Following the attainment of majority status in the Edo State House of Assembly by the All Progressives Congress, APC, a group under the aegis of Edo North Conscience, ENC, has called for the impeachment of Hon. Blessing Agbebaku as Speaker of the House.

According to report the group made the call in a statement barely 24 hours after the leadership of the state chapter of APC wrote to the Speaker, Hon. Blessing Agbebaku, notifying him and the House that the party’s lawmakers now constitute the majority in the Assembly.

The statement was signed by the group’s chairman, Mr Oshioke Aledeh, and Secretary, Mr Tunde Balogun, after a stakeholders’ meeting and was made available to newsmen in Benin City.

It said the call became necessary following the defection of four opposition members of the House to the ruling APC in the state.

“As it stands now, APC is the majority in the House with 13 members, while PDP has 11. This gives APC an edge over other parties regarding the principal officers of the House.

“Last week, three PDP lawmakers and one Labour Party lawmaker defected to the APC. The defected lawmakers are Donald Okogbe (PDP, Akoko-Edo II), Sunday Ojiezele (PDP, Esan South-East Constituency), Richard Edosa (LP, Oredo West), and Bright Iyamu (PDP, Orhionmwon II).

“So, based on this, the APC should take the position of Speaker and other principal offices in the House. They should commence the process of removing Hon. Agbebaku to pave the way for an APC Speaker in the House,” the statement read.

The group opined that Blessing Agbebaku’s continued retention of the speakership position, despite belonging to a minority party, is not in the best interest of the House and the state.

It, however, vowed to initiate an impeachment process that could ultimately lead to Hon. Agbebaku’s removal as Speaker, asserting that “despite pretending to be at home with Governor Monday Okpebholo, his loyalty is still with the PDP.”

According to report the state APC leadership had, on Tuesday, 18 March 2025, written a letter to the Speaker, Hon. Blessing Agbebaku, notifying him of the party’s majority status in the Assembly.

Agbebaku, who read the letter from the APC, confirmed that the party had attained majority status in the Assembly following the defection of the four opposition members.

Former Minister of Transportation, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi has declined comment on the decision of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to endorse President Bola Tinubu for a second term in office.

The former minister was a presidential aspirant on the APC platform in 2023, but lost to Tinubu at the party’s presidential convention held in Abuja.

In response to a WhatsApp message sent to him by LEADERSHIP, Amaechi, who is also former governor of Rivers State said, “I have no comment.”

For its part, the Chief Tony Okocha-led APC in the state described the endorsement of Tinubu for a second term in office as a welcome development.

Speaking with LEADERSHIP in Port Harcourt, spokesman of the party, Hon. Chibuike Ikenga said a second term will afford the President to complete all the good projects and policies he started in his first term.

Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), disclosed that the party’s National Working Committee (NWC), under his leadership, inherited a staggering debt of N8.9 billion.

He made this revelation during the ongoing National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the APC in Abuja.

According to Ganduje, the debt was incurred due to expenses related to pre-election legal battles, election cases, and appeals for legislative, governorship, and presidential elections.

The total liabilities amount to N8,987,874,663, stemming from various legal engagements.

However, he assured that the party’s National Legal Adviser, Prof. Abdul Kareem Kana (SAN), has been actively working to reduce the financial burden.

Ganduje also appealed to the National Executive Committee for intervention in managing the debt.

The meeting was attended by key party leaders, including President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Speaker of the House of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, state governors, NWC members, and other prominent APC figures.

The Kano State Government has strongly condemned the recent statement by Alhaji Usman Alhaji, leader of the APC Patriotic Volunteers, announcing plans to establish a shadow government in the state.

Describing the move as illegal and unconstitutional, the government warned that such actions could have serious social and legal consequences for Kano and Nigeria’s democratic system.

In a statement issued today by Comrade Ibrahim Abdullahi Waiya, the state Commissioner of Information and Internal Affairs, the government reminded the APC that Nigeria operates a presidential system, which does not recognize shadow governments, unlike the parliamentary model in the United Kingdom.

“The idea of forming a government within a government is not only unconstitutional but also a reckless attempt to destabilize Kano State,” the statement read.

“Democracy does not permit anyone to disregard constitutional governance simply because they have lost political relevance.”

The statement further accused the APC of engaging in desperate tactics to remain relevant after suffering electoral defeat. It reaffirmed that the elected administration of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf remains focused on governance, prioritizing key sectors such as education, healthcare, infrastructure, youth empowerment, and poverty alleviation.

Governor Yusuf’s administration, according to the statement, has achieved significant milestones, including the highest budgetary allocation to education in the country, major investments in healthcare and infrastructure, and institutional reforms aimed at transparency, accountability, and good governance.

The government warned that it would not tolerate any attempt to incite chaos or disrupt the state’s relative peace.

“We will take firm action, in accordance with the law, against any individual or group attempting to undermine the democratic process,” the statement added.

The Supreme Court, on Monday, reserved judgment on the appeal filed by the All Progressives Congress seeking to nullify the Rivers State local government election conducted on October 5, 2024.

During Monday’s proceedings, the apex court announced that a date for the judgment would be communicated later after all parties in the suit adopted their processes.

It will be recalled that Justice Peter Lifu of the Federal High Court in Abuja had previously restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission from releasing the voters’ register to the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission for the conduct of the election.

Justice Lifu also barred the Inspector General of Police and the Department of State Services from providing security during the election.

Despite the court judgment and the withdrawal of policemen, RSIEC, however, went ahead with the election, with the opposition Action Peoples Party winning 22 out of the 23 local government seats in the state.

Meanwhile, the Rivers State Government proceeded to the Court of Appeal to challenge Justice Lifu’s verdict.

In its ruling, the appellate court nullified Justice Lifu’s judgment, holding that the lower court judge overstepped his jurisdiction by preventing security agencies from providing security during the elections.

The three-member panel of justices held in a unanimous decision that the Federal High Court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain a suit challenging Rivers State council elections.

The court stated, “Section 28 of the Electoral Act does not cover elections conducted by states but only federal elections, governorship, and area council elections in the Federal Capital Territory.”

Displeased with the appeal court’s verdict, the APC proceeded to the Supreme Court.

At Monday’s hearing at the apex court, APC’s counsel, J. B. Daudu (SAN), urged the Supreme Court to allow their appeal and dismiss the judgment of the Court of Appeal, which had refused to nullify the Rivers local government polls.

However, Chris Uche (SAN), representing RSIEC, and Yusuf Ali (SAN), counsel for Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, both prayed the court to dismiss APC’s appeal.

A five-member panel of the Supreme Court, led by Justice Uwani Abba-Aji, thereafter declared that judgment in the appeal would be reserved, with the date to be announced later.

Residents of Kwali Area Council have expressed strong support for Lassa Yusuf Tampe, the All Progressives Congress (APC) chairmanship candidate, ahead of the upcoming local government election.

Speaking with journalists in Abuja on Monday, Amina Abubakar, a school teacher, praised Tampe’s character and leadership qualities.

“I will vote for Lassa Tampe because of his dedication and simplicity. He has shown that politicians can avoid selfishness if they can control their greed,” she said.

Professor Adeagbo Moritiwon, a political scientist and long-time resident of Kwali, described Tampe as the frontrunner in the race, emphasising his strong reputation.

“Tampe is the man to beat. I always advise politicians to remember those who voted for them because they will need them again. I am yet to hear anyone speak ill of Tampe,” he noted.

Moritiwon further highlighted the candidate’s leadership style: “Politics in Nigeria has become synonymous with corruption, incompetence, and selfishness. But Tampe is determined to change this perception. His focus on service, moral integrity, and dedication to the people sets him apart.”

Tampe, who previously served as a councillor for Yangoji Ward, is widely recognised for his efforts to improve the lives of Kwali residents. With a solid educational background and experience working across different parts of the country, he is seen as a leader committed to development.

The Supreme Court has fixed February 10 to determine two suits brought before it by the All Progressives Congress, APC, challenging the legality or otherwise of the election conducted for local governments in Rivers State last year.

The Apex Court fixed the date on Tuesday after clearing all preliminary issues raised by parties involved in the legal battle.

A 5-man panel of Justices of the Court led by Justice Musa Uwani Aba-Aji after disposing off all motions in respect of the two appeals, ordered lawyers to parties to file and exchange their respective brief of arguments for and against before the adjourned date.

A Federal High Court in Abuja had last year issued an order which restrained the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, from releasing voter register to Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, RSIEC, for the purpose of conducting the Council election.

Justice Peter Lifu, who issued the order, predicated his decision on the fact that conditions precedent for such elections were not followed by the Rivers Local Government Electoral commission.

Justice Lifu also barred the Inspector General of Police, IGP, and the Director General of the Department of the State Security Service, DSS, from participating or providing security protection for any local government election in Rivers State.

The Judge also barred RSIEC and the State Attorney General from accepting voter register from INEC or using any part of the register for the conduct of any local government poll.

Justice Lifu’s judgment was in respect of the APC’s suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/987/2024.

However, the Court of Appeal in Abuja in a judgment voided and set aside the decisions of Justice Lifu on the ground that his court lacked jurisdiction to issue the orders he granted in favour of the APC.

Not satisfied with the Court of Appeal verdict, the APC filed two separate appeals marked SC/CV/1106/2024 and SC/CV/1106/2024 praying the Supreme Court to reverse the judgment of the Court of Appeal and to restore that of the Federal High Court delivered in its favour.

At Tuesday’s proceedings, Joseph Bodunde Daudu and Ogwu James Onoja, both SANS stood for the APC along with other lawyers while Chris Uche SAN accompanied by several counsel represented respondents in the matter.