News
Marriage of convinience in Imo as Okorocha, Araraume collapse support structures for PDP’s Anyanwu
In what is clearly self- preservation move, former Imo State governor Rochas Okorocha and long time fighter for the governor’s office, Senator Ifeanyi Ararume has declared their willingness to team up with the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for November governorship election, Senator Samuel Anyanwu with the aim of wrestling power from Governor Hope Uzodinma.
Okorocha and Ararume have been sworn political enemies for years but each of the two politicians has suffered humiliation from Governor Uzodinma in the last three years and some months.
Okorocha who preceded Uzodinma as governor has been facing series of corruption related charges said to be instigated by the Governor who recently received a report by a committee he set up to probe Okorocha’s landed property deals while in office.
On his part, Ararume has equally taken enough doses of Uzodinma’s political head-butt including the reversal of his appointment as Chairman of the Board of the NNPC by then president Muhammadu Buhari, an action said to be the handiwork of Hope Uzodinma.
So, on Tuesday, when the Imo State Chapter of the PDP inaugurated its campaign council for the November 11 governorship election, Rochas Okorocha and Senator Ifeanyi Araraume, two APC bigwigs openly endorsed the PDP candidate, Senator Samuel Anyanwu against Uzodinma who is the candidate of their party.
At the event which took place in Owerri, the state capital, several members of Okorocha’s Rescue Mission Group and Araraume’s Destiny Group announced their endorsement of Anyanwu adding that he was the only candidate who could wrest power from Uzodinma.
The council was inaugurated by the party’s Chairman, Mr Charles Ugwu.
Speaking on the development, Ugwu revealed that the campaign will have Ikenga Ugochinyere, a member of the Federal House of Representatives, as Director-General, and Prince Marshal Okoroaforanyanwu as Secretary.
He charged all party members to work towards ensuring the party’s victory in the election.
The Party’s Gubernatorial Candidate, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, during his speech, disclosed that he is in the race for the position of Governor to end killings and insecurity in the state, revamp the state’s health system and to restore the dignity of the workforce and pensioners alike.
He said that he would return tourism to the state and get the local governments working again. He charged the council not to be afraid, but to carry out its lawful duties and not be intimidated by any person or group.
“I will lead and I fear nobody. I want to stop the bloodletting and suffering in the land. Do not be afraid, I know where I’m coming from.
“I am your messenger and I will lead you right. My name is Samuel, God has spoken and I have heard”, he said.
Okoroaforanyanwu, secretary of the council said that the PDP’s choice of Anyanwu, who is from the Imo East senatorial district, favored the principle of equity.
He said the district had ruled the state for only seven months since the return of democratic rule in 1999.
The Enugu State Government has suspended His Royal Majesty, Igwe Eze William Ezugwu, the traditional ruler of Ibagwa Ogbozalla Opi Autonomous Community, in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu state.
The state government accused Igwe Ezugwu of violating provisions of the state’s Traditional Rulers Law.
In a letter of suspension dated September 24, the Enugu State Government cited his alleged failure to constitute his cabinet, failure to establish a Town Union governing body, and persistent conduct deemed inconsistent with the laws governing traditional rulers in the state.
The suspension comes barely three weeks after Igwe William Ezugwu received NDC presidential candidate Peter Obi at his palace in Opi, Nsukka LGA, where he reportedly blessed Obi’s presidential ambition.
The Deputy Commander of Operation Rainbow, CSP (Chief Superintendent of Police) Dennis David Babale, has been killed after gunmen suspected to be Fulani Bandits ambushed personnel of the security outfit along the Bokkos-Barkin Ladi road in Barkin Ladi Local Government Area of Plateau State.
Operation Rainbow is a State-backed community security and intelligence-gathering outfit in Plateau State, Nigeria, originally established in 2010 under former Governor Jonah Jang and recently revamped by Governor Caleb Mutfwang to combat rural violence and beef up grassroots security.
The incident reportedly occurred at about 4:06 p.m. on Tuesday, September 22, 2026 when the personnel, travelling in a Toyota Hilux vehicle, came under attack by unidentified gunmen.
Troops of Sector 4, Operation ENDURING PEACE (OPEP), responded to a distress report and moved to the location of the attack.
Sources told reporters that Babale sustained gunshot wounds during the ambush and was evacuated to the General Hospital, Barkin Ladi, for medical attention.
Following the attack, troops, working alongside personnel of other security agencies, launched offensive operations and a manhunt for the assailants within the general area.
Security forces have intensified efforts to track the attackers and prevent further attacks along the route.
Director General/CEO of the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) and Nigeria’s Permanent Representative at the World Meteorological Organization, Prof. Charles Anosike and other Chief Executive Officers of similar agencies across the world, have concluded a one week high level dialogue on Climate Science Information for Climate Finance and the 53rd Senior Official Field Exchange (SOFE) in Beijing, China.
The event which was hosted by World Meteorological Organization (WMO), took place from September 14 to 18, 2026 and featured discussions on: strengthening the role and leadership development of National Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHSs) in mobilizing climate finance; aligning scientific and technical capabilities with risk-informed, people-centred early warning systems; shifting from technical assistance to sustainable investments by expanding practical cooperation between meteorological frameworks and multilateral financing entities; and support to NMHSs leadership on strengthening strategic thinking and fostering productive partnerships.
Held back-to-back with the High-level dialogue was the 53rd Senior Official Field Exchange to Fujian Province for first-hand exposure to the implementation of Multi-hazard, Alert, Zero-gap and Universal (MAZU) platform – China’s AI-driven meteorological early warning solution in support of the Early Warnings for All (EW4All) initiative and disaster risk reduction practices through technical exchanges, field visits and peer learning.
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