News
Two Kwara APC Guber Aspirants Protest Disqualification From Primary
By Steve Oni, Ilorin
Two governorship aspirants of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State, Hon. Mashood Mustapha and Mallam Saliu Mustapha have petitioned the Screening Committee of the party over their alleged disqualification in the primary that was conducted in the state on Saturday.
The duo protested that there was no official communication as to why they were disallowed to participate while the election was already in progress, saying it was a shocker to hear through radio announcement of their purported disqualification from the primary.
Both the aspirants addressed Journalists in Ilorin on Saturday night and asked the party leadership to cancel the primary and reschedule it for another day.
This is coming in spite of the directive from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to all political parties in the 2019 general elections to conclude primaries for selection of candidates latest 12 midnight of Sunday (today).
One of the aspirants, Mashood Mustapha alleged that some leaders of the party were behind their purported disqualification from the shadow election and noted that the development had caused psychological damage to his supporters, who had queued at designated polling units across the 193 wards in the state to vote for him.
It is recalled that the APC had opted for direct primaries in Kwara State to choose its candidates for elections at all levels including governorship.
The screening committee headed by a former Deputy Governor of Oyo State, Chief Iyiola Oladokun, said the party settled for the direct mode in line with the requests of aspirants in the shadow election.
However, Mustapha, a former member of the House of Representatives, told Journalists that some leaders of the party contacted on the development denied knowledge of his disqualification from the ongoing exercise, saying the masterminds took the action because he was coasting to victory in the primary.
He insisted that there was never a time when he was informed that he was not cleared to participate in the shadow election and urged the party leadership to act fast.
Mashood Mustapha said: “Some people are looking at themselves as if they possess some power that is above other members. We are all equal members and we know the people behind this. Nobody can stop Mashood Mustapha from aspiring to any office that he feels he can serve the good people of Kwara State.
“We did everything to control this damage but we realised that the damage was irredeemable. As at the time our own story went on air, we realised that most of our supporters had got the wind of the information and they have all left their various voting centres dejectedly.
“But because we are law abiding citizens, myself and my colleagues, we told our supporters, don’t go to where we have panel members, don’t go on protest, don’t take law into your hands. If a person like me can painstakingly go through this process for more than one year to actualise my dream, I think I should be able to tell the leadership to do the needful.
“One of the steps we think and we feel that should be taken is by putting up a petition to the panel chairman, which we just did. He has acknowledged receipt of our petition and our prayer is that since our members have been disenfranchised, since we have put in a lot of resources and time into this and at the end of the day, somebody somewhere because of their own personal and inordinate ambition and interest, have taken it upon themselves to truncate this process and for the mere fact that we have not been given any opportunity to…
“If at all the screening committee feels that I have issues that would make me ineligible to stand for election, I think the guideline that was given to us when we procured the forms should be adhered to. Because in the guideline, it was stated that we should all face screening and thereafter if you have issues with your screening, there are some other windows for you to explore and that is Appeal Panel, that Appeal Panel will be constituted, you will now go and defend yourself on the reason or reasons why they feel you are not eligible to contest for the office.
“This was not done and now we feel we should do the needful. We have requested that the election should be cancelled and rescheduled. How the party would do it, I don’t know. Because injustice done to one is injustice done to all
“I do not see any reason why we will change the rules in the course of the game. The election was already in progress. We had mobilised, our people were there and now our people could not participate in the election that we have paid and we have done everything to ensure that we have the victory.”
Also speaking, another governorship aspirant, Mallam Saliu Mustapha, said there was no time he was formally communicated on his purported disqualification from the primary and declared that such decision could not stand.
He disclosed that he had forwarded a petition to the appropriate quarters on the matter, describing the development as a biggest shocker to him in the middle of an election.
“A purported radio announcement was aired in which certain names were cleared and certain names were not cleared to contest the ongoing primary, and for me, it was a biggest shocker that in the middle of an election a party will suddenly start announcing those that were cleared to run for that election and those that were not cleared to run for the same election.
“After the painstaking period of campaign and the process in which we all went through to obtain our expression of interest and nomination forms and went for the screening exercise in Abuja, no official communication whatsoever was issued to me. All I will hear is on the election day itself radio announcement was made.
“I believe as a founding member of APC and a loyal party member for that matter, I deserve more than this. I deserve the right to be informed of decisions. We have been there before as a Deputy National Chairman of one of the legacy parties. As a loyal party member, I have written my petition to the committee and I hope that the due process would be adhered to through the due channel for this issue to be addressed”, Saliu Mustapha said.
News
DSS Moves Against Agbo, over Alleged impersonation as Benue PDP Guber candidate

The operatives of the Department of State Security Services, DSS has laid a manhunt on embattled former Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Benue State, over Alleged impersonation.
A highly placed Security source on Thursday, confirmed to our correspondent that the service is currently looking for Dr. Emmanuel Agbo for impersonating himself as the Governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party in Benue state.
The source said that Dr. Agbo, must be interrogated to enable the service have an idea were his candidature was decided as well as venue it took place.
He further added that from preliminary findings Agbo, is playing a role of a ” useful idiot ” been sponsored by political bigwigs in the state that must be unravel by the service.
He queried that all the primary election that took place across the 36 states of the Federation including the Federal Capital Territory was monitored by the DSS and reports were filed including that of Benue State which officially in the PDP, the former Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Michael Kaase Aondoakaa, SAN emerged.
Already, a political pressure group has petitioed, Dr. Emmanuel Agbo who they Alleged he is now parading a “fake” Certificate of Return as the party’s candidate is just an “impostor” who didn’t participate in the party’s primaries in May, 2026.
“The Certificate of Return which the disbanded Turaki-led Interim National Executive Council presented to Dr. Agbo yesterday is fake and will not be recognized by the Independent National Electoral Commission during the uploading of party candidates on their portal” the group noted.
The group however challenged Agbo to present evidence that he partook in the said primaries, and also make available proofs that representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission, officials of the party from Abuja as well as representatives of Nigeria’s security agencies were present in his own selection process if there is any.
The group stated further that there are proofs that Dr. Emmanuel Agbo is being sponsored by some “disgruntled” elements to ruin the chances of the People’s Democratic Party in the forthcoming governorship election in Benue state.
The statement reads in parts:”Emmanuel Agbo has been warned to desist from this act of impersonation before it’s too late, and if he fails to stop this act, we shall drag him before a competent court to face criminal charges.
“That he is being sponsored to ruin the chances of the party is no longer a secret but, we will make sure that we stop him and his co-travellers who are hell bent on destroying the party”
News
EUYI Alleges Secret Recruitment, Job Racketeering in JAMB Ahead of Oloyede’s Exit
The Empowerment for Unemployed Youth Initiative (EUYI) has raised concerns over an alleged recruitment exercise conducted by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), claiming that more than 100 employment letters were issued in June 2026, barely six weeks before the expiration of the tenure of JAMB Registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Danesi Momoh Prince, and Secretary, Comrade Igwe Ude-Umanta, the group described the alleged recruitment exercise as secretive and called on relevant government agencies to investigate the matter.
According to EUYI, the recruitment process was allegedly carried out without public advertisement and may have violated established procedures governing employment into federal public institutions.
The organisation argued that the timing of the recruitment raises questions, particularly following President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s appointment of Professor Segun Aina as the incoming Registrar of JAMB, effective July 30, 2026.
“There is no apparent urgency that would justify a major recruitment exercise by an administration that has only a few weeks remaining in office,” the statement said.
EUYI further alleged that previous recruitment exercises conducted during Professor Oloyede’s tenure had attracted public controversy and scrutiny from the National Assembly, although the JAMB management had maintained that it obtained the necessary approvals from the Federal Character Commission (FCC).
The group contended that if the latest allegations are confirmed, the exercise could amount to violations of constitutional and statutory provisions governing public sector recruitment. It cited Section 14(3) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and relevant provisions of the Federal Character Commission Establishment Act, which emphasize equitable representation, transparency, and compliance with federal character principles in public service appointments.
The advocacy group also called on the Federal Character Commission to clarify whether it approved the alleged recruitment exercise and, if so, whether all legal requirements were met before employment letters were issued.
In addition, EUYI urged anti-corruption agencies, including the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), to investigate possible cases of nepotism, abuse of office, or other irregularities should evidence emerge to support such claims.
The organization stated that illegal recruitment practices and job racketeering have contributed significantly to the frustrations of millions of unemployed Nigerians, arguing that employment opportunities in public institutions should be transparent, merit-based, and accessible to all qualified citizens.
EUYI gave JAMB a three-day ultimatum to respond to the allegations and provide clarification regarding the reported recruitment exercise.
News
THE GENETICS OF BETRAYAL: WHY ALIA WAS BORN TO FIGHT AKUME
By Aondoakaa Tersugh Daniel | 22/06/2026
The moment Chief Hyacinth Iormen Alia took his oath of office, he turned his guns on Senator George Akume without any visible provocation, and the confusion that followed has lingered ever since. Akume himself could not hide his bewilderment. He has been quoted saying that people should pray for Father, because the man fighting him is not the Father he used to know. Yet a closer look into Alia’s family history reveals that this hostility is not new at all. It is simply genetics finding its way back to the surface.
Decades ago, when Senator Joseph Sarwuan Tarka championed the United Middle Belt Congress and became the face of that movement, Thomas Kastina Alia rose as his fiercest opponent within Benue. The elder Alia went as far as planting the headquarters of Nnamdi Azikiwe’s NCNC, the opposition party of that era, right inside Aliade, the very heartland of Tarka’s Masev support base. The rivalry between the two men was bitter and beyond repair.
As though that chapter of hostility was not enough, another figure emerged to continue the assignment. While Tarka served as a Minister, Godwin Dabo raised allegations of corruption against him, a move that eventually forced Tarka to resign from his position. That blow is widely remembered as one of the most damaging episodes of Tarka’s political career.
This raises a question the Kunav elite of today owe the younger generation an answer to. What truly happened between the Kunav and Jemgbagh people that birthed this chain of political vendetta? Thomas Alia, a Kunav son, frustrated Tarka of Jemgbagh first. Then it was as if a baton had been quietly passed to Godwin Dabo to finish the job. Both men were not only of Kunav extraction but shared the same Kyan constituency, a detail too specific to ignore.
It becomes difficult to understand why Akume, who descends directly from Tarka’s lineage, did not study this history closely enough to avoid walking into the same trap that Alia represents. There is an old saying that a blind man does not allow his roasted groundnuts to burn twice. If the first batch is ruined, he learns to manage the fire better on the second attempt, ensuring it comes out either half done or perfectly roasted. Akume has now looked history squarely in the face and still ended up handing power to the son of Tarka’s oldest political enemy.
So when people call this current war between Akume and Alia madness, they are not entirely wrong, but it is madness with deep roots. It is nothing more than a genetic expression of rivalry that has existed for generations, simply resurfacing in a new political season. Akume owes the memory of Tarka a final reckoning. The score can only be balanced if Akume does to Hyacinth Iormen Alia exactly what Godwin Dabo once did to Tarka.
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