* Onuigbo 
By Chidinma Omar

The Court of Appeal sitting in Owerri Friday  re-affirmed the  election of Hon Sam Onuigbo as the Member Representing Ikwuano/Umuahia North/South Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives. Earlier, the Election Petitions Tribunal had also affirmed Onuigbo's election at the polls.

In a reaction to the court judgement, an elated Onuigbo stated: ''While I saw the many legal tussles initiated to try and steal my victory as mere distractions considering the resounding way my people voted for me, at no point in time did I ever let my foot off the gas in my commitment to delivering unparalleled representation to the great people of Ikwuano/Umuahia North/South. If anything, I became more vocal, and more relentless in the pursuit of everything good for my people. It is this remarkable and in-built burning desire for selfless and result-oriented service that the people of our constituency saw in me, and largely agreed that I should be re-elected to represent them for a second time (a first for the constituency).

 ''And as a ranking member of the House of Representatives, I have more opportunities and better experience to do exceedingly great for my people, and all of my actions since I set foot on the House of Representatives have been geared towards doing that (moreso, as a ranking member).

''Thankfully, this brings to an end the legal distractions. I must now continue to focus on my hallmark of effective and responsive representation. More than ever, I am committed to changing the face of representation in Ikwuano/Umuahia North/South, and I make you this promise today, that when we are done, we would have set a standard in representation that shall be the envy of many.

''The actions of the judges, from the Tribunal, to the Appeal Court, are worthy of commendation. They demonstrated unparalleled professionalism and thoroughness in the way they handled the judgments, and showed that the Judiciary, is the hope of the common man. If this was a judgment for the highest bidder, I would have lost, and the hopes of the good people of Ikwuano/Umuahia North/ South Federal Constituency for effective representation, dashed'', he affirmed