Politics
Guber Candidate: Abia PDP To Choose By Consensus
Abia state chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) may not organize primary elections to choose its governorship candidate for 2011 gubernatorial election in the state.
Abia PDP chairman, Sir Ndid Okereke gave the indication when he announced that the primaries earlier slated for the last quarter of this year has been shelved.
Speaking at the party secretariat in Umuahia Thursday, when Chief Damian Anayo Ozurumba, declared his intention to run for the governorship of Abia on the platform of PDP, Okereke disclosed that the state working committee has resolved that all PDP governorship aspirants would have to choose a candidate from amongst themselves.
According to him, a closed door meeting of all the aspirants would be convened where they would be requested to reach a consensus on who will fly the flag of the party in 2011 gubernatorial election.
“We will lock them up in the venue and allow them to slug it out by themselves without the involvement of a second party to ensure peace and harmony among them and members of the chapter in general,” Okereke said.
The chairman said the chapter took the resolution to avoid bitter acrimonies by aggrieved aspirants after the primaries as well as to allow the candidate enough time to campaign without any form of distraction.
He ceased the occasion to announce that the chapter would not accept imposition of candidates for the 2011 election on the party from any quarters or persons, adding, its consequences had always been disastrous.
Earlier, Ozurumba, had described himself as the most qualified aspirant and appealed to party and its members to give him their mandate to end the long suffering of people of the state.
The one-time Isiala Ngwa South local government chairman, and one term member of the House of Representatives, claimed that only him, among all the aspirants, knows where the shoe pinches the people of the state most.
Reacting to the party’s position on the conduct of primaries, he said as a democrat and a disciplined member of the party, he would abide by every of its resolution .
As at Press time, Chief Ikechi Emenike, Chief Reagan Uformba, Senator Enyinnaya Abaraibe, Hon Ozurumba, Chief Henry Ikoh, Chief Tony Enwereuzor, and Chief Chime Asonye are the aspirants who indicated their interests to run for Abia Governorship election next year.
It is still uncertain whether the party’s flag bearer in the 2007, Chief Onyema Ugochukwu, who is still challenging the election of Governor Theodore Orji before the Court of Appeal sitting in Owerri would join the race. He has not been categorical but has hinted that he would not retire from politics in case he loses his present legal battle to dislodge Governor Orji.
The Commission disclosed the figure in its weekly update for week 14 of the second phase of the exercise, which ended on Friday, April 17, 2026.
According to the breakdown, 2,259,288 Nigerians completed their registration through the online pre-registration portal, while 1,489,416 finalized their registration physically at designated centres nationwide.
INEC noted that the figures remain preliminary and are subject to further verification and data cleaning processes to ensure accuracy ahead of the consolidation of the national voter register.
With the conclusion of the registration phase, the Commission has now shifted focus to the display of the Register of Voters for Claims and Objections, a statutory stage aimed at strengthening the credibility and integrity of the voters register.
The display exercise is scheduled to hold from April 29 to May 5, 2026, across designated centres nationwide, providing citizens the opportunity to verify their details and raise objections where necessary.
The Commission urged all registered voters from the concluded phase to take advantage of the exercise to confirm the accuracy of their information and assist in identifying ineligible entries, including duplicate registrations, deceased persons, and non-citizens.
INEC explained that the Continuous Voter Registration exercise is being conducted in phases, with the first phase running from August 18 to December 10, 2025, while the second phase commenced on January 5, 2026 and ended on April 17, 2026.
The Commission further stated that the date for the commencement of the third phase will be announced in due course.
Reaffirming its commitment to credible elections, INEC stressed that maintaining a clean and accurate voter register remains central to ensuring free, fair, and transparent electoral processes in Nigeria.
The Executive Director of IPC, Mr Lanre Arogundade, informed the journalists that the dialogue was sponsored by the European Union, under the auspices of the EU-Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN II), Component 4: Support to Media.
According to the veteran media practitioner, the programme is aimed at strengthening the capacity of the media to promote credible elections through factual, accurate and fair reporting.
He explained that the programme is part of a broader five-year intervention designed to support democratic governance and improve the role of the media in Nigeria’s electoral process, stressing that fact-checking and inclusive reporting are critical responsibilities for journalists, especially during electioneering.
He described the media as a central role agent with regard to upholding transparency and accountability in the democratic process.
A resource person and Director of Journalism Clinic, Lagos, Mr Taiwo Obe, enjoined journalists to embrace the evolving technology so that they would not be in the backwaters in the practice of the profession.
He advised journalists not to downplay Artificial Intelligence (AI) in their bid to remain relevant in the media environment by being abreast of the changing patterns of news consumption.
The journalism teacher explained that with digital transformation of the media industry, it had become imperative for journalists to constantly upgrade and update their skills, stressing the fundamental place of attitude and self-development and underscored the dynamic nature of media consumption in the digital age, thereby compelling journalists to embrace tools and platforms, but without much reliance on AI.
In his lecture, a Professor of Mass Communication at the Federal University Oye-Ekiti (FUOYE), Adebola Aderibigbe, advised journalists in Ekiti State to ensure that coverage of the upcoming governorship poll is issue-based rather than dwelling on personalities.
He added that sensationalism should not occupy the front-burner of any discussions concerning the 2026 election, admonishing that sustenance of democracy is anchored on responsible journalism.
”Journalists must prioritise accuracy, fairness and balance in their reports by verifying facts and giving all parties involved in political matters the opportunity to present their views”, he said.
According to the university don, the election will not be defined by personalities, but by issues. ”Let issues be the pivotal ring upon which every discussion should be made. Sensationalisation of issues should not be the bedrock of discussions in the 2026 election”, he added.
“Do not hear from Party A without hearing from Party B, otherwise the report will be skewed to one side and once issues of elections are skewed, problems will naturally arise”, he stressed.