Samuel Anyanwu, the National Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has said  it’s his turn to take charge of Imo State after Ikedi Ohakim, Emeka Ihedioha, and Hope Uzodimma.

Anyanwu spoke in Owerri, the Imo State capital at the start of a group called the ‘Polling Unit Movement for Sam Daddy.’ ‘Sam Daddy’ is Anyanwu’s politics moniker.

He mentioned that all of his fellow leaders who later took charge of the state came from “the old PDP in Imo,” stressing that it would be fair and just to give him the opportunity to lead when the voters go to the polls next year.

He said, “We were four strong PDP members, myself, Hope Uzodimma, Ikedi Ohakim, and Emeka Ihedioha.

“As God may have it, all three of them have ruled over Imo state, and I have remained myself. I have come to take my turn and I believe the other contestants will make space for me.”

Anyanwu admitted that political power is fought over, but he said he is still focused on his goals.

“It’s true that power isn’t given, it’s taken. I’ll stay focused on the ball,” he said.

He said he is confident about the PDP’s future, mentioning that the party is growing stronger and gaining more supporters.

Anyanwu said: “Fortunately, the PDP is becoming stronger and more united today. Our number is also growing by thousands.

“I’m saying this clearly and honestly, PDP is the only party our people really trust, and we won’t let the people of Imo down.”

Anyanwu asked the new group members to work hard and get support for the party in the rural areas.

He also warned about unfair practices during elections, saying the PDP will send its own workers to watch over the polling stations.

Anyanwu said: “Listen to me, there’s nothing they know that we do not know.

“And there’s nothing they possess that we don’t already have. No matter how they want it done, we’re up for the challenge. But we’re telling them that their tricks won’t work this time.

“We have placed our people around every polling station where they will watch over the voting process and keep the ballots safe until the results are declared in our favor.

“We have a lot of other things going on for Sam Daddy. We have the parent body, ‘Divine Mandate’.

“We have the Mass Movement for Sam Daddy. I ask you to work together with everyone to make sure the Imo people are involved in the new song.”

The National Leader of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, Seriake Dickson, has described as frivolous and embarrassing every action behind the party’s deregistration ruling.

Dickson made this remark during an interview on ‘Sunday Politics’, a programme on Channels Television.

He was speaking on the judgment of the Federal High Court in Lokoja which set aside its earlier ruling directing the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to register the  NDC as a political party.

He said that the NDC remains a registered political party, noting that the ruling did not contain any mandatory order directing INEC to deregister the party

“Every action behind deregistration ruling is frivolous and embarrassing. Right now, the NDC remains a registered political party.

“What people are trying to do is to look for flimsy excuses to truncate the political opposition, destabilise, weaken and scatter the political opposition,” he said.

The Certified True Copy of the Federal High Court judgment ordering the deregistration of the Nigeria Democratic Congress has emerged.

The judgment, delivered by Justice Isa H. Dashen at the Lokoja Judicial Division, effectively sets aside a December 10, 2025 judgment that had previously compelled the Independent National Electoral Commission to register the party.

The court said the prior judgment was nullified because it affected the legal rights of the Peace Movement Party, which claimed ownership of the logo used by the NDC but was never joined as a party to the original lawsuit.

Recall that the National Commissioner and Chairman of the Information and Voter Education Committee, of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, on Saturday said that the commission was waiting to obtain the official paperwork before finalizing its response.

“We have applied for the Certified True Copy of the judgment. Until we receive it, we cannot be in a position to comment on it. However, the position that existed before the December 10, 2025 judgment was that INEC rejected NDC’s letter of intent to be registered as a political party,” Haruna explained.

The NDC had said that it has already been denied the portal access codes needed to upload its candidate list for the 2027 general elections. 

In response to the portal denial, the National Publicity Secretary of the NDC, Osa Director, confirmed that their efforts to secure the necessary credentials were unsuccessful.

“We approached INEC to collect the access code to upload the names of our candidates to the INEC portal. They told us that they will get back to us,” Director said.