Politics

JUST IN: LP Carpets Soyinka Over Comments On Obi, Datti

Published

2 years ago

September 14, 2023

The leadership of Labour Party has chided Nobel laureate, Wole Soyinka, for accusing the opposition party of attempting to hoodwink Nigerians into believing that its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, won the February 25 election.

The objection is coming in the wake of Soyinka’s declaration on Wednesday at an event titled, “The Lives of Wole Soyinka — A Dialogue,” which was held in Stellenbosch, South Africa.

The renowned writer had claimed the party was aware Obi that came third but the leadership persisted on playing ‘Gbajue’ (to force a lie) on the people, especially the youthful population.

When further asked to clarify his previous statement on the LP vice presidential candidate, Datti Baba-Ahmed, after the general election, Soyinka reiterated that he was committed to the truth.

His utterances, however, didn’t sit well with the camp of Obi and the Labour Party.

Reacting in a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday, the National Publicity Secretary of LP, Obiora Ifoh, said Soyinka’s statement was not expected of someone who is highly revered as a “detribalised” statesman.

In the release titled, ‘Soyinka: Statesmen are not double-faced, not blind to truth,’ Ifoh noted that they couldn’t imagine that the playwright could stoop to the ‘groupthink syndrome’ based on “primordial considerations”.

A groupthink syndrome is a phenomenon that occurs when a group of individuals reaches a consensus without critical reasoning or evaluation of the consequences or alternatives.

He said, “Prof. Wole Soyinka is a Nigerian whose accomplishments in the literary world are without doubt intimidating. However, we beg to disagree with his prognosis and personal opinion on the performance of our party during the 2023 general elections. The facts are before the courts and, out of respect for our judiciary, we will reserve our comments until the Supreme Court makes a final pronouncement.

“We understand that the literary giant is human and thus susceptible to emotions and probably said what he said based on information made available to him by those who share the ‘Emilokan’ sentiment.

“It is most befuddling as well as disconcerting that a detribalised and activist like Soyinka would succumb to the ‘groupthink syndrome’ that subscribes to state capture by those belonging to the criminal fringe by any means, based on primordial considerations. We really appreciate him for at least giving some credits to Labour Party and its presidential candidate for breaking the monopoly of power hitherto held by the two other parties.”

Continuing, the spokesman also expressed disappointment that Soyinka decided to take sides rather than condemn some anomalies in the build-up to the last general elections and the abysmal performance of the Independent National Electoral Commission.

Ifoh, however, concluded that Soyinka is a Nigerian and equally entitled to his opinion.

“The whole world followed the 2023 general election and there was a global condemnation on not only the outcome of the election but also the process, particularly, the ‘glitch’ that occurred only during the transmission of presidential result to IREV. We didn’t hear as much as a whisper from Kongi on reminding INEC to stand by its word.

“We will not allege selective amnesia as the reason for Soyinka’s wrong prognosis but we would have expected him to be a statesman, which we thought he was by remaining on the side of caution. We want to also let him know that building a New Nigeria is a dream whose time has come and Nigerian youths will not relent until such a dream is realised,” he said.

Politics

JUST IN: Rivers Assembly Resumes Sitting After Six-month Suspension

Published

3 hours ago

September 18, 2025

Editor

The Rivers State House of Assembly has resumed plenary session after a six-month state of emergency imposed on the state by President Bola Tinubu elapsed on Thursday.

President Bola Tinubu had lifted the emergency rule on September 17, with the Governor of the state, Siminalayi Fubara; his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and members of the state assembly asked to resume duties on September 18.

The plenary is being presided by the Speaker of the House, Martins Amaewhule,at the conference hall located within the legislative quarters in Port Harcourt, the state capital.

The conference hall has served as the lawmakers’ temporary chamber since their official chamber at the assembly complex on Moscow Road was torched and later pulled down by the state government.

The outgone sole administrator of the state, Ibok-Ete Ibas, could not complete the reconstruction of the assembly complex.

On March 18, Tinubu declared emergency rule in the oil-rich state in the wake of a prolonged political crisis arising from the rift between Fubara and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

More to come…

Politics

JUST IN: Rivers Administrator Ibas Bows Out, Hands Over To Governor Fubara

Published

4 hours ago

September 18, 2025

Editor

The Sole Administrator of Rivers State, Rear Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd.), on Thursday, formally handed over power to Governor Siminalayi Fubara, marking the end of six months of emergency rule in the state.

In his farewell address at Government House, Port Harcourt, Ibas declared that his assignment, which began in March when President Bola Tinubu appointed him to stabilise the state amid political turmoil, had “restored law and order” and delivered what he described as “milestones of progress.”

He listed some of the achievements under his tenure to include the conduct of local government elections, the reconstitution of statutory boards, and the passage of the State’s 2025 budget by the National Assembly.

Reflecting on his stewardship, Ibas stressed the need for restraint and dialogue in the exercise of power.

“One of the enduring lessons of this season is that the exercise of power without restraint can cripple institutions, and rivalry without dialogue clearly endangers democracy,” he said.

Handing the reins of leadership back to Governor Fubara, he urged Rivers people to give the governor their full support.

“Now, as I hand back the reigns of leadership to His Excellency Governor Siminalayi Fubara, I do so with confidence and respect. I call all Rivers people to support him wholeheartedly because leadership and followership is a shared responsibility,” Ibas stated.

The retired naval chief, who previously served as Chief of Naval Staff and Nigeria’s ambassador to Ghana, described his service in Rivers State as “another chapter in a life devoted to service at sea, in diplomacy, and now in governance.”

In an emotional close, Ibas prayed for unity and stability in the state, “My dear people, may this state never again be brought to the brink of collapse. May we always choose unity over division, dialogue over discord, and progress over paralysis. The Garden City must never lose its fragrance. May God bless us all. May God bless Rivers State, and may God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Recall that President Tinubu had in March declared a state of emergency in Rivers following an escalating political crisis, suspending Governor Fubara, his deputy, and the State House of Assembly while dissolving political structures. Ibas was appointed sole administrator to restore order.

On Wednesday, however, Tinubu lifted the emergency rule, paving the way for the return of democratic governance and the reinstatement of Governor Fubara and other elected officials.

Politics

Anambra Govt Insists Ekwunife Retracts Defamatory Statements Against Soludo, Wife

Published

18 hours ago

September 17, 2025

Editor

The Anambra State Government has insisted that Senator Uche Ekwunife’s contrite apology must follow a personal and direct retraction of her defamatory statements against Governor Chukwuma Soludo and his wife, Nonye.

Senior Special Assistant to Governor Soludo on New Media, Ejimofor Opara, in a statement on Wednesday said Senator Ekwunife’s purported apology is another fabrication fit for the waste bin.

“Our attention has been drawn to a press statement purporting to emanate from an entity described as the “Ekwunife Campaign Organization” and captioned “EKWUNIFE CAMPAIGN ORGANIZATION DISOWNS AND CONDEMNS MALICIOUS ARTICLE ASSOCIATED WITH HER”. This purported apology from a seemingly fictitious organization raises more questions than answers,” Opara said.

“Worse still, the statement was signed by an unknown person who was not the source of Madam Ekwunife’s slur remarks against the Governor and his wife.

“The publication, authored by one Tony Ezike, Special Adviser, Media and Publicity, presents several issues: The publication purporting to be an apology for the defamatory statements made against the Governor and his wife personally by Senator Ekwunife, does not appear to have emanated from the Senator herself, given that her defamatory statements were made directly via recorded video and leaked audio conversation.”

Opara said it is a known fact that there is no campaign organization known as the Ekwunife Campaign Organization since Senator Ekwunife’s ticket is a joint one with the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

He said this suggests that the statement did not truly emanate from Senator Ekwunife and therefore cannot be credited to her, adding that at best, it may be a ploy to prevaricate the fundamental issues posed by the First Lady in her personally signed statement.

Opara added that wherein Soludo’s wife challenged Senator Ekwunife to two key issues, first of which, is that she, as a converted Catholic, agrees to swear to an oath before the blessed sacrament that she has not known any other man since her marriage to Chief Larry Ekwunife, and she (Dr. Nonye Soludo) would also do same.

The second is for her to accept an all expense paid DNA test of her four children, three of whom were allegedly fathered by men other than her husband. In like manner, Mrs Soludo would present her six children for same test.

Opara argued that the defamatory publications were directly made by Senator Ekwunife through audio recordings and statements, stressing that any apology or retraction should logically come from the same source to carry significance.

He added that sadly, the so-called apology never referenced Ekwunife’s initial video and audio but chose to focus on an unsigned article.

Opara further said: “The purported apology referencing an unknown article with unknown authors, only points to one thing, and that is her complicity directly or indirectly as the source of the article—which contains only one of the many accusations she made against the Governor’s wife—it implies that no genuine apology was intended or tendered.

“The publication is not considered an apology or retraction by Senator Ekwunife and is believed not to emanate from her. If she intended to apologize, she should present it in a manner that leaves no doubt about its source or reliability.

“More importantly, slander or libel directly made by an individual cannot be vicariously dismissed by any agent or person other than the individual who made them.

“We consider the purported apology as another unsubstantiated social media gossip/fabrication that is neither verifiable nor credible. It leaves ample room for plausible deniability.

“We will proceed as if this piece of propaganda never happened, while maintaining the position that a proper and direct retraction of all fabrications against the Governor and his wife by Senator Ekwunife is necessary.”

Opara added that such a retraction should be made through a medium that leaves no doubt about its authenticity.

Therefore, he said that a contrite apology must follow a personal and direct retraction of Ekwunife’s defamatory statements.