Native Reporters

Katsina State approves N3.8bn loan to secure 3,890 Hajj slots for 2026 pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia

Native Reporters

2027: Door closes today on aspirants, intending defectors

As the door closes on the submission of party membership registers by political parties to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) today, it is feared that many aspirants may be excluded from contesting the 2027 elections.

These include presidential, governorship, national and state assembly hopefuls whose fate has not yet been determined due to the uncertainties in their various parties over unresolved leadership disputes and the near impossibility for the parties to meet the INEC deadline on the conduct of primaries.

Although the deadline for the submission of party registers was yesterday, a non-working day when INEC offices will not be open, analysts say it could be done on the next working day, Monday (today).

Native Reporters

Uzodimma Joins Senate Race, May Resign As Governor

Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State has declared his interest to contest for the Imo West Senatorial District seat in 2027.

Mr Uzodimma, who is serving his second term as governor, announced this in a post on his X handle on Sunday.

“My dear people of Imo West Senatorial District have once again called upon me to serve, and I have accepted this noble call with utmost humility, sincerity of purpose, and unwavering commitment to the collective advancement of our people,” he said.

The governor said in furtherance of the call to serve, he has presented himself before the leadership of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), and the Screening Committee for the National Assembly Primary Election.

“During the engagement, I reaffirmed that the Senatorial seat I seek to occupy belongs first and foremost to our great party, while I remain only a loyal and dedicated candidate entrusted with the responsibility of projecting and advancing the ideals, vision, and aspirations of the APC to the very best of my ability,” he said.

Uzodimma’s entry into the Senate race comes two years and four months after his inauguration for his second term of four years in office as governor.

Multiple sources, in April, claimed that Mr Uzodimma had perfected plans to resign his position as governor to pursue his senatorial ambition.

The sources said the governor had struck a deal with his deputy, Chinyere Ekomaru, to willingly resign her position which will pave the way for the appointment of a new deputy governor.

According to the alleged plot, the new deputy governor would serve as a “placeholder governor” in the event that he resigns to contest for Senate.

“The governor is actually fighting to be the Senate President. He’s banking on Tinubu to help secure the (Senate President) position,” one of the sources said.

Native Reporters