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Bank CEO Freed By Terrorists

By
James Orji
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Alwan Ali-Hassan

By James Orji

Alwan Ali-Hassan, kidnapped Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture has been released. He was one of the victims abducted by suspected bandits that attacked the Abuja-Kaduna train last week.

The magazine learnt that Ail-Hassan was released on Wednesday after ransom had been paid to the bandits who are still in custody of many passengers who boarded the train.

The Kaduna Police Command had yet to release any information to this effect, but sources in the force said security agencies worked to ensure that the BoA boss regain his freedom.

The BoA chief executive was abducted alongside others passengers last Monday, March 28 by terrorists who bombed an Abuja-Kaduna bound train carrying over 800 passengers. No fewer than eight People were killed and 26 others injured in the attack.

The Nigerian Railway Corporation, NRC while confirming the incident, said about 392 passengers were on board the ill-fated train, adding that over 180 passengers have regained freedom while the whereabout of 162 passengers yet unknown.

Also Read: What Terrorists Said To Ali-Hassan, MD/CEO, Bank Of Agric On Release; Confirm Many In Custody

Non-Recent Payment Of N200 Million To Retirees, Ekiti Pensioners Clarify

By
Ayodele Oni
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0

By Ayodele Oni

The Nigerian Union of Pensioners (NUP) in Ekiti State has said that the last time government released N200million to members to offset part of their entitlements was last year.

The union was reacting to a statement credited to the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Yinka Oyebode that the pensioners acknowledged receipt of N200 million last week from the state government.

State chairman of NUP, Mr Joel Akinola said the statement was far from being true insisting that there was no recent disbursement of any fund to the union.

The issue of non payment of gratuities of retired workers in Ekiti state has become a political matter as virually all the Governorship candidates now solicit for their support during June election with a promise to pay them if elected.

Government statement, is coming at the time former Governor Segun Oni, who is candidate of Social Democratic Party, (SDP) met with the pensioners last week to reassure them of alleviating their plight.

Oni is said to be the only Governor that paid gratuities of pensioners few months after their leaving office, when he was Governor of the state.

Mr Akinola, told journalists on Wednesday in Ado-Ekiti, that the said amount was released in December 2021 and not recent as claimed in the government’s statement.

He explained that the letter of appreciation by the union which was quoted by the government was long written in January in respect of the N100 million released and not related to N200 million of last year, questioning the intention of the government which he said has caused agitation and unrest among members.

Akinola called on the state government to be sensitive to the plights of the pensioners by paying the backlog of the gratuity amounting to N37 billion, adding that members of the union are daily losing their lives due to lack of proper healthcare, “of which if their gratuity is paid, they will use it to take care of themselves.”

“We are here today to correct the misinformation in the public as released by the state government last week that we just received N200 million.

“The truth is, that the government released N200 million in December 20, 2021, and we as usual wrote to appreciate the government immediately and raised points on other issues for the government to address.

“In January this year, the government released N100million and we wrote to appreciate but to our dismay, we saw that statement last weekend that we received recently N200 million, quoting our letter on the N100 million of January, that is unfair because our members have been calling and agitating since they heard the statement of the government; you know pensioners are old and expectant people.

“There is nothing recent in the amount and we will continue to appreciate the government for what they have done in the past. But, the government should find a way to source the money for the N37 billion backlog of gratuity and pay us, it is our right and entitlement.

“We have nothing against the government but they should continue to assist us because our people are old, expectant and dying. Our case is different from the construction of road and others because it is between life and death, nobody can finish all the road construction in the state. The fact remains that the time left for us on earth is limited.”

The pensioners had last year disagreed with the state government on percentage to be paid to pension fund administrators, raised by the administration to handle the issue of payment of gratuities to the retirees.

Buhari Orders Establishment Of Maintenance Depts As He Signs Executive Order 11

By
Ayodele Oni
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Muhammadu Buhari in FEC Meeting

By Ayodele Oni

President Muhammadu Buhari has signed Executive Order 11 on National public buildings maintenance.

The signing of the document preceded Wednesday’s cabinet meeting holding at the Council Chambers of the State House, Abuja.

Speaking shortly before appending his signature, the Nigerian leader directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies of government (MDAs) to set up Maintenance Departments in line with the provisions of the new Executive Order.

He pointed out that the order now gives legal backing to the country’s National Maintenance Policy, following its earlier approval by the Federal Executive Council.

President Buhari added that Government has already started utilising the policy to give face lift to some of its buildings like the federal secretariat Abuja and 24 others spread across the country.

“Since the approval of the policy by the Federal Executive Council, the federal government has consciously started the implementation of maintenance of strategic facilities like the Federal Secretariat Abuja and Federal Secretariats in 24 States of the Federation, where at least 40 people are now daily employed in each of those 24 Secretariats.

“The office of the Head of Civil Service of the Federation has approved the establishment of a Department of Federal Public assets maintenance as a vital step in support of the implementation of this national policy, which is unprecedented in our history and approach to maintenance.

“In order to ensure the fullest implementation and impact of the policy, it is my pleasure to sign this Executive Order that ties maintenance directly to our economy.

“By this Order, I expect Ministries, Departments and Agencies to set out and ensure the operation of their maintenance departments and make necessary procurements for their maintenance in accordance with the provisions of the public procurement act.”

The President presided over the Cabinet meeting, which was  attended by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Secretary to Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, and Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Dr Folashade Yemi-Esan.

Some of the ministers attended the meeting virtually.

Return Of Public Schools To Original Owners Will Breed More Drop Outs – Ondo Muslim Community

By
Ayodele Oni
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0
Ondo Muslim Community

By Ayodele Oni

The Muslim community in Ondo State has kicked against the return of some schools to Faith-based Organisations, saying  the action amounts to fraud of the century.

The State Government had announced its plan to return  schools founded by religious organizations and individuals to their original owners if they were willing to take them back.

Since the announcement, four schools including secondary and primary institutions have been returned to the Catholic mission after necessary formalities.

There is a standing committee, headed by the Commissioner for Information, Mr Femi Agagu, set up by the state government that is visiting schools to be returned to their owners.

The Muslim community at a press conference in Akure, on Wednesday faulted the action of the State Government government saying Islamic faith in the State was against the move.

The Secretary of the League of Imams and Alfas Akoko branch, Ondo State, Abdulrasheed Akerele, who spoke on behalf of Chairman of the League, Ahmad Aladesawe, said returning schools to the missionaries is illegal.

“Ondo State Government for the sake of posterity, the unborn generation, the development of the state and even for the sake of the traumatized and impoverished masses, should not return schools to Faith Based Organisations.

‘This is because of its daring consequences as more children will be thrown out of schools because their parents would definitely not be able to afford the fees that will be imposed by such organisations.

“Returning of schools to Faith-based Organizations, (FBO) will be the fraud of the century because this is simply handing over public properties to Private business orientated individuals in the name of FBOs.

“We want to say that the return of schools to FBO’S is archaic, barbaric, backward and non progressive. It is a call to return to the colonial era and above all, the call is contradictory to the electoral promises of the present administration.

“It is a call to hand over public properties to individuals ‘in the name of Faith Based Organisations. It is a call to return to the dark era in the history of educational development in our nation, the call is fraudulent which is against progressive educational policy.

“It will result in more children being thrown out of schools, it is a call to deny the children of the impoverished masses access to affordable and qualitative education in an atmosphere of religious freedom devoid of bigotry.

“The idea of the ‘Original Owner’ of the schooI is fraudulent as it is a call to hand over government property to cooperate bodies in the name of FBO’s.

“The question that have been begging for answer whenever the issue of the return of schools to the ‘Original Owner’ is raised is, if the FBO’S are claiming the Schools originally belong to them, what do we say about the huge amount of money the government used in compensating them (even though some of the organizations are denying this historical fact)

“When the schools were acquired in the 70’s, are they ready to refund the money in its true value i.e. 2 dollars to one naira , or are they ready to buy the school in its present value? If the answer is yes, then we think the government is morally bound to publish the memorandum of understanding they signed with the alleged ‘Owners’ before the conclusion of handing over the schools to them.

“We want to say clearly that the idea of the ‘Original Owner’ is nothing but a cheap propaganda in order to arouse unwarranted sympathy from the innocent masses who are ignorant of the consequences of this heartless request.

“It will be a bad precedence, an ungodly act and the fraud of the century that the property that we (Muslim, Christian and traditional believers) owned together under the government trust to be handed over to profit oriented organisation under the guise of been original owner or FBO’S after acquisition, full compensation and heavy investment on the school by the government using the Tax payers hard earned resources.

“When schools are returned to the so called ‘Original owners’ or FBO’S, will the government hands off primary and post primary education? if no, will they quickly build new schools to cater for the children of the masses who will definitely not be able to afford the consequences of that action?

“If the answer is no, then the implication is more children will be thrown out of the school by this move.

“This will be antithetical to the vision of providing qualitative educationto the majority of the Ondo State children.

“Nigeria is currently battling with serious security issues and one of the factors traceable to this situation is ignorance and illiterecy orchestrated by over 40Million out of school children.

“It should interest those advocating for the return of schools to private organisations in Ondo state that our dear sunshine state account for over 44000 of such out of school children.

“Handing over of schools to its ‘alleged owners’ will do nothing but increase this number which will portends a very serious security challenges to our peaceful state.

“Without fear of contradiction, the call for the return schools to FBO’S or their ‘Original Owners’ is nothing but a call to return Schools to the Christian Missionaries or Church. This was established at the summit based on the arrays of supporters of the agenda which are majorly Christian Leaders.

“We say without the fear of contradiction that this call is dubious, callous and fraudulent.

“It is a calculated attempt to further deny the Muslim child free access to qualitative education in an atmosphere of religious freedom.

“All our fathers who are now elder statesmen who had the opportunity to attend the formal schools especially in the south in the early fifties and Sixties would bear us witness that it is a call to re-awaking the systematic Christianization of the Muslim children.

“Anybody who knows the history of education in Nigeria and the adventure of the Muslim child in his quest to formal education which was then in the custody of the Christian Evangelists would agree with us that this period can best be described as a dark period in the history of education and development in our dear Nation.

“Ondo state government for the sake of posterity, the unborn generation, the development of the state and even for the sake of the traumatized and impoverished masses shouId not return schools to the FBOs under any banner or guise.

“This is because of its daring consequences as more children will be thrown out of Schools because their parents would definitely not be able to afford the fees that will imposed by such organizations.

“As at now, more than 80% of the students on enrollment are in the register of the public schools, their parents are at the mercy of the government to provide qualitative and affordable education for their children, what will be the plight of such Parents and their children considering the fact that more than 70% of Nigerians are living below the poverty line.

“Returning of schools to FBOS will be the fraud of the century because this is simply handing over public properties to private business oriented individuals in the name of FBOS.

“It is a call to the return of the nation to the dark period in the history of educational development when educational institutions were used as tools in the hands of the religious bigots for forceful conversion and intimidation of the masses.

“It will work against the federal government policy on education as well educational policies of prominent international bodies with stakes in educational development of the nations at large and Ondo State in particular.

As alternative, the Muslim community suggested that Rather, the government should build more schools, improve on the existing educational infrastructures, increase or improve on the educational personnel especially teaching staff as well as provide adequate teaching and instructional materials.

“This can be achieved most importantly considering the dwindling government resources by dedicating the governor’s security vote’s to educational development.

“The government should establish Ondo State Education Trust Fund and set up a committee of eminent personalities to manage the funds that will be so accrued.

“Ondo state should also increase the budgetary allocation for education with these measures there will be more than enough funds to manage, improve and take the educational sector in the state to an enviable height.

“This is what we called a ‘herculean agenda’ and if our amiable governor Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu SAN could embark on its implementation and ignored the ill advice of returning schools to FBO’s, posterity will not only smile at you but also write your name in gold.

“We want to say that if the Governor will go ahead to return schools to the so called “Original Owner” after acquisition, full compensation and huge investment using our hard earned resources (Tax) then we will have no option but to seek redress using every legal and constitutional means available to us as a cardinal member of Ondo State Community with vested interest in the educational development of our dear sunshine state.”

The state government had last month named the schools to be returned to their original owners to include St Thomas Aquinas College, St. Louis Girls Grammar School, Akure and two primary schools.

2023 PDP Zoning: I Was Misquoted, says Orthom

By
Uche Mbah
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0

By Uche Mbah

Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Zoning committee, Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State, has denied saying that the PDP has thrown open the Presidency to all contenders, thereby jettisoning zoning.

A 37-member Committee, chaired by Ortom, sat and deliberated for four hours yesterday on the thorny issue of zoning.

Zoning was adopted for the party by the so “Asaba Declaration”, but, Ortom, after the meeting said he has forwarded the proposal to the appropriate quarters.

But information filtered in from the yet to-be-made public zoning position, indicating that the Presidency was thrown open due to the “exigencies of time”. Other positions will flow from the Presidential nomination.

With this, candidates from the North, notably Atiku Abubakar, Bala Mohammed, Aminu Tambuwal and Bukola Saraki heaved sighs of relief being that the party has been under pressure to zone the Presidency to the South, particularly South east.

Ortom, spoke Wednesday through a statement signed by Nathaniel Ikyur, his Chief Press Secretary.

In the statement, Ortom claims he was misquoted.

“I want to clear the insinuation that the zoning committee has thrown open the presidential ticket. I did inform the media yesterday (Tuesday, April 5, 2022) that the committee has adopted a unanimous position to be presented to the national executive committee (NEC) of the party. Where did I say that the committee has thrown open the presidential ticket?”, the statement said.

El-Rufai Promises To Support Tinubu’s Presidential Aspiration; Says Nigeria At Crossroad

By
The Source
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0

By Gideon Njoku

“We are aware of your aspiration to be President of this country. We look forward to further engagement so that we can progress that aspiration”

Perhaps moved by his condolence visit over the attack on an Abuja-Kaduna bound Train, and a donation of the sum of N50m to the State Government, Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai seem to have turned positively around for Bola Tinubu, former Lagos State Governor and a Presidential aspirant under the All Progressives Congress, APC.

Tinubu and El-Rufai have not  always seen eye to eye politically after the initial romance that gave birth to APC. On, at least, two occasions, El-Rufai had indirectly tackled Tinubu, once in the city of Lagos. He had urged Lagosians to kick out the godfather.

But it was a different El-Rufai on Tuesday when Tinubu visited him in Kaduna. He was full of praises for the APC Presidential front-runner. He said Tinubu, by his visit, has shown good leadership. He said Tinubu’s visit and donation were unprecedented, and added that Kaduna State and its will never forget.

El-Rufai said Tinubu had beaten him to it, as he had planned to visit Tinubu to thank and appreciate him for cancelling his 70th birthday Colloquium(13th in the series) on March 28, in honour of the victims of the  horrendous attack on the Kaduna bound Train.

El-Rufai: “This gesture by Asiwaju is a show of powerful leadership, empathy and concern for the lives and property of Nigerians. It’s unprecedented in our history in Nigeria. The Government and people of Lagos State will never forget this gesture. We are very grateful to you for service, sacrifice and commitment to the unity of our country.”

On Tinubu’s Presidential aspiration, El-Rufai said: “We are aware of your aspiration to be President of this country. We look forward to further engagement so that we can progress that aspiration.”

A couple of weeks ago, El-Rufai had indirectly endorsed the Minister for Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, when he said he was not interested in running for any office in 2023, but would agree, if pressurised by President Muhammadu Buhari, to run on same ticket with Amaechi.

On the state of the Nation, both men  agreed Nigeria has become a mess.

El-Rufai: “Nigeria is at crossroad, critical crossroad, and we must take  very critical decisions to get the right leaders that would take us out of the multiple quagmire that we are going through. These are human challenges, and they can be solved by human ingenuity.”

President Muhammadu Buhari is yet to visit Kaduna since after the invasion, by terrorists of the Kaduna International Airport on Saturday, March 26, and the bombing of the Train on March 28.

At least, eight people lost their lives in the attack, 25 people were injured, and over 100 people remain unaccounted for.

FG Suspends 3000 Workers

By
James Orji
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0
Federal Secretariat Abuja

By James Orji

The Head of Service of the Federation, HoS Folashade Yemi-Esan says the federal government has nabbed over 1,500 fake civil servants.

She also disclosed that 3000 civil servants who failed to make themselves available to the committee have now been suspended.

The workers, she said were discovered after they presented fake employment letters to the verification committee set up by the government to uncover fake and illegal recruitment in government agencies.

Yemi-Esan, revealed this at the ‘National Policy Dialogue on Entrenching Transparency in Public Office Recruitment in Nigeria’ organised by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC in Abuja, on Tuesday.

Folasade Yemi-Esan
Folashade Yemi-Esan

She said the revelation was a joint operation between  the ICPC and her office.

According to her, “Sometimes in March of 2021, this office informed the ICPC that there were quite a number of fake letters of appointments circulating in the ministries,” the civil service chief said.

“At that particular time, we discovered that in just one ministry alone, there were over a thousand individuals bearing fake letters of appointments. And they were already enrolled on the payroll.

“The Office of the Head of Service received another report, this time from the Federal Civil Service Commission itself, forwarding names of over 500 persons in various MDAs that possess fake letters of appointments.”

She explained that over 1,000 persons were discovered in one ministry, while 500 others were found in other ministries, departments and agencies during the exercise, noting that the Integrated Payroll and Personnel information system, IPPIS has helped in identifying unproductive, unqualified civil servants.

“In the past year, in one ministry alone, over 1,000 individuals bearing fake letters of appointment were detected.

“The office recently received a report, from the Federal Civil Service Commission, of over 500 persons in various MDAs in possession of fake letters of appointment.

“Following the Service-Wide Verification Exercise for officers recruited from 2013 – 2020, the commission also requested the suspension of salaries of over 3,000 officers across the MDAs,” she stated,’ the HoS said.

According to the figures provided by the office over 380,000 officers had been captured on IPPIS – 66,000 and 320,000 for core and non-core MDAs.

Ogun 2023: Adebutu Says APC Is Enabler Of Irresponsible Government; Vows To Sack It

By
Akinwale Kasali
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0
Oladipupo Adebutu

By Akinwale Kasali

Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Governorship Aspirant, Oladipupo Adebutu, son of prominent businessman, Sir Kensington Adebutu, has engaged in verbal political war with the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, in Ogun State.

Adebutu had made the declaration of his Gubernatorial aspiration last week in a carnival-like event held at the Ake Palace ground, in Abeokuta, Ogun State Capital.

Adebutu who ran for the 2019 Governorship Election in the State but lost the ticket to the Late Burundi Kashamu assured the people of the state of the readiness of PDP to wrestle power from the ruling APC come 2023.

However, Adebutu’s statement has not gone well with the APC. Its Publicity Secretary in the state, Tunde Oladunjoye, described Adebutu’s ambition as dead on arrival.

Oladunjoye  reaction has led to both parties trading words.

Speaking through the Media Director, Ladi Adebutu Campaign Organization, Afolabi Orekoya, he described Oladunjoye as a tragic character who has exposed the failures of Dapo Abiodun’s Government.

It noted that Oladunjoye’s attack on his declaration speech was an indication the ruling APC is jittery.

He emphasized that rather than attacking his personality or PDP, Oladunjoye should have converted the same energy to advise Governor Dapo Abiodun-led APC government on how to address the growing insecurity leading to wanton killings across the state.

“However, for the sake of unsuspecting members of the public, it is important to set the records straight and remind the rudderless mouthpiece of his battered personality and equally put him where he belongs as this perhaps might be the last time he would be lucky to have a response from us.

“This is because we are more focused and determined to judiciously spend our time on how to deliver the people of Ogun State from the shackles of the clueless government that Oladunjoye represents, that he had also acknowledged as a “weak government” in not less than two different occasions; we will not continue to trade words with him so that our case will not be like that of someone who had his clothes taken away from the bathroom by a mad man and started running after him, and both of them would be taken to be mad.

“In his litany of falsehood, Oladunjoye who has a reputation of always blowing cold and hot at the same time; always talking from both sides of his mouth, should not have had any cause to react to the declaration speech of Hon. Adebutu if he was correct with his judgment on the declaration. For him to have reacted, it means something meaningful came out of the gubernatorial declaration of which he and his paymaster would still see much more when the campaign proper starts.

“It is so disheartening that Oladunjoye could not cover his face in shame and convert the energy he used to react on Monday to advise his boss, Mr. Governor, on how to make Ogun State peaceful and address the growing insecurity leading to wanton killings across the state.

“For us, we would have thought that Oladunjoye would have deployed the same energy with which he went on a verbal onslaught to charge the state government on its criminal silence on the menace of cultism and avoidable violence which has become a daily routine in Ogun state.

“Apart from failing to check violence, Oladunjoye should be reminded that the ruling APC government has refused to remit workers’ deductions since 2019. All appeals from different quarters to make the Dapo Abiodun government see reasons for immediate remittance of the worker’s entitlement have been largely rejected.”

Adebutu, therefore, reminded Oladunjoye that the APC Government has failed to provide potable water for the residents in the last 11years at the helms in the state.

“Moreover, we wonder why Oladunjoye chose to pretend as if he doesn’t know that the Abiodun-led government cannot provide potable water for members of the public. As a fact, members of the public in Ogun State, particularly in Abeokuta metropolis (the seat of Government) can bear honest witness to private individual’s intervention in this regard.

“Without mincing words, Oladunjoye is a classical enabler of an irresponsible government. Otherwise, he shouldn’t have forgotten that Ogun workers’ well-being deserves priority attention. It is public knowledge that Pensioners in the state embarked on peaceful protests twice between September and November 2021 to press home their legitimate entitlement having served the state meritoriously in different capacities. Till now, what has the present Government done to put smiles on the faces of these great patriots of our State?

“We should ask Oladunjoye to tell us what significant achievement the APC government has made in sports? The Teachers’ recruitment scheme “OGUN Teach” that the outgoing government made so much noise about has not yielded anything. Some applicants that were given appointments letter over two years have not been allowed to resume work.

“These are just a few of the inadequacies of this government that one would expect Oladunjoye and his party to look into to make things better; they ask themselves if what we have in Ogun State today is what they promised, anyway, what will one expect from an opportunist in position?”

2023 Presidency: More PDP Govs Back Consensus

By
Tosin Olatokunbo
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0

By Tosin Olatokunbo

Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has become the latest PDP governor to back consensus arrangement for the selection of the party’s presidential candidate in next year’s election.

The Oyo helmsman joined the list of PDP governors such as Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta state, Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, Godwin Obaseki of Edo State and others who have recently thrown their weight behind the consensus option being spearheaded by some leaders of the party.

The opposition party is not leaving any stone unturned in its quest to seize power next year from the ruling APC, and as part of that effort some PDP bigwigs have identified consensus as the only option that will keep the party together ahead the very critical election.

Governor Makined said the arrangement will lead to the selection of an acceptable candidate devoid of rancour.

Makinde disclosed this when he was visited at the Agodi Government House, Ibadan by Bukola Saraki, a former Senate President, Aminu Tambuwal, Sokoto State governor and Bala Mohammed, Bauchi State governor.

The three politicians have spearheaded the consensus arrangement for the selection of PDP presidential candidate for the 2023 presidential election, and have been visiting top party leaders across the country.

According to a statement issued on Tuesday by Taiwo Adisa, chief press secretary to the governor, Makinde said he’s prepared to work with other leaders of the party to ensure that the party produce a consensus presidential candidate

He said the party had adopted the consensus arrangement in the past and should also work this time around. Former vice president Atiku Abubakar emerged as PDP consensus candidate in the 2019 election.

“We did it at the last convention of our party, and that was the first time the PDP was able to achieve bringing in a national chairman for the party through a consensus arrangement,” Makinde said.

“We believe we can do it and we also believe that Nigerians will take this party seriously when they know that we are all working together to give to them a president through a process that has everybody’s buy-in — where there is no rancour among the stakeholders.

“So, I promise my elder brothers that we will work hand in hand to ensure that this consensus arrangement is successful.

“I have also said that, internally, we will ensure that people understand what we are trying to do. And where there is any iota of doubt or confusion, we will put a mechanism in place where it will get addressed almost immediately as we move along.”

Meanwhile, the Iyiorcha Ayu-led PDP, the magazine has learnt has agreed to throw the party’s presidential ticket open. This however negates the clamour amongst some elements in its ranks that the ticket should be zoned to the southern part of the country.

On Tuesday, the Governor Samuel Orton zoning Committee set up by the party to work out an acceptable zoning formula for next year’s presidential election recommended that the ticket should be thrown open.

The decision appears not have gone down well with PANDEF, Middle Belt Forum, Ohanaeze Ndigbo and others who insist that power must shift to the south. They have all expressed their disatisfaction with thè party, warning that such decision could cost the PDP the chance of clinching power next year.

NURTW Dissolves Lagos Council; MC Oluomo Administration Ends Abruptly

By
Akinwale Kasali
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0
Musiliu Akinsany- MC Oluomo

By Akinwale Kasali

The end has finally come to the administration of Musiliu Akinsanya (MC Oluomo) as the Chairman of Lagos National Union of Road Transport Workers, NURTW, following the dissolution of his Council by the National Body led by Tajudeen Baruwa.

For weeks, crisis has been rocking the Lagos Chapter of NURTW, leading to the suspension of MC Oluomo, his disowning of NURTW   following allegations of misconduct and insurbodination for constituted authority by MC Oluomo.

The escalation of the crisis led to the Lagos State Government taking over the Parks in the State to avert crisis that could lead to the loss of lives and properties.

Following the failure of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, to resolve the crisis and bring the warring parties together, the NURTW National Body has directed the Lagos State Secretary, Seyi Bankole, to takeover the administration from MC Oluomo to avoid leadership vacuum in the State.

The National Body said it was the decision of the Executive to dissolve the State ’s Administrative Council, after it became obvious that members of the Council were ready to assume the leadership vacuum that trailed the indefinite suspension of MC Oluomo.

It was gathered that the National Body could not adopt another decision after all efforts to ensure that MC Oluomo and other members of the  Council backtrack on their previous stance of leaving NURTW completely recently.

A document signed by the NURTW National Headquarters at the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, the Nation’s Capital, it confirmed the dissolution of the Lagos Administrative Council, and said it was reached after a meeting.

The decision to dissolve the Lagos State Chapter of the NURTW was reached at 3:30am after several hours of deliberation.

It was also gathered from sources that before the decision was reached, there were arguments at the meeting on what measures should be taken on Executive Members of the Lagos Chapter.

It also disclosed that barely two weeks before the dissolution, the National Executive had passed a resolution to grant pardon to MC Oluomo if he shows remorsef and tenders an unreserved apology to the Union.

The source stressed that up till the moment before the dissolution was concluded, the suspended State Chairman did not respond, nor did he appeal for more time to file his letter of apology before the transport body, a development that further aided the National administrative council’s decision.

According to the leaked document, it was resolved that the National Administrative Council, in the exercise of the powers conferred on it by Article 17, section 2. subsections (i) and (ii) of the constitution of the union, during its meeting of April 5th, 2022, has dissolved the Lagos State Administrative Council forthwith.

“In view of the fact that nature abhors a vacuum and in line with Article 42 section 4, the State Secretary, Seyi Bankole is hereby directed to take over the running of the affairs of Lagos State council pending the constitution of the caretaker committee after due consultations with appropriate relevant authorities, meanwhile, all members of the dissolved state administrative council are hereby directed to handover all property of the Union, including cash to the State Secretary”.

Signed by the National President and other members of the executive, the national body urged members of the public not to engage in any transaction with  MC Oluomo and other members of the dissolved council on NURTW matters.

“On the strength of the above development, therefore, all members of the Union in Lagos State and beyond, including members of the public are hereby kindly requested to henceforth stop dealing with members of the dissolved Lagos State administrative council on issues concerning the union”.

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