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Abaribe Tackles Wike, Denies Receiving Money From Him; Says Rivers Governor Lacks Integrity

By
Adesina Soyooye
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Nyesom Wike and Senator Abaribe

By Adesina Soyooye

The Senator representing Abia South, Enyinnaya Abaribe has denied he received any money from Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike.

Wike had, at the launch of the Abia Governorship Campaign and that of the National and State Assemblies in Obingwa, dragged Abaribe and dismissed him as a man without integrity.

He disclosed that Abaribe, just before he decamped from the PDP to All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, had come to him and told him he was going to leave the PDP.  Wike said he appealed to him not to, and asked him what he wanted. He said Abaribe told him he wanted money.

According to Wike, he called Abaribe’s Governor, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu, and told him that your brother was no longer leaving and wanted money. Wike said they gave Abaribe money, but that Abaribe left tye PDP three days later.

He, therefore, dismissed

Abaribe as a man without integrity, and asked people not to vote him to the Senate again. Wike’s friend and ally, Ikpeazu, is contesting for the same Senate seat as Abaribe.

But in response to Wike, Friday, on Arise TV, Abaribe said he has more integrity than Wike. He explained that when he got tired of the happenings in PDP, he left, but that Wike has stayed put in the Party, even though he is tired of the Party. He, also,   denied that Wike gave him any money and said he never sat down with Wike to discuss anything.

He also said that given Wike’s background as a lawyer, the Governor should be ashamed of admitting to a crime on national television by bribing him with money.

Abaribe: “No, he did not give me any money and I don’t remember anytime I sat with governor Wike to discuss  leaving or not leaving PDP.

“If I was someone that could be bought, I could have been bought a long time ago in this APC government but I rejected everything just like I rejected every blandishment they were sending my way. I walked out to prove that it is possible for you to walk out without being inside a system and destroying that system.

“I resigned my position as the Minority Leader in the Senate and Leader of the PDP because I was disgusted with the happenings in PDP, and I decided that I will not stay there because I needed to prove that I can win election elsewhere.”

Abaribe said Wike’s problem  stems from his loss of the presidential primary election and has, since then,  impugning people’s character, trying to destroy the  PDP..

Abaribe: “Between me and Governor Wike, who has integrity? Everyone of us who felt we were not happy with what went on in PDP left, why didn’t Wike with all the grouse he has, not walked away from PDP rather he wants to stay in PDP and destroy the party. Who now has integrity between me and Wike?”

Group Urges FG To Correct Alleged Injustice In NDDC

By
Akinwale Kasali
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By Akinwale Kasali

A Group under the aegis of Self Employed Association Of Progressives, SEAP, has lamented that the Nominees to the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Board, as announced by  President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday, negates the extant provisions of the Act establishing the commission in 2000.

The Group which is a coalition of socio-political groups called on the President  Buhari to correct what it called the “unjust denial” of the right of Akwa Ibom in the composition of the new Board.

In a statement signed by the state coordinator, Prince Ekpuk Jumbo; Deputy State Coordinator, Uyo Senatorial District, Mr Goddy Unyah, Deputy State Coordinator, Eket senatorial district, Mr Ben Ukutt and General Secretary Pst Joe Ita, the Group said it is unfair to deny Akwa Ibom State its rightful position of Executive Director, Finance and Administration which has never been granted to the State since the establishment of the Commission.

It urged the Federal Government to immediately correct the anomaly before it is too late.

The statement reads in part, “Self Employed Association of Progressive, a Socio-political grassroots group in Akwa Ibom state views with great consternation the height of marginalisation, oppression, suppression and deprivation in the recently constituted statutory board of the Niger Delta Development Commission.

“We want to bring to the notice of the Buhari-led administration that NDDC is an agency established by the Act of the Federal Republic of Nigeria which warrant’s that, both activities and composition of the agency must strictly adhere to the letters and spirit of the Act. Available records since the establishment of the NDDC show that all compositions of the past NDDC statutory boards have been done in accordance with the established Act.

“Section 12 (1) states that ‘ there shall be for the commission, a managing director and two executive directors who shall be indigenes of the oil-producing area starting with the member states of the composition with the highest quantum of oil and shall rotate among members states in order of production.

“In view of the above-stated section of the NDDC Act, Akwa Ibom state should in the present board composition take her rightful position of Executive director Finance and Administration which had never been granted to Akwa Ibom state since the establishment of the agency.

“This is insulting, humiliating and utter denigrating to our self-dignity, determination and right. Akwa Ibom is highly concerned and vehemently protest this ungodly and unjust denial of our right.

“We hereby strongly demand the reversal of the abnormality and request that our right position of Executive director Finance and Administration be restored in the newly constituted board.”

It also warned that it might be constrained to mobilise its members across the State to demonstrate against the abnormality if it is not corrected immediately

The Group further stated that the data obtained from the Federal Ministry of Finance, RMAFC, FAAC, FIRS, Edo state, unlike Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers, is not among the four top oil-producing states,” wondering why such position should be allotted to Edo.

“We charge and mobilize our members across the region to embark on more peaceful protests until our major demand of giving Akwa Ibom state its rightful due is addressed satisfactorily.”

“For now, we are calling on our members to remain calm, while waiting for the Federal Government’s action on the matter,” the statement further stated.

OPINION: Tinubu’s Baffling Gaffes

By
The Source
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Bola Tinubu
Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu

By Etim Etim

Even before the polls open in next year’s general election, the APC Presidential candidate, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is already scoring high in the several unintelligible gaffes and misspeaks he’s been offering Nigerians at campaign grounds and public events. These blunders have become so many and frequent that his campaign managers no longer try to explain them away, and so the voters are at a loss to decipher their meanings. Nigerians have come to accept that the octogenarian is not just being smart with words, as we were told in the early days. Rather, he is actually exhibiting signs of mental impairment.

At a rally yesterday in Abakiliki, Tinubu was addressing his supporters on the failure of past PDP governments to provide electricity to the nation. He said: ‘’They promised you so much…they spent so much…but they failed to realize that high tension wires are superhighways, and they could not even make a down payment on the roasted corn of electricity’’. What concerns electricity with a roasted corn, for Heaven’s sake?  Social media has been abuzz with all sorts of comments, but strikingly, I have not seen any official come to his defence or try to clean up the mess, as was the practice in the past. This is not the first time that corn has crept into Tinubu’s lexicon in a rather queer manner. One writer even asked in Nairaland, one of the nation’s popular online news sites, ‘’Why does this man love corn so much?’’ At a campaign event in Lagos last year, Tinubu had announced that if elected President, he would hire 50 million youths into the army and feed them with agbado (corn in Yoruba) and cassava. The laughter and mockery that followed lasted several months. Till today, many still refer to his team as ‘’Agbadoists’’. When a picture of him being feted at the home of one of his big supporters in Kaduna surfaced some months back, one commentator asked if ‘’agbado’’ was in the menu. The ‘’agbado’’ comment was the first major indication that something might be wrong with him, but his supporters were still willing to give him the benefit of doubt. Since then, the problem has got worse to the extent that spin doctors can’t keep up trying to rephrase these embarrassing gaffes.

Just last month or so, Northern Elders Forum (NEF), an association of political and business elites in Northern Nigeria, hosted the major presidential candidates in a town hall. Each candidate fielded questions on a wide variety of issues. When Tinubu was asked his views on how he would address climate change and its many negative impacts, he said, and I’m not joking, that ‘’it is a question of how do you prevent a church rat from eating a poisoned holy communion’’. It is yet one his funniest verbal blunders, and I am still laughing. But many others, especially the clerics, are still livid at such an insensitive and offensive remark. Bishop Emmah Isong, one of the most influential Christian leaders in the South-South area, had issued a statement asking Tinubu to retract his remark and apologize. ‘’The Christian faith holds the sacrament of the holy communion of bread and wine very sacrosanct, highly supernatural, and very eternally significant. Therefore, whatever mistake the APC Presidential candidate had made, that comment is going to affect 60 million of his supporters who take the holy communion every week and month’’, Isong said.  But Tinubu has neither recanted nor apologized for his awkward remark.

The reason such a careless comment on a sensitive religious matter did not set the country ablaze is because Christians do not resort to violent revenge and reprisals when they are offended. The Bible specifically asks Christians not to seek revenge, but rather ‘’turn the other cheek’’ if they are slapped. ‘’It is an injunction many have taken advantage of to denigrate the Christian faith because they know that we do not burn houses and clobber people to death when they say such things’’, said a pastor friend of mine.

Another of Tinubu’s meltdowns came two weeks ago when he met with a select group of editors in Lagos. It was a carefully planned media event meant to secure the support of the political press, but instead, the man’s mental challenge was at display, and the journalists were left wondering if this the same person they had covered for years. Trying to emphasize how he would be different from President Buhari, Tinubu said, ‘’We can create wonders, here is a success again, townhall, different from balabu, bluhuhu, balabu!’’. The assembled journalists were shocked and many days after, Nigerians are still talking about it on twitter and other social media platforms. There are many others instances of Tinubu rambling and speaking gibberish in public since he started his campaigns. He once announced at a function in Kaduna that he would like Gov. Nasir el Rufai to serve in his cabinet when he becomes President because ‘’el Rufai has the competence to turn a rotten situation into a worse one’’.

These incoherent and rambling performances are the reasons Tinubu has been shielded from participating in live, one-on-one interviews and events where he would be scrutinized, unlike Peter Obi, Atiku Abubarkar and Rabiu Kwankwaso who have all subjected themselves to such rigorous examinations.  It is also another reason candidates seeking high office of the land ought to have their medical conditions duly examined by doctors. In the US, for example, Presidential candidates and presidents themselves, routinely ask their personal physicians to make their medical reports public.

Like me, many people believe that our President ought to have the capacity to deliver his words in a clear, crisp and lucid manner to Nigerians at home and at international platforms. Our leader should possess adequate mental and physical stamina to meet the demands of the office. How would Tinubu, already presenting symptoms of cognitive difficulties, be able to perform the duties of a President, if he is elected?

Fixing Nigeria Not Tea Party – Obi;  Lists Requirements To Fix Nigeria

By
The Source
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0

The Labour Party Presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi has said that to get Nigeria working again is not  rocket science but requires extraordinary commitment from the people and their leaders.

Obi’s view  was contained in his remarks at the weekend at the Annual General Meeting AGM of the Nigerian Institute of Architects, NIA in Calabar, Cross River state.

At the conference with a theme; “Housing and Design Excellence for National Development”, the LP standard bearer listed what he called 4Cs; -competence, capacity, credibility and commitment as critical requirements to turn the country around.

“We must aspire to put in place a leadership that is imbued with competence, capacity, credibility and commitment.  These 4 Cs, are leadership competencies required to turn Nigeria around”

He noted that, “What is grossly missing in Nigeria’s leadership, governance and economic realm is the lack of efficiency.  Good governance and a prosperous and stable economy are routinely anchored on sectoral and holistic pursuit of efficiency”

He told the Architects that Nigeria has high and severe housing deficit to the point that the country needs 28 million houses  to be built to meet the national needs and by estimation this will cost about 60 trillion naira.

He said that what his Presidency will do if given the mandate is to partner with a professional body like the NIA and create the enabling environment via the right of making laws; regulating and preserving of property; employing the force of the community; and public good.

The dearth of vision and commitment in our political leadership over time is having effect in all sectors, noting that,  “what is grossly missing in Nigeria’s leadership, governance and economic realm is the lack of efficiency.  Good governance and a prosperous and a stable economy are routinely anchored on sectoral and holistic pursuit of efficiency.

According to him, “if I and Datti are hired by Nigerians on February 25th, 2023, we will pursue intangible assets of good governance, rule of law, security of lives and properties but for this to happen there must be elite consensus on critical national interest questions.

“We are also aware that our existing national infrastructures are decrepit and crumbling. We are housing challenged. We have as a nation been inconsistent in our infrastructural planning and funding. This is an area we must tackle urgently.

Obi further remarked that as a first step their Presidency must start with rethinking the fundamentals of our nationhood and how to collectively unite and secure Nigeria and move it from good to great.

“Good governance simply translates to eight critical governance values, namely; a government being Accountable, Transparent, Responsive, Equitable and Inclusive, Effective and Efficient; and adherence to the rule of law, as well as participatory and consensus-oriented governance.”

With the mandate of Nigerians the Obi-Datti administration, from its inception, will continue to encourage investment in infrastructure—housing, energy, transport, irrigation, and telecoms—to grow these and other sectors.

“We are eager to quickly close the infrastructure gap between now and 2030. That is the Nigeria we want in place by the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target year.”

Obi also charged the Architects to bear in mind some fundamental requirements of their profession in contemplating on “Housing and Design Excellence for National Development” which includes Design for the future and economic and social wellbeing; to think of demographic in our designs; Design and build for public good.

Our buildings must be accessible to People with disabilities; Our buildings must reflect our culture and heritage; We must manage funding for building;  Give primacy to maintenance culture; and  finally NIA must protect its institutional integrity

Finally, he then reminded the NIA members of the new mantra of his campaign message,

“in the mission to rescue Nigeria, there is no tribe, religion, or class. Indeed, there can be no conscientious objector.”

2023: You Have Failed Two Times; Don’t Run Again, Tinubu Urges Atiku

By
Akinwale Kasali
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0
Bola Tinubu And Atiku Abubakar

By Akinwale Kasali

The All Progressives Congress, APC, Presidential Candidate, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu has called on the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar to quash his Presidential ambition following his unsuccessful attempt to win the Presidential election on two occasions.

Tinubu made the call during his Presidential Campaign at Oporoza, Headquarters of Gbaramatu kingdom of Delta State, where he met with Traditional Rulers and stakeholders of the Niger Delta region.

Speaking with the the Monarchs and stakeholders, the former Lagos State Governor said, “As I stand before you, there are few of us running. One says he is Atiku, how many times has he been running? He is now tired of running. Let’s tell him to go and sit down and quit the race. Enough is enough.”

He added that Labour Party, LP, presidential candidate, Peter Obi, is a man that is not wanted by Nigerians because “he lies with arithmetic that no mathematician can solve.

“To mention his name is a disgrace to me. He gives out wrong arithmetic and wrong statistics on the economy. That is not what Nigerians want. Nigerians need honesty, they need the man who knows the road to take, and that man is me,” Tinubu stated.

He identified himself as a son in-law of the Niger Delta and appealed for support in the electioneering campaign, promising to carry everyone along, develop the area and renew the hope of the people.

The traditional ruler of Gbaramatu kingdom, Oboro Gbaruan II, hosted the meeting and conferred chieftaincy titles on Tinubu, Omo-Agege and others.

The Monarch requested access road to his kingdom when Tinubu emerged.

Tinubu was accompanied to the Creeks alongside Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State, his Yobe State counterpart, Mai Buni; the Ministers of State for Petroleum Resources and that of Labour and Productivity, Timipre Sylva and Festus Keyamo respectively.

Others were former House of Representatives Speaker, Dimeji Bankole; Senator Omo-Agege’s running mate, Friday Osanebi; Delta APC Chairman, Chief Oseni Sobotie; Delta APC Campaign Director-General, Godsday Orubebe and a Bayelsa State APC chieftain, David Lyon, among others.

Ekiti: Leadership Of Wards Rise In Support Of Suspended Assembly Members

By
Ayodele Oni
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Ekiti State House of Assembly

By Ayodele Oni

As reactions continue to trail the leadership tussle at the Ekiti state House of Assembly which led to suspension of six members, leadership of constituencies where the lawmakers come from have expressed resentment over the fate of their representatives.

APC ljesa Isu ward seven where the impeached Speaker, Gboyega Aribisogan comes from has warned against any attempt by the All Progressive Congress, (APC) to expelled the lawmaker from the party.

This is just as a members from Efom Alaaye, writes to breif his ward members about his plight.

At the end of a ward meeting at the weekend, the Executives and members of  APC ward  seven Ijesa Isu Ekiti unanimously agreed that they are solidly behind RT. Hon. Olugboyega Aribisogan and also call on ijesa Isu son’s daughters both home and abroad to rise in support their ilustrious son.

In his own statement, The ward chairman, Mr Kehinde Awoleye, said that he will never support any plot  by the State Excos to expel Rt. Hon Olugboyega Aribisogan because he believes in justice and fairness, calling on the State Excos not to carry out the alleged plot.

One of the suspended member of Ekiti state House of Assembly has written to his Constituency, insisting that he was being punished for standing on the side of the people.

Adegoke Olajide, representing Efon Alaaye Constituency insisted that only the people that elected him have constitutional power to impeach him.

Olajide states in the letter that “I received a letter from the House of Assembly which accused me of “involvement in unpatriotic acts that led to non-passage of the 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Bill” and “unpatriotic and unparliamentary conduct capable of threatening the peace of the State”.

“I hereby wish to inform Efon people in particular and the entire Ekiti public in general, that the allegations are not only unfounded, they are, indeed absolutely ludicrous.

“When, how and where was I involved “in unpatriotic acts that led to non-passage of the 2022 Supplementary Appropriation Bill” and “unpatriotic and unparliamentary conduct capable of threatening the peace of the State?”

“The House had a successful plenary sitting on Tuesday 15th November, 2022 where a new speaker was elected.

“The plenary sitting was followed by an equally successful and peaceful parliamentary meeting attended by all members of the House after which everybody departed for their homes.

“The Assembly Complex was sealed by fierce looking, armed policemen in the early hours of Wednesday, 16th November who prevented all Honourable members and workers from gaining access to the Assembly from that day until Monday when I was accused, judged and condemned; so when, how and where did I commit the alleged offences?

“It is particularly despicable that the allegations were levelled, discussed and judgement passed at an unlawfully convoked meeting of fourteen members of the House which started at the unparliamentary hour of 6am.

“Those members of the House had been camped overnight in a location outside Ado Ekiti and shepherded to the Assembly Complex on Monday morning by a combined team of armed policemen and a formidable gang of brutal political thugs.

“I make bold to say that I was neither pre-informed of that meeting nor apprised of the allegations against me.

“I therefore was not able to present any defence or response to the allegations. It is a big shame that colleagues, with whom I have been extremely cordial in the last three and a half years that we have worked together, will agree to shave my head in my absence.

“They concluded the matter without considering it necessary to give me any hearing even if such hearing would be unfair. I am told that it was all about politics and interests. Shame indeed!

“Let me say that my suspension, along with six other members of the House, is a punishment contrived by persons outside the House of Assembly and outside the Government of Ekiti State because of our decision to exercise our democratic right of choice in support of the election of Rt. Hon. Olugboyega Aribisogan as the new Speaker of the House.

“Rt. Hon. Aribisogan was elected in a legal and transparent election which was conducted in the full glare of journalists and members of the public.

“The unlawful meeting on the floor of the House on Monday was a coup d’etat which was orchestrated to remove him from the exalted office.

“I want to say quite frankly that I supported, and still support, Rt. Hon. Aribisogan for the Speakership position, for several reasons.

“Not only he is the only ranking member of the House of Assembly as at today, it was also clearly obvious that he was the better candidate for the office.

“It must also be noted that the Ekiti North Senatorial District, which he hails from, was without any of the key Government offices in the State before he was elected as Speaker.

“For me, supporting Rt. Hon. Aribisogan for the Speakership was the right thing to do and I do not have any regrets for doing so.

As I stated earlier, all resolutions of the unlawful meeting are ultra vires and therefore legally unsustainable.

“Even if the meeting was lawfully convened, the House of Assembly does not have the power to suspend me because I was not elected in the Chamber.

“I was elected by the people of Efon constituency and only the people of Efon constituency have the right and power to remove me from the House through a recall process.

“This is an issue that has been settled by the Court of Appeal in its 2017 judgement in the case titled Speaker of Bauchi State House of Assembly vs Hon. Rifkatu Samson Danna.

“Despite the height of illegality that was perpetrated in this State on Monday, I am still convinced that Ekiti State is neither a jungle nor a conquered fiefdom.

“I therefore urge the people of Efon constituency to remain unperturbed while I take legal steps to ensure my quick return to the floor of the House.

“I most respectfully want to express my deep appreciation to our revered traditional rulers as well as the eminent Ekiti Statesmen and Leaders of thought who are taking steps to ensure the amicable resolution of this avoidable crisis.”

Jonathan Greets Atiku At 76

By
The Source
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0

Former President Dr. Goodluck Jonathan has felicitated former Vice President and Presidential Candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, on the occasion of his 76th birthday.

In a goodwill message to the former Vice President, Dr. Jonathan described him as a man who has made notable contributions to the growth and development of the country.
The former President also wished him a long life in good health.

He stated further: “I join your family and other associates to celebrate you on the occasion of your 76 birthday.

“As a politician and businessman, you have made notable contributions to the growth and development of Nigeria for which you have remained relevant to your nation, several years after serving as Vice President.

“I pray God to grant you good health, peace and a long life as you celebrate. On behalf of my family, I wish you a happy birthday.”

2023: South East In Full Support of Peter Obi – SERG Assures Northern Nigeria

By
The Source
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Peter Obi

Prominent pan-Igbo sociopolitical pressure organisation, the South East Revival Group (SERG) has assured Northern Nigeria of total support for the presidential bid of Peter Obi and former Governor of Anambra State in the eastern Nigeria.

The SERG was reacting to comments credited to the spokesman of the Northern Elders’ Forum (NEF), Dr. Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, who told the people of South East not to blame anyone if the presidential candidate of the Labour Party fails to win the 2023 presidential election.

In a statement signed by the President and National Coordinator of the South East group, Chief Willy Ezugwu, the SERG noted that “a few South East elites may not be supporting the presidential bid of Peter Obi at the moment, just the same way political elites in other geopolitical zones of the country are standing against the overall interest of their own people for selfish reasons.”

According to the group, “the good people of the North should be assured that the voting masses in the South East region are in total support of Peter Obi”, saying that “there is no elected Nigerian President in the history of Nigerian democracy who had 100 percent support from elites in his zone during the electioneering campaign.

“We therefore call on Nigerians not misconstrue the opposing voices of a few selfish and envious political elites in the South East as the true position of home support for Peter Obi and Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed”, the group said.

Citing post-independence political alliances in Nigeria, the SERG maintained that “Nigeria was on the path of prosperity for all citizens irrespective of their geopolitical zones until the political alliance between the North and the Eastern region was truncated as a result of military incursions into Nigerian politics.

“We recall that Nigeria made tremendous progress when the great Zik of Africa, late Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe and Dr. Michael Okpara entered into alliances with the North during their time as no region in Nigeria can produce the President of the country with any alliance.

“Even after the civil war, the alliance continued, producing the Alhaji Shehu Shagari and Dr. Alex Ekwueme Presidency, with Edwin Ume-Ezeoke as Speaker of the House of Representatives between 1979 and 1983.

“But when the military struck again in 1983, they remained in power until ethnicity, religion and political thievery, otherwise known as corruption, took over the national political landscape and worsened in the last seven years of the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration, spring hunger for real change among the populace.

“Like we have always said, Peter Obi presidential bid is a Nigerian project, not Igbo Presidency. It is a mission by the Nigerian citizens across the geographical regions to rescue the country from the grip a very minute pro-elites politicians who have kept majority of the elites and the Nigerian people in near perpetual hostages.

“Aware of the political realities in the country over the years, the Nigerian people opted to take advantage of the new amendments to the electoral act to remove themselves from the bondage of the pro-elites political clique holding the country in captivity over the years.

“This is the fact propelling the current Obidient Movement, which transcends tribal and political party affiliation.

“This why, as today, Peter Obi’s presidential candidature has been endorsed by virtually individuals and groups across tribes and political divides Arewa groups, Afenifere, Ohanaeze, PANDEF, Middle Belt Forum as well as Southern and Middle Belt Alliance, among many others across the country”, the SERG said.

Ogun 2023: Senator Amosun’s Anointed Governoship Candidate, Otegbeye, Sacked By Court

By
Akinwale Kasali
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0
Bisi Otegbeye

By Akinwale Kasali

Ogun State Governorship Candidate of the African Democratic Congress, ADC, Biyi Otegbeye, has been sacked by a Federal High Court Sitting in Abeokuta, Ogun State Capital.

Otegbeye, the anointed Candidate of former Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, saw his candidature nullified  alongside 26 ADC House of Assembly Candidates in the State.

Justice Akintayo Aluko of the Federal High Court held that the primaries which produced Otegbeye and others were not monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, saying this was in violation of the Electoral Act.

The court, therefore, ordered the electoral umpire to remove the names of Otegbeye and the 26 Assembly candidates from its 2023 list of candidates.

The Ogun State Labour Party, LP, had dragged the ADC candidates to court over alleged non-compliance with the Electoral Act in the conduct of their party’s primaries.

This development has demystified Amosun’s popularity and influence in the State and also in the All Progressives Congress, APC, fold which he belongs.

Amosun has not hidden his reservations for the Governor Dapo Abiodun administration, plotting and scheming to remove him from office by not winning his second term bid despite being a member of the ruling APC.

It would be recalled that in the build up to the 2019 Governorship Election in the State, Amosun backed Allied Peoples Mandate, APM, Governorship Candidate, Adekunle Abdulkabir Akinlade to take over from him as the Governor of the State at the expense of Governor Abiodun despite been in the same Party.

He openly declared that he was backing Akinlade and he would work against the ambition of Abiodun which he did.

Though Abiodun triumphed in the election, but he has vowed to see him booted out at the 2023 Polls, throwing his weight behind Otegbeye whose hope has however been dashed with the Federal High Court verdict.

Why We Have Chosen To Endorse The Obi-Datti Presidential Ticket – Babachir Lawal

By
The Source
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0

As one of the foremost critics of APC’s single-faith presidential ticket, and also in difference to those who have patiently waited for our  guidance as to where to pitch our tent, after a painstaking review and analysis of the alternative presidential tickets, we now wish to  recommend the Obi/Datti presidential ticket.

We wish to briefly narrate some few reasons  among many why we have endorsed this ticket and commend it to all Nigerians of good conscience who desire justice, equity and a harmonious co-existence of all Nigerians across tribes, religion and geopolitical regions. More over there is currently in circulation the fake news that I have thrown in my towel with  the PDP. Nothing could be further from the truth. To me the PDP and APC are different sides of the same  coin.

1            The APC same-faith is a deliberate, well-calculated plan to sow the seeds of religious and social discord among Nigerians. It is obvious  that Northerners, in particular, are the intended targets and victims of this satanic plan. It is an indisputable fact that the whole of Northern Nigeria is currently mired in several intractable socio-economic problems due to the activities of several nebulous criminal groups. Agriculture, the mainstay of the northern economy, is all but abandoned because kidnappers and bandits have prevented people from venturing out of the safety of their homes. Interstate and intercity travel  for either business or leisure have all but ceased not only due to un-motorable roads but more so for fear of kidnapping, armed robbery and other forms of banditry. Our rural schools have all but closed for fear of kidnappers. Government-owned universities have closed thus depriving the children of the already impoverished Northern masses access to affordable higher education. Thus, our out-of-school and idle children have become easy targets for recruitment by bandits and kidnappers. And there is no solution in sight.

Then, out of nowhere this man Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a renown Yoruba-hegemonist, a man who championed the establishment of a Ministry of Regional Integration in each state government of the South-west geopolitical region which he bestrides as an emperor, and a man who was once quoted as saying “I do not believe in one Nigeria” (THISDAY, The Sunday Newspaper, April 13, 1997, page 9) comes up with a Muslim-muslim ticket  knowing fully well that religion is the underbelly of Northern Nigeria. APC’s same-faith ticket is a ploy to further sow discord among Northerners using the most potent weapon of social  discord – religion. As Karl Max once said – “religion is the opium of the people”.  Nigerians from all shades of the society must see this Tinubu/Kashim same-faith ticket as  a proposal from the pit of hell that can only be conjured by the most Machiavellian minds known to man and therefore must be rejected wholesome by all lovers of our country and its nascent democracy.

On the other hand, Alhaji Kashim Shetima, Tinubu’s Vice Presidential running mate is a man who once said “restructuring my foot, let’s restructure our minds”. For eight years he presided over  Borno State at a time when Boko Haram was overrunning the state almost at will and restructuring the minds of its victims against Christianity and western education. The kidnapped Chibok and Dapchi girls and many more are now slowly trickling out of captivity in the Boko Haram indoctrination camps fully Islamized and carrying children born into Islam in captivity – a true example of “mind restructuring” if there ever was one. There is also this little matter of an allegation of a very close relationship or otherwise between the Vice Presidential candidate of APC and  Boko Haram! And, which Christian can forget one Kabiru Sokoto the alleged Boko Haram kingpin accused of complicity in the Christmas bombing of St Theresa Catholic Church, Madallah that resulted in 44 deaths and 77 injured Christian worshippers? Or that the said Kabiru Sokoto was eventually arrested at his hiding place in the Borno State Government Lodge Abuja? Are Christians not justified in being scared of a government run by these duo?

  1. Surely, APC’s same-faith ticket is intended to shame Christians and bestow on them and their religion a second-class socio-political status in their own country. In particular it is a validation of the discrimination and oppression being meted out on Northern Nigerian Christians where they are now denied employment, promotion, contracts, and admission to read prestigious and marketable courses in government-owned schools simply on account of their religion. It is no wonder then that Alhaji Bola Tinubu thinks  that the Bible is a book of jokes from which he  can freely construct his “jokes”  like his “Poisoned Holly Communion” and “Speaking in Tongues” jokes. If he is man enough, I challenge him to ridicule the Holy Quran even once as he freely does the Holy Bible. This guy has no respect for Christians and Christianity at all.

3          This APC ticket goes against the grain of Nigerian politics which in practice (if not in law) has always sought to achieve a religious balance in its politics and governance. It is worth noting that all the other seventeen political parties fielding presidential candidates have gone the way of established conventions  and practices by fielding different-faith tickets. Truly except for its incitement to social disharmony, there is no sense at all in APC’s same faith ticket.

Furthermore, in our quest for justice and equity in the socio-political and religious space of the country, it is obvious that only the Obi/Datti ticket has the potential of speaking to the genuine clamor for power shift to the South-East and at the same time speak to the cry of marginalization by our people of the South-East. Obviously, a Christian/Muslim presidency like the Obi/Datti one will be most appropriate at this stage of our political journey more so since we are now transiting from a Muslim/Christian presidency.  It will also achieve the regional shift of the presidency from the current NW/SW to a SE/NW presidency as popularly being canvassed . This is justice; this is equity. This is political engineering at its best and one that engineers peace and harmonious co-existence of the various socio-political and religious classes of our nation.

5            Nigerians should also resist the temptation of being ruled by the same set of courtiers who are recycling themselves, their children and their friends in a monarchal fashion, in and out of government to the exclusion of other segments of the society. This trend has resulted in these disastrous consequences in which we now find ourselves – impoverished, unsecured, divided, severely underdeveloped and massively unemployed with a widening gulf between the rich and poor of the society. A keen observer will not fall to notice that APC is a transmutation of Action Group/UPN that is dominated by the children or grandchildren of those who once run and ruined the  Action Group while the  PDP is a transmutation of NPC/NPN similarly dominated  by the children or grandchildren of the people who once run and ruined the NPC. A government of either APC or PDP will only be a recycling of the same class of people who have been running and ruining the country from independence to date. Is it any wonder that Nigeria has remained  static?

The Obi/Datti  will give us breath of fresh air and the greatest opportunity to redeem our country from the quagmire into which we have been plunged by a recurring group of self-centred reactionaries.

6          There is a also this palpable fear and anxiety over a possible transition of the current presidency from one Fulbe to another – same tribe, same religion, same region, same courtiers. This has given rise to a heightened fear of a possible perpetuation of a Fulbe hegemony in the country. Besides, there is the perception by many Nigerians that the Fulbe  are the main actors in the banditry and kidnappings currently ravaging the country. Therefore, there is a widespread perception that another Fulbe-led government will not have the inclination or political will to address the country’s security challenges seeing as a majority of the perpetrators are its kindred.

There is also this perception that appointments by the current government are driven more by ethnic and religious cronyism than by Nationalistic considerations. This has given rise to a fear of a possible perpetuation of this trend  by another Fulbe-led government. Both APC and PDP presents us with these horrible options. The Obi/Datti ticket possesses a great potential to wean us from these problems.

7            Finally, as the political  campaigns advance towards the election dates, the tendency to divide the country along regional, tribal and religious affiliations is gradually beginning to manifest. We can see very clearly that the APC having woefully failed in its original plan to instigate a form of  jihad which it had sought through its same-faith ticket in order to capture the moslem votes, has now resorted to a tribal card. The battle cry is now “it is our turn” tribal card in the South-West. The PDP on the other hand,  seeing new opportunities in APC’s failed jihad strategy is tending towards adapting both the religious and ethnic strategies of APC in the North.

Nigerians must be awake to these very dangerous campaign trends because any of the political parties that comes into government by pandering to ethnic or religious sentiments may not be able govern successfully and might further accentuate the social cleavages .

Men of good conscience should therefore look to opportunities that unite rather than divide us. Only the Labor Party presents this opportunity. We therefore call on all patriots to labor for our country in this presidential election. Nigeria’s future is at stake in this presidential election. Obi-Datti is the only way to go. All other ways lead to perdition.

Babachair Lawal, an APC chieftain, is a former  Secretary to the Government of the Federation, SGF

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