Politics
FG making it difficult for South-East leaders to pacify aggrieved youths –Mbamara, retired army captain
A retired army captain and founder, Fair Haven Security Nigeria Limited, David Mbamara, bares his mind on the incessant attacks on security formations in Imo State in this interview with CHIDIEBUBE OKEOMA
There have been attacks on security formations in the South-East, particularly Imo State. What are the implications of these attacks?
The security implications are not far-fetched. This ugly development should be properly investigated by the security agencies instead of jumping to the conclusion and hastily labelling any group as the mastermind of the attacks. The security challenges posed by IPOB (Indigenous People of Biafra) cannot be overlooked, though, but there are other non-governmental actors and people who could be hiding under the security challenges and trying to destabilise the government.
It is important that the security agencies look deeper and come up with solutions to this disturbing development. It is not just IPOB. There is also the Biafran Nations League that spoke sometimes ago in Calabar. They gave their members five days to avenge the Fulani herdsmen attacks on their people. It is a potential target group and you can’t wish that away. We also know that in Imo State, there is political tension between the governor and some political actors.
So it will be infantile to politicise the attacks by hastily linking them to IPOB without proper investigation. Doing so portends great danger to our society, and if we go this way, we may lose focus. Therefore, it is very important for the security agencies to do their homework and identify those behind the attacks. It is important that the Federal Government starts looking at issues from a solution perspective because there is no good general who opens the frontier of war without seeking ways to bring lasting solutions.
If any army general engages in open confrontation without dialogue, it will drag him down. What is happening in Imo State is regrettable and it’s important that the Federal Government takes measures because from what I am reading, this is just the beginning. Because when you have a domestic subversive organisation operational in a state and they start kidnapping people for ransom, the essence of that is to get money for logistics. The next move is to start attacking security personnel to demoralise them, collect their weapon and reduce the security forces’ capacity.
My younger colleagues who are still in service should look at these trends and not be hasty in saying the attacks are by IPOB. It could be diversionary. It could be any other organisation that is interested in pulling down the system. Having said that, the reaction of the Governor of Imo State (Hope Uzodinma) is good. This is not the time for the usual grammar and semantics by the government. The Federal Government should sit up. In security, there is no sacred cow. All domestic insurgents in Imo State should be dealt with.
Do you suspect any political undertone in the attacks as the governor has alleged?
Well, I would not know until security agencies have done their job. We have read about some political battles between the governor and some political big boys in the state. It is important that this suspicion should not also be swept under the carpet. The issue should be analysed from the macro and not micro perspective so that every thread of likely threat can be captured. If any thread is missing, it is easy for those who may be hiding under IPOB due to its agitation for Biafra to explore.
The real enemies of the government may be operating freely, knowing full well that the government’s attention is on IPOB. It is also important that the recent attacks on the Nigerian Correctional Centre and police stations in Imo State should draw the Federal Government’s attention to the state. Last month, the National Bureau of Statistics, in its report, ranked Imo State as the unemployment capital of Nigeria with over 56 per cent unemployment rate. We are not talking about the under-employed.
Most of these unemployed people are graduates. The greatest check against insecurity is the good welfare of the people. The Federal Government and the Imo State Government should look into this. The government should look into the plight of the citizens. The situation is terrible. The cost of living is high, people have no jobs, the situation is dangerous. It is important the Federal Government tell itself the truth. This is no time for politics.
Do you support the Federal Government’s amnesty for the fleeing inmates as a result of the recent jailbreak in Owerri?
Well, I am happy to hear that the Federal Government has offered the fleeing inmates amnesty as a way of making them return because some of them are hardened criminals. Some of us are conversant with the nature of the judiciary system that we have. Most inmates are there without trial. I understand that some of them have been on the awaiting trial list for about 10 years.
It is urgent – the Federal Government, in conjunction with state governments, should use this opportunity to investigate the fleeing inmates. Those who have been in prison without trial should be given considerable attention. This is the essence of decongesting the prison. When you put innocent people with criminals in the prisons, you overload the prisons, and this has consequences for society.
It is important that the Federal Government stop holding people without trial because the law says even a criminal is said to be innocent until proven guilty. Why put someone behind bars and is awaiting trial for 10 years? The prison is meant to correct people with bad characters and not to make them hardened. In short, those with criminal backgrounds should be brought back urgently. I support the amnesty declaration by the Federal Government.
On the attacks on the Owerri correction centre, reports have it that security agencies neglected intelligence report before the attacks. What do you make of this?
Definitely, it shows the failure of intelligence gathering by security agencies in Imo state. For the attackers to have a field day attacking the correctional centre, the police headquarters and army checkpoint on the same day, it shows that security agencies in the state are not doing enough. You don’t need to be told that there is a failure of security and intelligence gathering in Imo State. Those in charge should know what to do because uneasy lies the head that wears the crown.
Many say that marginalisation is the cause of incessant attacks on federal facilities in the South-East. Do you agree with this assertion?
That is the major reason, you do not need to be told. Imo State indigenes usually perform excellently at the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, but when they graduate, they don’t get jobs whereas those who got into tertiary institutions using low UTME scores end up getting jobs. How will you then say that the country is fair to them? ‘One Nigeria’ should not just be a slogan, it should be practised.
This is the time to rise up and build Nigeria. The civil war ended over 60 years ago. I didn’t experience the war, I was a year old when the massacre took place. For how long will ethnic and tribal considerations end in this country? How can you build a country based on injustice, knowing that there is a reaction to every injustice? You cannot slap a child and tell him not to cry. It is not possible. How can you appoint over 60 judges, yet no Igbo man made the list. You appointed 24 directors at the NNPC (Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation), yet no Igbo man is there.
Also, look at the recent appointment of the acting Inspector General of Police. The Federal Government is making it difficult for South-East leaders to have anything to tell these aggrieved youths. Nigeria stands on a tripod – the Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba. If you eliminate any of the stands, it is no longer Nigeria. The Federal Government should take measures; the South-East is the easiest place to control.
There is poor electricity, there are bad roads and no jobs for the Igbo people. As elders, there are limits to what we can tell a young man who is hungry. Even if he’s educated, he will definitely be angry if he has no job definitely. South-East does not have a small population; we have a huge population and, therefore, we should not be neglected. I am pleading with the Federal Government to give the South-East elders what they could use to talk to these young people because they are looking down on their leaders as failures. They no longer have respect for Ohanaeze and the governors; they don’t see themselves as part of this country because of the Federal Government policies of marginalisation and exclusion of the South-East region.
What’s your take on regional security outfits?
There is no basis in law for the continuous existence of the federal police. It is not seen anywhere. How will the federal police be the one to enforce laws made by the state governments as enacted by the state Houses of Assembly? We are talking about unemployment in this country when if we have the state police, they can create between 500,000 and one million jobs for the youths.
There should also be neighbourhood police. Nigeria is a country of laws, we are not in a jungle. The issue of security should be properly addressed. Our fathers in the 60s had regional police. Some people are talking about community policing. What is community police? How much are they paid as salary? What is their strength? Do they have arms? Do they have powers to charge anybody to court? Are they recognised under the law? The issue is that we are a funny country. We deceive ourselves a lot. It is time to stand up and build Nigeria.
What is your take on the activities of the Eastern Security Network?
It is an attempt by the people to obey the law of nature because the South-East governors created a void and the Federal Government refused to call the herdsmen to order. No one can stand and watch their women being raped. It is time for the government to be alive to its responsibility of providing security and welfare for the citizens. The Federal Government should as matter of urgency call the Fulani herdsmen to order.
Do you support Nnamdi Kanu’s approach to self-determination?
Well, I am not an IPOB member. I don’t know how he operates. I initially saw him as a rabble-rouser but I am beginning to take him seriously because of the faulty steps the Federal Government is taking. Everything is not about shoot and kill. There are things you will do and you will cage certain elements. The Igbo want Nigeria to succeed.
There is no village in Nigeria you will not see an Igbo man. It is very easy to control this situation before it gets out of hand. Nnamdi Kanu is the creation of the actions of this government. It is the actions of this government that is giving him the impetus to be controlling a large number of people. How can we keep quiet and allow a country as beautiful as Nigeria to go down?
How can the tension everywhere be reduced quickly?
I want to use this opportunity to appeal to the Federal Government to do the needful before it is too late. The government should address the issues of insecurity by addressing injustice in the country. Merit should not be sacrificed on the altar of ethnic sentiments. Injustice is fuelling the insecurity we are facing.
By Okey Maduforo, Awka
The Anambra State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has expelled 30 members of the party for instituting legal actions against the party.
The affected members include some aspirants for the National Assembly, and their expulsion may disqualify them from participating in the party’s primary elections.
Disclosing this shortly after the meeting of the State Executive Committee (SEC) of the party, the State Publicity Secretary, Dr. Sir Valentine Iyiegbu, told reporters that the decision was in line with Section 21, Subsection 5 of the party’s constitution.
“The party discussed those who took the party to court, and many of them are contesting for the House of Representatives tickets of the party,” he said.
“The matter comes up tomorrow, and the SEC stated that what the party constitution stipulates would be followed, which is outright expulsion from the party under Article 21, Subsection 5.”
“The SEC actually ratified their expulsion because they did not exhaust all the internal avenues provided by the party to resolve their grievances,” he added.
Iyiegbu noted that the only reprieve available to the expelled members would be for them to withdraw their court cases.
“It is only when the matters are withdrawn from the court that the party can consider listening to them,” he said.
Speaking on the party’s primary elections, he explained:
“In the case of those contesting for the tickets of the Federal House of Representatives, all the eleven positions have aspirants, while for the Senate, the three positions are also being contested. The screening committees were here to perform their duties,” he noted.
The party also ratified the appointment of a five-man Primary Elections Committee headed by Sir Izuchukwu Okeke, the State Organising Secretary of the party.
By PETRUS OBI
Frontline aspirant for the Aninri/Awgu/Oji-River Federal Constituency seat, Anayo Onwuegbu, has successfully completed the screening exercise conducted by the All Progressives Congress House of Representatives screening panel in Abuja ahead of the party primaries scheduled for Friday, May 15, 2026.
Speaking after the exercise, Onwuegbu expressed satisfaction with the screening process, describing it as a reflection of the party’s commitment to internal democracy, transparency, and credible leadership selection ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The aspirant, who is seeking to represent Aninri/Awgu/Oji-River Federal Constituency under the platform of the APC, stated that he remains focused and prepared to continue to offer quality representation to the people of the constituency.
According to him, “The process once again highlights our party’s commitment to internal democracy, transparency, and the emergence of credible leadership as we prepare for the 2027 general elections.”
He reaffirmed his dedication to the development of the constituency, pledging to serve the people with commitment and purpose if elected.
The APC House of Representatives primaries are expected to hold nationwide on Friday as aspirants battle for the party’s tickets ahead of the 2027 elections.
By Okey Maduforo, Awka
Ten communities that make up Anaocha Local Government Area of Anambra State are set for a showdown with their traditional rulers following the alleged suspension of the zoning arrangement for the Anambra State House of Assembly elections.
Recall that on April 7, 2022, the traditional rulers, in a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), resolved that the House of Assembly seats for Anaocha I and Anaocha II constituencies would rotate among the ten communities, with each town occupying the seat for two terms.
The traditional rulers further resolved that the rotation would subsist irrespective of the political party through which lawmakers emerge, noting that the arrangement was aimed at ensuring that all ten communities have the opportunity to produce members of the State Assembly in the interest of equity and fairness.
However, the Anaocha Equity Forum, shortly after its meeting, expressed concern over the alleged suspension of the zoning arrangement.
Speaking, the Convener of the Anaocha Equity Forum, Mr. Valentine Okoye, said the forum would not take kindly to what it described as acts capable of destabilising the council area, adding that any such move would be resisted.
“This is a Memorandum of Understanding signed by our traditional rulers, and it has been respected until now. We in the Anaocha Equity Forum see this as a slap on the sensibilities of the ten communities that make up the area,” he said.
“We urge members of the public, political parties, and stakeholders to disregard the alleged position of the traditional rulers, as it does not represent the views and aspirations of our people.
“Our traditional rulers should be mindful of their roles as fathers of their respective communities. They should also understand that they would be held responsible for whatever backlash or consequences may arise from this recent position.
“We call on Governor Charles Soludo to call the traditional rulers to order so that the peace currently enjoyed in Anaocha Local Government Area will not be disrupted,” he stated.
The exit of Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso, two prominent opposition figures, has weakened the African Democratic Congress across both chambers of the National Assembly.
The National Democratic Congress, which received Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso on Sunday, recorded its biggest gains on Tuesday with the addition of 17 House members and a senator. Weeks earlier, its ranks expanded when Seriake Dickson, representing Bayelsa West, defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to join the party.
The development comes a few days after several opposition parties resolved to present a single presidential candidate against President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 elections.
The wave of defection to the NDC occurred 48 hours after Obi and Kwankwaso, two of the ADC’s most prominent figures, formally exited the party. These moves have significantly altered the opposition landscape ahead of the 2027 general elections, setting the stage for shifting political alliances.
Additionally, the latest defectors, drawn from Kano, Anambra, Lagos, Edo, Rivers, and Kogi States, cited internal disarray within the ADC as a major factor that influenced their decision.
While reading their letters on the floor of the House, Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu, who presided over the plenary session, said the lawmakers blamed the party’s instability for their departure, noting that the crisis remained “unresolved starting from the ward to the national level.”
The defectors to the NDC are Yusuf Datti, Sani Adamu, Zakari Mukhtari, Kamilu Ado, Harris Okonkwo, George Ozodinobi, Lilian Orogbu, Peter Anekwe, Emeka Idu, Ifeanyi Uzokwe, and Afam Ogene. Others include Lagos lawmakers Thaddeus Attah, Oluwaseyi Sowunmi, George Olwande, and Jese Onuakalusi, as well as Murphy Omroruyi from Edo and Umezuruike Manuchim from Rivers State.
In a separate move, Kogi lawmaker Leke Abejide defected from the ADC to the ruling All Progressives Congress.
The coordinated nature of the defections is widely interpreted as a show of loyalty to Obi and Kwankwaso, whose switch to the NDC is already reshaping opposition dynamics.
Both men are influential political figures with strong regional bases—Obi in the South-East and Kwankwaso in the North-West—and their exit from the ADC appears to have triggered a ripple effect among lawmakers aligned with their political structures.
The ADC’s current troubles did not emerge overnight. In recent months, tensions within the party escalated over leadership struggles, strategy disagreements, and competing ambitions among top figures.
The situation worsened amid reports of irreconcilable differences between Obi, Kwankwaso, and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, who was also a central figure in opposition coalition talks.
Efforts to build a united front ahead of 2027 reportedly broke down due to mistrust, zoning disagreements, and control of party structures.
Their eventual defection to the NDC marked a turning point. Seen as a more viable platform for consolidating opposition strength, the NDC quickly became a magnet for lawmakers and political actors seeking stability and clearer leadership direction.
With the departure of key figures and a steady decline in its legislative strength, the ADC now faces a daunting struggle to maintain political relevance.
The loss of national figures like Obi and Kwankwaso, combined with the defection of lawmakers across multiple states, appears to have weakened its structure and electoral prospects.
Only last week, the party boasted 24 members of the House of Representatives, but it is now left with six.
Once the dominant opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party may equally struggle to retain its status.
Though still officially the most formidable opposition in the House, the PDP currently has 29 members in the Green Chamber, down from 116 members in its ranks at the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly in June 2023.
Barely a year to the inauguration of the 11th National Assembly, the Senate on Tuesday moved to tighten its internal rules, effectively narrowing the path to its most powerful offices and edging out a class of incoming lawmakers, including serving governors and former senators eyeing leadership positions.
In a move widely seen as pre-emptive, the red chamber, after about three hours of a closed-door session, amended Orders 4 and 5 of its Standing Rules, restricting eligibility for both presiding and principal offices to ranking lawmakers with defined legislative experience.
The amendments come amid growing interest by outgoing governors and political heavyweights, many of whom are positioning to enter the Senate in 2027 to contest for top leadership roles such as Senate President and Deputy Senate President.
Under the Revised Order 4, the Senate reinforced a strict hierarchy for the emergence of presiding officers, stating that “Nomination of senators to serve as Presiding Officers shall be in accordance with the ranking of senators and shall be strictly adhered to.
“The order of ranking are (i) Former President of the Senate, (ii) Former Deputy President of the Senate, (iii) Former Principal Officers of the Senate, (iv) Senators who had served at least one term of four years, (v) Senators who had been members of the House of Representatives, (vi) In the absence of i to v, senators elected into the Senate for the first time,” it stated.
Beyond this ranking structure, the Senate introduced a more stringent provision in Order 5, effectively excluding first-time and non-consecutive lawmakers from contesting principal offices.
The amended rule states: “Any senator shall not be eligible to contest for any principal office of the Senate unless he has served as a senator for at least two consecutive terms immediately preceding nomination.”
The implication is far-reaching: senators-elect who were not members of both the 9th and 10th National Assembly would be ineligible to vie for key leadership roles in the 11th Assembly.
Presiding offices in the Senate include the Senate President and Deputy Senate President, while principal offices comprise Senate Leader, Deputy Senate Leader, Chief Whip, Deputy Whip, Minority Leader, Deputy Minority Leader, Minority Whip and Deputy Minority Whip.
The rule changes come against the backdrop of an intensifying scramble for Senate seats ahead of the 2027 general elections, driven largely by governors completing their constitutionally allowed two terms.
No fewer than 10 state governors and several former governors are already angling to secure senatorial tickets, leveraging their influence over party structures to emerge as consensus candidates in their respective states.
At least 12 of the 36 state governors are in their second and final terms, with 10 set to complete their tenure by May 29, 2027.
The looming transition has triggered a wave of political realignments, with many seeking to maintain relevance and influence by moving to the National Assembly.
Eight of the affected governors are from the ruling All Progressives Congress, while Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, belongs to the Peoples Democratic Party, and Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed is aligned with the Allied Peoples Movement.
Those expected to exit office in 2027 include AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara), Abdullahi Sule (Nasarawa), Ahmadu Fintiri (Adamawa), Babagana Zulum (Borno), Inuwa Yahaya (Gombe), Mai Mala Buni (Yobe), Babajide Sanwo-Olu (Lagos), and Dapo Abiodun (Ogun), alongside Makinde and Bala Mohammed.
Although Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri and Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma will complete their tenures in early 2028 due to off-cycle elections, both have been drawn into early permutations for Senate seats.
In Imo State, the political temperature has risen sharply following moves by the All Progressives Congress to position Uzodimma for the Imo West senatorial seat.
Party leaders in the state have already named him as the consensus candidate, even as the incumbent senator, Osita Izunaso, is reportedly seeking a return to the red chamber.
Last Saturday, APC leaders from the Orlu Zone (Imo West), led by the state chairman, Chief Austin Onyedebelu, purchased the 2027 senatorial nomination form for the governor, urging him to accept the ticket.
Onyedebelu, who presented the forms to Uzodimma’s Chief of Staff, Chief Nnamdi Anyaehie, called for pressure on the governor to “accept the plea of Orlu people by filling the forms so that it can be submitted before the deadline of 5th May, 2026.”
The state APC has also warned other aspirants against contesting the seat, insisting that Uzodimma remains the consensus choice.
Complicating the contest, former Governor Rochas Okorocha equally purchased nomination forms in a bid to return to the Senate, a move confirmed by one of his aides, Darlington Ibekwe.
The Orlu Political Consultative Assembly further reinforced Uzodimma’s candidacy, declaring him the sole candidate for the district in what it described as a “total, unanimous, and irrevocable decision.”
The unfolding contest is also shaped by internal power dynamics within the ruling party.
Last month, President Bola Tinubu reportedly rebuffed attempts by National Assembly leaders to secure automatic return tickets for lawmakers, instead reaffirming the authority of state governors over candidate selection.
The stance has strengthened governors’ grip on party structures, enabling many of them to influence senatorial nominations as they prepare for life after office.
Against this backdrop, the Senate’s rule amendments appear designed to preserve institutional hierarchy and prevent an influx of first-time lawmakers, many of them politically powerful, from immediately taking control of the chamber’s leadership.
For ambitious entrants like Uzodimma and others plotting a return or debut in the Senate, the message from the red chamber is clear: experience within its ranks, not political clout outside it, will determine who leads in the 11th National Assembly.
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