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Umunna, Nigerian Tipped as First Black British PM
Chuka Umunna of Nigerian descent on May 7, 2015, could make history by becoming the first black Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
Born in London in 1978, Chuka was bred in the UK. His late father, Bennett, hailed from Anambra State while his Irish mother, Patricia, is a solicitor.
He is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Streatham since 2010 and the Shadow Business Secretary since 2011.
Co-incidentally, Chuka shares startling similarities with the United States President, Barack Obama, who is the first black President of the world’s most powerful nation.
For instance, Chuka is of mixed race, being the child of a Nigerian father and an Irish mother while Obama is also of mixed race, being the offspring of a white American woman and a Kenyan father.
Also Chuka’s father, Bennett, was killed in a mysterious car accident in Nigeria in 1992 while Obama’s father was killed in a car accident in Kenya in 1982.
If history repeats itself as it is being predicted by British political observers, Chuka, who is also a six-foot tall lawyer like Obama, could become the first black Prime Minister in the UK.
Chuka’s life story is perhaps a better guide to his future political direction. It is the story of a rise from the streets of South London (scene of some of Britain’s worse race riots in the 1980s) to the parliament. But it is not the story that some might expect.
His father, Bennett, was a Nigerian labourer, who arrived in Britain in the sixties with one suitcase and no money.
Having borrowed the fare from Liverpool to London, he worked in a carwash, became a successful businessman and died in a car crash when his son was 13.
Bennett began an import-export business trading with Nigeria and was starting to make a decent living when he met Patricia Milmo, a solicitor, at a London party.
She happened to be the daughter of Sir Helenus Milmo, a Cambridge-educated High Court judge and a prosecutor at the Nuremberg Nazi trials. They later got married, a rare combination during a time of high social inequality and racism.
Chuka believed his father was killed because he refused to indulge in corrupt practices when he was running for the governorship of Anambra State during the administration of former military dictator, General Ibrahim Babangida (retd.).
Bennett died after his car ran into a lorry carrying logs along the Onitsha-Owerri highway in Anambra. Bennett had been splitting his time between London and Nigeria – where he unsuccessfully ran for the governorship of Anambra State and had taken a stand against bribery.
At a point Bennett was also the owner of the Rangers International Football Club of Enugu, the darling of the Igbo people.
When quizzed about his father on Sky News, he had this to say: “There was a lot of speculation in Nigeria at the time around his death. He was a national political figure standing on an anti-corruption ticket and refused to bribe anybody.
“We don’t really talk about it because it is not going to bring him back but I think he would be bowled over that his son is now a politician just like him.”
Chuka, an English and French Law graduate from the University of Manchester, who also holds a Master’s degree from Nottingham Law School, says his interest in politics was shaped by seeing extreme poverty while visiting his father’s relatives in Nigeria and the social divide in his own Streatham constituency in the UK. He says that he is “not super-religious” but that his soft-left values are “rooted in my Christianity.”
The 35-year-old Labour Party Member of Parliament, however, has two hurdles to cross if he is to make history in the UK. This is because in the UK, for one to become the Prime Minister, the person must first be a Member of Parliament, the person’s party must win majority of seats out of the 560 seats in the House of Commons during the parliamentary elections and the person must be the leader of his party.
Presently, Chuka is the Member of Parliament for Streatham, a position he has held since 2010 but must re-contest in 2015 and win to retain the seat.
He is also the Shadow Business Secretary, a position held by a member of Her Majesty’s Loyal Opposition. The duty of the office holder is to scrutinise the actions of the government’s Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills and develop alternative policies. The office holder is a member of the Shadow Cabinet.
According to the UK Telegraph, Chuka is rumoured to have the strong support of a former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, who was also a Labour Party leader.
According to the British newspaper, when asked if he was Blair’s anointed candidate, Chuka said, “I really don’t know anything about that.”
However, when he was pressed further whether he aspired to head his party, he said, “I don’t entertain any discussion beyond winning the election next year. That would be completely hypocritical of me. To start thinking about hypothetical scenarios would be totally indulgent. All my energy is focused on winning the election, and so should everyone’s. It will be very close.”
Chuka is one of the youngest MPs in the UK having been introduced into British politics by the current Labour Party leader, Ed Miliband, while he was in his 20s.
It was Milband that helped him become an MP and later made him his Parliamentary Private Secretary before he was promoted to the Shadow Cabinet in October 2011. He is tipped to become Miliband’s successor and could become the Prime Minister should the Labour Party win next year’s election.
Chuka, however, claims to hate the comparison of him and Obama which he terms the “construct of lazy journalists.” He sharply divides opinion in British politics. Good-looking, articulate, new-media-savvy and a good orator.
According to FT Magazine, he is not universally popular among his own colleagues, who see more style than substance.
“He just has a knack of alienating people,” said one experienced Labour MP. “He is probably the most natural communicator I’ve seen since Tony Blair. The problem is that each week he has fewer supporters than he did at the start of the week.”
Even potential allies recount stories of apparent slights or snubs. A senior party figure says, “Chuka has put people’s backs up.
They feel he is inaccessible.” Another long-serving MP adds, “The idea of learning the trade first is only for mere mortals, not for him.” Peter Mandelson, the former Labour business secretary who played a key role in Blair’s rise through to the top, thinks the explanation for this is quite simple, “Envy plays a big part in politics,” he says.
Like Blair, Chuka sometimes connects better with those beyond his own circle. John Cridland, head of the CBI employers’ group, calls him “a guy with whom we can do business.” Andrew Tyrie, Tory Chair of the Commons Treasury Committee, say: “He’s extremely talented and charming.” Andrew Adonis, a former Labour minister, sums up his cross-party appeal: “The best politicians are those who look outwards not inwards.”
However, allies of the current British PM, David Cameron, scoffed at the idea that Chuka might represent a threat to Cameron’s second term bid.
“I can’t think of any issue where he’s put us under pressure,” says one close friend of the prime minister. “He’s pretty average – he’s a slick corporate lawyer.”
Also, among his fellow party members, Chuka’s lack of political definition is another source of irritation as some claim they struggle to work out what he really believes in. But Chuka says people should show a bit more patience. “It would be rather unhealthy if after just three years in parliament I was setting out some blueprint for my country,” he says. “What do people expect?”
But some see him as the potential leader of a mainstream 21st-Century Labour party with the kind of crossover appeal of Blair’s New Labour. Despite initial reservations that Chuka might be a bit too left-wing, Blair has started seeing him regularly. “Chuka strikes Tony as very smart,” says one close ally of the former PM. “Business is a particularly important brief in tough economic times and Chuka seems to be rising to the challenge.”
As if Blair’s blessing was not enough, Chuka recalls the “honour” of spending “a small bit of private time with former US President, Bill Clinton, who he describes as one of his political heroes. “I think he defies the left-right description,” Mandelson says in approbation. “He’s part of a generation that transcends those labels.”
He has also recently been to Europe to meet his friend, the French PM, Manuel Valls.
According to statistics, almost 15 per cent of people in Britain describe themselves as “non-white” but the country has never had a party leader from an ethnic minority background. Nobody has ever come close. Chuka confesses that until his late teens he had not even thought about a career in politics because there was “nobody who looked like me” running the country.
Chuka has been vocal in the call for a reduction in government spending as well as issues on immigration. “They [the French] have something like 40 ministers compared to our 80,” he says.
On the EU itself, he has called for reform, saying not long ago that free movement of workers was not intended to mean free movement of jobseekers. “As one of the most pro-European shadow ministers, I don’t think you can ignore the impact that free movement has had on some of our communities,” he says, adding that it has changed because there are “many more EU members.”
He adds, “There’s a number of things we need to look at. Those who tend to raise the issue of immigration with me are my African and Asian constituents. They want confidence there are proper controls.
“They want to see people integrate, which is why we shouldn’t be spending all this money translating documents and [instead] directing resources to ensure people learn English. And you do need to look at free movement.”
Next year’s election may not be based on ethnicity but it obviously will be hard not to notice that a British-Nigerian could become the leader of one of the world’s wealthiest countries.
On the issue of ethnicity, Chuka has this to say, “A lot of people presume – because of my ethnicity – that I come from a particular social background. I am very quick to disabuse people of any sense that I’ve wanted and struggled in the way that, say, my father did. I come from a fairly middle-class background. People try and pigeonhole you in a box and I find that frustrating sometimes.”
If Chuka is hard to pigeonhole, that may be linked to his own pedigree. It seems likely, if not certain, that Chuka, whose name means God is the greatest, is destined to become a larger presence in his party and thus a bigger potential target despite being a person whose father came to the UK from Nigeria without a dime.
The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has reaffirmed its commitment to safeguarding the nation’s financial system, announcing that its recent upward review of the maximum deposit insurance coverage now protects about 99% of depositors in the Country.
Kabir Katata, Executive Director (Operations), NDIC, stated this on Wednesday at the Corporation’s 2025 Stakeholders’ Town Hall Meeting held in Enugu.
Katata, while speaking on the theme, “Deepening Stakeholder Engagement,” said the policy to expand deposit insurance coverage was deliberately designed to protect small savers, promote financial inclusion and strengthen public confidence in the banking sector.
He explained that the town hall meeting was aimed at engaging stakeholders across various sectors, including academia, market associations and civil society groups.
“The essence of this town hall meeting is to interact with our stakeholders, tell them what we do and listen to their questions so they can better understand the role NDIC plays in society. We guarantee depositors’ funds and supervise banks to ensure that depositors are protected”, he said.
Katata noted that following the 2024 review of deposit insurance coverage, depositors in Deposit Money Banks (DMBs), Mobile Money Operators (MMOs) and Non-Interest Banks (NIBs) are now insured up to N5 million per depositor.
Similarly, depositors in Microfinance Banks (MFBs), Primary Mortgage Banks (PMBs) and Payment Service Banks (PSBs) now enjoy insurance coverage of up to N2 million per depositor.
“This means that in the event of a bank failure, depositors are promptly paid up to the insured limit,” he said.
He added that depositors with balances exceeding the insured limit would receive the initial insured sum, while the outstanding balance would be paid as liquidation dividends upon realisation of the failed bank’s assets and recovery of debts.
Highlighting improvements in the payout process, Katata referenced the recent resolution of defunct institutions, including Heritage Bank Limited, Union Homes PLC and Aso Savings and Loans PLC.
He said that the Corporation successfully leveraged the Bank Verification Number (BVN) as a unique identifier to trace depositors’ alternative accounts and transfer insured sums within days of bank closures.
“I urge all depositors to ensure that their BVN is properly linked to their bank accounts and identity records. This greatly facilitates seamless and timely access to insured deposits in the event of bank failure,” he advised.
Katata emphasised that although the NDIC works closely with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to ensure sound corporate governance and regulatory compliance in banks, financial system stability remains a shared responsibility.
“While the CBN and NDIC continue to strengthen oversight, depositors also have a responsibility to remain vigilant and well-informed,” he said.
Open Access Data Centres (OADC), Africa’s fastest-growing data centre company, has officially announced the strategic acquisition of seven NTT data centres across South Africa.
The acquisition, which concluded on 31 December 2025 following approval by the Competition Commission, will significantly expand OADC’s national data centre footprint by adding seven facilities and increasing total capacity to more than 25 megawatts.
With a presence in South Africa, Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), OADC is already one of the largest and most influential data centre operators on the African continent. By adding these new facilities, OADC reinforces its ‘core-to-edge’ proposition and is uniquely positioned to meet the growing demand for digital services across Southern Africa, while strengthening its leadership in Africa’s digital transformation.
Dr Ayotunde Coker, CEO of OADC, commented: “This acquisition represents a significant step forward in expanding our ability to deliver scalable, resilient colocation solutions where they are needed. It strengthens our market value proposition, positioning OADC as a critical partner in growing Africa’s digital economy. We can provide clients with a wider range of comprehensive resilience solutions, delivering geographically separated primary and disaster recovery data centre infrastructure for their businesses.”
OADC’s acquisition of these seven data centres underscores the company’s long-term vision to enable Africa’s digital ecosystem, drive economic growth, enrich society, and reinforce its role as a pivotal enabler of digital connectivity and technological advancement across the continent.
Dr Coker added: “Looking ahead beyond the immediate expansion of our operational presence, OADC plans on enhancing all of its data centres as part of its continuous facility enhancement process, bringing the introduction of advanced operational measures to ensure peak efficiency and reliability.”
Hussaini Magaji (SAN), registrar-general of the Corporate Affairs Commission, (CAC) has accused some banks and financial institutions of undermining Nigeria’s anti-corruption and compliance framework by allowing inactive and non-compliant companies to continue operating and transacting freely.
Magaji also disclosed that the commission reported 248 fake company registrations to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for investigation and prosecution, while three CAC staff members were handed over to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) over alleged internal misconduct.
The CAC boss made these disclosures on Tuesday in Abuja during an Anti-Corruption Day presentation and panel discussion held as part of activities marking the commission’s 35th anniversary. He spoke on the topic, “Transparency for Development: The Nigeria Experience.”
Speaking before representatives of key anti-corruption and law-enforcement agencies, Magaji warned that Nigeria’s corporate regulatory system would remain vulnerable unless all institutions enforced compliance uniformly.
“Let me state clearly: at CAC today, no company without full disclosure of its Persons with Significant Control is recognised as compliant. Companies that fail to disclose their PSC are flagged as inactive, and such status renders them unfit for credible transactions,” he said.
However, he expressed concern that this regulatory sanction was being routinely ignored by some financial institutions.
“However, we face a serious challenge. While CAC may flag such companies as inactive, some financial institutions, particularly banks, continue to allow these inactive companies to operate, open accounts, and transact freely. This is a major weakness in our national compliance chain. We must join hands to stop it,” Magaji added.
According to him, Nigeria’s regulatory ecosystem must speak with one voice, stressing that non-compliant companies should not enjoy the privileges of legality. “If a company is non-compliant, it must not enjoy the privileges of legality. Our collective success depends on enforcing this principle across the board,” he said.
To deepen compliance, Magaji said the Commission had taken decisive steps to clean up its internal processes and demonstrate zero tolerance for corruption.
“In the year under review, I had cause to surrender three members of staff to the ICPC for alleged misconduct involving suspicious and unauthorised tampering with company records. This was done to eliminate the chances of compromise and strengthen integrity within our processes,” he said.
He further revealed that 248 fake company registrations were discovered to have been illegally inserted into the CAC system and subsequently reported to the EFCC.
“Within the same period, I submitted to the EFCC a list of 248 fake company registrations illegally inserted into our system through unlawful means, for investigation and prosecution,” Magaji disclosed.
According to him, the entities operated without traceable corporate identities and failed to contribute to national revenue through taxation. An additional 15 such entities were also submitted for further investigation.
“Notably, despite these actions, no legitimate legal challenge has been brought against CAC regarding the removal and reporting of these illegal registrations,” he said.
The CAC Registrar-General also renewed calls for the establishment of a single, harmonised national register for beneficial ownership information, warning that Nigeria’s current fragmented system created loopholes that could be exploited for corruption, money laundering, and illicit financial flows.
He noted that while Nigeria had made progress in beneficial ownership transparency, multiple sector-specific registers operated outside the central CAC database.
“At the moment, we operate a fragmented system where certain sectors maintain separate beneficial ownership registers, such as the Extractive Industry and NEPZA, outside the central national register managed by CAC. This situation creates duplication, inconsistencies, and regulatory loopholes. It weakens our national integrity framework and complicates law-enforcement efforts,” he said.
Magaji stressed that CAC was legally and structurally positioned to serve as the central repository for beneficial ownership data in the country.
“There is therefore an urgent need for a single, harmonised national register for beneficial ownership in Nigeria. CAC is positioned by law and structure to serve as the central repository for beneficial ownership information. We need your support, your voice, your advocacy, and your institutional backing to push for this reform in the national interest,” he pleaded with stakeholders.
According to him, a single register would improve verification, enhance transparency, and strengthen Nigeria’s compliance with global anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing standards.
Magaji further described beneficial ownership disclosure as a growing global imperative, citing recent international developments, including court decisions in the United Kingdom involving property ownership linked to Nigerians.
“Beneficial ownership disclosure has become one of the most topical and critical issues in global governance today. The world is moving rapidly towards transparency, and Nigeria cannot afford to lag behind,” he said.
He called for the elevation of the Persons with Significant Control Rules into an Act of the National Assembly to provide a stronger legal foundation for enforcement.
“We must now push strongly for the passage of the Persons with Significant Control Rules into an Act of the National Assembly. We need a stronger, more comprehensive legal framework that will checkmate sophisticated abuses of the corporate vehicle,” he added.
The CAC boss also raised concern over the practice by some large corporations of declaring other companies, rather than individuals, as beneficial owners. “This defeats the purpose of beneficial ownership transparency. It creates layers of concealment and undermines accountability,” he warned.
Magaji concluded by urging sustained collaboration among Nigeria’s anti-corruption and law-enforcement agencies, describing the fight against corruption as a collective national responsibility. “The fight against corruption is not the responsibility of one agency. It is a national duty requiring coordination, trust, and shared resolve,” he said.
He called on agencies including the EFCC, ICPC, Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit, and the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency to deepen information sharing, joint investigations, and real-time verification with the CAC.
“Our collaboration must not be episodic. It must be sustained, structured, and institutionalised so that our collective efforts translate into measurable outcomes for Nigeria,” he added.
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