The National Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Professor Nentawe Yilwatda, has declined to endorse Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, for another term as head of the National Assembly ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Yilwadta said he has no preferred candidate for the position, insisting that the decision would rest entirely with senators elected into the next National Assembly.

He made the remarks on Monday during an appearance on Channels Television’s Politics Today programme.

Asked whether the APC would return Akpabio as Senate President if he wins re-election, Yilwatda responded: “Let’s wait for the election first. I don’t have anybody in mind. The Senate will determine who they want to make the Senate President.”

His response comes despite growing support for Akpabio’s bid to retain the position beyond the current legislative term.

In October, senators publicly backed Akpabio’s return as President of the 11th Senate, with some lawmakers declaring that there would be no vacancy in the position.

Akpabio, who has led the Senate since June 2023, is seeking another term in the National Assembly.

However, Yilwatda’s remarks suggest that the APC leadership is not publicly committing itself to any candidate for the Senate presidency before the elections.

The Senate President is elected by members of the upper legislative chamber, meaning Akpabio would still need the support of his colleagues to retain the position even if he wins re-election.

During the same interview, Yilwatda also defended President Bola Tinubu’s physical fitness ahead of the 2027 presidential election and accused opposition parties of relying on blackmail during political campaigns.

The Senator representing Anambra Central, Victor Umeh, has warned Governor Chukwuma Soludo not to commit treachery against the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, in the name of politics.

Umeh pointedly warned Soludo that his unwarranted attacks on Peter Obi would lead to a fight.

The lawmaker issued the warning while speaking at an unnamed gathering in the State, which was captured in a viral video.

Umeh unapologetically said any Igbo person who refuses to vote for Obi is an enemy of the race.

“People are saying that we have to support another person; if we do that, we are destroying ourselves. I’m an Igbo activist, and you can hear my voice in the Senate on all issues of national importance and particularly those that affect the Igbo.

“Peter is our conscience in this election. Any Igbo man who stands up to say we will not vote for Peter Obi is an enemy of the Igbo people, no matter who the person is.

“Nobody can try it here; I have been hearing a lot of things going on in this State. This government; I helped in installing it; nobody came here to be Governor of Anambra State since 2003 without my input. This one that his serving; I was a principal contributor to his ascending that office; he is holding that office in trust for all of us.

“Anything he does in that office, he must discharge it with honour and nobility, and it’s not by sabotaging our own brother.

“I’m saying it so that anybody who sees him can tell me that we don’t want to fight, but he should not commit what is called an abomination by wanting to destroy his brother in the name of politics.

“Nobody on the side is saying support Peter Obi. Everybody on the other side is saying support Tinubu. But we are saying let us stand for the truth. Peter Obi; this is the time, and if he makes it, the Igbo have made it.”

British Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, has said US President Donald Trump deserves his party’s defeat in the country’s midterm elections, accusing him of abandoning conservative principles through his handling of the Iran war, trade policies and treatment of international allies.

Badenoch described the Republican Party’s electoral setback as “entirely self-inflicted” and criticised what she called Trump’s “dirty” style of politics during an interview with The Independent Editor-in-Chief, Geordie Greig, the newspaper reported at the weekend.

The Democrats secured control of both chambers of Congress in Tuesday’s midterm elections, gaining at least seven Senate seats and more than two dozen House districts in a major blow to Trump and his Republican Party.

Asked whether Trump deserved the defeat, Badenoch replied: “Yeah. He has not been acting in the way that I would consider conservative.”

She faulted the US president’s tariff policies, threats against Canada and Greenland, and strained relations with Washington’s allies, arguing that his approach contradicted conservative principles of free markets and international trade.

“Where is the push for free markets and better trade… rather than protectionism, America first, the squabbling with allies? That’s not what conservatives do,” she said.

The Conservative leader also condemned Trump’s personal attacks on journalists and political figures, arguing that his conduct fell short of the standards expected of a statesman.

“Trump is very charming in person, but you see the way that he talks about journalists, about individuals. It doesn’t meet the standards a statesman should meet – always wanting to get dirty in terms of insults and so on,” she said.

Badenoch expressed particular displeasure with Trump’s remarks about British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, while describing his treatment of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House as “awful”.

On the Iran war, however, she said she understood and supported Trump’s initial decision to launch military action, citing concerns over Iran’s potential acquisition of nuclear weapons.

She nevertheless questioned the administration’s broader military objectives and the absence of a clearly defined strategy.

“We don’t want them getting nuclear weapons. But where’s the plan?” she asked.

Badenoch also revealed that she would have been comfortable with Trump losing the 2024 US presidential election to his Democratic challenger, Kamala Harris.

Asked which candidate she preferred, she responded: “I would say I like them both equally. Make of that what you will.”