Ugoh Onyekwere

10/03/2026

28/02/2026

Anambra state government moves in! The Oba shrine where Akwa Okuku Tiwaraki produced charms and Oke-Ite is currently being destroyed. No mercy for evil. ゚viralシviralシfypシ゚viralシalシ

24/02/2026

The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt Hon. Benjamin Kalu, has asserted that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has made significant political inroads across several states in the South-East and South-South, with Abia identified as the only state in the region yet to align with the party’s broader electoral objectives.

Speaking in an interview with TVC News, Kalu expressed strong optimism about the spread of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda across the region.

He highlighted what he described as growing cooperation and political goodwill in states such as Imo State and Akwa Ibom State, noting that governors in those states are working in ways that complement the federal government’s development vision.

Kalu also pointed to Anambra State as a state where the Renewed Hope initiative has gained traction, commending the policy direction of Governor Chukwuma Soludo and suggesting that his governance philosophy aligns in many respects with the federal administration’s agenda.

Although Anambra is not controlled by the APC, Kalu indicated that the state’s leadership has shown support for key reform policies championed by the Tinubu administration.

According to the Deputy Speaker, the only state in the South-East that remains outside what he described as this expanding circle of influence is Abia State, his home state.

Abia is currently governed by Alex Otti of the Labour Party, and Kalu’s remarks signal a renewed determination by the APC to strengthen its structure and grassroots appeal there ahead of future elections.

His words: "We have Imo state, and the governor is working so hard to make sure that the vote that will come from there will be for Mr. President. We have Akwa Ibom state; my friend that is there as a governor is working so hard. What is left now is Abia state because Anambra state believes in the agenda of renewed hope. I give it to Governor Soludo; he preaches renewed hope. He's a believer of the new hope; he's a disciple of renewed hope, so you cannot really count Anambra out of the question. The only one that is currently out of the question is my own state called Abia state."

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24/02/2026

Security agencies investigating the alleged coup plot to overthrow President Bola Tinubu have identified two persons who allegedly funnelled N835 million through two private companies to bankroll the alleged conspiracy, PREMIUM TIMES can exclusively report.

Former Bayelsa State Governor Timipre Sylva allegedly contributed the largest share of N785 million. Investigators alleged that the funds were transferred through Purple Waves Limited, an Abuja-based construction company. The firm’s secretary, John Ebokpo, has since been arrested by security operatives and remains in detention.

Mr Sylva, who served as Minister of State for Petroleum Resources under former President Muhammadu Buhari, is accused of being the principal financier of the failed plot and remains at large.

PREMIUM TIMES had earlier reported his alleged role, but the exact figures he donated have only now emerged. The former governor, who is still at large, has denied any role in the coup.

Mr Sylva’s precise connection to Purple Waves Limited is not immediately clear. Company records at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) did not list him as a director or shareholder. The firm was registered in March 2009 for construction, building, and maintenance activities.

Efforts to call Mr Sylva on his known telephone line were unsuccessful. Attempts to contact his spokesperson, Julius Bokoru, and other directors of Purple Waves Limited also failed as calls to their known telephone numbers did not connect.

When PREMIUM TIMES visited Purple Waves’ office address in Abuja on Monday, a security guard at the location informed our reporter that the office had been shut down for about “four to five months” — a period that coincides with the wave of arrests made by security operatives in connection with the alleged coup.

The second alleged sponsor, Moses Zakwa, is accused of contributing N50 million through Clay Ring Services Limited, a Lagos-based firm where he is listed as a director. The company is registered for property renovation, development, and management services.

Little is known about Mr Zakwa. A search of his digital footprint yielded nothing. However, in 2014, a man bearing the same name led members of the Kibaku Youth Association in a peaceful protest at the Alausa Secretariat in Ikeja, demanding the release of abducted schoolgirls in Borno State. It is unclear whether that is the same individual now in the custody of security agencies.

PREMIUM TIMES reached out to other directors of Clay Ring Services, but their phone numbers were unreachable. Benjamin Okwumabua, one of the directors listed in the company’s CAC filings, said he is not related to the company.

Last month, the Defence Headquarters announced that investigations had been completed and forwarded to the “appropriate superior authority in line with extant regulations.”

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21/02/2026

Dennis Amachree, a former Assistant Director of the Department of State Services (DSS), made the allegation during an interview on TVC News, where he discussed security developments and the government’s response to banditry in northern Nigeria. He spoke while reflecting on the actions and decisions taken during the tenure of former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El‑Rufai, particularly regarding the handling of armed groups.

Amachree explained that during the period when security agencies were monitoring the activities of bandits, there were allegations linking the presence of some of these criminal elements to political developments at the time. He stated that while intelligence operatives were tracking the bandits and gathering information about their movements and operations, concerns arose over how best to neutralize the threat without causing harm to innocent civilians. He emphasized that security operations must balance effectiveness with respect for human rights and the protection of non-combatants.

According to him, "He was a governor of Kaduna State, and then of course, when the DSS was tracking the bandits that he allegedly brought into Nigeria, of course you remember there was this allegation that during the election they were brought in, and when they were trying to monitor them, he came up with this idea that they should carpet bomb them in Kaduna. And then of course, the military said we cannot do that because that's against human rights. You don't carpet bomb people because of the collateral damage; you don't know who is who, you know, when you're going to kill people (mass killing of people)."

Amachree argued that the military rejected the idea because carpet bombing could result in heavy civilian casualties and violate international human rights standards. He noted that such an approach would not distinguish between bandits and innocent residents living in affected areas, making it a dangerous and unacceptable security strategy. He stressed that modern counter-insurgency operations rely more on intelligence-driven precision rather than indiscriminate force.

19/02/2026

There have been several reactions from social media users after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu stated that transmission of manual results will be looked at in the forthcoming presidential election in 2027.

This statement was contained in a post that was shared on the official X handle of ARISE NEWS on Wednesday, February 18, 2026.

This is coming after it was announced that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has signed the Electoral Bill into law.

In the report that surfaced online, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu stated that as long as a persons votes manually, the transmission of manual results will be considered.

Here is what ARISE NEWS wrote on its official X handle;

"As long as you appear personally as a manual voter in any polling booth, that transmission of manual results is what we will look at".