Enugu State Governor Peter Mbah is set to dump the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, next week.

National Chairman and Deputy National Chairman, South-East, of the APC, Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda and Emma Eneukwu, respectively, broke the news in Abuja on Friday.

The APC national leadership revealed Mbah’s imminent defection to the ruling party while swearing in the newly inaugurated members of the Enugu State caretaker committee, led by former state chairman, Ben Nwoye, at the party’s national headquarters in Abuja.

The governor is expected to announce his defection at an event schedule to hold in the state next week.

Chairman of the newly inaugurated caretaker committee, Nwoye, who confirmed the development, said the governor will join the ruling party alongside all his appointees.

There are speculations that Taraba State Governor, Agbu Kefas, is also set to join APC

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has claimed that Nigeria was Africa’s top economy and the leading destination for foreign investment when it left power in 2015, accusing the All Progressives Congress (APC) of rolling back the gains achieved.

The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, revealed this while speaking with journalists during an interactive session with journalists on Wednesday.

According to him, the economic and social progress recorded under the PDP has been reversed over the past ten years.

“We had an economy that was number one in Africa, and by the time the PDP left government in 2015, our economy was worth over $600 billion,” Ologunagba said.

“Nigeria was the number one destination for foreign capital investment, and all of that has been rolled back in the last 10 years.”

He added that Nigerians are looking back at the PDP’s record with nostalgia, recalling an era of democratic governance and economic development.

Debo Ologunagba said that due to the APC’s poor performance in government, many Nigerians are looking back fondly on the PDP’s tenure.

He described the party as one that follows rules, respects democratic principles, and encourages open dialogue and discussion.

The PDP spokesman noted that the party’s national convention is essential for maintaining democracy in Nigeria, adding that citizens are closely watching the party’s activities to ensure it is well-organized.

He also emphasized that Nigerians, having experienced governance under both the PDP and APC, are now in a position to assess which party has delivered better for the country.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio and the Minority Leader, Senator Abba Moro (PDP, Benue South), on Wednesday exchanged words over the continuous defection of lawmakers from opposition parties to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.

The argument followed the defection of Senator Kelvin Chukwu (Enugu East) from the Labour Party, LP, to the APC.

Chukwu had said that his decision was due to the collapse of internal democracy and lack of cohesion within his former party.

DAILY POST reports that after reading Senator Chukwu’s letter, Akpabio taunted the opposition, saying he was no longer worried about their dwindling numbers.

“If they like, let them all move here. Your decision to leave a tattered house is accepted,” Akpabio said, urging opposition parties to organize themselves and noted that all the political parties are in tatters.

Responding, Senator Abba Moro said, “Mr. President, with due respect, you are the Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. No matter the number that are here, we are capable of holding our own.”

The Benue Senator also expressed concern about the rising number of defections, saying the Senate was becoming too full, and wished Senator Chukwu well in his new party.

“He came here on the Obedient movement, on a sympathy vote, but that’s a story for another day,” he said.

Former National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Iyiola Omisore, has expressed the optimism that he would clinch the ticket of the party 2026 Osun State governorship election.

DAILY POST reports that the state will go to the polls by August 8, 2026, to elect a governor, and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, in the timetable it recently released, fixed the conduct of the parties’ governorship primaries for between November 24 and December 15, 2025.

,Omisore, while declaring his intention to vie for the APC ticket ahead of the primary in Osogbo on Tuesday, said more than 90 per cent of the members would back his ambition.

According to the former lawmaker, who represented Osun East in the Senate between 2003 and 2011, he expected mass public support for APC in the 2026 governorship poll.

“Going forward, I am expecting Osun State people to vote for APC en masse come August 8, 2026.

“This is to show the preparedness of the core APC members in the state, to show how ready we are to ensure that I become the party candidate by God’s grace in December, and to further strengthen the belief of the people in the coming APC government in Osun State.

“APC’s chance in 2026 is 100 per cent. These are volunteers from the nook and cranny of the state, this is just within the party and not the public, this is an internal politics, preparing us for the forthcoming primaries in December,” he said.

The speculation surrounding the 2027 political ambition of former President Goodluck Jonathan under the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, took a different twist on Monday.

DAILY POST reports that Jonathan was on Monday dragged to a Federal High Court in Abuja over his bid to participate in the 2027 election.

It could be recalled that a former Minister of Information and chieftain of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Professor Jerry Gana, had confirmed that Jonathan will run in 2027 as the PDP’s presidential candidate.

Gana spoke a few days ago in Minna after the election of new officials by the Niger State chapter of PDP.

Gana said, “In 2015, former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan said his ambition is not worth the blood of Nigerians. After him another president ruled for eight years and now another has ruled for two years.

“Nigerians have seen the difference and the difference is very clear. Nigerians are now asking us to bring back our friend, former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.

“I can confirm that Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will contest the presidential election in 2027 as PDP candidate and you will vote for him to return as President again.”

Ever since that comment was made, the presidency has not hidden the fact that it is uncomfortable with Jonathan joining the race.

In a quick turn of events, a lawyer, Mr. Johnmary Chukwukasi Jideobi, in a suit specifically marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/2102/ 2025, is now asking the court to disqualify Jonathan.

The court is being asked to issue an order of perpetual injunction, restraining former Goodluck from presenting himself to any political party in the country for the purpose of contesting the 2027 presidential election.

Jideobi is also urging the court to bar the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, from accepting from any political party, Jonathan’s name or publishing same as a duly nominated candidate for the presidential contest.

While ex-President Jonathan was cited as the 1st defendant in the matter, both INEC and the Attorney General of the Federation, were listed as 2nd and 3rd defendants, respectively.

Upon the determination of the question, the plaintiff sought to wit:

“Whether in view of the combined provisions of the entirety of Sections 1(1), (2) & (3) and 137(3) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amendd and their conflated interpretation, the 1st Defendant is eligible, under any circumstances [whatsoever] to contest for the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria?”

Jonathan was a disaster – Presidency

DAILY POST recalls that earlier last week, the administration of President Bola Tinubu had attacked the record of Jonathan’s presidency, saying the former leader’s performance in office was “disastrous.”

Presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga threw the attack in a statement wherein he challenged the former president to contest against Tinubu in 2027.

Onanuga said his statement was partly in response to the effort by former minister Gana to “draft former President Goodluck Jonathan into the 2027 presidential race” on the platform of the former ruling party, PDP.

DAILY POST reported that although Jonathan has not declared his intention to run for a second term in office, some politicians, including Gana, have called on him to do so.

However, Tinubu’s government is not waiting for Jonathan to make a declaration before attacking him.

“Let us remind ourselves about Jonathan’s record. We cannot forget in a hurry how his regime, devoid of any clear economic agenda, engaged in frivolous spending, ran the economy aground and put the country in dire straits,” Onanuga wrote.

The presidential spokesman also questioned the eligibility of the ex-President for another term in office.

“But Jonathan will have his date in the court of the land. Indeed, the jury will determine whether Jonathan, who was sworn in twice as president, satisfies the constitutional requirements and is eligible to contest the presidency and be sworn in, if successful, for a third term in office,” Onanuga added.

DAILY POST recalls that Jonathan was first sworn in as president in 2010 to complete the term of late President Umaru Yar’Adua who died in office.

Jonathan won the 2011 election and was sworn in for a full term before losing re-election to late President Muhammadu Buhari.

‘Abuse of court process’ – SAN dismisses suit on Jonathan’s qualification

On Tuesday, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Oba Maduabuchi, described the suit filed at the Federal High Court, Abuja, challenging the eligibility of former President Goodluck Jonathan to contest the 2027 presidential election as an abuse of court process.

Speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show, Maduabuchi said the issue of Jonathan’s qualification had already been settled by a competent court in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, and that no appeal had been filed against that judgment.

He stated that until the existing judgment was overturned, it remained the valid legal position, adding that anyone attempting to relitigate the matter was “simply abusing the process of the court and is a busy body”.

The senior lawyer explained that the 2018 constitutional amendment — Section 137(3), which limits a person to one further term if they have previously completed another’s tenure — did not exist when Jonathan first took the oath of office in 2010 following the death of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

Maduabuchi maintained that the law cannot be applied retroactively and that there was no legal restriction preventing Jonathan from seeking two full terms as President under the constitutional provisions in effect at the time.

He said: “Let me start by saying that that suit in the Federal High Court Abuja is an abuse of court process.

“An abuse of court process is when you want to relitigate a case or an issue that has already been settled by a court of competent jurisdiction.

“The issue of the qualification or non-qualification of Dr Goodluck Jonathan have been settled by the court in Yenagoa. Nobody has taken that issue on appeal. And until that judgment is set aside, it remains what the law is, and anybody who decides that he wants to take it to a court of coordinate jurisdiction is simply abusing the process of the court and is a busy body.

“But what controls a given situation is the position of the law when the act in the issue was done. What was the position of the law in 2011?

“When Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan took the oath of office as President of Nigeria, what was the position of the law? Was Section 1373 part of our laws then? You already said the law came into effect in 2018.

“So when Goodluck Ebele Jonathan was taking the oath of office to complete the tenure of Yar’Adua there were no statutory limitations in existence then which could inhibit him from running his constitutionally guaranteed two terms.

“There was no inhibition. When in 2018 you brought in the amendment of 1373, did Goodluck Ebele Jonathan take an oath as president after the amendment?”

Jonathan will need overdose of good luck to win – APC

Also, the Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, took a swipe at ex-President Jonathan and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

In a statement on Tuesday by its spokesman, Seye Oladejo, the Lagos APC mocked the PDP’s alleged plan to return Jonathan to Aso Rock, describing it as a desperate political move rooted in nostalgia rather than competence.

Reacting to Gana’s declaration that Jonathan will contest and return to the Villa in 2027, the APC said the former president would need “an overdose of good luck” to stand any realistic chance of winning the presidency again.

“If he chooses to run, President Jonathan will need more than an overdose of good luck to stand a chance. The landmines before him are numerous – legal, records, and fundamental questions of capacity,” the party said.

They will rubbish you – Okonkwo admonishes Jonathan

On his part, a veteran Nollywood actor, lawyer and politician, Kenneth Okonkwo, has advised Jonathan to stay away from the 2027 presidential race for his own good.

He said the Bayelsa-born politician should not even consider or contemplate entering the race.

Okonkwo, in a video shared on X on Friday evening, noted that Jonathan had served as a President and during this period of almost six years, went against certain conventions and norms.

The former Labour Party chieftain believes that giving Jonathan another four years would mean that the former Bayelsa State governor would be President of Nigeria for about ten years, having ruled for almost six years.

“My own advice is that Jonathan should not consider contesting for the presidency in 2027. He should not contemplate it,” Okonkwo said.

“The same forces that nearly destroyed his name when they were not in power are now in power, they will take his name to toilet.”

‘Devil’s voice not far from God’ – Kukah

Before now, the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Mathew Hassan Kukah, had urged the former President to be cautious as he weighed calls to contest the 2027 presidential election.

Speaking recently at the Democracy Dialogue of the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation in Accra, Ghana, Kukah praised Jonathan’s 2015 concession of defeat as a defining moment for Nigeria’s democracy, describing it as an act of sacrifice and honor.

He noted that Jonathan had the power and resources to resist the outcome of the election but instead chose peace, a decision Kukah said restored hope in democratic governance.

However, the cleric cautioned the former president to tread carefully in considering a political comeback.

Quoting former Defence Minister, General Theophilus Danjuma, Kukah said: “The voice of the devil is not so far from the voice of God. Listen very carefully to those who want to use you as an instrument for the elongation of their interests, and not your interests or the interests of Nigeria.”

He urged Jonathan to reflect deeply, pray, and make a decision guided by conscience and the national interest.

He said: “I therefore want to end by saying, first of all, it’s a great honor, President Jonathan, for me to be here. When you took that decision on March, 31, 2015, he’s written a little book, which you should read ‘My Transition Hours’, when you took that decision, was one of those moments that it was between yourself, your conscience, your God against the run of play. On the 31st of March, 2015, even before the elections had concluded, when you made that call, you were answering what to me was more or less a divine call.

“But please, General Theophilus Danjuma, one of our greatest statesmen, President Obasanjo’s colleague, once said very often, the voice of the devil is not so far from the voice of God. Listen very carefully to those who want to use you as an instrument for the elongation of their interests, and not your interests or the interests of Nigeria. Think very clearly. Pray very clearly. Final decision, it’s your call.”

APC, Tinubu’s camp jittery – Analyst

Meanwhile, a Public Affairs Analyst and Communication Scholar at Peaceland University, Enugu, Dr. Nduka Odo, has said that the APC and supporters of President Bola Tinubu are jittery over speculations that Jonathan may contest the 2027 presidential election.

Speaking in an interview with DAILY POST on Tuesday, Odo said the anxiety within the ruling party and the Tinubu camp was understandable.

According to him, “APC and Tinubu camps are doing the appropriate thing by being jittery over the permutations that former President Goodluck Jonathan will contest in 2027.”

He added that the ruling camp’s reactions to Jonathan’s possible return and to opposition figures such as Peter Obi were driven by fear of losing power rather than principle.

He urged the ruling party to acknowledge that “rabid attacks on potential strong opponents have become a mastered strategy,” noting that while they have a right to defend their position, their motives are clearly political.

Odo said, “APC and Tinubu camps are doing the appropriate thing by being jittery over the permutations that former President Goodluck Jonathan will contest in 2027. Everything they are doing and all their reactions are expected if we want to be honest with ourselves.

“This is why I disagree with analysts who condemn the reactions from Tinubu camp. No one sees a threat to their source of meal and keeps quiet. Jonathan is a threat. Peter Obi has been for a long time.

“What I disagree with is anyone who rationalizes that these reactions are not born out of jitters, that they’re altruistic.

“Just as they’ve been doing on other opponents, they began immediately to attack Jonathan. They send their attack and propaganda machines like Bayo Onanuga to leech Jonathan’s presidency.

“They may think they’re smart, but it is obvious to all that they do this out of the fear of losing the 2027 elections. Nigerians See this.

“I suggest they own up to the fact that rabid attacks on potential strong opponents are a darling strategy they’ve mastered.

“They have the right to present opponents in a negative light out of fear of losing the presidential seat.”

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Kaduna State has suspended its State Secretary, Sa’idu Adamu, over alleged gross misconduct and anti-party activities.

This was contained in a statement signed by the State Publicity Secretary of the party, Maria Dogo, on Monday in Kaduna.

According to the statement, the State Working Committee of the party took the decision and it was ratified by the State Executive Committee during a meeting held at the party’s secretariat in Kaduna.

The statement said that the action aligns with the provisions of Articles 58(1)(h) and 57(3) of the PDP Constitution (2017 as amended).

It added that Adamu’s suspension, which takes immediate effect, will last for one month pending the outcome of investigations and subsequent decisions of the party.

The PDP also barred him from participating in any party activity at all levels during the suspension.

“The PDP wishes to assure its members and the general public that the party remains resolutely committed to upholding internal discipline, fairness, and justice under the able leadership of the State Chairman, Edward Masha.

“The ongoing efforts of the State Working Committee are aimed at strengthening the party’s structures and ensuring accountability across all ranks,” the statement said.

Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State has assured members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that the upcoming 2025 national convention will be open, fair, and transparent.

Fintiri, who chairs the PDP National Convention Organising Committee (NCOC), gave the assurance during the inaugural meeting of the Protocol Sub-committee chaired by Governor Caleb Mutfwang of Plateau State in Abuja on Monday.

He said the party was committed to internal democracy and would provide a level playing field for all qualified aspirants.

“No aspirant will be denied the opportunity to test their popularity and acceptability among members,” Fintiri said.

The governor noted that arrangements were being finalised for the list of delegates, adding that the process would be credible and transparent.

He urged party stakeholders to remain united and avoid internal conflicts that could affect the PDP’s image.

“The success of this convention depends on our collective commitment and teamwork,” he added.

Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu has said that his party, the All Progressives Congress, APC, will not apply federal government force to win elections in Abia State in 2027.

He said the party would dislodge the ruling Labour Party with people’s votes.

He made the declaration in Umuahia on Sunday while addressing the members of Renewed Hope Partners and other APC members.

Kalu, who told Abia people, especially the members of the APC, to obtain their voter’s cards in the ongoing continuous voters’ registration, said the cards would be used to sack the ruling Abia government in Abia by 2027.

“We are not going to take over this State by force. Some people when we talk, they say we want to use Federal government power, no!

“We are going to use the votes of the masses”, said Kalu.

He accused the the Labour Party, LP-led administration in Abia State of underperformance, saying that two former governors, Theodore Orji and Okezie Ikpeazu achieved better results with about 3 and 4 billion Naira they received as monthly FAAC allocations, when compared to the bigger allocations the State is receiving presently.

He said that Abia people are prepared to re-elect President Bola Tinubu in 2027 based on his various achievements and for money he is making available to Abia and other State governors.

The Deputy Speaker disclosed that some persons in Abia are hauling insults at him for recently telling the truth to the Abia State government, but vowed to sustain his role as “the leader of the opposition in the State.”

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the 2023 Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi could form the strongest opposition ticket against President Bola Tinubu in the 2027 elections, according to Demola Olarewaju, Special Assistant on Digital Media Strategy to Atiku Abubakar.

He revealed this while speaking on the “Mic On Podcast.”

He suggested that a partnership between Atiku and Obi could create a “co-presidency” scenario, allowing Nigerians to benefit from both leaders’ ideas.

“I think the best bet would be to have the two of them on that ticket and give Nigerians this sort of sense of co-presidency,” he explained.

Olarewaju described Atiku as a resilient politician who consistently supports fellow candidates after losing primaries.

“He lost the primaries to Goodluck Jonathan in 2011 and worked for him, delivering Adamawa State in that election. That’s who Atiku Abubakar is,” Olarewaju said.

He also emphasized the importance of youth participation in politics, noting that the African Democratic Congress (ADC) plans to reserve 35 to 50 percent of its positions for young people and women.

“Nigerians deserve a party that recognizes the strength of young people, Gen Z, Gen Alpha, even, and harnesses their potential,” he said.

On the possibility of a younger candidate taking the lead, Olarewaju added that Atiku has expressed willingness to step down for a younger candidate if defeated in the primaries, but he remains the strongest opposition candidate.

“The strongest ticket that the opposition can present is the marriage of Atiku and Obi,” he said, stressing that their similar political ideologies make such a partnership feasible and strategically strong.