By Emmanuel Kwada

In a significant political development, a group of prominent All Progressives Congress (APC) members in Adamawa State convened a strategic meeting in Yola to discuss defecting to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and forming a new coalition to challenge the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.

The meeting, held at the residence of Engr. Omar Suleiman, a former Nigerian Ports Authority official and ex-Ambassador to Sudan, signals a potential shift in the state’s political landscape ahead of the 2027 elections.

The coalition includes loyalists of high-profile figures such as former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Governor Murtala Nyako, former Governor Muhammadu Umaru Jibrilla Bindow, Senator Aishatu Dahiru Binani, and Senator Ishaku Elisha Abbo.

The group aims to position the ADC as a formidable force to unseat the PDP, which has maintained control under Governor Ahmadu Fintiri

These APC stalwarts expressed frustration with internal party dynamics, citing a lack of reward systems and vested interests as key reasons for their dissatisfaction. The group aims to position the ADC as a formidable force to unseat the PDP, which has maintained control under Governor Ahmadu Fintiri.

Engr. Omar Suleiman, a long-time APC member who unsuccessfully contested for the Adamawa Central senatorial seat in 2015 and 2019, hosted the meeting. Sources revealed that discussions centered on a strategic plan to take over Adamawa State, leveraging the ADC as a new political platform.

Gov Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri

Another key figure, Engr. Dr. Umar Buba Bindir, a former Secretary to the Adamawa State Government and senatorial aspirant, addressed the coalition, emphasizing that the ADC has been adopted at the national level as a party for all registered and loyal members. Bindir vowed to work collaboratively to dislodge the PDP, criticizing the APC for its failure to reward loyalty.

Rt. Hon. Ibrahim Dasin, a former state and federal lawmaker and active APC member, also attended the meeting, calling for unity among the coalition to achieve their shared goal. “We must come together with a clear purpose to bring change to Adamawa,” Dasin urged, highlighting the need for a cohesive strategy to challenge the PDP’s dominance.

We must come together with a clear purpose to bring change to Adamawa

The meeting underscores ongoing internal crises within the Adamawa APC, with prominent members like Nyako, Bindow, Binani, and Abbo previously boycotting a reconciliation meeting organized by the party’s national leadership in December 2024.

The ADC coalition’s emergence could further weaken the APC’s position in the state, especially following the expulsion of Senator Abbo and other internal disputes that have plagued the party. In

The Adamawa State ADC leadership has yet to issue an official statement, but the coalition’s activities are expected to intensify in the coming months as they work to expand their base and finalize their strategy.

President Bola Tinubu arrived in Vieux Fort, Saint Lucia, on Saturday at 5.30 p.m. local time.

This was disclosed in a statement by presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga on Saturday night.

He said, upon Tinubu’s arrival at Hewanorra International Airport, he was accorded full military honours and received by the Governor-General of Saint Lucia, His Excellency Errol Melchiades Charles, and Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre.

According to Onanuga, the visit marks the first leg of his two-nation trip to the Caribbean and South America.

Tinubu will kick off the state visit on Sunday by paying courtesy calls on the Governor-General and Prime Minister Philip Pierre.

The President will address a special joint session of the Senate and the House of Assembly of Saint Lucia on Monday.

The event will take place at the William Jefferson Clinton Ballroom, Sandals Grande, Gros Islet.

“Guests include the Heads of Government of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), senior Saint Lucian government officials, members of the diplomatic corps, the Nigerian community in Saint Lucia, and the Director-General of the OECS, Dr. Didacus Jules.

“President Tinubu will hold a high-level working luncheon with the Heads of Government of OECS after the joint session of the Parliament of Saint Lucia.

“Discussions will centre on deepening cooperation between Nigeria and the OECS, focusing on economic partnerships and cultural solidarity for shared prosperity.

“According to the President’s itinerary, he will visit the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College in Castries to strengthen educational ties and promote academic exchange.

“President Tinubu’s visit underscores Nigeria’s commitment to strengthening diplomatic and economic relations with Caribbean states, particularly within the African Union’s Sixth Region framework, which recognises the African diaspora as a vital partner in the continent’s development”, the statement partly reads.

After his engagements in Saint Lucia, the President will proceed to Brazil to participate in the 2025 BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro from July 6 to 7, 2025.

President Tinubu would be attending the BRICS summit at the invitation of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil, based on Nigeria’s status as a ‘partner country’—a ‘membership category short of full membership.

The partner status is higher than that of a guest country, as has been the case in the past. South Africa, Egypt, and Ethiopia are African members of BRICS.

The 17th BRICS Summit will focus on “Strengthening Global South Cooperation for More Inclusive and Sustainable Governance”.

Senator Adams Oshiomhole, representing Edo North Senatorial District, has said that the excessive printing of money by the Central Bank of Nigeria under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari through the Ways and Means policy crippled the naira.

Oshiomhole made this statement on Saturday at a Progressive Governors Forum’s Meeting and Interactive Session in Benin City, Edo State.

He blamed the policy for the eventual collapse of the Nigerian currency against the US dollar.

“We are coming from a country that was almost like Zimbabwe or Idi Amin’s Uganda, where he asked the Central Bank Governor to ‘go and print more money for us to share to the people’. And the Governor said, if we print more money, Uganda currency will be like a sheet of paper,” he said.

According to the former Edo State Governor and President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, to understand the root cause of the present cost of living and the exchange rate regime, you must trace and locate it in terms of the excessive amount of banknotes through the so-called Ways and Means which the past government created.

He said Nigeria was borrowing every day the way fish drinks water, stressing that it has become President Bola Tinubu’s burden to pay back those loans to guarantee the sovereignty of Nigeria.

Recall that the Senate in 2024 inaugurated an ad hoc committee to investigate the Ways and Means and the Anchor Borrowers Programme of the apex bank.

Ekwutosblog reports that the Ways and Means provision allows the Federal Government to borrow from the CBN if it needs emergency finance to fund delayed government expected cash receipts of fiscal deficits.