₦airaland Forum

Ex-Kwara governor shuns Ndume, Goje, others

Plans to get Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senators-elect and members of the House of Representatives-elect to vote en bloc for principal officers during today’s inauguration of the Eighth National Assembly collapsed yesterday.

There was also a split among the PDP governors on who to support between Senator Ahmed Lawan and Senator Bukola Saraki for Senate president.

But The Nation learnt this morning that at a meeting of PDP Senators-elect in Abuja, 28 agreed to back Saraki/Ike Ekweremadu ticket; 17 agreed to back Lawan/Akume ticket. That was after Saraki decided to work with PDP in a desperate move to win the race.

Some senators and members-elect rejected the suggestion by Ekiti State Governor Ayodele Fayose that PDP senators should vote Saraki.

Lawan at the weekend emerged the choice candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) after a mock election by the party’s senators-elect. But the Saraki camp rejected the straw poll and vowed to contest for the position on the floor today.

The APC is the majority party in the Senate, with 59 senators-elect. The PDP has 49 senators.

It was learnt that at a meeting held by the PDP caucus on Sunday night in former Senate President David Mark’s residence in Apo, Abuja, the divided PDP senators-elect and their governors were said to have threatened to draft one of them into the race if the APC failed to agree on a consensus candidate.

Some of the PDP senators said to be rooting for Saraki allegedly suggested that they should forge a vibrant opposition on Tuesday by voting against the APC consensus choice as a signal of what form of opposition to expect in the Senate in the new dispensation.

The PDP senators were said to have contended that voting against APC’s preferred candidate would signpost a resolute stand to keep the PDP alive.

A source at the meeting said a former principal officer in the Seventh Senate was the brain behind the proposal.

The source said most of the senators disagreed vehemently with the suggestion.

Those opposed to the suggestion, it was learnt, averred that toeing the line of action would only serve the interest of a few, particularly the governors, rather than that of the PDP as a party.

The source noted that most of the senators agreed that “we should wait and see what the APC senators will come up with”.

He said: “The surprise of the night was that some of the governors who former President Goodluck Jonathan laboured to install were those at the vanguard of the Saraki project, a man who practically destroyed PDP.

“Most senators at the meeting viewed supporting Saraki as robbing Peter to pay Paul.

“They contended that it will be bad politics to reward a man who took up arms against his party, destroyed it and moved to build another one.”

The meeting was said to have ended without the Senators taking a final decision on who to back for Senate president.

A former acting National Publicity Secretary of PDP Chief Bode Ojomu, yesterday warned the party against supporting any of its defectors from either being the Senate President or the Speaker.

Another source said: “At the end of the day, we could not agree on bloc votes for any of the candidates for the Senate and House of Representatives. Governor Fayose pleaded with party leaders to see the battle as one between the PDP and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. He begged the party to ‘clip’ Tinubu’s wings.

“But some senators-elect warned Fayose against going personal. They queried the morality behind PDP supporting candidates who defected from the party to the APC. They alleged that their defection led to the defeat of PDP at the polls.

“The governors were also split on who to back for the National Assembly offices.”

“At the end of the day, we could not reach a consensus on casting our votes en bloc for either of the candidates. I can tell you that everyone is on his own.”

The difficulty in arriving at a consensus has created an upset in Saraki’s camp.

It was gathered that those who are pro-Saraki were trying to strengthen the accord between their candidate and the immediate past Deputy President of the Senate, Chief Ike Ekweremadu.

The latest plot will lead to Saraki dumping Senator Ali Ndume as his favourite for Deputy President of the Senate.

Another source added: “They will continue to sell a dummy to Ndume that he will be Deputy President of the Senate if Saraki gets the ticket.

“But as soon as Saraki wins, they will nominate Ekweremadu who is expected to deliver the bloc votes of the Senators-elect from the SouthEast in collaboration with Senator Andy Uba.”

Uba and Ekweremadu could not be reached for comments last night.

It was gathered that the collapse of consensus by PDP has created a serious setback for Yakubu Dogara who is seeking to contest for Speaker of the House of Representatives with the party’s candidate, Femi Gbajabiamila.

Dogara could only garner support from 55 out of the 209 APC members-elect for the House of Representatives.

Another source said: “Dogara had banked on permutations that 120 PDP members-elect will vote for him but his hope was dashed last night by the split in the party.

“In fact, to earn the support of PDP, he was mandated to mobilise at least 70 members-elect from the APC. But Dogara is stranded as he could only secure the backing of 55 members-elect from the APC.

“As it is now, the moves to frustrate Gbajabiamila’s aspiration have failed. This is why they have resorted to blackmail and wild-chase in the court.

“Some pro-Dogara members-elect were also last night whipping up religious sentiments to set the core North against the party’s candidate.”

Ojomu warned the PDP against supporting any of its defectors from either being the Senate President or the Speaker.

He said those who defected from PDP to APC could not turn back to the party they decimated for succour.

Ojomu, in a statement, warned the PDP against playing politics of “pay back time” against the APC.

The statement said: “It is worrisome to observe that many of those who walked out were former PDP members who joined the APC and are acting out exactly the same script of ‘give a dog a bad name to hang it’ adopted as strategy to exit from the PDP for their safe landing in the APC.

“Today, by their actions and inactions alongside, other several factors left PDP comatose and one wonders if everybody acted like them who will be PDP senators and House of Representatives members to be now courted to defend their interest for victory at all cost against their ruling party’s official position.

“They decimated the PDP and now want to rely on it as strength to climb to number three and four in our nation. That’s crass opportunism and the PDP leaders in the Red and Green Chambers should not provide themselves as ready tools for self-serving pursuits.

“Strengthening party supremacy, party discipline, national stability and cohesion in government are the gains of PDP in National Assembly, standing firm that any political party official position or policy shall stand.

“Nigeria needs men of stable character. After all, those who stand for nothing fall for anything. The men and women that constitute the Nigeria’s Legislature must stand for something and in these circumstances it is principled position on party supremacy, notwithstanding that the former A.C.N botched that principle in the choice of speakership in 2011.“

Ojomu said the APC had the right to put forward those who should be on its platform in the National Assembly leadership.

The statement said: “Let it be noted that if the party was ever right to sponsor senatorial/House of Representatives candidate for election, it must also be right to determine who to put forward on its platform.

“No responsible political party in a democratic process that outlaws individual, independent candidate for elective offices will abdicate its historical and natural responsibility to present a sole candidate for each of the NASS Principal Offices.

“It will be unconventional for APC to watch helplessly for its members to contest in a free for all manner in the Red and Green Chambers.

“The gladiators need to drop sophistry in their argument and be educated that there is nothing undemocratic in the ruling party adopted open balloting process as opposed to secret balloting that was preferred by contending parties. Option A4 adopted in the Third Republic with SDP and NRC was adjudged one of the best democratic processes this country has ever witnessed. You queue behind your preferred candidate or party.”

Nassarawa state governor, Umaru Tanko Al-Makura yesterday June 7th adopted a 6yr old physically challenged boy named Samaila Dantani, promising to sponsor the young boy from primary to tertiary institution. The governor came across the boy during his inspection of a flooded area along Jos road in Lafia, the Nassarawa state capital. Young Samila was living in the Akurba area with his parents who are taking refuge there following communal clash in their village, Ashangwa.

Popular actress, Omotola Jalade Ekeinde, made the above statement while speaking in a recent interview. Omosexy, as she is popularly known got married at the age of 18 and most people admire her marriage to Captain Matthew Ekeinde.

“I don’t think there is any man that can handle me apart from my husband. Not because I am a bad person, it is because I am a very strong personality. I can understand why a lot of female artistes find it very difficult to find the right person. When you achieve some kind of success, you become really confused as to who really loves you for who you are.

It’s not really easy, it is very hard finding those people who really love you. If you are not a very grounded person, you can also contribute in some kind of way to your own problems and so I might have contributed to my own problems.”

Where are you watching the #UCL final today.
Mine Lagos time. 19:45pm
Juventus vs Barcelona who re you supporting.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to institute a probe into the tenure of Governor Ezebunwo Nyesom Wike, when he served as the minister of state for education.

The party stated that such exercise would no doubt strengthen the anti-corruption fight in the country much as it will expose the rot perpetuated under the guise of the Almajiri school scheme, the Universal Basic Education (UBEC), and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) under Wike’s watch.

He stated that Nigerians need to know that under Wike, as a junior minister in the ministry of education, corruption was elevated to a culture. The APC noted that about N87 billion was yet to be accounted for under Wike.

In a statement issued in Port Harcourt yesterday and signed by its publicity secretary, Chris Finebone, the party cited the case of senator-elect, Kashim Buruji as a good reference of an accused facing justice years after.

Finebone said, “That Wike has left office as minister of state (education), does not cancel the fact and effect of the alleged fraud. If Mr Kashamu Buruji today faces extradition to the United States to face drug-related charges years after the alleged crime was committed, Nigeria’s federal government can as well call Wike to account for his actions or inactions when he served as minister of state (education).

Finebone said, “It took Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau as minister of education to unearth the shady deals Wike knew but invariably participated in, to be exposed.

But since Wike was then under the cover of a president who condoned corruption, the deals never received serious attention. Wike needs to be called to account for the N87 billion and where necessary, face justice.”

The APC spokesman who questioned what became of the over N20 billion voted for the purchase of books for federal government institutions, tasked Buhari to recover the missing money.

AndreRose:
"Around the world in 80 days."
Is 'changing' from one country to another the "change" he was clamoring?
Well, we are still waiting for the N1=$1.

How can #1 be equal to $1 again... It will not happen

Everything above is true about android and windows phone.
Windows phone 8.1 has Cortana feature... In fact, WP re better than Android anyway

PMB currently at Niger Republic, concludes meeting with president issoufu mahamoudu.

Defence chiefs briefed President Muhammadu Buhari on the security situation in the country on Tuesday.


The Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Usman Jubrin, made this known to newsmen in Abuja.

Jubrin told State House Correspondents after the closed door meeting that the meeting, the first with the president since his inauguration on May 29, was successful.

“Since he was inaugurated as the President and Commander in Chief, this is the first time that we are formally meeting him to give a general security briefing of the country and that went very well.’’

He said the military would like to maintain the level of successes recorded against Boko Haram terrorists and sustain it until they are defeated.

He said the military would go back and work on the command centre following the President’s directive that it had to relocate to Maiduguri.

He added that the military would report back to the President. “This won’t take too long and we must come back as quickly as possible’,’ he said.

On the resurgence of the terrorists, Jubrin urged Nigerians to continue to support the security operatives in the battle against Boko Haram.

“The step is for all Nigerians to continue to support us and provide us with the needed intelligence as to the human beings, their movements.

“Any suspicious movement can be reported to the police and of cause the police will make that available to us.

“As we continue to put pressure on them in the Sambisa area, they will try to run away from there and then create bombs through Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs),’’ he said.

Lol Fayose don take cocaine

Plateau governor appoints his campaign director general as the state "secretary to the state government" SSG
what's your thought about this.

Sai Baba

WELCOME MY PRESIDENT. SAI BABA

Na Godwin

illuminati handshake

Does chelsheet eehhh

Na him sabi

GMB is the comedian of the year

M.I the chairman

Story for the gods

MTN useless network...

God go punish You

Baba noni [b]

Baba noni[b]

BABA [font=Lucida Sans Unicode][/font]

[font=Lucida Sans Unicode][/font] Sai Baba

K [color=#006600][/color]

story for the gods

k

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Lol see how she do her face...bcus she wan kiss oshiomole... Na his money marry her ... Now I agree

COCK & FANTA
lol