The Kano State Chairman of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Suleiman Hashimu Dungurawa, has questioned why Nigerian politicians are panicking over the party’s 2023 Presidential Candidate, Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso‘s possible decamping to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition.

According to Naija News, Dungurawa, speaking to journalists in Kano on Monday, reacted to speculation that Kwankwaso is joining the ADC.

Dungurawa said that Kwankwaso is not one of those pushover politicians who make decisions without thinking about their consequences.

He said, “Don’t forget, Kwankwaso today is the Political Leader of Northern Nigeria, and every Politician specifically in this region is looking up to him, so it will be malicious to say he is decamping out for now.

“Why are Nigerian politicians panicking about Kwankwaso’s movements? let them calm down, the times of decision is yet to come, we are people who are too calculative. we don’t just take actions with due consideration”.

Responding to questions on Kwankwaso’s public engagement with other camps, Dungurawa stated, “As a politician who has a PhD in the field, do you expect him to hide himself or dessert people, no way he can talk to anybody but that does not mean anything, is a normal things”.

‘Those so-called followers and supporters of Kwankwaso who are jittery about where he is going, they are pretending followers, but the genuine ones know that Kwankwaso doesn’t take any decisions without talking to them and seeking advice from as low as a ward supporter”.

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Osun State Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has launched a scathing attack on his predecessor, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, describing his eight-year tenure as the “worst in Osun’s history.”

Adeleke’s remarks came in response to Aregbesola’s statement on Sunday while addressing supporters of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Osogbo. Aregbesola had boasted that the ADC would dislodge the Adeleke-led administration from the government house come 2026.

In a statement signed by his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, on Monday, Governor Adeleke said Aregbesola has no moral ground to speak, accusing him of leaving behind a legacy of hardship, financial mismanagement, and institutional decay.

“The empty boast of Mr. Aregbesola about 2026 is a symptom of a troubled mind battling his benefactor and haunted by the suffering he inflicted on millions of Osun people through his evil policies and programmes,” Adeleke said.

The Governor accused Aregbesola of mismanaging workers’ welfare by introducing the controversial half salary policy, misusing contributory pension funds, and withholding cooperative deductions from civil servants.

“A man who should be remorseful and tender public apologies for his years of maladministration has the audacity to attack a Governor who is paying up the half salary affliction, clearing unjustified debts, and rehabilitating brutalized Osun workers,” the statement read.

Adeleke revealed that his administration has so far paid 28 months of the half salaries owed by Aregbesola’s administration and has also cleared close to N60 billion in pension debt.

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He further criticized Aregbesola for plunging the state into a cycle of unsustainable debt, which he said is still affecting Osun’s financial health today.

“Our people are smart enough to know that the worst era for Osun State is that of Mr. Aregbesola, under whom many pensioners lost their lives and thousands of livelihoods were disrupted,” Adeleke declared.

Describing Aregbesola as a “shrew who doesn’t realize he’s smelling,” Adeleke warned that 2026 will be a payback year, where Osun voters will reject the return of what he termed “the dark days” of Aregbesola’s rule.

“No voter in Osun is ready for a return to the evil days. The people will punish the former Governor and his party for willfully inflicting pain on them.”

The war of words between the former and current governors signals an early start to the political contest ahead of the 2026 Osun governorship election.

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The senator representing the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Ireti Kingibe, has announced her departure from the Labour Party (LP) in favor of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in anticipation of the 2027 general election.

Speaking with journalists in Abuja, Kingibe said her defection was a deliberate move and would be formalised with “fanfare”.

“I’m totally and completely committed to ADC,” she said.

“But obviously, as the senator representing the federal capital territory, don’t expect me to just take a lunch break and go and collect card. I want to do so with noise and fanfare.”

When asked if she was satisfied with the leadership of ADC and the coalition she’s joining, the senator said the party is still evolving
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“It’s something that is evolving. So you cannot say while your child is still crawling that you are not happy with how he’s going to run. You wait. We are growing,” she said.

Responding to concerns that her defection might cost her the senate seat based on constitutional provisions, Kingibe said the Labour Party is currently split into two factions — a situation which, she argued, legally allows her to move.

“I ask you to please read the constitution. There are two factions clear of Labour Party. The perfect definition that the constitution gives for somebody to decamp without penalty,” she said.

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“So you say I should stay in Labour Party. Which faction of Labour Party do you want me to stay in?

“There are two clear distinct ones. Even INEC got two sets of results and candidates, though they didn’t accept any. There’s no question of that.

“Even the time when we didn’t have two clear factions, did you see anybody implementing it?

“But I do follow the law. And if there were not two distinct factions of Labour Party, I would not presume to decamp, because that is unconstitutional. But they are.

“And this is the definition that the constitution gave why it would be okay to decamp to anywhere I wanted to go to. I just chose ADC.”

Kingibe was one of the several prominent Nigerian political figures spotted at the unveiling of ADC as the platform of the opposition coalition in Abuja on July 2.

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A former Lagos State Deputy Governor, Senator Kofoworola Bucknor-Akerele, has called for the cancellation of the ongoing local government elections in the state, alleging that there’s a plan to rig the exercise.

The former deputy governor, while speaking with Nigeria Info on Saturday, said she could not vote because her polling unit is one of the many units moved to another area without prior notice.“I have been to my own unit, my name is not there.

“There are units supposed to be in front of Eko Hotel, they have brought them here to Ajose Adeogun,” she said.

According to her, the relocation of polling units and the missing names were part of the plans to rig the election.

While accusing the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) of disrupting the exercise, she asked the commission to cancel the polls.

She said, “Many people are not able to vote because they have, in fact, completely disrupted all the polling units. I am calling for the cancelation of this election because there’s a clear effort to rig the election in favor of one party. Because otherwise, why is it that people are not able to vote in their unit? Why is it that units have been disrupted and placed in the wrong place?”

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Over two years after the 2023 presidential election, a faction within the Labour Party (LP) has labeled its choice to nominate Peter Obi as its candidate a “costly mistake,” one that has resulted in significant political fallout.

Speaking on Friday in Abeokuta, Ogun State, Abayomi Arabambi, factional national publicity secretary of the party, said the LP made a fundamental error by choosing Obi over Faduri Oluwadare Joseph, a professional nurse whom he described as a disciplined and visionary leader.

According to Arabambi, the party’s decision to prioritise Obi’s popularity over Oluwadare’s credibility and national outlook “betrayed Nigeria’s genuine quest for transformation.”

He said: “It was a betrayal of Nigeria’s genuine quest for transformation.

“Instead of presenting a disciplined, well-prepared leader with a clear blueprint for national renewal, we offered Nigerians a populist who excelled at telling people what they wanted to hear.”

He said the Labour Party has drawn critical lessons from the 2023 outing and would not repeat what he described as the “Obi error” in the lead-up to the 2027 general election.

Arabambi insisted that Faduri Oluwadare Joseph remains the type of leader Nigeria needs.

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He further accused Obi of fanning ethnic sentiments during the election, saying his campaign created unnecessary regional divisions.

“Perhaps the most damning indictment of Obi’s candidacy is his ethnic polarisation that shadowed his campaign.

“While Faduri stood as a truly national figure, with support cutting across regions, Obi’s movement, intentionally or not, became a vehicle for tribal sentiment,” he said.

Arabambi also criticised Obi for his silence on the activities of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), as well as what he termed “selective outrage” on national security issues.

Arabambi assured Nigerians that his faction of the Labour Party will chart a new course as 2027 approaches, rooted in merit, national unity, and visionary leadership.

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Peter Obi, the presidential candidate for the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, asserts that he continues to be a member of the opposition party.

Obi spoke on Friday during a rally at the All Saints Cathedral field in Onitsha, Anambra, organised to flag off the campaign of George Moghalu, LP’s governorship candidate in the state, and his running mate, Ifeoma Okaro.

The former governor of Anambra also said he is part of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) coalition adopted by opposition leaders as the platform to challenge the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2027 elections.

“I will start the conversation by clarifying some confusions making the rounds, and I need to explain to you—it is very important that I clarify this because people are saying, ‘Oh! Obi is in the ADC and also in the Labour Party,’” he said.

“Let me put it categorically clear: I and the National Assembly members of the party are part of the coalition that has adopted ADC for the 2027 elections, and other parties will join us.

“But today, we are members of the Labour Party. If anybody asks you which party Peter Obi belongs to today, tell them Peter Obi is in the Labour Party. If anybody asks you about the coalition, tell them, ‘Yes’, the coalition is for 2027.”

Obi also declared his intention to run for president again, saying he remains the most qualified candidate.

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“Everyone has the right to run for president—I won’t stop anyone. But if anyone asks, let them know I am in the race, and no one does it better than me,” he said.

“It is important that they know that, and that is why we are here to initiate the campaign of the Labour Party governorship candidate in Anambra State, Dr. George Moghalu.

“Our candidate is soft-spoken, focused, and an achiever. He is a product that is highly marketable, and I am confident that with him as our flagbearer, good governance and people-orientated leadership are assured.”

On July 3, Obi said his decision to join the ADC coalition was not taken lightly, adding that it aligns with his vision of creating an inclusive political alternative.

However, the Julius Abure-led faction of the LP, in response to the development, issued a 48-hour ultimatum asking him to resign from the party.

On Tuesday, Abayomi Arabambi, an LP chieftain, said the former governor had committed anti-party activities and no longer has a place in the party.

Arabambi described Obi’s move to the ADC coalition as “unconstitutional,” saying the LP would soon convene a national executive council (NEC) meeting to formally expel him.

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The LP has been entangled in a leadership crisis for months, with Abure, Nenadi Usman, Callistus Okafor, and Lamidi Apapa—each claiming to be the party’s legitimate leader.