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‘He stopped picking my calls’ – Dele Momodu explains why he fell out with Wike

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A journalist-cum politician, Dele Momodu, has explained why he fell out with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.

He said he was a close friend to Wike but their relationship became strained after he informed the former Rivers State governor of his intention to contest for president.

He explained that Wike, who was also secretly nursing his own presidential ambition then, was angered by the information and stopped picking his calls.

Speaking in a recent episode of The Honest Bunch podcast, Momodu said, “I was very close to [Nyesom] Wike.

We are no longer close. Troubles started the moment I declared interest in the presidential election.

“He had not told anybody he wanted to contest but I was suspecting because of the branding and how much he was spending on journalists. He had PR deals with many media houses.

“Those things are not cheap but he was getting good results; everybody was talking about him.

“So, I met him and informed him that I would be contesting for the presidency and I would need his support.

And before then, I had consulted nationwide, I had met Emirs, the Sultan and everybody.

“The general impression I was getting was that if Wike wants to run, he would have problems, especially in the North. The Northerners would support anybody but not Wike.

“I tried to tell him that this is what I had picked up and in case you are unable to run, would you kindly support me? What’s the crime in that?

“I already considered you my friend. He stopped picking my calls, he told people even live on Channels, when an interviewer asked for his opinions on new entrances like Dele Momodu, he said, ‘Which Dele Momodu? Get serious!’

“I was shocked. Wike that told me that he used to watch myself and his boss, [Rotimi] Ameachi when we are flying helicopters, he would be down saying, ‘See these people, they’re enjoying o!,’ is now disrespecting me simply because he has now made money, and power.”

Reacting to former president Ibrahim Babangida’s admission of regret for annulling the June 12 elections in 1993 during his book launch titled, “A Journey of Service” in Abuja last week.

Momodu said he believes that a sincere and “unconditional apology” from the former president was all that was needed to acknowledge the injustice and fully heal the nation.

“I was hoping that we would be able to bring some form of closure to the June 12 crisis. All that we needed to do that day was to get a full unconditional apology for what happened,” Momodu stated.

“The moment I started hearing excuses about how we did it in the national interest, we did it so our democracy could survive. I don’t think what we have today is a proper democracy,” he noted.

Momodu criticised the current political landscape, arguing that it has strayed from true democratic values, pointing out that governments at all levels manipulate elections, leaving no room for real competition.

“It’s become a sham where the federal government wants to win every election, the state government wants to win every election, the local government is in disarray. So at the end of the day, what have we gained?” he asked.

Watch full interview below at Glitch Africa Studio: “The Honest Bunch”

Video credit: Honest Bunch

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Humanitarian Services: NEMA distributes relief materials to victims of terrorist attacks in 2 Niger communities

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The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has distributed relief materials to victims of terrorist attacks in the Allawa and Bagna communities of the Shiroro Local Government Area in Niger State.

The distribution exercise was conducted at the Mutum Daya community in Shiroro local government area, in collaboration with the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, where community members were also sensitised on safety precautions in respect to the 2026 Seasonal Climate Prediction by the Nigerian Meteorological Agency and the Annual Flood Outlook by the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency.

Terrorists in April attacked Bagna, Erena, Yelwa and neighbouring communities, killing residents and vigilante members, burning houses and displacing several families forcing some of the community members to flee.

The Head of NEMA’s Minna Operations Office, Hussaini Isah, stated that the intervention aimed to provide humanitarian support and alleviate the hardship faced by vulnerable persons affected by the attacks.

Isah said the distribution was organised according to the affected communities to ensure fairness, transparency and orderly conduct.

  1. Abdullahi Baba-Arah. DG, Niger State Emergency Management Agency

Both the Village Head of Allawa, Ibrahim Salihu, and his Bagna counterpart, Bitrus Leo and some beneficiaries appreciated the Federal Government and NEMA for the timely intervention, saying the relief materials had restored hope to vulnerable households affected by the attacks.

Items distributed include 1,000 bags of 25 kg rice, 1,000 bags of 25 kg beans, 1,000 cartons of spaghetti, 100 cartons each of seasoning, vegetable oil, tomato paste and iodised salt.

NEMA also used the medium to advise residents to avoid farming, building houses and carrying out business activities along waterways and flood-prone areas due to the risk of severe and localised flooding predicted for 2026 by the Nigerian Meteorological Agency and the Annual Flood Outlook by the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency.

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HAPPENING NOW: Blackout hits Abuja, Embassies affected

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The Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) has announced power outage in various parts of Abuja including hotels and diplomatic buildings.

The AEDC made the announcement in its verified X handle today.

It said the blackout also affected Bolingo Hotel, Wada Maida Building, which houses the headquarters of Sudan, Egypt embassies, Envoy Hotel, the European Union embassy, among others.

The other places affected by the blackout are the National Planning Commission (NPC), the National Hospital, and the Turkish, Pakistani, and Indian embassies.

“Also, Garki Area One, Two, Three, Seven and Eight; Garki village; Garki market; Ubiaja Street; Kaltungo Street; and Lagos Street have been affected.

“Also affected are Oka Akoko Street, Treasury House, Karibu Hotel, and part of Asokoro, such as Yakubu Gowon Street.

“Similarly, Imo Government Lodges, Gado Nasko Street, Justice Sowemimo, Hassan Musa Katsina Streets, part of Jasse Martin, NIA, and TY Danjuma Street are without power supply.

“It said also affected are Lugbe, Jedo, Forte Royal, Back Of Dunamics, Customs Quarters, Aviation Village Piwoye Kapwa Ok Water, Nicomsat, Korean School and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport,”.

It attributed the power outage to a technical fault.

“The technical team of the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) is currently working to restore the power supply.

“We regret the inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your patience and understanding,” AEDC said.

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Burial begins for Oyo school teacher killed by JAS terrorist group

The deceased teacher is expected to be buried at his residence in the Owolake area of Ogbomoso.

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The burial arrangements for Adesiyan Adegboye, the teacher killed during last Friday’s coordinated attack on three schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, began on Friday at Ayegun Baptist Church, Ogbomoso.

Adegboye, 49, was shot dead during the invasion carried out by armed bandits at Baptist Nursery and Primary School, Yawota, Community Grammar School, and L.A. Primary School, Esiele.

The deceased teacher is expected to be buried at his residence in the Owolake area of Ogbomoso.

The attackers reportedly stormed the schools around 9:30am, abducting several teachers and students during the operation that threw the communities into panic.

Following the incident, the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu, visited the affected area on Saturday and ordered the deployment of additional detectives from the Force Headquarters in Abuja to support ongoing rescue efforts.

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