Amid the rumoured planned defection of Senator Kelvin Chukwu from the Labour Party, LP, to the All Progressives Congress, APC, a community leader, Prince Maxwell Ozoemena Nnamani has warned him of the dire implication of such a move.
Nnamani made his feelings known in an open letter he penned to the Senator, where he also accused him of not giving the people of Enugu East adequate representation.
There are now strong rumours that he is set to dump the Labour Party, just as he is widely acknowledged to have been poorly representing his constituents.
Nnamani is now warning him not to just sit up, but to also jettison any idea of jumping ship.
He reminded the Senator that, “You were not voted into office because you were the most popular or most influential candidate.
“You were voted for out of sympathy, following the tragic death of your brother, Barr. Oyibo Chukwu, who was brutally murdered just weeks before the election.
“The people chose you, not because you were the strongest politician, but because they believed continuing with your brother’s legacy was the most humane and honorable path. That vote was a vote of grace, not entitlement.
“If Enugu East had truly wanted APC back then, they would have voted for the then APC candidate, a woman and Princess of Nkanu land whose family name carries weight and love across communities. But we chose you, and we gave you a chance to prove yourself.”
He then regretted that “instead of honouring that grace, instead of using that sympathy and love for the good of the people, you have chosen to use it against the people.
“Instead of showing gratitude through action, you’ve shown it through silence and party jumping.”
Nnamani queried: “From Labour Party to APC? Is this how you repay the people who handed you the seat you never earned through sweat or grassroots struggle?
“You have forgotten the grace that brought you in. You have forgotten the love that sustained your campaign. You have forgotten the voices that fought for you even when you had no political structure.”
He said all the constituents had gotten was “no proper representation in the Senate, no visible bills sponsored in your name, no employment for our youths, no poverty alleviation programmes, and the worst insult of all, even the road leading to your own house is a disgrace to your name and the Senate office you hold.
“What message are you sending, Senator Kelvin? That even your own community does not deserve development? That we were just political pawns in your ambition?
“Let me remind you again: If Enugu East had wanted APC, we would have voted for our Sister and Princess under APC, a woman of greater popularity and deeper roots. But we gave that ticket to you, trusting that maybe, just maybe, you’d rise to the occasion.
“But what did you do? You wore the Labour Party like a borrowed cloth, used it to win, and now you toss it aside like it means nothing. That is betrayal. Not just to a party, but to the people who believed in you.
“Senator Kelvin Chukwu, the silence is over. We will no longer pretend that this disappointment is acceptable. You were sent to Abuja to represent us, not to become a tourist in the corridors of power. Representation without action is deception.
“As son of the soil, I speak for those who don’t have access to internet, who don’t know how to write open letters, but who wake up every day in poverty, walking on bad roads, looking for jobs that never come while their Senator plays political hide and seek.
“If you truly respect the people who gave you that seat, return to the mandate. Build, empower, represent, speak, act, deliver.
“Because if you don’t, then come 2027, we will not need to shout.
We will simply be silent. And that silence will be louder than any campaign slogan.”