News
ADC’s coming tsunami in Anambra: If you listen carefully, you’ll hear
By Sunny Igboanugo
Perhaps it has a great deal to do with the man at the centre of it all – John Chuma Nwosu. Like a Rolls Royce or Maybach on a smooth road – noiseless, sleek and smooth. That is why the din is apparently not deafening. But something fundamental is happening in Anambra State at the moment. Call it a quiet revolution.
Yes, the din is not deafening yet, but it is building up gradually, but steadily and soon, very soon, the echoes would reverberate everywhere – too loud that even those in distant lands will hear.
To underscore this, pan to Nri, Anaocha Local Government Area of Anambra State on Friday, August 1, the day David Mark, Nigeria’s longest-serving Senate President, landed in the state, where a snippet THE of new wave in the political and social tempest was tested.
It was supposed to be a private visit. The retired military tactician, who is now managing one of the most humongous political events in the history of Nigeria in the name of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition – an arrangement housing some of the biggest and most influential politicians in the country today – was in town to attend the burial of the late Justice Umeugbolu Emmanuel Okoye Nri-Ezedi, the Chief Judge Emeritus of Anambra State.
But the event soon took a different turn – splashed with a dose of politics. The picture of Mark, Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the February 25, 2023 election and the duos of John Chuma Nwosu, governorship candidate of the ADC in the November 8, 2025 election and Ndubuisi Nwobu, was all it took to paint the picture of the unfolding event – many have already seen as impending tsunami.
The grand reception of Mark, Grand Commander of the Officer of the Niger (GCON), National Chairman of the ADC, had indeed begun at the Chinua Achebe Airport in Anambra by Nwosu and other party leaders from the state including members of the JCN Governorship Campaign Council before being led in a convoy to the venue of the event.
From the reaction of the crowd who also gathered at the St James Anglican Church, Nri, Anaocha local government area of the state, during and after the event, presided over by Most Reverend Alexander Ibezim, Archbishop on the Niger and Anglican Bishop of Awka, it was obvious where the political pendulum in the state is now swinging.
Indeed, if Charles Chukwuma Soludo, Governor, who was also at the occasion, was still in doubt that the tides are changing in the state and that his hitherto sure-footed grip on the political structures to guarantee his second term in office is fast waning, that event, must have been an eye opener. It was a clear indication that the ambition is slipping fast on a slopy ground.
That the people were donating the ululation the ADC team was quite evident. That the gentle breeze of the ADC initially wafting through the atmosphere, apparently buoyed by the Obi-effect, was fast turning to a whirlwind, could not have been lost him. Even the dumbest political imbecile could have been stirred to that reality.
Of course, this turn of events could not have been for nothing. Outside the Obi influence in the polity, Soludo’s underwhelming performance since 2022 when he took power seems not only unfathomable but inexplicable.
It is obvious, many people are realising, albeit, too quickly too late that they have overrated him and entrusting him with power is a fatal mistake – one they are not too eager to repeat – thus the attractiveness of the prospect of a fresh option and alternative.
Else, what is the explanation for a Professor of economics and former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), not attracting a single investment from outside the shores of Anambra in the last four years given his rich pedigree?
This fact is one of the issues at the heart of the Anambra question at the moment. To say that the people are in a state of flux is clearly an understatement. At no time have they been this disappointed in their government as many seem today in the hands of Soludo since he happened on the scene.
Naturally, it would have been a different kettle of fish, more likely to have made more sense and left the people with clearer understanding, were it any other individual that was the subject other than their own revered star-boy of the South East, if not Nigeria, who had trounced the landscapes beyond the proverbial seven seas and seven wildernesses to bring the golden fleece.
What happened? What plausible explanation could Soludo adduce to support such a disappointing, if not dismaying performance? How could it be explained away that a persona posting such rich and enviable pedigree, could not find his feet at the job, where even crass illiterates are putting up somewhat appreciable shows?
So, it is not surprising that Nwosu’s profile is growing by the day. Outside all the candidates in the race for Agu Awka next year, he is the only one without any primordial baggage – straight from the private sector – without ever touching government money – like Obi – arguably the most credible and performing governor in the history of the state today.
He is arguably the most-travelled, the most internationally-connected, with thriving businesses within and outside Nigeria and – more importantly – the most equipped to run government in the most modern way, as is the template across the world and as most desired, not only in Anambra, but in Nigeria today.
Founder, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD-CEO) of Jetlink – a conglomerate of Information Communication Technology (ICT) concern, with global reach and tentacles spread across Ghana, Liberia, and other parts of the globe, his Security, Health, Education, Environment, Markets and Social Welfare (SHEEMS) Agenda, appears the only hope today to reverse the years of the locust under Soludo.
The story was told of how the late Shehu Shagari, Nigeria’s Third Republic President on arrival in then Anambra State, during one of the National Party of Nigeria (NPN) campaigns, stood in awe at the Head Bridge in Onitsha, to behold the wonders created by Ndigbo in the commercial capital – the highrise buildings and other edifices – at which he could not help but exclaim – is this the place the civil war was fought?
Anambra State did not create that magic by calling out a genie from an Arabian magic lamp. They did not do so by sitting at home, ringing their hands in confusion. The resources were also not harvested from the Anambra soil alone. Rather, they farmed themselves out to all parts of the world in search of global resources. They not brought in finances, they built industries and other going concerns.
There are thousands, if not millions of them who are doing similar exploits both home and abroad today. Across the globe, beyond the West Coast of Africa, into the shores of other parts of the continent and far away in the farthest parts of the Middle East, Asia, Europe and America, they are waiting to donate, not only their talents but resources, if only they find a viable avenue.
Unfortunately, instead of harnessing and harvesting these potentials, Soludo, has resorted to digging holes in every part of Anambra land in search of obviously elusive, if not insufficient resources. The idea of unleashing all manner of roughnecks in the streets and community markets, chasing after lowly-placed locals and artisans, with all manner of crude implements, with some of them killed or maimed in the process in search of revenues, has since backfired.
In place is coming the new idea of smart government – electronic, digital, Artificial Intelligence (AI), ICT-powered model. The SHEEMS Agenda, Nwosu, says, will come handy in combating crimes and keeping Anambra safe from the killers ravaging the state as well as pursue other programmes in captured within its fold.
Nwosu, the only man with the knowhow, the potentials and the resources to achieve that is already standing by. Surely, it is not likely to be a walk in the park. But with greater effort in spreading the message, the task would certainly be easier. Already, Anambra people are now nibbling at the option. By the time they will take the bite and see how delicious it is, they are sure not to hesitate to swallow the entire dish. Sure bet!
Igboanugo, a journalist, is Director, Media and Publicity, John Chuma Nwosu Governorship Campaign Council (JCN-GCC).
Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Governor of Oyo State, on Thursday, finally threw his hats into the ring by declaring his intention to run for president in 2027, with a message – history beckons.
The governor, whose ambition has been a matter of speculations for months now and who had teamed up with forces angling to force President Bola Tinubu, out of power, told a teeming crowd in Ibadan on Thursday that time had come to reset Nigeria.
At a mega-rally to announce the alliance between the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and the Allied Peoples’ Movement, (APM), Makinde, expressed worry over the dwindling fortunes of Nigerians, vowing to engage Nigerians to end the drift.
Hear him: “Without a multi-party system, there is no democracy. Where is our multi-party? Where do we go from here? We have been pushed to the wall.
“They calculated and self-opposition cannot unite but I am here to say that the opposition is the everyday Nigerian. This is the time for all us to ensure Nigeria works for us. This is the time to confront it fears. It is time to engage as citizens and not spectators.
“For the opposition political parties, this is the time to unite and work in unity and give our nation the much reset it needs. The time to reset Nigeria is now. Ibadan is the city of warriors. The first grand alliance is formed. The PDP and APM is formed. This handshake will allow us to field candidates from presidency to state Assembly. And so, I declare my candidacy for office of the president of Nigeria.”
Eyo Ekpe, a professor of cardiothoracic surgery at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH), on Wednesday, gave a detailed account on how operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) manhandled him on Monday.
He told reporters that he was at sea on why he should fall victim to the assault against his person and eventually arrested given that was not right person directly involved in the information the agency sought.
Some operatives of the EFCC who invaded the hospital, had whisked Ekpe away after firing teargas to scare away the workers, patients and visitors to the hospital, following what appeared like a fracas the ensued over what it claimed was a routine duty in the facility.
Ekpe, Deputy Chairman of the hospital’s Medical Advisory Committee (MAC), described how an operative had first entered his office to make inquiries on why the hospital was yet to give a response to an EFCC inquiry over a medical report linked to a suspect facing trial.
He detailed how he briefed the operative that the said response was being prepared and even went ahead to show him the draft of a letter in that regard, which needed to go through the gamut of official endorsement before being released.
Hear him: “The head of that internal medicine department looked at the report and also discovered that the name of the doctor that signed the report is not a member of staff of that department.
“I had prepared prepared a response to the EFCC on Monday, May 11, 2026, based on the findings. When the EFCC operative visited my office the next morning to collect the document, I told him that the response was ready in draft. I even showed him the draft, but told him that the document still needed approval from the Chief Medical Director (CMD) of the hospital before it could be officially signed and released.
“He pretended to have accepted that. He left, but later later returned with another armed operative and informed me that I was under arrest. I asked him why. I was not the one that issued the medical report. My name is not on the medical report. The report was not issued from my unit.
“But he said I would get the answer when I get to their office. I then asked him to at least wait for my staff member who I sent on an errand before joining them. But they refused.
“They started pushing me. They dragged me out of the office. Then I began to cry while they were dragging me. They had warned me not to speak. They had taken my phone. My cry as they were dragging me, attracted the workers to the scene, who enquired what was going on, but because they ordered me not to speak, I couldn’t say anything. They had their guns.
The members of staff of the hospital initially blocked them from taking me away. They then made a call. After that I saw many masked and armed men came violently, broke the protector, threatening the people that were around and people ran away.
“They picked some staff that were still by me. they dragged me and other staff, five of us into their van downstairs. By that time they discovered that the gate of the hospital were locked. So, they drove towards the gate and packed and the commotion continued. We were inside the van.
“I was so emotionally and psychologically traumatised that I couldn’t even look out of the vehicle to see what was happening outside. But I know that teargas and live bullets were shot. That’s all I can say for now.”
Joyce Abdulmalik, of the Federal High Court, Abuja, heard on Wednesday, how Zenith Bank raised alarm over the huge transaction in one of its branches by Abubakar Malami, former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice (AGF-MoJ).
The bank said it immediately filed a Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) in respect to the transactions, during its appearance in the ongoing trial of Malami, his wife, and son over allegation of massive looting of funds belonging to the Federal Government during his tenure.
Mashelia Bata, a compliance officer with the bank, who appeared as witness in the case, where Malami, et al, are facing a 16-count charge bordering on alleged money laundering to the tune of N8.7 billion, to which they pleaded not guilty, gave the testimony while being questioned on the bank’s roles in the matter.
Details of the testimony conveyed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), stated how the compliance officer who was cross-examined by Adebayo Adedeji, lawyer to the defendants admitted that the deposits in the account statements complied with the guidelines of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Arguments had stretched when Adedeji, opposed Jibrin Okutepa (SAN), lawyer to the EFCC, who had asked the witness to explain the meaning of a suspicious transaction report, stressing that there was no ambiguity in the term.
However, Okutepa, in response, maintained that section 215(3) of the Evidence Act did not preclude him from re-examining the witness while urging the court to allow the question for proper explanation.
After Abdulmalik, agreed and overruled Adedeji, the witness told the court that banks were required to alert the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) about fund deposits coming in a repetitive pattern, adding: “Any deposition of funds seen in a pattern or repetitive, you must escalate it to the NFIU.”
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