The Anambra State Government has called on residents to participate fully in the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration exercise which kicked off across the state on July 8.
According to the Independent Electoral Commission, the CVR exercise will end on July 17.
INEC added that it provided an opportunity for eligible voters to obtain their Permanent Voter Cards to participate in the forthcoming governorship election in the state.
The state Commissioner for Information, Law Mefor, who made the call, said it was part of efforts to strengthen democracy and ensure inclusive participation in the governorship election coming up in the state on November 8, 2025.
Mefor, in a press statement released on Wednesday, urged all eligible citizens to take advantage of the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration exercise announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
He said, “As part of efforts to strengthen democracy and ensure inclusive participation in the November 8, 2025 governorship election in Anambra State and future elections in Nigeria, the Anambra State Government is urging all eligible citizens to take advantage of the ongoing Continuous Voter Registration exercise announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission.
“The CVR exercise, which commenced on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, and will end on July 17, 2025, provides an opportunity for eligible voters to obtain their Permanent Voter Cards.
“This is particularly important for young people who have recently turned 18 years old and are now eligible to vote. Citizens who have relocated to Anambra State from other parts of the country and wish to transfer their voting rights. Individuals who have lost or defaced their voter cards and need to replace them.
The government encourages everyone who falls within these categories to visit their nearest registration centre and complete the registration process. This is a crucial step in ensuring that our democracy remains vibrant and representative of the will of the people. For further information, please visit the INEC website.”
Meanwhile, checks by our correspondent at major locations across the state, showed that the exercise has witnessed a low turnout since it started on Tuesday due to rainfall and low awareness by the residents.
A former secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, has said that some governors and top members of the All Progressives Congress are quietly supporting an opposition coalition ahead of the 2027 elections.
Lawal, who served under ex-President Muhammadu Buhari during his first term, revealed this during an interview on Beyond the Headlines aired Tuesday on TVC News.
He said that although these people have not spoken publicly, they believe in the coalition’s plan to remove the current government.
“Yes, there are [APC members working with the coalition], and they will speak for themselves. Some might not be brave or bold enough to do it the way I have, but there are very many, some tell me, including some governors,” he said.
Recall that Lawal resigned from the ruling party on June 29.https://punchng.com/ex-sgf-babachir-lawal-dumps-apc/
He said he had been working against the APC from within for a long time because the party was full of intimidation and didn’t allow free speech.
He stated, “We’re in a democracy; even if you’re in a political party, you can choose to support a better candidate in another political party. I’m learning a template from APC: this template of remaining in one party and working for another.
“This is a script APC developed, which Wike has enhanced and grown beyond imagination. Wike is our leader in this type of politics.
“The APC has never been united; it’s been a party that has been intimidated and bullied into silence. No internal cohesion; you cannot even advise. Even advice is taken as anti-party. So, many people got frustrated that you cannot talk truth to power in APC.”
He said many people who once supported President Bola Tinubu are now disappointed and want a better alternative.
“A lot of us are people whose primary aim is to replace this government with a better government that serves Nigerians better. If you want to serve this country better, you need to do so from the angle of politics, policies, governance, and leadership. You need to replace the non-performing party,” he said.
“So, there’s nothing wrong if people who were hitherto in APC, allies of Tinubu, have been disappointed in the way he has chosen to run his government or allow others to run his government. There’s nothing wrong if we decide to come together to make a change.”
Lawal also mocked the recent wave of politicians joining the APC, saying most of them are only trying to protect their political careers.
“It’s true the governors are decamping. Why are they decamping to the APC? Because they know the president has given himself an automatic ticket, there will be no primaries, and no other candidate will be allowed to raise their head.
“Most of the governors understand that this government is a government that wrote results to become what they are. So, they can write you out even in your own convention in an opposition party.
“So, all these governors are moving to APC to secure their next elections. However, the governors are moving, but nobody is moving with them; the people are not.”
Lawal also said the coalition is not led by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, explaining that it is a team effort by different political figures with the aim of unseating the ruling party.
“The coalition is not about Atiku. I’ve attended meetings tilted towards Obi, Atiku, and Amaechi. Atiku has never spoken in all our meetings, except the last meeting, where he was asked to speak.
“Before we started the coalition, we told everybody that has political ambition to lock it down in a cupboard. because the understanding is that no one person can defeat an incumbent government.
“Peter Obi understands that with his Obedient movement, he cannot win this election on a standalone basis. Ameachi understands, and Atiku too; we must have a coalition, get together, join forces, join ideas, and work to defeat this government.”
The immediate past governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, has called on his successor, Governor Hyacinth Alia, to account for the state and local government funds.
The former governor was reacting to the statement attributed to a faction of the All Progressives Congress, which he suspects is affiliated with the governor, an excerpt of which Kula Tersoo, media aide to Governor Alia, posted online recently.
This statement read that the governor “has increased local government security votes from the one million naira paid by his predecessor to ten million naira monthly…”
However, Ortom in a statement issued by his media aide, Terver Akase, and made available to journalists in Makurdi on Tuesday, took a swipe at his successor, requesting that he declares how much his administration is receiving as monthly local government allocations from the federation’s account before announcing how much he is giving the councils as security votes.
Ortom equally demanded that Governor Alia should go a step further and explain why he is still the one providing the third tier of government funds, despite the Supreme Court judgment granting full financial autonomy to local governments.
“The fact that none of the 23 local governments under him has constructed even a single culvert shows how they have been starved of their own funds,” the former governor said.
The former governor decried the situation that his successor, who is in his third year in office had never responded to calls for transparency and accountability regarding the huge resources accruing to the state following the removal of fuel subsidy.
“He has suddenly decided to celebrate a claim that he has increased security votes for local governments in the state.
“The starting point should be for Governor Alia to declare how much he is receiving as monthly local government allocations from the federation’s account before announcing how much he is giving the councils as security votes.
“The question to ask Governor Alia is, given reports that the Federal Government is now sending 500% increased allocations to the local governments in Benue State, which automatically makes a council such as Gboko receive a monthly allocation of N624,447,191.53.
“Why is Gboko only receiving a mere N10 million out of over N624 million as security vote? Where is the rest of the money going?
“When the Benue State governor is done accounting for how much the 23 local governments are receiving from the federation’s account in the subsidy removal era.
“He should extend the accountability to the state coffers and tell the people how much his government is receiving and what is being done with the funds.
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“This explanation should include the over N3 billion he is reported to be taking every month as security vote in the face of frequent attacks and killing of hundreds of Benue people by Fulani terrorists.
While Alia denied that under his watch, only N1 million was being released to local governments in the state as security vote, Ortom claimed that he granted autonomy to the local governments.
He said that was the reason all of the councils were actively executing projects and tackling insecurity in their respective domains.
Alia, through his Chief Press Secretary, Kula Tersoo, on Sunday, responding to a similar request made by a group known as Benue Advocacy Network, directed those interested in knowing the financial obligations to the state to approach the Budget Office in the state.
Survivors of the Yelewata attack currently taking refuge in the temporary camp located at the International Market, Makurdi, have rejected the call to return home.
No fewer than 3,000 displaced persons from the Yelewata community are currently taking refuge in the camp, after the gruesome murder of about 200 people in coordinated attacks on the community by suspected armed herders on June 13, 2025.
Our correspondent who visited the camp on Sunday reliably gathered that traditional rulers and stakeholders from the community were mounting pressure on their people to return home, as a result of the infiltration of the temporary camp by other displaced persons.
“These infiltrators have continued to feast from the humanitarian support supposed to be for survivors of the Yelewata community,” one of the displaced persons who identified himself as Uker Amos said.
The 41-year-old survivor said some of them had to protest against the call by their traditional ruler to return home when they were not sure of adequate security in the community.
He said, “Yesterday, (Saturday) some of us came to the gate of this camp and voiced our position that we are not returning now until there is adequate security for us to return.”
Speaking in a telephone chat on Sunday, the Information Officer of the State Emergency Management Agency, Tema Ager, confirmed that traditional rulers of the Yelewata community were mounting pressure on their people to return home.
“But the people (displaced persons) are opposed to the move by the traditional rulers.
“They said they could only go back when there is assurance from the government that their community is safe.
“In fact, some of them came out to protest the call for their return,” he said.
Ager added that the government would assess the situation and decide when the people would return home.
The Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, Aondowase Kumde, recently raised the alarm of infiltration of the camp by market women, criminals and people from the host community.
The commissioner said at least 50 infiltrators had been arrested.
Ekiti State Governor, Biodun Oyebanji, on Monday, dismissed a report claiming he alongside some leaders and officeholders in the state was being led to the African Democratic Congress by the immediate past Governor Kayode Fayemi.
Oyebanji, who described the report as false and misleading, described it as “nothing but another tissue of lies from the camp of some disgruntled elements in the state.
“But, keeping quiet in the midst of such a bare-faced falsehood would amount to a disservice to the good people of the state, some of who could be hoodwinked into believing the misleading report.”
The governor spoke in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Yinka Oyebode.
Oyebode stated, “For the avoidance of doubt, Governor Oyebanji and the public officeholders mentioned in the report remain firmly rooted in the All Progressives Congress and have no link, neither do they have any plan whatsoever to join the ADC.
“While Dr Fayemi and other leaders of the party mentioned in the report are eminently qualified to defend themselves, it is on record that Dr Fayemi attended the recent APC caucus meeting held in Iyin-Ekiti, where the caucus endorsed President Bola Tinubu and Governor Oyebanji for a second term, a decision that was widely published in the print, broadcast and online media.
“It should also be noted that Governor Oyebanji had since the inception of the Fourth Republic in 1999, remained in the progressive fold. He is one of the very few who has never moved out of the progressive movement in Ekiti State.
“We are aware of a deliberate attempt by some mischief makers to weaponise Governor Oyebanji’s association with Dr Fayemi in a bid to cause a rift between the governor and President Tinubu.
“Unfortunately for these jesters, Mr President is a strategic politician who can see through their shenanigans and hidden agenda.
“Ekiti people are urged to disregard this childish media attack which is being sponsored by some desperate politicians interested in contesting the governorship election in the state.
“While these desperate politicians have no clue about how to market their candidature to the Ekiti electorate or connect with the people, they have resorted to attacking the government on social media and heaping up every unimaginable and unintelligent lie against the governor to mask their frustrations.”
The statement added, “Now that the Independent National Electoral Commission has announced the date for the primary election, we expect them to be bold enough to come out and sell their candidature to party members and Ekitikete rather than seeking an ignoble way to gate crash,” the governor’s media adviser stated.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd has handed over 35 hybrid Compressed Natural Gas-powered buses to the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas.
During a brief ceremony held at the NNPC Towers on Monday, the Group CEO, NNPC Ltd, Bashir Ojulari, reiterated the Company’s commitment to support the Federal Government’s gas aspirations.
The GCEO stated that the move was in line with NNPC Ltd.’s efforts to drive the adoption of CNG as a cleaner, cheaper, and sustainable fuel alternative.
He added that the company has recorded significant progress on gas supply, infrastructure, distribution, and retail outlets.
“I am proud that NNPC Ltd is playing a pivotal role in driving the Federal Government’s gas agenda towards energy transition,” the GCEO stated in a statement signed by the
NNPC Ltd on Monday in Abuja.
Earlier in his address, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, said the CNG buses represent not just vehicles but serve as instruments of economic relief, social equity, and environmental responsibility.
“They signal a future where the ordinary Nigerian can commute safely, affordably, and efficiently,” he added.
The Minister described the initiative as a direct reflection of President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, a bold step to reduce the cost of transportation, lessen dependence on petrol, and ensure the utilisation of the Nation’s abundant natural gas resources for the benefit of the people.
Earlier in his remarks, the Executive Vice President, Downstream, NNPC Ltd, Mumuni Dagazau, said the adoption of CNG as a fuel alternative has significant economic benefits for the Nation by reducing reliance on PMS and AGO as automotive fuels which also leads to substantial cost savings and supports the growth of local gas industry.
The Managing Director of NNPC Foundation, Emmanuella Arukwe, said through the initiative, NNPC Ltd was advancing and shaping a new energy future that will purposefully serve people, communities, and the planet.
The Programme Coordinator/CEO, Presidential CNG Initiative, Michael Oluwagbemi, commended NNPC Ltd for supporting the Initiative, stressing that the company has been a reliable partner for the Initiative since its commencement.
Almost a year ago, specifically July 12, 2024, the late Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Owolabi Olakulehin, ascendend to one of the highest traditional titles in Yoruba land in a grand ceremony that took place at the historic Mapo Hall.
Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde handed Olakulehin the staff of office to be the new Olubadan and the event was witnessed by the crème-de-la-crème and the influential personalities in the country and beyond.
Dignitaries led by President Bola Tinubu, governors, ministers, eminent traditional rulers, captains of industries, and academics, among others, witnessed the coronation and the rest they say is history as the ancient town mourned the passing of their new king who had barely spent one year on the throne on Monday.
The late Olubadan of Ibadanland is the second Olubadan to rule from a befitting palace, after the famous Olubadan Yesufu Oloyede Asanike, who first lived in the old palace at Oja’ba. The ultramodern historic palace sitting magnificently on Oke-Aremo, inaugurated by Governor Seyi Makinde on Wednesday, is to be the new official residence and palace of subsequent Olubadans, starting with Oba Olakulehin.
Hitherto, the personal residence of the succeeding Olubadan had always served as the palace, upon ascension to the throne.
To ascend the throne of Olubadan, you have to be a member of the two high-ranking principal chieftaincy lines consisting of the Balogun and Otun.
The Balogun (warrior) line consists of the Ekarun Balogun who’s the sixth in command, Ekerin Balogun who is the fifth in command, Ashipa Balogun who’s the fourth in command, Osi Balogun who is the third in command, Otun Balogun who is next in rank to Balogun and the Balogun himself who is the highest member of the line.
While the Otun (civil) line consists of Ekarun Olubadan, Ekerin Olubadan, Ashipa Olubadan, Osi Olubadan, and the Otun Olubadan as the highest-ranking member in the line.
The late Olakulehin was from the Balogun line and he waited 38 years to ascend the throne after becoming Jagun Balogun.
The next Olubadan will now switch to the Otun line where former Oyo State governor, Rasheed Ladoja, is the highest-ranking member.
In this report, PUNCH Online will be familiarising you with the things to know about the emerging Olubadan —Ladoja who governed Oyo between 2003 and 2007.
1. Ladoja was born September 24, 1944 in Gambari area of Ibadan.
2. He attended Ibadan Boys High School between 1958–1963 and Olivet Baptist High School between 1964 and 1965. He further studied at the University of Liège, Belgium between 1966 and 1972 where he earned a degree in chemical engineering.
3. He was elected to the Nigerian Senate in 1993 during the short-lived Nigerian Third Republic, where he happened to be a member of the United Nigeria Congress Party during the Abacha Political Transition.
4. In 2000, Ladoja rose to the position of director at Standard Trust Bank Limited.
5. Ladoja was elected governor of Oyo State in April 2003 on the PDP platform, and took office on 29 May 2003.
6. His emergence was supported by the late Alhaji Lamidi Adedibu, a PDP power broker in the state.
7. In August 2004, Ladoja and Adedibu were locked in a fierce struggle over allocation of government appointees and this led to his struggle in both the party through which he emerged and governance in the state.
8. On 12 January 2006, Ladoja was impeached by Oyo State legislators and forced out of office. His deputy, Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala, was sworn in as the new governor.
9. On 1 November 2006, the Appeal Court in the state capital, Ibadan, declared the impeachment null and illegal, but advised waiting for confirmation of this decision by the Supreme Court. However, the apex court upheld the decision on 11 November 2006, and Ladoja officially resumed office on 12 December 2006.
10. In the next election, Ladoja failed to win the PDP nomination as candidate for a second term. He chose to back the Action Congress candidates for 33 local council chairmanship elections.
11. On 28 August 2008, Ladoja was arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over allegations of non-remittance of the proceeds of sale of government shares totaling N1.9 billion during his administration
12. He was briefly remanded in prison by the Federal High Court in Lagos on 30 August 2008 and was granted bail on 5 September, in the amount of N100 million with two sureties for the same sum
13. Again, Ladoja was the governorship candidate for Accord party in Oyo State during the April 2011 and 2015 elections and he lost to Senator Abiola Ajimobi.
14. He took a break from politics after defecting to ADC and finally ZLP in 2018 to face his traditional chieftaincy.
15. On August 12, 2024, the late Olakulehin, formally presented the ceremonial beaded crown to High Ladoja, a crown he had formerly rejected during ex-Oyo governor, Abiola Ajimobi’s administration.
2023 Presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has urged President Bola Tinubu to show more compassion to Nigerians.
This is as he said that the office of the Nigerian president requires sacrifice and compassion, not detachment, luxury, or fear.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, Obi said the Tinubu administration is disconnected from the suffering of ordinary Nigerians.
He said, ”If I become president, I will use resources effectively. I cannot say, ‘buy a new jet.
“I don’t need one because I can go anywhere without a jet.
“I will not use N150 billion to buy a jet when 80 per cent of primary healthcare centres are not functioning.”
The former Anambra State governor said his time in office was marked by modest living and responsible governance.
“I was a governor, and for my first four years, I drove 406.
“For the rest of it, I didn’t drive bulletproof cars.
“Nobody will try to kill you if you do the right thing.
“It is when you do the wrong thing that you fear death.
“If your people are dying, you should be ready to die.
“The president should also be ready to die,” Obi said.
The former governor faulted Tinubu’s response to major tragedies in 2024, including the stampede at a Christmas party in Ibadan, Oyo State, which led to the death of several children.
According to him, Tinubu opted to remain in Lagos for the holidays instead of visiting grieving families.
“There is no compassion; people lost their children who will lead this country in the future, and he went on a Christmas holiday,” he said.
He also criticised Tinubu for failing to visit Yelwata in Benue State, where suspected herdsmen attacked and displaced thousands.
Obi said, ”People want to get up and see a president that cares, a president that shows compassion.
The Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Owolabi Olakulehin, has passed away.
Olakulehin died at the age of 90.
The PUNCH Online learnt that the monarch died in the early hours of Monday.
Olakulehin died during the ongoing 90th birthday and first anniversary coronation celebrations.
He succeeded the late Oba Lekan Balogun.
A source close to the Olubadan-In-Council confided in our correspondent in Ibadan, the state capital, that “we received the message that the paramount ruler passed away this morning. He has joined his forefathers. Though it has to be officially announced by the state government.”
Another palace source, who confirmed the news, said the Otun Olubadan, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, who is the next in line to become Olubadan, is currently out of the country and he is expected back.
“We are expecting a former Governor of the State and the Otun Olubadan of Ibadanland, Oba Rashidi Ladoja, who is currently out of the country, to come back home.
Former National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress, Ralph Nwosu, has disclosed that at least seven prominent figures in the coalition movement are being pushed by supporters to contest the 2027 presidential election against President Bola Tinubu.
Nwosu stated this amid growing speculation that some northern power blocs within the coalition movement are already backing the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate for a one-term deal.
The opposition coalition, led by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, on Wednesday, adopted the ADC as its platform for the 2027 presidential contest.
Speaking with Sunday PUNCH, Nwosu said there were seven coalition leaders being tipped to replace Tinubu in 2027, but the ADC would embrace an open selection process.
Aside from Obi, he said supporters of Atiku, former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, ex-Kaduna and Osun states governors, Nasir El-Rufai, Rauf Aregbesola, and those of the Oyo State 2023 ADC governorship candidate, Bamidele Ajadi, were all rooting for their respective leaders to succeed Tinubu.
“We all have the right of expression. And as far as the coalition is concerned, everybody is important, and that is the beauty of the new party we are growing.
“There are some people who want Aregbesola to run. There are also people who are rooting for Dr Ganiyu Bamidele Ajadi to run. There are also people rooting for Amaechi to run. There are also those calling for Atiku to run.
“El-Rufai also has his own plan. Even Sule Lamido is also running. I have been part of the coalition conversations, and I know the personalities that are interested in running. So, I am telling you from the inside. Even the old ADC may be backing Ajadi. That tells you it is free, and that is democracy. But the selection process will be open and transparent,” Nwosu said.
He explained that as the coalition movement gathers momentum, supporters of the presidential hopefuls were holding engagements, even as the Peoples Democratic Party, and the All Progressives Congress continue to lose their membership base to the ADC.
“People are working together and having conversations. So, we will gradually start to see the leadership in each person. The real model will start to create the new Nigeria and the African renaissance that all of us are interested in. As I have said, it’s beyond politics and power. It is to rescue Nigeria from ICU to global reckoning.
“This is a big coalition. What we have built within this short time of coming together is bigger than any political party in Nigeria. Already, 95 percent of the PDP has collapsed into our party with all their networks and grassroots stuff. For the APC, over 35 percent of their membership is collapsing into this movement. The Labour Party is seeing over 80 percent coming to us,” he revealed.
