Politics
Anger swells up in APC over party leaders wooing Wike
They frowned on the fact that these leaders go as far as visiting the state to inaugurate projects on the governor’s invitation, thereby helping to campaign for the PDP in Rivers by heaping praises on Wike, ahead of the general election.
They spoke at a one-day consultative meeting of the South-South executive committee presided over by APC National Vice Chairman of the zone, Chief Victor Giadom, in Port Harcourt, Sunday night.
The stakeholders also accused President Muhammadu Buhari and the party’s National Executive Committee, NEC, of neglecting Rivers APC.
They spoke amid grumblings in the APC over the inability of Senator Adamu Abdullahi-led National Executive Committee, NEC, to meet over pressing issues.
Meanwhile, a meeting of the Presidential Campaign Council will hold today as scheduled last night, with a member of the council assuring that Asiwaju Tinubu will return from London this week.
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Rivers APC angry
Rivers APC Legal Adviser, Dike Iheanyi Zubi, while speaking at the meeting, said it is unfair for governors of the South-West to hold nocturnal meetings with Wike and return to their states without bothering to interface or speak with their party members in the state.
Zubi further said the action of Tinubu who had held meetings with Wike abroad and the action of the governors concerned were tantamount to anti-party activities and urged President Buhari to call them to order.
He said: “It is very discouraging for the APC here in Rivers State to see a situation where the presidential candidate of our party, Ahmed Bola Tinubu and his handlers, including South-West governors of the APC coming to the state to undermine our party here in Rivers State.
“They begin to hobnob and hold nocturnal meetings with Wike, who is seen as a contender with the APC here in the state. So, we as APC members here frown at such action because it doesn’t encourage us here. We consider it as anti-party on the side of Ahmed Tinubu and his cohorts.
“Instead of coming to strengthen the Rivers State chapter of the party, they are busy hobnobbing with Governor Wike, who is a PDP member. For the APC in Rivers State, we see it as an affront and anti-party activity.
“So, I call on the national chairman of the party and President Buhari to call him (Tinubu) and his cohorts to order. They should stop dividing Rivers APC. APC is one family.”
Similarly, a former caretaker committee chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area and State House of Assembly candidate for the 2023 election, Professor Lawrence Chukwu, said the action of the party leaders is embarrassing to APC members in the state.
“As a party, the kind of embarrassment we are receiving from our leaders who come to Rivers State is unbearable. Imagine that Governor Wike is abusing the president (Buhari) and our leader (Rotimi Amaechi) every day. Yet, our leaders and some governors of the party will come to Rivers State to commission projects in Rivers State.
“They will not even bother to visit members of the party before leaving. It is very bad. The APC in Rivers State has what it takes to win elections here. All we need is support; we need financial support from the national,” Chukwu said.
Chief Sydney Nyechie, APC chairman, Obio Akpor Local Government Area said: “We are toiling day and night to ensure come 2023 Rivers APC takes over Rivers, then South-West APC governors and the Speaker of the House of Representatives will come to Rivers to say they are commissioning projects and be singing praises of Governor Wike.
“By doing that they are ridiculing us before Wike and Rivers people. Those people (Rivers APC South West leaders) have no business coming to the state to romance Governor Wike. The embarrassment we are receiving from APC leaders at national is too much. We will not take it.”
Ininasiya West, APC candidate, Akuku Toru/Asari Toru Federal Constituency, said: “I’m particularly concerned that Senator Magnus Abe, even after leaving the party to be SDP governorship candidate, still has the authority and mandate of the APC presidential candidate.
“Tinubu cannot be sitting on the fence in Rivers anymore. He should come out and say where he belongs so that we who are still in the party know how we move. We are here, ready to win the election. Tinubu must make a clear statement on Rivers.
“Another concern is there are various court cases against Rivers APC candidates by Wike, hiding under PDP, again trying to win through the back door. You are aware he is pressuring the court to remove the party from the ballots as we suffered in 2019.
“I don’t know how the APC national has taken this. Perhaps the national APC has been blowing Wike’s trumpet and the man feels it is in support of him to go on with the matter. We want national (APC) to be proactive. Let us not wait to take steps only after the deed has been done.”
On his part, state APC chairman, Emeke Beke, who said he was speaking as an individual, expressed dismay that none of the party members from the zone whose names were submitted to the national level of the party made the list of the APC presidential campaign council.
Beke told Chief Giadom to relate it to the national level that state APC chairmen in the zone took a position and have written to the President and national officers in that regard, even as he called for a refund of 25 per cent from the proceeds of the sale of forms in the state.
“We have written to the President, to the national chairman, to the candidate (Tinubu), to the chairman of the governors’ forum and the Director-General of the campaigns. You people asked us to nominate five, five names for the campaign council.
None of the five names we sent appeared on the list because they don’t like Rotimi Amaechi. From the zone, not one (name) appeared. The chairmen have taken a position on that. We will down our tools.
“As you go back, tell the national chairman that Rivers State bought forms of over one billion naira. And what we are asking, remit to the state 25 per cent of that money.
“If that money is not remitted to Rivers State, forget about coming to Rivers State to campaign for a presidential candidate. “We will vote for our national assembly, state house of assembly candidates and focus on the governorship candidate of this state and we will win.
“The truth is that what has happened to Rivers State is because they don’t like Rotimi Amaechi. I speak as Emeka Beke, not as Rivers APC chairman.
“I have heard and seen Wike’s comments on television and social media respectively. Wike dines with leaders of our great party. If the nation does not listen to the APC Rivers State, we will take our destiny in our hands.”
He said Governor Wike does not have the political spread to win an election but is luring its leaders with financial inducement, even as he expressed worry that respected leaders of the party are constantly visiting the state and dining with Wike, a few months before the general poll.
He said: “We have been out of government for eight years. Now we want to win elections. I can tell you that Wike does not have the political base to win an election in Rivers State. What Wike is doing is bribing leaders of our party to short-change the APC family in Rivers State.
“My candidates and members in Rivers State have suffered. Candidates are selling their land, selling their property to make sure they win the election and keep APC in power, and then leaders that we look up to will come here and campaign. At the end of the day, they will dine with Governor Wike at night. Please, tell them not to dine with Governor Wike again. Let them support this party in the state. We are party men, but tell them if they don’t support us, we will not support them.”
They’re being honest — Giadom
Responding, the APC national vice-chairman, South-South and former acting national chairman of the party, Chief Victor Giadom thanked the party faithful in the state for their frank comments and contributions.
“This is my own constituency and I am from Rivers State. I know exactly that everything that you have said here is true.
“Everybody in Nigeria knows that what you are complaining about is true. The speaker (Femi Gbajabiamila), Governor Kayode Fayemi, and Governor Rotimi Akeredolu, all came here (Rivers) to commission projects, and by doing so, praised Governor Wike.
“By doing that, you are marketing our opponents against the APC. So we will put it to them, we will make them know. I can also tell you that we are passing through very tough times.”
Speaking to newsmen after the meeting, Giadom said: “The reason we are here is to collate what we feel are the challenges in the party, with the aim of providing solutions to them or be ready to face the consequences.
“We have come, we have listened to them, we have heard them clearly, and we are going to put them together and report to the national party in Abuja to ensure that we find solutions to all the things that we know will help us win election in Rivers State.
“I know the pains of my people, which are also our collective pains. We were not on the ballot in 2019, which of course we know that I was supposed to be a direct beneficiary of that ticket. “But the manipulation of the system denied us from being on that ballot. So, people have the right to be apprehensive, they have the right to be worried.
“But I can assure them that, by the grace of God, we will be victorious this time around and APC will win in Rivers State and recapture our possession of becoming in charge of Rivers State leadership and we will form a government and be in Government House.”
Politics
2027: Your votes do not count, the Courts Will Endorse It Unless We Do Something-Dele Farotimi warns
Human rights lawyer and political activist Dele Farotimi has called for a revolution to save Nigeria, urging citizens to unite behind a common national vision and push for fundamental changes to the country’s political and governance systems.
Farotimi made the remarks while expressing concerns about Nigeria’s democracy, the credibility of its electoral process and the role of the judiciary in resolving electoral disputes.
According to the activist, Nigerians risk losing confidence in democracy if their votes are not adequately protected and electoral outcomes are not respected. He warned that public passivity could create conditions for authoritarian rule.
“Your votes do not count and the judiciary will endorse it unless we decide to do something about it, because we are sleeping whilst a dictatorship is being installed in our country, demon-cratically,” he said.
Farotimi argued that Nigeria needs to be restructured and reimagined to address its persistent political challenges. He maintained that meaningful change would require citizens to come together around a clearly defined vision for the country’s future rather than placing their hopes solely in individual politicians.
He said a critical mass of Nigerians who are dissatisfied with the existing system must be mobilised to support an alternative approach to governance.
“The one thing I have never been shy about is to tell you what it will take to save Nigeria. It will take a revolution to save Nigeria,” Farotimi declared.
The activist suggested that such a revolution could be achieved through the ballot box, although he expressed doubts about whether the current political process, on its own, could deliver the transformation Nigeria needs.
He stressed that a credible national vision, backed by purposeful leadership, could encourage greater citizen participation and strengthen public resolve to defend electoral choices.
Farotimi’s remarks highlight broader concerns about electoral integrity, judicial accountability and the need for structural reforms in Nigeria. His call for a democratic revolution centres on collective action, political restructuring and the emergence of a shared vision capable of mobilising citizens towards meaningful change.
As the country approaches another general election cycle, debates over electoral credibility, institutional trust and the future of Nigeria’s democracy are likely to remain central to the national conversation.
By PETRUS OBI.
Veteran journalist and ARISE News presenter, Dr Reuben Abati, appeared uncertain about the name of Ebonyi State Governor, Francis Nwifuru, during a live television interview with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in the state, Chief Ifeanyi Odii, popularly known as Anyichuks.
While questioning Odii on the political situation in Ebonyi ahead of the 2027 general elections, Abati, in a video which has gone viral on social media remarked:
“…Are you aware that Governor Nwifuru, I think that’s the name of Ebonyi Governor…”
Popular Ebonyi Guber Candidate ANYICHUKS
The remark, which appeared to be an attempt to confirm the governor’s name, has raised questions about Nwifuru’s visibility beyond Ebonyi State, particularly amid growing criticism of his administration over allegations of poor performance.
During the interview, Odii accused Governor Nwifuru of allegedly intimidating opposition parties in the state, claiming that incidents involving attacks on opposition supporters had been reported to security agencies.
He also criticised an alleged threat by the governor to sack local government chairmen who allow opposition parties to campaign in their council areas, describing such a move as unconstitutional and an affront to democratic principles.
Odii urged his supporters to remain peaceful and law-abiding, stressing that the governor has a constitutional responsibility to protect all residents, irrespective of their political affiliations.
Speaking on the PDP’s support for President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid, the governorship candidate explained that the arrangement formed part of a broader political understanding involving factions of the PDP and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
He dismissed suggestions that supporting Tinubu could undermine his governorship ambition, insisting that the presidential and governorship elections were separate political contests.
On his economic agenda, Odii pledged to attract ₦2 trillion in investments to Ebonyi within his first six months in office if elected governor.
He identified solid minerals, manufacturing, real estate, healthcare and hospitality as key sectors through which his administration would stimulate economic growth, attract investment and generate employment opportunities.
The PDP candidate maintained that his business experience, grassroots connections and record of community interventions had adequately prepared him to attract investors, create jobs and improve the living standards of Ebonyi residents.
President Bola Tinubu has said he will not attend every campaign rally ahead of the 2027 general election, explaining that he must balance his re-election campaign with the demands of governing Nigeria.
Tinubu made this known on Wednesday in Abuja during the inauguration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, where he urged members to take the party’s message to Nigerians across the states, local government areas and wards.
The President said he agreed with concerns that the demands of campaigning should not distract him from his responsibilities as head of state, stressing that the country needed his attention at a critical time.
“You’ve warned me not to allow the rigour of the campaign to distract me from governance, I hear you. I am in full agreement with your decision. Nigeria needs more attention now,” he said.
Tinubu explained that his decision to limit his attendance at campaign events was also influenced by the need to meet the country’s financial obligations.
“So, you will excuse me from going everywhere with you, we have bills to pay. The American creditors cannot wait,” the President stated.
He also highlighted the importance of attracting investors who would make long-term commitments to Nigeria, noting that sustained investment was essential to building a better future for the country’s children.
“We want those investors to come in, be here to stay, to invest for the future of our children,” he said.
Despite his plan to reduce his presence at campaign rallies, Tinubu assured Nigerians that he would still engage directly with voters during the campaign period.
“However, I will still make time to speak directly with Nigerians, even as you lead the campaign in the states and local government areas,” he added.
The President described the inauguration of the campaign council as more than a routine political event, saying it represented a renewed commitment to Nigerians and the responsibility entrusted to the APC as the ruling party.
“We have not gathered merely to inaugurate a council. We have gathered to renew a covenant. A covenant with Nigerian people and the historic responsibility they have entrusted to us as Nigeria’s governing party,” Tinubu said.
He charged members of the council to communicate the administration’s vision, achievements and policy agenda to Nigerians nationwide, expressing confidence in their ability to mobilise support for the party at every level.
“This council will carry our vision, our records and our agenda to every Nigerian, and it will carry them to victory every ward of this country,” he said.
Tinubu also praised APC members for successfully completing the party’s congresses, recalling predictions that the exercise could trigger an internal crisis.
According to the President, the party overcame the anticipated challenges and completed the process with members participating from the ward level to the national leadership.
“They said there will be implosion. We passed through it. We did not fail. You didn’t let us down. We got here together,” he stated.
Tinubu’s remarks signal an approach to the 2027 election campaign in which he intends to maintain focus on governance and economic management while relying on the APC Presidential Campaign Council to coordinate nationwide mobilisation and promote the party’s message ahead of the polls.
Politics
Tinubu Inaugurates APC Presidential Campaign Council, Vows to Renew Covenant With Nigerians in 2027
ABUJA— President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has inaugurated the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) ahead of the 2027 general election, declaring that the party is united and prepared to seek a renewed mandate from Nigerians.
Tinubu inaugurated the council on Wednesday at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja, charging members and party leaders to demonstrate unity, discipline and commitment while sustaining his administration’s governance priorities.
Addressing the gathering, the President expressed gratitude to party members for their support during the previous election but stressed that their political assignment would only be complete when they secured victory in the next polls.
“I thank all of you for the last election, but no one gets credit for an incomplete assignment until you deliver the next election, until you deliver your electoral wards, until you deliver the votes,” he said.
Tinubu acknowledged advice from Imo State Governor and Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, Hope Uzodimma, who urged him to remain focused on governance despite the demands of the election campaign.
The President said he would continue to engage directly with Nigerians while the campaign council coordinated mobilisation across states and local government areas.
He also highlighted the need to meet the country’s financial obligations and attract foreign investment, saying international creditors and investors remained important to Nigeria’s economic future.
“We have bills to pay. The American creditors cannot wait. We want those investors to come in and invest for the future of our children,” Tinubu said.
Shettima Defends Tinubu, Criticises Opposition Figures
Vice President Kashim Shettima praised Tinubu’s commitment to democracy, citing his support for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar’s presidential ambition in 2007 under the platform of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria.
Shettima also defended the dignity of the presidency in response to criticism of Tinubu, insisting that the office must be respected regardless of political differences.
“You can call him Bola, if you like, call him Adekunle, but he is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” he said.
The Vice President also criticised Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the National Democratic Movement, accusing him of using misleading statistics and making comparisons between Nigeria and other countries without sufficient context.
APC Promises Nationwide Mobilisation
APC National Chairman, Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, said the inauguration reflected the party’s determination to build a better Nigeria and secure Tinubu’s re-election.
Yilwatda urged campaign council members to communicate the administration’s policies and achievements clearly, while demonstrating how its reforms could translate into tangible improvements in the lives of Nigerians.
He pledged that the party would intensify grassroots mobilisation across electoral wards, local government areas and states to ensure a strong voter turnout in 2027.
The APC chairman also called for a peaceful election focused on ideas, records and policies, rather than hostility.
Uzodimma Defends Tinubu’s Economic Reforms
Uzodimma, who serves as secretary of the campaign council, expressed confidence that the administration’s policies would strengthen the campaign’s message.
He praised Tinubu for removing the petrol subsidy and reforming the foreign exchange system, arguing that previous administrations had avoided tackling the challenges because of their potential political consequences.
According to Uzodimma, the reforms had imposed hardships on Nigerians but were necessary to address longstanding economic weaknesses.
He also cited Nigeria’s economic growth, which he put at 4.43 per cent, compared with 4.23 per cent a year earlier, and praised the administration’s tax reforms.
Uzodimma maintained that the campaign would focus on issues and the government’s record rather than political rhetoric.
Adeleke, Soludo and Wike Back Tinubu’s Re-election
Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke, Anambra State Governor Charles Soludo and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Nyesom Wike were among those who delivered goodwill messages in support of Tinubu’s second-term bid.
Adeleke, who belongs to the Accord Party, drew cheers from attendees with his trademark dance moves during the event.
Wike, a prominent figure in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said he supported Tinubu because of what he described as the President’s bold leadership and willingness to address problems previous administrations had left unresolved.
He challenged governors to work towards delivering their states for Tinubu in the 2027 election.
The event also featured messages from Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, Special Adviser to the President on Political Affairs Ibrahim Kabiru Masari and elder statesman Tanko Yakassai, who called for support for Tinubu’s second term.
Tinubu, meanwhile, urged the campaign council to conduct its activities responsibly, engage Nigerians constructively and promote the administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda while ensuring that governance remains a priority.
The inauguration formally sets the APC’s campaign machinery in motion as the party prepares to seek another presidential mandate in 2027.
…Says Party’s Achievements at All Levels Make Opposition Unnecessary
A political support group, Kwashy and Friends for Peter Mbah, has pledged to mobilise massive grassroots support for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Governor Peter Mbah and other candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The group said the achievements of the APC-led administrations at the federal, state and local government levels provided compelling reasons for Nigerians to support the party, insisting that good governance should be encouraged rather than opposed.
Speaking during the group’s bi-monthly meeting held on Sunday at Rockbase Hotels, Enugu, its Coordinator, Hon. Cletus Chigozie Akalusi, popularly known as Kwashy, said the platform, established in 2023, had consistently mobilised support for candidates seeking various political offices.
Akalusi explained that the meeting was convened to strengthen the group’s grassroots structures and develop strategies for communicating the achievements of the APC to voters across the state.
He urged members to sustain the top-to-bottom voting approach adopted during previous elections to guarantee victory for all APC candidates in 2027.
“Our bi-monthly meetings are avenues for us to strategise and re-strategise on how to ensure that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah and all candidates of our party are massively voted for.
“Our support group is not filled with urban guerrillas. We are all grassroots soldiers, and we undoubtedly have the capacity to ensure a landslide victory for our party.
“Considering the achievements our party is recording at the federal, state and local government levels, I have never lost sleep over our victory in the 2027 general elections,” he declared.
Also speaking, the member representing Oji River/Awgu/Aninri Federal Constituency, Hon. Anayo Onwuegbu, who was accompanied by the member representing Oji River Constituency in the Enugu State House of Assembly, Hon. Osita Ezeh, expressed satisfaction with what he described as the growing acceptance of the APC across the state.
Onwuegbu charged members to intensify mobilisation at polling-unit and ward levels, stressing that the party’s developmental strides should translate into overwhelming electoral support.
“What enthrals me most is that you have agreed to vote for APC candidates from top to bottom. Just like our governor always says, we should take the message from polling unit to polling unit and ensure that no vote is lost.
“There is no ward you will go to in Enugu today without seeing a project worth about N2 billion ongoing. It has never happened in the history of this state. Our core mandate is to work towards victory because it is not over until it is over,” he said.
In his remarks, the Chairman of Oji River Local Government Area, Hon. Greg Anyaegbudike, commended the group for its contributions to the party’s success in the last chairmanship and councillorship elections.
He maintained that the performance of President Tinubu, Governor Mbah and other APC leaders had provided sufficient justification for continued public support.
“The manner in which you supported us in the last elections is mind-blowing. If you look around, you will see reasons to support our party.
“There is no ward in Enugu State today without a Smart School, Type-2 Primary Healthcare Centre and other ongoing infrastructure.
“It is on this note that we should not only preach the gospel but also ensure that we protect the interest of our party wherever we find ourselves,” he stated.
The meeting reaffirmed the group’s commitment to expanding its grassroots mobilisation network and working towards securing victory for APC candidates at all levels in the 2027 general elections.
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