The Independent National Electoral Commission has announced Anambra State Governor, Charles Chukwuma Soludo, as winner of the November 8th Governorship election in the State.
Governor Soludo according to results from the 21 Local Government areas of the State won in all the Local Government areas of the State defeating 15 other candidates to secure his second term.
Governor Soludo polled a total of 422, 644 Votes to beat all challengers in a landslide victory with his closest challenger, Nicholas Ukachukwu, of the All Progressives Congress polling 99, 445 Votes.
Soludo a former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria and former Chief Economic Adviser to former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, is the third governor under the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance to govern Anambra State after Peter Obi and Willie Obiano.
Anambra State the home of the former Biafran Leader, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, has stayed loyal to the party the late Biafran leader founded during his lifetime and has once again confirmed that by choosing Charles Chukwuma Soludo for a second term in office.
The final result was announced by the returning officer for the Election Professor Edoba Bright Omoregie, Vice Chacellor of the University of Benin and a Senior Advocate Of Nigeria.
The All Progressives Congress has declared that it will put an end to the 19-year reign of the All Progressives Grand Alliance in Anambra State.
The National Chairman of the APC, Nentawe Yilwatda, said the party would defeat APGA in the November 8, 2025, governorship election.
Yilwatda stated this on Friday at the All Saints Anglican Church Cathedral, Onitsha, during the APC governorship campaign rally for its candidate, Nicholas Ukachukwu.
He described the APC as “a messenger of hope,” stating that he was in the state to deliver the message of hope.
“The APC will uproot APGA in the next remaining eight days and 196 hours to the November 8 governorship election. We in the APC cannot afford to allow APGA to continue governing an important state like Anambra as an adopted son when we have our own son in the person of Ukachukwu.”
Speaking at the rally, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, said the APC couldn’t afford to lose Anambra, adding that he would like the state to become the 25th APC-controlled state.
Ukachukwu expressed optimism that the APC would soon replace APGA’s “deceitful nonperformance” in the state with a high level of development in the nearest future.
“We will soon replace insecurity, multiple taxation, corruption, and nonperformance with adequate security, steady power supply, industrial development, and an agricultural chain,” Ukachukwu stated.
Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State and Chairman of the APC Governors’ Forum assured the electorate in the state that their votes would count in the coming election.
The State Chairman of the APC, Chief Basil Ejidike, and the National Coordinator of Ikemba Front, Arinze Awogu, in their separate speeches, expressed optimism that the APC would take over the Anambra Government House at Agu-Awka this time around.
Meanwhile, the state governor and APGA candidate, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, mocked the APC and its candidate for flagging off their campaign seven days before the election.
Soludo, while speaking at the APGA campaign rally held at Abagana, Njikoka Local Government Area of the state, said the APC campaign was proof that the party was not serious about the contest.
He urged the people to come out en masse on November 8 and vote out the APC and other opposition parties contesting the race.
Soludo said, “This is shocking and a mockery for a political party like the APC to flag off its campaign seven days before the voting process. Though it’s not a surprise, because its candidate is in the race to gain cheap popularity.
“Please, on the day of the election, step out en masse, collect their money, eat it, and vote them out.
“What I can tell you here today is that I have no competitor in this governorship race. What you have seen in the last three years of my administration in terms of transformation is evidence that we will win the election — and we can only win when we all go out and vote.” (Punch)
Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa State has resigned from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Diri, who announced this on Wednesday at the exco chamber in the Bayelsa State Government House.
He said his decision was for an obvious reason, but did not state the reason or the political party to which he will be moving.
“After extensive consultations, today, October 15, 2025, I wish to notify you that, in keeping with the extant protocols, I, Governor Douye Diri, do hereby resign my membership of the Peoples Democratic Party,” he announced.
The Deputy Governor, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, was absent, but the governor said all those not present at the meeting were on official assignments.
He also stated that the chairmen of all the local government areas will move with him.
His decision was backed by 23 members of the House of Assembly, led by the Speaker, Abraham Ngobere.
The meeting was attended by 10 members of the House of Assembly.
The 24-member House of Assembly has 20 PDP lawmakers, three All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmakers, and one member from the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).
The Speaker said the PDP does not have the ability to present a presidential candidate and win the 2027 election.
Diri’s defection came 24 hours after his Enugu State counterpart, Peter Mbah, dumped the party for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
Mbah officially dumped the PDP for the APC on Tuesday during a state-wide broadcast to the people of the state.
He said the move was driven by the need to better serve the interests of the people of the state, and not a betrayal.
“This is not a betrayal; it is also not abandoning.
“It is more about thinking I was entrusted with the people’s mandate by the people, and it is also a cost on me carrying that same mandate on a platform that will best serve the people,” the governor told journalists shortly after announcing his defection.
The two governors’ defection came months after Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State, and Akwa Ibom State Governor, Umo Eno, moved to the ruling party with all their officials and appointees earlier in the year.
But the PDP said it was disappointed by the defection of the Enugu governor to the APC.
It urged serving governors in the PDP to continue to recognise their role as leaders in the opposition party entrusted with political power by the people who voted for them.
“The PDP is utterly disappointed by those actions, having regard to what we know behind the scene. But having said that, people have a right to decide what they want to do; the consequences can follow,” the National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Debo Ologunagba, said on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Wednesday.
Ologunagba also said that the PDP was aware of moles undermining the party’s progress.
He, however, assured that the PDP national convention scheduled to be held in Ibadan, Oyo State, in November would help rejuvenate the party from its foundation and reposition it for future elections.
“There are some people from within our fold that continue the undermine the party and its progress. We recognise that, but we are dealing with that,” he added.
But President Bola Tinubu said the APC would not close its doors to members of the opposition parties who chose to join the ruling party.
He also said he would neither bother about the crisis in the opposition parties nor help them fix the problems, adding that it was a pleasure to see opposition parties in disarray.
“Political parties fearful of members leaving may be better served by examining their internal processes and affairs rather than fearfully conjuring up demons that do not exist,” Tinubu said while addressing the joint session of the National Assembly in commemoration of Democracy Day.
“For me, I will not say, ‘Try your best to put your house in order. I will not help you to do so either.’ It is indeed a pleasure to witness you in such disarray,” the President added amid cheers from supporters and federal lawmakers on the platform of the APC.
When formally received by the leadership of the APC, Diri’s defection will reduce the number of PDP governors in the South-East and South-South to one — Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State — and eight nationwide. (Channels)
Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, has officially dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC).
He made the declaration during a state-wide broadcast to the people of the state.
The governor defended his decision to switch camp, saying the move was necessitated to connect the South-Eastern state to the central government.
“There comes always a time when everyone must make a bold choice to determine their destiny. Today, after a long reflection, we have made a decision to leave the Peoples Democratic Party and join the All Progressives Congress,” Mbah stated.
The governor thanked the PDP for the support through the years, stressing that the shift is imperative to achieve his administration’s goals.
“To the Peoples Democratic Party which provided us the platform on which we campaigned and won, I extend deep gratitude. The PDP supported us through a demanding campaign and joined us in celebrating the victory.
“Leadership demands difficult, even painful decisions, in the service of higher principles and goals. And there comes always a time where everyone must make a bold choice to determine their destiny,” he added.
According to Mbah, his decision to join the APC is to better serve the people of Enugu and align with the party’s vision for development and progress.
The governor also reiterated his commitment to advancing the state’s interests and expressed confidence that the APC platform would provide greater opportunities for collaboration and growth.
Mbah also commended President Bola Tinubu’s policies, saying the state has enjoyed massive support under the President.
The PDP governor, moved to the ruling party with House of Assembly members, councillors, chairmen of councils and others.
His exit from the PDP will be followed by that of Bayelsa State Governor Duoye Diri, whose defection, it was learnt, had been finalised.
Delta State Governor Sheriff Obvwevori and Akwa Ibom State Governor Umo Eno moved to the ruling party with all their officials and appointees earlier in the year. (Channels)
Tributes poured in on Thursday as the Benue State House of Assembly held a valedictory session in honour of former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, who died on August 9, 2025, at the age of 78.
Governor Hyacinth Alia, represented by his deputy, Sam Ode, described Ogbeh as a statesman whose legacy embodied dedication, vision, and integrity.
He said, “Our father left a heritage. He demonstrated leadership quality, in fairness and served the people justly. From 2001 to 2005, Ogbeh was national chairman of PDP.
He was a workaholic and playwright, who carried the name of Benue with pride. He was an embodiment of integrity and an ambassador of the state, shining through his actions.”
Benue Assembly Speaker, Alfred Emberga, hailed Ogbeh as a selfless leader and brilliant legislator whose motions as a lawmaker consistently focused on the welfare and development of his constituents and the state at large.
Emberga said, “Chief Ogbeh demonstrated brilliance in service to his people and Nigeria. From his records as a member of the House, all his motions centred on the welfare and development of his people and the entire state. Our senior member was a very vocal and effective legislator who endeared himself to his constituents with activism. He served his people selflessly, and it behoves us to emulate him, having left an enduring legacy.”
Ogbeh’s political journey began in the Second Republic, when he represented Otukpa State Constituency of Ogbadibo Local Government Area between 1979 and 1982 and served as deputy speaker of the Benue State Assembly under the National Party of Nigeria.
He later rose to national prominence, becoming the chairman of the People’s Democratic Party from 2001 to 2005.
In later years, he became a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress and served as Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The valedictory session was attended by dignitaries, including a former deputy governor of the state, Steven Lawani, and several ex-lawmakers.
Representatives of the three senatorial districts — Cephas Dyakor, Jabi Sooke, and Samuel Agada — also paid glowing tributes, acknowledging Ogbeh’s immense contributions to legislative activities in the state and his enduring influence on upcoming legislators. (Punch)
A chieftain of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Abba Moro, says the party regrets fielding Atiku Abubakar as its presidential candidate in the 2023 elections.
Moro, a senator representing Benue South in the National Assembly, stated this on Channels Television’s Politics Today.
“As a result of how the election turned out and because the Nigerian people spoke, definitely, it [fielding Atiku] was an error,” the Senate Minority Leader said on Tuesday.
“To lose a very monumental election in that disastrous manner is certainly in for regret.”
The PDP lost the presidential election to the All Progressives Congress (APC), coming second in the exercise won by Bola Tinubu, the then-flagbearer of the ruling APC.
About two years after that defeat, Atiku dumped the PDP and has yet to announce his new party.
Though the 2027 general polls are barely two years away, there are rumours that the main opposition wants to persuade former President Goodluck Jonathan and ex-Anambra State governor, Peter Obi, to return to its fold.
Since Jonathan lost to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015, he has kept a low profile as he has not been seen at public functions within the PDP.
Similarly, Obi, who was running mate to Atiku in the 2019 elections, dumped the PDP for the Labour Party, where he later secured its presidential ticket for the 2023 polls.
He was said to have been frustrated out of the PDP, a claim that was corroborated by Moro.
But Moro said there were ongoing talks to persuade the duo to join the presidential race.
He added, “So, in the run-up to 2027, I am aware certain individuals have been talking to Peter Obi, ‘Hey, come back home, this is what we are likely to do, and if you come, you stand a chance of being the candidate’,” Moro said on the show.
When asked about the possibilities of ex-President Jonathan returning to the PDP, Senator Moro said, “Some persons are talking to the former president to come and run. It is a possibility”. (Channels)
President Bola Tinubu has condoled with the family, friends, and associates of Col Mohammed Mana (retd), a former military administrator of Plateau State and onetime senator, who passed away in the early hours of Saturday in Abuja.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain represented Adamawa North in the Senate between 2007 and 2011.
President Tinubu described Mana as a distinguished patriot and officer gentleman who gave much to his fatherland in and out of uniform.
The President lauded Mana’s commitments to the common good and a better society, saying his counsel and leadership would be sorely missed.
President Tinubu commiserated with the people and government of Adamawa State and members of the APC family in Adamawa, who benefited from Senator Mana’s wisdom.
Senator Mana was chairman of the party’s Reconciliation Committee until his death. (Vanguard)
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has stated that he will support those who support President Bola Tinubu, urging residents to “support those that the government will listen to.”, has stated that he will support those who support President Bola Tinubu, urging residents to “support those that the government will listen to.”
Wike made the statement while commending former Senator representing the FCT, Philip Aduda, and the Chairman of the Abuja Municipal Area Council, Christopher Maikalangu, during the flag-off of Lot 2 of Water Supply Projects in Karu, on Thursday.
The minister hailed both men for their capacity and for bringing development to the people, while promising the construction of a 2km road in Karu site, on the request of Aduda, adding that he will support those who continue to support the Tinubu-led administration.
He further commended the AMAC Chairman, Maikalangu, as “very good and hardworking”, noting that the latter had used his access to government to deliver several projects to his residents in the area council, adding that his administration will do, whatever he asked if he (Maikalangu) won his re-election bid as council chairman.
“There is a road where you said is about 2km, is it not? Consider it done. You know, one thing about government and politics, support those who have capacity to bring something to the people. Support those that government will listen to.
“From what happened now, you see that Aduda, government has his ear where he is. And that’s why government said where is that road he mentioned? Consider it done.
“You can see that since he (Maikalangu) became the Chairman of AMAC, he has brought government to do Saburi Road, he has brought the government to do Kabusa-Takushere Road, he has brought government to redo this road. He has brought government to do Deidei Road.
“For me, I’m here to talk about those who have access to government and bring something to the people.
“The chairman has access to us. Anything he tells us, we will do. This is the only man I know. If he wins as chairman of AMAC, we will give him whatever he wants. I don’t know the party he belongs to. But I know that he supports Tinubu. Anybody who supports Tinubu, I will support him,” Wike said.
The minister pointed out that past governments had failed to provide the needs of the people, particularly water supply to the communities in Karu, noting that the government of Tinubu has fulfilled its promise to provide potable water to satellite towns.
“We have had a government who stayed here for five years, isn’t that correct? We have had a government who stayed here for eight years too, is that correct? Has any government come to say, look, we will provide you water? Have you had water before? Did this government promise it will give you water? Have we come now to give you water?
“So, you believe you have a covenant with this government. And the covenant is like somebody said, agreement is agreement. So, the people of Karu, you will readily remember the government that remembers you, is it not correct?
“Will you remember those who had the opportunity and they refused to do anything for you? Will you remember those who left Karu unattended, will you remember them? So, we have come to fulfil the promise we made to you, that you must have clean and potable water,” he stated.
PUNCH Online reports that Aduda represented the FCT on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party between 2011 and 2015, and was re-elected in 2015 and again in 2019, before losing the seat in the 2023 general elections.
Meanwhile, Maikalangu is seeking re-election as Chairman of AMAC in the forthcoming February 2026 Area Council elections, on the platform of the ruling All Progressives Congress, after defecting from the PDP in 2024. (Punch)
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has accused President Bola Tinubu of weaponising anti-corruption agencies to pressure opposition leaders into defecting to the ruling All Progressives Congress.
In a statement posted on his verified Facebook page on Tuesday, Atiku lamented that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has been turned into a political tool.
On Monday, the EFCC detentained former Sokoto State Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal over alleged financial misconduct, it also invited former Imo State Governor Emeka Ihedioha over corruption allegations during his brief tenure.
Reacting, Atiku claimed Tambuwal’s detention was solely because he is a member of the coalition seeking to challenge President Tinubu in the 2027 elections.
He stated, “The only reason the EFCC has detained the former Governor of Sokoto State, Senator Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, is because he is a member of the opposition Coalition. It is a continuation of the Tinubu-led administration’s agenda to harrass, intimidate, and decimate the opposition.
“The reality unfolding before us today is that the Tinubu administration, as with other aspects, has objectified the fight against corruption as a political tool to coerce opposition leaders into the ruling party.
“We are living witnesses to a growing trend where the state and its operators have assumed the roles of a bully by making corruption and the fight against it a political agenda.
“Certainly, that is not the objective for which I worked hard during our administration to create the EFCC.”
Atiku stressed that while fighting corruption needs everyone’s support, using it as a political weapon must be condemned by civil society and Nigeria’s international partners.
The statement read in part, “It is as though today, anyone who associates with the opposition is a target for phantom corruption allegations and, it is as though, as soon as they are coerced into the political agenda of President Tinubu, their ‘sins’ are forgiven.
“That, definitely, is not how to build institutions. That, certainly, is not how to fight the monster of corruption. Indeed, such tendencies provide the stimulant for corruption to thrive
“We have seen how the EFCC has been used to empty opposition state governors into the ruling party, and the tea party is not about to end anytime soon.
“While the genuine fight against corruption is a matter that requires the total support of all Nigerians, the objectification of it as a political agenda should be roundly condemned by all in civil society spaces and friends of Nigeria in the international community.
Atiku vowed that opposition leaders would resist any anti-democratic attempts to force the nation into a one-party dictatorship. (Punch)
The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy Communication, Daniel Bwala, has dismissed speculations about former President Goodluck Jonathan posing a threat to Tinubu’s re-election bid in the 2027 general elections.
He also declared that no politician in Nigeria today has the capacity to defeat Tinubu at the polls.
Bwala, who was a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday, was asked if there is a need to worry over the recent clamour for Jonathan to run for office in 2027.
He said, “I see that some unscrupulous elements are trying to hoodwink former President Goodluck Jonathan to come into politics so they can destroy his reputation, which, after he left government, he has been building by becoming an international figure globally.
“And why do I say that? The southern Nigeria where President Goodluck Jonathan comes from, has all turned to us. You have seen governors coming.
The presidential aide also questioned the motives of northern political figures urging Jonathan to run, noting that some of these individuals were instrumental in opposing him during his presidency.
“The elements that are going to him in the north, asking him to come to run, were they not the ones that chased him away? “So what hope does he have that this time around, they are calling him because they mean well for him? Then look at the political class that is coming together to cajole him to come into politics. I know President Goodluck Jonathan is smarter than that.”
Bwala expressed confidence in Tinubu’s victory should Jonathan runs.
“But if President Jonathan decides to run, let me tell you, I have seen the political climate in Nigeria today, and I will speak to facts, not conjecture. There is not a single politician that has the capacity to knock off President Bola Tinubu.”
With the 2027 polls barely two years away, opposition figures, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, former Kaduna governor, Nasir El-Rufai, former Senate President, David Mark, among several others, are joining forces to sack the ruling All Progressives Congress.
Calls have also been made for former President Goodluck Jonathan to join the 2027 presidential race, although he has yet to make his position known publicly. (Punch)
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