By Obike Ukoh
Chief Ifeanyichukwu Odii, was the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ebonyi State in 2023. He was defeated by Chief Ogbonna Nwifuru, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
He has represented that interest, as he is also the PDP candidate in Ebonyi State for the 2027 governorship position.
Like the great sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who once said that “ failure is nothing, but low aim is a crime,’’ Odii was not deterred by the 2023 thwarted ambition.
He also stressed that he was not afraid of the “ second missionary journey,’’ and of competing with an incumbent.
Odii, when he addressed journalists recently, said no political structure or incumbent administration could override the will of voters if they turn out in large numbers and defend their votes.
He said inter alia: “I know that the masses are with us, and then I am not scared of anything.
“ I believe that the power of incumbency is actually resting on the people.
“ It is just that sometimes, we do not educate them that actually power is not within the state; that power is with the people.
“ And now, I am going for the people; I am not going against the people.’’
According to him, his campaigns will prioritise grassroots mobilization and voter education to encourage citizens to participate actively in the electoral process and resist vote buying.
Odii said that he has learnt some lessons from the 2023 defeat, and “ now well placed to emerge as the next governor of Ebonyi State.’’
He said that after watching developments in Ebonyi State for over three years, he decided to once again contest for the governorship, as he has the capacity to make a difference.
Odii said that his manifesto is built on four pillars: accelerated economic reforms, youth development, promotion of creative industry, and creating an enabling environment for private sector-led investment.
He identified poverty as one of Ebonyi’s greatest challenges, and promised to tackle it head-on.
Odii emphasized that his re-entry into the governorship race is his “ desire to make Ebonyi an investment destination in Nigeria, while improving the livelihoods and capacity of the people.
He said based on the realities on the ground, the cap fits him to be the next governor of Ebonyi State.
According to him, leadership is about vision, competence and the ability to deliver results.
“ For more than two decades, I have built successful businesses, created jobs and managed complex organizations.
“ Beyond business, I have remained actively involved in the development of Ebonyi through the Ebele and AnyiChuks Foundation, where we have carried out numerous humanitarian and community development initiatives.’’
Odii said that the experiences gathered had given him a deep understanding of the aspirations and challenges of Ebonyi people.
“ I have travelled across the state, interacted with farmers, traders, artisans, professionals, students and traditional rulers.
“ I understand their struggles because I have listened to them. My administration will therefore be driven by practical solutions rather than empty promises,’’ he emphasized.
Odii is not a theoretician; what he enunciated as the thrust of his policies, if he becomes governor of Ebonyi, he had done as a private citizen.
In August 2025, he empowered 53 youths with N159 million through his economic empowerment and vocational training initiative.
Each of the beneficiaries received N3 million in start-up capital and was enrolled in a fully funded skill acquisition programme at the Michael Okpara Federal University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State.
The package covered full tuition, accommodation, monthly stipend, logistics, and other welfare support throughout the training period.
The programme was executed through the Ebele and AnyiChuks Foundation.
Analysts say that, undoubtedly, Odii has something to offer, and described the recent comment by the Minister of Works, Engineer David Umahi, that the PDP will not regain political control in Ebonyi. Nwifuru took over from Umahi.
Umahi, who was on the saddle as Ebonyi governor for eight years, was elected on the platform of the PDP, but defected to the APC in November,2020.
Umahi spoke recently during an inspection of the Cross River-Ebonyi-Benue-Abuja Trans-Sahara Highway.
“ I killed PDP, when I left PDP. Whether they are alive again, I do not know. And if they are alive, we have to unalive them because PDP did not treat the people of the South-East well,’’ Umahi said.
Commentators consider Umahi’s outburst as intemperate and stressed that it should be contextually re-examined.
They opined that Umahi’s position was based on the fact that he was solely responsible for Nwifuru’s emergence.
They said that instead of grandstanding, he should take responsibility for Nwifuru’s performance or non-performance.
It is the perceived non-performance of the incumbent Ebonyi governor that emboldened Odii, to once again enter the governorship race.
Ebonyi people are desirous of a regime change when they compare the great achievements of Gov. Alex Otti of Abia State and the equally robust attainments being made in neighbouring Enugu State under Gov. Peter Ndubuisi Mbah.
An Ebonyi indigene, who is the promoter of Host of Kaa Truths Podcast, lamented the slow pace of development in Ebonyi State.
He listed projects that are not of economic value to the state, including the Vanco tunnel, and questioned the rationale for embarking on the projects at all.
He wrote inter alia: “ I am heartbroken and deeply ashamed of what Ebonyi has become under your watch.
“ When I arrived in Abakaliki, I could barely recognize the state I knew during the former governor’s tenure. It looked as though Ebonyi had taken a million steps backward.
“ Everywhere looked dirty. I saw piles of refuse; in many places, the refuse covered more than half of the roads, which had themselves become death traps.’’
Odii, whose private sector career is more similar than different from the governors of Enugu and Abia states, in his utterances, consistently maintained that he has the capacity to take Ebonyi State to the next level.
He is counting on his capacity and capability to leverage his private sector background to help transform the state as rapidly as possible.
Reckless comments and outpouring by highly placed politicians, like that of Umahi, dominated discussions at the just concluded 22nd All Nigeria Editors Conference (ANEC), held in Enugu, with the theme: “ The Ballot, the Media and the Task of Keeping Democracy Alive.’’
A presidential aspirant who spoke at the event aligned himself with the position of Odii, that power resides with the people, and stressed the need for rigorous and vigorous voter education and mobilisation.
He said that no matter the standing, it is only one vote for everybody, stressing that the survival of democracy is for people to protect their votes.
Unarguably, Odii is an already made man, very conversant with development challenges in Ebonyi, which he had tackled for decades. He is unfettered as he is independent-minded, and capable and competent of taking rational decisions that will boost development in Ebonyi.
Economic transformation of Ebonyi and quickening the pace of development in the state have always been Odii’s heart’s desire.
This heart’s desire, he promised, will be deepened with massive deployment of state resources.
Odii is also unequivocal that he does not believe in the rotational culture of politics, because it engenders mediocrity and docility.
He said he is ready to render selfless service and promised that he will do things differently as the Chief Executive of Ebonyi State.
Obike Ukoh, former Deputy Editor-In-Chief, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
