The immediate past majority leader of Abia State House of Assembly, Hon Paul Taribo, said he joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) to engage with others and deepen the party’s acceptance in the state ahead of 2027 general election.
The former member representing Ukwa East state constituency stated this yesterday at the APC state headquarters in Umuahia, the state capital, after dumping the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He said he made the decision after considering what had become the fate of his former party and realising that the best option for him was to join other progressive-minded people in the APC.
Taribo explained that he was neither running for any office in the party nor for election but to add value to the party from his wealth of experience as a grassroots politician with a reputation to protect.
The former legislator argued that it was high time the state was mainstreamed into the centre of the country politics by belonging to the ruling party, noting that the benefits accruing to the position are enormous.
“Abia has been in the opposition for too long, and we can’t afford to remain there any longer,” he said, adding that with his knowledge of the terrain, the job would be very easy.
He said his appearance at the secretariat was a prelude to what was going to happen in the constituency soon when he will collapse his political structure and thousands of supporters into the APC.
Speaking about his former party in the state, he observed that it had collapsed, become irredeemable, and lost its colour and appeal to the electorate.
In his response, the state chairman of the APC, Dr Kingsley Ononogbu, welcomed the former legislator with open hands and added that the party would accord him his due rights as a seasoned politician.
According to the chairman, the former PDP leader had foresight about the 2027 general election, and he commended him for taking the right step at the right time.
Ononogbu, who maintained that the doors of the APC in the state will always remain open to those who want to make quality contributions to the state’s development, lauded him for the bold step.
He urged him to begin to walk his talk at the grassroots to soften the ground, adding that the earlier all hands were put on deck, the better for the opposition party in the state.