- By Toby Chuks
A political pressure group known as Orji Uzor Kalu (OUK) Grassroots Movement of Nigeria has come out to explain that their principal and former Governor of Abia State Senator Orji Uzor Kalu gave the President elect Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu over 300,000 votes rallied by the Movement from across Nigeria during the Presidential election held on February 25. 2023.
The group national leader Alhaji Murtala Mohammed alias ten ten in a press release issued at their national headquarters in Abuja stated that the explination is in response to a media report credited to one Adamu Garba, an ex member of the Federal House of Representatives who eronously stated that Senator Orji Uzor Kalu gave Tinubu a chicken votes of 8000 only.
Alhaji ten ten dismissed the media report as fake news as according to him Hon Garba spoke out of ignorance because he doesn’t know anything about the level of political structure put in place for the Senate Chief Whip Senator Kalu by his numerous supporters across the country who wanted the former Abia Governor to run for President ahead of the 2023 election.
According to the national leader, “Our attention has been drawn to a fake news flying on social media platforms that Orji Uzor Kalu gave Tinubu only 8000 votes during the Presidential election. That’s an insult to the Distinguish Senator and former Governor who has the capacity to run for President. How can someone who has national political structure gave Tinubu only 8000 votes during Presidential election? It’s not true
“For the record, we formed a Movement to mobilise support for the former Abia Governor to run for President and we were able to mobilise supporters across all the 36 States of the federation and FCT, Abuja, but when it became clear that our principal is not going to run for President we collapsed our structure for Tinubu and eventually we gave Tinubu over 300,000 votes
“What I am saying is that the political structure of Orji Uzor Kalu cuts across the whole country because he has followers and supporters all over the 36 States and FCT Abuja, so it is wrong to use votes from Abia State and the Southeast geopolitical zone to judge his contribution to the election of Tinubu as President during February Presidential election
Going further the leader described the report as an attempt by Adamu Garba and his pay masters to jeopardize the chances of Orji Uzor Kalu from emerging the next Senate President in June adding that such attempt will fail because it lacks substance. He called on the leadership of APC and the President Elect Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu to disregard the report in all entirety because it is fake.