Dep. Speaker, Kalu, inaugurates ‘Renewed Hope Partners’ in Abia

The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chief Benjamin Kalu, on Sunday, inaugurated the Renewed Hope Partners, a socio-political mobilisation group, in Abia to propagate President Bola Tinubu’s development agenda in the state.

In a speech at the event held in Bende, the headquarters of Bende Local Government Area, Kalu said that the initiative would help to reposition and bring the South-East to the mainstream of the country’s politics.

He urged the Southeasterners to embrace the Renewed Hope Agenda, “not just as beneficiaries but as strategic partners in Nigeria’s political and economic transformation.”

He described the Renewed Hope Partners as a “movement of purpose, unity, and national transformation.”

Kalu affirmed Tinubu’s love for the region, pointing to strategic appointments, such as the Minister of Works and leadership of the Inland Waterways as “evidence of deliberate inclusivity.”

“President Tinubu is a firm believer in ‘brotherhood we stand,” the deputy speaker said.

He urged Nigerians to reject “divisive rhetoric and resist politicians who aim to mislead the electorate in 2027.

“Let no one lie to you. Chase such politicians away. We must protect the Renewed Hope Mandate,” he said.

Kalu described Abia as the launchpad for the initiative and promised that it would be expanded to all parts of the South-East and the country.

He later presented a cheque for N500 million to the group “for mass mobilisation, grassroots enlightenment, and voter education”.

In a remark, the Abia APC Chairman, Dr Kingsley Ononogbu, emphasised that the Renewed Hope Partners must remain aligned to the party and Tinubu’s re-election objectives in 2027.

Ononogbu described Kalu’s initiative as restoring democratic values and transparency.

Endorsing Tinubu’s policies and programmes, the representatives of the APC National Working Committee, including the Deputy National Chairman, South, Chief Emmanuel Onyeukwu, said that his administration had brought visible dividend of democracy across all zones in the country.

They cited the defection of the South-South governors to the APC as “evidence of growing national confidence in Tinubu’s leadership.”

They described the president as “a good product that is easy to market” and urged Southeasterners to seize the momentum and integrate fully into Nigeria’s mainstream political and economic structure.

In a goodwill message on behalf of Abia South Senatorial District partners, the former Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Chief Emeka Stanley, described Kalu’s emergence as “a beacon of light for the Igbo people.”

Chief Charles Ogbonnaya, who spoke for Abia Central Senatorial District partners, described Kalu’s effort to repositioning the South-East in the country’s political equation as historic and transformative.

Also, Chief Cosmos Ndukwe, who spoke on behalf of Abia North Senatorial District partners, praised Tinubu’s “inclusive policies,” referencing the reinvigoration of Gowon’s post-civil war 3Rs of Reconciliation, Reconstruction, and Rehabilitation which, he claimed, were not fully realised by previous administrations.

Speaking on behalf of the women, Blessing Nwagba, a former legislator, expressed gratitude to Tinubu for prioritising gender inclusion and appointing women into strategic national positions.

Earlier, the Coordinator of the Benjamin Kalu Movement, Rev. Emmanuel Eke, commended Kalu’s role in spearheading the establishment of the Southeast Development Commission and Peace in the Southeast Project initiative.

He urged the members of the Renewed Hope Partners to bring creativity and collective energy in reshaping the region’s political narrative.

A chieftain of the Young Progressives Party in Abia, Charles Onu, announced his defection to APC during the event, citing Tinubu’s leadership and developmental strides in the South-East as his reason.