By Augustine Akhilomen

….Insists South-East Is Not Marginalise Under APC Govt

A former Senate Chief Whip, Orji Kalu has dismissed reports suggesting that president Bola Tinubu and the All Progressives Congress (APC) are forcing governors and other politicians to dump their party and join the ruling party ahead of the 2027 elections.

Kalu made this known on Tuesday while addressing journalists as plenary resumed after the Easter break.

He also noted that party membership remains a matter of personal choice and negotiation.

“President Tinubu has never begged anybody to leave his party or to join our party. If a governor decides to join the APC, that is his business.

“When you come, we negotiate; if it is good, you stay; if not, you go your way. Nobody is forcing anybody,” he explained.

Kalu further dismissed claims that the South East is marginalised under the APC government, arguing that both the late President Muhammadu Buhari and President Tinubu have contributed to national development, including in the South East.

“Every President has something to add. Buhari has contributed his quota, Tinubu is contributing his quota. We are getting what we are supposed to get… maybe even more today. That does not mean Buhari did not do well,” he said.


Assessing Tinubu’s reform agenda, he said macroeconomic indicators show progress, but challenges persist at the grassroots due to insecurity and sabotage.

“The upper end of the reform is working… investors are coming in. But the lower end has problems because of insecurity and sabotage. Reforms take time; they don’t happen in one day,” he added, citing long-term reform paths in China and Singapore.

Kalu expressed confidence in Tinubu’s re-election prospects in 2027, describing the opposition as weak and lacking viable alternatives.

“I don’t think anybody will defeat President Tinubu in a free and fair election. APC is like a moving train. Even in places that were not APC before, people are joining. We are rocking like a hurricane,” he declared

The African Democratic Congress, ADC, National Legislatures Forum, on Tuesday warned President Bola Tinubu’s administration against taking the party’s humane’s disposition for weakness.


Speaking at the forum’s press conference in Abuja, a former member of the House of Representatives, Chile Igbawua, warned that the ADC is not begging but asking the judiciary and the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to carry out its duties.

According to Igbawua: “Agreed that the ADC has been as humane as the opposition political party can be but I would like to sound a note of warning that this government should not take that for weakness. We are not begging, we are simply asking everybody to do what they are supposed to do. The judiciary and electoral umpire should do their work as they are assigned.


“As it stands, ADC doesn’t have confidence in INEC as it’s presently constituted. It’s surprising that the head of the legislature has become a press secretary to the INEC Chairman that when accusations are done against him, he sit there in the other arm of government to defend him just like he defends other functionaries in the executives.”

Igbawua also accused Senate President Godswill Akpbio of destroying the Nigerian legislature, stressing that the forum is ashamed of the current National Assembly.


He added: “We know that Akpabio has destroyed the legislature and we are ashamed to say so, we were there and we knew what we did when occasion demanded.

“We are ashamed of what we see there today but we believe that those who think that they have a field day should know that they don’t, they will all give account if anybody tries to mess up the democracy; he will account for it personally and corporately.”

A former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Timi Frank, on Tuesday criticised the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, over his recent remarks on the African Democratic Congress.

Frank, in a statement issued in Abuja, described the comment as reckless and dangerous, saying it could encourage internal crisis within opposition parties and undermine Nigeria’s democracy.

He also called on the United States government to investigate and sanction the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, alleging that his actions could weaken democratic institutions.

The controversy stems from comments made by Gbajabiamila, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, during the 50th birthday celebration of the wife of Hon. Leke Abejide in Abuja.

A video from the event, which surfaced online on Monday, captured him urging Abejide to remain in the ADC and intensify internal resistance amid the party’s ongoing leadership crisis.

The ADC has been embroiled in factional disputes in recent months, with rival camps laying claim to its leadership. Meanwhile, the Independent National Electoral Commission has declined to recognise either side pending legal clarity.

Reacting, Frank argued that the Chief of Staff’s comments go beyond political banter and raise serious constitutional concerns, particularly given his position in government.

He said, “Your statement, as Chief of Staff, raises serious concerns about the determination by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s regime to truncate democracy.

“An inference can be made that there is an infringement on the independence of the judiciary.”

He warned that any suggestion of political interference in judicial processes could erode public trust in democratic institutions.

Timi warned that any suggestion that courts could be influenced “undermines public confidence in democratic institutions,” citing references to political actors, including Leke Abejide, as requiring clarification to avoid “dangerous interpretations.”

According to him, the remarks reinforce suspicions of executive interference in the internal crises affecting opposition parties, including the Peoples Democratic Party, Labour Party, New Nigeria Peoples Party and the ADC.

“When a Chief of Staff speaks, it reflects the body language of the President. This points to a deliberate attempt to weaken opposition and consolidate power.

“The audacity of the statement suggests nothing will happen even if opposition parties are destabilised. That is dangerous,” he added.

Frank further described Gbajabiamila as “an alter ego of the President” who had “displayed the arrogance of power,” insisting that public office holders must exercise restraint and respect constitutional boundaries.

He also called on the United States government to investigate and possibly sanction the presidential aide, alleging that his conduct could have broader implications for democratic governance.

“As an American citizen, he should be held accountable. We want to know if he is meeting his tax obligations in line with his earnings in Nigeria,” Frank said, describing him as “a bad ambassador of the United States.”

“We call for his resignation with immediate effect. If such a statement were made in the United States, the official involved would have resigned forthwith,” he said.

He added that he plans to petition the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria, stressing that “those entrusted with leadership must reflect humility, constitutional awareness and respect for separation of powers.”

In the viral clip that triggered the backlash, Gbajabiamila was heard rallying support for Abejide within the ADC’s internal contest.

“I know you to be a committed party man. I know you to be a fighter. I know you to be someone who does not like to be cheated. So please, my charge to you is to stay in that same ADC. Fight them. Scatter them. Hold on to your party, ADC. Do not abandon them.

“We like what you are doing. Continue. Don’t mind what the former governor said, that they will come and join the APC. No, no, no. Stay in ADC. Win your re-election in the ADC, and you will.

“Bring Gombe, what’s his name again? Bala Gombe. Bring him. Do the right thing. You are a fighter. Do the right thing. Nobody can come and take your party away from you. A party that you have built with your sweat, your money, and everything. Continue. Good luck in court,” he stated.