₦airaland Forum

Ohaneze Ndigbo, the Pan-Igbo socio-cultural group, said it would resist any attempt to discredit Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu.

Mr. Ekweremadu faces the prospects of losing some of his assets following legal moves by the federal government. The government accuses him of owning local and foreign assets he did not declare as expected by law to the Code of Conduct Bureau. He has, however, denied any wrongdoing, saying he declared all his assets.

The President-General of Ohaneze, Nnia Nwodo, in a statement on Thursday in Enugu, said it was preposterous for the federal government to be carrying out unwarranted inquisition into Mr Ekweremadu’s life.

He said that the allegation that Mr Ekweremadu, the highest ranking Igbo politician in the country, embezzled public funds without any prima facie case was inappropriate.

Mr Nwodo stated that the idea of asking the senator to defend himself instead of his accusers showing how he fraudulently enriched himself, amounted to turning the law upside down.

He said Mr Ekweremadu is a revered Igbo son and had attracted a lot of development to his area without any previous accusation of embezzlement.

“Sen. Ekweremadu is a revered Igbo son whose public image is very high and who has attracted a lot of development to his area; he has never occupied any public office where he was accused of embezzlement.”

The president-general queried the system of investigation where one was tried for simply belonging to a political party “and is exonerated of an offence he committed for belonging to a political party or being in government.”

He said some serving military officers had been let off the hook either through plea bargain or for just changing from one political party to another.

He also said that a former governor of Enugu State whose property was under investigation was now dining with the head of state after dumping his former party for the ruling party.

Mr Nwodo warned that the apex Igbo group would no longer fold it arms while Igbo sons were being systematically singled out for persecution in a country they had contributed so much to build.

He observed that the cautionary statement by Mr Ekweremadu had been and was still being echoed by many prominent Nigerians and wondered why his case would be different.

He said that it was such selective justice and marginalisation of Ndigbo that fuelled agitations by their young ones for self-determination, adding that restructuring was a first step toward assuaging the situation.

President Muhammadu Buhari has distanced himself from accusations of religious bias by his administration, insisting that he works with individuals based on merit.

He stated this when he received a delegation of Northern Christian Clergy at the Presidential Villa, in Abuja.

The religious leaders visited under the aegis of National Leadership of Arewa Pastors and Non-denominational Initiative for Peace in Nigeria, led by National Chairman Arewa Pastors Peace Initiative, Nigeria (APPIN) and Presiding Bishop, Bishop John Abu Richard.

President Buhari called on responsible Nigerians to speak up and not cede the space to those he described as ‘rabble-rousers’.

Pastor Richard, who claimed he represents 45,000 pastors in the 19 northern states, in his remarks, acknowledged the good leadership the President is rending to Nigerians in the area of restoring the economy, boom in the agricultural sector, tackling of insecurity, fighting corruption and his genuine efforts of being a great father to all Nigerians both Muslims and Christians in Nigeria.

The cleric, who was silent on Leah Sharibu, the Dapchi school girl still being held captive by terrorist sect, Boko Haram, over her faith, demanded the President’s support 5,000 our Arewa pastors National delegate prayer congress at the Eagle Square on April 26.

Richard said they want to counter those deceiving and poisoning Nigerians with fake news to destroy the president’s good intentions for the country especially those giving the impression that he (Buhari) is anti-Christians and some ethnic groups in Nigeria which they described as ‘a big lie’.

In the words of Pastor Richard, “We the 19 Northern States pastors under the New platform called the Arewa pastors Non-Denominational initiative for peace in Nigeria believe in your leadership and we are here to let you know that we are fully standing by you and your government to ensure that you succeed and peace is restored to every and corners of the country.

“And to counter those deceiving and poisoning Nigerians with fake news to destroy your good intentions for the country especially those giving the impression that you are against Christians and some ethnic groups in Nigeria which is a big lie for instance: Some Pastors using places of worship to preach hate. People using Church to preach violence. (If you preach war and war broke out who will go to Church for worship).

“We believed that the Mr. President has no lslamization agenda in Nigeria, because if he cannot do it as Military Head of State with a Muslim Deputy Head of State, how can it be done under Democratic government.

“This is just an opposition propaganda, about the killings around the Country, we observed that it is not only Christian that are the victims, both Muslims and Christians are affected, and the Government is doing everything possible to solve the problem.

“What we need to do is to come together as a people to support our government in other to bring to an end to this circle of violence and we assure Your Excellency that we will cooperate in exposing any information that will be available to us as regard to the perpetrators

“We demand His Excellency, 1. That you support our 5,009 Arewa pastors peace and unity National delegate prayer congress at the eagle square on Thursday 26th April 2018.

“We will want His Excellency to link us with the relevant security agencies in our crusade for peace and fight against hate speeches and those dark walls that separate us as we will network with our counterpart from the East and west to hand over those of our colleagues being used by the enemies of our togetherness to inject confusion and false stories into the public space resulting to the destabilization of peaceful co-existence we were enjoying in the country.”

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

The Federal Government of has procured agricultural produce processing machines and equipment worth over N643 million for farmers in the South East geopolitical Zone.


The Chairman House of Representatives Committee on Agricultural Colleges and Institutions, Honourable Linus Abaa Okorie, disclosed this to newsmen on Tuesday during an inspection of some of the equipment at Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in Abakaliki and at the Enugu zonal office of the Ministry of Agriculture.


He noted that that apart from the machines, which were aimed at stepping up Agricultural Produce Value Chain Businesses in the South East Zone, the Committee had also sent a new crop called Jatrufa to the Zone.


Speaking further restated the determination of his committee towards ensuring that Federal government’s policies on food security were actualized


The South-East Regional Director Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr. Nnamdi Ibezim, commended the Lawmaker for ensuring that the machines were delivered and assured him that they would be equitably distributed.


Some of the machines and equipment at the Ministry’s office in Abakaliki and its Regional office in Enugu included five tractors, 10 units of palm oil processing plant, hammer mill used in yam, banana and plantain processing, eleven units of cassava processing plants hydraulic presser, cashew processor and electric kettle among others.


Hon. Okorie also inspected the level of works on the ongoing reconstruction of Erueru and Umubo Bridges along Okposi-Onicha-Isu-Nara Road while the construction of Fruit and Vegetable Processing Centre as well as ICT Training facility in Onicha had commenced.


INDEPENDENT gathered that Hon. Okorie who represents Ohaozara, Onicha/Ivo Federal Constituency attracted the machines and equipment.

In a move that may likely create confusion for the ruling All Progressives Congress, two governors on the party’s platform have concluded plans to convene an illegal National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting.

LEADERSHIP gathered that the governors, one from the North and the other from one of the Southern states, are bent on convening the meeting so as to force the idea of congresses at all levels – local, state and national, on party members.

The APC constitution provides for a minimum of two weeks notice or seven days in the event of an emergency, before a NEC meeting could be convened.

However, a competent source told our correspondent that “a letter of invitation for the meeting scheduled to hold Monday, 9th April has been backdated to accommodate the minimum mandatory 7 days notice stipulated by the law”.

Our source, who cautioned against holding the illegal NEC meeting, expressed the fear that should the governors have their way, there will be more confusion as some members are likely to contest such illegality in the court of competent jurisdiction.

Another competent source told our correspondent that the two governors who have been championing the move to do away with the John Odigie-Oyegun led executive of the party have created the impression that constituting a caretaker committee for the party was illegal.

“In actual fact, it is not illegal to have a caretaker committee arrangement. States like Osun, Ondo, Edo, Ekiti and many others currently have caretaker committees” our source who is a chieftain of the APC said.

Continuing, our source said: “The governors are rooting for congresses and once congress take place, considering the fact that we are few months away from the general election, it will create more confusion.”

He urged relevant party stakeholders to do all that is possible in preventing the illegal NEC meeting from taking place.

Meanwhile, governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) indicated yesterday that they are on the same page with President Muhammadu Buhari on the idea of tenure extension for the John Odigie-Oyegun-led leadership of the party.

The party is insisting that it is the NEC that has the statutory powers to make decisions that are binding on the APC, as all other views hitherto expressed were personal views.

Giving reasons why another NEC meeting had become necessary, the national chairman of the party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, told journalists after a closed door meeting between the APC governors and the NWC, which lasted about two hours at the national secretariat, that it was to avail the recently inaugurated technical committee the opportunity to present its report for a decision to be taken.

He said, “Today, the governors and the National Working Committee of the party decided to sit and look at the issues that are seemingly dividing us. I want to say to you with absolute satisfaction and pride that all the issues you have been commenting about in the last two days have been completely and totally resolved.

“We are back in business as one united and happy family. I want to say also that yesterday we set up a technical committee as ordered by NEC. From the very first minute that we called them to session, they have worked nonstop because I emphasised when I was inaugurating them that their report was time sensitive.

“I am glad to say that the chairman of the technical committee has reported that his report will be ready this evening or tomorrow morning.

“This report will be placed before NEC and appropriate decision will be taken. Thereafter, we will announce to you the further steps that we are going to take resulting from NEC’s consideration of the recommendations when we receive them.

“The bottom line is that the APC leadership is back as one happy united and focused party strongly behind our president and strongly behind our governors in all the states.”

Also speaking, APC national publicity secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said, “It is left for the NEC to decide and if the committee recommends that the position of NEC should be maintained then there would be no need for an elective convention and then the president and those who are concerned that the decision we have taken is correct or not will have more confidence in the position of the party.

“But if the committee recommends that congresses should be held then NEC will consider the report and at the same time decide whether to reverse itself. However, as I speak with you, there is no evidence whether the Committee will recommend this way or the other way”.

The governors who were at the meeting with NWC include Abdulaziz Abdullaziz Yari (Zamfara), Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun), Yahaya Bello (Kogi), Abubakar Badaru (Jigawa), Atiku Bagudu (Kebbi), Akinwumi Ambode (Lagos), Abdullahi Ganduje (Kano), Rochas Okorocha (Imo), Simon Lalong (Plateau) and deputy governor of Niger State, Mohammad Ahmed Ketso.

Abuja – The Presidency on Wednesday, indirectly accused Nigerians of being ignorant of the many impacts of the President Muhammadu Buhari administration since 2015.

In educating Nigerians about the Buhari-led government, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said Nigerians should rather be counting their blessings that the administration has brought about economic emancipation for the country.

Shehu, in reeling out some of the gains of the government, noted that last year, the World Bank ranked Nigeria among the top 10 reforming economies in the world.

This, he explained, was clearly in recognition of the thorough and rigorous growth and development-oriented economic policies of the Buhari Administration.

He said currently, investors and businessmen and women from around the world can arrive in Nigeria and get their visas right at the airport without any hassle. This is just one of the many reasons why Nigeria has advanced 24 steps in the global ‘Ease of Doing Business’ rankings of the World Bank.

He said the government is spending more on infrastructure than previous administrations, despite earning barely half of what the country earned from oil between 2011 and 2014 when the product was selling for an average of $110 per barrel.

He said the latest GDP figures show continued growth after the Buhari administration successfully brought the country out of recession, with virtually all sectors of the economy now on the rebound, and significant progress recorded in agriculture.

“This administration has also ushered in significant progress in agriculture, where output has risen in local production, and Nigeria is now importing 80-90 percent less rice than in previous years.

“Fertilizer plants have been resuscitated, prices have dropped. More and more young people are going into agriculture, being able, for the first time, to see farming as a viable endeavour.

“Has anyone heard of the Graduates-in-Agriculture Scheme in several states of the federation, a self-driven, government-assisted programme by which our young men and women are stopping their endless wait for white-collar jobs and creating wealth for themselves and the nation?

“Power generation and distribution have more than doubled from 2015 when President Buhari took power to the present, “Shehu said in a statement made available to State House correspondents.

In a further comment, Shehu said in the address of the Vice President at the 10th Bola Tinubu Colloquium, he reported that the Buhari administration has put in place “an audacious Social Investment Programme to the tune of N500 billion, the largest pro-poor programme in Nigeria’s history.

He described it as the largest social safety net, at least in Sub-Saharan Africa. This was despite the fact that by 2015, oil prices fell by over 50 percent and our production also fell from over 2 million barrels a day to less than 700,000 barrels a day, sometimes even 500,000 barrels in 2016.

“We have seen today the empirical evidence of the successes of this programme, and all of that is evident for us to see and listen to several testimonies and stories. 200,000 jobs for undergraduates employed under the N-Power programme, 300,000 more waiting to be employed; they have been pre-selected; over 7 million children being fed daily in 22 States so far; beneficiaries of micro-credit loans going to about 300,000; and almost 300,000 households benefiting from conditional cash transfers.”

“In line with campaign promises, this administration is spending trillions of Naira to build railways, roads and ramp up power supplies. On this spending on infrastructure the Vice President’s words were:

“In 2014, when oil was at between 100 dollars and 114 dollars a barrel, the actual releases for capital for three ministries – Power, Works and Housing – then they were three separate ministries, was in total N99 billion; while Transportation got 14 billion, and Agriculture got 15 billion.

“I am talking about actual releases, not budgeted; what they actually got. Let us compare that with capital releases to the same ministries in 2017, when oil price was between $50 and $60 a barrel, N415 Billion for Power, Works & Housing, N80 Billion for Transportation; N65 Billion for Agriculture; totalling N560 Billion, in a time when we were earning at least 50 percent less than we were earning in 2014.”

“We wish, however, to caution that these comments should not be misconstrued as denying that there is more that needs to be done, as the current administration is relentless and determined to continue in its task of continuously improving the lot of Nigerians.

“We are only saying that we must learn to pause and count our blessings. The loud voices of critics with selfish ambitions and ulterior motives should not be a veil that keeps Nigerians blind to the many ways God has blessed us and improved our lot through the Buhari administration,” Shehu said in a lengthy statement.

Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has called on members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) who allegedly looted the country blind to return their loot if they want the party’s apology to Nigerians to make any impact.

Was it panic that caused you to release the list of alleged looters?

We were challenged to do so. Don’t forget that on their own, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said that they apologised to Nigerians for the way they ran Nigeria aground and we said, yes apology is accepted, but please return the funds. I think one of them challenged us to name those who had stolen money.

I think gradually it is becoming fashionable when you remind PDP that they brought us to this sorry path, they will say stop talking about what we did, please continue with your own. But we cannot move. It is important that Nigerians remember how we got here and the same people who have made no atonement say that they want to come back to power in 2019.

So, it is important for us to remind them. Let me tell you, this government is not in any panic mood. We are so proud of our achievements that in less than three years I can stand up and say this is what we have achieved in the area of security; this is what we have achieved in the economy, in the area of ease of doing business. There is no area we have not made our mark. We lifted Nigeria from number 165 in the ease of doing business to 145. It is not a mean feat! And we exited recession at a time when the price of crude was low; we were in recession when we implemented the diversification of the economy. It is on record that despite all these challenges we have not retrenched one person. So, why should we be afraid? Why should we panic?

I don’t see any reason why we should panic; I think it is the imagination of people that the government is panicky. No!

Do you intend releasing the list of alleged looters in the APC too?

There is a difference between allegations and established cases. All the cases I have mentioned (alleged PDP looters) are already in court. You see, how many times have people written that Lai Mohammed has billions of dollars. But these are allegations that are just ridiculous. I can assure you that if there is any allegation against any member of this government, this government will investigate it.

Nigerians are saying that there is no difference between PDP and APC because those people who left PDP for APC are being protected?

That is what you are saying! It would be unfair to say that everybody that joined APC from PDP is a looter, it would be unfair. I am saying that whether you are of ACN stock or PDP stock or CPC stock and you are found to be corrupt, you will be investigated.

Are you not overreaching yourself by pronouncing them guilty while they are still in court?

They have said name the looters and we said these people took money.

But the courts may decide otherwise.

That is the business of the court. I am saying that on the 24th of February, Secondus took N100 million in cash. The then National Financial Secretary took N700 million. These are facts! They said name, and I said these are the people that were reported to have stolen money. So, what is prejudicial about it? Let them go and solve their matters in court, but if you challenge us to name names, we will name names!

You cite your achievement of taking this country out of recession, but by the time the PDP handed over, this country was not in recession. What do you think?

Recession is when a country’s GDP slows in two consecutive quarters consecutively. It is a technical term.

But this happened under your government. Isn’t it?

Yes, no doubt. But for a recession to happen you look at what preceded those two quarters. Number one, we came in May 2015 by which time the major revenue for the country, petroleum had dropped in price by almost 50percent. We came in and met virtually no savings at all. What we inherited was $23 billion; we came at a time when at least 20 states could not pay salaries. We came in at a time when infrastructure was almost zero.

The vice-president gave an example that in 2015, the ministries of transport, power, works and housing combined had less than N100 billion released for that year. Whereas the year we came in, we had N565 billion invested in the same sectors.

It is a measure of the rightness of our approach that if you want to boost the economy, you must diversify the economy. So, we went into agriculture, went into mining, went into services and what actually brought us out of recession was agriculture, mining and the rest. That we were able to come out of recession and continue to consolidate means that our Economic and Growth Plan is working.

But the projects the president is commissioning were projects done by the states?

You see when the president visits a state, he visits to reconnect with the people of the state, but of course the governors of the states would want to have the opportunity to have the president commission their projects. They are not doing it just because they want to humour or honour Mr. President. They do it also because they want the attention of Mr. President in certain areas. This morning I was with Mr. President at the Eko Atlantic City. It was an extremely successful visit because Mr. President saw the enormity of the work going on at the Eko Atlantic City and the state government knows that you need this rapport with the federal government in order to achieve a lot.

On Thursday, I was with the president to commission the Ikeja Bus Terminal and the governor revealed there that Mr. President approved a waiver of customs duties payable for about 400 buses that are coming. This is because the president saw how that terminal is going to impact on the city. You can imagine what that waiver means to the Lagos State Government. So, when Mr. President comes to commission projects in the states, it is not because the federal government has no project of its own to commission.

How will you score the president on a score of 1 to 100 on how the administration has been able to achieve its campaign promises?

It is not for me to score him; it is for me to reel out what we have achieved. It is for the pubic to now say this is 1perecent, this is 2 percent, and this is 3 percent. Honestly, I can say without fear of equivocation that the government has done pretty well in the broad areas of economy, security and fighting corruption and the various social intervention.

I can start with the economy for instance, and I will tell you that with less than half of the revenue available to the previous government, we have been able to start a revolution in infrastructure by devoting N1.3 trillion to capital projects ranging from roads to railways to water ways to agriculture. In the area of roads, we took a N100 billion Sukuk loan and with that loan we are undertaking 25 roads spread across the six geopolitical zones.

Today, there is no area of government where you do not feel the impact of government on roads. Railways, the Lagos -Ibadan standard gauge will become operational I think at the end of 2018 or next year, meanwhile, the Calabar – Lagos has been awarded also. In the area of agriculture which is one area I think we have done very well, we have been able to create more rice farmers all over the country. From 5 million farmers, we have today about 11 million rice farmers. For you to see the rightness of our approach, so far, less than N100 billion has been invested in the anchor borrowers’ programme and we have this result.

Meanwhile, the federal government has paid more than N1.2 trillion as bailout. I can imagine if just 10percent of that were to have been invested in agriculture, probably today we would be talking of self-sufficiency not only in rice but probably in cassava and probably in wheat.

Our anchor borrowers’ programme has proven to be a success. In the area of the economy, you have heard me say that we inherited $23 billion in reserves; today we have $46 billion in foreign reserves. On ease of doing business we have moved from 165 to 145, in mining the activities in local mining have created thousands of jobs for people mining limestone and the rest.

In the area of the economy whether in terms of figures about employment or in terms of social infrastructure, we have done what no government has done. I don’t know of any government in Nigeria that has either fed 7.5 million pupils in one day. To many people it is not important, but can you imagine if you are feeding 7 million pupils and if it costs you just N70 to feed each pupil, it means in a day you are creating an economy of N490million across the value chain of cooks, vendors and farmers. And this has led to an increase of school enrolment.

All these have been done under three years and I think we are going to embark on a road show to inspect roads that are being done in virtually every state of the federation.

We have been able to bring back many jobs by renewing these contracts and many of these contracts that this government is doing are contracts that were signed in 2007, 2009, and 2012. We have hardly awarded any new contract.

In the area of power, we inherited 2,900 MWs of power; today we are generating more than 7,000 MW of power. Of course we are unable to transmit all the power because of the state of the transmission line, and don’t forget that even that power had been largely privatised even before we came in and we had been able to give support. We guaranteed N702 billion revolving loan that if you produce, we pay and that is why you have seen this exponential increase in power supply. So, I do not see any area where we cannot say we have not made progress.

But what of security, when you came in, there was not as much violence as we have today? People were not dying like this?

I think you were not noticing. A week ago, I was in Zamfara, and I did not know that cattle rustling started since 2009 until then. Do you know that more lives have been lost in Zamfara than in Benue State? Of course it is no consolation. I think thousands of lives have been lost there. I didn’t know that cattle rustling have been that dangerous. It didn’t start in 2015 neither did the farmers, herders’ clash start in 2015. The Agatu killings didn’t take place under this government. It is unfortunate that what is largely an environmental, economic, social issue; we have made it assume an ethnic and religious one.

President Muhammadu Buhari has directed the National Emergency Management Agency to commence an assessment of the extent of damage in communities affected by violence caused by herdsmen-farmers’ clashes in some parts of the country.

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo disclosed this during the inaugural meeting of the recently composed Governing Council of NEMA at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

According to a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr. Laolu Akande, the Vice-President presided over the meeting as the chairman of the governing council.

Osinbajo said, “Mr. President has directed that we do a survey and assessment on the damage done to towns, cities, communities that have been affected by violence in some parts of the country, including the farmers-herders’ clashes.

“NEMA will play a leading role in this and the Presidency will also provide direct support.

“We will involve the people in the affected communities, and not just bring people from outside these communities, in the rebuilding efforts.

“We will involve people in these villages, artisans and other people in the communities, with required skills so that they can also benefit economically as we rebuild these communities.”

Some of the states seriously affected by the herdsmen, farmers’ clashes include Benue, Plateau, Taraba, Zamfara, Oyo, Kogi, Ekiti and Ondo.

Osinbajo had on February 15 informed members of the National Economic Council that Buhari had approved the formation of a national committee to look into the rebuilding of communities affected by the violence in the affected states.

This, he said, was in line with the present administration’s commitment towards finding permanent solutions to the herdsmen-farmers’ clashes in some parts of the country.

At the Tuesday meeting, Osinbajo congratulated the new members and expressed the hope that the board would continue to be committed to the task ahead, adding that NEMA had been very visible in its role.

“NEMA has been taking on assignments even beyond its mandate. This is a responsibility that we must take seriously,” he said.

The Vice-President further urged the agency to devote more resources to public sensitisation regarding matters of emergency in the country and what the public needed to do in such circumstances.

Osinbajo added that NEMA should engage stakeholders more to participate in addressing its responsibilities, including the private sector and the Civil Society Organisations.

Members of the board include the Director General, NEMA; the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation; representatives of the Ministry of Transport and Aviation; Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ministry of Health; Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Water Resources.

Other members include representatives of the Nigerian Armed Forces and the Nigeria Police Force.

At the meeting, the Director General, NEMA, Mustapha Maihaja, made a presentation on the work, role and challenges of the agency.

Meanwhile, the Vice-President also on Tuesday received a delegation from the Oxford Business Network for Africa from the Oxford Business School, London, United Kingdom, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Led by Mr. Bayo Owolabi, the delegation thanked the Vice-President for his role in Nigeria’s improved ranking in the World Bank Doing Business Report, while also commending the Federal Government for its efforts in improving the country’s economy generally, supporting the establishment of technology hubs in the country, among other socio-economic development initiatives.

Former governor of Abia State, Dr Orji Uzor Kalu, has identified as challenges facing Nigeria today, the scathing criticisms of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration by persons who when they were in power, never obeyed the law.

Kalu faulted Buhari’s critics, saying notwithstanding the cynical and vitriolic attacks against him, the president deserves a second term in office to complete his good projects for Nigeria.

He spoke on Tuesday at the Ake Palace of the Alake and Paramount Ruler of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, when he visited the monarch.

Kalu, who is the coordinator of National Movement for Re-election of Muhammadu Buhari, declared that the president has done well to merit another term of four years in office.

The ex – governor’s comments came barely 24 hours after former President Olusegun Obasanjo tongue – lashed Buhari-led government for allegedly being ineffective, incompetent and reeking of failure.

According to him, Buhari has unfinished job to do and needs another tenure to complete it thoroughly.

“The greatest challenge of our country is leaders not obeying the law. When they are leaders, they don’t want to obey the law; when they go out of leadership, they criticise everybody who wants to obey the law. This is the problem of the country.

“We have had leaders who disobeyed every law of the land. We’ve also had leaders who were reckless when they were leaders and when they go out, they call people all kinds of name. We have also seen leaders that have never seen anything good in other people’s leadership, they only know about themselves.

“So, we want to thank you for the support…I know you are close friend of President Muhammadu Buhari and I want you to maintain that friendship; don’t allow anybody to distract you whether people from here or from my area, stay in course.

“President Buhari has not finished the job he came to do. If God gives him good health and long life, he has not finished. He has to go for another four years to be able to finish.

“Despite people who are criticising and these people also took no criticism when they were in office. Despite people who are writing letters; these people we also wrote letters to them, they didn’t reply to our own letters,” Kalu said.

Kalu, who lauded his host for his sterling military career, numerous community services and contributions to nation-building, declared that Nigeria’s unity is non-negotiable.

He urged the Alake and members of the Egba Traditional Council not to relent in their support for the president.

“In any democracy, there must be people for and against. We are for Buhari, some people are against and we wish them well. And we want to thank you for the key role of peace that you and other traditional rulers have been playing. Nigeria unity is non-negotiable.

“We are for oneness of this country, we are for leaders who are sincere to lead us well, we are for leaders who are equally committed to the rules and tenets of democracy, ” he said.

In his remarks, Oba Gbadebo hailed the former Abia governor for his message of love and strong belief in Buhari’s capacity to deliver good governance for the country.

The Alake described Kalu as a great and detribalised Nigerian, whose tenure as governor was marked with monumental development of the state.

“As a key stakeholder of the Nigerian project, your patriotic contributions to nation-building are commendable,” he told Kalu.

The monarch, who noted that the nation’s Presidency remains the birthright of every Nigerian, promised to support Kalu whenever the nation beckons on him to contest as president.

According to him, there is great hope for Nigeria when somebody from the South East could be mobilising support for a president who hails from the North.

The Alake pointed out that giving Buhari a second term in office would enable him to consolidate on the achievements already recorded by the present administration.

His words: “So, I am part of your team in campaigning that he be given a chance for another four years because those who made the tenure to be four by two know that while you are formulating your policies while you are thinking of what to do, you need time to now expect everything you have put in place in the first four years to germinate and to bring benefits to the people.

“And we know what happens in Nigeria; there is always policy somersault. If a person goes after four years, virtually everything he has done will be turned over by whoever comes after; he won’t want the person that has come to get the credit for what he is going to sit upon. So, he would rather have it killed than to go ahead and implement.

“So, as you are going around the country, we pray that God will be with you. That this effort you are putting in for the greatness of Nigeria, some other people will do the same thing for you because the headship and Presidency of this country is the birthright of every Nigerian and I pray that in your own time too, people will go round and solicit support for you. You have proved to be a great Nigerian totally devoid of tribal sentiment.”

Secretaries to Governments of States have appealed to the Federal Government to extend its school feeding programme of National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) to primary four through six.

The feeding programme currently caters to pupils from Primary 1-3. Over five million children in 19 states are now being fed as a result of the programme.

The recommendation was contained in communique issued at the end of the first quarter 2018 Edition of the Forum of Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF) with the SGSs, held at the Banquet Hall, Government House Yola, Adamawa State on Monday, 26th March 2018, but released on Monday, April 2 to the media.

The forum recommended measures to improve the implementation of the National Social Investment Programme (NSIP) and Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) programmes, including the review and strengthening of the structure of NSIP in some States; strengthening of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) both at the State and Federal levels; ensuring extensive consultation with States in the planning and implementation of NSIP and other similar programmes; and increased awareness on how to benefit from the programmes.

Other recommendations of the forum include: continuous and regular funding of the home-grown school feeding programme under the NSIP; a proper structure and coordination of the programmes be ensured at the State level; the disbursement of funds/loans in the anchor borrower programme be time bound; that bureaucratic bottlenecks associated with the disbursement of funds under ABP be removed to ensure easy access to the loans; and that the CBN develop a more effective implementation structure in conjunction with the Office of the SGS in the States.

Others are that competent persons be appointed to head the Project Monitoring Team (PMT) who should in turn report to the office of the SGS, who will brief the respective Governors; Bank of Agriculture be empowered to handle ABP entirely in view of the problems being faced in dealing with commercial banks; the minimum of one hectare per farmer before accessing loans be reviewed to include medium and large-scale farmers; and that farmers be encouraged to own farmlands so as to use them as collateral to access further loan facilities.

The forum also commended Executive Governor of Adamawa State Muhammed Jubrilla, Deputy Governor Martins Babale, and the people of Adamawa State for the hospitality extended to participants during the one-day meeting.

Secretary to the Government of the Federation Boss Mustapha represented by the Permanent Secretary (Ecological Fund Office of the OSGF), Dr. Habiba Lawal, reiterated the need to forge cooperation and collaborations amongst the various tiers of government to ensure progress, growth and development of the nation.

He particularly noted the need to work as a team to solve some of the emerging problems confronting the country.

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

The greatest joy Africa and the world at large will experience is Nigeria disintegrating and so it shall be because anything created by Luggard and his girlfriend man must always expire and so shall Nigeria expire before our very own eyes..

Still angered by the All Progressives Congress-led federal government’s labelling of it as a den of looters of the national treasury, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), on Saturday asked President Muhammadu Buhari to make public the accounts of his presidential campaigns in 2003, 2007, 2011 and 2015.

Doing this, the party said in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, would be in tandem with the president’s claim to integrity and incorruptibility.

The party’s statement is part of a torrent of reactions from its leaders who were on Friday accused of looting the nation’s treasury by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

While the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, has threatened N1.5billon suit except the allegation was withdrawn by Monday, the former National Publicity Secretary, Chief Olisa Metuh, called his profiling as a looter, scandalous and lawless, saying it was an unfair comment on matter subsisting in court.

The PDP, which had in an earlier statement on Friday described a list of alleged looters released by Mohammed as “hollow and laughable,” said Buhari and the APC would have no moral standing to fight corruption unless they came clean and public with the accounts, including the donors, of their presidential campaigns.

Alleging that the campaign funds were proceeds of corruption from fraudulent government officials and businessmen, the opposition party wondered how the president, who declared that he had no resources to run a presidential campaign in 2015, was able to garner billions of naira to prosecute his election campaign.

It argued that Buhari ought to have known, particularly as a leader, that the billions of naira deployed in his campaigns were proceeds of corrupt activities of known APC governors and leaders.

The PDP said it was particularly interested in the fund allegedly provided by a South-south governor for the 2011 presidential election as well as how the cost of litigation was paid by his campaign organisation.

It said the federal government could not list names of alleged looters and attempt to shy away from the fact that the president and his party were direct beneficiaries of fund allegedly looted by APC governors.

Contending that Buhari and APC leaders had huge confessions to make on how they raked in state allegedly stolen resources to prosecute elections of 2015, the PDP declared: “If the federal Government and the APC are serious about fighting corruption and not just out to persecute PDP members, they should have begun with the probe into the source of the billions of naira used for President Buhari’s 2015 presidential campaigns, particularly in the face of allegations that the fund was looted from treasuries of various APC states.

“Can President Buhari in all honesty claim ignorance of reports in the open media that a South-south governor looted several billions from his state accounts and diverted the sums into Buhari’s 2015 campaigns?

“Can the Presidency and the APC inform Nigerians what steps the Federal Government has taken to investigate this allegation, which has been in public domain and to clarify their roles as beneficiaries of the alleged looted funds?”

Metuh: Allegation is Scandalous, Lawless

The party’s former spokesman, Metuh, in his own reaction on Saturday, decried Lai’s enlisting of his name in the hall of looters, saying it was an abuse of the 1999 Constitution as amended, which guaranteed his right to a fair trial in court.

Already standing trial for alleged illegal receipt of N400million from the former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd.), Metuh said the minister’s comment was part of a premeditated plan by the federal government to force the judiciary to convict him in the yet to be decided corruption trial, adding that it amounted to a conviction before trial.

Accusing the government of executive rascality and lawlessness, he said: “By this publication (Lai’s statement), the federal government has breached our constitution by seeking to burden me with two criminal trials on the same charge, one before Justice Okon Abang and the other before the media,” he said.

Metuh explained that he had been put on trial for receiving N400m million from the Office of the National Security Adviser to carry out duties assigned to him as the then National Publicity Secretary of the PDP by former President Goodluck Jonathan.

He stated that although the major crux of the prosecution’s argument was that he ought to have known that the money was a part of an alleged and yet to be proven unlawful activity of Dasuki, nothing tangible had been established against him in court.

Drilling holes into the federal government’s case, he said:”It is of interest to note that the prosecution has not alleged any mens rea or collusion on my part other than the suggestion that I ‘ought to have known’ of the alleged unlawful activity. Also the alleged illegality of the funds has neither been established in law nor in fact.

“I have NEVER held a government office and/or position and could not therefore have had any access to government funds.

“In view of the weakness of the case against me, the APC-led Federal Government resorted to all kinds of dirty tactics to dehumanise and intimidate me. They have done everything humanly possible to ensure complete persecution.”

Metuh concluded: “By going to the media to name me a looter (without cross-checking the definition and dictionary meaning of the word) the federal government has not only given a body language but has issued a direct intimidation and threat to the judiciary to get a compulsory conviction.

“In view of this unprecedented executive rascality and lawlessness, I have asked my lawyers to review the implications of this latest attack by the government and take appropriate steps for redress.”

Secondus Threatens Libel Suit

Also reacting to his listing, Secondus said Mohammed’s statement was libellous and gave the minister 48 hours to withdraw it or face litigation.

A statement by his Special Assistant (Media), Mr. Ike Abonyi, said Secondus, through his lawyer, Chief Emeka Etiaba (SAN), in a letter dated March 31, 2018 to the minister, demanded for retraction, public apology and payment of N1.5billion as damages.

According to the lawyer, the said publication had damaged the image of Secondus as he had been “humiliated, castigated and vilified by many as a result of the falsehood published by the minister.”

Etiaba asked Mohammad to note that if he failed to meet the demands within 48 hours, Secondus would immediately proceed to court to ventilate his right under the law and shall further seek the protection of the court against the minister.

Emulate Mantu, Confess Your Sins, urges APC

Meanwhile, APC has urged PDP to follow the example of one its leaders and former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ibrahim Mantu, and confess to its sins against the country instead of indulging in name calling.

In a statement on Saturday by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, the party said it had noted the apology offered by the PDP but asked it to go a step further and confess to its sins before restitution could be considered.

APC said: “Instead of taking this path to redemption, PDP has engaged in fruitless “you too” accusations and name calling. This is further evidence that PDP is not ready for repentance and only offered the apology with the hope that Nigerians will grant them amnesty and a short-cut back to power.

“However, now that Senator Mantu has belled the cat, by confessing to how he has helped the PDP to rig elections in the past, we hope that PDP will follow the bold example of the former Senator and confess to their other sins against Nigeria.”

sweerychick:
and the painful part of it is that all of them don't go to work oo. Like where I did my primary assignment at DPR one house of representatives member son was working with us,he hardly comes to the office and yet my supervisor takes order from him

AreaFada2:
Lol.
Power and proximity corrupt people seriously.

Even Abike Dabiri that had many fans from her TV days is now behaving like a clown around Buhari.

Not to mention that other foolish woman whose name I do not even care to recollect.

DonPikko:
Governor's son = FIRS
Senator's son = NNPC
Minister's son = NIMASA
House of reps son = PTDF
Commissioner's son = NCC
House of assembly son = DPR

Poor man's son = N-power.

tayebest:
Gentleman, cool down, this is not PDP! [

madridguy:
Off course that is PDP.

The International Police have yet to declare Senator Dino Melaye wanted, 72 hours after the Nigeria Police Force claimed that the lawmaker and seven other suspects were now on the red notice of the global police organisation.

The profiles and pictures of the lawmaker representing Kogi West Senatorial District and the other suspects were conspicuously missing on the Interpol website when our correspondent visited the wanted persons’ section on Friday.

Out of the 113 wanted persons featured on the platform, only one fugitive, Festus Chinedu, 32, is a Nigerian.

He is wanted by the Uruguayan authorities for drugs trafficking and participating in a criminal organisation.

It was gathered that the NPF most likely had not made a formal request to the National Central Bureau of Interpol in Nigeria domiciled at the Force headquarters, Abuja, to declare Melaye and the other fleeing suspects wanted, contrary to the statement by the erstwhile Kogi State Commissioner of Police, Ali Janga.

Janga was fired by the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, following the escape of six suspects from custody on Wednesday.

The suspects — Kabiru Seidu, aka Osama; Nuhu Salisu, aka Small; Aliyu Isa; Adams Suleiman; Emmanuel Audu; and Musa Mohammed, reportedly escaped on Wednesday morning despite being guarded by 13 policemen at the ‘A’ Division, Lokoja, where the incident occurred.

The police had alleged that Melaye contracted Seidu and his gang as political thugs, adding that the lawmaker met with the suspects on Airport Road, Abuja inside the senator’s car in December 2017.

Seidu was said to have confessed to the police investigative team that Melaye handed over a bag containing an AK-47 rifle, two pump-action guns and N430, 000.00 to share with his boys.

Shortly before he was removed, the Kogi CP had in a statement declared the fugitives wanted, including Melaye and Mohammed Audu, noting that they were now on the red notice of the Interpol.

“Consequently, all the six suspects, Senator Dino Melaye and Mohammed Audu were sent for watch list and red notice by the Interpol for immediate arrest anywhere we see them,” the CP stated.

The police spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, could not be reached for comment on efforts to apprehend Melaye and his accomplices, as he did not respond to calls to his phone.

He had yet to respond to an SMS seeking his comment on the issue as of the time of filing this report.

So Buhari and APC wasted taxpayers money just to invite a modeller for launching of Eko Atlantic City after wasting a billion+ on fake MLK's award?

The Buhari administration has invested well in human capital, and has launched Nigeria’s largest pro-poor programme ever, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has said.

The remarks were made Thursday in an apparent effort to counter a stinging criticism of the administration’s low human capital investment, made by the American billionaire, Bill Gates.

Mr. Osinbajo’s office circulated his remarks on Friday.
Speaking in Lagos during the 10th Bola Ahmed Tinubu colloquium Mr. Osinbajo said despite the fall in the price of crude oil, the Buhari administration had implemented a N500 Billion Social Investment Programme.

The vice president said the Buhari administration was “determined to change the dominant narrative” about the country.

He said, “We were determined to ensure that the notion of a country rich in all natural resources, but even richer in human capital, but being destroyed daily by grand corruption, and the impunity in the looting of public resources; we had to change that narrative.

“We saw a nation where a few in office had so privatized the commonwealth that, while oil prices were at their highest and we were getting growth figures as high as 7%, the majority of people remained extremely poor. On one of our campaign trips in Zamfara State, Mr. President said, “Look at the eyes of this people,” and of course, we saw the poverty and desperation in their eyes. Then he said, “They expect us to fix this problem of their poverty as soon as we get into office.”

Mr. Osinbajo said the Buhari administration has invested heavily, not only in its Social Investment Programmes, but also in agriculture.

“So we decided on two things; one to invest heavily in Agriculture; to create jobs in the hinterlands, provide enough food locally and for all of the urban areas. In our agriculture programme, I’m sure that many would already agree that this has been a tremendous success. Several millions of Nigerians have been employed in agriculture. In fact, Mr. President tells the story of his own village where people used to lease out their farms to farmers from Kano. But now, nobody is leasing out their farms anymore. Everybody is on his own farm.

“Secondly we also decided to put in place an audacious Social Investment Programme to the tune of N500 billion, the largest pro-poor programme in our nation’s history, and the largest social safety net, at least in Sub-Saharan Africa. This was despite the fact that by 2015, oil prices fell by over 50% and our production also fell from over 2 million barrels a day to less than 700,000 barrels a day, sometimes even 500,000 barrels in 2016.

“We have seen today the empirical evidence of the successes of this programme, and all of that is evident for us to see and listen to several testimonies and stories. 200,000 jobs for graduates employed under the N-Power programme, 300,000 more waiting to be employed; they have been pre-selected; over 7 million children being fed daily in 22 States so far; beneficiaries of microcredit loans going to about 300,000; and almost 300,000 households benefiting from conditional cash transfers.”

The Yoruba Council of Elders, YCE, has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately sack all the service chiefs.

The council hinged their reason on the service chiefs’ alleged inability to effectively curtail killings in different parts of the country.

According to them, the recurrent massacre in Benue, Taraba and Nasarawa states have lent credence to the accusation by a former Minister of Defence, Theophilus Danjuma, that the military was colluding with killer herdsmen to embark on ethnic cleansing.

The YCE stated this in a communique issued after their Expanded National Executive meeting held in Ado Ekiti on Thursday in honour of its late President, Chief Idowu Sofola (SAN), who died last Friday.

The communique was signed by the YCE Secretary-General, Dr. Kunle Olajide and the chairman of the Ekiti Council of Elders, Prof. J. O. Oluwasanmi.

It partly read, “The Yoruba Council of Elders calls on Mr. President to relieve the present security chiefs, some of whom are already overdue for retirement of their position and immediately reconfigure the security architecture of the country to reflect the federal character clause in our constitution.

“Most Nigerians have lost confidence in the security chiefs especially the Inspector-General of Police, Ibrahim Idris, whom the President has publicly acknowledged as disobeying his instructions.

“The President must shed and toga of Baba go-slow and act promptly on this matter to once again inspire the confidence of Nigerians in his administration.

“A military which publicly claimed to be neutral where the law of the land is being violated and innocent citizens are mindlessly murdered by armed herdsmen is definitely partisan and can no longer be trusted to protect all Nigerians.”

He thanked Nigerians for their patience with the APC saying that there was a clear understanding in the difference between the APC and PDP, saying: “We are like night and day.”

Tinubu said he was happy that the president had changed the course of the ship of the country that was heading in the wrong direction.

“He has changed it from the wrong direction to steer the ship back before the final crash. We have started the journey and the voyage is on, the voyage of hope and the voyage that we are reclaiming Nigeria. We are retooling Nigeria, we are reinventing Nigeria and we are redirecting Nigeria,” he said,

He urged the president to continue with the war against corruption and appealed to the banking sector to make credit available to the people.

According to him, “Once credit is available, this will play a role in stemming corruption. If we have good credit packages, people will not need to pay N4 million at once for a car.

“Credit must be made available digitally. We can provide soft credit for this economy. We should encourage people with low incomes and extend hope that will stimulate this economy.”

While thanking dignitaries at the event, Tinubu urged Nigerians to move on without the PDP.

He also called on the people not to vote for them because the party had yet to account for its 16 years of misrule.

In his welcome address, Lagos State governor Akinwumi Ambode showered encomiums on Tinubu and praised the president for his commitment to the progress of Lagos.

He said: “I am grateful to the president for his immense support for Lagos. We have flagged off the Lekki deep seaport project and the completion of the Ikeja Bus Terminal. It is important to invest in people because creating impactful programmes for our people is my priority.

“As we celebrate Tinubu, if you look around, you will see that there are only very few people that can match his unquestionable thirst to invest in people.

“His era as governor showed the depth of his governance capacity. That is why he is acknowledged for his role in the emergence of our great party.”

But in reaction to Tinubu’s remarks at the colloquium, the PDP asked him to stop playing God and assuming that Nigerians do not know what they want.

The main opposition party reminded the former Lagos governor that Nigerians have the faculty and freedom to determine the leadership that best suits their desires without any body’s control.

The party also advised Tinubu not to allow himself to be used for a second time, warning that he still bears a gross part of the blame for the enthronement of what the party termed as “this incompetent, divisive, nepotic and inherently corrupt administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, which has brought the nation to its knees in three years”.

PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement yesterday, said Tinubu’s speech at his colloquium, rather than causing damage for the PDP, ended up amplifying the admittance of failure of Buhari and the APC administration.

The opposition party said without listening to the prompting of any politician, Nigerians across board had taken the liberty of accepting PDP’s apology, which was made patriotically and in the overall interest of national healing, reconciliation, unity and cohesion.

“PDP watched with amusement as Asiwaju Tinubu struggled with words to appease President Buhari and give him assurances that he can win a second term election in the face of mass failure both in governance and in their discredited, rejected and troubled platform.

“It was a direct admittance of failure and indictment on President Buhari’s administration, when Asiwaju pointedly told the president that the ship of the nation under his (Buhari’s) watch, still needs to be rescued, almost three years down the line.

“It is tragic that Asiwaju had to tutor his visitor, who has had no policy direction since his election in 2015 by engaging in a revision of the programmes and policies of the PDP, such as the leasing system, the mortgage and pension schemes which boosted the economy and directly impacted on the lives of Nigerians,” PDP said.

The party said what was more “pathetic” was the fact that the APC leader presented the PDP programmes as if he was introducing novel ideas on the economy.

“This clearly stood with our position that the APC government is incompetent and lacking in ideas on how to move the nation forward.

“While we congratulate the Lagos Governor Emeritus on his birthday, the PDP considers it needful to forewarn him to study the current ambience of Nigerian politics as it relates to the failures of the Buhari presidency and the fact that the citizens have since rejected this presidency and the APC, so that Asiwaju will not find himself swimming against the tide,” it said.

Lalasticlala, Mynd44

The political romance between President Muhammadu Buhari and the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Chief Bola Ahmed Tinubu, which has been rekindled by the 2019 presidential election, waxed stronger yesterday when both men in separate speeches assured Nigerians that the country was being rescued from the wreckage of past administrations.

Buhari, who is in Lagos for a two-day official visit, spoke at the 10th Bola Tinubu Colloquium held in Nigeria’s commercial capital to mark the APC leader’s 66th birthday.

Buhari at the event, restated his commitment to implementing people-oriented programmes, saying: “Our goal is to bring everybody together for mutually beneficial ethnic, economic, social, religion, political and cultural relationships.

“We are determined to invest in people because we depend on people to govern.”

Buhari, who also commissioned the Ikeja Bus Terminal in Lagos designed to handle 200,000 passengers daily, said his administration would continue to invest in social programmes, including school feeding and agriculture.

He said: “We have set Nigeria on an irreversible path of growth and development. We are resolute to uplift our people and make Nigeria a better place.”

The president described Tinubu as his friend saying, he was happy to be in Lagos “to celebrate the birthday of my friend and political partner”.

According to him, Tinubu is a well-known political strategist who has elevated politics above self.

He said: “I have come to see him as a man who cares about people, who is a fountain of ideas, for the common good of the common man and woman. He has played an appreciative contribution to Nigeria and Africa’s progress.

“We seek a change in the ways and means of our collective existence. We seek to construct a nation where people are no longer ruled by whims, but according to the law and for the betterment of the people.

“We seek to replace corruption with correctness, insecurity with safety, and poverty with prosperity.”

The president called on Nigerians to join him to celebrate “Asiwaju”, a man whom he said was widely known as a political strategist, a caregiver and a man with a vision.

Also speaking at the colloquium attended by several APC governors, party stalwarts, officials from the federal and Lagos State governments and captains of industry, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo said the administration would not stop talking about the corruption perpetrated by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), wondering why the party does not want people to “talk about the monumental corruption it inflicted on Nigeria”.

According to him, “Upon all I had seen in government in the past three years, the corruption of the five years of the Jonathan government is what destroyed the Nigerian economy.”

He insisted that the money withdrawn from the treasury before the election could have been used to develop infrastructure across the country.

Osinbajo said there was no country in the world that would allow its resources to be plundered in the way Nigeria’s resources were looted and shared and was still expected to be economically viable.

“Every time we talk about corruption, our opponents say don’t talk about it. Just do your own. But we must talk about it. The reason why we must talk about it is because we must let our people know that we can’t afford to go this way again.

“Never again should we allow a system where people take the resources of this country and steal the resources, use the resources against the people and at the same time they want to continue to rule the people.

“We as a party, as your government, must show the difference between us and the government and the party that impoverished our nation. Let me give you an example, in 2014 when oil was between $100 and $114 a barrel, the actual releases for capital expenditure to the three major Ministries of Power, Works and Housing – then they were three separate ministries – in total, was N99 billion. Transportation got N14 billion and agriculture N15 billion.

“Now let us compare that with capital releases to the same ministries in 2017 when oil prices were between $50 and $60 per barrel – N415 billion for power, works and housing, N80 billion for transportation and N65 billion for agriculture, totalling N560 billion at a time when we were earning at least 50 per cent less,” he pointed out.

Osinbajo said it was possible to get this much money to spend on developmental projects because the present government was not stealing public funds.

The vice-president thanked the president for giving him a free hand in the government’s social investment programme, noting that when the APC began its campaign in 2014, the party was determined to change the dominant narrative of Nigeria.

“We were determined to change the narrative on the country which is rich in natural resources and even richer in human capital but was being destroyed daily by the grand corruption and impunity through the looting of public resources.

“We saw a nation where a few had privatised the commonwealth while the majority of the people remained extremely poor. On one of our campaign trips to Zamfara State, Mr. President said look at the eyes of these people; of course, we saw poverty and desperation in their eyes.

“Then he said, ‘They expect us to fix the problem of their poverty as soon as we get into office’.”

This, he said, informed the decision to put N500 billion into the social investment programme. “We have seen today the empirical evidence of that success story,” he added.

Osinbajo also said that when the government enforced the implementation of the Treasury Single Account (TSA), it discovered that there was a lot of money in the system.

He also expressed regret that the PDP government that refused to budget for infrastructure development suddenly released and spent N100 billion in cash during the 2015 election, promising that the Buhari administration would continue to defend the rights of the poor people.

Osinbajo also said that those who benefited from corruption were fighting back, but vowed: “This government will not give up. We will continue to fight corruption.”

He restated that $3 billion was lost to the Strategic Alliance Agreement between a local oil and gas firm, Atlantic Energy Drilling Concept and the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), the upstream subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), noting that the $3 billion was the equivalent of the money spent by this government on road construction across the country.‎

Supporting the position of the vice-president that the administration must continue to expose the magnitude of corruption under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led government, Tinubu said the APC-led administration must continue to talk about corruption.

He said: “They said that we should not talk about it. Seriously, what should we then talk about? After we came into office, we discovered the looting.

“After assuming office, did you expect us to join you in the act and encourage such acts. We are not just talking about the needs of Nigerians.

“Please forget those parties. They will not come back to power. There is no nation that is not facing challenges. Even America is facing its own. So, who are we? How many years of democracy have we practised?

“We did not say that Nigerians would not enjoy. But we have to report back to the millions of Nigerians that elected us into office that this is what we found when we assumed office.”

Tinubu acknowledged that the task of running the country in the last three years has not been easy but enjoined Nigerians not to accept the apology tendered by the PDP for their past mistakes.

“It is not an easy task at all, but dear Nigerians, do not take their apology. They lied, they falsified, they even changed figures. For 16 years, they made fake promises and gave us fake figures.

“And they said we should not talk about it. It is like saying, ‘After all, they did wrong, so do not look at me. Just steal your own.’ But we have a nation to rescue. We have hope to build Nigeria. We have the lead. We have the people to invest in,” he said.

While acknowledging the challenges the APC has had to contend with, Tinubu said: “Life is not without challenges. As a political party, we showed everyone our logo… Our logo with a united Nigeria, we focused on the fight against terrorism, corruption and the promotion of the economic revival of the country.

“I can see what the government is doing with so little resources. But the idea and the fact that they are doing it with beneficiaries and the fact that it is demonstrated in practical terms is what we need to get our country from the tentacles of corrupt officials.”

ABUJA – PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has said that the issue of rigging and political violence during elections now belongs to the dustbin of history.

The President in his Easter message he personnaly signd also called on Christians to emulate the virtues of Jesus Christ by showing love, forgiveness and compassion.
He ordered security agencies to prioritise safety in schools in areas where the humanitarian and security situation are still dire.

The message read, “I am indeed delighted to join our Christian brothers and sisters to commemorate this year’s Easter celebration.

“We thank the Almighty God for granting us the opportunity to celebrate another Easter at a time of great promise and hope for our dear nation, despite the challenges we also have.

“Easter, the season in which Christians mark the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, represents the triumph of good over evil; and life over death. It is also a time to show love, forgiveness, compassion and renewed hope in the Grace of God.

“The Holy Scripture affirms that happiness and fulfilment in life do not flow from acquiring the best things in life, but in being richer in a relationship with God and fellow human beings.

“Let us use the opportunity of this special season to deeply reflect on how every one of us can imbibe the profound teachings of Jesus Christ with renewed vigour.

“In so doing and by placing the joy, comfort and happiness of others above ours, we will make a statement that vices such as, hate speech, bigotry, corruption, banditry and terrorism have no place in our nation. We must do all it takes to love our neighbours and display increased spirit of tolerance and accommodation.”

The President commended those that support efforts of his administration to prevent the spread of conflicts in communities; check wanton criminality and the taking of innocent lives; unite the country; and steer the ship of state to a steady path of economic growth, job creation and development.

While enjoining law-abiding citizens to work for peace and social justice in the country, he warned, “let there be no doubt of our resolve to firmly resist others who may want to make cheap political capital out of current national security challenges.”

He said that his programmes and policies in the last three years “have resulted in bringing down the prices of staple crops; gradual improvement of road, rail and electricity infrastructure; and making Nigeria the preferred destination for investors. More than ever before, we are ready to consolidate on these gains and ensure that we improve the lot of our communities in the years ahead.

“Thankfully, our Dapchi schoolgirls who were safely released recently after 30 agonizing days in the hands of their abductors, have been reunited with their families. I am very optimistic that all others, including the Chibok girls who are still in captivity will be safely released unconditionally to their families. I urge you to continue to pray for their safe return.

“In the meantime, I have given clear instructions to our security agencies to prioritise safety in schools in areas where the humanitarian and security situation are still dire, in addition to ensuring adequate protection of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

“As we approach the period of campaigns, I appeal to our political actors and other stakeholders to resist any act that could mar the integrity of our electoral process.

“I am optimistic that with God on our side, the dark days of Nigeria’s elections being manipulated by violence and rigging by corrupt politicians and their agents are over. They are confined to the dustbin of history where they rightly belong. I remain committed to bequeathing a legacy of supremacy of the people’s will through the ballot box.”

He prayed that this year’s Easter celebration would bring renewed hope and confidence as a great nation.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday faulted remark by a national leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, asking Nigerians not to accept its recent apology.

Speaking during the colloquium in honour of his 66th birthday in Lagos, Tinubu cautioned Nigerians against accepting PDP’s apology.

In a swift reaction, PDP asked Tinubu to “stop playing god as Nigerians have the faculty and freedom to determine the leadership that best suit their desires without any body’s control.”

In a statement issued by its spokesperson, Kola Olagbondiyan, PDP advised Tinubu not to allow himself to be used a second time as he “still bears a gross part of the blame for the enthronement of this incompetent, divisive, nepotic and inherently corrupt administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, which has brought the nation to its knees in three years.”

Ologbondiyan stressed that Tinubu indirectly admitted the “failure of President Buhari and the APC administration.”

The party said without listening to the prompting of any politician, Nigerians across board had taken the liberty to accept PDP’s apology which was made “patriotically in the overall interest of national healing, reconciliation, unity and cohesion.”

The statement reads, “The PDP watched with amusement as Asiwaju Tinubu struggled with words to appease President Buhari and give him assurances that he can win a second term election in the face of mass failure both in governance and in their discredited, rejected and troubled platform.

“It was a direct admittance of failure and indictment on President Buhari’s administration, when Asiwaju pointedly told the President that the ship of the nation, under his (Buhari’s) watch, still needs to be rescued, almost three years down the line.

“It is tragic that Asiwaju had to tutor his visitor, who had no policy direction since his election in 2015, by engaging in a revision of the programmes and policies of the PDP, such as the leasing system, the mortgage and pension schemes which boosted the economy and directly impacted on the lives of Nigerians.

“More pathetic is the fact that the APC leader presented the PDP programmes as if he was introducing novel ideas in the economy. This clearly stood with our position that the APC government is incompetent and lacking in ideas of how to move the nation forward.

“While we congratulate the Lagos Governor Emeritus on his birthday, the PDP considers it needful, to forewarn him to study the current ambience of Nigerian politics as it relates to the failures of the Buhari Presidency and the fact that the citizens have since rejected this Presidency and the APC, so that Asiwaju will not find himself swimming against the tide.”