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Soludo’s media at a glance

Published

1 year ago

May 8, 2025

Whirlwindnews

By Chike Obalum

It is becoming evident that part of Soludo’s problem is his media. Like their principal, members of the Governor’s media team lack discretion and are not media savvy. They write nonsense where sound judgment should prevail.

In an election year when advocacy for re-election of their principal should be their concern, these jumped-up hacks and doomed conformists are trying hard to undo their principal. They seem to have renewed their effort at poking fingers into every eye in the state that sees differently from their principal even if the eye has a better vision.

They are always prodigal in abuse, but exiguous in projecting the image of the government they serve. But it appears that the supposed refined Professor of Economics is enjoying the whole drama. He cares less how low, and to what ridicule, the artillery of abuse has reduced the rating of his government. He possibly has a seamy side which the mindless abuse greatly appeals to.

Very few stakeholders in the state have been spared the vitriol of Soludo’s attack goons. Those who did – and they are few in number- were spared either because they are silent in the face of gross abuse of the process of governance or they are considered less of a threat to Nwamgbafor’s re-election project and his future presidential ambition. No one who is perceived rightly or wrongly to be in either of the two categories above is spared the venomous drip of the pen of Soludo’s crude assemblage.

The list of those who have come under the scathing attack of this unwieldy goons either because they tried to needle the government to positive action or were seen as a threat to Soludo’s future political ambition is legion. Among them are Peter Obi, Ebube Muonso, Willie Obiano, Victor Umeh, Obi of Onitsha, Innoson, Ibeto, etc. Every one of these people has at one time or the other been a subject of media abuse by the unthinking goons, lemming off a cliff.

But there appears a method to their madness. While their principal is making surreptitious move to mend broken fences they go on the attack perhaps to create the impression that Soludo is on a sure ground – unfazed by the prospect of the uncertain election.

Out of the unthinking media aides who have done more harm to the state than Soludo’s impolitic actions, three stood out. The one is the gaunt-looking stripling boy from Imo state. Said to be a knight of the church, but he has written more than anybody in dishonoring the church. He also dishonors those who brought him up by hand. Few months back, he took on his town’s man, Sam Amadi of the Centre for Public Policy & Research and insulted him heavily. The other is the dirty-looking, awfully-reeking stumpy hack writer who knows nothing except abuse. He is so thoughtless and has a totally warped idea of what the media is. He only insults and it is believed Soludo hired him for that singular job. But the unfortunate thing is that he is also insulting those who were instrumental in making his principal governor. The last, but not the least on the team of Soludo’s hack writers, is the hair brained, photo ops addict. He too has no claim to media craft and like the others – only grandstands and insults. All three are always at the ready to malign the “enemy”. They have inadvertently widened Soludo’s circle of adversary by throwing abuse on people like confetti instead of abridging it.

At a time like this when real politicians are mending fences and shoring up their image before a consequential election, Soludo and his goons are busy attacking imaginary enemies. If they are not accusing Peter Obi of impoverishing ndi Anambra during his time as Governor, they are busy maligning Fr. Ebube Muonso and his brother, Charles Obimma. He said of Obi: “Poverty more than doubled under Peter Obi with over 50% of ndi Anambra living in poverty. Go and verify”. This attack like the one of 2023, when Obi was contesting the presidency, was unprovoked. That Governor Sanwo-Olu of Lagos was running himself ragged, defending his master Tinubu, has nothing to do with Soludo who is not an APC Governor. If it is not bad blood and a cowardly attempt at endearing himself to the President (who is a sworn political adversary of Obi), it is difficult to figure out what it is.

Pissed by the unwarranted attack, a blogger writing in defense of Obi said: “A governor whose aide was kidnapped along Abuja road because he couldn’t afford flight is accusing Obi of spreading poverty. This Soludo sef & Anya ufu! Tufia kwa”. As if that was not enough his gaunt-looking aide went overboard in slandering Ebube Muonso thus: “In all honesty, I have gone from anger to empathy and now to very sincere prayers for Fr. Emmanuel Obimma of the Onitsha Archdiocese. His recent rants against Governor Soludo shows a man in need of mental health care.” Ebube Muonso’s crime was asking that Innoson Vehicle Show Room, part of which was demolished to give way for road expansion, should not be done while people are inside the building lest there be casualties. “You cannot demolish with people inside the building. As a father you ask people to leave.” While his brother Charles Obimma’s offence for which he was also attacked was for supporting the candidate of his party to win the November governorship election.

The Governor and his aides must be unusual set of people to be provoking war on all fronts in an election year. If the attack dog who accused Charles Obimma of doing what Soludo is covertly doing to elicit the support of the president and undermine Obimma’s candidate in the coming election is not a psychopath, what is he?

But these aides are not alone in plumbing the depth of defamation. The unwarranted attack on Obi from their principal has no better definition than manifest ill will. Soludo and his team are becoming a handful for ndi Anambra and this is not advised. His government must learn to purge itself of the patronizing attitude it displays and get down to politics and governance. Both are interwoven and has to be schlepped together to be able to make the difference.

Obalum writes from Ogbakuba

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ADC spits fire! Demands arrest of Lifu *Says, Abuja judge, playing with fire!

Published

1 day ago

June 16, 2026

Whirlwindnews

“He is running in contempt of the court. Justice Lifu should be arrested because he is acting in contempt of the court which is a criminal act,” were the exact words with which the African Democratic Congress (ADC), demonstrated its angst over the court ruling on Monday, ordering its de-registration as a political party in Nigeria.

A furious Bolaji Abdullahi, spokesman of the party, told his host while appearing as a guest on Monday’s edition of Politics Today, a public affairs programme on Channels Television that the judge of the Abuja Federal High Court who gave the order was actually playing with fire because of the consequences.

Directly accusing him of playing the script of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to ensure that President Bola Tinubu emerged the sole candidate for the 2027 presidential election, the party spokesman, was emphatic that the plan would not work, as head or tail, ADC must be on the ballot in all the elections.

Hear him: “There is a Court of Appeal order saying don’t hear this case until October 27. So, on what basis? You can’t place something on nothing. The Court of Appeal said don’t act on this until I hear it on October 27. So, on what basis did he deliver the judgement

“So, for us in the African Democratic Congress, what we’re convinced and they know is what they have done has no leg to stand on legally. What they want to do is to create doubts in the minds of the people that this ADC has too many legal cases, can we actually run on this? And to distract us. But we’re not distracted.

“We’re very clear. It was in spite of all they have done since ADC came on board that we ran one of the best and one of the most comprehensive direct primaries in the history of democracy in Nigeria. So, we are strong enough to withstand this. And that’s why I’m saying that we are going to contest in 2027. We’re ADC. We don’t buckle before dictatorship.”

Stressing on the implication of the judgement, which also affected Accord Party (AP), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) for allegedly failing to meet constitutional and electoral performance requirements, following a suit by the National Forum of Former Legislators, he said it portended grave danger.

He added: “We are not surprised. We know that the Nigerian people believe that there is a problem with the judiciary, but what we did not expect is the level of judicial rascality that was demonstrated today.

“What we are saying is that we reject it in its totality, and we are saying that the people behind this are playing with fire. Hundreds, if not thousands, have obtained nomination forms and contested elections and emerged as candidates on the platform of the ADC.”

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Deregistration of ADC: Don’t destroy democracy, Obi warns judiciary

Published

1 day ago

June 16, 2026

Whirlwindnews

Peter Obi, candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Congress (NDC), in the 2027 presidential election, is peeved at the decision of the Federal High Court, Abuja, ordering the de-registration of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), saying the move is a heavy blow and dangerous to Nigeria’s democracy.

Justice Peter Lifu, who made the order, based on an action brought by National Forum of Former Legislators, agreed that the parties, including Accord Party (AP), Action Peoples Party (APP), Action Alliance (AA), and Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), failed to meet the requirement for continued existence in Nigeria.

But Obi, who left the ADC coalition to join the NDC, incidentally, based on what he explained resulted from the multiple court cases hanging on its neck, expressed his disenchantment, in a statement by the Peter Obi Media Reach (POMR), on Monday.

Signed by Ibrahim Umar, its spokesman, the group quoted the former Governor of Anambra State as decrying the growing damage to the nation’s sacred institutions on the altar of politics.

Stressing that the rise of nations depended on stronger institutions devoid of political influences, the 2023 Labour Party presidential candidate, wrote on his X platform: “When the controversy surrounding the removal of the former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen, unfolded, I expressed a concern to a friend: that the greatest damage might not be immediate, but the message it sends about the sanctity and independence of our institutions to the world.

“Strong economies are built on trust. Investors can manage security risks, policy risks, and even market risks. What they fear most is uncertainty in the rule of law and a judiciary that is perceived to be vulnerable to political pressure.

“Today, many Nigerians have lost confidence in systems that should protect them. Businesses increasingly request that their contracts be governed by foreign jurisdictions because they have greater confidence in those institutions than in our own. That should concern every patriot.

“We must never sacrifice our sacred institutions on the altar of politics. Nations rise when institutions are stronger than individuals. The Federal High Court judgment ordering the deregistration of the ADC and other political parties is just one of those activities that further reduces the common man’s trust in our legal systems. It should be reversed.

“I pledge that we will restore the dignity, independence, and integrity of the judiciary. The common man must have a voice. The business community must be protected from legal uncertainty and intimidation. Justice must be impartial, accessible, and respected by all. To our judges, legal luminaries, senior advocates, and lawyers: this is your moment. Rise, defend the rule of law, take back your country! A new Nigeria is POssible.”

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Cape Verde stuns global pundits with barren draw against Spain

Published

1 day ago

June 16, 2026

Whirlwindnews

Not even Lamine Yamal’s second half introduction could help Spain break through the defence of debutants, Cape Verde, in their first ever meeting, as the ongoing World Cup event produced another one of the stunning results on Monday.

Yamal, the Barcelona superstar just recovering from a near two-month hamstring injury, was brought into the game in the second half to zest up the one-time world champion, but failed to break down the Cape Verde’s dogged defence.

Spain’s in the game played in Atlanta, one of the cities hosting the three-nation Mundial, displayed the same dismal outing, which saw them offering far less than the quality, which saw them lifting the trophy for the first time in 2010.

The European champions, which have not won a knockout game ever since, failed to dominate the African side, replicating their less than impressing outings and their eventual exit in 2018 and 2022 editions, even with the claims of coach Luis de la Fuente that the squad was the best in the competition, Spain were considered among the pre-tournament.

Neither Yamal nor Nico Williams, who also was hit by an injury-disrupted season at Athletic Bilbao and was not introduced until the 87th minute, were able to rise to the occasion against the 500,000 people African side, ranked 67 in the world, which is making their debut on the global stage.

In stark contrast to the searing temperatures faced by some other sides, Atlanta’s state-of-the-art air conditioned stadium meant there was no excuses for the slow tempo of Spain’s build-up.

Indeed the mid-half hydration break was met by boos with fans frustrated at the break in play despite the cool conditions.

The only serious move from the European champions only came at the sixth minute to half-time, when Marc Cucurella, fresh for sealing his move from Chelsea to Real Madrid, sent over a teasing cross that Ferran Torres turned onto the crossbar and Cabo Verde goalkeeper Vozinha got back on his feet to turn Mikel Oyarzabal’s looping header over the bar.

Even after the break, the Blue Sharks, were also able to hold back from the onslaught as they did in the first half, where Vozinho, managed to make another superlative save against Aymeric Laporte’s header just before half-time.

Despite the excitement from the crowd after he was introduced, Yamal, billed as one of the stars of the tournament, failed to create any magic with his first touch being the set-up of a decent opening for fellow substitute Mikel Merino which was too close to Vozinha.

In fact, Cabo Verde billed to take on Uruguay in Miami, nearly snatched a famous victory in the final minute of the 90 when Dani Borges planted a header too close to Unai Simon, who saved the occasion, to prevent the former world champions, billed to face Saudi Arabia in Atlanta on Sunday from humiliation.

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