Penguin2:

Otti gained popularity as APGA guber candidate in 2015. He even won the election but got rigged out by Theodore Orji’s rigging machinery. Then he defected to apc before 2019 elections and you people didn’t think he was worth your ticket, did you?

Before Onu, Okorocha, Umahi, etc, there was Jim Nwobodo, and co who aligned with anti-Igbo elements thinking that’s how they will get power. How did they end?

And history keeps repeating itself because the anti-Igbo elements keep finding Igbo useful idiots who they will dangle same carrot they dangled for the idiots that came before them and they keep falling for it without learning from the idiots before them that it never ends well for them.

As things currently stand, it seems Wike is equally eyeing the 2031 vice presidential slot of apc is Umahi is doing. Can Umahi outplay Wike? Because if he’s not able to, then it will end tears like it ended for useful idiots before him.

I have always supported otti,I quarrelled with Fergie in 2019 because of otti.i have always wanted pdp out of abia and otti was the man to do that.
I don't like edeoga but I wanted him to win to edge out pdp but MBA isn't doing badly and may defect..
Wike,akpabio or any defector can't be president or vice in apc as far as tinubu is there.it will always be core apc people being considered first.again,the SS will always be considered nationally first in the scheme of things before SE,you know this.its not about umahi or betrayal,it is how it is.besides,the SS are gradually aligning with apc yearly while se keeps rejecting apc so nothing for you guys.

Diligence:
Nigerians voted Mr Peter Obi, but INEC declared Tinubu winner, then everyone started mourning!

Moonlight tales from lala land of politically naive labour in vain communist dreamers.

Gerrard59:
The 2023 presidential election is less than seven months away. There are three contenders, even though Peter Obi happens to be largely a pretender in my opinion. Tinubu has chosen Shettima to be his VP candidate, Atiku chose Okowa and Peter chose Yusuf. However, of the trio, Tinubu’s choice is the most controversial as it is a Muslim-Muslim ticket, which is very insensitive to the 100M+ Christian populace. to be honest, this choice increases Tinubu’s probability amongst the Muslim community in Nigeria, especially in the north-west and north-east. This brings me to the topic: Peter Obi cannot win in those regions as they will not vote for a Christian when there are two alternatives where Muslims hold sway. In the north-west, Tinubu has a greater probability of winning there as his combination resonates with the populace. Kwankwaso has said he has no problems with the choice he made but with his platform. This means when push comes to shove, he will step down for Tinubu so that BAT’s chances of winning Kano with a wide margin come to fruition. In the north-east where Shettima and Atiku come from, Peter Obi’s odds further decline as indigenes there will rather their sons than someone else.

In the south-west, Tinubu is expected to win. Don’t allow anyone to deceive you that Tinubu will lose his backyard. Yorubas don’t involve religion during elections as they are roughly divided across three religions amidst themselves. Tinubu is seen as a God figure and when the chips are down, the vast majority will tilt towards voting for the apc. However, there exists a section of Yoruba voters especially the Christians who might not/will not vote for the apc or alternatively abstain from voting due to the insensitivity of Tinubu’s choice considering the wanton killings the Christian community has experienced in Nigeria within the last seven years. The massacre in the Catholic Church at Owo rings a bell. to these people, alternatives exist in Atiku and Peter but here is it: due to what I cannot describe as the rivalry between Igbos and Yorubas, the vast majority of these Yoruba Christians will not vote for an Igbo man. They will/might be shamed, mocked at or derided or whatever, but they won’t vote for Peter Obi and/or rather cast their votes for Atiku. On the other hand, Yoruba Muslims will never vote for an Igbo man, certainly not when an illustrious son of theirs has a strong likelihood of becoming the president.

In the north-central, Tinubu’s prospects are pretty significant as people, especially the Muslims in Kwara will vote for him. The same thing in Nasarrawa, Kogi, and Niger especially as the vast majority of people in IDP camps are Christians. Benue, for instance, has one of the highest concentrations of IDPs thereby making them unqualified to vote. His chances in Plateau and Benue are very low but apc’s structures there can deliver the minimum requirement of 25% to scale through. In the south-south and south-east, Tinubu’s chances are extremely low considering he never campaigned in the south-east and only campaigned in Delta and Cross River states in the south-south during the apc presidential primaries. Effectively, he believes he won’t win in those regions, and rightfully so. In fact, I predict that Tinubu will not campaign during the campaign season in any of the south-eastern states and only in Cross River considering the influence of Okowa in Delta. He might substitute Delta with Akwa Ibom but that is it, just two states in the south-south and none in the south-east. The south-south and south-east together are home to the vast majority of Christians in Nigeria. They will not be receptive to a Muslim-Muslim presidency.

Gerrard59:
With this analysis, wherever Tinubu’s chances are higher, Peter Obi’s are lower and vice-versa. However, the issue is: the people who would vote for Peter Obi are folks who have historically voted for the PDP and did vote for Atiku in 2019. This means he (Peter Obi) is not getting fresh voters from groups that did not vote for the PDP in 2015 and 2019. For instance, in 2019, almost a million people in Southern Kaduna voted for the PDP. In 2023, some of those people will vote for the Labour Party further reducing the votes PDP would have garnered. Let’s face it: the Labour Party does not have structures in the hinterlands of the country or die-hard/historical voters.

The same thing applies to the south-east and south-south. In these regions, Peter’s chances are higher but these are people that have consistently and historically voted for the PDP across all electoral positions. For instance, prior to the senatorial elections in 2019, Godswill akpabio defected to the apc and lost resoundingly to the PDP. Mind you, this was the same position he won with a landslide when he aspired for it in 2015 under the PDP. Why? The voters in his senatorial district voted against him mainly because he defected to the apc. These are core/die-hard PDP supporters. In 2023, these people will not vote for the apc due to its Muslim-Muslim combination but will divide their votes between the Labour Party and the PDP. The inclusion of Peter Obi in the presidential election does more harm than good to the PDP and his ethnic group, ditto ethnic minorities in general. I understand the pain of the south-east that the PDP chose a Fulani northerner as its candidate, but the reality is: an Igbo man cannot be Nigeria’s president in its present state. Kwankwaso echoed it, and I am saying that is the reality. The alternative is to have an Igbo man as the VP and Okowa does this beautifully, something Peter should have been the one had he remained in the PDP.


Again, a vote for Peter Obi and the Labour Party is a vote for Tinubu. Where-ever PDP could have competed greatly with the apc, Labour Party snatches those vital votes, and this affects PDP’s odds while increasing Tinubu’s. Even prominent apc’s supporters have said the same (screenshot attached). Peter Obi cannot win the presidential election, and his inclusion affects PDP’s chances and increases the prospects of having a Muslim-Muslim presidency.


In summary, Peter Gregory Obi should step down for Atiku Abubakar.

As notable in Nigerian politics, after the 2023 general elections, there have been defections by key opposition figures into the ruling All Progressives Congress (apc). Political analysts have often described this movement as realignment of interests.

The defectors, most of who hinged their decision on “irreconcilable crises” in their former parties, described the apc as the only platform committed to addressing the various challenges bedeviling the country.

Daily Trust on Sunday reports that defection of politicians from one party to another has become a tradition in Nigeria’s political landscape. Pundits said those who did so had various reasons.

Daily Trust on Sunday chronicles some of the prominent politicians, who have since found a new home in the ruling party.


Prof Ahmed Rufa’i Alkali and other NNPP chieftains

Perhaps, one of the most shocking of the defections was that of Professor Ahmed Rufa’i Alkali, the former national chairman of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP). He defected from the NNPP to the apc on October 30, 2023 with many other chieftains of the party.

The NNPP chieftains who defected alongside Alkali are the Kaduna State governorship candidate, Senator Sulaiman Hunkuyi; Benue State gvernorship candidate, Prof Bem Angwe; Yobe governorship candidate, Garba Umar; ex-Gombe Commissioner for Women Affairs, Binta Bello; Gombe senatorial candidate, Abigail Albashi; Kaduna State NNPP chairman, Nuhu Audu; ex-Kaduna Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chairman and the immediate past secretary of the NNPP (North West), Dr Isa Shika and Kaduna senatorial candidate, Mikaih Takwat.

Others are the Kaduna NNPP secretary, Major Yahaya Shinko (retd); Kaduna zonal chairman, Usman Danbaba; former Cross River State commissioner, Godwin Ettah; Gombe House of Reps candidate, Adamu Gargajiga; Benue senatorial candidate, Isaac Idu; Benue NNPP deputy chairman, Ihyom Asongu; ex-Benue Commissioner for Information, John Tine; Gombe House of Representatives candidate, Bukar Mailafiya; and ex-Gombe Commissioner for Community Development and Poverty Alleviation, Aishatu Hashidu, among others.

The development came two days after the South East chapter of the NNPP disowned the presidential candidate and leader of the party and former governor of Kano State, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso and settled for Dr Boniface Aniebonam, who founded the party 22 years ago.

The defectors were received at the apc national secretariat in Abuja by the party’s national chairman, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje and other members of the National Working Committee (NWC).

Speaking during the event, Prof Alkali said, “Mr Chairman, before you today are some of the leading members of the NNPP. As Your Excellency may be aware, most of us seated here participated actively in building and strengthening the NNPP political base as a formidable political movement that enabled the party to field candidates in virtually every electable position throughout the 36 states of the federation and Abuja.

“to us, the apc is more accommodating. We are even more convinced that there is a sense of urgency to address the political, economic and social issues that confront our country in order to bring greater good to the greater number of Nigerians, especially the poor, the underprivileged, the women, the youth and other vulnerable groups in our society. And we believe President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will see us through.”

Welcoming the defectors, Ganduje said, “It (NNPP) was a decent party before it was bought and polluted by the Kwankwasiyya Movement. But you have done well by retracing your steps to the right party, which is the apc. I promise to convey your congratulatory message to President Bola Tinubu and arrange for you to meet him face to face.”


Ramalan Yero

He is a former governor of Kaduna State. He joined the apc, five months after leaving the Peoples Democratic Party.

The former governor, who served the state from 2012 to 2015 on the platform of the PDP, joined the apc on February 11, 2024.

Explaining why he defected, Yero said, “Since the very day we announced our defection from the PDP, many political parties contacted us, including the ruling apc. We met and discussed since the very day we left our former party. Therefore, from today, being February 12, 2024, myself and representatives of other political associates have decided to join the apc. After our decision, we met with the state governor and had a discussion with him. We told him that we accepted to join the party based on the invitation we received.”


Senator Ifeanyi Ubah

Ubah, who represents Anambra South in the National Assembly, had in October 2023 defected from the Young Progressives Party (YPP) to the apc.

He informed the Senate of his defection in a letter read by Senate President Godswill akpabio during plenary. Ubah explained that his decision to join the ruling party was premised on some irreconcilable differences in the YPP.

He thereafter stormed the apc national secretariat in Abuja on October 11, 2023 with his supporters and Anambra State Executive Committee members, where he was received by the party’s national chairman, Dr Ganduje and other members of the National Working Committee (NWC).

It was gathered that the party has put in motion, a plan to make further inroads into the South East by taking over Anambra from the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) in the 2025 governorship election.

On October 6, Ganduje said President Tinubu approved a blueprint for political liberation of the South East and urged political bigwigs in the region to unite and key into it.

Addressing the gathering, Ganduje, who announced Ubah as the leader of the party in the state, said he would deliver the state to the apc in 2025.

He said, “This is the biggest fish we have caught since I became the chairman. Let’s see what is happening in the South East. With five states, three are controlled by different political parties. We have the PDP, Labour Party (LP) and APGA. The remaining two are apc states. Now, where is the sense of unity in a geopolitical zone with five states controlled by four political parties? Is this a sense of collective decision to participate in national politics? No.”

Some analysts said Senator Ubah would likely contest the party’s ticket to run against Governor Charles Soludo, who would be seeking a second term in 2025.


Salihu Tanko-Yakasai

He is a former governorship candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) in Kano State, but he dumped the party for the apc on August 30, 2023.

In a post on his verified X handle, Tanko-Yakasai stated that a former governor of Kano State and the current national chairman of the apc, Dr Ganduje, urged him to return to the party to help in “consolidating its gains.

The post reads, “The national chairman of the apc, Dr Abdullahi Umar Ganduje (OFR), has requested me to return to the party and continue to give my best in consolidating the gains of the party from top to bottom, which I have gladly accepted.”

Before joining the PRP, Yakasai had worked with Ganduje but fell out with him before the elections. He has since reunited with his former boss, now serving as one of the apc national chairman’s aides.


Senator Halliru Dauda Jika

He was the Bauchi State governorship candidate of the NNPP in the 2023 election.

After he received his apc membership card at the Kafin Madaki ward in Ganjuwa Local Government Area in the state, Jika said, “All apc members in Bauchi State will now come together, harmonise and strategise, fuse together as one solid entity ahead of the 2027 polls so that we will emerge victorious in Bauchi State. My return to the apc is marking the beginning of a new dawn in the party in Bauchi State.”


27 Rivers lawmakers, others defect

Twenty-seven members of the Rivers State House of Assembly on the platform of the PDP, had in December 2023 defected to the apc following the feud between the state governor, Sim Fubara and his predecessor, who is the current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.

The lawmakers cited division within the PDP as the primary reason for their defection to the apc. The affected lawmakers are said to be loyal to Wike.

Two officials of the PDP in Benue State also defected to the apc on January 3, 2024. They are Vincent Yandev Amaabai, a national ex-officio and Mbakorlumun James Chia, the state vice chairman for Benue North-West (Zone “B”) senatorial district.

The state publicity secretary of the PDP, Bemgba Iortyom, had in a statement noted, “PDP understands that migration of politicians of a particular kind from the opposition to the ruling party has become a common feature of our politics and sees nothing unusual about this current episode of it.”

Also, on December 4, 2023, a stalwart of the PDP and former contender for the House of Representatives, Babatunde Agunbiade, officially defected to the apc in Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State. He defected with scores of his supporters

In his address at the rally, Agunbiade cited the country’s best interest and his supporters’ yearnings as the primary motivation for his decision to switch allegiance.

A few days ago, scores of members of the PDP and the Zenith Labour Party in Ondo State defected to the apc. The official defection took place at the apc secretariat in Akure, the state capital on Wednesday.

The defectors are a former member of the state House of Assembly, Mr Tomide Akinribido; former House of Representatives candidate of the PDP, Mr Dare Aliu; Dr Felder Olatunji, Olu Falolu, Ayodele Ikumawoyi, Pastor Olatunde Felix, Chief Pius Akinrinmola, among others.

On December 5, 2023, scores of PDP members also defected to the apc in Kwara State.

The defectors, numbering about 200, were led by a former chairman of Ifelodun Local Government Area under the Governor Abdullfatah Ahmed administration, Muyiwa Oladipo (Kanu).

The Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Yakubu Danladi-Salihu and the apc chairman in Irepodun Local Government, Abdulhafeez Yakubu, received the defectors at the local government secretariat in Omu Aran.

In an earlier interview with Daily Trust on Sunday , a renowned political analyst, Professor Kamilu Sani Fage, said it’s always an easy decision for politicians in the country to switch political parties because most of them only see the political parties as a vehicle to achieve their personal ambitions.

He said it was difficult to identify political parties based on manifestos or ideologies; hence it is easier for politicians to move freely from an opposition party to a ruling party, and vice versa. He added that because of personal goals and lack of ideology, most politicians find it difficult to remain in the opposition.

Also commenting, a professor of Political Science, Tunde Adeniran, told Daily Trust on Sunday that the quest for materialism and lack of political ideology are some of the factors responsible for defection of opposition leaders and members to the ruling party after elections.

He said, “There is the rush at different levels and by various politicians to join the ruling party because of lack of ideology.

“It ordinarily should serve as a compass to guide members of the political class and their followers.

“In its absence, the majority of politicians act without integrity, principles or values-guided direction. They are, therefore, prompted by materialism in their actions.”

https://dailytrust.com/prominent-politicians-who-defected-to-apc-after-may-29/

A group called Ikenna Ukwa progressive group, has announced its defection to the All Progressives Congress (apc).

The group has thousands of members from different political parties in Abia but has formerly decided to pitch its tent with the All Progressives Congress apc. This was disclosed on Friday 16th February 2024 at Amaekpu Ohafia LGA Abia State.

While addressing the members, the Ohafia Local Government chairman of apc, Hon Emmanuel Nwosu said the party apc has come to stay adding that they will work together as a party to achieve a great aim.

Speaking at the event the party State Chairman Hon Golden Nwagbara stated that with the entrance of the group into the party it has made the party complete.

He also noted that receiving the number of person’s he did has really amazed him including (10) ten ward chairmen of PDP adding that a level playing ground will be given to the defected members who are now part of the apc.

Igwe Francis Okereke Steering Committee chairman of Ikenna Ukwa Progressive group said the group wants to participate in the governance of the state and the country. Igwe said there is emphasis on the need to join and participate at the federal level of the party apc, adding that the years spent in PDP has not given them such opportunity.

He said “We have been very very consistent with PDP, irrespective of everything that transpired”

“We cannot show much that we have benefited from the party” Igwe while stating the reason for the defection said the group is eager to contribute and participate in others to make the party stand.

He also stated that the party apc will give the group a level ground to air their views. One of the detectors Elder Micah while stating why he defected noted that he joined PDP in the year 1999 and has decided to join the rulling party as to turn things around for the good of society.

The Senior Legislative Aid to the Senate President Godswill akpabio, Ikenna Ukwa noted that he is already a member of the party as he has taken his supporters to join him in the party adding that as he is working at the Senate he will make sure his people are carried along.

Source: https://abntv.com.ng/news/thousands-dump-other-parties-in-ohafia-join-apc-photos-video/

Cc; lalasticlala, Mynd44, Seun, OAM4J

Senator Bassey Albert Akpan, the 2023 Governorship Candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) in Akwa Ibom State has officially defected to the All Progressives Congress (apc). The prominent politician brought along his entire campaign structure and all the members of the YPP, making a notable shift in the Akwa Ibom State political landscape.

The announcement was made during a ceremony where His Excellency, Distinguished Senator Godswill Obot akpabio, CON, the Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, alongside the apc State Chairman, Mr. Stephen Ntokekpo officially welcomed Senator Bassey Albert, CON, into the apc fold. The move adds a significant boost to the ruling party's influence in the state, as Senator Bassey Albert was not only the YPP's Governorship Candidate but also a prominent well-respected figure in Akwa Ibom politics, having served in the 9th Senate as a Senator representing Uyo Senatorial District.

Senator Godswill Obot akpabio, known for his strategic political maneuvers, expressed optimism about the strengthened position of the apc in Akwa Ibom State. The Senate President highlighted the importance of unity and collaboration to address the developmental challenges facing the state and the nation at large.

The apc State Chairman while receiving the Senator noted that all YPP members would be given equal rights when it comes to the Party affairs both at the state and national level.

This defection comes at a crucial time as political realignments continue to shape the Nigerian political landscape. The apc, known for its growing influence across the country, sees the inclusion of Senator Bassey Albert as a testament to its appeal and ability to attract key figures from other political parties.

Senator Bassey Albert Akpan, CON, the 2023 Governorship Candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) in Akwa Ibom State has officially defected to the All Progressives Congress (apc). The prominent politician brought along his entire campaign structure and all the members of the YPP, making a notable shift in the Akwa Ibom State political landscape.

The announcement was made during a ceremony where His Excellency, Distinguished Senator Godswill Obot akpabio, CON, the Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, alongside the apc State Chairman, Mr. Stephen Ntokekpo officially welcomed Senator Bassey Albert, CON, into the apc fold. The move adds a significant boost to the ruling party's influence in the State, as Senator Bassey Albert was not only the YPP's Governorship Candidate but also a prominent well-respected figure in Akwa Ibom politics, known by many as the Political Lionel Messi of Akwa Ibom Politics having served in the 8th & 9th Senate as a Senator representing Akwa Ibom North East (Uyo) Senatorial District, Commissioner for Finance as longest serving for almost 8 years and as Vice President (South South) First City Monument Bank among various rich experiences in the Banking Sector.

Senator Godswill Obot akpabio, known for his strategic political maneuvers, expressed optimism about the strengthened position of the apc in Akwa Ibom State. The Senate President highlighted the importance of unity and collaboration to address the developmental challenges facing the State and the nation at large. Senator akpabio was accompanied by 10 serving Senators and other critical stakeholders of apc to receive Senator Albert and his massive followership.

The apc State Chairman, Mr Stephen Ntokekpo while receiving the Senator and his political structure noted that all YPP members would be given equal rights and privileges when it comes to the Party affairs both at the State and national levels.

This defection comes at a crucial time as political realignments continue to shape the Nigerian political landscape. The apc, known for its growing influence across the country, sees the inclusion of Senator Bassey Albert as a testament to its appeal and ability to attract key figures from other political parties into its fold . More than 500 core politicians in Akwa Ibom State not limited to Akparawa Ephraim Inyang-eyen, Rt Hon Usenobong akpabio, Rt Hon Emmanuel Ekon defected with Senator Bassey Albert Akpan from YPP to apc at the event.

izzou:
I agree with BlueRayDick that Itsrm is just emotional about it.

2 years is a whole lot of time to change the narratives of any state politics.

Imo and Ebonyi are poor examples, because the governors then (Rochas and Umahi) defected, having a lot of time to change all unchangeables.

If Tinubu had shown his cards in 2017, Ambode won't have lost, or at least, easily. Tinubu waited till it was late; a kind of wisdom Wike does not have

I can't say if Fubara will be relevant then, but saying only death will make Wike irrelevant is funny.

2 years? Lol

Maybe Obi fit dey apc then sef.

Someone said the three most influential politicians in Nigeria now are Tinubu, akpabio and Wike.

Just like you have Guardiola in football, Dangote in Business, we have Wike in politics.

Some people are just brilliant at certain things.

He now effectively controls apc and PDP in the state.

Again, only death can stop him. Nothing about emotions. It's reality.

The faceoff between governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara, and his immediate-predecessor and benefactor, Nyesom Wike, adds to a seeming political culture of intense friction between hitherto godfather and their sons in Nigeria since 1999.

This trend, which has transcended almost all the geo-political regions of the country, has remained constant in every constitutionally-mandated power transition season since the return to democracy.

While the Rivers scenario, reputed as the first and fastest falling out between successor and predecessor, indications have emerged that some other states are on the verge of having similar political friction.

Recall that stakeholders had strongly urged President Bola Tinubu to intervene in the Fubara/Wike rift spite of the intra-party nature of the tussle. While Wike, a serving minister, and Fubara are of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) extraction, Tinubu is of the All Progressives Congress (apc).

However, the intervention of the president, by way of eight directives signed by Fubara and Wike, has been criticised as being void in light of the legal and constitutional implications, one of which is the status of the 27 lawmakers who defected from the PDP to the apc.

Nevertheless, checks by LEADERSHIP Sunday revealed that in most of the major frictions (with few exceptions), which border on control of political structure in the state serving governors prevailed, in spite of interventions by the presidency, party and other stakeholders.

While incumbents cite the overbearing influence of their predecessors, the godfathers cite disloyalty of their godsons.


Wamakko/Tambuwal (Sokoto)

In 2015, former governor, Aliyu Wamakko, now senator, supported then House of Representatives speaker, Hon Aminu Tambuwal, to be governor of Sokoto State. They had both dumped the ruling PDP for the new formed apc which was sweeping through the polity.

However, after a bit of a battle with his predecessor, the former speaker returned to the PDP. While Tambuwal won the 2019 election by a slim margin to serve a second term, his party, the PDP lost the governorship election in 2023, allowing Wamakko to retain control of the state.

Interestingly, Wamakko had also fought his predecessor, Attahiru Bafarawa for the political structure of the state.


akpabio vs Udom (Akwa Ibom)

Also in 2015, then governor and now senate president, Godswill akpabio, solely picked Udom Emmanuel, his then commissioner, as his successor in Akwa Ibom State. But the political romance collapsed a little over a year later, forcing akpabio to leave the PDP for the apc.

Udom won his re-election in 2019 and successfully transferred power to his preferred successor in 2023.

While akpabio continued to enjoy national positions, as minister and senate president, he has not been able to regain control of the state.


Obi vs Obiano (Anambra)

Former governor of Anambra State, Peter Obi also had a falling out with his successor, Willie Obiano, whom he supported to win office in 2014. They were both in the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).

However, their political alliance soon failed. Obi left APGA and joined the PDP.

During the 2017 election, Obi produced the PDP candidate, Oseloka Obaze, who could not stop Obiano’s quest for a second term in office.


The battle of the Orjis (Abia)

In 2007, then governor, Orji Uzor Kalu ensured that Theodore Orji succeeded him even though the latter was detained in prison over alleged financial crimes. That was a first in Nigeria’s political history.

But it showed how powerful Kalu was at the time, being the presidential candidate of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), which he formed at the time.

Theodore Orji was Chief of Staff to Kalu. But the arrangement eventually collapsed as Orji left the PPA for the PDP in 2010. He contested and won a second term.


Nnamani vs Chime (Enugu)

Just like in Abia, the 2007 governorship election produced Barr Sullivan Chime, who was backed by then governor, Dr Chimaroke Nnamani, the influential leader of the Ebeano political dynasty.

Chime was the attorney-general and commissioner for Justice in Enugu State at the time.

Against most speculations, Nnamani settled for a quiet and unassuming Chime. However, months after he became governor, he banned the Ebeano group, starting off a political battle which saw his predecessor failing to retain his senatorial mandate and almost being sent on exile from the state.

Chime secured his second term and installed Rt Hon Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi as his successor in 2015 who also handed over power to the incumbent Emeka Mbah. Interestingly, Nnamani had also fought off his political godfather, Senator Jim Nwobodo in the state.


Kwankwaso vs Ganduje (Kano)

Perhaps the most intense of such battles was between Rabiu Kwankwaso and Umar Ganduje. They were a team so formidable that it seemed one could win the governorship election without the other. It was such that after they, as governor (Kwankwaso) and deputy (Ganduje), could not secure a second term in 2003 cycle, Kwankwaso, upon being appointed as the minister of Defence by Olusegun Obasanjo, took Ganduje along to Abuja.

In 2011, Kwankwaso sought a second term with Ganduje as his deputy and won. By 2015, after they had dumped the PDP for the apc, it seemed convenient for Kwankwaso to hand over power to Ganduje. But months after Ganduje, the romance broke down, leading to immense political casualties, especially, the former Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido, a Kwankwaso ally, losing his throne.

The battle was so fierce that not even the intervention of former President Muhammadu Buhari could reconcile them. Ganduje narrowly won his reelection bid in 2019, but was unable to ensure his party retained power in 2023. Kwankwaso, having consolidated in the NNPP, got his pound of flesh by ensuring his party won the governorship poll, even though the election outcome is in dispute at the court.

The rivalry between Kwankwaso and Ganduje has since spilled into Tinubu’s villa as the latter, sensing the former’s renewed political romance with the president, pulled a masterstroke to emerge the apc national chairman, hence sealing any hopes of a Tinubu/Kwankwaso political deal. However, Kwankwaso is one of the 1999 set of governors to produce his successor in two election cycles.


Oshiomhole vs Obaseki (Edo)

Governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole, in 2018, campaigned and fought a tough battle for the incumbent, Godwin Obaseki, to succeed him.

Obaseki was Oshiomhole’s ace, having served as the chairman of the Edo State Economic Team.

But after the relationship broke down, the battle between the two was fierce, consuming members of the State House of Assembly.

The peak of the battle was when Oshiomhole, as apc national chairman, leveraged his influence to disqualify Obaseki during the apc primaries. Obaseki fired back by initiating Oshiomhole’s suspension at the ward level. Obaseki however moved to the PDP and won re-election.


Imoke vs Ayade (Cross River)

In 2015, former Governor Liyel Imoke supported then Senator Ben Ayade to emerge governor. Not long after, Ayade, in trying to push his influence within the party, was resisted by forces loyal to Imoke.

Ayade eventually left the PDP and joined the apc. It is worthy to note that Imoke had also fought his predecessor, Donald Duke shortly after he took over, forcing the latter to abandon politics in the state for a long while.


Akume, Suswan, Ortom saga (Benue)

The serving secretary to the government of the federation, Senator George Akume, ensured that Senator Gabriel Suswam became his successor in 2007.

As the pattern goes, they both clashed, ultimately leading to Akume’s exit from the PDP to the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN). Although Suswam secured his second term in 2011, Akume prevailed in 2015 when he supported Samuel Ortom to emerge governor on the platform of the apc.

Like in the case of Suswam, Ortom, months after, fell out with Akume and later dumped the apc for the PDP where he had served as a national officer before moving to the apc.

Akume, however, made another rebound in 2023 by yet again helping to produce the incumbent governor, Hyacinth Alia. Hence, he is one of the few governors of the 1999 set that has produced three governors and stopped incumbents from producing their successors.


Sheriff vs Shettima (Borno)

Former governor of Borno State, Senator Ali Modu Sheriff supported current vice president, Senator Kashim Shettima to become governor in 2011.

Shettima had served as commissioner for local government and later as finance commissioner in the Sheriff’s administration. But not long after the latter became governor he fell out with his predecessor. The rivalry was so intense that Sheriff left the apc and joined the PDP. But Shettima was able to serve out his constitutionally guaranteed two terms and produced his successor, incumbent governor, Babagana Zulum.


Egwu v Elechi (Ebonyi)

At the end of his tenure as governor, Senator Sam Egwu picked Martins Elechi as his successor and he followed through with it. But the political arrangement was not to last long as a cold war soon emerged between them which saw the shrinking of Egwu’s influence to just his senatorial district where he was able to win elections. Egwu however got his pound of flesh in 2015 when he teamed up with other stakeholders to stop Elechi from producing his successor. The current minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi, who became the beneficiary of the tussle, would later clash with Egwu and produce his successor and incumbent governor, Francis Nwifuru.


Selfish Politics Behind Governors, Predecessors’ Fight – CSOs

Meanwhile, civil society organisations (CSOs) have attributed selfish politics as being the motivating factor behind the culture of crisis between governors and their predecessors.

According to the CSOs, the impact of the crisis between the governors and their predecessors have been so vicious to the states and the society at large adding that such crises impede development.

to this end, CSOs have called on Nigerians to rise up against such politics adding that they must take over the polity and decide who governs them.

The CSOs who spoke with LEADERSHIP Sunday are Transparency International (TI), the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), and the Transition Monitoring Group (TMG).

Speaking through their leader, Awwal Musa Rafsanjani, the CSOs said if the politicians understand and appreciate the fact that democracy is about the people, good governance and transparent leadership they will not support candidates while having an ulterior motive.

“If Nigerians begin to work against any politician that supports candidates with ulterior motives, Nigeria will move forward.

“These crises are happening because of commercialisation of politics. The governors who dictate the people that come to power think they can still control how the resources of the states are spent,” the CSOs said, adding that the desperation to loot the state resources is the reason the governors and their predecessors are fighting.

“The outgoing governors feel it must continue the way they were doing it before. Once the new person comes, they want to continue.

“Also, they are fighting because of the political arrangement they made in the past, not based on a political manifesto. These agreements are not always for the interest of the people,” Rafsanjani said.

According to him, there is no way someone will run the government rather than the person elected, adding that such differences always bring fight.

“If we understand that democracy is about the people, they will be fighting because they will know that in another election, they will all be voted out.

“The outgoing governors did not allow a transparent process but they put the people they will manipulate. This is the reason for the continued fight,” the CSOs added.

https://leadership.ng/24-years-of-democracy-governors-predecessors-continue-to-clash/

Nlfpmod

wirinet:


What party is Senator Uba today?

I don't even know much about the guy. But the sirpharrell himself just categorically said the guy defected on the floor of the house to apc.
So we should ask him what's restraining akpabio from declaring his seat vacant if not lack of respect for our laws.

adioolayi:


I am not a lawyer...all I know is that legislature cannot interpret the law!

Senator Ifeanyi Uba defected from YPP to apc, who has declared his seat vacant You know why he is still having it free...it's simply because no one has taken him to court!

You talked about case law...a criminal that was arrested for an obvious crime...why do you think he or she will still need to be tried before whatever judgement is delivered

What I am saying is, the Speaker cannot just declare their seats vacant, without relying on any court pronouncements specifically on these lawmakers defection.

What if after trials, the court pronounce that their deflection is constitutional based on whatever evidence they present to the court

You know why the Speaker made that "illegal" pronouncements first?...they want them to be the ones to file court process on it

Same way you are also saying, they will be the one to go to court to vacate the pronouncement....No...The PDP should go to court first, to declare their seats vacant and then the speaker can act!

why are you people so stupid? The law gives the speaker the eight to declear their seats vacant, if they are not happy with it then they should go to court.
Today akpabio declared 2 seats of the senators vacant, is it the court that deleared vacant?
The constitution has given the power to the senate president, speaker of reps, speaker of state assembly the right to declear their seats vacant and it has already been done.

It was obvious that Fubara would not be able to survive the crisis. He has the support of the people no doubt, but he doesn't have the support of the critical machinery of government that would enable him function or survive as Governor.

The most critical is the House of Assembly. Having only 4 out of 31 members is an indication that he wasn't prepared for the fight. With 27 members of the House, the Chief Clerk and probably the Chief Judge of the state on his side, Wike has the constitutional means required to impeach the Governor. The only thing restraining him is because the President asked him to stop.

The Governor has tried to counter this disadvantage by all manners of bravado and court cases. But all these will only amount to temporary relief. You can not rely on exparte orders forever as they have expiration dates. It is inevitable that the group of 27 will eventually regain control of the Assembly. Only a deluded person will not realise this.

In that meeting in Aso Rock, there were several senior advocates present and some of them are known supporters of the Governor. I know at least two of them. I believe before the agreement was reached that the Governor should re-present the budget, it must have been agreed that the presentation made before the group of 4 was null and void as the Assembly was not properly constituted. How?

The constitution provides that the quorum for the legislature to sit is one third of the members. In the case of Rivers State, you need at least 11 members before the House can sit. Forget all those lawyers giving contrary opinions on TV that the provision would be one third of the 4, assuming that 27 seats are now vacant. These lawyers always argue with emotions and not the law. Are they not the ones that argued that 25% in Abuja was compulsory?

In the same Rivers State, after the 2015 elections, the Appeal court canceled most of the elctions of the House of Assembly members and ordered for rerun elections in those constituencies. It was only 8 0r 9 constituencies that were not affected then. The remaining members of the Assembly did not sit any day until the rerun elections were concluded because they couldn't form a quorum to sit.

So the group of 4 can not sit if indeed thay are the only members left in the House. If there is any urgent matter of the state that require the approval of the Assembly, the Governor will write to the National Assembly to temporarily take over the duties of the State Assembly. The presentation of the budget will not fall into this category because the Governor still had up till June 30th 2024 to get approval for appropriation.

Then how did the group of 27 lose their seats? Our constitution does not say that once a member defects, he automatically lose his seat. It is not automatic as some lawyers are deceiving gullible people about. Otherwise, Senator Ifeanyi Uba should have automatically lost his seat some weeks ago when he defected from YPP to apc. There is a process to be followed.

The law states that it is the speaker or presiding officer that will declare such seats vacant. Note that it was only yesterday that Dave Umahi's seat in the senate was declared vacant by the Senate President four months after he took up a ministerial appointment. If that seat is not declared vacant by akpabio, INEC can not conduct any bye election to fill the vacancy.

Now who decalred the seats of the 27 vacant? If it is Edison Ehie that declared the seats of the 27 vacant, did the members write to him that they have defected to another party? The ONLY evidence that shows that a member have defected is the letter written by that member to the Speaker that he has defected. The speaker would now proceed to read the letter in plenary. Since Edison Ehie says he is the speaker, did those members write any letter to him or did he read any letter in plenary before declaring those seats vacant? Every knowledgeable person knows that that declaration is as as amusing as his self declaration that he is now Speaker after he was suspended.

I have earlier stated that the group of 4 can not even sit. Assuming that the constitutional provision of one third will be interpreted to mean one third of the remaining members, the House has to sit first before any seat can be declared vacant. So at the time that the house purportedly sat, no seat was declared vacant yet. So the constitutional provision of quorum will be one third of the whole house.

The governor even going to present the budget before an illegal or improperly constituted House of Assembly was a fatal error of judgement just like the demolition of the House of Assembly complex. I believe that it was these foolhardy actions that riled the President and the legal luminaries in that meeting must have let the Governor know the implications of such actions. No wonder the terms of agreements were lopsided against him.

casualobserver:

apc is not a party of stupid people, don’t allow hate to cloud your judgement. You don’t make history as the 1st party to overthrow a sitting party or the 1st party to defeat the opposition despite getting less than half the total votes of the opposition by being unstrategic. Even Segun Sowunmi gave his props to apc as an party on national TV, the PDP man from Kogi who defected (Awoniyi) remarked after he got to apc , that he was in awe at the level of planning and strategy of the apc. If apc behaved like Lp or PDP they would have lost, the only reason they won is because like it or not they are the only party in Nigeria where members puts party 1st. You as a party man may not like the decision but members will fall behind decisions. That’s why they keep slaying the opposition. Such a party will never present Wike as VP when others have toiled for years, that’s how things are done in PDP but that’s not how things are done in apc, that why apc is waxing stronger and PDP is in tatters. apc is not the kind of party that will take a new comer and give him a slot over those who had been toiling for the party. That’s the difference between apc and PDP.


I am a fan of Wike but he ain’t getting no VP in apc…he never was! As it is many apc members are getting tired of his antics.

WIke as and is never an option as Vice President under apc. It is either Umahi or akpabio…most likely Umahi and no,one says the northerner will be Shettima.

So apc come to build party and not build the nation. The nation is going down and u re busy talking about party. Why can't they used the same strategy to develop this country.

casualobserver:

apc is not a party of stupid people, don’t allow hate to cloud your judgement. You don’t make history as the 1st party to overthrow a sitting party or the 1st party to defeat the opposition despite getting less than half the total votes of the opposition by being unstrategic. Even Segun Sowunmi gave his props to apc as an party on national TV, the PDP man from Kogi who defected (Awoniyi) remarked after he got to apc , that he was in awe at the level of planning and strategy of the apc. If apc behaved like Lp or PDP they would have lost, the only reason they won is because like it or not they are the only party in Nigeria where members puts party 1st. You as a party man may not like the decision but members will fall behind decisions. That’s why they keep slaying the opposition. Such a party will never present Wike as VP when others have toiled for years, that’s how things are done in PDP but that’s not how things are done in apc, that why apc is waxing stronger and PDP is in tatters. apc is not the kind of party that will take a new comer and give him a slot over those who had been toiling for the party. That’s the difference between apc and PDP.


I am a fan of Wike but he ain’t getting no VP in apc…he never was! As it is many apc members are getting tired of his antics.

WIke as and is never an option as Vice President under apc. It is either Umahi or akpabio…most likely Umahi and no,one says the northerner will be Shettima.

Everything you stated above are the reasons Nigeria can never move forward. Can you please tell those master strategists to at least strategize on how to move the country forward?
I am so tired of this their politics of stagnation whereby all they care is winning without delivering the essence of winning.

Bigkoko:
Awon Shettima/Wike 2031 in the mud. Trust Ronus at your own peril!

Wike has been used and dumped, not bad though, but tricked into foolishly asking his loyal boys to port without thinking of the consequences is the height of treachery. Serve him right!

apc is not a party of stupid people, don’t allow hate to cloud your judgement. You don’t make history as the 1st party to overthrow a sitting party or the 1st party to defeat the opposition despite getting less than half the total votes of the opposition by being unstrategic. Even Segun Sowunmi gave his props to apc as an party on national TV, the PDP man from Kogi who defected (Awoniyi) remarked after he got to apc , that he was in awe at the level of planning and strategy of the apc. If apc behaved like Lp or PDP they would have lost, the only reason they won is because like it or not they are the only party in Nigeria where members puts party 1st. You as a party man may not like the decision but members will fall behind decisions. That’s why they keep slaying the opposition. Such a party will never present Wike as VP when others have toiled for years, that’s how things are done in PDP but that’s not how things are done in apc, that why apc is waxing stronger and PDP is in tatters. apc is not the kind of party that will take a new comer and give him a slot over those who had been toiling for the party. That’s the difference between apc and PDP.


I am a fan of Wike but he ain’t getting no VP in apc…he never was! As it is many apc members are getting tired of his antics.

WIke as and is never an option as Vice President under apc. It is either Umahi or akpabio…most likely Umahi and no,one says the northerner will be Shettima.

SyrusdeHansome:
Sim is dealing with Wike woto woto. I just pity those 27 legislators that defected because their political career may be over. Those who deceived them into defection should come and ask what happened in Akwa Ibom when akpabio defected. The house members that defected with him all lost their sits and up till now they`ve not been able to make a come back. Let nairaland apc members who don`t know south south politics keep making noise. They keep making noise of federal might but the question is if it`s that easy for the president to rubbish a governor why couldn`t OBJ rubbish Tinubu, Obong Victor Attah nd recently why couldn`t Buhari and akpabio rubbish Udom?

Please don't say what you don't know. In Akwaibom state, did any lawmaker decamp to apc with akpabio? Or it was just an internal fracas? Mind you the commissioners and others who decamped with akpabio are now big guys, bigger appointments, captains of industries than just mere state commissioner. It pays to be loyal bro!!

SyrusdeHansome:
Sim is dealing with Wike woto woto. I just pity those 27 legislators that defected because their political career may be over. Those who deceived them into defection should come and ask what happened in Akwa Ibom when akpabio defected. The house members that defected with him all lost their sits and up till now they`ve not been able to make a come back. Let nairaland apc members who don`t know south south politics keep making noise. They keep making noise of federal might but the question is if it`s that easy for the president to rubbish a governor why couldn`t OBJ rubbish Tinubu, Obong Victor Attah nd recently why couldn`t Buhari and akpabio rubbish Udom?

You're funny at less by an half, firstly the speaker doesn't have any right to declare any office vacant expect the orders come from the Court. Every defection has a reason and it's the court that will determine whether it's reasonable to defect with seat or not.
However, you take about what happened in Akwa-Ibom when those seat were declared vacants. Firstly, let me correct an impression that Onofiok Akpan Luke didn't because they detected rather it was the court judgment that empowered him to do that. I vividly recalled that the high court judgment comes by Wednesday, the clerk got the proceeding on Thursday and same day emergency plenary was held and their offices were declared vacants before they can get stay on execution on Friday at court of Appeal to enable them fill appeal.
Secondly, you're challenging the federal might for OBJ not to succeed in fighting Tinubu... Do even care to know who was before 1999 election and who were the beneficiary of the 1999 the said election. It was the NADECO members. Let leave Tinubu out, what happened to others? You wanna compare Tinubu that made himself a governor to SIM who was only spoon-fed to become one.

Another misconception of you is to think that Attah has personal issue with Obj, Attah was the chairman Niger Delta Governor Forum, a forum that fight for resource control esp for abolishment of upshore and onshore oil dicotomy. It more like committing a fallacy of thinking that Tinubu is fight Niger forgetting that it's ECOWAS decision and he needs to spearhead it as the chairman of forum.
Lastly, you mentioned udom and Buhari, do you think Buhari was interested in who win or loss in any election?
I think though I might be wrong that what happened was that someone was trying to impress the party bigwig in the national not Buhari to deliver the state for apc which might be possible but the sabotage makes it difficult.

Key Note. Onofiok didn't declare those offices vacant for defecting rather it was the high court judgment that empowered him to do so.

SyrusdeHansome:
Sim is dealing with Wike woto woto. I just pity those 27 legislators that defected because their political career may be over. Those who deceived them into defection should come and ask what happened in Akwa Ibom when akpabio defected. The house members that defected with him all lost their sits and up till now they`ve not been able to make a come back. Let nairaland apc members who don`t know south south politics keep making noise. They keep making noise of federal might but the question is if it`s that easy for the president to rubbish a governor why couldn`t OBJ rubbish Tinubu, Obong Victor Attah nd recently why couldn`t Buhari and akpabio rubbish Udom?

Thank you for the insight.

SyrusdeHansome:
Sim is dealing with Wike woto woto. I just pity those 27 legislators that defected because their political career may be over. Those who deceived them into defection should come and ask what happened in Akwa Ibom when akpabio defected. The house members that defected with him all lost their sits and up till now they`ve not been able to make a come back. Let nairaland apc members who don`t know south south politics keep making noise. They keep making noise of federal might but the question is if it`s that easy for the president to rubbish a governor why couldn`t OBJ rubbish Tinubu, Obong Victor Attah nd recently why couldn`t Buhari and akpabio rubbish Udom?

Na this mouth go kill una. Which one is south-south politics? When things go south now, Na Tinubu you people go still blame. You people only hated Wike cos he won Rivers vote for Tinubu forgetting his infrastructural achievements while he was the governor.

SyrusdeHansome:
Sim is dealing with Wike woto woto. I just pity those 27 legislators that defected because their political career may be over. Those who deceived them into defection should come and ask what happened in Akwa Ibom when akpabio defected. The house members that defected with him all lost their sits and up till now they`ve not been able to make a come back. Let nairaland apc members who don`t know south south politics keep making noise. They keep making noise of federal might but the question is if it`s that easy for the president to rubbish a governor why couldn`t OBJ rubbish Tinubu, Obong Victor Attah nd recently why couldn`t Buhari and akpabio rubbish Udom?

Once Wike starts having upper hand, You will start playing your victim mentality card again.

Watch out!!!!

SyrusdeHansome:
Sim is dealing with Wike woto woto. I just pity those 27 legislators that defected because their political career may be over. Those who deceived them into defection should come and ask what happened in Akwa Ibom when akpabio defected. The house members that defected with him all lost their sits and up till now they`ve been able to make a come back. Let nairaland apc members who don`t know south south politics keep making noise.

Let Wike be paying them from out of pocket for the next 4 years , lets see how long he can go.

Sim is dealing with Wike woto woto. I just pity those 27 legislators that defected because their political career may be over. Those who deceived them into defection should come and ask what happened in Akwa Ibom when akpabio defected. The house members that defected with him all lost their sits and up till now they`ve not been able to make a come back. Let nairaland apc members who don`t know south south politics keep making noise. They keep making noise of federal might but the question is if it`s that easy for the president to rubbish a governor why couldn`t OBJ rubbish Tinubu, Obong Victor Attah nd recently why couldn`t Buhari and akpabio rubbish Udom?

Falana: It’s Dangerous for Judiciary to Sanction 165,000 Voters for Electoral Officers’ Mistakes

•Seeks review of judgements sacking three opposition governors

•PDP asks CJN to probe ruling party’s claim of controlling judiciary

•Atiku: apc’s ‘snatch, grab, run’ agenda inimical to democracy

Renowned lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Mr. Femi Falana, yesterday, described as a dangerous judicial trend the recent tendency by the courts to sanction voters and deprive them of their rights to elect leaders of their choice due to the mistakes of some electoral officers.

Falana made the assertion in a television programme. He called for a review of some recent judgements delivered by the Court of Appeal, which sacked two governors of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Zamfara and Plateau states, and a New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) governor in Kano State.

Similarly PDP, yesterday, called on the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, to defend the integrity of the judiciary by setting up a judicial inquest into alleged public boasting by leaders of the ruling apc that the party had persons in the judiciary, particularly at the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, who would do their bidding on election cases before the courts.

Still on the mounting reservations over recent judicial pronouncements, former Vice President and PDP presidential candidate in the last general election, Atiku Abubakar, said apc’s “snatch, grab and run” agenda was inimical to democracy.

But the federal government condemned PDP and Atiku’s spokesman for unfairly impugning the integrity of the judiciary by alleging partisanship against it in the wake of the judicial setbacks suffered by PDP governors in Plateau, Zamfara and Nasarawa states.

Nonetheless, the Court of Appeal in Abuja dismissed an appeal filed by Titus Uba of PDP against the election of apc’s Reverend Father Hyacinth Alia as Governor of Benue State and affirmed the governor as validly elected.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Abba Yusuf (Kano), Dauda Lawal (Zamfara), and Caleb Mutfwang (Plateau) as duly elected governors of their respective states in the March 2023 governorship elections.

But the Court of Appeal, in separate judgements, sacked the governors, who are all members of the opposition PDP, except the Kano State governor, who belongs to NNPP, also an opposition party.

In Kano, for instance, the Court of Appeal declared the apc governorship candidate, Nasir Gawuna, winner of the poll. It ruled that the poll in Zamfara State was inconclusive and ordered INEC to conduct a fresh election in three local government areas of the state, where apc is believed to be strong.

In yet another judgement, the appellate court ordered INEC to issue a Certificate of Return to apc’s Nentawe Goshwe in Plateau State.

However, speaking during an interview on national television, Falana said, “If you look at what happened in Lagos, it is different from what happened in Plateau. You are being told in Plateau that there was a judgement of the High Court to the effect that primaries have to be conducted. The judgement, as usual, was dishonoured and disobeyed and the election went on.

“It is different from Kano, where you are being told that voters can be punished. It is a very dangerous judicial policy to sanction voters for the mistake of electoral officers.

“We are being told that 165,000 votes are wasted, they are invalid because some electoral officers committed an error by not stamping them. How does that affect the validity of the election?

“I do hope that this time around, the Supreme Court will resolve these needless controversies surrounding the non-stamping of ballot papers by INEC officials, who have not been recommended for any sanction. This is why these judgements will have to be reviewed.”

Falana had aired a similar view days back, when he argued, “Nigeria cannot conduct credible elections without amending the relevant provisions of the constitution and Electoral Act to provide for the appointment of INEC members by advertisement, deployment of technology for accreditation of voters and transmission of election results from polling units to the central server of INEC.”

Speaking on “Updating Nigeria’s Electoral Reforms” at the Retreat of the Joint Committee on Electoral Matters, supported by Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre in Lagos, Falana said, “Once the electoral process is fully technologised the proof of election petitions will be based on the BVAS reports and uploaded results.

“The onus of proof of conduct of credible elections should shift to INEC and winners of elections. The question of dumping election materials will not arise, as they would be produced and certified by INEC.

“Democracy cannot be consolidated, where the masses are asked to tighten their belts while elected public officers are paying themselves jumbo salaries and allowances.”

According to him, “Since democracy is under threat due to mass poverty, the political system must address the welfare and security of the people.”

In a similar vein, PDP called for a review of the election judgements, especially the Court of Appeal judgement on the Plateau State governorship poll. National Publicity Secretary of PDP, Debo Olohunagba, said the appeal court judgement was skewed against the party in favour of apc.


PDP Advises CJN to Probe apc’s Claim to Judiciary Control

PDP called on the CJN to defend the integrity of the judiciary by setting up a judicial panel of inquiry to probe the open boasting by apc leaders that the party had persons in the judiciary, particularly at the appeal court and Supreme Court, who would do their bidding on election cases before the courts.

In a statement by PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, the party said Nigerians were appalled by such boastings, as also contained in a viral video by an apc leader, Hon. Yusuf Gagdi, a member of the House of Representatives from Plateau State, wherein he said, “We have gone to appeal court and the final destination is the Supreme Court and we will meet there. That is where we will know whom they know and they will know whom we know.”

According to Ologunagba, “The above statement by Hon. Gagdi further confirms the suspicion in the public domain that the apc has set up a special team comprising two former governors of the apc, who are also serving cabinet ministers, and a prominent apc leader from the North-east zone with the mandate to ensure the inducement of certain judicial officers to deliver judgements against the PDP, as being witnessed in the series of bias judgements by the Plateau State Election Appeal Court Panel.

“This statement by Hon. Gagdi also lends credence to allegations that a former governor of the apc reportedly induced members of the Plateau State Election Appeal Court Panel with the sum of $5 million to deliver a bias judgement against Governor Caleb Mutfwang’s victory at the poll contrary to the position of the law on nomination of candidates and already established pronouncement of the Supreme Court that a political party cannot interfere in the internal affairs of another Party.”

Ologunagba said more worrisome was that the public claim by apc that it had persons, even at the Supreme Court, had directly put the integrity and honour of the highest temple of ;ustice in the country at stake.

The PDP spokesman said, “The loss of public confidence being generated by this claim has the capacity to push Nigerians to resort to self-help, which is a recipe for anarchy, chaos and breakdown of law and order in our country.

“What Nigerians expect at this moment is for the judiciary to come clean on these grave allegations as well as uphold the primacy of pronouncements by the Supreme Court in the dispensation of justice on election matters.”


Atiku: apc’s ‘Snatch, Grab, Run’ Agenda Inimical to Democracy

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar said apc’s “snatch, grab and run” agenda towards mandates belonging to the opposition parties was inimical to democracy

In a statement by his media aide, Paul Ibe, Atiku said the ideal notion of democracy did not just reside in a representative government, but was essentially rooted in the plurality of ideas.

He said for a system to be seen as truly democratic, it must necessarily accommodate opposition and opposing views.

“Sadly and suddenly,” the statement said, “we have seen a trend whereby the range of opposition engagement continues to be narrowed by the ruling party in Nigeria. Either through the electoral process, where opposition parties are rigged out with brazen impunity, or during the post-election court processes, where the judiciary is conspicuously doing the biddings of the ruling All Progressives Congress (apc), it has become increasingly apparent that the democracy in Nigeria is in a state of ill-health.

“It gets more curious that all the states, where the courts have made controversial declarations, are states being controlled by the opposition political parties. From Nasarawa, Kano, Zamfara and now to Plateau State, where we are witnessing a situation in which what the ruling party missed out on Election Day are being delivered to them through the courts.”

Atiku explained that those were ominous signs that threatened not just faith in the electoral and judicial systems, but also evinced that democracy was compromised.

He stated, “It is also crystal clear that the ruling party will not desist from this inglorious ideology of ‘snatch, grab and run away with power.’

“It is even more worrisome that what is playing out now in the Plateau governorship election petition is a confirmation of the threat echoed by an apc lawmaker in a viral video that the ruling party will compromise the judicial process to ensure its ultimate victory in the courts.

“It, therefore, means that the times we are in are, indeed, ominous, and the journey ahead in rescuing our democracy from these buccaneering power grabbers is a long one. It also means that every man and woman of good conscience should come together for this common patriotic purpose.

“But we are not surprised by what is going on. In Lagos State, where Tinubu holds sway as godfather, opposition became an anathema. Everyone, including judges, was forced to join his party.

“The few opposition members who managed to get elected were beaten to submission, including at the Lagos State House of Assembly, where the sole PDP member, back in 2018, was suspended and arrested for gun running, but mysteriously had the charges dropped immediately after he defected to the apc.”

Corroborating his point, Atiku stressed, “The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) withdrew a N135bn lawsuit it had instituted against an opposition senator from Anambra State less than 24 hours after he defected to the ruling party. These are the crude methods that Bola Tinubu has employed in order to reduce the ranks of the opposition and consolidate his hold on power.

“Is it not mysterious that it was the same panel that sat and heard all the election petition cases from Plateau State before the Court of Appeal? How is it that in election cases where the PDP came first and the apc came second, the court ordered that the apc be declared winner while in elections where the PDP came first and Labour Party came second, the courts ordered a rerun in order to give the apc a chance of victory?”

The former vice president maintained, “As Justice Dattijo Muhammad said in his valedictory speech, which has also been buttressed by Olumide Akpata, the immediate past President of the Nigerian Bar Association, the judgements emanating from courts in recent times have been questionable and show obvious compromise.

“As Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) put it recently, the judiciary under military dictatorship was much more courageous and had better integrity than what we have today.

“It is obvious that the apc has turned the once respected Nigerian judiciary to a ‘cash and carry’ one where politicians who don’t participate in primaries are named as candidates while actual winners of elections are sacked for flimsy reasons. They simply deliver judgements but not justice.”

Atiku also said, “Tinubu has already appointed his loyalists as Resident Electoral Commissioners, who have now been confirmed by Senator Godswill akpabio, his lackey who is supposed to be heading an independent arm of government. This is how the apc plans to impose a one-party state on Nigerians.

“Eternal vigilance remains the watchword if Nigeria’s democracy will survive the apc onslaught on our democracy and the institutions that are supposed to check the excesses of the ruling party.”

https://www.thisdaylive.com/index.php/2023/11/21/falana-its-dangerous-for-judiciary-to-sanction-165000-voters-for-electoral-officers-mistakes?amp=1

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP, in the 2023 elections, Atiku Abubakar, has again raised alarm over attempts by the ruling All Progressives Congress, apc, to derail Nigeria’s democracy using subterfuge.


He said the party’s “snatch, grab and run” agenda of opposition parties’ mandates is inimical to democracy.


Atiku spoke through his Media Adviser, Mazi Paul Ibe, in a statement, in Abuja, on Monday.

He explained that the ideal notion of democracy does not just reside in a representative government but is essentially rooted in the plurality of ideas.

Thus, for a system to be seen as truly democratic, it must necessarily accommodate opposition and opposing views.

Atiku said, “Sadly and suddenly, we have seen a trend whereby the range of opposition engagement continues to be narrowed by the ruling party in Nigeria.

“Either through the electoral process where opposition parties are rigged out with brazen impunity, or during the post-election court processes where the judiciary is conspicuously doing the biddings of the ruling All Progressives Congress (apc), it has become increasingly apparent that the democracy in Nigeria is in a state of ill-health.

“It gets more curious that all the states where the courts have made controversial declarations are states being controlled by the opposition political parties.

“From Nassarawa, Kano, Zamfara and now to Plateau State, where we are witnessing a situation in which what the ruling party missed out on Election Day are being delivered to them through the courts.


“These are clearly ominous signs that threaten not just our faith in the electoral and judicial system but evidence that our democracy is compromised.

“It is also crystal clear that the ruling party will not desist from this inglorious ideology of ‘snatch, grab and run away with power.’

“It is even more worrisome that what is playing out now in the Plateau governorship election petition is a confirmation of the threat echoed by an apc lawmaker in a viral video that the ruling party will compromise the judicial process to ensure its ultimate victory in the courts.

“It, therefore, means that the times we are in are indeed ominous, and the journey ahead in rescuing our democracy from these buccaneering power grabbers is a long one. It also means that every man and woman of good conscience should come together for this common patriotic purpose.

“But we are not surprised by what is going on. In Lagos State where Tinubu holds sway as godfather, opposition became an anathema.


“Everyone including judges was forced to join his party. The few opposition members who managed to get elected were beaten to submission including at the Lagos State House of Assembly where the sole PDP member back in 2018 was suspended and arrested for gun running but mysteriously had the charges dropped immediately after he defected to the apc.

“Recently, the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) withdrew a N135bn lawsuit it had instituted against an opposition senator from Anambra State less than 24 hours after he defected to the ruling party.

“These are the crude methods that Bola Tinubu has employed in order to reduce the ranks of the opposition and consolidate his hold on power.

“Is it not mysterious that it was the same panel that sat and heard all the election petition cases from Plateau State before the Court of Appeal?

“ How is it that in election cases where the PDP came first and the apc came second, the court ordered that the apc be declared winner while in elections where the PDP came first and Labour Party came second, the courts ordered a rerun in order to give the apc a chance of victory?


“As Justice Dattijo Muhammad said in his valedictory speech which has also been buttressed by Olumide Akpata, the immediate past President of the Nigerian Bar Association, the judgments emanating from courts in recent times have been questionable and show obvious compromise.

“As Mr. Femi Falana (SAN) put it recently, the judiciary under military dictatorship was much more courageous and had better integrity than what we have today.

“It is obvious that the apc has turned the once respected Nigerian judiciary to a “cash and carry” one where politicians who don’t participate in primaries are named as candidates while actual winners of elections are sacked for flimsy reasons. They simply deliver judgments but not justice.

“Apart from the judiciary, Tinubu has already appointed his loyalists as Resident Electoral Commissioners who have now been confirmed by Sen. Godswill akpabio, his lackey who is supposed to be heading an independent arm of government. This is how the apc plans to impose a one-party state on Nigerians.”

The former Vice President further said, “Eternal vigilance remains the watch word if Nigeria’s democracy will survive the apc onslaught on our democracy and the institutions that are supposed to check the excesses of the ruling party.”

https://www.vanguardngr.com/2023/11/apcs-snatch-grab-and-run-agenda-of-opposition-parties-mandate-inimical-to-democracy-atiku/amp/

BREAKING NEWS

Former Akwa Ibom Governor Udom Emmanuel Extends Support to Embattled Rivers State Governor Amidst Political Turmoil

Former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Udom Emmanuel, has reportedly held a secret meeting with Rivers State Governor, Fubara in his Private Residence, Port Harcourt, amidst the ongoing political turbulence in Rivers State. The state's incumbent governor, Fubara, has been facing challenges from his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who recently defected to the apc and assumed the position of Minister of FCT.

Speculations have been rife that Wike is orchestrating moves to impeach his successor, Fubara, using the state's House of Assembly as a means to achieve his political goals. In light of these developments, Udom Emmanuel, a former Akwa Ibom PDP Governor has extended his support to Fubara during a clandestine meeting.

The clandestine meeting between former Akwa Ibom Governor Udom Emmanuel and Rivers State Governor Fubara holds a deeper purpose — a strategic alliance forged to counter the political maneuvers of Nyesom Wike, FCT Minister and former Rivers State governor. Amidst the turmoil in Rivers State, where Wike's alleged attempts to manipulate the state's House of Assembly and impeach his successor have created a storm, Emmanuel and Fubara have united forces within the PDP ranks

The closed doors meeting also aimed at expressing solidarity and assuring Fubara of the unwavering support of the People's Democratic Party (PDP).

According to our Source, Udom Emmanuel while speaking at the meeting assured Fubara that he is going to win the fight against his predecessor, stating he faced similar issue with his former Boss, Godswill akpabio.

"Fubara, I tell you in good faith that this will be over. I had similar issue with Godswill akpabio who wanted to have control of the State resources while I was the governor and when I said no, he tried everything to remove me from office, you're not alone in this" he said.

As political tensions continue to escalate in Rivers State, the meeting between Udom Emmanuel and Fubara highlights the importance of strategic alliances and mutual support among party members. It remains to be seen how this development will impact the unfolding political landscape in the state.

Former Akwa Ibom Governor Udom Emmanuel Extends Support to Embattled Rivers State Governor Amidst Political Turmoil

Former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Udom Emmanuel, has reportedly held a secret meeting with Rivers State Governor, Fubara in his Private Residence, Port Harcourt, amidst the ongoing political turbulence in Rivers State. The state's incumbent governor, Fubara, has been facing challenges from his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, who recently defected to the apc and assumed the position of Minister of FCT.

Speculations have been rife that Wike is orchestrating moves to impeach his successor, Fubara, using the state's House of Assembly as a means to achieve his political goals. In light of these developments, Udom Emmanuel, a former Akwa Ibom PDP Governor has extended his support to Fubara during a clandestine meeting.

The clandestine meeting between former Akwa Ibom Governor Udom Emmanuel and Rivers State Governor Fubara holds a deeper purpose — a strategic alliance forged to counter the political maneuvers of Nyesom Wike, FCT Minister and former Rivers State governor. Amidst the turmoil in Rivers State, where Wike's alleged attempts to manipulate the state's House of Assembly and impeach his successor have created a storm, Emmanuel and Fubara have united forces within the PDP ranks

The closed doors meeting also aimed at expressing solidarity and assuring Fubara of the unwavering support of the People's Democratic Party (PDP).

According to our Source, Udom Emmanuel while speaking at the meeting assured Fubara that he is going to win the fight against his predecessor, stating he faced similar issue with his former Boss, Godswill akpabio.

"Fubara, I tell you in good faith that this will be over. I had similar issue with Godswill akpabio who wanted to have control of the State resources while I was the governor and when I said no, he tried everything to remove me from office, you're not alone in this" he said.

As political tensions continue to escalate in Rivers State, the meeting between Udom Emmanuel and Fubara highlights the importance of strategic alliances and mutual support among party members. It remains to be seen how this development will impact the unfolding political landscape in the state.

Controversy has engulfed the recent nomination of a new Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) from Akwa Ibom, Mr. Etekamba Umoren, as a result of his relationship with the Senate President, Godswill akpabio and also for being a prominent member of the All Progressives Congress (apc), in Akwa Ibom.


Umoren is a former aide of the Senator akpabio, who had served the Senate President as a Chief of Staff during his time as Minister of Niger Delta Affairs and also one of his top aides as Governor of Akwa Ibom state.

President Bola Tinubu has recently appointed him as one of the new RECs, according to a statement by his Media Adviser, Ajuri Ngelale.

This development has elicited ill feelings within the People's Democratic Party (PDP), which was expressed through a statement protesting his appointment. A group, the PDP Aborigines Initiative, in a statement said "The appointment of Mr. Etekamba Umoren as Resident Electoral Commissioner will erode the trust Nigerians have on the electoral body."

In the statement signed by its National Coordinator, Shaibu Abubakar, the group said Mr Umoren is a member of the All Progressives Congress, and as such should not be made to play the role of an umpire in any elections.

He equally said Mr. Umoren's membership of the "apc is not hidden as he defected officially from the PDP in 2018, with his boss, the Senate President, Dr Godswill akpabio.

"Umoren has served as Secretary to the Akwa Ibom State Government and Chief of Staff to akpabio as Minister of Niger Delta Affairs.

"We call on President Tinubu to reverse that appointment as his government does not need this controversy at this period that it ought to focus on delivering good leadership to the whole nation irrespective of political affiliation." Abubakar said.

Another statement by an Abuja based and Akwa Ibom born financial expert and public policy analyst Celestine Mel, said the appointment of Umoren who he referred to as a "highly partisan operative who will stop at nothing to project the partisan inclination of his master, into the electoral management body, does great harm and diservice to this country and this democracy."

Mel said further: "The electoral system is like the banking system. Both thrive on trust. Participants surrender themselves to the process because they perceive that it will be fair. The moment participants suspect that either of the operatives could deal unfairly, the trust is broken, irrespective of whether or not there was any intention to be unfair. With this appointee in INEC, the perception of unfairness, injustice and inequity to different political parties is already established. The simple reason is that the nominee will be perceived to more loyal to his benefactor, who is on top of the political value chain, than Nigeria his country."

He likened Umoren's nomination to that of Mrs Lauretta Onochie for a similar role by the Buhari administration, and urged President Bola Tinubu to "please rescind the decision and seek non-partisan professionals for this sensitive assignment, if only he is interested in preserving whatever is left of the battered image of the Independent National Electoral Commission."

A State House release signed by Ajuri Ngelale, named Umoren as one of the RECs appointed by President Bola Tinubu in pursuant of the "powers vested in him by Section 154 (1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999, Amended) and Section 6 of the Electoral Act (2022)," for a term of five (5) years each, subject to the confirmation of the Nigerian Senate.

Others appointed with Unoren were Mr. Isah Shaka Ehimeakne from Edo State, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Babalola from Ekiti State, Mr. Abubakar Ahmed Ma'aji from Gombe State, Mr. Shehu Wahab from Kwara State, Dr. Bunmi Omoseyindemi from Lagos State, Mr. Aminu Kasimu Idris from Nasarawa State, Prof. Mohammed Yelwa from Niger State, Dr. Anugbum Onuoha from Rivers State, and Mr. Isma'ila Kaura Moyi from Zamfara

According to the release, President Tinubu "expects the new appointees to abide by the highest standards of professional and ethical conduct in the discharge of their duties, in accordance with his determination to facilitate the establishment of a new and sustainable standard of transparent, fair, and conflict-free electoral conduct."

Party where the sins of criminals are forgiven and they are given the avenue to steal more.

akpabio embezzled a lot of money and was wanted by the EFCC but the case dropped immediately he decamped to the apc.

Right now, Ifeanyi Uba's case has been dropped just as he defected to the apc.

And some people think Nigeria will get better.

Addme:

Twice as Senator? Where?
The only time he won the Senate seat was in 2015 when he defected to apc. By 2019 when he defected back to PDP, he was roundly defeated by Smart Adeyemi.
Also, I did not hate him but hate his clownish behaviours.

Eyaaa! Bitterness is bad. You remember was the chairman senate committee on navy during his second term before the tribunal nullified. It was shortly after their inauguration that he spoke about akpabio. You can Google it

President Bola Tinubu's recent release of ministerial names has sparked curiosity and raised eyebrows as some political heavyweights, including former Plateau State Governor, HE Simon Bako Lalong, were conspicuously absent from the list.

Being the campaign Director-General and playing a crucial role in securing a resounding victory at the polls during the nationwide campaign, Governor Lalong was widely expected to be among the top contenders for the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and now a ministerial position in Nigeria's government, along with other former Governors mentioned in the list.

Surprisingly, while some former Governors, even those who defected from the People's Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (apc), made it onto the ministerial list, Governor Lalong's omission has left many shocked and speculating about the reasons behind it.

Speculations have arisen, suggesting that Governor Simon Lalong's exclusion might be linked to recent crises in the States Party Structure. Reports indicate that some party stakeholders and leaders, such as Senator Nora Daddut, CJ Dakas, and Hon. Komsol Alphonsus Longgap, the immediate past Federal House of Representatives Member representing Mikang, Qua'an-Pan Shendam Federal, have expressed interest in the Ministerial Slot.

Other factors like loyalty to the ruling platform and recommendations from ex-governors and state chapters might also have influenced the selection process with, Governor Lalong holding a high level State apc meeting days before the announcement of the list in an effort to straighten out issues. 

Some have speculated that the party's decision focused on rewarding most of the states where the apc secured their presidential votes, potentially leaving out states that faced challenges in delivering results or dealing with internal party struggles.

States like Adamawa, Bayelsa, Gombe, Kano, Kebbi, Kogi, Lagos, Osun, Plateau, Yobe, and Zamfara are yet to receive ministerial nominations. Prominent figures missing from the list have further fueled speculation, leading to discussions about the possibility of a second list being submitted later.

As the nominees prepare to undergo Senate screening, their past affiliations and actions, particularly those like Nyesome Wike, who were perceived to have worked against their party during crucial elections, may come under scrutiny.

While the Tinubu Ministerial List has been commended for its commitment to gender representation, evident with the inclusion of seven women, many Nigerians have raised questions about the list, suspecting that some politicians may have been selected solely to receive rewards from the President.

Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, delivered the letter to the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill akpabio, emphasizing that Tinubu's list aims to establish a government of inclusion and competence, prioritizing quality, inclusivity, professionalism, and geo-political balance.

As the nation eagerly awaits the unfolding of events, the speculations surrounding the ministerial list continue to fuel discussions in political circles and among citizens alike.

Source: https://mathewtegha.com/2023/07/why-former-plateau-governor-lalong-didnt-make-president-tinubus-ministerial-list/

Meet Tinubu’s 28 ministerial nominees
ministerial nominees

By Alao Abiodun
July 27, 2023
President Bola Tinubu has submitted the list of his ministerial nominees expected to help shape the direction of his administration.
Senate President, Godswill akpabio unveiled the 28-man ministerial list on Thursday.
The nominees include former Governors, economists, health experts, lawyers and close allies of President Tinubu.
The Nation chronicles some of the eminent individuals on the list and their profiles. In no particular order, they are as follows:

1. Amb. Yusuf Maitama Tuggar CON

Amb. Tuggar, born 12 March 1967 was appointed the Nigerian Ambassador to Germany by President Muhammadu Buhari.
He was a member of the Nigerian House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011 representing Gamawa; and he ran twice for Governor of Bauchi State.


Tuggar represented Gamawa from Bauchi State in the Nigerian House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011.

2. Arch. Ahmed Dangiwa

Before taking over as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria, Dangiwa, an architect, had been managing partner of AM Design Consults, an architectural and real estate development consultancy firm, since 1996.

Dangiwa had his first and second degrees in architecture from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he also earned an MBA. He is an alumnus of the prestigious Wharton University Pennsylvania, U.S.A. and has attended numerous training courses.


3. Barr. Hannatu Musawa

Hannatu Musawa is a lawyer, politician and author. She was the deputy spokesperson and Deputy Director Public Affairs of the All progressives congress (apc).
She was also the secretary screening committee of the apc for the presidential aspirants.
Musawa hails from Katsina State while her father is a veteran politician Alhaji Musa Musawa.
She graduated with a degree in Law from the University of Buckingham, UK. She has a postgraduate Master’s degree in the Legal aspects of Marine Affairs from the University of Cardiff wales. She also has a Master’s degree in Oil & gas from the University of Aberdeen.

4. Chief Uche Nnaji
Chief Uche Nnaji was the governorship candidate of the All Progressive Congress in Enugu State.
Nnaji hails from Akpugo in Nkanu West Local Government Area of the state.
The guber candidate came to the limelight in 1999 when he won the senatorial ticket of the then Alliance for Democracy, AD. He was later to step down for Chief Jim Nwobodo, who was eventually elected senator for the senatorial district.
Uche Nnaji is a brother to Hon Nnoli Nnaji of Nkanu East and West Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives.

5. Dr. Betta Edu

Dr. Edu, born on 27th of October 1986, hails from Ibalebo village in Abi local government Area, Cross River State.
Betta completed her secondary education at Federal Government Girls College, Calabar, she is a graduate of medicine and surgery from the University of Calabar.
She is a Harvard certified, Fellow of the Royal Society for Public Health, United Kingdom, and untill recently, the Cross River State Commissioner for Health and National Chairman of Nigeria Health Commissioners Forum.
In 2022, she emerged as the youngest female to become the National Women Leader of the All Progressives Congress.

6. Dr. Dorris Aniche Uzoka

Dr. (Mrs) Doris Uzoka-Anite was a former Commissioner for Finance and Coordinating Economy, Imo State.
She was also a former General Manager of Zenith Bank Plc. She hails from Oguta LGA of Imo State.

7. Ex-Governor David Umahi

Umahi was a two-term Governor of Ebonyi State between 2015 and 2023.
The former Governor participated in the apc presidential primaries where he polled 38 votes to come a distant sixth in the election won by President Bola Tinubu.
After a prolonged battle in various courts, INEC recognised Umahi as the candidate for the district, from where he was subsequently elected as a first-timer at the 10th Senate.

8. Ex-Governor Nyesom Wike

Nyesom Wike, the immediate past governor of Rivers State, was born December 13, 1967.
The Ikwerre-born lawyer turned politician was a two-time Executive Chairman of Obio Akpor Local Government Area from 1999 to 2007.
He obtained his Bachelor of Law from the Rivers State University of Science and Technology before proceeding to Law School in 1997.

9. Ex-Governor Mohammed Badaru Abubakar

Mohammed Badaru Abubakar MON, born 19 September 1962, served as governor of Jigawa State from 2015 to 2023.
He is the Chairman, Presidential Committee on Fertilizer and also the Chairman, Presidential Committee on Non oil Revenue, and he is also the owner of Talamiz group of industries.
Abubakar is a graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria where he obtained a B.Sc Accounting degree.
Badaru is also an alumnus of the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS) in Kuru

10. Ex-Governor Nasir El-Rufai

Nasir El-Rufai, is the immediate past Governor of Kaduna State and a founding member of the ruling apc.
He served as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory from 2003 to 2007 and played a significant role in restructuring the capital city.
Before being appointed Minister of the FCT, he was the director of the Bureau of Public Enterprises, a role he played successfully.
El-Rufai is a first-class graduate of Quantity Surveying from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

11. Rt. Hon. Ekperipe Ekpo

Hon. Ekpo is a renowned grassroot politician, and a former Council Chairman who was in the House of Representatives between 2007-2011.
Ekpo who is the Director general of Akwa ibom Democratic Forum (ADF), is also a prominent chieftain of the All-Progressives Congress (apc) in his home state.

12. Hon Nkiru Onyejeocha

Nkeiruka Chidubem Onyejocha, born on 23rd of November 1969, is a ranking lawmaker in Federal House of Representatives, representing Isuikwuato/Umunneochi Federal Constituency of Abia State.
Onyejocha was previously Executive Transition Chairman of Umunneochi Local Government Area of Abia State in 2002. In 2003 she served in the executive cabinet of Abia State as commissioner for Resource Management and Manpower Development.
During the 7th assembly she was awarded the most vibrant female legislator in Nigeria by Parliamentary Staff Association of Nigeria (PASSAN).

13. Hon. Olubunmi Tunji Ojo

Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, born 1st of May 1982, is is a lawmaker from the Akoko North East/Akoko North West Federal Constituency of Ondo State.
In 1999, he gained admission into Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife to study Electrical and Electronics Engineering.
In 2002, while in his third year at the Obafemi Awolowo University, he proceeded to the University of North London (now London Metropolitan University) where he studied Electronics and Communication Engineering and graduated in 2005.
He obtained a master’s degree in Digital Communication and Networking from the same institution in 2006.
He holds certifications in eighteen professional qualifications in ICT including the prestigious title of being one of the first set of certified ethical hackers from Royal Britannia IT Training Academy in the United Kingdom before he turned 24 years.

14. Stella Oketete

Hon. Stella Okotete holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Studies and Diplomacy from Benson Idahosa University. She also has a Diploma in Law from the Rivers State College of Arts and Sciences. She also holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration and Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution.
In addition to her academic qualifications, she has completed prestigious certificate programs, including the Harvard Kennedy School Certificate Program for Emerging Leaders and the Entrepreneurial Management program at the Lagos Business School.
She is an influential figure within the All Progressives Congress (apc). She was the National Women Leader of the apc Caretaker/Extra-Ordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC).
Okotete was also appointed as the Executive Director, Business Development, Nigeria Export-Impor (NEXIM) Bank in 2017. Between 2011 and 2015, she served as the Special Assistant and Adviser to the Executive Governor of Delta State on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

15. Bello Muhammad Goronyo

Bello Muhammad-Goronyo was a former Commissioner for Information in Sokoto State during the tenure of Governor Aminu Tambuwal.
Muhammad-Goronyo was however sacked after decamping from the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (apc).
The former Commissioner, was also the Chairman, Publicity and Media Committee of PDP Governorship Campaign Council in Sokoto State, until he decamped.

16. Hon. Uju Kennedy Ohanenye

Married with four children, Kennedy-Ohanenye is a businesswoman with stakes in real estate and education. Her foray into the last All Progressives Congress (apc)’s male-dominated presidential primary was, for her, a necessity.
Not intimidated by the array of male aspirants, Kennedy-Ohanenye waded in the murky waters of her party’s electoral process until she ‘smartly’ announced her withdrawal from the race at the party’s special convention, and also mobilised support for the former Lagos State governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

17. Dele Alake

Henry Dele Alake is the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Special Duties, Communications, and Strategy.
The Ekiti State-born politician was commissioner for Information and Strategy in Lagos State under the government of Bola Ahmed Tinubu between 1999 and 2007.
The University of Lagos Political Science graduate worked at MKO Concord Press as Editor of the National Concord from 1995 to June 1999.
Alake is a former vice President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors. He belongs to several national, regional, and international professional bodies, such as the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) and the West African Union of Journalists.

18. Lateef Fagbemi SAN

Lateef Fagbemi was born on June 22, 1956 in Ijagbo, Kwara State, Nigeria.
He is a Senior Advocate of Nigerian (SAN) and a Jurist who has made a significant contribution to the development of Law and Justice in Nigeria. He was called to the bar in 1984.

19. Olawale Edun

Olawale Edun is a seasoned financial expert with extensive experience in the banking sector.
He possesses a strong background in economics, public finance, international finance, merchant banking, and corporate finance at national and international levels.
Edun served as the Honourable Commissioner for Finance in Lagos State for two unprecedented terms (1999-2007) during Tinubu’s tenure.
He completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Economics at the University of London and earned a Master’s Degree in Economics from the University of Sussex, England. Although specific details about his early life and education are not publicly available, his expertise and accomplishments speak for themselves.
Throughout his career, Wale Edun achieved remarkable success in the financial sector nationally and internationally.
Edun is an International Trustee of the Duke of Edinburgh’s International Award Foundation and the Chairman of the Lagos Boxing Hall of Fame, a registered non-profit youth development group that runs amateur boxing in Lagos.
He is also the Chairman of the Livewell Initiative, a health sector Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), and a Trustee of Sisters Unite for Children, an NGO that helps children in need.

20. Adebayo Adelabu

Adebayo Adelabu, born on 28th of September 1970, is a former Deputy Governor, Operations of the Central Bank of Nigeria and 2019 Oyo State gubernatorial candidate for the All Progressives Congress.
Adelabu received a first class degree in Accounting from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.
He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN), a Fellow of Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria and an Associate Member of the Institute of Directors of Nigeria and the United Kingdom.
Adelabu has also taken up professional courses in various business schools, including Harvard, Stanford, Wharton, Columbia, Kelloggs, Euromoney, and the University of London.
Adebayo was appointed by former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan in February 2014 as Deputy Governor, Operations of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

21. Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim

Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim was formerly the director-general of National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) from 1 December 2020 till 27 May 2021, when former President, Muhammadu Buhari announced a swap and she was redeployed as the Honourable Federal Commissioner of the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants, and Internally Displaced Persons.
At 19, she graduated from University of Abuja with a degree in sociology. At 21, she received two master’s degrees from Webster University, an MBA and MA.
Sulaiman-Ibrahim was born in Jos, Plateau, but she hails from Keffi, Nasarawa State.

22. Prof. Ali Pate

Muhammad Ali Pate CON, was born on 6th September 1968. He is a physician and a Professor of the Practice of Public Health Leadership in the Department of Global Health and Population at Harvard University.
He formerly served as the Global Director for Health, Nutrition and Population and Director of the Global Financing Facility for Women, Children and Adolescents (GFF) at the World Bank Group. Pate was also the former Minister of State for Health in Nigeria.
Pate was born in the Misau local government area of Bauchi State in Nigeria. Pate graduated from high school to enter the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU) medical school in Kaduna State, Nigeria.
He graduated from ABU and moved to Gambia where he worked in rural hospitals for a few years.

23. Prof. Joseph Userve

Professor Joseph Terlumun Utsev is a civil engineer and former Rector of federal polytechnic, Wanune, Tarka LGA of Benue state.
He was an associate Professor at the University of Agriculture, Makurdi.
Utsev, from Buruku LGA, was a commissioner in the Samuel Ortom government. He is Tiv, the dominant ethnic group in Benue state.

24. Senator Abubakar Kyari

Abubakar Kyari CON, born 15 January 1963, was the senator representing Borno North Senatorial District of Borno State at the 9th National Assembly from 2015 until his resignation in April 2022.
He is a member and the acting national chairman of the ruling Party of the All Progressives Congress.
Kyari was born in Borno State. His father was Late Brigadier Abba Kyari – Former military administrator to North Central from 1967 to 1975.
He was educated in Nigeria and United States of America. He attended Kaduna Capital School in 1974. He then proceeded to Barewa College Zaria where he obtained his WASSCE In 1979.
He attended the University of Tennessee Martin in USA where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in 1986. Thereafter in 1989, he attended Webster University St.Louis Missouri USA for his Masters in Business Administration (MBA)

25. Senator John Enoh

Sen. Enoh was born and raised in Agbokim Waterfall community of Cross River State.
Enoh was a Senator in 2015 representing Central Senatorial District of Cross River State in the 8th Assembly of the Senate.
He was a member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) up until May 2017 when he decamped to the ruling All progressive Congress (apc) and contested for governorship and lost to incumbent governor Ben Ayade.

26. Sani Abubakar Danladi

Sani Abubakar Danladi was former Acting Governor and Deputy Governor of Taraba State. He also served as the Senator representing Taraba North Senatorial Zone on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party before he was impeached.
He was born on May 20, 1967, in Bachama, Karim Lamido Local Government Area of Taraba State.
Danladi defected to the All Progressives Congress. It was on this platform that he contested for the governorship seat of Taraba State in 2019. He lost to Darius Ishaku of PDP.

27. Engineer Abubakar Momoh.

Engr. Momoh hails from Etsako East LGA of Edo state. He is a Civil engineer by professional training.
Momoh was a two-time member of the House of Reps.
He dumped apc for PDP in 2019 and flew the party’s ticket in the Edo North senatorial election and lost. Thereafter, he returned to the apc.

https://thenationonlineng.net/full-profile-meet-tinubus-28-ministerial-nominees/

garfield1:


Guy,you really Sabi aks politics oh.i am lagging behind...

na my State na, I know what's popping here. Senator akpabio is tryna chart a new course as the Political leader of the State by bring in new faces, he started that with Effiong Akwa, Saviour Enyiekere, etc. Obong Emem Ekperikpe Ekpo is a former FHoR member from Etim Ekpo.

Those who engaged in anti-apc in the last elections never envisage Senator Godswill akpabio as the next Senate President, some defected back to PDP, now the case at the Governorship Tribunal hinge on WAEC certificate forgery&alleged expulsion of Gov Umo Eno as a result from Uniuyo is giving PDP &Governor Pastor Umo Eno sleepless nights.