Obi gets a huge boost from Ijawland ahead of 2023

By Christiana Ekpa

Sixteen Days before the all-important 2023 Presidential election in Nigeria, the Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi on Thursday got a huge boost to his aspiration with an endorsement from the umbrella body of the Ijaw people known as Ijaw National Congress (INC).

The landmark endorsement was carried out at the Ijaw House, Yenaoga, Bayelsa State, on Thursday morning during an interactive session with the apex Ijaw sociocultural body.

The Ijaw, who are spread from Sierra Leone to Gabon, dominate Bayelsa State, have sizeable populations in Delta, Rivers, and Ondo States, and are spread around the coast of Nigeria. They have a population strength of about 4 million, which could be about 2% of the Nigerian population of 200 million plus.

The endorsement by the INC is a followup to the one done by Southern Ethnic Nationalities comprising, the Yoruba apex

2023 election:

By Ikechukwu Okaforadi

The Niger State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has declared its major political opponent, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is not a threat to its victory in the governorship and other elective positions in the forthcoming elections.

This was the position of Isah Sidi Rijau, the Director General, Bago-Yakubu Governorship Campaign Council. Rijau made the assertion at a two-day retreat organized for directors, deputies directors, secretaries and other members of the campaign council in Minna, the capital of Niger State.

The DG said all the party needs to do is to put up a united front and the inputs of all members of the governorship campaign council properly harnessed to ensure success at the polls.

“The essence of the retreat is to brainstorm to come up with harmonious resolutions for a successful campaign and elections [and] ensure the APC emerges victorious at the general elections in Niger state,” he stated.

Rijau maintained: “The [other] major political party the PDP is never in any way a threat to our victory; but we needed the inputs of all the directorates, secretaries and other members of the council to have a united front ahead of the elections.”

In his remarks, the chairman of the occasion and APC elders, Maj Gen Abdullahi Garba (retd) disclosed that the retreat was part of activities lined up towards the success of the party and its governorship candidate Umar Mohammed Bago in the elections.

He said: “It’s an opportunity to strategise by working group, the Afenifere, Pan Niger Delta Forum PANDEF, the Umbrella body of the Igbos, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo and the Middle Belt Forum announced in Abuja last week.

The LP Presidential flag bearer during interaction told the Ijaw National Congress that he is seeking the people’s mandate to fill the vacuum created in our polity by successive leadership failure.

He told the people that a new Nigeria is possible and it has to be based on justice and equity where the people’s resources should be used to develop their areas.

The former Anambra state Governor assured the Ijaw that he and his Vice are determined to create a new Nigeria where the people will live in peace secured and in harmony.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo had led the high profile Nigerians that includes first Republic Minister of Information Edwin Clark, and renowned jurist Afe Babalola among others to endorse the LP Presidential candidate who is enjoying the massive support of Nigerian women and youths.