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Nigeria Govs’ Wives Synergize With NDLEA On Drug War

By
Ayodele Oni
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By Ayodele Oni

Nigeria Governors’ Wives’ Forum is synergizing with the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency, (NDLEA) in a bid to curb drug abuse among youths.

The Forum pledged support for the NDLEA in its ongoing war against abuse and trafficking of illicit drugs, while seeking a formidable partnership that would secure Nigeria from the menace of drug sub-culture.

A statement on Friday by the spokesman of the agency, Mr Femi Babafemi, stated that this was the highlight of a meeting between the leadership of the forum and the Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd)  in Abuja.

In her remarks, Erelu Fayemi said the visit was to inform Gen. Marwa of their collective decision to adopt drug abuse as a flagship project to address the alarming problem of abuse in the society.

“We are, therefore, here today to pledge our support for NDLEA to ensure that our country and communities become drug free. We are not willing to stand by as mothers and see our children consumed by this menace.”

She stated that NDLEA should continue to see State First Ladies as important allies in furtherance of the objectives of the agency; involve them in the fight against drugs as Champions in their respective States; help build the capacity of State Frist Ladies and their teams to be effective partners in the war against drug abuse and involve them in national and State campaigns against drugs.

In their contributions, the First Ladies of Kwara, Imo and Yobe expressed their willingness to key into the War Against Drug Abuse, (WADA) advocacy agenda and the National Drug Control Master Plan, (NDCMP), of the agency in their respective states.

Welcoming the governors wives, Gen. Marwa expressed appreciation for the visit, adding that the interest shown by them in the country’s drug problem shows their humanity and commitment to support their husbands engender a better society devoid of drug-induced criminalities.

“Let me put it on record that President Muhammadu Buhari is the number one drug fighter in Nigeria today because of all he has done to ensure the country wins the war against abuse and trafficking of illicit drugs.

“As such, we count on the states especially the governors wives as the pillars and partners through which citizens across the states, local councils and communities are mobilised to reject this ravaging sub-culture, he stated.”

He charged the governors wives to work with their husbands to make the drug problem a major priority on their agenda; support the state commands of NDLEA with logistics; set up rehabilitation centres; provide jobs and skills for the youths; massive advocacy campaigns on state-owned media houses and mandatory drug tests for students, workers as well as intending couples among others.

Development: PDP Opens Talks With Chinese Ruling Party

By
The Source
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Iyorcha Ayu

“Nigeria Will Gain Much from Chinese Industrialization Model” – Ayu

The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, says there is much that Nigeria can learn from China, especially its model of industrialization.

Dr. Ayu said this on Friday, February 4, 2022, when a two-man delegation from the Chinese Embassy in Abuja, Messrs Wu Baocai and Li Ineijian, paid him a courtesy visit in his office at the PDP National Secretariat, Wadata Plaza, Wuse Zone 5, Abuja.

Baocai and Ineijian are representatives of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in the Chinese Embassy in Abuja.

The PDP National Chairman said that Nigeria was impressed with the great industrial leap in China, especially in the last 30 to 40 years, noting that it was largely due to the vision of the ruling Communist Party of China, the will of the Government and the discipline of the people.

Recalling that the history of mutual cooperation between Nigeria and China dates back to decades, the PDP National Chairman said the cooperation would be broadened and strengthened when PDP returns to power in 2023.

“We welcome you to the  PDP and thank you for the gesture of cooperation; the invitation to the PDP leadership and the Nigerian youths to visit China in addition to the plan to boost educational and entrepreneurial exchanges between our country and yours.

“There is much that Nigeria can learn from China, especially its model of industrialization. This is a country that has suffered colonial abuse. It also has a large population and a chequered history like Nigeria. But it has risen from 100 years of humiliation to become an industrial giant and arguably the biggest economy in the world.

“The CPC has largely eradicated poverty in China and touched lives even in the remotest areas of the country. The PDP is determined to also eradicate poverty in the country and generally improve the quality of lives of the average Nigerian.

“When we return to power in 2023, we will deepen and broaden the cooperation between our country and yours. The Chinese are industrial leaders and we want our people to tap into that industrial energy. We want a partnership that benefits our people too. We do not want a one-sided relationship,” he added.

Earlier, the leader of the Chinese delegation, Mr. Baocai, said that the Communist Party of China (CPC) has decided to open a party office in the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria given Nigeria’s growing importance in world affairs and the need to deepen political ties.

According to him, while the CPC Office in Nigeria opened only four months back, the party already has offices in three other strategic countries in Africa namely; South Africa, Egypt and Kenya.

Baocai, thereafter, sued for political, educational and entrepreneurial exchanges between China and Nigeria and promised to give scholarships to Nigerian youths willing to study in China.

At the meeting were other members of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC).

Lagos Stands Still As Shonekan Is Buried; Osinbajo, Jonathan, Gowon Pay Last Respect

By
Akinwale Kasali
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Ernest Sonekan

By Akinwale Kasali

Former Nigeria’s Interim Head of Government, Ernest Shonekan, was buried amidst fanfare at the Vaults Cemetery, Ikoyi, Lagos, as families, well wishers, former Presidents, Governors and dignitaries bid him farewell.

There was a heavy security around  the Cemetery and at the Cathedral Church of  Christ, Marina, where the funeral service of former Head of Interim Government took place.

Former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and former Head of State,  General Yakubu Gowon, his wife  Victoria, were at the funeral to pay their last respect to the elder statesman.

Leading the Federal Government delegation was the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, who represented President Muhammadu Buhari alongside the Secretary to the Government of Federation, Boss Mustapha, Minister of Information Lai Mohammed, the Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, as well as the Governor of Edo State, Godwin Obaseki.

At the Church service, Osinbajo in his speech eulogized the late Shonekan, describing him as a highly consequential leader in the private sector who impacted economic policy in Nigeria.

He said his demise was a major loss to the country.

“Shonekan is a bridge builder, that was determined in uplifting the nation, and he made his mark in his short stint in power. When he was told to come and become the Interim President, he had said that if your country needs you, you must come to help. This is what he did and he will be missed.

Osinbajo described Shonekan’s death as “a very major loss for the country and for the private sector and even internationally.

“Here was a man who made an impact. He was one of the very first leaders in the private sector to shape economic policy in Nigeria, and his role in that respect was very significant.

“We are proud of his contributions to the shaping of the modern Nigerian economy while being a leading light in the private sector. And for his statesmanship and leadership of the country at a time of great uncertainty in our nation.

“His integrity, legacy and high value service will remain evergreen in our memories. We pray that the Lord will comfort the family and may his memory be blessed forever. Amen.”

Prior to the burial of Shonekan, the Lagos State Government had announced a 13-hour closure of roads leading to Marina where the funeral took place.

Other dignitaries at the event include; Former Kano State Governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Former Ekiti State Governor, Adeniyi Adebayo among others.

Shonekan, who served as the head of Interim National Government between August and November 1993 died on the 11th of January 2022 at the age of 86.

He was born on May 9, 1936, in Lagos into the family of  Abeokuta-born parents. He attended the CMS Grammar School and Igbobi College.

He later received a law degree from the University of London and was called to the bar, after which he attended Harvard Business School.

Shonekan joined the UAC in 1964. He rose through the ranks in the company and was promoted to an assistant legal adviser. He later became a deputy adviser and joined the board of directors at the age of 40.

He was made Chairman and Managing Director in 1980 and went on to cultivate a wide array of international business and political connections.

At the time of his death, he was the second oldest surviving Nigerian Head of State General Yakubu Gowon.

Simon Ekpa Calls IPOB Members Criminals; Alleges Assassination Plot

By
The Source
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0

By Adesina Soyooye

Things have fallen apart between  Simon Ekpa, the self-proclaimed disciple of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, Leader of the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB, and members of IPOB/ Directorate of State, DOS.

The very militant Ekpa who lives in Finland, and shot into limelight in June of 2021 when Kanu was re-arrested in Kenya, has dismissed members of IPOB/DOS as criminals murderers and saboteurs.

He accused them of planning to murder his associates. He said they plan to  do that in connivance with the Nigerian State.

What is the bone of contention?

Ekpa said it is over the sit-at-home policy which the leadership of IPOB had since revised to be observed only on the days Kanu would appear in Court. Before that, it usually held every Monday.

However, under pressure from well-meaning Igbo leaders because of the hardship it imposed on Igboland, Kanu and IPOB’s Directorate of State, restricted it only to  Kanu’s Court appearance days.

Inspite of that, some people, who IPOB described as rogue elements continued to enforce the sit-at-home order, destroying people’s businesses and killing people, atimes.

The sad situation forced IPOB/DOS to issue a warning that it would fish out such people and deal with them.

This position did not sit well with Ekpa. He said IPOB/DOS, plan to assassinate those  peacefully observing the order.  And, he dismisses them in strong words, issuing a threat.

In a tweet, Ekpa said:

“If anything happen to anyone during our peaceful civil disobedience, the criminals @eeal_IpobDOS must be held responsible. They are doing everything with the Nigeria government  to stop our people from embarking on their civil rights which they voluntarily want to do every S&M”

Since Ekpa shot into limelight, he has not had a smooth relationship with the Leadership of IPOB. He first introduced himself as standing in for Kanu. But the record was quickly set straight by the IPOB Leadership, which stated his position in IPOB, and accused him of not adhering to the rules and principles of IPOB.

Since then, he seems to be on his own, working at cross-purposes with IPOB/DOS.

His public dismissal of IPOB/DOS as criminals, murderers and saboteurs seems to be the climax of the disagreement.

Has the resilent IPOB finally broken into two factions? That is the impression Ekpa gives.

Data Breach: SERAP Threatens To Sue Buhari

By
Uche Mbah
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Muhammadu Buhari

By Uche Mbah

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), has threatened to sue President Muhammadu Buhari over access to citizens private data without consent.

This is premised on the reintroduction of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) Act amendment bill.

Plans have reportedly been underway to reintroduce the NBC Act amendment bill as an Executive Bill in the National Assembly.

The Bill aims at regulating Social Media, Internet Broadcasting, fix tariffs for broadcast services.

But the bone of contention is the empowerment of Security Agencies to cull private data through the National Identity Number, NIN, without Court order, or the consent of the owner of the Data. It, therefore, borders on Social Media censorship.

With the bill, Big Tech Companies will be compelled to part with subscribers Private Data without question within a period of seven days “in the face of imminent danger”.

But in a post on its Twitter handle Friday, SERAP said it will sue the Buhari administration.

“President Buhari must immediately rescind his reported approval for security agencies to access people’s personal details via NIN-SIM linkage without due process of law”, it tweeted.

“This is an attack on our rights to privacy and dignity.

“We’re suing to challenge this illegality.”

Olatunji Takes Over Data Protection

By
Uche Mbah
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Vincent Olatunji

By Uche Mbah

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of a new National Commissioner/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria Data Protection Bureau (NDPB).

He is Vincent Olatunji.

In a statement signed by Uwa Suleiman, Spokesperson for  the  Minister for Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami,  on Friday, Pantami said the President approved the establishment of NDPB “to enhance data protection and privacy.”

Olatunji, who holds a PhD in Geography and Planning from the University of Lagos, was the Director of e-Government Development and Regulation Department at the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA).

“The successful implementation of the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy (NDEPS) for a digital Nigeria has significantly increased the adoption of data platforms and accelerated the datafication of our society,” the statement reads.

“Furthermore, the issuance of the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) in January 2019, as a subsidiary legislation to the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) act 2007, has increased awareness about the need for data protection and privacy. The Bureau will be responsible for consolidating the gains of the NDPR and supporting the process for the development of a primary legislation for data protection and privacy.

“President Buhari also approves the recommendation of the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Professor Pantami, for Dr. Vincent Olatunji to serve as the National Commissioner/Chief Executive Officer of the Bureau. Dr. Olatunji hails from Ekiti state and, at the time of his appointment, was the Director of the e-Government Development and Regulations Department at NITDA. The appointment takes effect immediately.”

Insecurity: Through River Niger, South, Middle Belt And Northern Minorities Could Be Invaded

By
Akinwale Kasali
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0
Middle Belt Nigeria

By Akinwale Kasali

A Group, the Indigenous People of the South and Middle Belt Regions has called for a United front to resist the growing threats of terrorism in the two zones.

The Group said the occupation of River Niger by  terrorists will open access to weapons and logistic supply through River Niger which runs from Guinea to Mali and Niger where terrorists already have strongholds.

It said the rising cases of terror in the two regions occasioned by forceful occupation of ancestral land pose a big threat to food security and livelihood of the people.

“Terrorism is a major threat to indigenous peoples of the Middle Belt and South. Thousands of people have been killed by terrorists operating in the two areas. Their forests are occupied. The Middle Belt is no longer the food basket. Farmers are chased away from their farms. Livelihood stands at a peril. Only a united front can save the people from total destruction by terrorists who are alien to the cultures of the people.”

In a statement on Friday signed by its President, Sidney Imobhio, a lawyer, Southern Nigeria, Middle Belt and Northern Minorities Forum, SONAMIBF, said terrorism remains a major threat to the livelihood of the South and Middle Belt peoples.

The movement said Nigeria and Nigerians are in their darkest period and that it appears there is no light of hope in the tunnels now or in the near future.

“We are worried by the occupation of River Niger by terrorists. This is nothing but aggression against the people of the Middle Belt and South. River Niger takes its source from Guinea and runs through Mali and Niger Republics. These armed groups will receive weapons using small vessels through River Niger. The prospect of invasion of Middle Belt and the South by terrorists is real” the Group said.

The Group called on the two regions to unite against common threats to their survival.

It said billions of funds are being raised by terrorists through kidnapping of South and Middle Belt people  and that the funds are used to buy more arms to attack and diminish the people on their ancestral land.

It said forest resources, indigenous knowledge, sacred groves and streams, valleys and mountains of indigenous Middle Belt and Southern people are set on fire by the terrorists destroying their physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing.

“We the members of Southern Nigeria, Middle Belt And Northern Minorities Forum (SONAMIBF) wish to see people from the South, Middle Belt and Northern Minorities to unite in the face of existential threats.”

The Forum was formed to legitimately fight back terrorists, rogue herdsmen, kidnappers, bandits, and all other aggressors.

The Group said “The Forum is mainly calling for unity of purpose between the people in these zones who have been at the receiving end especially since  President Buhari came to power in 2015

The Group said it was during the period of Buhari that the former IGP Adamu (retired) ordered the withdrawal of the least firearms mainly from South and Middle Belt before the emergence of Fulani herdsmen with AK47. It expressed worry over the missing weapons in Police armoury.

“Now, Police audit reports have said that 178,459 firearms, and ammunitions are missing from Police armory. What opinion can anyone deduce from this last sentence? No state of emergency has ever been declared in the areas that are mostly infested with terrorists, bandits and kidnappers. Until a few weeks ago bandits were not declared as terrorists but the IPOB was. We cannot afford any further to recklessly undermine our future or that of our children and their generations to come for whatever reasons.”

On the dwindling economy, the Group said the country is already polarized and is facing difficult times to extricate itself from the chain of wasted loans   obtained from different countries worldwide by the President on one hand, and the perilous status insecurity and corruption have attained on the other hand.

It said the “inept and delinquent governance” of the country are confused and therefore in a state of quagmire with no agenda or hope to come out of it.

“Why should we stand aloof and agape at the ignoble and dubious roles of our internal ‘conquerors or emperors’ that we call ‘Leaders, Right Honorables or Excelencies’?

It accused some Southern leaders (thieves) of  connivance with the Fulani oligarchs to lace their private pockets with the “wealth of all of us including our children and their generations to come. We encourage, clap, and cheer them up to pauperize all of us the more. With a pittance, they can hire some youths that are already very hungry and ready to do anything including harassment, kidnapping, maiming, or even kill anyone that speaks against their nefarious activities.”

It said “Why are we (Southerners, Middle Belters and Northern Minorities) docile and mum like ‘a lame duck’? Does it mean we have given up our  own life and our father land now? Are we therefore waiting for the Fulani to sentence us and our children to the guillotine machine? I don’t think that’s right. We must resist this unprovoked onslaught by the Fulani and their sponsors.”

The Group called on the people to  resist oppression and defend themselves if need be.

“We cannot  accept or justify the killings of our people in this zones simply because the same Fulani are perpetrating evil against their own. Boko Haram, Cattle Rustling, and Banditry are alien to southerners and Middle Belters. If we want peace to reign, we must unite to stop our common enemy from onwards surge and invasion with the attendant introduction of evil into our culture. Unity of Purpose is the only answer.”

It said unity is strength. It urged the people to come together for this purpose to defend themselves by all legitimate means.

“We don’t have to fight if we are not attacked. However, we have the right to defend ourselves.

“We are now inviting you to join us to fight for freedom against this oppression and marginalization of all of us in Nigeria by this clueless and inept administration.”

2023: Afe Babalola Rules Out Aged, Not-Too Sound In Health Aspirants

By
Ayodele Oni
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0

By Ayodele Oni

The fate of some Presidential aspirants itching to contest for election in 2023 may be hanging going by suggestions put forward by Legal luminary, Chief Afe Babalola (SAN) who listed qualities that the next President of the country must possess, urging Nigerians to look out for these before voting for any candidate.

Babalola, who is also Founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, in a three-page statement he personally signed, and made available to newsmen, charged political parties to search for the very best, without mundane considerations in picking their candidates.

In the statement titled, ‘The Presidency: When a Candidate Is or Not Qualified’, he said that such a candidate must not be too old and must be of sound health.

“The candidate must produce evidence that he possesses unquestionable means of livelihood.

“He should not just be seeking election as a means of securing employment or to offset outstanding indebtedness or use his position as the President to divert Government’s funds into his offshore accounts.

“The candidate must demonstrate that he is willing and prepared to serve the Nation without earning salaries, as it was the case between 1960 and Jan. 15, 1966.

“The sum total of the qualities those who deserve to be voted for as Nigeria’s President are age, health, education, sound knowledge of current affairs, work ethics, experience, human relations, vision and mission for Nigeria.

“Others are; belief in the need for a new Constitution, oratory power, kindness, friendliness and firmness, previous contributions to development, economic standing and readiness to serve as well as proven ability to solve problems,” Babalola said.

“The President should not be a person who will be looking for medical treatment from hospital to hospital around the world.

“He must be so healthy that he should be able to work for a minimum of 14 hours a day.

“It is normal that the aspirant for the post of Nigeria’s President must have a minimum of a Bachelor’s Degree, obtained from a reputable University.

“Sound knowledge of current affairs must also be considered.

“A person aspiring for the post of Nigeria’s President should possess a sound knowledge of Nigerian, African and world affairs for him to be able to speak and debate convincingly on any of them,” he said.

“I know, as a fact that former President Olusegun Obasanjo worked for a minimum of 18 hours a day when he was at the saddle as Nigeria’s President without leaving any file till the next day.

“That is how anyone aspiring to be Nigeria’s next President should work.

“Concerning personal attributes, the aspirant should not be arrogant or opinionated. He should be a good listener, respectful and humble.

“He must be law-abiding and a respecter of the Rule of Law, vision and mission for Nigeria.

“The Aspirant must be someone who is totally detribalised and who appreciates that the country, Niger Area, now called Nigeria was brought together by Europeans during the 1884 Berlin Conference without consulting the locals and without their consent.

“He must appreciate that the over 400 ethnic Nationalities that make up Nigeria have their different languages, cultures, religions, customs and values.

“He must, therefore, demonstrate to the voters that he believes in the evolution of nation-Nigeria from these various ethnic nationalities.”

Trouble Pours For Okorocha, As He Loses Battle For Imo APC

By
The Source
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0

By Charles Igbo

For former two-term Governor of Imo State, and now, Senator representing Imo West Senatorial District, it is not only raining this week, it is pouring.

In a week during which he should have been happy, having declared his interest to run for the office of the President in 2023, everything is turning awry.

On January 31, 2022,  the day he addressed what he termed a World Press Conference to declare his interest in the Presidential seat, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, corrupted his happiness.

The anti-graft Commission filed a 17-count charge against him and three others, in Court, alleging a corrupt enrichment to the tune of N2.7billion.

And just when he defended himself, told the World he is richer than Imo State, and that the State owes him a whopping sum of eight billion Naira, the Leadership of his Party,  at the National level gave him an uppercut.

The action of the Party couldn’t have, also, come at a more inappropriate time than it did.

Okorocha had just gone to visit President Muhammadu Buhari to inform him of his desire to succeed him in office and, to, allegedly, report the EFCC to him.

The photo of his visit to the President, where the two of them stood, exchanging pleasantries, diminished any problems he was going through. Okorocha glowed in that photograph. But the leadership of the APC poured cold water on the charming photo-up by literally, rendering him ”Partyless”.

In Abuja on Thursday, February 3, the APC put a stamp of authority on Dr McDonald Ebere as the Chairman of the Imo APC. By doing that, it authenticated the Congresses held in the State which culminated in the emergence of a new State Executive led by Dr Ebere.

Okorocha and his group, which include Senator Ifeanyi Araraume and Ugwumba Uche Nwosu, Okorocha’s son-in-law, did not take part in the Congresses. They did not also take part in the revalidation exercise of their membership of the APC which was held in 2021.

They refused to recognize the leadership of the  Party then in the State led by Chief Marcellinus Nlemigbo.

They said  there was a subsisting Court Order which recognized Chief Dan Nwafor, Chairman of their own faction, as the authentic Chairman.

With the inauguration of the Ebere-led Executive, backed by Governor Hope Uzodinma, Okorocha and Company have lost out – unless a Court, on appeal, says otherwise.

The implication is that having not revalidated their memberships of the Party, unless given a special waiver, Okorocha, Araraume, Nwosu and their associates are no longer members of the APC.

Okorocha’s declared interest to run for the office of the President, also, goes down with it. He has no Party on which to run, and has little or no structure in the State.

However, Okorocha always has a Plan B. There are strong speculations that he may decamp to the Action Alliance, AA, a party which he, allegedly, sponsored while still an APC Governor, and on which platform his son-in-law, Nwosu, ran for the Governorship in 2019, after he lost the APC ticket to Uzodinma. There are also strong speculations that some of his associates are already in discussions with the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, for a defection to  the main opposition Party in the State.

Whichever way it turns, for Okorocha, it is a long walk to whatever ambition he and his associates have at both the State and Federal levels. For him, it is not just raining, it is pouring, unless, a Court comes to his rescue.

Publish Names Of Arrested Terrorists And Terrorism Sponsors, PDP Challenges FG

By
The Source
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0
President Muhammadu Buhari
President Muhammadu Buhari

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has challenged the Federal Government, led by the All Progressives Congress, APC, to publish the names of those it claims to have arrested for terrorism, as well as those individuals and companies it claims are sponsors of terrorism in Nigeria.

The PDP was reacting to the scorecard of the Federal Government in the areas of corruption and the fight against terrorism as presented by the Minister for Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed.

Going through the Minister’s presentation, the PDP, in a statement signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, and dated February 3, 2022, dismissed all the claims as a tissue of brazen lies. The party, in a strongly-worded statement, said Minister Mohammed’s presentation was an assault on the sensibilities of Nigerians.

The PDP, instead, alleged APC’s complicity in the worsening security situation in the country, and accused Mohammed of trying to coceal it. Said the statement:

“…In the very pathetic attempt to conceal the apparent complicity of the APC in the advent and continuing insecurity in the country, the Minister of Information and Culture  laboured strenuously and claimed that the APC government has unconvered 96 sponsors of terrorism and arrested 45 persons confirmed to be terrorists.”

The statement dismissed the claim as a tissue of lies, challenged the FG to publish the names, and asked the APC to purge itself ” of a self-confessed terrorism apologist” in its midst.

On corruption, the PDP said the APC Government is steamed in it. It noted: “The APC administration is unsettled by the Transparency International (TI) Report which ranks Nigeria under President Buhari as the second most corrupt country in West Africa and 154 out of 180 in Global Corruption Index, given APC’s humongous corruption, including the exposed looting of over N16 trillion public funds by APC leaders and their cronies in government.”

Following is the full text of PDP’s response to FG’s scorecard as presented by Minister Lai Mohammed.

Scorecard: APC Administration, A Government of Lying, by Liars and for Liars

“The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) describes the President Muhammadu Buhari-led All Progressives Congress (APC) administration as a government of shameless liars and barefaced thieves, who have pawned their souls to the devil.

“The PDP’s position is predicated on the desperate attempt by the Buhari administration to whitewash itself by sending the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, whose stock-in-trade is well known to again assault the sensibilities of Nigerians with litany of fake claims on anti-corruption and anti-terrorism fight when in reality the Buhari administration is sinking deeper into the abyss of failure on these planks.

“The APC administration is unsettled by the Transparency International (TI) Report which ranks Nigeria under President Buhari as the second most corrupt country in West Africa and 154 out of 180 in Global Corruption Index, given APC’s humongous corruption including the exposed looting of over N16 trillion public funds by APC leaders and their cronies in government.

“In its ludicrous anti-corruption scorecard, the APC government has no response to the reported looting of $25 billion under its watch as detailed in the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) leaked memo under its watch.

“The APC government should give answers to the reported stealing of N165 billion in the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA), the N1.5 trillion and $9.5 million reportedly stolen from Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), the $65 million frittered from the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) as well as the N90 billion reportedly looted from the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

“This is in addition to the reported looting of N33 billion from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the reported stealing of over N18 billion from the rehabilitation of IDPs in the North East, the over N25 billion from the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) as well as the looting of N500 billon Social Investment Programme Fund as revealed by the First Lady, Aisha Buhari among others.

“Furthermore, in the very pathetic attempt to conceal the apparent complicity of the APC in the advent and continuing insecurity in the country, the Minister of Information and Culture laboured strenuously and claimed that the APC government has uncovered 96 sponsors of terrorism and arrested 45 persons confirmed to be terrorists.

“This is laughable because Nigerians know that the APC administration habours within its rank a self-confessed terrorism apologist, Dr. Isa Pantami, who superintend over the very critical Ministry of Communication and its agencies which are very vital in any meaningful fight against terrorism.

“Nigerians ask, if the APC cannot purge itself of a self-confessed terrorism apologist, how can it claim to have effectively confronted terrorism in the country? The PDP restates its demand to the APC to publish the names and details of those it claims to be sponsors of terrorism and those it claims to have been arrested.

“Nigerians have decoded the lying propensity of the APC and can no longer be hoodwinked. Like everything in life, the lies and propaganda of the APC at every election cycle has expiry date and as such the APC should expect the inevitable crushing verdict of the people in the 2023 elections.”

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