Politics
Ebonyi Senate: My life is threatened, pension stopped – Agom-Eze
Q: At what point did you start nursing the ambition to represent Ebonyi South Senatorial District at the Senate?
I retired as a Permanent Secretary at the Ebonyi State Ministry of Lands, Survey and Housing in 2015 after 35 years of meritorious service. My husband, while I was in service, had made an attempt at the governorship seat and Senate but did not succeed. It is said that behind every successful man, there is a woman, so I was privy to the process and gave my support and I also learnt a lot from that experience. Upon my retirement, I believed I was yet to exhaust my knowledge and strength and that I still have a lot to offer the nation. My father was a politician at his own level and was the chairman of the old Afikpo Local Government. While in the university, I participated in politics. I have always tried to be a voice at different levels of my life and to give my support when the need arises. I am particularly buoyed by my exemplary involvement in public service and my wealth of experience garnered over the years till my retirement from service. So, I was convinced that I am eminently qualified to serve my people as a senator because of my antecedents, my exposure to the workings of government, my passion for excellence and credible record in public service over the years. My cognate public experience became a motivating factor to serve my people and that will be a serious advantage in the business of lawmaking.
Q: Was it that those who represented the zone in the past didn’t do so effectively or you felt there was a need for a paradigm shift?
Senators from my zone who came before me have done well. (William) Shakespeare likened each of us to an actor living out their lives like a part in a play. Some doors and opportunities will open for us and some will be closed. Since 1999, no woman from our entire zone has gone to the National Assembly and it is my view that I should be supported so that I can be the difference that Ebonyi South needs. Beyond my cognate experience in the civil service, I am aware of what it takes to nurture a home. It is my belief that I will be able to care for my people and meet their needs. I am looking forward to the position because I can and will be able to represent my people like never before.
Q: Some say you were Governor Dave Umahi’s close ally, at what point did the face-off between you and him start?
Governor Dave is our governor. I have no issues with him. How can I have a face-off with a man that has such incredible powers. The governor has been the state chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party. He has been a deputy governor and now a governor. He aspired to be the president of this country while I aspired to be the senator representing Ebonyi South Senatorial District. These are two different aspirations. By our 2022 Electoral Act, you cannot sign two nomination forms in the same electoral year. However, when he failed in his bid to be president, his brother stepped down for him because he was the one that won the primaries of May 28, 2022. With that, the governor, as I heard, went and did another primary for a possible substitution. This primary held on June 9, 2022 and the governor was purportedly declared the winner without any notice to me. Unfortunately, the Independent National Electoral Commission failed to include his name on the INEC list that was published on July 24, 2022. The governor was not happy with the situation and he went to the Federal High Court, Abakaliki, to obtain a court order in Suit No FHC/AI/CS/132/2022.
Q: Tell us about the APC senatorial primary of May 28, 2022 and why you were eventually joined in the matter after INEC had left out Umahi’s name?
I was only made aware of the suit and I asked my lawyer to be in court to observe the proceedings and that if I was mentioned, an application should be made for me to be joined in the suit. This was the case, and my lawyer made the necessary application and I was joined in the suit. On July 22, 2022, there was a resounding judgment of the Federal High Court, Abakaliki, that was celebrated all over Nigeria and beyond. The judgment said since I was the last person standing from the primary of May 28, known to be the authentic primary for the 2023 election, there should be a special primary for my confirmation as the candidate. Even their media man, Chooks Okoh, in his reaction, stated that, “The Federal High Court judgment sitting in Abakaliki, on Friday recognised Princess Ann Agom-Eze as the senatorial candidate of the All Progressive Congress, Ebonyi South.”
Q: A Federal High Court in Abakaliki, on July 22, 2022 ruled that Umahi was not an aspirant in the May 28, 2022 primary, maintaining the ruling was in your favour. Why did you still approach the Court of Appeal in Abuja after the ruling?
By Monday of the following week, when my lawyer got the Certified True Copy of the judgment, the content differed from what was read in court. The new judgment ordered for a second rerun that will include the governor and all who may wish to participate. The court for the much I know cannot give you what you have not asked for. So, we went on Appeal on July 26, 2022 at the Court of Appeal Enugu. Not minding the appeal and my contention touching on the subsistence of the authentic primaries of May 28, 2022, the governor still went ahead and procured another order of the Federal High Court from the same judge, giving him leave ex parte to hold another primary. With this order despite the appeal, another primary was conducted making it the third primary in one election season and he was allegedly declared winner again.
The Federal High Court later ordered that a fresh primary should be conducted for the APC Ebonyi South Senatorial District.
Waking up on Sunday (July 31) morning, I was going through my messages and I stumbled on one that was talking about primaries at Afikpo. I did not take part because the authentic Ebonyi South Senatorial primaries happened on May 28, 2022 and it is still subsisting. The judgment delivered at the Federal High Court in Abakaliki (as captured in the CTC) on July 22, 2022 was not totally in my favour and I appealed the part of the judgment that allowed for fresh primaries to accommodate strangers to the process. My lawyer had also filed a motion for a stay of execution and injunction pending at the Appeal Court. All the relevant bodies were served; INEC, our party, the APC and the governor since July 27, 2022 and July 28, 2022. Until the determination of the appeal, I believe there should be no other primary as the matter is sub judice and the rule is that all the parties must stay action on the matter. We also wrote letters to INEC and our great party urging them to observe the rules. I am looking forward to the judgment of the Court of Appeal as a law-abiding citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and I am confident that the court will do justice. The issue of scoring me zero was ill conceived. What do you expect when you are running against an establishment? They have all the powers and they exhibit it at will.
The Local Government Area Chairman, Felix Igboke, invited the executives of Umudomi Ward in their continuous bid to actualise their evil plans of suspending me. Upon responding to the summons, the ward chairman and some executives were taken to the residence of Felix Igboke in Abakaliki and held against their will at the said residence. After the news went viral, they quickly released them and came online with a press release denying every allegation against them. The Umudomi Ward executive members were released after their plan of coercing them to sign the suspension letter against Mrs Ann Agom-Eze. On August 11, 2022, in another attempt to cover up their illegal activities of the previous day, they invited the executive members from Umudomi Ward to the state party secretariat in Abakaliki which ended up in chaos, as they finally offered the executive members N1m to cover their logistics.
It was later revealed that Governor David Umahi called Felix Ogbonnaya (allegedly) threatening him that he would sack all the appointees from Onicha Igboeze community and the local government area if nothing was done to suspend Mrs Ann Agom-Eze from the party. On August 12, 2022, the Umudomi Ward Chairman was again called to report with his full ward executive members for their monthly stipend at the Onicha Local Government Area Headquarters in Isu. On reaching there, (Onicha Local Government Area Headquarters in Isu), he was secretly informed that the Onicha LGA party Chairman, Mr Uche Nwosu had planned with some persons to attack him. He narrowly escaped from being lynched.
It was also alleged that the ward executives were offered N1m to sign your suspension letter?
Their refusal was based on their August 4, 2022 resolutions and I quote, “That the case between Mrs. Ann Nwanyibuife Agom-Eze and others pending in the Court of Appeal means that no action can be taken until the case is decided. Any action that is taken will be tantamount to breach of judicial process. The members expressed dismay and condemned the attempt to coerce the ward chairman and secretary to sign the expulsion or suspension note of Mrs. Ann Nwanyibuife Agom-Eze from the APC. The members warned that any further attempt to suspend, expel, malign, cajole, castigate or abuse against Mrs. Ann Nwanyibuife Agom-Eze will not be accepted and will be stoutly resisted. The members noted that since Mrs. Ann Nwanyibuife Agom-Eze joined the party in 2017, she has been committed, loyal and faithful. Furthermore, that at present, she remains the only stakeholder that has contributed to the rent of the ward’s party office.
The Chairman of the APC in the state, Stanley Okoro-Emegha, has alleged that you committed perjury. What’s your take on this?
I am aware that the party chairman is not well lettered to know the meaning of perjury and what constitutes perjury. It is not in his place to determine who committed perjury and place charges. You cannot be sentenced until you have been tried in a court of competent jurisdiction. Our appeal is ongoing and any issue will be settled at the court. For what it is worth, I have not committed any perjury.
Q: Some of your supporters in Ebonyi South Senatorial District are worried about your absence from the area for the past months?
I have not been to Ebonyi State for so many months now. My family, supporters and friends are all worried about my safety for now because of the excessive threats and harassment to my person because of my issue with the establishment. The state party chairman, who doubles as a consultant to the security outfit, Ebubeagu, and members of Ebubeagu have been to my house in the village several times. The agenda in all of these is to attack me as soon as I am seen in Ebonyi South. This threat has also been extended to the ward chairman.
Since my aspiration for senatorial office began, I have been harassed, intimidated, and threatened to the point of the Ebonyi State Government stopping my pension. I have been humiliated and my good name tarnished on the pages of Nigerian dailies and social media. This is because I am the candidate as pronounced in court by the judge. Ever since I purchased the nomination form, I have been under threat. Even to go for the primaries, they made every effort to stop me from participating if not for the assistance of the state Commissioner of Police and his team that escorted me to the election. As it is today, I am unable to go home to Ebonyi because I understand the governor’s boys/ loyalists are waiting for me, to attack me for maintaining my stand on the APC ticket for Ebonyi South Senatorial District against the governor’s personal interest. Report reaching me is that he has expelled me from the party without any cause or due process being followed despite a clear press statement by the ward chairman that I remain part of the political party. He is said to be mobilising some youths to go to Abuja to disown me, as well as ward executives to travel to Abuja to inform the party that I have been disowned. If there is any seeming face-off between me and the governor, it is as a result of the above, as stated.
You were also declared wanted by the leadership of the party in the state. Considering the order to arrest you, are you not thinking of jettisoning the race?
It is very laughable for the above mentioned people to declare me wanted. I did not commit any crime. I am pursuing my senatorial ticket judiciously on the part of law. They said I am working for their previous party, the PDP and that I am doing anti-party activities. From where to where? Have they seen me in any PDP rally or in their meeting or any attendance list? How can I be vying for the Senate since 2018 only to hand over the ticket to someone? This is a crazy imagination and scandalous. How can I just be arrested anywhere I am found. I am a free citizen of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I have not been condemned by any court of law. I also did not jump bail. How? It is a statement made out of a bloated ego and entitlement spirit. That will be certainly an infringement on my fundamental right. Intimidation will not guarantee them a different result. I have confidence in our judicial system. This case is a litmus test on the survival and the applicability of the Electoral Act 2022. The whole world is watching Nigeria. The international bodies and human rights activists are watching and waiting on the judgment. Institutions on gender equality are all on the watch to know whether the Electoral Act 2022 is a respecter of persons. I belong to the APC and I will continue to work for the party by God’s grace.
Source: PUNCH
The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld a Federal High Court judgment restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising state congresses conducted by committees appointed by the David Mark-led caretaker leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).
In a split decision of two to one, the three-member panel affirmed the earlier ruling of the Federal High Court, holding that the congresses organised under the caretaker committee violated an existing court order.
Justice Okon Abang, who delivered the lead judgment, ruled that there was no basis to set aside the restraining order issued by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik on April 29.
The appellate court also upheld the lower court’s decision barring the caretaker leadership from interfering with the functions and tenure of the party’s duly elected state executive committees.
According to the court, the ADC Constitution vests the responsibility for conducting state congresses in the elected state executive committees, not the national caretaker leadership.
Justice Donatus Okorowo concurred with the lead judgment, while Justice Abba Mohammed dissented, arguing that the matter was an internal affair of the political party and therefore outside the jurisdiction of the courts.
The suit was filed by aggrieved members of the ADC, who challenged the legality of committees established by the David Mark-led caretaker leadership to conduct state congresses. They argued that the appointments breached the party’s constitution, insisting that only duly elected party organs had the authority to organise state congresses.
In its earlier ruling, the Federal High Court held that the four-year tenure of the ADC’s State Working Committees and State Executive Committees remained valid until fresh congresses and a national convention were properly conducted.
Justice Abdulmalik further ruled that neither the 1999 Constitution nor the ADC Constitution empowered the caretaker committee to appoint committees to conduct state congresses.
While noting that courts generally refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of political parties, the judge held that judicial intervention is justified where constitutional or statutory provisions are alleged to have been breached.
Affirming the lower court’s decision, the Court of Appeal declared the state congresses and national convention conducted by the David Mark-led caretaker leadership null and void for being carried out in defiance of an existing court order.
The appellate court stressed that once a dispute raises constitutional issues, it ceases to be merely an internal party matter and becomes subject to judicial review.
Consequently, the court dismissed the ADC’s appeal, upheld all the orders of the Federal High Court, and awarded ₦10 million in costs against the party.
By Chinedu Sabastine
A pro-Yoruba women group, operating under the banner of Yoruba Women in Politics (YWIP), has applauded the Deputy National Chairman (South) of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Benjamin Obi Nwoye, for strengthening the party across the Southern part of Nigeria barely three months he assumed office.
They said: “Dr. Benjamin Obi Nwoye is a very honest and open person. He has done considerably well,” the group said.
He was also praised for displaying high democratic ideals and delivering electoral victories for the ruling party in Southern Nigeria.
Chairperson of the women group Mrs. Dorothy Akinyele, in a statement issued in Akure, the Ondo state capital on Saturday applauded Nwoye “for his loyalty, strength of character, and consistency of purpose to the cause of democracy.”
They expressed delight and satisfaction “with the high degree of determination so far exhibited by Nwoye to applying the principle of fair play in treating all party members and asserting independence and neutrality in most cases.”
The highly revered South West women body also commended Nwoye “for deepening the party’s structures in the South-west, South-South and South-East, empowering women and youth and building a stronger APC and a more inclusive future for Nigeria.”
In particular, the women lauded Nwoye “for mobilizing support for President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 general election, preserving the progressive ideals upon which the APC was built and curtailing the abuse of democratic norms in the ruling party.”
According to them, “Dr. Benjamin Obi Nwoye is level headed, has milk of human kindness flowing in his veins and committed to the success of President Tinubu and the party in 2027 and beyond,” YWIP said.
It therefore, described Dr. Nwoye as “the influential exponent of national unity,” extolling him for ensuring a smooth internal
Democratic process in his home state Enugu, the coal city state.
The Presidential Candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has dismissed a public debate challenge from the Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, saying the minister must first become a presidential candidate before seeking such an engagement.
Obi made the remark during an interview with media entrepreneur Chude Jideonwo, where he responded to Umahi’s challenge following his criticism of the condition of Nigerian road.
The former Anambra State governor argued that presidential debates are reserved for candidates seeking the nation’s highest office, insisting that Umahi does not fit that category.
According to Obi, the controversy over the poor state of the roads had already produced results, noting that his criticism prompted repairs.
“If he is inviting me to a debate as a presidential candidate, then he has to become a presidential candidate first,” Obi said.
Drawing an analogy with international football, the NDC presidential flagbearer likened Umahi’s challenge to a team that failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup inviting a qualified team to a match.“The World Cup is going on now. You cannot stay outside and invite a team that qualified for the World Cup to come and play against you simply because you think you are good. No. There is a qualification process,” he added.
Obi maintained that leadership should be measured by performance rather than rhetoric, suggesting that the repairs carried out after his criticism underscored the importance of holding public officials accountable.
His response comes days after Umahi declared that Obi posed no political threat to President Bola Tinubu or the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), while challenging him to a public debate over the state of federal roads and infrastructure across the country.
Ada Ogbu, who made the clarification in a statement posted on her official X account on Saturday, was responding to Keyamo’s ultimatum demanding that Obi apologise to airport officials, pay a ₦25,000 parking fine or face action by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).Executive Branch
Ogbu, who described herself as an eyewitness, maintained that she was among those who accompanied Obi to the airport on Saturday, July 4, and categorically denied the minister’s claim that the politician was driven by a police officer.
“As a member of the team that accompanied His Excellency @PeterObi to the Abuja airport on Saturday, July 4, I can state categorically that he does not have a police officer as his driver in Abuja. Therefore, if airport CCTV captured a police officer entering the driver’s seat of a vehicle, that vehicle could not have been Mr. Obi’s,” she stated.
She further argued that the incident highlighted by Keyamo was different from the one Obi narrated during his interview with media personality Chude Jideonwo.
According to her, Obi’s frequent travels across the country have exposed him and his aides to repeated hostile treatment by airport personnel.Government
“It is also important to note that Mr. Obi travels through as many as ten Nigerian airports every week. Over time, there have been several acts of hostility directed at him and members of his team by airport personnel across different locations,” Ogbu said.
She concluded that the aviation minister had referenced an entirely separate incident.
“Based on the account shared by the Honourable Minister, it is clear that the incident Mr. Obi referenced during his interview with @Chude did not occur on the date or at the airport cited by the Minister. They are plainly two different incidents.”
Her reaction comes hours after Keyamo released CCTV-based findings from an internal inquiry into the airport incident, insisting Obi must publicly apologise to airport workers and pay the prescribed parking fine within one week or risk further action by FAAN.
President Bola Tinubu on Friday formally retained Vice President Kashim Shettima as his running mate for the 2027 presidential election.
This was as political parties made last-minute moves to beat the Independent National Electoral Commission’s deadline for the submission of presidential and National Assembly candidates.
The ruling All Progressives Congress presented the nomination forms of Tinubu and Shettima to its National Chairman, Prof. Nentawe Yilwatda, in Abuja for onward transmission to INEC, effectively ending months of speculation that the President could replace his deputy with a northern Christian.
The development came as INEC confirmed that it had received the presidential and vice-presidential nominations of the African Democratic Congress, Nigeria Democratic Congress, Social Democratic Party, Action Alliance, African Action Congress, Peoples Redemption Party and Young Progressives Party.
Meanwhile, several other political parties continued uploading the names of their candidates ahead of the commission’s Saturday midnight deadline.
The electoral commission had fixed July 11, 2026, as the deadline for political parties to upload the nomination forms of their presidential and National Assembly candidates through its online nomination portal in accordance with Section 29(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026.
The submission exercise, which commenced on June 27, covers Forms EC9 and EC9A to EC9E for presidential, vice-presidential, Senate and House of Representatives candidates.
According to the timetable released by the commission, political parties are expected to begin uploading the names of governorship and State House of Assembly candidates from July 18, with the exercise ending on August 8.
INEC is scheduled to publish the personal particulars of presidential and National Assembly candidates on August 1, while those of governorship and state assembly candidates will be displayed on August 29 to allow members of the public raise objections where necessary.
The commission also fixed August 22 as the deadline for the withdrawal and substitution of presidential and National Assembly candidates, while governorship and state assembly candidates have until September 19 for withdrawal or replacement in line with the provisions of the Electoral Act.
The July 11 deadline marks one of the most critical stages in the build-up to the 2027 general elections, as only candidates validly nominated by political parties through primaries monitored by INEC are eligible for submission.
The commission had repeatedly warned political parties against submitting the names of candidates different from those who emerged from duly monitored primaries, insisting that any nomination outside the provisions of the Electoral Act and its regulations would be rejected.
Against this backdrop, the APC used Friday’s presentation ceremony to publicly affirm its presidential ticket, signalling that it would head into the 2027 contest without altering the Muslim-Muslim ticket that secured victory in the 2023 presidential election.
Following President Tinubu’s emergence as the APC’s presidential candidate during the party’s convention, political discussions had intensified over whether the President would retain Shettima or opt for another running mate to broaden the party’s electoral appeal.
Those speculations gathered momentum in recent months amid reports that the ruling party was considering a northern Christian as vice-presidential candidate to address concerns over religious balancing.
Friday’s submission, however, ended the uncertainty, with the APC formally presenting Tinubu and Shettima as its flag bearers for the 2027 election.
The nomination documents were presented on behalf of the President by his Special Adviser on Political Matters, Ibrahim Masari, during a ceremony attended by members of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, the National Assembly, the Federal Executive Council, the APC National Working Committee, state chairmen of the party and APC governorship candidates.
Earlier, the APC National Organising Secretary, Sulaiman Argungu, described the event as the formal presentation of the duly completed nomination forms of the party’s presidential and vice-presidential candidates.
Argungu noted that President Tinubu had earlier secured the party’s presidential ticket through what he described as a transparent primary election, and urged party members to remain united ahead of the 2027 polls.
He also commended the President for what he described as the achievements of his administration before formally handing over the nomination documents to the APC National Chairman for onward submission to INEC.
Speaking on behalf of APC governors, Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodimma, reaffirmed the governors’ support for President Tinubu and the party leadership.
“We are delighted that this event is coming after a well-organised and thoroughly supervised primary process. We reiterate our commitment to continue supporting President Tinubu and the party,” he said.
Uzodimma said the APC remained committed to internal democracy and inclusiveness, adding that the governors would continue mobilising support for the President across the country.
“We will continue to support him in the larger interest of Nigerians and to take the country to greater heights. To the National Working Committee, we reaffirm our support. Together, we are going to deliver victory for President Tinubu and ensure the party wins all elective positions, including the National and State Assemblies,” he added.
Receiving the nomination forms, APC National Chairman, Prof. Yilwatda, described the event as a reflection of the confidence reposed in President Tinubu by millions of party members across the country.
According to him, the President’s endorsement by members of the party demonstrated widespread support for his administration and its policies.
He stated, “Today is a reflection of the wishes of over 12 million members of the APC who overwhelmingly voted for Mr. President as the party’s candidate for the 2027 presidential election. We are proud that APC members across the country cast over 12 million votes for Mr. President and overwhelmingly endorsed him.
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