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Traditional rulers and Methodist Church leaders in Bende Federal Constituency, Abia State, have endorsed the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, for a third term in office ahead of the 2027 general elections, citing what they described as his legislative performance and development interventions across the constituency.
The latest endorsements, which came during separate engagements with the Deputy Speaker on Friday, followed similar declarations of support by the Bende South State Constituency (Ikwuisi) Traditional Rulers Council and other groups within the constituency in recent days.
The endorsements were made by the Umunna Traditional Rulers Council, comprising royal fathers from Item, Alayi, Igbere and Ezeukwu communities, as well as religious leaders of the Methodist Church, during Kalu’s ongoing “Meet Your Constituents” consultation aimed at engaging residents, reviewing his stewardship and receiving feedback on his representation.
Speaking at a meeting held at the palace of Eze Kalu Okorie of Ezeukwu in Bende, the traditional rulers commended the Deputy Speaker for the projects and federal presence attracted to the constituency and unanimously backed his bid for another term.
Speaking on behalf of the monarchs, Eze Kalu Okorie said the traditional institution was proud of Kalu’s achievements, describing his representation as impactful.
Also speaking, Eze Innocent Kalu Mba described the Deputy Speaker as the best legislator to have represented Bende Federal Constituency, saying his performance at the National Assembly had brought pride to the people.
“Those of us who read the news and watch television are very proud of him. We cannot have someone who has attained what he has attained and choose to support a bench warmer. Benjamin Kalu has given Umunna dividends of democracy. What else are we looking for? Let us give him our maximum cooperation and support. It will be a bad thing if we lose Benjamin Kalu. He is the pride of Bende and he should return. I appeal to all our people; no one is better than Benjamin Kalu. He has built hospitals, schools and roads. My fellow rulers, let us support our son. He is the only one who has done something for us,” he said.
The monarchs also dismissed claims that the Bende Federal Constituency seat was subject to a zoning arrangement, maintaining that their endorsement was based solely on what they described as Kalu’s performance and the development attracted to the constituency.
Responding, Kalu thanked the traditional rulers for their confidence in his leadership, describing their endorsement as a vote of confidence in his representation.
“We are heading somewhere. You made the right decision sending me to the House of Representatives to represent you. I am grateful and glad I made you proud. The fruit is showing. Look at the projects I have attracted. More are coming. I love Bende. I love my people. Do you know what it means to bring two federal institutions to one local government? It is happening in your time. Each of those institutions will employ nothing less than 3,000 people. It will bring development,” he said.
As part of the engagement, the Deputy Speaker donated buses to the Umunna Traditional Rulers Council and the Bende South State Constituency (Ikwuisi) Traditional Rulers Council to facilitate their activities and improve mobility.
He also assured the monarchs that additional development projects would be attracted to the constituency.
At a separate meeting held at the Methodist Cathedral, Uzuakoli, Methodist bishops and other church leaders also declared their support for Kalu’s third-term bid.
The meeting was led by the Bishop of the Methodist Diocese of Uzuakoli, Bishop James A. Anyanwu, alongside the Archbishop of the Methodist Diocese of Item, Most Rev. Bishop Nwaulo Ikechukwu Emezie.
The church leaders raised concerns over what they described as inadequate government attention to some church-owned institutions providing services to communities in Bende and appealed to the Deputy Speaker to support their rehabilitation and development.
Responding, Kalu assured the clerics that their requests would be incorporated into the constituency’s development plans.
He also disclosed that budgetary provisions had been made for programmes aimed at youth development across the federal constituency, adding that a technical session involving about 130 religious leaders would be convened to fine-tune the implementation of selected projects.
Following the discussions, the Methodist leaders endorsed the Deputy Speaker’s bid for another term in the House of Representatives.
The latest endorsements add to a series of declarations of support Kalu has received from traditional institutions, community groups and other stakeholders in Bende Federal Constituency ahead of the 2027 general elections, with supporters citing his legislative record and constituency development initiatives as the basis for their backing.
