NAN reports that speculations about Ikonneโs health challenge became rife, following his sudden disappearance from public arena, including PDP events.
Meanwhile, Ikpeazu has assured the people that no other party had the capacity to displace PDP in the state.
He said the โPDP is very very powerfulโ in Abia and that no other party compared with it in terms of strength.
He said, โSome of them may have supporters in one or two local governments but they cannot put 100 people each across Abia.โ
He also spoke about some of the achievements of his administration, including the expansion of business opportunities in Aba and socio-political stability in the state.
Ikpeazu, who is the Senatorial Candidate for Abia South, promised to replicate his achievements in the Senate, if given the mandate.
He is up in the race against the incumbent, Sen. Enyinnaya Abaribe, who is seeking reelection to the Upper Chamber for the fifth consecutive time.
