By Gloria Ikibah
Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Kalu, has expressed confidence that the Igbo community in the Federal Capital Territory will turn out in large numbers to support the All Progressives Congress in the forthcoming Area Council elections scheduled for 21 February, 2026.
Speaking in Abuja after the inauguration of the 138-member APC National Campaign Council for the FCT polls, Kalu said the party was well positioned to secure victory across the councils. The campaign council was formally unveiled at the party’s national headquarters by its national chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda. 
Kalu, who is serving as Secretary of the campaign council, pointed to what he described as an inclusive approach by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration, saying it had created room for broader participation across ethnic and regional lines.
According to him, this style of governance is expected to resonate strongly with voters in the capital, including members of the Igbo community.
He also highlighted ongoing infrastructure development in the FCT under the leadership of the Minister, Nyesom Wike, noting that visible projects across the territory have strengthened the party’s footing ahead of the elections.
With what he described as tangible progress on ground, Kalu maintained that the APC would head into the polls with renewed momentum and growing support.
He said: “FCT is the melting point of the entire population of Nigeria, from all geo-political zones. A lot of Igbo are living here; to do business and also to make their investments as residents.
“I am an Igbo man, and also a Nigerian, and I am a part of this government. I am one of the faces of Igbo in leadership, so, no longer can the Igbo say we are not part of the administration. This did not happen in the previous administration. If you look at the succession leadership of the country, for 8 years, there was no Igbo person there, now they see me everyday participating in the governance of this country, and I know, that is a big message to my people, that they are not alienated, that they are not marginalized out of the current government. That is a campaign tool already for being in this administration, but suffice that to say that this administration has made a huge impact in the FCT.
“Under the government of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, there is a great difference from what it used to be and what it is at the moment. I want to also thank the FCT Minister, Wike, who has done tremendously well in not just impacting the urban areas of FCT, but making governance to be felt even at the grassroots. That is our campaign tool, that is what we are taking to the market. We are taking it beyond the posters. We are taking it beyond radio jingles. We are taking it beyond campaign slogans, into the FCT. We are saying the fact speaks for itself. You can feel our development, you can touch and experience what we have brought as dividends of democracy, so, there is going to be less jobs for us to do.
“Yes we struggled in the times past, because there were no visible evidence of the impact of the government within the FCT, but no reasonable person can say the same thing currently. So, we are here to convince our people that the government that has done this for the people of the FCT and the residents, that they are charged to do it more if given the opportunity to provide leadership in the six (6) area councils of the FCT and in the 68 council membership of the FCT. We are ready.
“I am the Secretary of this campaign council, and I can assure you that we will bring the energy of the young minds; the innovative mindedness of the young people to push the agenda to the grassroots. We will be on the streets, be in every household, we will go door-to-door, business-to-business to sell the message of APC. It will no longer be mentioned that APC lost the election in Abuja, that was in the times past. We are about rewriting history. And my people, that I love so much, my Igbo people, that I love and who love me, will not allow me to be shamed knowing fully well that I am at the helm of affairs to make sure that the bulk votes of the Igbo communities in Abuja, that I will harvest them for the greatest party within the black race, that is called the APC. So, I am ready to bring my brothers.
“If you look around, you will see a lot of my brothers are joining thing, City Boy Movement, Renewed Hope Partners, Renewed Hope Ambassadors, all of them we are going to come together, collaborate to make sure we deliver the FCT”.
