Midfielder Joel Obi has completed a one year loan move to Parma from Inter Milan.
The Nigeria international had been heavily linked with the switch and completed it officially on Monday afternoon.
The 22-year-old central midfielder had been co-owned by Parma until January 2012, when they sold their half to Inter for €3.5m.
Obi has now returned to the Stadio Tardini on a season-long loan.
There is no option to buy on a permanent basis. He is already a senior Nigeria international with 12 caps.
CONSTRUCTION of the proposed shopping mall for Nnewi would commence in a few days time, Anambra State Governor Peter Obi has said.
Obi ,who spoke yesterday at the inspection of the ongoing Agulu Lake Hotel and Resort with two new bridges, said other malls at Awka and Nnewi were ongoing.
“The mall at Onitsha and Awka are ongoing. In a few days we shall start that of Nnewi. We had planned these things and have enough money set aside for them. We shall also start the three Arms Zone, for which we also have enough Money set aside,” Obi stressed.”
He further assured said the state government had enough money to complete all the projects being embarked upon by his administration across the state.
GOVERNOR Peter Obi of Anambra State has presented a cheque for the sum of N10 million to Guardian Angel Nursery and Primary School, Abatete, Anambra State, in fulfillment of his promise to rebuild the school’s main structure destroyed by fire earlier this year. The money is the fourth installment of financial interventions released to the school by the governor for the project. Governor Obi said the fund was to enable the school complete the building, and in line with his earlier promise to ensure that the structure was put back in shape to provide conducive learning environment for the children. Speaking on the donation, the Principal of Dominican Sisters’ College Abatete, Sister Mary Dia Adesanya, noted that in over seventeen years of her stay in the state, Governor Obi remains the most responsive and dedicated leader, adding that the governor has continued to care for the poor and the needy. Rv. Sr. Adesanya commended the development that has transformed sectors hitherto neglected by previous administrations.
November 16 is a day of decision in Anambra State. The fate of political parties fielding candidates for the governorship election will be decided by voters. Who are these candidates? Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU examines the strengths and weaknesses of the likely flag bearers.
Three parties -All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), All Progressives Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-are warming up for theNovember 16 election in Anambra State. Although the Labour Party (LP) is also making efforts, but it is a party on the fringe. Observers contend that the race will not be a walk over for whichever party that eventually lifts the trophy.
As the parties streamline the number of aspirants, the contest is being narrowed down to a few contenders. Last week, the APGA separated the wheat from the chaff. The Screening Committee headed by Alhaji Tayo Sowumi disqualified six aspirants from the race. Among them were Dr. Charles Soludo, former Central Bank governor, who defected from the PDP, Secretary to Government Osealoka Obaze, Emmanuel Nweke, Tony Nnaechetta, Dr, Dike Obidigbo, and Chinedu Idigo.
In the ruling party, seven aspirants will fight for the ticket at the primaries. They are Chief Willie Obiano, the former Fidelity Bank Executive Director, House of Representatives member Mrs. Uche Ekwunife, Chukwuemeka Nwogbo, John Nwosu, John Emeka and Nwachi Obianwu.
However, eyes are on Obiano, whose entrance into the crowded race generated excitement. Observers point out that he is a candidate to watch out for two reasons. He is from Aguleri in Anambra North Senatorial Zone, which Governor Peter Obi is backing for the slot because the district has not produced a governor since 1999. Also, the former bank executive is said to be very close to the governor.
The thinking in APGA is that the candidate should have a financial muscle to run a successful state-wide campaign, ahead of the poll. It is believed that, among the aspirants, only Obiano can meet this requirement because, apart from the fact that he is wealthy, he has friends and associates who can support him to succeed.
However, his emergence as the candidate may sow a seed of discord. Party members may perceive it as a curious move to reap where he did not openly invest. A source close to the screening committee disclosed that APGA should prepare for the post-primary crisis that may affect its chances. “That is why we have asked the aggrieved aspirants, who were screened out, to appeal to the national secretariat of the party. Before, during and after the primaries, the party must do a lot of fence mending”, he added.
In the APC, the coast is almost clear for Senator Chris Ngige, the former governor, who was deposed by the court to pave the way for Obi. Since 2006, he has been nursing the ambition to return to the Government House. His supporters are also soaring daily. This attests to the fact that the senator from Anambra Central Senatorial District is popular. Many indigenes recall that, although his tenure as the governor was controversial, he fought the infrastructure battle very well. The roads he constructed have convinced the people that, if he returns to the government, he will not disappoint them.
Ngige is not the only aspirant in the race in the APC. He has three contenders to face at the primaries. Two of them, Senator Annie Okonkwo and Goodwin Ezeemo, are touring the districts and zones, drumming support for their candidature. Their supporters have alleged that their ambition may be jeopardised, if a shadow poll is not conducted in the party to choose the candidate. Although the aspirants could not confirm, if pressures is mounted on them to step down for Ngige, their supporters are already crying wolf. Last month, a group of youths from the defunct Anambra ACN stormed the Lagos residence of the national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to demand for primaries. “We don’t want imposition of any candidate. We want the aspirants to participate in the primaries. The party members should decide their fate,” said their leader, Luke Uche, who urged the party leadership to ensure a hitch-free contest.
Also in Lagos, Ezeemo warned against imposition, saying that it will affect the chance of the APC at the poll. “We will insist on internal democracy in the APC and I believe that our leaders will not do anything that will tarnish the image of the party”, he told reporters in Amuwo-Odofin during a press conference.
After the primary hurdle, the APC will also have to brace for the campaigns. Already, APGA is sponsoring a media propaganda against the newly registered party, following the alleged deportation of 14 destitute to Anambra State by the Lagos State government. APGA chieftains have deliberately been inflating the figures to embarrass the APC, ridicule it before the people and score a cheap point.
Expectedly, APGA hopes to profit from the power of incumbency wielded by the governor. However, the ruling party is still engulfed in crises. Obi is championing the zoning of the governorship to the Northern Zone. Besides the protracted leadership tussle in the fold is not totally resolved as the forces loyal to Maxi Okwu are murmuring.
Also, both APGA and APC soldiers have not succeeded in wiping out the PDP from the state. Despite its past electoral misfortunes, PDP has not gone down. This contrasts with the fate of the Labour Party, which now revolves around the personality of the oil magnate, Ifeanyi Ubah, who has not really made any political point in the state,
Relying on federal might, the PDP, whose arrow head is Senator Uba, is seriously mobilising supporters for another epic battle. Uba’s ego had been bruised in the past, when he was deposed by the court, barely a month in the saddle as the governor. But, like Ngige, his confidence was restored, following his election into the Senate. Also, like Ngige, he is a top contender.
As eyes are on Ngige in the APC, many are rooting for Uba in the PDP. Although he was a governor by default, Ngige erected lasting legacies, which were acknowledged by Obi and other Anambra leaders. Reflecting on his tenure as governor, Ngige said that he served the state without blemish. “The roads I constructed are everlasting. I served with diligence and sense of purpose. I can confidently walk on the streets unmolested and without an escort. I wanted to solve a lot of problems in the state”, he said.
Ngige is on a familiar terrain. His supporters believe that he is known and tested.
He is not required by the law to resign his seat as a senator. He has organised empowerment programmes for the people. Ngige declared that, at this stage, the acquisition of wealth is not a priority for him, adding that the welfare of the state is the primary concern. . His philanthropic activities have endeared him to more people. Many of them recall that, as the governor, he fought corruption and channeled the state’s scarce resources to its development. Observers contend that Ngige will not lack the resources to oil his campaign machinery. Indisputably, he has the backing of APC leaders. As a senator, Ngige is a rallying point at home. Many people also believe that his party has good programmes.
Uba is waxing stronger. Like Ngige, he is not expected to resign as a senator before contesting the governorship. He has the sympathy of prominent PDP elders, who believe that he was robbed of the ticket in 2009, when it was handed over to Soludo. Then, in protest, Uba defected to the LP to contest, but without success. In 2009, he had been elected as the governor. He spent 19 days in office before the court declared that he was elected in error.
A PDP source said that the senator also has the backing of President Goodluck Jonathan, the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) members and other top party financiers. “Uba is a formidable candidate in the PDP and it is the belief of the PDP. It is significant that his brothers, Eselu Chris Uba and the elderly Senator Ugochukwu Uba, still call the shots in the Anambra politics. His past political tragedy is now a blessing. More than before, he is perceived by the PDP family as a vital asset, committed leader and promising contender”, he added.
Another factor that may work for Uba is his solid structure. When he won the senatorial election in 2011, his rating in the PDP became high. At the grassroots, he has been solidifying his structures and the party organs by providing financial resources and credible leadership. Thus, among the party supporters, he is a household name.
The fact that each of the three parties-APGA, APC and PDP-has a senatorial seat is an indication that none of them can be written off. But November 16 will tell which among the three is first among equals.
A member of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) Screening Committee for the November 16 governorship election in Anambra State has said Governor Peter Obi and National Chairman Victor Umeh did not influence the committee’s decision.
The committee disqualified former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Chukwuma Soludo and ex-Anambra Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Osaeloka Obaze.
Onwuka Ukwa said yesterday that the committee was not guided by Obi and Umeh.
He said: “APGA decided that a political process devoid of the usual rancour and violence should be created.
“It’s not a do-or-die process. The intention is to ensure selfless service to the people.
“Anyone enquiring about the disqualification of certain aspirants should make their enquiry broad-based or all- encompassing, rather than hinging it on any disqualified individual.
“We wanted to prove that things can be done without the usual violence and rancour. In fact, the screening was done in a free and fair atmosphere where every person was given equal opportunity.
“This process was conducted to make certain reasonable level of integrity, transparency and credibility in it.
“We didn’t create a situation in which an individual would be viewed differently from other aspirants.”
Ukwa said APGA was adopting a new attitude to politics and advised all the aspirants who were not favoured by the outcome of the screening to accept the result, remain focused and supportive to the party.
The APGA chieftain said critics of the process were free to express their views since they had the liberty to do so but he insisted that an assignment of that nature could never be praised by everyone. “People are bound to disagree with us. We don’t expect everyone to hail what we’ve done,” he said.
ANAMBRA State governor, Peter Obi, has stressed the need for the future administration in the state to sustain the existing partnership with the European Union and other development partners.
Obi spoke during a cultural night organised in honour of the outgoing EU Ambassador to Nigeria, Dr David MacRae, at the Governor’s Lodge, at the weekend.
Governor Obi noted that the partnership had enabled the state to fill budgetary gaps overtime; he therefore reiterated the need for incoming administration to ensure prompt payment of counterpart contributions, prudent and transparent management of resources to achieve the set goals.
The EU Ambassador, who lauded the governor for laying a solid legacy of good governance through successful implementation of the multi-sectorial programmes, observed that Anambra today stands out among the six focal states benefiting from the EU programmes and expressed the hope that the governor’s successor would maintain the partnership.
Speaking, the Commissioner for Public Utilities, Water Resources and Community Development, Mr. Emeka Nwankwu, said the Obi administration had, among other things, provided over 400 boreholes in secondary schools and health centres and rehabilitated 29 of 73 collapsed water schemes across the state.
The State Authorising Officer for EU Programmes and Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget, Prof. Chinyere Okunna, said the state’s collaboration with EU has brought tremendous gains to the state.
Anambra State government has continued the rejuvenation of communities in order to complement the Peter Obi administration’s development plan for the state. Schools in urban and local communities are rehabilitated while pupils and their minders are inspired to give their best.
Dilapidated rural roads are reworked. In the communities local security outfits get a helping hand from the state government. For their effort in fostering peace, traditional rulers are amply rewarded, even as they are expected to help keep their domains safe and secure.
In fact, for royal fathers in the state, you could say things are looking up. No fewer than 200 of them got a Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) each, courtesy of the Obi administration.
Governor Obi while presenting the vehicles to the traditional rulers inside Government House, Awka, said the vehicles were given in recognition of the pivotal roles the traditional rulers were playing in the state.
The vehicles were manufactured by the Innoson car plant in Nnewi, Anambra State’s industrial hub.
Obi explained that his administration chose the locally-manufactured vehicles because of their good quality, adding that with such a plant, there is “no need to search elsewhere”.
He said that the state government has unofficially adopted INNOSON vehicles as the state brand and revealed that the next set of official vehicles he would use would be bought from Nnewi-based firm.
On the source of finance for the projects, the governor said it was from the money he attracted to the state. Using the education sector as an example, he said that the budget was N3 billion, adding that by the end of the year, N13 billion would have been spent.
In his remarks, the chairman Anambra Traditional Rulers’ Council, Obi Alfred Achebe described the state’s achievement under Obi’s administration as unprecedented. He further said he was particularly thrilled not by the vehicles, but by the revolution in schools which he noted, would be for the benefit of the children.
He assured the governor of the support of traditional rulers in the state.
Contributing, the traditional ruler of Umuoji, Igwe Cyril Iwueze thanked the governor for developing every sector of the state’s economy. He noted that after witnessing billions given to the church to rehabilitate schools handed over to them, it was encouraging to see that the same gesture was extended to public schools.
The state gave out N2.53 billion to principals of secondary schools to rehabilitate dilapidated structures.
He assured that by the end of the year, all the schools in the state would get buses and a Microsoft academy in addition to computers on the average of one computer to 10 students, laboratory equipment, sports equipment and various learning materials.
Obi said: “We budgeted about N3 billion for education this year, but surprisingly we have spent more than N10 billion. Before we came in, everything was in a shambles and we started by returning the schools to their original owners and giving them money to rebuild their infrastructure. We would continue until the schools are returned to their former prime status of excellent learning centres.”
Anambra State Government yesterday announced the confiscation all assets belonging to the owner of the Upper Class Hotel, Onitsha, located at 8 Old Market Road, Mr. Bonaventure Mokwe, where fresh human heads were found Thursday.
He is from Umuchu, Aguata Local Government Area, Anmbra South Senatorial Zone. The building was bequeathed to him by his father.
Governor Peter Obi, who announced this at the scene of the demolition of the hotel where three fresh human heads and two AK47 rifles with magazines were found, said his government would not relent in its effort to stem the upsurge of crimes in the state.
Obi said the demolition of the building was in line with the policy of his administration to sustain the fight against crime and criminality.
The Governor made it clear that government will not relent in its resolve to flush out hoodlums from all parts of the State and will continue to knock down property belonging to criminals.
“I am aware some would rather want us to convert these property for use for public purposes, but I tell you, acquiring these property and knocking them down is psychologically more beneficial because the weight of the punishment is proportional to how much fear it engenders in people to run away from crime,” he said.
In their separate speeches, the Transition Committee Chairman, Onitsha North, Mr. Eddie Okosi and his Onitsha South counterpart, Mr. Ugochukwu Ezeani, said the government was already winning the war against criminals. They said that Onitsha had been rebranded by the governor’s good work and his ability to restore the lost glory of the town.
Some residents of the area including Osondu Ugwu, Osita Akuma, Patrick ThankGod, Chike Nnevo and Chioma Nwokei, commented the courage and political will of the governor in liberating the state from the claws of criminals.
Anambra State Governor Peter Obi and National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Victor Umeh, yesterday ended their long-running feud.
They vowed after a meeting at the Anambra State Government House in Awka to retain the governorship seat. The election is billed for Novermber16.
The running battle for the soul of APGA ended with the decision of the Court of Appeal in Enugu last month, which gave the position to Umeh, whose leadership was being challenged by Chief Maxi Okwu.
Obi said none of them was happy while the APGA crisis lasted. He declared the crisis over.
“We are going to reconcile every other person or group and set the machinery in motion for our victory in the November election, I have said it that any time I leave APGA, I will leave politics.
”Those who think that it is over are wrong. APGA is just starting and people will see what will happen during the election, it is now all action,” Obi said
Umeh, beaming with smiles as he hugged Obi, described yesterday as the liberation day in Anambra State
“I really missed the Executive chambers of this Government House during this crisis. Everybody should go out and announce to the world that Governor Obi and his brother have finally reconciled, we are now one.
”The political landscape of Anambra State will now change and those who want to take over the Government House in other parties will be totally disappointed.
”The amazing thing is that while the crisis lasted, Obi continued to function with his government without derailing, and what he has done with this executive will be the strength of the party in the election.
”It is a no victor, no vanquished affair, people really worked so hard for this reconciliation, I was never happy throughout the duration, likewise my brother Governor Obi, I’m happy we are now one united family again.
”Our late great Supreme Leader Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu will be very happy today and the celebration I have been having at his grave side is now happening at the Government House,” Obi said.
According to him, the reconciliation, is complete having sorted things out with Ojukwu’s widow Bianca.
”I met with his Amb. Bianca Ojukwu last week where we reconciled too, we are brothers and that is why we must come together to fight this common cause our late leader wished for.
”We have worked together for 11 years trying to chart a new course for APGA until the devil came trying to destabilise us; people worked so hard for this peace,” Umeh said.
It was gathered yesterday in Awka the reconciliation efforts by the Catholic and Anglican Bishops in Enugu facilitated the peace deal.
Others who met with the duo in Abuja were Prince Arthur Ezeh; Hon. Chudi Offodile and the traditional prime minister of Awka kingdom, Ozo Austine Ndigwe, who made the reconciliation possible.
The traditional ruler of Awka, Obi Gibson Nwosu, had more than he bargained for yesterday when he was booed by members of Umudioka Community of the town at a meeting attended by Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State and Sen. Ben Ndi Obi.
The meeting held at Umudioka town hall in Awka, the Anambra State capital, which was called by the governor, was aimed at resolving the problem between the community and the Catholic Church on the issue of dust to dust by women during burial of their husbands.
The fracas that ensued on Wednesday in Awka between the Catholic Church and the community claimed many casualties, while over 30 of them were hospitalised, with several buildings and other properties destroyed.
During the meeting, Hon. Ejike Onuorah, the traditional prime minister of the Kingdom, Ozo Austine Ndigwe and the youth, blamed the traditional ruler of Awka for his failure to address the issue before it got out of hand.
When the monarch tried to defend himself, he was shouted down by his subjects. But the Special Adviser to the President on Inter-Party Affairs, Sen. Ben Obi, pleaded with the crowd to give him a chance.
When the dust settled, Obi Gibson Nwosu said he was unable to do anything on the crisis, because according to him, the police allegedly claimed it would charge the first matter to court.
He, however, assured the community that he would abide by any decision taken at the meeting.
On his part, Anambra State Governor, Mr. Peter Obi, frowned at the petition written by the Catholic Church, where it alleged that a retired Lt. General of the Nigerian Army, Isaac Obiakor, and Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Celestine Okoye, who both hail from the community are kidnappers.
While suing for peace, Obi said, “What I don’t want is for anybody or group to drag the names of these distinguished sons of Awka to the mud. There is no problem that does not have a solution; what we want in this area and indeed Anambra State is peace.
“What we have on our hands is a problem that prompted this meeting. It is not only in Awka, I have solved this kind of problem in over 30 communities in this State. The only thing that does not have solution is death and that is why I have come to plead with you.”
The governor said that he would also meet with the Catholic Bishop and Priests in order to ensure that the issue was resolved amicably.
Meanwhile, members of the community had pleaded with Obi to appeal to the appropriate authorities in the Catholic Church to transfer two priests in the area, Rev, Fr. Patrick Chukwuma and Rev. Fr. Obiorah, who they alleged are the brains behind the problem in the community.