By Mike Odiakose, Abuja

Barely twenty-four hours after he formally defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC), former Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, has confessed that he ran as the vice-presidential candidate alongside Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in the 2023 presidential election against the will of his people.

The former goveror admitting that his joint ticket with Atiku contradicted the zoning arrangement, power rotation and wishes of his people.

Speaking on Arise Television, Okowa described his acceptance of the role as a misalignment with the prevailing sentiments in Delta State — an issue he said he has deeply reflected upon.

He said, “Even when we were campaigning, I realised our people were not interested in having another northerner come into power.

“But the decision had already been taken at the federal level by the party (PDP) and I had been nominated. Still, in retrospect, I now believe I should have gone with the will of my people.”

He also fired back at former Senate President Bukola Saraki for criticising his defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Okowa has been harvesting negative comments from Nigerians since his defection from the PDP after benefiting immensely from the party since 1999.

Okowa, former presidential running mate to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the PDP in the 2023 general elections, said that Saraki lacks the moral standing to comment on or criticise his defection.

“I did not expect that someone like Senator Bukola Saraki should be able to speak concerning me, because he knows that he had also moved to APC before and eventually returned,” Okowa said. 

“So he has had movement to and fro. So, I don’t think that he has the moral right to even speak about my defection at all.”

Okowa explained that the decision to defect was not taken lightly and was a collective resolution by key political figures in Delta State. 

He said it was necessitated by internal crises and a lack of strategic direction within the PDP.

“Several things have been going on in the party. While I do not want to join issues with people, as stakeholders, our leaders in this state have sat down to look at the events in the last several months,” Okowa noted. 

“Because of the events that we see and the communications coming out from the leadership of the PDP at the moment, it did not appear to us that that was a proper political vehicle for us to continue in.”

He further pointed to the PDP governors’ resistance to forming a coalition and the ongoing leadership crisis as clear signs that the opposition party is not prepared for serious political competition ahead of the 2027 general elections.

By Mike Odiakose, Abuja 

Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has taken Governor Monday Okpebholo to the cleaners over serial suspension of top government official over alleged “financial infractions.”

In a statement signed by Chris Osa Nehikhare

Publicity Secretary,

Edo PDP Caretaker Committee, the party described the serial suspensions as “a tragicomic drama stuck on replay” without any Credible investigation.

The PDP stressed that Governor Okpebholo’s tenure has become synonymous with a string of headline-grabbing suspensions of his top cabinet members—each more bewildering than the last.

“The latest in this parade of purges is Dr. Caulson Osoikhia Oahimire, Executive Secretary of the Edo State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, suspended over alleged “grave financial infractions.”

“Since assuming office, Okpebholo has embarked on an unrelenting spree of suspensions, throwing one official after another under the bus—often amid sensational accusations of corruption and misconduct. 

“Yet, in all this noise, Edo people have seen no credible investigations, no legal conclusions, no public accountability—only whispers of quiet reinstatements through the backdoor.

“From his own Commissioner for Justice and Chief Law Officer, Samson Osagie, to the Chairman of the Local Government Service Commission, Mr. Damian Lawani; the Head of the Public Safety Response Team, Kelly Okungbowa; the Commander of the State Security Corps, Friday Ibadin; the CEO of FEWMA, Ahmed Momoh; and now Dr. Oahimire—the list reads like a script from a badly managed soap opera. What we are witnessing is not governance—it is chaos masquerading as reform.

“Edo people are left asking: Is this simply a case of a workman constantly quarrelling with his tools? Or did Okpebholo knowingly assemble a team riddled with questionable characters—people who see public office not as a platform for service, but as a shortcut to self-enrichment?

“What is clear is that this endless cycle of suspensions has laid bare a troubling reality: either the Governor is completely out of his depth and incapable of managing his own appointees, or he is overseeing an administration deeply compromised by rot, failure, and corruption.

“If these appointees were handpicked or imposed by his party’s power brokers, the time has come for Okpebholo to take full responsibility. 

“He must clean house—decisively—and assemble a new cabinet built on competence, integrity, and a genuine commitment to the progress of Edo State.

“Enough of the drama. Edo deserves serious, focused, and transparent leadership.”

From Ene Asuquo, Calabar 

Cross River State Governor, Senator Bassey Otu, has maintained that the growing wave of defections to the All Progressives Congress (APC) is propelled by the sterling performance of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu rather than political calculations.

In a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr.

Governor Otu emphasized that Cross River, which for years stood as the lone APC-governed state in the South-South, now proudly shares the progressive banner with Delta and Edo States, marking a new dawn of strengthened political realignment in the region.

“An increasing number of South-South states under APC governance is a dream realized,” Governor Otu remarked, highlighting President Tinubu’s transformational leadership that has inspired trust, value reorientation, infrastructural rebirth, and economic rejuvenation across the nation.

Describing the mass defection led by Governor Oborevwori — with former Governor Senator Ifeanyi Okowa and key PDP structures in Delta as a historic moment, Otu noted that it sets the stage for deeper regional collaboration, accelerated economic development, and greater political stability.

As Vice Chairman of the South-South Governors’ Forum, Governor Otu urged Governor Oborevwori, other political stalwarts, and their supporters who have now joined the APC to bring their wealth of experience and grassroots mobilization strength to bear in advancing the collective quest for a flourishing South-South and a renewed Nigeria.

“Your Excellency’s decision to board the progressive train is a profound testament to your commitment to inclusive governance, sustainable development, and national unity. I am confident that your leadership will further galvanize our collective resolve to deliver the dividends of democracy to our people and drive forward the Renewed Hope Agenda championed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” Governor Otu declared.