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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 legal team of suspended Kogi Central Senator, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, say they are ready with factil evidence to defend her in court.
The team received a formal summons in the case filed against her by the Federal Government at the Federal Capital Territory High Court last week.
On Friday, May 16, 2025, the Federal Government filed the suit, marked CR/297/25, over alleged defamatory remarks made during a live appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today on April 3, 2025.
The government accused the senator of “making imputation knowing or having reason to believe that such imputation will harm the reputation of a person”, citing Section 391 of the Penal Code, cap 89, Laws of the Federation, 1990.
Among the witnesses listed to testify during the trial were Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, and a former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello.
Others include Asuquo Ekpenyong, a senator; Sandra Duru; Maya Iliya, investigating police officers; and Abdulhafiz Garba, investigating police officers.
However, in a statement issued Friday night by Dr. Ehiogie West-Idahosa (SAN) on behalf of the legal team, Akpoti-Uduaghan’s lawyers confirmed receipt of the formal summons and pledged to prepare all “factual and statutory defences” available to the lawmaker during trial.
“At about 2:30pm on Friday, May 23, 2025, within the premises of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, we received the information filed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, containing three counts alleging that our client, Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan of Kogi Central, made imputations she had reason to believe would harm the reputation of Senator Godswill Akpabio, President of the 10th Senate,” the statement read.
“We received the said information on her behalf through a letter of authority duly issued and filed in the court’s registry.
“The legal team will fully prepare and present all factual and statutory defences available to our client during the trial.”
The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) will on Tuesday next week begin the take over of 4,794 properties in Abuja, including the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) headquarters, due to unpaid ground rent.
The PDP headquarters, currently under construction in Abuja’s Central Business District, is among the affected properties, having been revoked in March for several years of unpaid ground rent. The FCTA disclosed that 4,794 titles had been revoked for failure to pay ground rent, with some defaults dating back 43 years.
The affected properties are located in various districts, including Central Area, Garki I and II, Wuse I and II, Asokoro, Maitama, and Guzape.
The defaulters owe over N6.96 billion in ground rent. The FCTA had given a 21-day grace period for owners with debts under 10 years, which has now expired.
The FCTA officials announced that the takeover would begin on Monday, May 26, 2025, with the sealing off and restriction of access to the affected properties.
The Director of Land Administration, Chijioke Nwankwoeze emphasized that the revocations were carried out under Section 28(5)(a)(b) of the Land Use Act, which empowers the government to reclaim land when the terms of occupancy are violated.
Two people sustained serious injuries when a training aircraft crash-landed at the Ilorin International Airport on Friday.
Director of Public Affairs and Family Assistance, NSIB, Mrs Bimbo Oladeji, who disclosed this in a statement, said the incident occurred at 17:28 local time on May 23, 2025, during a simulated instrument approach on Runway 05 at Ilorin International Airport.
Oladeji said the aircraft veered off the runway and came to a stop on the grass verge, leaving the two occupants on board injured.
She stated: “Both sustained serious injuries and were swiftly evacuated to a medical facility, coordinated by the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA.
“In response, the NSIB Go-Team is currently preparing to depart from Abuja to Ilorin to conduct on-site investigations. The team will secure the site, collect physical evidence, interview witnesses, and retrieve operational data to establish the cause and contributing factors of the incident.”
Quoting the Director General of the NSIB, Captain Alex Badeh Jr., she said “Our thoughts are with the injured, and we commend the swift medical and emergency response. Now, our focus is on understanding exactly what went wrong. Every investigation is an opportunity to improve safety. We are deploying our team to Ilorin to ensure that no detail is overlooked.”
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