2023: Ebonyi ex-female Perm Secretary joins senatorial race
2023: Ebonyi ex-female Perm Secretary joins senatorial race
Mrs Ann Agomeze, former Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education has joined the senatorial contest for Ebonyi South senatorial zone.
The aspirant, who is vying on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), said she decided to join the senatorial race because of her desire to give women of Ebonyi an active voice in politics.
Agomeze stated this at a press conference in Abakaliki on Friday adding that her participation in the senatorial contest would create the change the women were clamoring for.
Agomeze is the only woman from the Ebonyi South senatorial district that picked the senatorial form of the APC Ebonyi chapter and second in the state after Mrs. Elizabeth Ogbaga from Ebonyi North.
Ogbaga, a former member of the House of Representatives, represented Ohaukwu/Ebonyi Federal Constituency.
Meanwhile, Agomeze said that her election into the senate would enhance women’s participation in decision-making and also enable the womenfolk to be actively involved and present where resources were being shared to get their fair share of democracy dividends.
According to her, if elected, I will use her position to change the notion that politics is reputed for being dirty where illegality and unethical means are used to get to power.
She said: “My election will create a significant increase in women’s participation in politics in Ebonyi and harness the untapped capacity of women leadership.”
The aspirant expressed confidence in securing the APC ticket adding that her nomination would represent a merit-orientated quota for women.
Agomeze, a frontline female politician from Onicha local government area of Ebonyi said that her emergence would also end years of marginalization of Onicha LGA in senatorial representation in the Ebonyi South zone.
“I will like to humbly beckon on all the party chieftains and the elders to see the need to ensure that Onicha takes its rightful position by producing the next senator come 2023.
“The council with its huge voting strength of about 49, 223 voters cannot be undermined.
“We want to be happy like our sister LGAs because what is sauce for the goose is also sauce for the gander; I am born and married within the senatorial zone, and I’ll use my position to attract development to the zone.
“Being selfless, forthright, and pragmatic, I will ensure effective representation that will provide an unprecedented democracy dividend to our constituents such as never witnessed before in the zone,” she added.
Agomeze who lamented the low-level representation of women; the youths, children, and people living with disabilities said that she would sponsor bills that would address these challenges and create a better life for them through robust representation and empowerment.
The aspirant further pledged to be both gender-sensitive and gender-responsive, adding: ” I will be more disposed to give priority to social concerns.
”I will create town hall platforms for quarterly meetings in order to create awareness to the people and listen to them.”
She also promised to prioritize the girl-child education to encourage them to attain their full potential as well as offer scholarships to female students from basic education levels across various institutions.
The ebonyi South senatorial district comprises five LGAs including; Afikpo North, Afikpo South, Onicha, Ohaozara, and Ivo.
Between 1999 and 2003, the zone was represented by Sen. Pius Anyim, from Ivo LGA; Sen. Emmanuel Agboti from Afikpo North took over from Anyim and represented the zone from 2003 to 2007, while Sen. Anyim Ude from Ivo was elected senator in 2007.
In 2011, Sen Sonni Ogbuoji from Afikpo South was elected into the senate for two tenures between 2011 and 2019.
However, Ogbuoji was replaced by Sen. Amah Nnachi (PDP) also from Afikpo South who was elected in 2019 and also seeking re-election to the senate.
