In a subtle hint that Owerri Zone will occupy the Governorship seat of Imo State in 2028, Governor Hope Uzodimma explained on Saturday, April 18, why he decided not to encourage Dr Mcdonald Ebere, to continue in office as the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Imo State Chapter.
The Governor spoke in Owerri on Saturday at a civic reception organised in honour of Dr. Ebere to mark the end of his successful tenure as the State Chairman of the Imo APC.
Dr Ebere, who is from the Owerri Senatorial Zone, gave way to a successor from Orlu, an indication, thanks to Uzodimma, that Orlu Zone, which had monopolised the Governorship seat for nearly 24 years will give way to somebody from another Zone, most likely, Owerri Zone, since it is, also, taken for granted that the other Political Parties, especially, the African Democratic Congress, ADC, will field candidates from the Zone.
Said Uzodimma of the change of baton: Although Ebere could have remained State Party Chairman, “considerations of equity and political stability necessitated leadership changes”
Uzodimma also used the occasion to canvass for the ongoing development efforts of government in Owerri, the Imo State capital, and lauded Dr. Ebere for his contribution to the growth of the Party in the State.
Describing Ebere as “one of our best” during the grand civic reception, Uzodimma said the gathering was primarily to thank God for Ebere’s successful tenure and his new appointment, which he attributed to “the goodness of the Lord and the wisdom” of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The Governor noted that although Ebere could have remained State Party Chairman, “considerations of equity and political stability necessitated leadership changes.”
He highlighted his personal ties to Ebere, stating, “He is not just my political friend; his wife is my cousin. Our relationship is organic.”
Uzodimma used the occasion to reaffirm his administration’s commitment to developing Owerri as the State capital, stressing that “if Owerri looks good, Imo looks good.”
He further disclosed that the State government is implementing a 25-year Development Plan already approved by the House of Assembly, and cautioned against illegal land occupation.
The Governor insisted that all land falls under government control as stipulated by law, warning, “Stop taking government land unlawfully. If land is needed, approach the government.”
He urged residents to support ongoing development efforts, insisting that a befitting Capital City is essential for the State’s progress and pride.
Speaking earlier, Sir Ebere expressed deep gratitude to Governor Uzodimma, President Tinubu, the leadership and members of the APC, and the people of Owerri Zone for the faith reposed in him, and vowed his continued loyalty to the Party.
He thanked Governor Uzodimma for his unwavering support over the past 24 years, saying, “without you, I wouldn’t be here today.”
Ebere emphasised the Governor’s pivotal role in his academic and political journey.
Reflecting on his tenure as Party Chairman, Ebere thanked the Governor for guidance and support that ensured his success, and apologised for any hurt caused during his tenure.
He further used the opportunity to request for reallocation of Area ‘k’ land to Owerri people as they have lost most of their indigenous land to the capital development; as well as sought financial support for a young boy’s kidney transplant.
Professor Pat Utomi has once again chosen to dance naked in the public square, playing to the gallery with a familiar cocktail of grandstanding and gloom. This time, he has come to dismiss the reform programme of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu as “ridiculous,” “poorly structured,” and, in a flourish of intellectual overreach, a “Ponzi scheme.”
At this point, the issue is no longer what Utomi is saying. The issue is why his interventions consistently collapse under the weight of their own exaggeration, under the slightest scrutiny or interrogation.
Any reflective — indeed, discerning — mind would note that, after all these long years of sophistry and vacuous pontifications, all Utomi can possibly point to as his bonafides or bragging rights in the civic space today are the ruins of Volkswagen Automobile Ltd and BankPHB where his much touted “academic wizardry” was exposed as “Ponzi scheme”.
An Economy of Words, Not Results
Utomi’s public persona has long rested on the alarmist aura of a “political economist.” But strip away the titles, the panels, and the endless commentary, and a more uncomfortable question emerges: where is the evidence of all his posturings in the public space?
Nigeria’s economic distortions did not emerge in a vacuum. They were sustained over decades by a rotating class of commentators and advisers who:
• theorized dysfunction instead of dismantling it
• intellectualized failure instead of correcting it
• and, crucially, found relevance within a broken system.
Utomi was not outside that ecosystem. He was part of it. Contrast this with measurable shifts under the current reform cycle:
• Fuel subsidy removal (May 2023): eliminated a multi-trillion-naira fiscal drain, freeing up revenues for subnational allocations and deficit reduction.
Sunday Dare
• Exchange rate unification: collapsed multiple FX windows into a single market-reflective rate—an essential step flagged for years by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. (The actual “Ponzi scheme” that benefited a few with privileged access through arbitrage.)
These are not theoretical positions. They are structural actions with verifiable fiscal impact.
From Insider Comfort to Outsider Outrage
There is a pattern here that is too glaring to ignore. For years, the rent-seeking architecture of Nigeria’s economy—subsidy leakages, FX arbitrage, policy opacity—created space for a certain kind of “expert”: visible, vocal, and perpetually adjacent to power, yet rarely accountable for outcomes.
Now, that architecture is being disrupted. And suddenly, the volume of outrage has gone up. This is not a coincidence. It is a reaction.
When a system that once rewarded commentary begins to prioritize structural correction, those who thrived in the old order often rebrand themselves as its fiercest critics. Not out of principle—but out of displacement.
Meanwhile, early macro signals are adjusting:
• Oil revenue remittances have improved post-subsidy removal and reforms in NNPCL transparency frameworks.
• External reserves stability has strengthened relative to pre-reform volatility cycles.
• Debt service-to-revenue pressure has begun easing marginally as fiscal leakages are curtailed.
The “Ponzi Scheme” Claim: A Collapse of Serious Thinking
Let’s be blunt. Calling a national reform programme a “Ponzi scheme” is not provocative—it is intellectually hollow.
A Ponzi scheme is built on deception and zero value creation. Nigeria’s reforms—however painful—are attempting to:
• eliminate fiscal leakages
• restore price discovery in the FX market
• rebuild macroeconomic credibility
If anything resembled a Ponzi structure, it was the previous regime of:
• borrowing to sustain consumption.
• subsidizing inefficiency at scale.
• masking structural weakness with artificial stability.
An economy that sustained the likes of Utomi and his “Patitio’s gang” of economic bucaneers. Utomi’s analogy does not expose the present—it exposes a troubling looseness in his analytical discipline.He ignores the fact that investor-facing fundamentals are being reset:
• FX backlog clearance efforts have improved confidence among foreign portfolio investors.
Under the Tinubu administration, policy signaling now aligns more closely with orthodox macroeconomic frameworks.
Noise Without Substance
What is most striking is not the criticism—it is the emptiness behind it.
Utomi offers:
* no coherent alternative framework.
* no credible sequencing model.
* no fiscal pathway that avoids the very crisis he warns about
•Just declarations. Just alarm. Just noise. For someone positioned as a thought leader, this is a remarkably thin offering. In contrast, reform-linked institutional moves are underway:
• Tax reform architecture (2025 Acts) aimed at broadening the base and improving compliance efficiency.
• e-invoicing rollout for large taxpayers—enhancing transparency and revenue assurance.
• Customs modernization and AEO programme—improving trade facilitation and compliance.
These are systems-level interventions—not soundbites.
The Familiar Playbook:
Alarm, Amplify, Exit.
We have seen this pattern before:
1. Declare impending collapse.
2. Use dramatic language to command attention.
3. Avoid the burden of proposing solutions.
4. Harass Government into putting you on some committee, think-tank or council to correct it all.
It is a performance—one that thrives in media cycles but adds little to policy depth. Yet the data trajectory, while imperfect, is not static:
• GDP growth has remained positive, avoiding contraction despite reform shocks.
• Non-oil revenue performance (VAT and CIT) has shown upward momentum.
• Subnational fiscal space has expanded due to higher distributable revenues.
A Waning Voice Struggling to Stay Relevant
There is also an underlying tension that cannot be ignored. This administration has not leaned on the usual circle of media intellectuals and policy commentators who, for years, occupied advisory and influence corridors within our national polity. And since then, some of those voices have grown increasingly strident—less analytical, more combative.
Utomi’s latest intervention fits that pattern uncomfortably well. When relevance is no longer assured, outrage often becomes therapeutic.
Meanwhile, reform continuity is being institutionalized:
• Medium-term fiscal frameworks now reflect post-subsidy realities.
• Targeted social intervention programmes are being recalibrated to cushion reform shocks.
• Investment promotion efforts are aligning with a more transparent FX and pricing regime.
Nigeria’s reforms are not beyond criticism. But they are on track and trackable. They demand scrutiny, refinement, and stronger social cushioning.
But what Professor Utomi has offered is not scrutiny. It is not even rigorous dissent. It is amplification without depth. Critique without responsibility. Rhetoric without rigor.
And in a moment that demands serious thinking, that kind of intervention is not just unhelpful—it is a distraction masquerading as insight—especially when set against a reform programme that, for the first time in years, is confronting the structural contradictions that voices like his long circled, but never resolved.
Utomi may do well to consider maintaining a dignified silence, hide his vacuousness and let President Tinubu do his work. Counsel is welcome, distraction is not.
Dare is Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Media and Public Communication
Nigeria’s Ambassador-designate to Germany, Femi Fani-Kayode, has dismissed members of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, especially those who were at the Party’s recent convention in Abuja as “vagabonds, hungry, haggard, riggers, expired old men, unkempt, wanderers.”
He, also dismissed, and translated the acronym, ADC, to mean “Association of Destructive Clowns.”
Fani-Kayode, a former Minister for Aviation who, either was in the same political party with some of those in the ADC now, or was in the Federal Cabinet with them, said all that while interrogating and mocking the National Convention which the ADC was forced to hold at an inconvenient venue because it was, allegedly, denied the use of more convenient venues by both public and private concerns.
In a post on his Facebook page Saturday, April 18, 2026, Fani-Kayode said:
“I watched a faction of the ADC conducting what they described as their party Convention a few days ago & it was pitiful. I saw an overcrowded hall filled with hot, sweaty, men & women, most of them looking worne, tired & undernourished.
“They wore orange caps & were using pamphlets & brochures to fan themselves because the building had no functional air-conditioning system.
“They sweated profusely, argued loudly amongst themselves, broke into fisticuffs & at a point in the proceedings one of their more elderly leaders got on the stage, took the microphone and screamed “APC” at the top of his voice after which, he suddenly remembered that he had left APC years earlier & that he was actually in an ADC Convention!
“Nevertheless, his shame & embarrassment was total & in an attempt to redeem himself & melt the ice, he told the astounded & shocked gathering that he was sorry for blurting out the ruling parties initials instead of theirs & that he needed to “take a purgative”.
“After him another strange-looking elderly man came on the stage who looked badly ravaged by the rigours of life, who was terribly unkempt & who appeared to be in dire need of medical attention.
“Another curious dimension to the whole thing was watching a fully grown bearded man on the stage with a huge pot belly (which made him look pregnant) wearing what looked like a woman’s beige skirt on top of a pair of beautiful beige trousers whilst sporting a pair of dark sunglasses to cover his eyes. Some called it a “bold fashion statement” whilst others said it was an expression of his non-binary status & gender fluidity.
“Whichever way, to wear a man’s trousers & a woman’s skirt all at the same time at a factional party, Convention, or anywhere else, is a novelty & something few of us have witnessed in a political gathering. I guess times have changed.
“Forgive me for saying so but this was indeed a strange gathering of confused, reckless, desperate, cantankerous, quarrelsome & in some cases senile actors from the past who have long lost their glamour, gravitas & steam & who have no sense of purpose, unity or direction.
“Is it any wonder that they call them an ‘Association of Destructive Clowns’. If that is the best they can do then President Tinubu has already won the 2027 election. By 12.00 noon it will be over.
“What we witnessed was more of a gathering of hungry, ragged & desperate jackals & long-rejected souls that are craving for a return to power rather than the Convention of a legitimate & serious political party.
“Mr. President rightly described theirs as a “street Convention”. What he failed to add was that it was a street Convention of vagabonds, riggers & wanderers.”
For the records, a number of those present at the Convention described with those choice words by Fani-Kayode included a former Vice President of Nigeria, a two-term Senate President of the Federal Republic, former Speaker of the House of Representatives, former National Assembly Members, former Governors and former Ministers, former House of Assembly Members, Elder Statesmen/women and very prominent Nigerians.
“I am better qualified than all the other Presidential Aspirants to run this country”
A former Minister of Transportation and chieftain of the African Democratic Congress , ADC, Rotimi Amaechi, has expressed the confidence that President Bola Tinubu will not realise his second term ambition once the coalition is on the ballot.
This is as he cautioned the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and the Judiciary to wean themselves of manipulations by the All Progressive Congress APC-led Federal Government.
The former Rivers State Governor who spoke during a programme on Channels Television on Friday April 17,2027 ,also declared himself a better presidential material in the crowed race for the ADC ticket.
According to him, irrespective of the State of the election , President Tinubu will surely not gain the trust and confidence of the people.
“Whether free ,fair or not ,if the ADC is on the ballot, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu will lose the election. Take it for free. The problem is he does not want a strong opposition candidate on the ballot”, Amaechi noted .
Amaechi, therefore, urged the INEC, the Judiciary and other relevant authorities to remain neutral and assert their independence to save the country’s democratic arrangement.
The ADC chieftain who is angling for the party’s Presidential ticket , alongside former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi ,the Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, in the 2023 election, expressed serious concern that President Tinubu, very much aware that he has lost the trust of the people, has resorted to weakening opposition parties and undermining the democratic process using critical national institutions.
“The APC Government is interfering in all the parties using the judiciary as an institution.
“Let them allow the institutions to pursue justice. Let them allow all political parties to have candidates on the ballot and see whether President Bola Tinubu will win. In fact, how can Tinubu win with the embarrassing insecurity and economic hardship in the country?”, Amaechi queried.
He criticized the economic policies of the APC-led Federal Government which, he said, has resulted in an unmitigated misery and hardship among the people.
Amaechi, particularly, regretted that the Tinubu administration has failed woefully to address basic problems affecting the people, and also has not been able to fulfill any of its promises during the electioneering campaign.
“Everybody is suffering; everybody is looking for food to eat. People can’t buy fuel, and can’t travel. The airlines are threatening to increase the cost of flights; the cost of everything is skyrocketing out of the reach of the people.
“For God’s sake, President Tinubu does not have the moral right ,and authority to speak. He doesn’t .
“He promised power ,and said if he doesn’t provide adequate power supply, that Nigerians should not vote for him when he seeks a second term. Nigerians are waiting to vote him out” Amaechi stated.
Speaking further, the former Rivers state Governor noted that he is not actually bothered about others struggling for the ADC presidential ticket because of his rich antecedent.
“I don’t care who else is running in the presidential race of the ADC. I am running because I am a Nigerian candidate. I am running because I know Nigeria’s problems. And I believe that I have the capacity to solve them”,he asserted.
According to him, his performances both as the Rivers state Governor and , Nigeria’s Minister of Transportation confer credence to his ability to face frontally the problems bedeviling the country today, particularly insecurity.
The Federal Capital Territory Minister Nyesom Wike-backed Abdulraham Mohammed-led Peoples Democratic party faction has explained that the reported appeal by Senator Samuel Anyanwu, its National Secretary, against an FCT High Court judgment was filed in error.
This is as it denied that the PDP, at a anytime, ratified the purported suspension of Anyanwu as a member of the party .
The Source reports that the Tanimu Turaki-led National Working Committee, NWC, of the PDP had in a petition, requested the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to immediately withdraw recognition for Anyanwu, as the party’s National Secretary, citing his expulsion and subsequent affirmation of the disciplinary action by an FCT High Court as a major reason for its demand.
The faction, in the petition filed on its behalf by its legal team led by Abdulaziz Ibrahim, SAN, noted that the party on the strength of the reports and recommendations of the Chief Tom Ikimi-headed National Disciplinary Committee, NDC, expelled Anyanwu and others, with an FCT Court affirming the decision on January 12, 2026.
However, in a statement on Saturday, issued by its spokesperson, Hon Jungudo Haruna Mohammed, the Wike-backed factional PDP stated that the legal action instituted by Anyanwu is not in connection with his purported suspension, but originated from a case filed at a Federal High Court in Abuja.
According to the faction, the said motion on notice is challenging the competence and proceedings of the Ikimi-led NDC.
It noted that the NDC merely recommended the suspension of Anyanwu and others, but that the NWC of the party never met to ratify it.
The faction maintained that the reports and recommendations having not been ratified by the competent organ of the party, remains null, void, and of no effect.
‘”The recommendations had no binding effect,and no valid suspension existed at any time” the statement noted.
Furthermore, the PDP faction explained that the NDC, after being discovered to have been constituted in utter disregard of the party’s extant laws was subsequently dissolved with its reports and recommendations thrown overboard.
The Wike-backed PDP emphasized that the FCT High Court presided over by Honourable Justice Halilu did not affirm any expulsion or suspension, but rather dismissed Anyanwu’s suit on the grounds that the matter falls under the internal affairs of the party and, therefore, non-justiciable .
The party added that the said appeal by Anyanwu and others were inadvertently filed, noting that machineries have been put in place to withdraw same.
Besides, the party contended that Anyanwu and others purportedly affected by the said disciplinary action had already served out their various tenures, a development that renders the purported suspension nugatory.
The Source further reports that the Turaki-led faction is contending that all actions undertaken by Anyanwu as the National Secretary, including the nomination of the Mohammed-led Caretaker Committee on November 3, 2025, were illegal, null and void, having been done after his suspension on November 1, 2025.
Former Kaduna Senator, Shehu Sani has reacted to fresh moves by Kwara State Governor, Abdulrahaman Abdulrasaq to arraign former Senate President, Bukola Saraki over 2018 Offa robbery incident.
Saraki, had described the fresh criminal charge against him as a “desperate ploy by a drowning politician” to initiate a case of criminal culpability against him over the Offa robbery incident of 2018 “which I know nothing about”.
While describing the criminal case as “dirty politics taken too far and too low”, Saraki warned Abdulrazaq to desist from this despicable act of using the Offa robbery incident as a weapon anytime he came under political pressure over his poor policy conception and failure to live up to expectations as a governor of a state known as the State of Harmony.
Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State
He added: “Ordinarily, my attitude to this insidious move by the incumbent Governor of Kwara State to initiate a case of criminal liability against me in the unfortunate incident of armed robbery, which happened in Offa community eight years ago, should be to shrug it off and say that we will meet in court since I know I have nothing to do with the incident or any other crime for that matter.
“The case was investigated by the police team from the office of the Inspector General of Police. However, following the investigation, in two separate legal advices dated June 22nd, 2018, and August 23rd, 2018, the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) in the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) stated that there was no evidence directly or indirectly linking me to the robbery incident.”
Also, a prominent member of the Fix PDP, Fix Nigeria movement, Shittu Alabi from F.C.T, Abuja, condemned the renewed allegations against former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, describing them as “an insult taken too far and a shameful display of political pettiness at its worst.”
Dr Bukola Saraki
In a statement, Alabi accused the Kwara State Governor, AbdulRazaq, of resorting to “desperate and dangerous tactics” in a bid to salvage what he called a failing political image. This is not leadership; this is panic,” Alabi stated.
“A colourless governor with no tangible achievements has now chosen to weaponize an already investigated and legally settled matter just to remain politically relevant.”
According to him, the attempt to drag Saraki into the Offa robbery narrative is a calculated move to use the former Senate President as “political currency to artificially inflate a drowning administration.”
“It is obvious the governor is uncertain about his political future and even unsure of succession within his own structure.
“Reports of his strained standing within the broader national power circle, including around President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, only deepen that desperation,” Alabi added.
Shehu Sani, in a post write “I wish to appeal to the Governor of Kwara State my Friend and Brother, His Excellency Abdulrahaman Abdulrasaq to drop the idea of filling a Criminal Charge against Senator Bukola Saraki and others over the 2018 Offa Robbery Incident.
“In the past, I had the experience of being framed and dragged to 5 different High Courts in Kaduna, and slammed with Civil and Criminal Charges,and The Lord saved me.
“Power should be exercised with caution.Tomorrow is not far from today.”
More Arrests have been made in connection with malpractices in the ongoing 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME), conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, (JAMB).
JAMB had earlier announced the arrest of two candidates and one parent, already detained for engaging in result falsification using AI and other electronic means.
Report from Anambra State revealed that Operatives of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Safe School Initiative, attached to the Anambra State Police Command, have arrested a male suspect, identified as Eric Nwombu, for alleged criminal impersonation and unlawful possession of JAMB examination materials.
The arrest, followed a report that the suspect was collecting 2026 JAMB examination slips from students who had visited a cyber café in Atani to check their examination centres.
His actions reportedly raised suspicion among staff of the computer centre.
Items recovered from the suspect include eight JAMB examination slips and an exercise book containing names and examination numbers of several students, which he could not satisfactorily explain.
According to the Police Public Relations Officer, Anambra State Command, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, the suspect allegedly claimed to be a JAMB 2026 coordinator in Atani when questioned.
However, the explanation failed to convince the cyber café staff, who promptly alerted police operatives in the area and on sighting the operatives, the suspect attempted to flee, but was swiftly apprehended.
Ikenga added that preliminary investigations have commenced, noting that the case would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Awka, for further discreet investigation.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police in the state, CP Ikioye Orutugu, reaffirmed the Command’s commitment to safeguarding the integrity of public examinations.
He urged members of the public to remain vigilant and promptly report suspicious activities to the police.
Any possibilities of the Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammad joining the ranks of the All Progressive Congress, APC, has been officially foreclosed.
Consequently, all negotiations between the Governor’s camp and the national leadership of the ruling party at the centre, in relation to the planned defection, have been halted.
The Source reports that the National Chairman of the APC, Prof Nentawe Yilwaltda, in company with Governor Abba Kabiru Yusuf of Kano state had on Wednesday April 1, 2026, during a visit to the Bauchi Government House, officially invited Governor Mohammad to come on board the party’s train.
The Governor, who is, also, the Chairman of the PDP Governors Forum, had, a day before the APC visit, played host to a delegation of the opposition Coalition platform, the African Democratic Congress ADC, led by a former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF Babachir Lawal, with a firm promise to finalize all realignment processes with the opposition party on, or, before Thursday April 2.
Instructively, Governor Mohammed’s planned defection to the ADC ,was severely disrupted by the decision of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to withdraw recognition for the Senator David Mark-led National Executive Committee NEC of the party on April 1, as well as the APC’s obviously panicky last minute visit.
At a media briefing in Bauchi on Saturday, April 18, 2026 ,the State Chairman of the PDP, Samaila Adamu Burga, disclosed that the two parties could not reconcile contending issues surrounding the planned realignment.
According to the Bauchi State PDP chairman, the proposal put forward by the Governor pursuant to the defection was not accepted by the APC national leadership.
Burga emphasized that the Governor had sequel to the invitation extended by the APC requesting him, key political stakeholders, including Lawmakers at the state and national levels and local Government officials to join the party, initiated the process.
He, however , expressed regret that negotiations could not sail through as some fundamental issues were not resolved.
“After careful and extensive considerations, the proposal put forward during the negotiations were ultimately not accepted by the APC leadership”, he stated.
The PDP Chairman said with the failure of negotiations, all other processes concerning the planned defection to the APC have been terminated.
He did not, however, disclose the next line of action by the Governor and his camp.
The Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodimma has called on members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Orlu Zone to strengthen grassroots participation and remain united ahead of the upcoming Party primaries.
Speaking at a stakeholders’ meeting held at the Government House Annex, Eziachi in Orlu weekend, the Governor stressed that Party strength begins at the Ward level, and urged members to actively engage in local activities.
“If your Ward is not aware of your membership, you are still a stranger in the Party,” he said.
Uzodimma commended the Zone for its performance in past elections despite security challenges, noting that their commitment helped sustain the APC’s dominance in Imo State.
He praised Party faithful for embracing consensus during Congresses, describing it as a “sign of political maturity.”
Ahead of APC Primaries, the Governor advised aspirants and supporters to manage expectations and avoid conflict. “Ambition is not a crime, but we must be mature enough to handle both successes and failures,” he said.
He emphasised that future opportunities would depend on electoral contributions, adding that Party loyalty and performance would be closely monitored.
Uzodimma concluded by urging reconciliation and unity, calling on members to work collectively for the Party’s success in forthcoming elections.
The Imo State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Austin Onyedebelu, urged members to forgive one another and close ranks ahead of the primaries.
“We must resolve our differences with maturity and move forward together,” he said, appealing for reconciliation.
He expressed confidence in the leadership of Governor Uzodimma and predicted a “100 per cent victory” for the APC in the upcoming elections.
Earlier, in his welcome address, the Orlu Zonal APC Chairman, Hon. Frank Onyejiaka, said the gathering provided an opportunity to review challenges, share ideas, and chart a common path forward.
He stressed the need for open discussions, mutual respect, and prioritising the common good over personal interests.
Onyejiaka also highlighted leadership as a call to service, sacrifice, and accountability, expressing confidence that collaborative efforts would reposition the Zone for greater political success.
Other speakers include, the APC National Vice Chairman (South East), Dr. Ijeoma Arodiogbu, Senator Osita Izunaso representing Orlu Zone and the Deputy Speaker Imo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon Amara Iwuanyanwu.
They all corroborated the fact that APC victory at the polls required unity of purpose by leadership and membership of the Party.
The meeting brought together Party executives of APC at both levels, members of the House of Representatives and State House of Assembly from Orlu zone, political appointees and stakeholders of the Party from the Zone.
Seventeen heavily pregnant women, children, infants, and an adult male are among 28 persons rescued by Operatives of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) at a suspected baby factory in the Badagry area of Lagos State.
Already, two suspects have been arrested while the baby factory has been dismantled.
The operation, carried out by the Lagos State Command between April 15 and 16, 2026, followed weeks of intelligence gathering and surveillance that led officers to a hidden facility in the Okuju, Ilado area of Olorunda, Badagry.
In a statement signed on Saturday by the NSCDC National Public Relations Officer, Babawale Afolabi, the agency revealed that the victims included 17 heavily pregnant women, alongside 11 others made up of children, infants, and an adult male.
Briefing journalists on the development, the State Commandant, Adedotun Keshinro, disclosed that preliminary findings showed the victims were lured through a Facebook recruitment scheme targeting vulnerable pregnant women with promises of financial rewards after childbirth.
According to him, the victims were allegedly promised between ₦500,000 and ₦1,000,000 upon delivery, a tactic believed to have been used to sustain the illegal operation.
Investigations further revealed that those held in the facility were kept in poor and unsanitary conditions, with little or no access to proper medical care.
The Commandant noted that one of the pregnant women reportedly lost her pregnancy due to neglect.
Items recovered from the location included mobile phones, gas cylinders, a generator set, cooking utensils, and other materials believed to have been used in running the operation.
He stated both the suspects and the rescued victims have been transferred to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, (NAPTIP), for further investigation and possible prosecution.
Reacting to the development, the Commandant General of the Corps, Ahmed Abubakar Audi, described the raid as a reflection of the agency’s growing reliance on intelligence-led operations to tackle organised crime.
He reiterated the Corps’ commitment to strengthening collaboration with other security and law enforcement agencies, particularly in the fight against human trafficking and exploitation.
Audi also urged members of the public to exercise caution, especially when responding to online offers and recruitment schemes that appear suspicious.
He emphasised that community vigilance and timely sharing of information remain critical in identifying and dismantling criminal networks involved in trafficking and other forms of organised exploitation.
