
Politics
It’s wrong to exclude Eastern Rail Line in Nigeria’s budgets – Sen. Victor Umeh

….Tasks new Ohanaeze Leadership on challenges ahead

By Tony Adibe
Distinguished Senator Victor Umeh , OFR, represents Anambra Central Senatorial District in Nigeria’s Senate. In this less than 10-minutes interview, the lawmaker speaks on the implication of the Southeast Governors’ pledge to , henceforth, fund Ohanaeze Ndigbo; the obvious and urgent challenges which the new Ohanaeze Leadership led by Senator John Azuta-Mbata has to tackle; the exclusion of the Eastern Rail line in Nigeria’s budgets, why he has always supported the IPOB Leader, Nnamdi Kanu right from the onset of his struggle, among other burning issues.
Excerpts:
May we know your view of the pledge by the five Southeast Governors to, henceforth, fund the Igbo socio-cultural organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo?
Yes. We don’t want to give room where the Ohanaeze leadership will start complaining of lack of funds again. That was what the late President General, Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu suffered. That has been what other previous leaders of Ohanaeze Ndigbo suffered. So, we give them the chance and accept this leadership.
By all means, most of them are credible people….So we will give them full support and when some of them begin to err, we will rise to the occasion, and call them to order; we have the capacity to do so.
People think the pledge of funding by the governors may be a Greek gift. People expressed fear that the governors resolving to fund Ohanaeze henceforth, could be a total hijack of the group by the politicians. What do you think?
No. I don’t think so. The Ohanaeze has been there for everybody all along. And nobody would complain, you know because if people were providing funds, the governors will not be making this assertions; that they are ready to fund Ohanaeze henceforth. It’s just because people have not been coming to contribute to the funding of Ohanaeze. And if that is what will make Ohanaeze to be fully mobilised to do their work, we will accommodate it for now.
But the important thing is that the new leadership will not be under the apron and control of the governors because they are serving the Igbo people. The governors are politicians, you know. And the Igbo issues should not be driven along political lines. So we will like the new leadership to assert themselves, and fight for the protection of the rights of the Igbo people absolutely. Igbo interests shall rank number one in their activities.
What do you think should be the most urgent and important issue the new leadership ought to handle now?
One of the issues they will tackle immediately is to join the clarion call for the release of the detained IPOB leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu. If they don’t drive it, then we will not be happy with them.
We have done so much in that regard as Senators. Under the leadership of the senate caucus of the national assembly, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, senators of the Southeast have gone to see the Attorney General of the federation. We had a private meeting with him, requested that he should help us get Nnamdi Kanu released.
Let him file the nolle prosequi and get him off the hook. The courts in Nigeria have pronounced him to be released but they keep going forth and back. There were people who were standing trial for treason then; and nolle prosequi had been filed for them; like Sowore , you know, was standing trial for treason; the nolle prosequi was used in his case, to release him.
Nnamdi Kanu, by all means, was agitating for the rights of his people. He was fighting for the freedom of his people… l want to put it succinctly. He was fighting against the marginalization of Ndigbo. Sadly, the issues he has been fighting against, have not been addressed.
The Igbo people are still facing those challenges today. So, today, if they don’t release him, he remains a prisoner of conscience. There’s no reason to keep him there ( in detention). If they release him, it will help us to crystalize the efforts to solve the problems of security in the southeast zone. We will be able to separate the wheat from the chaff. Everybody who kidnaps , says it’s because Nnamdi Kanu is in detention, but I know those criminals are doing business, and use Nnamdi Kanu as an alibi.
If the federal government releases Kanu now, it will be unfashionable for anybody to go and kidnap someone or kill someone, and say release Nnamdi Kanu, because Kanu has been released. So that we pigeonhole our problems towards the criminals that are doing business with killings and kidnapping of people.
During President Bola Tinubu’s visit to Enugu, he had closed door meeting with the Igbo leaders. But sadly, none of the leaders in that meeting ever mentioned the demand for Nnamdi Kanu’s release to Mr. President. That is what insiders revealed. Are you surprised to hear this?
Well, we were not invited to the meeting. So, nobody would know what they discussed inside. But I know that one issue that I have been campaigning seriously against, has been the exclusion of the Eastern Railline from the budget of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I started doing that from 2018 when the federal government borrowed 6Billion Dollars for the Modernization of the Nigerian Railway System!
The Eastern Rail line that runs from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri ought to have been captured in the budget.
I have been fighting against the exclusion of the Southeast in the railway budget since 2018.
The Eastern railway line was not captured in the budget, hence I sponsored a motion, then and the senate agreed that the rail line should be accommodated.
I sponsored a Motion for the Construction of Standard Gauge Rail Line from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri on the 23rd of November, 2023 for a Second time. The Motion was Co-Sponsored by 35 other Senators from the Eastern Rail Line Corridor.
My First Motion for its Inclusion was sponsored by me in 2018 during my first Term in the Senate when the FG borrowed 6Billion Dollars for the Modernization of the Nigerian Railway System to Standard Gauge Rail and the Eastern Rail Line was not included.
That rail line runs through the Southeast, you know. And 35 senators co-sponsored the motion with me, and the prayers were put together. And it was communicated to the President. I was surprised that when he sent the budget this year (to Senate), he didn’t include it.
I saw the lapse during the budget debate. And I stood up and said that there was a great omission in that budget; that from the figures I saw it was obvious that that railline wasn’t there, particularly as he has announced two legacy projects: the Lagos-Calabar Coastal highway, and the Badagry to Sokoto highway, so I was waiting to hear Port Harcourt to Maiduguri railway line. Mr. President didn’t do it. So I complained bitterly. I said that I hope that omission will not be real. The presiding Senate President, that day said, the budget breakdown hadn’t come out. But I have received the breakdown and the railline is not there. So, we go back.
However, I’m happy that when President Tinubu came to Enugu , somebody raised it with him in the interactive section. And he promised to complete the Eastern railline from Port Harcourt to Maiduguri. That promise is not the way it should be; what we demanded was construction of Standard Gauge Rail.What he has done is rehabilitation of the narrow gauge railline from Port Harcourt to Aba. So, we go back and continue with the struggle that Standard Gauge Rail line should be built here.
Just yesterday (Thursday, 9/01/2025), I saw that the Chinese Development Bank approved the Release of 254 Million Dollars after the Chinese Exim Bank which initially agreed to fund the Project withdrew .
The Money is for Kaduna to Kano Standard Gauge Rail Project which is about 203 Kilometers. The Route is Abuja-Kaduna-Kano-Maradi Rail Line. Abuja-Kaduna has been completed. They are now constructing Kaduna to Kano and then to Maradi. The entire Route is presently under Construction. The 254Million Dollars Loan is for Kaduna to Kano Section!
These are the things we see and we are not happy. These are the things Nnamdi Kanu was agitating for. That is why I have always, from time, supported his struggle because the struggle was against the marginalization of Ndigbo. Do what you do to the others to the Igbos. Govern Nigeria on the basis of equity and fairness.
If you recall when we did the debate on the return to the old national anthem, I supported the return because of the 3rd stanza : ”O God of all creation/Grant this our one request./Help us to build a nation/Where no man is oppressed/And so with peace and plenty/Nigeria may be blessed.” Unfortunately, the Igbos are oppressed in Nigeria. Everybody knows it. Let them (the authorities) open up and give us (Ndigbo) what we are entitled to. We the Igbos are happy to work for Nigeria to prosper. But to treat us this way is not good. It’s just not fair. Ndigbo are being oppressed in Nigeria contrary to what the anthem is saying!
So this Ohanaeze leadership, they are going to face a lot of challenges. And the general elections will also come very soon. If they go into politics and leave fighting for the Igbos, they will fail. They have to be very focused and committed even when what they are saying are not being accepted by the authorities, they must keep saying that because they are representing the Igbo people. And our, Igbo interests should come first before any other consideration.
Politics
Anambra 2025: George Moghalu picks Nov 8 LP Governorship form


By Chuks Collins, Awka
The immediate past Managing Director of the National Inland Waterways Authority, Dr George Moghalu, has picked the Labour Party’s nomination and expression of interest forms for the forthcoming Nov 8, 2025 governorship election in Anambra State.
The frontline aspirant reportedly procured both forms for N30 million at the party’s national secretariat in Abuja.
Addressing journalists shortly after receiving the forms, Dr Moghalu expressed high optimism that his chances to win the party’s primary and the November 8, 2025 election are very bright.
He said that he has all that it would take to dust the incumbent governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, in the election.
According to him, “For me, it is a privilege to run on the platform of LP because one may decide to run, but the party may refuse to accept you.
“It is not just about paying for the forms but also about being accepted by the people you want to represent.
“The assurance I want to give you today is that I will not betray your confidence and trust because I am a party man. I understand the dynamics, having served in a party Secretariat.
“My loyalty to wherever I belong cannot be questioned. I have always remained in one party since the inception of this democratic dispensation.
“But had to leave for LP because, in every political consideration, two factors are always critical, -the party, and the person.
“Ambition is not war or a fight because, at the end of the day, one person will fly the party’s flag in Anambra State. It is my wish and firm belief in God that I will be that person.”
Earlier, while presenting the two forms, the party’s National Chairman -Barrister Julius Abure assured that his leadership would continue to guarantee a transparent, free, and fair primary.
He said, “I want to assure you that you have taken the right decision. The Anambra State primary will be free, fair, and credible.
“Our party members in Anambra will determine who becomes the governorship candidate.
“Abuja will not dictate who becomes the candidate. It is the people—LP members in Anambra State—who will decide. I want to urge you that while obtaining the form is a good step, you must return to engage with party members.
“We need to work to endear you to the party members, who ultimately have the power to nominate the governorship candidate. Without sounding immodest, I want to congratulate you and wish you the best of luck”, the chairman stated.
Politics
Gov Mbah urges aggrieved PDP members to return to party

…describes Enugu as bastion of PDP

Enugu State Governor, Dr. Peter Mbah, has called for peace and unity among the members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the Southeast Zone and the entire country, urging aggrieved members to seize the opportunity presented by the ongoing reconciliation process to come back to their fold.
The governor made the appeal when he received in audience, Thursday, the members of the PDP National Reconciliation Committee led by the former governor of Osun State, Prince Olagunsoye Oyinlola, who was at the Enugu Government House on a courtesy visit to the governor to brief him on the progressive efforts of the committee.
Mbah, who described Enugu as the bastion of PDP, carrying the party’s banner with pride, enjoined the committee to ensure genuine and lasting peace in their efforts to bring back aggrieved members into the party.
He insisted that the only way the party could win elections was through a united front built on true reconciliation and justice.
“There is no way we can afford to go into a battle with a divided house. So, we must, as a matter of utmost urgency, integrate and constitute ourselves as a whole, which is why the task you are carrying out on behalf of our party is very critical and sensitive and it is one that requires patience, tact and absolute wisdom,” he said.
Mbah further added that the party in the Southeast operated with some peculiarity of brotherhood whose differences could easily be resolved as siblings and members of one family, stressing that the party in the zone had done extensive work to ensure those who left the party were brought back.
“We also believe that the Southeast is a stronghold of the PDP and if we have people who are out now, it is not necessarily their desire to be out. So, what we need at this time is to bring back our aggrieved members to where they belong. And of course, the PDP is still largely the party with the spread that is required to win any election in this country and still appeals to the people of this country.
“I have no doubt in mind that those our brothers who are just waiting for moments like this will be brought back to where they belong and we can forge a strong alliance going into the next general elections,” the governor stressed.
Speaking earlier, the PDP National Reconciliation Committee Chairman said that the disunity in the party was one of the reasons the party lost the 2023 presidential election and other election cycles in the country.
Oyinilola appealed to the grief-stricken members of the party in the Southeast to sheathe their swords and embrace the idea behind the peace and reconciliation process for the good of the party and the wellbeing of Nigerians.
According to him, Nigerians had become disenchanted and disillusioned under the national ruling APC caused by the party’s anti-people policies, saying PDP was the only party that could rescue the country.
Also speaking, the state party chairman, Dr Martin Chukwunwike, said the reconciliation move would rejig the party’s ongoing efforts in the state and bring back disgruntled members.
He expressed optimism in the leadership style of governor in the state, noting that the party was already witnessing mass return of members who left for other parties.
Politics
PDP crisis worsens as party suspends BoT chairman, Adolphus Wabara


The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Abia State chapter, has suspended the chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees, BOT, Senator Adolphus Wabara, over alleged anti-party conducts.
The suspension was announced after a state executive council meeting in Umuahia. It noted that Wabara’s activities are unbecoming of a former senate president and chairman of the party’s BoT.
In a motion by the Treasurer of the party in the state, Chief Chizuru Kanu, and seconded by the Organizing Secretary, Prince Obinna Okey, the party stated that Wabara declared that the state governor, Dr. Alex Otti of the Labour Party, LP, has won a second term, just five months into his first tenure.
The party alleged that Wabara had refused to apologise over the anti-party conduct despite the time given him to do so.
State chairman of the Abia PDP, Elder Amah Abraham, disclosed that in line with disciplinary procedures of the party, a seven-man disciplinary committee would be set up to investigate Wabara’s alleged anti-party conducts.
The state chairman further stated that in compliance with the provisions of Articles 59(1) (e) & (f) of the party’s Constitution (2017 as amended), Wabara is barred from holding any party office and also removed from office as chairman of the party’s BoT.
The party said: “As officials of People’s Democratic Party (Abia State Chapter) and members of the State Executive Committee (SEC) of the Party, who jointly and severally swore to protect and defend the Party’s Constitution (2017 as amended), we invite the attention of PDP members, stakeholders to the anti-party activities of the BoT Chairman of PDP, Senator Adolphus Wabara, to the resolution of the State Working Committee/State Executive Committee, to invoke the relevant provisions of the PDP Constitution (2017 as amended) for the purposes of suspending from the party, Senator Adolphus Wabara, in line with the disciplinary procedures and guidelines and hereby unanimously resolved to State as follows:
His ‘crimes’
“Our attention was drawn to a statement credited to Senator Adolphus Wabara, the BoT Chairman of PDP, in October 2023, and circulated on social media and national dailies, wherein the said Senator threw caution to the wind and in a brazen display of sabotage to the party, unilaterally endorsed the Labour Party governor of Abia State, Alex Otti, for a second term in office, barely five months after inauguration, and thereby brought the party to disrepute, hatred and/contempt, which is in violation to the provisions of Chapter 10, Article 58(c) and (f) of the Constitution of Party (2017 as amended) and therefore liable to punishment under Article 59(1) of the Party’s Constitution;
“Article 58(1) and Article 59(1) of the PDP Constitution (2017 as amended) empowers the State Executive Committee, SEC, to discipline any member of the Party, who commits any offence(s) provided by the Party’s constitution, irrespective of the members status;
“Article 24(1)(v) of the same Constitution confers membership of the State Executive Committee (SEC) on the said BoT Chairman, as a former principal officer of the National Assembly, the said Senator being a former Senate President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which he became under the platform of the Party;
“The unappealed Federal High Court judgement sitting in Ebonyi State, in Suit No. FHC/A1/CS/182/2024 Hon. OVUTA HERBERT ONYEDIKACHI & 2 ORS AND Chief ALI ODEFA & 2 ORS delivered on 29/11/2024, had declared unconstitutional and a breach of the principles of natural justice, equity and good conscience, the purported provision of Articles 57(7) and 59(3) of the PDP Constitution (2017 as amended, which hitherto purportedly clothed the Senator with some molecule of immunity, from being sanctioned on disciplinary grounds by the State Executive Committee;
“The said Senator Adolphus Wabara has refused, failed and neglected to refute the said statement credited to him and circulated on social media and National dailies, since October 2023, despite repeated outcries, demands and notices to show cause why disciplinary sanctions should not be meted on him;
“The actions and inactions of Senator Adolphus Wabara have undermined the credibility of the PDP, demoralised party members /stakeholders and emboldened the opposition and gravely constitute gross anti party activity and conduct;
“The need to ensure discipline amongst party members across board, irrespective of status cannot be over emphasized;
“Consequent upon the far-reaching implications of Senator Adolphus Wabara’s acts of sabotage against the party, the SEC hereby invokes the provisions of Articles 57(1),(2),(3), 58(1)(b) & (f) and 59(1) of the party’s Constitution (2017 as amended) against Senator Adolphus Wabara and hereby places him on 1 suspension from party activities.
‘Furthermore, in compliance with the provisions of Articles 59(1) (e) & (f) of the party’s Constitution (2017 as amended) Senator Adolphus Wabara is barred from holding any party office and therefore equally removed from office as BOT Chairman of PDP.”
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