Defection by politicians from one political party to another has become a common feature in Nigeria’s political landscape since the beginning of the 4th Republic. It gained so much traction that it was a source of worry for parties who lose their heavyweights to rival parties just at the drop of a hat.
To curb this rather unpleasant political phenomenon fueled mostly by greed and driven by personal interests as against the interest of the people, the national assembly took the bull by the horn by passing a law that gave some conditions that must be passed before a defection could be recognised in law all in an attempt to curb the unwholesome development.

This has however not stopped politicians from defecting to other parties at random especially as elections approach; the embrace of what they perceive to be the best party through which they can achieve their parochial ambitions just keeps driving them even if the new party bears every contradiction to their own personal philosophies, beliefs and political ideologies. And no matter how they try to paper it, the ambition is almost always the same: personal and parochial!


A performance poet, Dike Chukwumerije, once captured the scenario most aptly in one of his Facebook posts when he wrote:

“None of the defections was in protest of the many things that are going wrong in the present administration.

“Nobody decamped for Leah Sharibu. Nobody decamped for Anka or Rabbah or the blood that flowed in Gwer East.

“Nobody decamped for the illegal detention of Zakzaky, for the illegal retention of Dasuki, for the outright disappearance of Kanu.

“Nobody decamped for the jobs that have still not been created, or the power that can still not be distributed.

“Nobody decamped for the brothers we lost to hospitals we cannot depend on
For the mothers we lost in labour to derelict wards and empty medicine cupboards.

“Nobody decamped for the unpaid pensioner and the soldier stuck on permanent rotation in Gwoza
For the teachers who work for months without pay and the litigant that cannot afford the cost of Justice.

“Nobody decamped for the children who beg to clean our windshields… See? Nobody decamped for them,” Chukwumerije wrote.

Senator Ifeanyi Ubah is the latest to be caught in the web of defections afflicting our political space.

The astute politician, oil magnate and consummate industrialist is one man who has the drive to succeed in whatever he sets his heart to do. His love for the Igbo, his race, is incontrovertible and unflawed. He has demonstrated his unbridled commitment to the Igbo cause in several ways more than many Igbo billionaires in his class have done.

Beyond words, the Nnewi-born Senator has committed enormous resources for the advancement of the Igbo cause. And no one can even argue that. He not only talks Igbo, he walks Igbo, eats Igbo and breathes Igbo. Ifeanyi Ubah’s Igbo-centrism is too obvious and copious to be debated.

For example, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah sponsored almost singlehanded several initiatives for the progress of the Igbo race worldwide. Such initiatives include a grand convergence of both Igbo and Yoruba leaders and elders on The Base Event Centre, Independence Layout, Enugu for an event themed “A Celebration of Igbo/Yoruba Friendship Beyond Brotherhood” under the auspices of Nzuko Umunna, a leading Igbo sociocultural organization, which held on January 11, 2018.

The initiative was for the widening of space for the collaboration of the two major ethnic groups for the joint advancement of the sociopolitical and economic progress of their peoples.

A similar initiative which he sponsored almost singlehanded was the one organized by Igbo Bu Igbo (IBI), another foremost Igbo sociocultural organization, at Oakland Hotel, Enugu on December 1, 2018 with leaders of the region generously gracing the occasion. The IBI event was themed “Ndi Igbo Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow”. The two events gulped millions of naira and were bankrolled almost singlehanded by Senator Ifeanyi Ubah without batting an eyelid.

Also, Igbo Bu Igbo (IBI) which Senator Ifeanyi Ubah is its Board of Trustees’ Chairman bankrolled “A Blueprint for Alaigbo Development”, a product of painstaking processes and brainstorming sessions by a think-tank team of Igbo leaders, elders, industrialists, diplomats, technocrats etc. The well-thought-out blueprint is still available at the secretariat of the organization for any serious political leader in Igboland to tap into for the development of the region.

Ifeanyi Ubah is also a go-getter. Emerging a Senator of the Federal Republic under the umbrella of one of the least known parties in Nigeria, defeating candidates of the more popular and bigger political parties like the PDP, APC and APGA, is no mean feat and can only be a result of unalloyed commitment to a cause.

But, like everyone, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah also has his weaknesses and moments of gaffes, one of which was his comments after his recent defection from the YPP to the APC.

While speaking shortly after the defection, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah had said:

“I want to be sincere, it has always been difficult for the Igbo people to key into the national party because of our sentiments and emotions.

“Since our president has emerged and I put that challenge to each Igbo man today in Nigeria, 70 percent – 80 percent of them derive their wealth from the legacy that the president has left in Lagos.”

That’s one gaffe that’s capable of pushing into irredeemable obscurity all that Senator Ifeanyi Ubah stands for and has done for the Igbo nation.

How can anyone attribute the wealth of 70 – 80 per cent of Igbo people to one man, simply because the man was Governor of Lagos State from 1999 – 2007? Did the globally acknowledged Igbo nation start producing billionaires in 1999? Ifeanyi Ubah, as widely travelled as he is, knows full well that the making of wealth by the Igbos transcends persons and places, not to talk of someone of the recent era.

It is disheartening that a man of his status would, for whatever reason, make such a declaration, thereby downgrading the sterling entrepreneurial capacity and capabilities of a whole nation, his own people. It is even more worrisome that the declaration was politically motivated. It was placing logic and history on their head and a futile attempt to subjugate and sacrifice the principles of hardwork, intelligence, audacity in taking business risks and daring to tread where others dread with which Ndigbo are renowned for universally on the altar of his own political ambition.

That is not an act any Igbo man or woman would take lightly. Ubah cannot throw the people under the bus just for him to appear politically correct.

Ndigbo did not start being billionaires in 1999 when President Tinubu started holding sway in Lagos as governor. The people have been producing billionaires out of a dink of hardwork, academic excellence, business acumen, scientific and technological inventions and entrepreneurial innovations both at home and abroad. Just as their wealth, they are everywhere in the world working smartly and sustaining their reputation as one of the most diligent races of the world. To cocoon them and their prosperity to the tiny enclave of “Tinubu’s legacies” is not only a joke taken too far but is an assertion that is both misleading and mischievous.

No doubt, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah has what it takes to continue to contribute his own quota to the relentless rising of the sociopolitical fortunes of Ndigbo in Nigeria and abroad as he has demonstrated in the past, and Anambra will be very lucky to have such a go-getter as Governor. He should however go about the pursuit of his ambitions with the highest level of decorum without dragging the collective destiny of Ndigbo into the mud by tying our prosperity to the apron string of any one man.

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The African Centre for Media and Information Literacy (AFRICMIL) has called on Governor Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State to stop further persecution of Adewale Adedayo, chairman of Ijebu East Local Government Area of Ogun State who was impeached and is now being prosecuted in court for accusing the governor of withholding statutory federal allocation to local governments in the state in the last two years.

Click link for more info - https://thenews-chronicle.com/africmil-calls-on-gov-abiodun-of-ogun-state-to-halt-victimization-of-whistleblower-adewale-adedayo/

The Department of State Services (DSS), has established a new Directorate of Public Relations and Strategic Communications (DPRSC).
Click the link for more info - https://thenews-chronicle.com/dss-establishes-pr-and-strategic-communications-directorate/

The Ebonyi Election Petitions Tribunal has struck out the petition filed by the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) and its governorship candidate, Bernard Odoh against the election of Governor Francis Nwifuru.
Click link for more info - https://thenews-chronicle.com/tribunal-strikes-out-apga-odohs-case-against-ebonyi-governor/

Olympique Marseille today announced the appointment of former AC Milan legend, Gennaro Gattuso, as the head coach
click link for more info - https://thenews-chronicle.com/olympique-marseille-appoints-gattuso-as-head-coach-of-the-first-team/

During the UNGA in New York, Amina Temitope Ajayi, the former president of the All Nigerian-American Congress (ANAC), brought almost $19.4 billion in committed investment to Nigeria through her company, Silicon Valley Nigerian Economic Development Inc. (SVNED).

Three investors—CITCO Global Holdings, Global Expansion AXIATel, and Allen Le & Partners International Vietnam—promised to invest $5 billion, $3.2 billion, and $11.2 billion, respectively, in the development of different sectors of Nigeria’s economy in a joint statement released by the partners yesterday following the signing of the memorandum of understanding.

Tourism, aviation, technology, telecommunications, agriculture, sports, entertainment, and the energy sector are among the sectors.

It is anticipated that the cooperation will also help the nation’s troubled economy and give young people job chances.

Speaking on the collaboration, SVNED Chief Executive Officer Ajayi said the economic summit in New York offered a chance to emphasize how much more funding is needed for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations.

SDG Eight, according to her, places a high priority on decent work for all people, productive employment, and sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth.

“It also speaks to goal nine, which supports the need to build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation,” she stated.

She claims that the investment further advances Sustainable Development Goal 17 (SDG 17), which addresses bolstering implementation strategies and reinvigorating the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development.

During his remarks, Morgan Martinez, a representative of Global Expansion AXIATel, announced that the company would be investing $3.2 billion in Nigeria in addition to advancing the travel, aviation, technology, telecommunications, agriculture, entertainment, sports, and energy sectors.

Kingsley Onyeocha, the President and CEO of Allen Le & Partners International Vietnam, also gave a speech during which he committed to investing up to $11.2 billion in mining, affordable housing projects, a 2:1 solar megawatt agric project, electric vehicle assembly plants, and battery plants.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested a 42-year-old cripple, allegedly trading in illicit drugs on his wheelchair in Edo State.

This is contained in a statement by the Director, Media and Advocacy, NDLEA, Mr Femi Babafemi, on Sunday in Abuja. Babafemi said the suspect was arrested in a raid of drug joints in parts of the state.

He said the suspect was nabbed at Ekpoma, Esan West Local Government Area, with 1.3kg of substance suspected to be Cannabis Sativa and 10 litres of suspected Monkey Tail.

He also said that another suspect, a 46-years old lady was arrested at Ugbegun, Esan Central LGA with four litres of suspected “monkey tail”.

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/ndlea-arrests-cripple-in-edo-state-for-drug-trafficking/?utm_source=ReviveOldPost&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ReviveOldPost

In recent times, there has been so much attention on what is happening in the political space that many homes have surreptitiously become a show of shame and there is very little concern. It is good that we are trying to get the leadership of this great nation right, but if we fail to get it right at the home front, which is the foundation and bedrock of the society, we are headed for a long walk.

While it can be argued that the growing poverty in the land was orchestrated by successive governments and compounded by the current Government, what I am not sure of is how many of the parents we have around today lost their ‘voice’ in the home....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/penis-toto-and-the-other-commodities-feeding-many-nigerian-homes/?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ReviveOldPost

Peter Obi: the name on the lips of Nigerians; the luminous lantern in which Nigerians have kindled the light of their legitimacy; the prudent, pragmatic and popular former governor of Anambra State.

He is the man who took a party languishing in obscurity to more than six million votes that would have been far more were the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) up to its constitutional responsibilities. He is the man who today continues to send jitters down the spine of opposition parties in the country. For many Nigerians, Peter Obi’s identity is simple: he is the people’s president....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/march-11-before-the-dust-settles/?utm_source=ReviveOldPost&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ReviveOldPost

Nigerians were at their various designated polling units on Saturday, February 25, 2023 and elected those they trust to pilot their affairs at two different strata of government for the next four years as enshrined in the operating 1999 constitution of the country (as amended).

As we all know, democracy thrives on the willingness and ability of the people to participate in the political process. The political environment is expected to be free from inhibitions that obstruct freedom of expression. Political participation, political culture and political education are all critical elements of successful democracy. Technology is increasingly playing an invaluable role in encouraging citizens to participate actively in the political process. It makes information dissemination easy and fast....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/bvas-technology-and-2023-elections/?utm_source=ReviveOldPost&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ReviveOldPost

The Governor of Oyo State, Seyi Makinde, has advised the Nigerian security agencies to remain professional and neutral in the coming elections. The governor gave the advice at the grand finale of the 2023 Armed Forces Remembrance Day held at the Remembrance Arcade, Government House, Agodi, Ibadan.

But an Islamic human rights organization, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC), has accused the governor of being insincere with the advice. In a statement issued on Friday, 20th January, 2023, the director of MURIC, Professor Ishaq Akintola, accused the governor of using men of the Oyo State arm of the Department of Security Services (DSS) to harass him.

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/you-are-insincere-muric-tackles-makinde-on-neutrality-advice-to-security-agents/?utm_source=ReviveOldPost&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=ReviveOldPost

Many Western governments and firms have been accused of exploiting crises in different countries of the world for their own business and political interests. While I am a lover of America and other Western democracies and a fan of their politics, I cannot completely disagree with those who hold this opinion of them. What I will however disagree with is the pretence by the accusers of these nations of being innocent of what they accuse the other countries of. Political power is consolidated with war, money and diplomacy, and diplomacy becomes most relevant when there is crisis.

Russia, China, Iran, and all the other rebel nations competing with America and the other Western democracies are only looking for ways to dislodge them and begin to enjoy influence America is enjoying, not because they want to make the world a better place, but because they...

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/is-imo-insecurity-a-lucrative-venture-for-some/

By Suyi Ayodele

Olusegun Obasanjo publicly endorsed Peter Obi for president on New Year’s Day and the Emi Lokan people dismissed what the former president has done as “worthless”. What does that mean? Now, a bit of academic exercise. Dictionary.com defines ‘Worth’ as a preposition, to be: “Good or important enough to justify; having value of, or equal in value to, as in money”. As a noun, the dictionary enters ‘Worth’ as; “Excellence of character or quality as commanding esteem”. In both definitions, the word has positive connotative and...

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/obasanjo-and-his-worth/

Vice-Presidential Candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa has urged Nigerians to vote Atiku Abubakar and all PDP candidates in the 2023 elections to ensure that prevailing hunger, poverty and insecurity in the country were

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/2023-with-pdp-nigerians-will-not-be-hungry-okowa/

President Muhammadu Buhari is deeply saddened by the passing of Professor George Obiozor, the President General of Ohaneze Ndigbo, worldwide. He has extended heartfelt condolences to Obiozor’s family, the government and people of Imo State as well as Ndigbo, at home and in the Diaspora....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/obiozors-contributions-to-nigeria-will-never-be-forgotten-buhari/

“This is quite shocking,” declared South Australia’s Attorney-General and Aboriginal Affairs Minister, Kyam Maher. “These caves are some of the earliest evidence of Aboriginal occupation of that part of the country.” That evidence was subtracted this month by acts of vandalism inflicted on artwork in Koonalda Cave on the Nullarbor Plain, claimed to be the world’s largest limestone karst landscape and...

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/country-for-bad-dreams-vandalism-on-the-nullarbor-plain/

Liverpool and PSV have mutually agreed on the acquisition of Cody Gakpo for a fee of around £50mn with add-ons according to Fabrizio Romano. Gakpo has signed a six year contract and is ready for a switch to England in the coming days. Liverpool’s three forwards Luiz Diaz, Diogo Jota, and Roberto Firmino are all currently sidelined with injuries and Darwin Núñez is yet to adapt to form at Liverpool. This is believed to be the main reason Liverpool acted fast in...

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/liverpool-has-completed-the-signing-of-cody-gakpo-from-psv/

Former world’s richest man and Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos divorced his writer wife, Mackenzie Scott in 2019 in a famous divorce that fell nothing short of their celebrity status. As part of the settlement terms, she got a whopping 25% of Amazon’s stock valued at about $35.6 billion at the time automatically making her one of the richest women and persons in the world. She went on to marry their children’s science teacher shortly after she left Bezos and her second marriage also hit the...

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/jeff-bezoss-ex-wife-new-found-love-for-philanthropy/

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The State House 2023 budget proposal of N21.1bn is comparatively lower than the 2022 appropriation of N40.1 billion by 19.01 per cent, the Permanent Secretary, Tijjani Umar, explained on Thursday in Abuja.....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/2023-budget-defence-state-house-gets-nearly-50-per-cent-cut/

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A native doctor simply identified as Nonso, from Umuona in Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State has been arrested for trying to bury his lover and her two children alive. He was tried on Wednesday at a Chief Magistrate Court sitting in Awka, and has been remanded in prison custody, on an offence of attempted murder....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/anambra-native-doctor-remanded-for-trying-to-bury-lover-two-children-alive/

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Pa Reuben Fasoranti, the head of the pan-Yoruba socio-political party Afenifere, claims that he was misrepresented in the media over the dispute between himself and the group’s acting leader, Pa Ayo Adebanjo....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/adebanjo-is-still-afeniferes-acting-leader-fasoranti/

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“Like the biblical joy among the Angels in heaven over a sinner that repents, the arrest of Mr. Emmanuel Ovie Edafe Thomas, or Edafe Thomas, for the man changes his name the way the chameleon changes its colour, elicited joy and celebration in all the security agencies in Edo State that fateful Friday, July 16, 2004”. This quotation is the introductory.....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/kill-the-suspect-obliterate-the-clue-reasons-why-crimes-persist-in-nigeria/

Three suspects are currently cooling their heels in the custody of the Delta State Police Command over the harvesting of the organs of month old baby. The spokesman of the command, Bright Edafe disclosed this in a short tweet on his handle on Monday evening.......

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/just-in-eyes-nose-of-month-old-baby-who-died-in-hospital-removed-three-arrested-%ef%bf%bc/

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Hmmm! The movement is gaining momentum. Everybody is now on the move, shouting Obidient and Yusufulness. It has become a slogan, spreading like a hurricane fire, a signature that authenticates, approves and validates.....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/beyond-the-1million-march/

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Governor of Delta State and Vice-Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ifeanyi Okowa, will on October 11, 2022, be honoured with a national award of Commander of the Order of the Niger (CON) by President Muhammadu Buhari.....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/okowa-gets-con-national-honours-award/

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The Wives of the Northern Governors have reiterated their resolve to curbing drug abuse and other social vices bedevilling the society, according to Dr.Zainab Shinkafi Bagudu. Dr. Bagudu Stated this on Friday in Birnin Kebbi when the members of the Forum paid a courtesy call on her husband, Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu.

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/northern-governors-wives-committed-to-eradicating-drug-abuse-stemming-social-vices-bagudu/

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The Federal Government and Google are collaborating to curb the excesses of subversive YouTube channels which are used to spread hate and disinformation against the country.....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/fg-google-collaborate-to-checkmate-subversive-youtube-channels/

Super Falcons of Nigeria who ended their 2022 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations losing the bronze medal to Zambia are yet to receive match allowances and bonuses. According to BBC Africa, each player is owed $10,000 for three victories put up after their opener game against champions...

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/wafcon-2022-super-falcons-yet-to-receive-match-allowances-and-bonuses/

The family of late Inspector of Corps, Ilyasu Abraham, a personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), who died in the unfortunate attack on Kuje Medium Custodial Centre, has been presented with a total sum of two million, eight hundred thousand naira (N2.8m) as....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/nscdc-boss-presents-n2-8m-compensation-to-widow-of-personnel-killed-in-kuje-prison-attack/

The National Cocoa Management Committee (NCMC), established by the Federal Government yesterday, would oversee the restoration of the Nigeria Cocoa Board and guarantee that cocoa farmers receive the Living Income Differential (LID) of $400 per tonne to raise their level of living....

https://www.thenews-chronicle.com/fg-plans-to-reinstate-the-cocoa-board-and-increase-farmers-incomes/