2019: Ekweremadu Seeks 5th Senate Term
Nigeria’s Deputy President of the Senate, Dr Ike Ekweremadu has declared his intension to seek a fifth term at representing his Senatorial district in the National Assembly (NASS).
Ekweremadu, who is representing Enugu West in the eighth (8th) Senate, said he is bowing to the persuasion from his constituents to have another go at returning to the upper legislative chamber.
In a statement on Tuesday morning, the Senator said; “My people, the good people of Enugu West Senatorial District, including the Enugu West Peoples Assembly, Members of the National Assembly, Council Chairmen, members of the Enugu State Executive Council, Enugu State Chapter of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, leaders of the PDP from Enugu West, among others gave me a surprise on Sunday.
“They presented to me the PDP nomination form for the Senate, which they purchased for me, requesting that I return to the Senate in 2019.”
According to him, “My people, my primary employers have spoken. I have no choice than to humbly accept to run for the Senate again.”
Since emerging in May 2003, when Governor Chimaroke Nnamani was at the helms of affairs in Enugu state, Senator Ekweremadu has represented his people in the Nigerian Senate.
He retained the Senatorial seat four years later when Sullivan Chime took over from Governor Nnamani on May 29, 2007. Sullivan later served for two terms before handing over to the current Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, who is still serving his first term in the Enugu State Government House.
Currently serving his fourth term as a Senator of the Federal Republic and second term as the Deputy Senate President, Ekweremadu stated that he was pleasantly surprised by his constituents’ love in purchasing the nomination form for him.
He said that “Instructively, only a Few weeks ago, I reflected on my past engagements with the people of Enugu West and I was satisfied that, by the grace of God, we were able to make so many improvements in the lives of our people.
“I reflected on my next move and the available options. One option is to come back to you in Enugu and run my Foundation, which will give me opportunity to mentor young men and women in leadership. The second is probably to go to a university and take a full-time academic job and also try to mentor young people in school. And behold my people came calling.
“My people, my primary employers have spoken. I have no choice than to humbly accept to run for the Senate again”, he said.
The Deputy Senate President, who spoke about democratic principles and political inclusiveness, said that “Nevertheless, I believe that the beauty of democracy is the enlargement of the political space in which everybody is free to participate, bring and exchange ideas, and disagree in order to agree.
“Just yesterday, I got a call from a man who introduced himself as an engineer from Achi, but lives in Jigawa. He later came with his family to tell me that he wanted to run for the Senate in Enugu West. I congratulated him and offered to help purchase his nomination form. But he told me he had already bought his form. He was quite surprised when I offered to buy form for him.
“But it has always been my philosophy to help nurture the opposition, for as far as I am concerned, all power belongs to God and we should never try to reduce the political space. We must allow and indeed encourage other people to participate”, Senator Ekweremadu said.
