Politics
Who But Ighodalo Can Make Edo People Smile Again?
Published
1 year agoon
By
Editor
By Elvis Osarogiagbon
When the lawyer and development savvy technocrat, Dr Asue Ighodalo, told his media dominated gathering that his decision to rest his plump positions in different blue chip organisations to contest the Edo governorship seat was deliberate and well-thought out, not one person in the audience had a single doubt in their minds that he wouldn’t be able to use his thoughts and ideas to help Edo State hit the ambitious socio-economic development targets he had set.
Boldly stating his desire to move Edo State from her status as a third world subnational into the first world is as daring a campaign statement as they come.
And with recent political events where the main opposition party in the state demonstrated political rudderlessness and an embarrassing lack of tact as an unrepentant godfather selected his unprepared godson; one is led to believe that the political runway is now clear for Dr. Asue Ighodalo’s ambition to serve Edo people, to take off.
The intrepid reader is enjoined to look around; for a moment. Now answer this: Who among these aspirants – without any bias – has the national and international exposure like the frontline PDP aspirant to deliver on their verbose promises? Which of them can boast of higher levels of competence or compassion?
READ ALSO: Gale Of Endorsement, Testament Of Ighodalo’s Public Acceptance
Apart from Ighodalo, who among them has shown the tenacity and clarity of vision needed to govern successfully in times as difficult as these?
While the so-called opponents, have no verifiable credible socio-economic development achievements in whatever manner particular, either in the local, national and international arenas, Ighodalo’s avalanche achievements speak volumes of his capacity and capabilities to deliver any day on his set goals and objectives.
There is an adage in Bini that says it is that man who is overfed and has enough to throw around that will show willingness to share. Obviously, Ighodalo – bursting at the seams with experience and intellect – is the quintessential Edo man that typifies the adage.
Yet Barr. Ighodalo is the model of humility. There is no air of entitlement around him. Perhaps that is why he appears to be the only aspirant reaching out to meet the people where they are – in their markets, schools, churches, weddings, funerals. Like the popular MTN advert, one finds him ‘everywhere you go’.
READ ALSO: Edo PDP Explains Why It Rejected Ighodalo’s Endorsement
So perhaps it is this cornucopia of characteristics; his humility, competence, capacity and compassion; that have propelled the former Chairman of Sterling Bank Plc and Nigerian Breweries into the hearts of Edo people as they prepare to elect their next governor on Sept.21.
Asue Ighodalo’s penchant for success through cutting edge tech solutions, became visible once again when he assumed board membership of the Okomu Oil Palm Company PLC.
Variable statistics show that
in the first nine months of 2023, the company’s profit after tax grew to N20.9 billion from N18.1 billion in the same period of 2022.
According to Mr. Chukwuebuka Omerole, the company’s secretary, turnover increased to N60.1 billion from N50.2 billion
Only a man with the midas touch such as Asue Ighodalo, unquenchable drive to excel, is ready and willing to bring such expertise in the area of corporate and project financing, securities and capital markets, energy and natural resources, mergers and acquisitions and banking and securitization to turn the fortunes of Edo around for the better.
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Politics
VIDEO: How Peter Obi Betrayed Me – Kenneth Okonkwo In New Interview
Published
1 day agoon
June 14, 2025By
Editor
Veteran actor and ex-spokesperson of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, Kenneth Okonkwo, has accused former presidential candidate, Peter Obi, of betrayal in the wake of internal party disputes.
In a viral interview with Symfoni which started trending on Saturday, Okonkwo, who officially exited the Labour Party in February 2025, revealed that Obi went against his advice and returned to support the embattled Julius Abure-led faction of the party, despite alleged warnings.
According to him, Obi was misled by LP executives who claimed that the Independent National Electoral Commission had recognised them.
He said, “Any politician that knows what he’s doing cannot be betrayed by another. If there is anybody that betrayed the other, I can say it emphatically that Peter Obi betrayed me.
READ ALSO: Nigeria No Longer A Democracy, Peter Obi Laments
“The Julius Abure-led LP members lied to Obi that the Independent National Electoral Commission had accepted them and Obi surreptitiously went back to them but I told him: ‘Sir, you have made a public statement on integrity and even if INEC has accepted them, that is not a criterion for you to go back and start dealing with them because they have shown that they are not democratic. If you go back to them, they will destroy your political career and everything you have said about integrity will die.’”
He said that despite privately urging Obi not to align with a group he described as “undemocratic” and “agents of the government,” Okonkwo said Obi went ahead to publicly endorse them.
“I told Obi that these people had become agents in the hands of the government to destabilise him. What they did was absolutely illegal and unconstitutional, I told him that if he went back to them, I wouldn’t join him in doing so.
“Thereafter, I called all the people that were in the inner circle and told them the same thing about what Obi was trying to do. I told them he wanted to go back with the Abure people and if he did, I wouldn’t go back with him because I do not swallow back my words.
READ ALSO: Teen Who Stood In Front Of Peter Obi’s Convoy Freed After Months In Kirikiri
“And after saying all those things, within like 72 hours, Obi went back to Abure’s office to publicly endorse them and while he was there talking to them, one of the leaders in that executive sent me the video to mock me that the person I was fighting for against them has come to their office to endorse them.
“It was when INEC dissociated itself from Abure that Obi came out to start acting neutral but I told him he could not be neutral and something had to be done,” he added.
The Labour Party has been embroiled in a prolonged leadership crisis, with opposing factions laying claim to the party’s national structure.
The Abure-led faction has faced allegations of financial mismanagement and anti-democratic practices, which critics say contradict the party’s reformist image.
Okonkwo, a known loyalist of Obi’s political ideology, cited these irregularities as his reason for quitting the party earlier in the year.
Watch video below:
https://twitter.com/i/status/1933867577651925202https://twitter.com/i/status/1933867577651925202
Politics
Amaechi Slams Tinubu’s Policies In Fresh Outburst
Published
3 days agoon
June 12, 2025By
Editor
Former Minister of Transportation and two-time governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi, has asked the coalition opposition to kick President Bola Tinubu out of office if Nigeria is to escape its deepening economic crisis.
In a no-holds-barred interview with the BBC, Amaechi, a founding member and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, lamented the country’s deteriorating condition and signalled his willingness to help forge a new opposition coalition to rescue the nation.
“People are dying. People are starving. I myself am feeling the effects of hunger,” he said, painting a grim picture of life under the current administration.
Amaechi’s statement comes in the wake of the APC’s recent endorsement of Tinubu as its sole presidential candidate for 2027, a move Amaechi openly questioned.
READ ALSO: I Don’t Want To Join Issues With Children, Amaechi Hits Back At Wike
While reiterating his loyalty to the party, he warned that fidelity to a political platform should never come at the cost of national conscience.
“If the government is failing the country, you don’t just go along because you’re in the same party. You know that’s not right,” he stated emphatically.
Though he stopped short of confirming a 2027 presidential bid, the former minister said the option remained on the table.
“Certainly, I believe I can make a meaningful contribution,” he added, hinting that his political journey may not yet be over.
READ ALSO: Democracy Day: Gov. Mohammed Advocates Unity, Good Governance
He spoke of widespread poverty, spiralling food insecurity, and daily tragedies that now dot the national landscape.
Reflecting on his years as Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Amaechi lamented that the number of out-of-school children then pegged at 10 million, had since ballooned.
The economic hardship, he said, had also deepened insecurity.
“The Boko Haram insurgency is not just a religious crisis. Many of those involved are driven by desperation and hunger,” he asserted, linking terrorism, banditry, and kidnapping to a broader socioeconomic collapse.
Amaechi’s declaration added momentum to an emerging political realignment.
Talks were already underway among key opposition figures, including Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party and Peter Obi of the Labour Party, as they explored the possibility of a unified front against Tinubu in 2027.
Even ex-Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State and once a key Tinubu ally had signalled interest in backing an opposition alliance.
But as opposition forces stir, the ruling party continues to absorb defectors, prompting fears of Nigeria drifting toward a one-party state, a scenario Amaechi warned could undermine democracy and silence dissent.
“We’re thinking that if we come together and win the election, the country will certainly witness change,” he said, suggesting an urgent need for a credible alternative.

A student of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka’s with the overall best graduating CGPA of 4.98, Chizoba Ejiofor, has secured a fully funded Commonwealth scholarship.
Education advocate and tech entrepreneur Alex Onyia, who made this known on social media on Thursday, said he had taken responsibility for supporting Ejiofor after the university failed to award him the promised N50,000 prize for academic excellence.
“I have a good news. A very good news. You remember Chizoba Ejiofor, who graduated as UNN overall best graduating student with CGPA of 4.98, that UNN refused to fulfill the N50k price promised to him?
READ ALSO: Crisis Brews In UNN As Court Restrains Varsity From Conducting Convocation Election
“I took him up as a full responsibility. We started working tirelessly together since last year to secure a fully funded scholarship, and today we have the good news,” Onyia wrote.
Onyia revealed that Ejiofor was awarded a fully funded Commonwealth scholarship, valued at over £33,000. The package includes tuition, flight tickets, and monthly stipends.
“This is fully funded scholarship from Commonwealth. Over 33 thousand pounds in scholarship, flight tickets and monthly stipends inclusive. No one can describe how happy and fulfilled I am today,” he added.
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