The Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate, Peter Obi, had in 2017 faulted the Nigerian government’s proscription of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

(Peter Obi is currently the Nigeria democratic Congress presidential candidate)

He also faulted the government designation of IPOB as a terrorists’ organisation.

Obi stated this on 1 October 2017 when he appeared as a guest on Channels TV’s Politics Today.

A video clip of the interview, published on YouTube, has been trending on social media.

IPOB is a separatist group that is leading an agitation for an independent state of Biafra which it wants carved out from the South-east and some parts of the South-south Nigeria.

The group has been accused of being responsible for the deadly attacks in the South-east.

The Nigerian government proscribed the group in 2017 and tagged it a terrorist organisation.

But Mr Obi, a former governor of Anambra State, said then that IPOB was not a terrorist organisation and that the government was wrong to have proscribed the group.

The only thing I disagree with is naming IPOB terrorists. They are not terrorists. Those who took the decision may have information that I don’t have,” he said.

“I live in Onitsha, and I can tell you they are not terrorists. They (IPOB members) are people I pass on the road every time, (and) every day.”

Mr Obi insisted that IPOB members did not constitute a threat to Nigeria.

I meet them and live with them. In fact, I usually see (IPOB) people gathering, and not one day has there been a threat or molestation or anything from them, even when they gather,” the LP candidate said of the IPOB members.

Mr Obi was a member of the Peoples Democratic Party at the time of the interview.

Doyin Okupe, the spokesperson of the LP candidate, did not respond to calls seeking comments from him on the viral clip.

He did not also respond to a text message seeking to know if Mr Obi still maintains his stand against the proscription of IPOB and its designation as a terrorist organisation.

Recently, Nobel Laureate, Wole Soyinka, had also questioned the proscription of the secessionist group by the government.

The famous playwright, during “Newsnight,” a pre-recorded programme on Channels TV in August, expressed surprise that the government failed to proscribe Miyetti Allah despite attacks and hate speech allegedly carried out by the cattle breeders’ group across the country.

“…why are you proscribing IPOB without proscribing Miyetti Allah?” Mr Soyinka had said.

Premium Times of October 5 2022

To:
The Supreme Leader and Grand Commander of the Order of Kwankwasiyya Movement Nigeria.
His Excellency Engr. Dr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso
Sir,
Request for urgent Intervention
With utmost respect, I wish to draw your kind attention to the dangers and challenges before us going by the INEC position regarding the conduct of primary elections and it’s timeline schedule which is before the Court having made an appeal. It’s being said “a stich in time saves all”, like you rightly did while we were in ADC, your Excellency your foresight made it possible for us to jump the trap set before us using court judgment that may render our political effort and power struggle worthless. I wish you can reflect as soon as possible and intervene in my constituency too, DAWAKIN KUDU/ WARAWA FEDERAL CONSTITUENCY, in the same manner. This suggestion is timely and necessary hence the reason I’m writing formally.
If you may recall, out of respect I purposely visited you in person just to bid you farewell while leaving for pilgrimage and after exchanging pleasantries and good wishes you as well requested for my prayers. Being someone who fully believe in what you stand for Sir, I ensure I did that very well both in specific times and terms. I would have prefer other means of reaching out to you not for the time factor.
Your Excellency, everything that happens so fast require careful review unlike something that was well planned for a very long time. For more than a decade, we built the Kwankwasiyya political structure and equally ensure we maintained it’s grassroot competitiveness across despite all the earlier hurdles encountered. This structure was tested at several electoral polls and has proven intact through out. For example, we produce a Member by defeated an incumbent one, Hon Mustapha Bala Dawaki, who was then holding one of the most powerful committee (appropriation) at the House of Representatives in the previous election. Now for someone out of desperation to push us away and reap it up under your watch seems something very unusual. It’s for thesame reason I really anticipate very well from the very day Gawuna defected to Kwankwasiyya that by your principle he must wait a little more in the presence of people like H.E Comrade Abdussalam, who did excellently well to preserve and protect the Kwankwasiyya movement structure and share the ideology. Sir, we are really in support of all your informed decision. It is surprising to see what changed so fast in my absence barely less than a week at my constituency while I was away performing the spiritual obligation. While it truly excites us to always welcome more people to the Kwankwasiyya movement especially when influencial figures are involved, however, chances to belittle those is the system needs to be protected at all cost to serve as a motivation factor. Having additional people like Mustapha Bala coming back home is a welcome development. I personally
don’t have any problem with his nomination Sir, but I do have a serious concern about its legal eligibility based on the present development regarding INEC’s appeal in similar judgement. I will not like a situation whereby we will lose election to opposition just for being reckless by the party leadership and the Local government Kwankwasiyya leader who seemed determined to play it rough and throw us in the bus. Without any contradiction Sir, I wish to observe the following:
1. The very day Mustapha Bala decamped to NDC from the APC, corresponds to Monday 24th May on which Justice James Omotosho made a judgement declaration while delivering a ruling in a similar suit filed by the Social Democratic Party (SDP) against INEC in the case marked: FHC/ABJ/CS/720/2026
2. Recall that earlier Justice Mohammed Umar, in the judgement delivered in suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/517/2026 filed by the Youth Party, ruled that INEC lacked the statutory powers to fix or prescribe the timeframe within which political parties must conduct primaries for nomination of candidates for the 2027 general elections. Following the judgement, political parties effectively have up till September 2026, to submit updated membership registers and make changes to party membership records ahead of the 2027 polls.
3. However, on May 25, INEC filed a notice of appeal challenging the judgement and also sought a stay of execution pending the determination of the appeal. INEC maintained that the lower court erred in holding that it lacked powers to impose timelines for political parties to conduct primaries ahead of the 2027 elections. INEC further faulted the trial court’s interpretation of Sections 29(1), 82 and 84 of the Electoral Act, 2026, and urged the appellate court to strike out the suit and overturn the judgement.
As a way forward Sir, as discussed within the LG Caucus meeting it will be good if you consider 1. Nominating someone within the candidates earlier brought before you only who are capable and loyal, especially for the upcoming June 20 rerun election as it has nothing to do with 2027 INECs general election timeline and schedule.
2. Thesame candidate made can be maintained as a dummy candidate for the 2027 pending the outcome of appelate court’s judgment. Now that there exist INECs stay of execution order pending the determination of the appeal, it implies that opposition or INEC may work against the nomination process of Mustapha Bala (which we must avoid) challenging it’s eligibility as he was in APC as at the deadline given by INEC (10th May, 2026) and has equally evidently participated in the APCs primary elections and lost.
3. More so, it’s an opportunity to develop and project candidates from Warawa LG going by the need to comply with zoning arrangement as it was done at the NDC Presidential nomination in the interest of fairness and Equity in line with the Kwankwasiyya ideology of making someone out no one. Warawa has only served 4years against Dawakin Kudu’s 24 years in this 4th republic. It balance itself if Warawa and Dawakin Kudu were given the chance to participate, one in the upcoming rerun and the other in the 2027 general election
Thank you

Engr. Ismail Abdu Madari wrote from Masjid Al Haram and can be reached at
madaarie@gmail.com

By Abba Anwar

In Kano, not in any other place, as I am writing these paragraphs within the context of Kano politics, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is set to benefit from the coming together of the three political heavyweights of Kano North politics. Their political influence, goes beyond their zone. You can easily find their touches across the entire 44 local government areas of the state.

These are His Excellency the Deputy Senate President, who also doubles as the First Deputy Speaker of ECOWAS Parliament, Barau I Jibrin, PhD, CFR, His Excellency the current Deputy Governor, Murtala Sule Garo and His Excellency former Deputy Governor and former Minister of State, Housing and Urban Development, Eng. Abdullahi T. M. Gwarzo.

These gentlemen didn’t attain this political pedigree with such influence and domineering effect, in one day or by accident. They toiled, planned and designed the positions. They are one of the very few, yes very few, politicians within APC, whose dominance and presence are felt across the length and breadth of the state. They go beyond their primary constituencies of Kabo (Jibrin’s and Garo’s), Gwarzo (T. Gwarzo’s) and Kano North, as their Senatorial District.

When you take any of them, they have their contacts and connections in Kano Central and Kano South. I am talking of raw electorate, genuine voters and supporters. Not mere political heads, genuine and/or fake. Coincidentally, all the three gentlemen are reserved, quiet, strategic and not noise makers.

I always say of Garo, he can pick his phone and call his genuine supporter in far away, Baburi, of Tudunwada local government. And not necessarily, Barista Sabi’u Baburi, an outstanding and highly determined youth politician from that end.

Senator Jibrin was hitherto a member of House of Representatives, from Tarauni federal constituency, in Kano Central. When he became Senator representing Kano North, he did many things as a good ambassador of his people and to party leaders, from his zone. He also touched the lives of many people, including those from Kano Central and Kano South. His outreach goes further when he became Deputy Senate President. Appointments around his office are not limited to Kano North. So also other federal appointments he facilitated for other people.

Eng Gwarzo was Deputy Governor, under one of the welfarist administrations in the state, the administration of Senator Malam Ibrahim Shekarau, Sardaunan Kano. Before then, he was the Kano State Chairman of Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Kano Branch. When he was the Chairman of Gwarzo local government. With these two outstanding positions he held, he has his contacts and connections too, across all the 44 local government areas.

None of these gentlemen, is either a local operator or a noisemaker without substance when it comes to election time. They are all visible outside the reach of their local governments and their Senatorial Districts. All of them are kings in their own right. No doubt about this.

All of them mentored right thinking people in their political life. Some of such mentees are not even from their local areas of Kabo and Gwarzo. Let me give an example of few individuals whom I see as responsive and responsible mentees under the tutelage of these tripartite icons. Either under long, medium or short term mentoring process.

Under Jibrin, I can remember Dr Hafizu Liman, Abdullahi Karkasara, Fa’izu Alfindiki, among others. For HE Garo, I can still remember people like Comrade Magaji Kabiru Gulu, Coordinator, Kano First Students Movement, Musaddique Wada Waziri, Deputy Youth Leader, Kano APC, Barista Sabi’u Baburi, among others. While under HE Gwarzo, I can remember, Alhaji Yawale, some pockets of state legislators when he was Deputy Governor, among others.

I was moved when His Excellency, Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf led the reconciliation effort between DSP Barau and HE Gwarzo, in the race of Senatorial seat for Kano North. Yes other efforts were also helpful in this respect. But the Governor, the way I see it, is the Reconciliator-General, if I may use the term.

I was excited also when I heard that DSP visited Gwarzo in his Abuja residence. That spoke volumes of how peaceful and responsible the two of them are. At Gwarzo’s residence, as DSP posted on his Facebook page, he, the DSP, spoke his mind very openly and said, “Our discussion centred on the development of Kano North, Kano State, and the country as a whole.

With the unity currently prevailing within our party, Insha Allah, All Progressives Congress (APC), the largest political party in Africa will emerge victorious at all levels in the 2027 elections: the Presidency, National Assembly, Governorship, and State Assembly elections.”

His Excellency, DSP, acknowledged that, “As always, the unity and progress of our party, as well as the development of our community, state, and country, remain our top priorities.” This, he said without any doubt. No one also doubts the purity of his mind when he said that.

Is just as I always say, APC has more committed and purely genuine leaders from Kano North than from other two zones of Kano Central and Kano South. They always have the party in their hearts. They believe, all hands must be on deck for the progress of the party. And God so Kind, those of them who have genuine, real and committed supporters and loyalists, are, these three, Jibrin, Garo and Gwarzo. They believe that action is better than noise. They are naturally quite and quintessential.

Their faith in coming together to work tirelessly for the victory and survival of the party, in the forthcoming election, is not only commendable, but inspiring. Internal cohesion, is but the main thrust of APC. It was formed as a united opposition front to unseat the then government at all levels. A mission accomplished.

So any move below this effort, is a total negation of the main cardinal principles of the party. As well as planting seed of destruction from within the party, the APC.

Let me call the attention of all APC leaders, eders and other relevant stakeholders, especially those who were there before Governor Yusuf joined the party, that, it could be disastrous and too embarrassing to think that, political interest can only be safeguarded and massaged, when discordant tunes are promoted and amplified. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY WRONG!

Governor Yusuf aside, greatest assets for APC in Kano, whose mutual understanding is needed the most, are Jibrin, Garo and Gwarzo. Though they all come from Kano North, but I argued earlier, that, Kano North is the stronghold of APC. TAKE IT OR LEAVE IT!

I am from Kano Central. Yes from Dala local government. But I know that, when you are looking for NOISEMAKING OF EMPTY DRUMS, FAKE LOYALTY, NON-RESULT PACKAGING AND BELOW PERFORMANCE AT ELECTION TIME, COME TO KANO CENTRAL AND KANO SOUTH.

So the ball is now in the court of His Excellency, Governor Yusuf, to rejig, redirect, re-engineer, re-focus and re-design democratic gains for his people, through modern political practice in his party, APC. As 2027 is fast approaching, substantive percentage of the victory of the party, is within the reach of the Governor. To make or mar.

Anwar writes from Kano
Saturday, 23rd May, 2026