By Eric Ugbor

ABA—IN the spirit of moving Abia State forward, governorship candidates of three political parties have dissociated themselves from challenging the outcome of Abia governorship poll in the tribunal.

The three candidates – Dan Onyeonagu of KOWA party; Mr. Gilbert Chikezie of the Independent Democrat, ID, and Mrs. Ijeoma Okpara of the Citizens Popular Party, CPP – said in a statement they issued after an exhaustive meeting in Umuahia that they believed that Abia people spoke with one voice in electing Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu as the next governor of Abia State.

“Therefore, in the spirit of sportsmanship and putting Abia State above any personal ambition we accept that the elections were peaceful, free, fair and credible. We also accept the results as announced by INEC,” the parties declared.

The three governorship candidates congratulated the Abia governor-elect and other victorious candidates in the last general elections, arguing that they were supporting Dr. Ikpeazu based on the fact that “power comes from God.”

They said, “it is not about an individual, it is about the state,” even as they tasked the governor–elect to remember his new status as the father of the state in sharing political positions, stressing that for Abia to witness rapid transformation and development all of its citizens must be carried along.

In his reaction to the announcement of the three governorship candidates,  Abia State Commissioner for Works, Mr. Longman Emeka Nwachukwu, described the decision of the candidates not to prolong the Abia governorship contest unduly as a wise one and a way of moving the state forward.

The Commissioner had earlier asked the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, Alex Otti, to toe the line of his colleagues in the race by accepting the outcome of the poll as a sportsman, pointing out that he (Otti) should emulate President Goodluck Jonathan, who congratulated Muhammadu Buhari, when it was clear that Buhari had won the presidential poll.

In the same vein, an aide to the Governor of Abia State, Uche Nwosu, and an Assistant Director, Media in Abia PDP Campaign Organization 2015, lauded the parties and their candidates for rejecting the ignoble temptation to file a case against Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu at the tribunal.

He said the move would save  the governor-elect unnecessary distractions and also afford him the singular opportunity of concentrating in fulfilling his electioneering campaign promises

On how to move the state forward, Onyeonagu, Mr. Chikezie and Mrs. Okpara of KOWA, ID and CPP respectively asserted: “We wish to emphasize that Aba needs to be given serious attention against infrastructure development.

“We have implicit confidence that Okezie Ikpeazu will deliver the dividends of democracy to the people of Abia State. We also have confidence that he will govern Abia with the fear of God; without fear or favour, irrespective of religious or tribal affiliation.

“We once more thank all Abians for conducting themselves in an orderly manner throughout the exercise. We also commend INEC and the security agencies for ensuring orderliness during the electioneering campaigns.

“We urge all Abians to  support and pray for him to succeed,” the statement opined.