Umahi Dares Wike’s Allies, Says There’s No Rainbow Coalition in Ebonyi

Ebonyi State Governor-elect, Mr Dave Umahi, has dismissed the notion of a 'Rainbow Coalition' in the state, asserting that there is no such alliance between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and coalition partners led by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike. Mr Umahi, who is also the former governor of Ebonyi State and the Minister of Works, emphasized that his state remained loyal to the APC and its candidates.

He made the declaration during an inspection of the Calabar-Abuja Superhighway in Benue State on Friday.

Umahi clarified his relationship with Wike, stating that he has not been approached by Wike to form any political arrangement in Ebonyi State. Furthermore, he rejected rumors that his candidate in the state was part of any coalition with Wike. The former governor also criticized the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), claiming they failed to recognize the interests of the South-east adequately when he was a member. He added that he left the PDP due to the perceived lack of support and mistreatment.

In response to critics who claim that he is concentrating federal projects in the South-east, Umahi dismissed such allegations, stating that he would be accountable to President Tinubu, regardless of where the projects were allocated. He explained that the South-east region is receiving infrastructure projects as part of the federal government's broader programme.

Umahi also highlighted the Calabar-Abuja Superhighway as an example of the projects being executed by the federal government in the region, mentioning that Section Two of the highway covers about 173.6 kilometres with a contract value of about N683 billion, while Section One is valued at about N454 billion.