Apa/Agatu Politics: Ojema’s Office Faults Godday, Omale Over Radio Claims on Zoning, Says 2023 Loss Was Due to Poor Performance
Apa/Agatu Politics: Ojema’s Office Faults Godday, Omale Over Radio Claims on Zoning, Says 2023 Loss Was Due to Poor Performance
By Matthew Eloyi
The Office of the Member representing Apa/Agatu Federal Constituency and Chairman of the House Committee on National Inland Waterways, Chief Hon. (Pst.) Ojotu Ojema, has dismissed claims of zoning and marginalisation raised in a radio announcement credited to a former lawmaker, Hon. Samuel Godday Odagboyi.
In a statement issued on Monday by his Media Aide, Olikita Ekani, Ojema’s office said the broadcast aired on Brother FM, Makurdi, and reportedly forwarded by the former Benue State Commissioner for Transportation and Energy, Barr. Omale Omale, contained “misleading narratives” capable of confusing the public if left unchallenged.
The statement was reacting to claims attributed to Godday, who represented the constituency between 2019 and 2023, that he had withdrawn from future contests based on an alleged zoning agreement and what he described as the marginalisation of Apa Local Government Area.
According to the statement, there has never been any formal or informal zoning arrangement in Apa/Agatu Federal Constituency, noting that aspirants from both Apa and Agatu have always freely contested the House of Representatives seat.
It recalled that in the 2019 elections, Barr. Omale Omale and Hon. Ademu Entonu from Apa contested for the seat, leading to a rerun between Godday of the Labour Party and Entonu of the Peoples Democratic Party. It also pointed out that in the 2023 elections, candidates from Apa again contested across party lines, including Hon. Jeff Isima of APGA and Hon. Ademu Entonu, who lost the PDP primary to Ojema.
“These facts conclusively disprove the existence of any binding zoning arrangement,” the statement said.
On the allegation of marginalisation, the office said historical records showed that Apa Local Government Area had produced more members of the House of Representatives than Agatu since the creation of the constituency.
It listed Rt. Hon. John Edeh, Prof. Ada Ugah, the late Hon. Adole Abichele and Hon. Ademu Entonu as former representatives from Apa, while Agatu had produced Hon. Solomon Agidani, Hon. Samuel Godday Odagboyi and the incumbent, Chief Ojotu Ojema.
The statement further argued that Godday’s defeat in the 2023 general elections was not about zoning but about performance and public perception, insisting that he “had no achievement to show after four years in office.”
In contrast, it said Ojema had recorded “visible achievements” within two years, citing ongoing and completed road projects in both Apa and Agatu, the construction of a jetty terminal at Ocholonya, and the facilitation of 42 federal jobs for youths from the constituency.
Other accomplishments highlighted include the sponsorship of five motions in the House of Representatives, security interventions such as donations of communication gadgets and support to victims of attacks, the provision of boreholes and solar streetlights, and various empowerment programmes.
The lawmaker’s office also listed education and agriculture interventions, including the construction of classrooms at Methodist High School, Obagaji, bursary awards to 658 students, free JAMB registration for 449 candidates, and the distribution of farm inputs to farmers.
The statement concluded by urging the people of Apa and Agatu to prioritise “performance over sentiment,” adding that continuity in leadership would help consolidate development across the constituency.
Chief Ojema is currently serving his first term as the representative of Apa/Agatu Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives.
