By Tony Nwafor, Onitsha

As the 2027 general election draws close, there are Fears of victory by the Nigeria Democratic Congress, (NDC), has reportedly gripped the candidate of All Progressives Congress, (APC) in Onitsha North and South Federal constituency, Hon. Lynda Ikpeazu, prompting her media team to come up with a propaganda that Hon Engr. Emeka Idu, the incumbent member of House of Representatives, has abandoned his Principal and the NDC Presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, and endorsed President Bola Tinubu.

In a press release by the media team of Hon. Idu, it described the alleged endorsement of Tinubu by Idu, as false, unfounded and a figment of the imagination of the Ikpeazu media team aimed at distracting Idu from his focus of continuing to fight for better welfare for his Onitsha Federal constituency constituents.

The Idu media team reiterated that if not that its silence on the said propaganda may be taken for weakness, it would not have responded as it is preoccupied with activities aimed at Idu ensuring better welfare for the constituents.

According to Idu media team, ”
When a campaign team and party have nothing to offer they manufacture false allegations to tarnish the image of the man of the people That is what the APC candidate’s media team has done in Onitsha North and South. The team has circulated false report claiming that Hon. Engr. Emeka Idu has endorsed President Bola Tinubu for a second term. The people of the constituency, who know exactly where Hon. Idu stands, dismissed it almost immediately with the wave of the hands.

“Hon. Idu has been with Mr. Peter Obi since 2023, when Mr. Obi ran for president on the Labour Party platform and Hon. Idu ran for the House of Representatives on the same platform. He did not leave when it became costly to stay. When the ruling party was working to win over opposition lawmakers, especially those who won on the Labour Party ticket, Hon. Idu did not decamp. When Mr. Obi moved to the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Hon. Idu went with him, contested the primary election and emerged as the NDC candidate for Onitsha North and South. That is loyalty in action and it is a matter of public record.

“So the story fails on its own terms. Why would a man who has stood with Mr. Obi through every turn suddenly endorse the Tinubu who Mr. Obi is running against? No one in Onitsha believes it, and that is why the allegation died the day it appeared.

“The more important question is why the APC’s team wrote it. The answer is that her candidate has no visible path to victory in this constituency. When a campaign cannot win an argument, it invents a rumour. When it cannot answer a record, it attacks a reputation. We also suspect envy. Hon. Idu is on a joint ticket with Mr. Obi, whom Nigerians see as the hope for a better Nigeria, and the APC candidate has no such ticket, infact she is even afraid to add the picture of her party’s presidential candidate to her campaign posters and banners.

“Here is what will happen at the polls. The voters who go out to vote for Mr. Peter Obi for President will also vote for Hon. Idu for the House of Representatives. Both men are on the NDC platform and running as part of the same movement. A vote for Mr. Obi at the top of the ballot becomes a vote for his strongest ally in the Green Chamber, someone who will support him from the House of Representatives. Onitsha North and South will send one clear message on the same ballot.

“Hon. Idu also has a record to stand on, with presence in the constituency, legislative work in Abuja and a visible commitment to his people. The APC has a rumour. The people will choose between the two.

“To the APC candidate, Ikpeazu and her media team: no amount of fabricated endorsement will change the outcome, and no propaganda will turn voters away from the man who stood with them and with Mr. Obi. Your defeat is now so plain that you have resorted to cheap, senseless propaganda of which the electorate disregard,” Idu media team stated

By George Mgbeleke
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has faulted the decision of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to initiate disciplinary proceedings against lawyer and politician, Kalu Kalu, over his remarks concerning Justice Peter Lifu, warning the Association against allowing itself to be drawn into the political fight against the opposition.

In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC said while it agrees with the principles of productive engagement, temperance and respect for institutions, which the party has consistently advocated, it finds the NBA’s sudden indignation curious.

“Why is the NBA only now finding its voice because a politician, who also happens to be a lawyer, has said something that some people find uncomfortable? What has Kalu Kalu said about Justice Peter Lifu that the Court of Appeal has not already said?

“In its June 2026 ruling, the Court of Appeal described Justice Lifu’s conduct as the ‘highest form of judicial impertinence’ and invoked a Supreme Court precedent characterising such conduct as judicial rascality and rendering a judge unfit for the Bench. Where was the NBA when the judiciary itself was expressing such grave concerns about the conduct of one of its own?

“We respect the NBA for its noble history in the defence of democracy and the rule of law. However, the Association must be careful not to allow itself to be perceived as throwing its hat into the political ring on the side of a ruling party that already boasts openly of hijacking our judicial institutions and the Nigerian Bar.

“It is not Kalu’s words that smear the judiciary. What discredits the Bench and the Bar is the conduct of conscienceless judges like Lifu and equally conscienceless lawyers who are alleged to operate a network of client judges in the service of conscienceless politicians in power. It is this conduct that mortgages the rule of law and erodes public confidence in the administration of justice.

“This is what should concern the NBA, rather than victimising a brave lawyer like Kalu for expressing his political views.

“The NBA is not a political party. It must, therefore, not be seen to be behaving like a member of a political coalition against the opposition, whose demand is simply that justice be done, that the rule of law be protected and that democracy be preserved.

“The NBA cannot demand respect for the judiciary while appearing indifferent to conduct that brings the judiciary into disrepute. Respect for the courts must never become a requirement for silence in the face of injustice.

“We agree that lawyers must exercise restraint. But there is no respectful way to address evil, and the NBA cannot teach us one.”

By George Mgbeleke
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) has faulted the decision of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to initiate disciplinary proceedings against lawyer and politician, Kalu Kalu, over his remarks concerning Justice Peter Lifu, warning the Association against allowing itself to be drawn into the political fight against the opposition.

In a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the ADC said while it agrees with the principles of productive engagement, temperance and respect for institutions, which the party has consistently advocated, it finds the NBA’s sudden indignation curious.

“Why is the NBA only now finding its voice because a politician, who also happens to be a lawyer, has said something that some people find uncomfortable? What has Kalu Kalu said about Justice Peter Lifu that the Court of Appeal has not already said?

“In its June 2026 ruling, the Court of Appeal described Justice Lifu’s conduct as the ‘highest form of judicial impertinence’ and invoked a Supreme Court precedent characterising such conduct as judicial rascality and rendering a judge unfit for the Bench. Where was the NBA when the judiciary itself was expressing such grave concerns about the conduct of one of its own?

“We respect the NBA for its noble history in the defence of democracy and the rule of law. However, the Association must be careful not to allow itself to be perceived as throwing its hat into the political ring on the side of a ruling party that already boasts openly of hijacking our judicial institutions and the Nigerian Bar.

“It is not Kalu’s words that smear the judiciary. What discredits the Bench and the Bar is the conduct of conscienceless judges like Lifu and equally conscienceless lawyers who are alleged to operate a network of client judges in the service of conscienceless politicians in power. It is this conduct that mortgages the rule of law and erodes public confidence in the administration of justice.

“This is what should concern the NBA, rather than victimising a brave lawyer like Kalu for expressing his political views.

“The NBA is not a political party. It must, therefore, not be seen to be behaving like a member of a political coalition against the opposition, whose demand is simply that justice be done, that the rule of law be protected and that democracy be preserved.

“The NBA cannot demand respect for the judiciary while appearing indifferent to conduct that brings the judiciary into disrepute. Respect for the courts must never become a requirement for silence in the face of injustice.

“We agree that lawyers must exercise restraint. But there is no respectful way to address evil, and the NBA cannot teach us one.”