Abia Lawmaker Declares Interest To Replace Deputy Speaker, Kalu

Boniface Okoro in Umuahia

Hon. Emmanuel Chinedu Ndubuisi , a two-time Abia State House of Assembly member nursing the tall ambition of replacing the Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives, Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, has declared his intention to contest for the Bende Federal Constituency ticket in 2027.

Hon. Ndubuisi (popularly known as Ijiriji Bende), representing Bende South State Constituency since 2019, said during his public declaration at his Uzuakoli residence on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, that he was angling for the All Progressives Congress (APC) ticket that would empower him to contest, in 2027, for the Bende Federal Constituency seat which the Deputy Speaker currently occupies at the 10th National Assembly.

Apart from being in same party with Kalu, Ndubuisi also hails from the Ikwuishii political bloc of Bende Local Government Area with the Deputy Speaker.

Kalu is believed to be harbouring governorship ambition but has yet to declare it publicly or say whether he would want to return to the Green Chamber in 2027.

Ndubuisi said that he was not afraid of stepping into Kalu’s big shoes, describing the Deputy Speaker’s achievements as unprecedented in the history of Bende Federal Constituency.

The Abia lawmaker explained that he was scaling up his representation to cover the entire  Bende local government, not just a part of it, because the House of Representatives would offer him the platform to realise his goal of turning Bende to a commercial centre, saying that the state assembly has not offered him that leverage.

“I believe if I am given this opportunity to represent Bende Federal Constituency, I’m going to build on the infrastructure that the Ben Kalu has already built in Bende local government. He has set the stage for me to step in and attract further investments to this local government,” the House of Representatives aspirant said. 

He explained that his desire to turn Bende to an economic hub spurred him to attract RAMP market, a daily market located at Uzuakoli, as an Abia lawmaker.

 “I’m excited about it because that market also comes with about over 20 kilometers of feeder roads through which agricultural produce will be fed to the market. And it’s going to help develop agribusiness in Bende. 

“I believe that the House of Representatives will give me the platform that I need to develop this local government as an economic hub. Look at Bende, our strategic location, you know that if you have good industries in this place, they will fare very well,” he said.

According to him, Bende has a lot of cocoa farmers, stressing that a cocoa-based industry sited in the local government would boost its economy. 

“I believe that if you bring one industry that uses cocoa as a raw material to Bende Federal Constituency, thousands of my constituents will have employment and the large number of cocoa farmers here will have markets to sell their produce. The House of Representatives will give me the platform that enable me to create this type of impact,” he said. 

He said he also intends to replicate creation of industrial clusters models he saw in Korea and China, where he said every community has industrial clusters which enables their people to return to the communities to pick up jobs after their education.

“So, it isn’t difficult for them to have employment over there and they keep producing a lot of things. I think that’s what we need to do in Bende. We need to attract investors. A lot of Bende sons are wealthy. They can repatriate their funds to the Bende Federal Constituency and build industries,” he said.

He explained that having gained experience as a two-term state lawmaker, he was optimistic of clinching the party ticket for Bende Federal Constituency, disclosing that prior to his declaration, various stakeholders from Bende South had unanimously adopted him as their consensus candidate for the federal constituency come 2027. “If half of the people from the local government have already adopted me as their consensus candidate, I’m more than welcome,” he said, adding that he consulted widely before declaring.

Political leaders in Bende South, including Chief Paul Chikezie Mbah, Prof. Haggler Okorie, who spoke on behalf of the gathering, pledged their unalloyed support for their son’s aspiration.

Abia State APC Chairman, Hon. Chijioke Chukwu, described Ndubuisi as an experienced lawmaker and a good material for Bende Federal Constituency.

Chukwu said there were other APC aspirants for the same position and promised that whoever would fly the party’s flag in the 2027 Bende Federal Constituency general election would emerge from a free, fair and credible primary.