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Guber Aspirant Udoedehe Said Poverty, In Akwa Ibom Motivated Me Join Guber Race
An aspirant for the 2027 gubernatorial election in Akwa Ibom State, Senator John James Udoedehe, says the high level of poverty, unemployment and inequality ravaging the state motivated him to join the governorship race.
Addressing a press conference in Uyo on Thursday, Udoedehe who is running under the platform of African Democratic Congress, ADC, regretted that despite the humongous allocations to the present government, the problems continue to weigh the state down.
He said he is mentally and physically prepared to lift the people by not just creating wealth and employment but bridging the gap between the haves and have-nots, which according to him is very prominent in the state.
“What gives me strength and motivation to do what I’m doing is when I see the level of poverty, inequality unemployment in the state; I know I needed to do something. Any government that fails to answer these questions of poverty, inequality and unemployment has not started. The level of poverty in Akwa ibom is high, you see a man of 35 years having grey hair all over due to hardship.
‘’Check the budget of Akwa Ibom for the past two years weather it is speaking, weather the budget has a voice, not a matter of building blocks. The money Godswill Akpabio and Udom Emmanuel received all together for 16 years is not up to what governor Umo Eno has received for three years yet poverty is still walking in the streets of Akwa Ibom,” he said.
On the capacity of the ADC to win elections in Akwa Ibom, Udoedehe, who was a former national secretary of All Progressives Congress, APC, said he brought APC to the state which has now become the ruling party, noting that with full grassroots sensitization and mobilization, the party shall succeed.
Addressing the allegation of being a chronic governorship aspirant, Udoedehe said he only appeared on ballot twice, saying he would not be deterred as he has high hopes of winning in 2027.
He cited the victories of governors Alex Otti of Abia State and Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra State, who failed multiple times before scaling through in their last attempts.
The guber aspirant also dismissed as baseless and false the insinuations that he was coming out to collect money from the government and chicken out mid-way, while leaving his teaming supporters stranded.
He said he had gone a long way and had been unjustly incarcerated because of his ambition, noting that it would be unwise for him to engage in such act.
‘’I am not coming to contest election because I want to collect money from anyone, I am contented with what I’m blessed with. This is mere blackmail and propaganda. I want Akwa Ibom people to leave joint stock hatred. I have not stolen the Commonwealth of the people.
‘’I have faced many ugly situations because of my people including imprisonment through emergency laws just to implicate me because of fighting for my people. People who are saying such things are sycophants and blackmailers who are busy endorsing Senator Akpabio even when they are not from Akpabio’s senatorial district.
‘’No matter the sentiments, I want Akwa Ibom people to try me in office as their governor. My conviction is that once Akwa Ibom people are enlightened properly, they would take decision in my favour in the 2027 election,” the aspirant said.
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Breaking: Nigerian Workers Demand N300,000 Minimum Wage, FG Faces Fresh Salary Pressure
The Federal Workers Forum, FWF, has demanded an immediate increase in the federal minimum wage from N70,000 to N300,000, noting that the current salary structure can no longer sustain civil servants amid Nigeria’s rising cost of living.
The Forum made the demand in a letter dated September 2, 2026, addressed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the National Assembly, with the Senate President, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chief Justice of Nigeria and Head of the Civil Service of the Federation listed among the recipients.
The workers also proposed a new salary structure that would place the highest-paid Level 17 officer on a monthly salary of N1.5 million, while Level 1 Step 1 workers would earn N300,000.
“We call for justice and immediate wage review now, adjust the federal minimum wage to N300,000 and a maximum wage of N1.5m for the Level 17 officers,” the Forum said.
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The FWF argued that the Federal Government had not fully implemented the 2024 minimum wage agreement, claiming that federal workers had yet to receive the full consequential adjustment and associated allowances.
“It will surprise you to hear that the Federal Government has not fully implemented the new national minimum wage since July 2024. We have been in the battle for full consequential adjustment of the new minimum wage,” it said.
Recall that the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, in August 2026, demanded an upward review of the minimum wage to N500,000.
In July 2024, President Bola Tinubu’s government increased the minimum wage to N70,000 per month from N30,000.
However, the cost of living for many Nigerians has tripled between 2024 and 2026.
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The Federal Government has said Nigeria will never support a military coup or any unconstitutional change of government, following claims that the country backed a failed coup attempt in the Niger Republic.
The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Sola Enikanolaiye, made this known in a statement issued on Thursday.
According to the statement, the claims circulating on social media are baseless and misleading.
Enikanolaiye said Nigeria remained committed to democracy, constitutional rule and political stability in West Africa and would not support any attempt to remove a government through unconstitutional means.
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“Nigeria will never support illegality or unconstitutional change of government anywhere, no matter who is involved or which country is concerned,” he said.
The minister also rejected claims that Nigeria, through its membership of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), supported or endorsed the military takeover in Niger.
He said the Federal Government had already stated its position on the situation in Niger in an earlier statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on August 30, 2026.
According to him, Nigeria remains deeply concerned about developments in Niger and wants the country to return peacefully to stability and constitutional order.
Enikanolaiye said Nigeria’s close historical, cultural and fraternal ties with Niger made peace and stability in the neighbouring country particularly important.
“Nigerians at home and abroad should disregard the videos and narratives circulating online, they are intended to create confusion and tarnish Nigeria’s image,” the statement said.
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