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land Crisis In Idumuje-Ugboko Community : Ned Nwoko’s false assassination Plot

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…Why He Is After Gabriel Ogbechie Rainoil ChairmanBusinessman-cum-politician, Prince Ned Nwoko of Idumuje-Ugboko community in Aniocha North Local Government Area of Delta State, who reliable sources say has continued to pull the strings of false stories, has alleged that another prominent son of the community who is the chairman of Rainoil, Chief Gabriel Ogbechie, is sponsoring a plot to assassinate him.

This, however, was found not to be true.

According to a petition he wrote to the office of the Commissioner of Police, Abuja, Ogbechie was mentioned as sponsor of the plan to kill him by two suspects in Kuje Prison. He alleged in the petition that his wife, Regina Daniels, was told by one Wale Jana that he (Jana) was informed about the plot by an inmate who overheard the suspects discussing how to assassinate him.

Part of Ned’s petition reads:

“I was reliably informed by my wife, Regina Daniels, who was also informed by one Mr. Wale Jana, that the suspects who were arrested and remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre in connection with the murder case in my village, are plotting to cause me harm and possibly kill me._

_From the information made available to me, the evil plot is being sponsored by one Chief Gabriel Ogbechie, the chairman of Rainoil. I came to this conclusion because, according to the report sent to my wife by Wale Jana, an inmate in the same room with the suspects at the correctional facility who pretended to be sleeping heard them plotting to harm me by conspiring with others outside the prison yard. From what he heard, the sponsor of the planned attack owns a filling station and is in the business of oil and gas and hails from the community around. As far as I know, the only person that fits that description is one Chief Gabriel Ogbechie…”_

Meanwhile, if it were not for the involvement of the police, the nakedness of Ned Nwoko’s false assassination theory would have gained public acceptance.

Based on Ned’s petition, Chief Gabriel Ogbechie and other people were reportedly invited by the police for questioning, including Ogbechie’s lawyer. The case got to the office of the Inspector-General of Police who then put together an investigative team to probe the allegation. In the course of investigation, Ned was asked to present the said Wale Jana who he said in his petition overheard the suspects plotting to kill him, but Ned changed the story. He was said to have told the police that the person who actually heard the suspects planning to kill him was not Jana but one Ossy Boise. When he was asked to present the Boise, Ned said the guy was dead. Then the police reportedly asked him to tell them how the Boise died, where he died, what killed him and where the autopsy report is, to which Ned could not make available any proof. Consequently, the case was dismissed by the police.

It was after his plot hit the rocks that, we gathered, Ned Nwoko decided on an escapee method by pushing the story to the public domain. In his public narrative, Ned claimed that the Boise that died was actually poisoned and that Gabriel Ogbechie was behind his killing so that Boise wouldn’t be able to testify against him (Ogbechie) in the case.

Logically, Ned Nwoko’s narratives were clear falsehoods, based on two premises. The first premise is that, in the petition that he wrote alleging a plot to kill him, Ned mentioned one Mr. Wale Jana as the person who informed his wife someone overheard the suspects discussing the plot. When Ned was asked to present the Wale Jana, he changed the story. Ned said that it was not Jana but one Boise. The second premise is that, when the two community youths were arrested, they were arrested and detained for murder. When they were taken to court, the judge said that they should be remanded in Kuje Correctional Centre pending the conclusion of investigation. But Kuje Correctional Centre was overcrowded and because of the coronavirus protocols, the two suspects were remanded at Suleja Correctional Centre. In other words, Ned was not aware that the suspects he claimed were overheard plotting his assassination in Kuje Correctional Centre were indeed being detained in Suleja Correctional Centre.

Therefore, sources said, it is clear as crystal that it was false narrative that Ned pushed to the public place and these revelations have verified the fact that, indeed, there was no plan by anyone to kill Ned Nwoko; it is just a plot to malign Chief Gabriel Ogbechie. Sources also confirmed that the assassination theory, including ceaseless media attacks, is actually part of face-saving efforts to get back at Chief Gabriel Ogbechie, who he perceives as supporting those he (Ned) is being oppressed in a community land tussle that dates back to twenty years.

According to insiders, Ogbechie has been challenging Ned, in courteous manner, on his violation of the due process required to acquire a community land, asking of him to engage the leadership of the community properly in doing so. The land crisis involves Idumuje-Ugboko community from where both Ned and Ogbechie hails and all Chief Ogbechie has been doing is to bring peace back to Idumuje-Ugboko community and to compel Ned Nwoko to protect and preserve the throne and the family heritage and not drag the throne and, indeed, the Idumuje-Ugboko community to disrepute.

The problem began in Year 2000. Ned Nwoko had approached the late King of Idumuje-Ugboko, HRH Obi Albert Nwoko that he wanted to be allocated 33 hectares of land because he was bringing investors to the community to build a Cattle Ranch and Dairy Farm where the youths of the community would be employed. The late king excitedly allocated the 33 hectares of land to Ned as requested, for free, we learnt. However, instead of fulfilling his promise to bring investors to Idumuje-Ugboko, Ned only erected his personal mansion on a portion of the land and held on to the remaining part without any development.

Few years after that, Ned again approached the late king to request for another 100 hectares of land upon which he promised to build a sports university, the first of its kind in sub-Sahara Africa. But the king refused him, on the ground that the 33 hectares of land he was earlier given which he has failed to put to use for development as promised, was still causing crisis in the community. The king then asked him to first start the sports university on the remaining portion of 33 acres and more lands would be added if that was not enough for the university project. Sources said that Ned was not comfortable with the king’s suggestion. Hence, he reportedly kept pressure on the king on the matter and in the process, the king died on the 9th of February 2017.

The Idumuje-Ugboko’s kingship is hereditary; so, it is expected that when a king dies, one of his children would naturally take the throne. In that regard, the late king’s first son, Prince Chukwunomso Nwoko, was chosen to succeed his father and the necessary rites to that effect were undertaken. According to sources, Ned Nwoko soon approached the Prince and told him that his late father had already promised him a hundred hectares of land for the university project. But the Prince reportedly replied Ned that he was privy to the agreement he had with his late father, which was for him to first start the university project on the remaining part of the 33 hectares earlier allotted to him. The Prince told him that until he started the project on the first land, the palace could not give him another land. Ned didn’t like that, sources said, thus, he reportedly began working against the Prince’s candidacy to the throne.According to reliable sources, Ned got in touch with people relevant to events that would make the Prince to get his staff of office, applying pressures on them and eventually the Prince has not received the staff of office till date. A meeting was reportedly called by elders of the community to deliberate on the next line of action but, according to information, thugs suspected to be working for Ned Nwoko invaded the meeting place and disrupted the process. The meeting was then relocated to the palace. Again, we gathered, thugs stormed the palace, but the youths of the community rose to defend the palace and stop the thugs. Tension arose and it degenerated to a free-for-all.

Following the palace scuffle, we learned, Ned Nwoko wrote a petition to the police headquarters in Abuja that somebody, a certain Okada rider from Onicha-Ugbo, was killed in the palace and the community youths be held for murder. Subsequently, two of the community youths were reportedly arrested. In the course of the investigation, nobody was found to have died in the palace encounter. But based on Ned’s petition to the police, the arrested youths were taken to court and remanded in Kuje Correctional Centre pending the conclusion of the investigation. Few days after, and before the final funeral rites for HRH Albert Nwoko, Ned wrote another petition to the police against the Prince and president general of the Idumuje-Ugboko Development Union (UDU), Mr. Okey Ifejiokwu. Both the Prince and the community union president were arrested. That was when prominent personalities in the community decided to intervene. Pressure was, however, mounted on Ned by Ogbechie and elders of the community and the Prince was released, leaving Ifejiokwu in police net. The Rainoil chairman later got a lawyer for Ifejiokwu through whom he secured his release from custody. That was where the problem between Ned and Ogbechie actually started. Ned had assumed that Ogbechie was supporting people against him. Hence, the assassination plots.

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Breaking : Tinubu returns to Abuja tonight after diplomatic visits to Saint Lucia, Brazil,Says Onanuga

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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is expected to arrive Abuja later tonight following a two-nation diplomatic tour that took him to Saint Lucia in the Caribbean and Brazil in South America.

His return was confirmed in a message posted on Saturday afternoon by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, on his verified X handle, @aonanuga1956.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu returns to Abuja today after his two-nation visit to Saint Lucia and Brazil,” the presidential aide stated.

The President departed Nigeria on Saturday, June 28 for what was described as a strategic outreach aimed at strengthening ties with regions historically under-engaged in Nigeria’s diplomatic matrix.

His first stop was Saint Lucia, where he made a historic visit to build new ties and explore emerging partnerships with Caribbean states.

While in Saint Lucia, Tinubu interacted with regional leaders under the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS), reinforcing Nigeria’s growing interest in Caribbean diplomacy and South-South cooperation.

He subsequently proceeded to Brazil to participate in the 17th BRICS Summit held in Rio de Janeiro.

On the sidelines of the summit, President Tinubu held a bilateral meeting with his Brazilian counterpart, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva.

The leaders co-chaired the Nigeria-Brazil high-level bilateral meeting , where they discussed mechanisms to boost trade, infrastructure financing, and cultural cooperation between Africa’s most populous country and Latin America’s largest economy.

With the President’s return, focus is expected to shift to domestic engagements and follow-up actions on the diplomatic and investment commitments made during his foreign tour.

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2027 Election: Group Moves To recover 10m Lost Votes In Northern States, Says Muhammad Gamawa

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A non-governmental organisation, Advocacy for Integrity and Rule of Law (Airlin) in Nigeria, has kicked off a grassroots campaign across the 19 northern states to promote civic awareness, respect for the rule of law, and voter participation ahead of the next general elections.

Speaking during the inauguration of the Yobe State chapter of the organisation on Sunday, the National Chairman, Muhammad Ibrahim Gamawa, said the initiative was designed to “re-Nigerianise Nigerians” by instilling a deep respect for national values, laws, and democratic responsibilities.

Gamawa noted that the campaign specifically targets Nigerians who refused to vote during the last election, which recorded barely 40 per cent voter turnout.

He said his team is engaging directly with this silent majority in their homes to encourage them to reclaim their civic duty.

“We are going to those who didn’t vote not just to ask them to vote, but to educate them on their rights, how to make informed decisions, and to choose leaders based on ideology, not money,” Gamawa said.

He added that Airlin has appointed state and local government coordinators in all the LGAs of Yobe State as part of its broader plan to mobilise at least 10 million voters from its membership base in the coming election.

Airlin already has functional offices in 16 northern states, strengthening its capacity to reach the grassroots and drive consistent civic engagement.

According to him, “If you refuse to vote, you’re giving the bad eggs a chance to emerge. We’re telling people: don’t stay back. Come out and close the gap left during the last elections.”

He stressed that one of the key tasks for the newly inaugurated officials is to discourage vote-buying and reject financial inducement from politicians.

“Anyone who collected N1,000 or even N1 million two years ago already knows the money is gone. What is left is the broken promise and bad leadership. We must now live by political ideology. Don’t give your vote for money give it for policy, for vision, for something that aligns with your future,” he warned.

Gamawa said Airlin doesn’t engage in partisan campaigns or political endorsements, but instead evaluates political manifestos and meets with candidates to ask direct questions about their plans for the first term.

He added, “Our duty is to look beyond the noise and see who has a workable plan. We sit with these leaders and assess what they can deliver in the first 100 days. That is how we guide our members to vote consciously.”

The group’s core message revolves around respect for the rule of law, civic responsibility, and citizen-led accountability, with Gamawa stressing that the time had come for Nigerians to stop waiting for government agencies to enforce good governance.

“Let the rule of law live in our minds, in our bodies. It’s our job as citizens to keep Nigeria together not just the job of the government,” he said.

Gamawa concluded with a strong warning against vote trading, describing it as an act of betrayal to the nation, “Collecting money from politicians for votes is the worst thing citizens can do to their country.”

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Breaking : US cuts Nigerian non-immigrant visas to three months, single entry, With immediate effect

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The United States Department of State has announced an update to its non-immigrant visa policy for Nigerians.

According to a press release issued by the US Embassy in Abuja on Tuesday, “most non-immigrant and non-diplomatic visas issued to citizens of Nigeria will be single-entry visas with a three-month validity period.”

The new visa restrictions take immediate effect.

However, the embassy clarified that, “those US non-immigrant visas issued before July 8, 2025, will retain their status and validity.”

The statement emphasised that this move is part of the Department’s global visa reciprocity process, which the embassy described as “a continuous process and is subject to review and change at any time, such as increasing or decreasing permitted entries and duration of validity.”

The US explained the rationale behind the policy update, noting that “US visa criteria and standards are designed to protect the integrity of US immigration systems.”

The embassy added that “these standards are based on global technical and security benchmarks.”

According to the embassy, the US Mission is working with Nigerian authorities to meet these benchmarks.

“The US Mission is working with the Government of Nigeria to ensure that Nigeria can meet the criteria,” the statement said.

Examples of these standard criteria include “Secure Travel Documents: Ensuring countries issue secure travel documents with verified traveler identities.

“Visa Overstay Management: Implementing measures to limit overstays by travelers on US visas, and Information Sharing: Sharing relevant security and/or criminal record information to protect public safety.”

Despite the new restrictions, the embassy reaffirmed its diplomatic relationship with Nigeria.

“The United States values its longstanding relationship with Nigeria and remains committed to expanding our partnership based on mutual respect, shared security priorities, and economic opportunity, keeping both our countries safer and stronger,” the statement read.

The embassy also expressed support for ongoing Nigerian reforms, stating, “We commend the ongoing efforts by the Government of Nigeria’s immigration and security agencies to meet standards of international best practices.”

Nigerian travelers were advised to comply with visa regulations.

“Nigerian travelers are encouraged to respect and adhere to the terms of their visas, and ensure travel documents are authentic, accurate, and up to date,” it added.

The embassy concluded with a reaffirmation of its engagement with the Nigerian people and government.

“The United States remains a committed partner in deepening people-to-people ties with Nigeria via business, educational, and cultural exchanges.

“We look forward to continued cooperation at all levels with the Nigerian public and government officials to ensure safe and lawful travel between the United States and all countries,” it said

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