Senator Ike Ekweremadu, lawmaker representing Enugu West, has declared intention to contest for the governorship seat for the South-East state.
Mr Ekweremadu, a former Deputy President of the Senate, made the declaration on Friday while addressing a press conference in Enugu, the state capital.
By May, it will be his 19 years in the red chamber. When his tenure as a Senator expires next year, it will be his two decades at the national assembly.
“You want to know whether I will run for governor? The answer is yes, I’m running for Governor,” he said, brushing aside zoning arrangements which is said to favour Enugu East, one of the three senatorial districts in the state.
“I challenge any person who said there was zoning (arrangement) to tell us the actual point, in whose house and who and who were there (when the agreement was reached).
“I have always believed that while we are balancing equity and justice, we must also ensure that there is sufficient content and capacity,” the senator said.
The lawmaker is from the same district with former governor Sullivan Chime while the incumbent governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, hails from Enugu North.
Mr Ugwuanyi is reportedly in favour of power shift to Enugu East which the senator is strongly aversed to.
