Tompolo backs Tinubu with 50 vehicles, Cross River targets 1.5m votes
By Anita Uzoagba
The Grand Patron of the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement, Chief Government Ekpemupolo, has donated 50 vehicles to support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election campaign in Enugu and Cross River States.
Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen on Monday in Abuja.
He said the vehicles were presented at separate rallies held in the two states to inaugurate the movement’s state chapters and distribute campaign materials to state coordinators.
According to him, Enugu and Cross River received 25 vehicles each.
He urged the people of Cross River to turn out en masse to vote for Tinubu and other APC candidates in the 2027 elections.
Represented by Kestin Pondi, Managing Director of Tantita Security Services, Tompolo compared the ongoing economic reforms to planting and harvesting seasons, as well as the human gestation period.
He said the reforms would take time to produce results but expressed confidence that they would yield positive outcomes if the right steps were taken.
“Today, we no longer have fuel queues.
“We like to compare Nigeria with Asian countries that are doing well, like Malaysia and Indonesia, but one thing we forget to remember is that in those countries, reforms took over 25 or 35 years in some cases.
“Given the same conditions as we have in Nigeria, under which President Tinubu is operating, they may not have achieved what he has achieved in four years.
“If you want reforms like NELFUND, which is guaranteeing tertiary education for your children, more federal allocation to your state for projects and so on, you must re-elect Tinubu to continue,” he said.
Tompolo said it would be wrong to abandon development projects midway, urging voters to support APC candidates in all the elections.
He said the donated vehicles were intended to strengthen grassroots mobilisation in the two states.
“We will stand by you in this campaign. If the plan was to deliver 80 per cent, this should help you take it to 99 per cent,” he said.
He described Tinubu as a courageous leader who had taken difficult decisions since assuming office to reposition the Nigerian economy.
He expressed optimism that the reforms would create a brighter future for the country.
Tompolo added that the campaign would extend to electoral wards, polling units, churches, mosques, markets and other public places to communicate the administration’s policies and achievements to Nigerians.
He also commended Gov. Peter Mbah for various projects and initiatives in Enugu, including road infrastructure, bus terminals, a command and control centre, an international conference centre, smart schools, an airport and Enugu Air.
Meanwhile, the Cross River Government pledged to mobilise voters to secure at least 1.5 million votes for Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) puts the state’s registered voters at 1,928,978.
The statement quoted Gov. Bassey Otu as saying that the state would support Tinubu in appreciation of the development projects attracted to the area by his administration.
Otu listed the projects to include the Lagos-Calabar Super Highway, increased federal allocations, improved capacity to pay salaries promptly and infrastructure development.
Represented by his deputy, Peter Odey, the governor said Tinubu’s re-election was also important to enable Cross River to regain its status as an oil-producing state.
He added that the President would ensure the actualisation of the Bakassi Deep Sea Port, which Tinubu is scheduled to inaugurate on Nov. 13.
“If we don’t support Tinubu to be re-elected, we will miss a lot, so support for Tinubu is support for ourselves.
“If we were to give the president one million votes, the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement has made it 1.5 million because of the logistics support which will enable us to go deep into the corners of the state to campaign at every door,” the governor stated.
In Enugu, Gov. Peter Mbah, represented by his deputy, Ifeanyi Ossai, commended the movement for investing in grassroots mobilisation, particularly its recruitment of members across electoral wards.
He said the Tinubu administration was working to address the challenges facing Nigerians, adding that its achievements over the past three and a half years provided a basis for continuity.
Earlier, the National Coordinator of the movement, Sunday Asuku, urged Nigerians to prepare to make their voices heard through their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in the 2027 elections.
He said “Rome was not built in a day and here in Nigeria too, President Tinubu is doing it one step at a time and doing it well.”
Asuku said Nigeria needed continuity and consolidation of ongoing reforms, urging voters to tell the opposition that there was no vacancy in Aso Rock.
He also asked Nigerians to consider the antecedents of the presidential candidates, insisting that Tinubu remained the best choice for the country.
( NAN)