Politics

DESPITE ongoing aggressive campaign by his foot soldiers to penetrate senatorial zones, bigwigs in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), are said to be opposed to the emergence of Prof Uchenna Eleazar Ikonne as the governoship candidate of the party. Ikonne is a former Vice Chancellor of Abia State University. Regarded as among the main power brokers in the party since the inception of the PDP in 1999, the leaders are reportedly pushing for a paradigm shift in the contest for who becomes the next governor of God's own state. Aside from their lieutenants still deeply entrenched in the system, the…

Barring any last minute manoeuvre, President Muhammadu Buhari will this weekend name either Senate President Ahmad Lawan or former Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, as his preferred successor to the Presidency. Two influential government sources, who knew about this development, revealed it to TheWill on Friday on the condition of anonymity. This move will deal a huge blow to the presidential aspirations of notable aspirants like Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and his estranged benefactor, former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. President Buhari returned to Abuja from his official three-day trip to Spain on Friday afternoon and he is scheduled…

Former National Chairman of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Senator Victor Umeh has dumped the party for the Labour Party. On Friday, he clinched the party’s ticket for the Anambra Central senatorial seat for the 2023 general elections after participating in Labour’s primary election. Umeh will battle Senator Uche Ekwunife of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), APGA’s Dozie Nwankwo and Chief Kodilichukwu Okelekwe of All Progressives Congress in the main election next year. This is coming few days after ex-Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi resigned from the PDP where he was aspiring to contest for president. Obi is now Labour’s…

The All Progressives Congress’ presidential committee has disqualified 10 aspirants from its primaries scheduled for next week. Chairman of the Committee, John Oyegun, revealed this on Friday. According to Mr Oyegun, only 13 out of the 23 aspirants screened were cleared by the committee. The committee held the screening exercise between Monday and Tuesday this week. Cleared aspirants are expected to contest the presidential primary at a scheduled special convention in Abuja between June 6 and 8.

Ogun State governor, Prince Dapo Abiodun, has made a veiled response to the All Progressives Congress (APC) national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu’s outburst against him, saying he was not an emperor and the governorship of the state was not his inheritance. Abiodun, who took to his verified social media handles on Friday morning, said he was only holding public office in trust for all the people of State. Tinubu, who was in Abeokuta on Thursday, had made comments about his support for Abiodun’s emergence as governor in 2019, which were considered derogatory in some quarters. “Look at this one seated…

Activities intensified on Thursday among key players within the All Progressives Congress (APC) as the party continues its search for a strong and acceptable presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections. The party had fixed next week Monday to commence a special convention for its presidential primary shortly after the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) extended the deadline for political parties to conduct their primaries. Ahead of the primary, some of the presidential hopefuls have stepped up activities aimed at boosting their chances of emerging as the party’s flagbearer in the forthcoming poll. In what could be described as a…

THE WHISPERER has obtained details of how the various state delegates voted at Saturday’s Special National Convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Abuja. The primary produced former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the candidate of the opposition party for the 2023 presidential election. Atiku polled 371 votes from the 767 accredited candidates to edge his closest opponent, Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, who polled 237 votes. A last-minute withdrawal by Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, swung the contest in favour of Atiku as delegates from Mr Tambuwal’s North-West stronghold and from other states where delegates had pledged their…