Politics
INVESTIGATION: Why No Imo Governor Ever Controls Succession- The Untold Story
Imo State’s inability to sustain political succession from one elected governor to another is not accidental. It is the consequence of recurring structural failures rooted in elite conspiracy, federal power realignments, internal party implosions, zoning sensitivities, and the perennial arrogance of incumbency. From Achike Udenwa to Ikedi Ohakim and Rochas Okorocha, each administration fell victim to a combination of these forces, leaving behind a state where power is never inherited, only contested.
Achike Udenwa’s experience remains the most instructive example of how federal might and elite scheming can dismantle a governor’s succession plan. Governing between 1999 and 2007 under the PDP, Udenwa assumed that the party’s national dominance would guarantee internal cohesion in Imo. Instead, his tenure coincided with one of the most vicious intra-party wars the state has ever witnessed.
The Imo PDP split into two irreconcilable blocs. On one side was Udenwa’s grassroots-driven Onongono Group, powered by loyalists such as Alex Obi and anchored on local structures. On the other was a formidable Abuja faction populated by heavyweight figures including Kema Chikwe, Ifeanyi Araraume, Hope Uzodimma, Tony Ezenna, and others with direct access to federal influence. This was not a clash of personalities alone; it was a struggle over who controlled the levers of power beyond Owerri.
The conflict worsened when Udenwa openly aligned with then Vice President Atiku Abubakar during his bitter feud with President Olusegun Obasanjo. That alignment proved politically fatal. Obasanjo, determined to weaken Atiku’s network nationwide, withdrew federal support from governors perceived as loyal to the vice president. In Imo, the effect was immediate and devastating.
Federal agencies, party organs, and influence channels tilted decisively toward the Kema Chikwe-led Abuja faction. Udenwa lost effective control of the PDP structure, security leverage, and strategic influence. His foot soldiers in the Onongono Group could mobilise locally, but they could not withstand a coordinated assault backed by the centre.
His preferred successor, Charles Ugwu, never gained political altitude. By the time succession became imminent, Udenwa was already a governor without power. Even his later recalculations failed to reverse the tide. The party had slipped beyond his grasp.
The eventual outcome was politically ironic. Ikedi Ohakim emerged governor, backed by forces aligned with the federal establishment, notably Maurice Iwu—his kinsman and then Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Another Udenwa ally, Martin Agbaso, briefly tasted victory, only for his election to be cancelled. The lesson was brutal and unmistakable: without federal alignment, succession in Imo is almost impossible.
Notably, Udenwa’s record in office did not rescue him. Infrastructure development, relative stability, and administrative competence counted for little in the face of elite conspiracy operating simultaneously at state and federal levels. In Imo politics, performance is secondary to power alignment.
Ikedi Ohakim’s tenure presents a different dimension of failure. Unlike Udenwa, he never reached the point of succession planning. His administration was consumed by political survival. From 2007 to 2011, Ohakim governed amid persistent hostility from elites and a rapidly deteriorating public image.
Ohakim has consistently maintained that his downfall was orchestrated. Central to his claim is the allegation that he was blackmailed with a scandal involving the alleged assault of a Catholic priest, Reverend Father Eustace Eke. In a deeply religious state like Imo, the allegation was politically lethal.
Whether the claims were factual or exaggerated mattered less than their impact. The narrative overwhelmed governance, drowned out policy achievements, and turned public opinion sharply against him. Political elites who had midwifed his emergence quickly distanced themselves, sensing vulnerability.
By the 2011 election, Ohakim stood isolated. Party loyalty evaporated, elite cover disappeared, and voter sympathy collapsed. His re-election bid failed decisively. With that loss, any discussion of succession became irrelevant. His experience reinforces a core principle: a governor rejected by the electorate cannot dictate continuity.
*Uzodimma*
Rochas Okorocha’s rise in 2011 appeared to signal a break from Imo’s succession curse. Charismatic, populist, and financially powerful, he commanded party structures and grassroots loyalty. By his second term, he seemed politically unassailable.
Yet Okorocha committed the most consequential succession error in the state’s history. By attempting to impose his son-in-law, Uche Nwosu, as successor, he crossed from political strategy into dynastic ambition. That decision detonated his massive support base in the State overnight.
Imo’s political elites revolted almost unanimously. Party affiliation became secondary to a shared determination to stop what was widely perceived as an attempt to privatise public office. The revolt was elite-driven, strategic, and ruthless.
The zoning factor compounded the crisis. Okorocha hailed from Orlu zone; so did Nwosu. For many Imo voters, the prospect of Orlu retaining power through familial succession was unacceptable. What might have been tolerated as ambition became framed as entitlement.
This time, elite resistance aligned with popular sentiment. The electorate queued behind alternatives not necessarily out of conviction, but out of rejection. Crucially, Emeka Ihedioha emerged governor because Okorocha fatally miscalculated—splitting his base, provoking elite rebellion, and underestimating voter resentment. Okorocha’s formidable structure collapsed under internal rebellion and voter backlash, sealing his failure to produce a successor.
Hope Uzodimma’s current position must be assessed against this turbulent history. At present, the structural indicators are in his favour. He enjoys firm federal backing, controls the APC machinery in the state, and commands the support—or at least the compliance—of most major political elites.
Unlike Udenwa, Uzodimma is aligned with the centre. Unlike Ohakim, he has survived electoral tests. Unlike Okorocha, he has not openly flirted with dynastic politics. On the surface, the succession equation appears favorable.
*Udenwa*
However, Imo’s history cautions against certainty. Elite loyalty in the state is conditional and transactional. It endures only where interests are balanced, ambitions managed, and inclusion sustained. A wrong choice of successor could still provoke elite conspiracy, even if it emerges from within the ruling party.
The opposition remains weak and fragmented, with limited capacity to mobilize mass resistance. Yet voter apathy, now more pronounced than during the Udenwa and Okorocha eras, introduces a new risk. Disengaged electorates are unpredictable and often disruptive.
“Ohakim*
Ultimately, Uzodimma’s challenge is not opposition strength but elite psychology. Suppressed ambitions, if mishandled, can erupt. Succession in Imo has never been about coronation; it is about negotiation.
*Okorocha*
History is unforgiving to governors who confuse incumbency with ownership. Power in Imo is never transferred by decree. As 2027 approaches, the same forces that toppled past succession plans remain alive. Whether Uzodimma avoids their trap will depend not on power alone, but on restraint, balance, and political wisdom.
By Comrade Igboayaka O. Igboayaka
President OHANEZE YOUTH COUNCIL
The Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC) has formally replied to the recent statement credited to the Northern Elders Forum, wherein they suggested that if Igbo youths truly desire Biafra, the Nigerian government should not stand in their way.
While we acknowledge this rare moment of honesty, OYC states clearly and unequivocally:-Yes — Igbo youths want Biafra. And this desire is not born out of hatred, but out of decades of injustice, exclusion, and systemic oppression.
The agitation for Biafra is the direct consequence of Nigeria’s persistent failure to build an equitable and inclusive federation.
WHY IGBO YOUTHS ARE DEMANDING BIAFRA
Our position is anchored on undeniable realities:-
*1. Political Differences:-Nigeria’s political structure has consistently marginalized the Southeast. Since the return to democracy in 1999, the Igbo nation has been deliberately excluded from key leadership positions, particularly the Presidency and critical security offices. Federal appointments, resource control, and political representation remain grossly imbalanced against Ndigbo.The so-called federal system operates more like a unitary arrangement where certain regions dominate while others are reduced to spectators.*
*2. Social Differences:-Social integration in Nigeria has collapsed. Igbo citizens face profiling, harassment, and selective enforcement of laws across different parts of the country. Peaceful protests in Igboland are met with military brutality, while violent extremism elsewhere often receives negotiation and amnesty.This double standard has deepened alienation among Igbo youths.*
*3. Cultural Differences:-Our language, traditions, and values are neither protected nor promoted within the Nigerian framework. Instead, Igbo culture is routinely undermined and treated as inferior. A nation that fails to respect the cultural identity of its people cannot claim unity.*
*4. Religious Differences:-Religious intolerance has become normalized. Christian communities in the Southeast feel increasingly threatened in a country where religious bias influences policy, security response, and governance. The absence of genuine religious neutrality further widens the divide.*
*5. Ethnic Hate Against Ndigbo:- Anti-Igbo rhetoric has been openly displayed in national discourse. From threats of expulsion to hate speeches and coordinated attacks, Ndigbo have become targets within their own country. Properties belonging to Igbos are often destroyed during crises, with little or no compensation or justice.This persistent hostility sends a clear message;we are not wanted.*
*6. Systemic Marginalization:- From abandoned federal roads to exclusion from major infrastructure projects, from poor seaport development to economic strangulation, the Southeast remains deliberately underdeveloped. Igbo youths graduate into unemployment, poverty, and despair while watching other regions benefit disproportionately from national resources.*
*This is not accidental. It is structural.*
*OUR MESSAGE IS SIMPLE*
*Igbo youths are not asking for war.*
*Igbo youths are asking for dignity.*
*Igbo youths are asking for freedom.*
*Igbo youths are asking for self-determination.*
*If Nigeria cannot guarantee justice, equity, and equal opportunity for all, then the call for Biafra becomes not just legitimate — but inevitable.*
*To the Northern Elders Forum: we appreciate your acknowledgment. Now let the Nigerian state also have the courage to respect the democratic will of a people.*
*You cannot force unity where there is no justice.*
*Powered by OHANAEZE YOUTH COUNCIL (OYC)*
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has approved two new political parties ahead of the 2027 general elections, raising the total number of registered parties in Nigeria to 21.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan (SAN), announced the approval of the Democratic Leadership Alliance (DLA) and the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in Abuja on Thursday. While DLA met all statutory requirements, NDC was registered following a Federal High Court order.
Full list of registered political parties in Nigeria:
All Progressives Congress (APC)
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)
Accord (A)
Social Democratic Party (SDP)
Labour Party (LP)
All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA)
African Democratic Congress (ADC)
Boot Party (BP)
Action Democratic Party (ADP)
African Action Congress (AAC)
Action Alliance (AA)
National Rescue Movement (NRM)
Zenith Labour Party (ZLP)
New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP)
Allied Peoples Movement (APM)
Peoples Redemption Party (PRP)
Action Peoples Party (APP)
Young Progressives Party (YPP)
Youth Party (YP)
Democratic Leadership Alliance (DLA) – new
Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) – new
INEC said the new parties were registered as part of efforts to deepen democratic participation and broaden political choices for Nigerians.
The detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, has filed a notice of appeal challenging his conviction and multiple sentences imposed by the Federal High Court in Abuja, insisting that the trial was riddled with fundamental legal errors and amounted to a miscarriage of justice.
In the notice of appeal dated February 4, 2026, Kanu said he was appealing against his conviction and sentences on seven counts, including terrorism-related offences, for which he received five life sentences and additional prison terms after being found guilty on November 20, 2025.
“I, Nnamdi Kanu, the Appellant, having been convicted and sentenced… do hereby give notice of appeal against my conviction,” the document stated.
Kanu was convicted for offences including “committing an act preparatory to or in furtherance of an act of terrorism,” “making a broadcast… with intent to intimidate the population,” and “being the leader and member of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), a proscribed organisation in Nigeria,” among others.
Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court, Abuja, delivered the judgment on November 20, 2025, sentencing Kanu to five life terms for terrorism-related offences, 20 years’ imprisonment for being the leader of the proscribed IPOB, and five years’ imprisonment with no option of fine for importing a radio transmitter without a licence.
In his grounds of appeal, the IPOB leader accused the trial court of failing to resolve what he described as a “foundational disruption of the original trial process” following the 2017 military operation at his Afara-Ukwu residence.
“The learned trial judge erred in law by failing to resolve the procedural and competence consequences of the foundational disruption of the original trial process in September 2017,” Kanu argued.
He also contended that the court proceeded to trial and judgment while his preliminary objection challenging the competence of the proceedings remained unresolved.
“The learned trial judge did not hear or determine the objection,” the appeal document stated, adding that judgment was delivered “while the objection remained pending and undetermined.”
Kanu further faulted the court for delivering judgment while his bail application was still pending, arguing that this affected the fairness of the trial process.
He also claimed that the trial court convicted him under a law that had already been repealed, stating that “the learned trial judge erred in law by convicting and sentencing the Appellant under the Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act, 2013, notwithstanding its repeal by the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, prior to judgment.”
Kanu further argued that he was subjected to double jeopardy, contrary to Section 36(9) of the 1999 Constitution, after being retried on facts he said had earlier been nullified by the Court of Appeal.
He also complained that he was denied fair hearing, claiming that he was not allowed to file or present a final written address before judgment was delivered.
Among the reliefs sought, Kanu asked the Court of Appeal to allow the appeal, quash his conviction and sentences, and “discharge and acquit the Appellant in respect of all the counts.”
He also informed the appellate court of his desire to be present at the hearing of the appeal, stating, “I want to be present at the hearing of the appeal because I may be conducting the appeal in person.”
Kanu is currently being held at a correctional facility in Sokoto State, after his application to be transferred to a different facility in either Niger or Nasarawa State was denied.
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OHANAEZE YOUTH COUNCIL REPLIES NORTHERN ELDERS FORUM: YES, IGBO YOUTHS WANT BIAFRA
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