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Why PDP May Lose Abia State – Senator Wabara
A former Senate President and the Secretary, Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party, Dr. Adolphus Wabara, has warned the Abia State government and the party that they will lose the state if another Ngwa man tries to succeed Ikpeazu.
Speaking with newsmen in Umuahia Monday, Wabara warned that any attempt to make another Ngwa man succeed Gov Okezie Ikpeazu, who is also an Ngwa man, will be counter productive for the PDP, while the party might get a protest vote in Abia come 2023.
“If Ukwa clan should not be considered because it belongs to Abia South Senatorial zone where power currently resides, then power should move back to Abia North where it started from in 1999,” he said, noting further that, “anything short of allowing power to come to Ukwa or rotate back to Abia North in 2023 would spell doom for the PDP.”
He said he was raising the alarm because of his love for the PDP, and advised the party in the state not to toy with the Abia Charter of Equity and zoning arrangement for which the party is known.
“Zoning is an integral part of the PDP. The Abia State PDP should learn from our national leadership and respect zoning. Our party shall not be doing the right thing at the centre and here somebody will be acting with impunity.
“No single person has the authority to decide the next governor of the state. The party caucus, elders and stakeholders will have to meet.
“Gov. Ikpeazu’s successor may be the governor’s choice but that should only happen after the right thing has been done in line with the constitution of our great party, which is macro zoning to Ukwa or Abia North.
“I am saying this because of my love for our great party, which of course enjoys large followership in Abia. But if the PDP leadership doesn’t do the right thing, the party will get protest vote in 2023.
“Abians will vote the PDP 85% but if the governorship ticket is not ceded to Ukwa or Abia North in line with power rotation arrangement, there will be a protest vote.
“Abia is not ready for Ngwa back to back thing. What they are doing now is exactly why the PDP lost Plateau State to the APC in 2015. Ukwa or Abia North should produce Ikpeazu’s successor,” Wabara cautioned.
Last month, the immediate past governor of the state and Senator representing Abia Central, Senator Theodore Orji, had warned that anybody working against power rotation arrangement, which is in tandem with the Abia Charter of Equity, would be embarking on a dangerous political voyage.
Gov Okezie Ikpeazu’s kinsmen, through the Ngwa Council of Elders led by Dr. Max Nduaguibe, have been advocating that the Abia South retains power for another eight years and vehemently opposed to the agitation for rotation of power to the North, insisting that the Ngwa clan in Abia Central will take over from Ikpeazu.
The Punch
The first hostages freed from Gaza under a long-awaited ceasefire agreement are back in Israel. The news sparked jubilant scenes in Tel Aviv where large crowds gathered ahead of their release.
The three freed Israeli hostages – the first of 33 to be released over the next six weeks – are Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari. They are said to be in good health and are receiving treatment at a medical center in Tel Aviv.
In exchange, 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees are set to be released by Israel from Ofer Prison in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli military withdrew from several locations in southern and northern Gaza after the truce began earlier on Sunday, an Israeli military official told CNN.
Displaced Gazans have started returning to their homes, while the aid trucks laden with much-needed supplies have crossed into Gaza. Here’s what we know about how the ceasefire deal will work.
Hamas, despite suffering devastating losses, is framing the Gaza ceasefire agreement as a victory for itself, and a failure for Israel.
One of Hamas’ main goals for taking some 250 people during its brazen October 7, 2023, attack on Israel was to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. As Israel pounded Gaza in response, Hamas vowed not to return the hostages until Israel withdrew its forces from the enclave, permanently ended the war, and allowed for rebuilding.
Source: CNN
The leader of UK’s Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has said she doesn’t want Britain to be like Nigeria that is plagued by “terrible governments.”
Speaking on Thursday at an event organised by Onward, a British think tank producing research on economic and social issues, Badenoch expressed fears that Britain may become like Nigeria if the system is not reformed.
“And why does this matter so much to me? It’s because I know what it is like to have something and then to lose it,” Badenoch told the audience.
“I don’t want Britain to lose what it has.
“I grew up in a poor country and watched my relatively wealthy family become poorer and poorer, despite working harder and harder as their money disappeared with inflation.
“I came back to the UK aged 16 with my father’s last £100 in the hope of a better life.
“So I have lived with the consequences of terrible governments that destroy lives, and I never, ever want it to happen here.”
Badenoch has been in the news of late after she dissociated herself from Nigeria, saying she has nothing to do with the Islamic northern region.
She also accused the Nigeria Police of robbing citizens instead of protecting them.
She said: “My experience with the Nigeria Police was very negative. Coming to the UK, my experience with the British Police was very positive.
“The police in Nigeria will rob us (laughter). When people say I have this bad experience with the police because I’m black, I say well…I remember the police stole my brother’s shoe and his watch.”
President Bola Tinubu has said Nigeria is ready to work with other nations to build a resilient, equitable, and sustainable world for all.
Tinubu spoke in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, on the second day of the 2025 Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.
The president spoke on the topic, “From Climate Imperatives into Economic Prosperity: Bridging Africa with the Global Energy Future.”
He declared that no single nation could walk the road to sustainability alone, stressing that global interconnectedness demand collective action, knowledge sharing, and mutual support.
According to Tinubu, “The fight against climate change is not merely an environmental necessity but a global economic opportunity to reshape the trajectory of our continent and the global energy landscape.
“As leaders, stakeholders and citizens of our planet, we stand at a critical juncture in human history. To succeed, we must innovate, collaborate and act decisively as one global community.”
Reiterating his administration’s commitment to reducing carbon emissions, Tinubu assured the audience that the Nigerian government had developed actionable programmes in line with global expectations, bearing in mind Nigeria’s economic and political expectations.
He said, “We have embraced a vision of sustainability that aligns with global aspirations while addressing local realities. Our efforts are anchored on three pillars: Energy Transition, Climate Resilience, and Sustainable Development.
“My administration recognises the importance of reducing carbon emissions and a just transition to clean and renewable energy, promoting environmental sustainability and economic growth.
