Dave Umahi
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David Nweze Umahi (born 25 July 1963) is a Nigerian politician who serves as the minister of works of Nigeria. He previously served as the
senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...
representing Ebonyi South senatorial district from June to August 2023, and as the
governor of Ebonyi State Ebonyi State, Nigeria has been led by governors and administrators since its creation in October 1996 from the old Abakaliki division of Enugu State and old Afikpo division of Abia State by Abacha's government. See also *States of Nigeria *L ...
from 2015 to 2023; and deputy governor from 2011 to 2015. On 16 August 2023, President
Bola Tinubu Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Adekunle Tinubu (born 29 March 1952) is a Nigerian politician serving as the 16th and current president of Nigeria since 2023. He previously served as the governor of Lagos State from 1999 to 2007, and senator for Lagos ...
appointed him as Minister of Works following his nomination, screening and approval by the senate. He was sworn into office on 21 August 2023.


Early life and education

Umahi was born on 25 July 1964. He is the son of Elder Joseph Umahi Nwaze and Margaret Umahi of Umunaga, Uburu in
Ohaozara Ohaozara is a Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean t ...
Local Government Area, now in Ebonyi State. Umahi received his secondary education from Ishiagu High School and the Government Secondary School of Afikpo before attending the
Enugu State University of Science and Technology The Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) is a university in Nigeria that was founded as Anambra State University of Technology (ASUTECH) on 30 July 1980, by the Executive Governor of Anambra State, Chief Dr Jim Ifeanyichukwu ...
in 1982. He graduated in 1987 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering. In 1990, he co-founded Norman Engineering and Construction Nig. Limited with Ombo Isokarari and served as its
general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...
until 1993. Until 2011, he served as chairman and CEO of Brass Engineering & Construction Nig. Ltd., Focus Investment Nig. Ltd., and Osborn La Palm Royal Resort Ltd. He is from a home of nine comprising two females and seven males, including Major-General Obi Abel Umahi (Rtd.), the former chairman of the South-East Security Committee, Ebubeagu but resigned in May 2021. Roy Umahi Nwaeze, a
legal practitioner A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as wel ...
, Austin Umahi Nweze who was the former south east vice chairman of the People's Democratic Party.


Politics

Umahi entered public service in 2007 as the acting chairman of the
Ebonyi State Ebonyi () is a States of Nigeria, state in the South East (Nigeria), South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered to the north and northeast by Benue State, Enugu State to the west, Cross River State to the east and southeast, and Abia Stat ...
chapter of the People's Democratic Party. From 2009 to 2011, he served as state chairman of the party. During that term, he served a year on the governing board of the Federal Medical Centre in
Asaba Asaba (''Igbo:'' ''Ahaba'') is the capital of Delta State, Nigeria. A rapidly growing urban area, it is located on the western bank of the Niger River and is the seat of the Oshimili South Local Government Area. Asaba had a population of 149,6 ...
as its chairman. In 2011, Umahi became the Deputy Governor of Ebonyi State on a ticket with the-then Governor
Martin Elechi Martin Nwancho Elechi is a Nigerian economist and politician. He served as the governor of Ebonyi State from 2007 to 2015. He ran in the 2007 Nigerian general election on the People's Democratic Party (PDP) ticket and assumed the position on 2 ...
. However, in 2014, Governor Elechi supported Onyebuchi Chukwu, Minister of Health, as his successor, which Umahi stated violated an understanding that he would take that role. Umahi went ahead to defeat Chukwu in the primaries. The remainder of Elechi's term was chaotic, with arson hitting the House of Assembly in February 2015 and motions taken to impeach him later that month over alleged unconstitutional gross misconduct, misappropriation of funds and anti-party activities. Umahi was elected to the role of Governor on 12 April 2015 on the platform of People's Democratic Party (PDP). The election was later challenged by the Labour Party,
All Progressives Congress The All Progressives Congress (APC) is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Nigeria, along with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Founded on 6 February 2013 from a merger of Nigeria's three largest opposition parties, t ...
and
All Progressives Grand Alliance The All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) is a Nigerian political party formed in June 2002 and has governed the South eastern state of Anambra since 2003. Electoral history At the Nigerian parliamentary election, 2003, legislative elections ...
on the basis of "widespread irregularities, killings, and wanton destruction of property". In October 2015, the legitimacy of the election was upheld by the Governorship Election Tribunal. On 16 March 2019, Umahi was re-elected as governor in the Ebonyi state governorship election. He polled 393,343 votes to defeat APC's Sonny Ogbuoji who polled 81,703 votes. Umahi won APC Ebonyi South Senatorial district elections in 2022.


Defection to the APC

On 11 November 2020 Umahi declared his intention to join the
All Progressives Congress The All Progressives Congress (APC) is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Nigeria, along with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Founded on 6 February 2013 from a merger of Nigeria's three largest opposition parties, t ...
and on 17 November 2020 he officially defected to the party after a long time speculation. Umahi made his declaration of joining the APC for reasons according to him, one of them being that " ...the People's Democratic Party has been unfair to the Southeast Geopolitical Zone..." and secondly, "...that it has been hijacked by one or two individuals". He also doused the speculation against him that he joined the APC because he wanted a presidential ticket which wasn't promised to him in the PDP by saying that he would quit politics in 2023 after leaving office as governor.
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Muhammadu Buhari Muhammadu Buhari (born 17 December 1942) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2015 to 2023. A retired Nigerian army major general, he was the military head of state of Nigeria from 31 December 1983 to 27 Augu ...
also congratulated Umahi for his defection to the APC, he described it as a bold step driven by principle rather than opportunistic moves or coercion On 11 January 2022 Umahi declared his intention to run for the office of the
President of Nigeria The president of Nigeria, officially the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is the head of state and head of government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The president directs the executive branch of the Federal Government an ...
in the 2023 general elections after consulting with President Muhammadu Buhari just days after the declaration of a leader in the APC,
Bola Ahmed Tinubu Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Adekunle Tinubu (born 29 March 1952) is a Nigerian politician serving as the 16th and current president of Nigeria since 2023. He previously served as the governor of Lagos State from 1999 to 2007, and senator for Lagos ...
. This conflicts with his earlier statement when he defected to the APC that he would quit politics after his tenure as governor. On 8 March 2022 Umahi and his deputy
Eric Kelechi Igwe Eric Kelechi Igwe is a Nigerian lawyer and politician who served as deputy governor of Ebonyi State from May 2015 to May 2023. He was born in Ndufu Alike in Ikwo, Ebonyi State. Controversy On March 8, 2022, Igwe and the governor Dave Umahi ...
were sacked as Governor and Deputy Governor of Ebonyi State respectively by the Federal High Court in
Abuja Abuja (; , ) is the capital city of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, strategically situated at the geographic midpoint of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory (FCT). As the seat of the Federal G ...
for defecting to the
All Progressives Congress The All Progressives Congress (APC) is one of the two major contemporary political parties in Nigeria, along with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Founded on 6 February 2013 from a merger of Nigeria's three largest opposition parties, t ...
while in office. The court said that the popular votes given to Umahi belonged to the People's Democratic Party (PDP) and by defecting from the party the office ceases to be theirs. The court immediately ordered the PDP to submit the name of their gubernatorial candidate to INEC or for a fresh gubernatorial election to be conducted in Ebonyi State. On 11 March 2022, the State High Court granted Umahi and his Deputy Eric Kelechi Igwe interim of seven days in office. On 1 April 2022, The Court of Appeal in
Enugu State Enugu () verbally pronounced as "Enụgwụ" by the Igbo indigenes is a state in the South-East geopolitical zone of Nigeria, bordered to the north by the states of Benue and Kogi, Ebonyi State to the east and southeast, Abia State to the so ...
affirmed Umahi as Governor of Ebonyi State, saying his defection to the APC was immoral but not unconstitutional while affirming an earlier judgement by the Federal High Court in Ebonyi. However the grounds for the sack of Umahi by the Federal High Court in Abuja is different from the Federal High Court in Ebonyi. The Court of Appeal in Abuja is yet to hear the appeal of the judgement of the Federal High Court in Abuja.


Corruption allegations

On 29 January 2021, ''
Peoples Gazette ''Peoples Gazette'' is a Nigerian online newspaper based in Abuja. It launched in 2020. The online medium is notable for its investigative journalism, among other fields. Launching ''Peoples Gazette'' was launched in 2020 by Samuel Ogundipe, a ...
'' reported that throughout Umahi's tenure as deputy governor and governor, he had transferred more than ₦3.6 billion in government money to his company, Brass Engineering & Construction Nigeria Limited. Bank records showed the payments starting in 2011, when Umahi became deputy governor to
Martin Elechi Martin Nwancho Elechi is a Nigerian economist and politician. He served as the governor of Ebonyi State from 2007 to 2015. He ran in the 2007 Nigerian general election on the People's Democratic Party (PDP) ticket and assumed the position on 2 ...
, and continued into his term as governor. In response, Umahi and an aide threatened ''Peoples Gazette'' reporters on phone calls and the ''Peoples Gazette'' website was blocked, before requesting a retraction and ₦1 billion as "atonement" from the newspaper. After the paper stood by its story, Umahi sued the ''Peoples Gazette'' for defamation and demanded ₦2 billion in damages.


Personal life

Dave Umahi is married to Rachael Umahi. She is the daughter of Mr and Mrs Chukwu and Eunice Akpa of Umuobuna, Uburu in Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.


Award

In October 2022, a Nigerian national honour of
Commander Of The Order Of The Niger Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries, ...
(CON) was conferred on him by President
Muhammadu Buhari Muhammadu Buhari (born 17 December 1942) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2015 to 2023. A retired Nigerian army major general, he was the military head of state of Nigeria from 31 December 1983 to 27 Augu ...
.


See also

*
List of state governors of Nigeria Nigeria has 36 States of Nigeria, states that each elect a governor to serve as chief executive of the state government. The sole federal district, the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory, is headed by a minister appoi ...
*
List of governors of Ebonyi State Ebonyi State, Nigeria has been led by governors and administrators since its creation in October 1996 from the old Abakaliki division of Enugu State and old Afikpo division of Abia State by Abacha's government. See also *States of Nigeria *L ...
*
List of people from Ebonyi State The following is a list of Wikipedia:Notability, notable people whose state of origin is Ebonyi State, Nigeria. A * Chris Abani * Anthony Agbo * Anyim Pius Anyim, first president of the Nigerian Senate from Ebonyi State and first Secretar ...
* Ebonyi State Executive Council


References


External links

* (February 2017 archived version) {{DEFAULTSORT:Umahi, Dave 1964 births Living people Nigerian Pentecostals People from Ebonyi State Peoples Democratic Party state governors of Nigeria Commanders of the Order of the Niger Politicians from Ebonyi State