Vice President Kashim Shettima was conferred with the Igbo chieftaincy title Aka Ekpuchi Ọnwa, meaning “A Hand Cannot Cover the Moon,” by traditional rulers in Abakaliki on Monday, hours before he told an All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential campaign rally in Ebonyi State that the Tinubu administration was driving a major economic and security shift in the South-East.
The title was given by Eze Fidelis Nwonumara, Eze Nnodo II of Amagu Autonomous Community in Abakaliki and Chairman of the Izzi/Nnodo Traditional Rulers Council, during a courtesy visit by the Vice President on his arrival.
Drawn from an Igbo proverb, it symbolises the enduring power of truth, integrity and greatness, and the belief that genuine merit and distinguished service cannot be concealed or diminished.
The conferment also celebrated the longstanding bonds of friendship between the people of Northern Nigeria and the South-East.
Thanking the monarch and the traditional rulers, Shettima described the honour as a personal responsibility to deepen his relationship with Ebonyi State and strengthen national unity.
He recalled the historic ties of trade, friendship and shared community life between the North and the South-East, and said Nigeria’s diversity remains one of its greatest strengths.
“I have travelled from the far North-East to the South-East, yet I stand here among brothers and sisters. Our ancestors understood that friendship could cross rivers, mountains and kingdoms. They knew that a stranger who is received with love soon becomes a member of the household. This is the Nigeria we must preserve,” he said.
At the rally, Shettima said the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is making aggressive capital injections into transport, green energy, agriculture, housing and human capital development.
He said federal interventions in Ebonyi and the wider South-East are meant to improve regional connectivity, strengthen food security, expand economic opportunities and address longstanding development challenges.
He said the administration had shown its commitment to the state through major infrastructure projects, federal appointments and welfare policies.
“If any state can speak with confidence about the dividends of democracy, it is Ebonyi,” he said, adding that democracy demands the humility of asking again, and that the party had returned to seek a renewed mandate.
He urged the people of Ebonyi to renew their support for President Tinubu and the APC in the 2027 general elections, saying the administration had laid the foundation for further economic progress and national development.
Shettima, in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Communications, Stanley Nkwocha, pointed to the Calabar, Ebonyi, Benue, Kogi, Nasarawa and Abuja Superhighway, part of the administration’s Trans-Saharan highway vision, as a major project to boost trade and integration between the South-East, North-Central and other regions.
He also listed the Ndibe Bridge, which will link Ebonyi and Cross River states, and ongoing work on the Enugu, Abakaliki and Ogoja Expressway and the Okposi, Ohaozara, Ukawu and Cross River road.
He said the road projects would ease the movement of farm produce and manufactured goods and cut logistical barriers for businesses and communities.
Describing Ebonyi as an important contributor to national food security, particularly through rice and cassava, he said the government is supporting farmers with fertiliser distribution, interest-free FarmerMoni assistance and other programmes. Rural roads, he added, would help farmers reduce losses, raise earnings and expand production.
The Vice President also said thousands of Ebonyi beneficiaries had received grants under the Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme, while federal employment and digital skills initiatives were helping young people acquire skills and build sustainable livelihoods.
On security, Shettima said the administration had intensified efforts to restore stability in the South-East, stressing that lasting economic development depends on the safety of communities, businesses and critical infrastructure.
He cited the establishment and commencement of operations of the Nigerian Army Recruits Training Depot at Amasiri and Edda in Ebonyi State.
“The security of the South-East has changed since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu became Commander-in-Chief over three years ago. We have worked to restore order, and we will keep working,” he said.
He also noted the creation of the South East Development Commission, the launch of the South-East Vision 2050 and the approval of the South East Investment Company as institutional steps to accelerate regional development and attract investment.
Shettima commended Governor Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru, saying improved federal revenue allocations had strengthened the capacity of states to invest in infrastructure and public services, and that the governor had used the extra resources responsibly.
Governor Nwifuru, former APC National Chairman Adams Oshiomhole and Minister of Works David Umahi also spoke, praising the President’s economic reforms and infrastructure investments and urging residents to back the administration in 2027.
Nwifuru said Ebonyi had benefited significantly from the reforms and special road interventions.
“Under President Tinubu, the poor roads in our state and zone are now better,” he said.
He appealed for federal support for a 330kV electricity transmission line to improve power supply in the state and promised that Ebonyi would deliver 80 percent of its votes to the President.
Umahi described the turnout as proof of the state’s support for the APC and the President, and thanked Tinubu for what he called unprecedented federal investment in roads, covering hundreds of kilometres of highways and billions of naira.
He expressed confidence that the state would deliver 1.3 million votes to the President.
