₦airaland Forum

Former Vice President and the Presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has got another praise from his boss, ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo.

This was when he was been formally turbaned as the 7th Waziri of Adamawa Emirate.

The position of Waziri makes the former Vice President next to the Lamido of Adamawa, Alhaji Muhammadu Barkindo, in hierarchy in the emirate.

Speaking at the occasion, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, commended upgrading of Atiku from Turaki to Waziri, adding that Atiku would “surely not disappoint” the emirate.

“I assure you that he will carry out his tasks with dignity, respect, honour and you will be proud of him,” Obasanjo said.

In his acceptance speech, Atiku expressed gratitude to God for the honour and thanked the Lamido and Nigerians for his various achievements in life.

Atiku assured the emirate council and traditional institution of his commitment to continue to work for peace and unity of the emirate and the nation in general.

The colourful turbaning ceremony was graced by dignitaries from within and outside the country including, Senate President Bukola Saraki, Speaker Yakubu Dogara, former President Goodluck Jonathan, his vice Namadi Sambo as well as governors of Gombe, Taraba, Sokoto and Bayelsa states.

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri


The All Progressives Congress, APC, has dragged the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to court, seeking an order to permit its candidates to participate in the forthcoming general elections in Zamfara State.

The party, in the suit it lodged before the Federal High Court in Abuja, further applied for an order of perpetual injunction to restrain INEC from giving effect to the content of a letter with Reg. No. lNEC/SEC/654/1/330 and dated October 9, which foreclosed it from presenting candidates in Zamfara for failing to conduct its primaries within the stipulated time.

Meanwhile, the court has fixed December 11 to commence hearing on the matter. Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu okayed the case for hearing on Friday after she joined the governorship aspirant of APC in the state, Senator Garba Marafa and a senatorial aspirant, Alhaji Siraju, as well as seven other chieftains of the party, as defendants in the suit.

Specifically, APC, in the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1279/2018, prayed the court to declare that INEC’s letter purporting to exclude the party from presenting and submitting the list of its candidates for the forthcoming election in Zamfara state scheduled for 2019, is null, void, ultra vires and of no effect having regards to the provisions of sections 31(1) and 86(2), (3) and (4) of the Electoral Act 2010 (as amended).

“A declaration that by virtue of section 36(1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) and section 31(1) of the Electoral Act (as amended), the defendant lacks the power to refuse to collect the name of the plaintiff’s candidates for Zamfara state presented and to be submitted to it not later than 60 days before the election scheduled for February 2019.

Chika Abanobi



Brothers and Sisters in Crisis, I am searching for the ‘wildly’ acclaimed APC’s ‘massive infrastructure’ in South East. The APC’s spokesman, Lanre Issa-Onilu (Isam Olu Ilu? – Bitter Periwinkle?), said so while reacting to the reported endorsement of Atiku-Obi ticket by the Prof. Ben Nwabueze-led Igbo group. “It will be interesting to know what the PDP will be telling the Igbo people during the campaign,” he said in the press statement carrying the party’s position. Under the APC-led government, he added, “the South East people have (had) three and half years of visible progress in terms of massive infrastructure…”

I have been to South East and searched from Onitsha to Oko and Awka, from Owerri to Okigwe, Mbaise and Orlu, from Abakaliki to Ikwo, from Enugu to Nsukka, from Umuahia to Ukwa, I am yet to see this ‘massive infrastructure’. You all know that I am bland (blind?). I no dey see infrastructure, muchless ‘Mars-sieved’ ones! I believe that this is because of the massive sun rays coming from Mars. Abeg those of you who are long or far-sighted, make una help me search o. After all, they say in Igbo, what two have seen and are sure, there is no need arguing about it.

The reason I am seriously searching for the Isam Olu Ilu-led ‘massive infrastructure in South East’ is because that’s what I want to use to vote for the party in 2019. I only pray and hope that the ‘massive infrastructure’ which he talked about will be able to enter the ballot box. In that case, I urge the INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, to provide us with a massive ballot box so that we can vote massively in appreciation of the ‘massive infrastructure’ that APC graciously and generously gave us, South Easterners, in the past “three and half years.”

Brothers and Sisters in Crisis, when I searched and searched and didn’t see anything, I asked for the help of my brother, Emmanuel Onwubiko, Head, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), a name which sounds like I hula uwa? (Ever seen this (kind of) world?). But he too confessed that he didn’t see the Isam Olu Ilu’s much-touted ‘massive infrastructure’.

Instead, he only saw “systematic neglect of federal roads,’ yes, in South East! I am not making this up, people. Ask him. He travelled through the Southeastern states, recently, during a private visit to his country home. “It is no longer news that the entire … South East suffers from serious infrastructure deficits,” he wrote in an opinion article published in the Daily Sun last week.

And, in case you are not minded to do so, that is, to ask him because, as you know, in these days of political campaigns, you never can tell which side one belongs – whether APC or PDP, Buhari (Buharia, ‘change it or move the thing around/about’, in Igbo) or Atiku (Ati ku! ‘we are all dead’, in Yoruba), you could as well ask Baba himself, I mean our Presido. His observation agrees with that of Onwubiko (a name which as you must have learnt from your reading of Ekwefi’s travails in Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, means ‘Death, I implore you’, ‘I beg you’!). Which is one prayer you should not cease to pray if you are a Nigerian traveling through any of the Federal roads in South East.

When I say that Baba’s view agrees with Onwubiko’s on the serious infrastructure deficits in South East, what do I mean by that? Let The Guardian and Vanguard newspaper reports of November 14, 2017 tell us. Buhari says South-East’s infrastructural deficit would be addressed announced one of The Guardian headlines of that day. Infrastructure deficit in South East Worries Buhari, read Vanguard’s. So? The question I want to ask is: between Buhari, Onwubiko and Isam Olu Ilu? who is telling the truth?

For a clearer picture of what the infrastructure deficit is all about, Onwubiko reports that, “the long stretch of Federal Highway linking Enugu, Ebonyi, Abia and Okigwe in Imo State has virtually collapsed.
The expansive two lanes of the usually boisterous and very busy road has become a shadow of itself following the total collapse of one of the lanes. I observed regrettably that all the vehicular movements flowing in from all parts of Nigeria heading towards Abia from Enugu, Imo, Ebonyi and Rivers states are now forced to rely on the only lane that has yet to collapse totally.

“To understand the enormity of the rot and consequential dysfunctionality, a traveller only needs to get to Lokpanta in Abia State whereby the northern population of cow sellers live to witness the epochal decay of the road infrastructure…. Lokpanta along the Enugu/Okigwe Federal Highway is not only an eyesore but is an epidemic waiting to implode… As if the decay you noticed about strategic national road infrastructure in the South East is not limited to the Enugu-Okigwe highway, the moment you veer off the highway from Okigwe and you drive towards Owerri, what confronts your sight is perhaps the most criminally neglected national road infrastructure of all times. I have never seen such criminality on the part of government targeting the ordinary populace who are deliberately subjected to traumatic experiences just to commute through that Okigwe to Owerri highway.”

Let nobody try (dare?) me o. This is because if I use the vex wey dey my heart come siddon for inside one of the potholes, craters or is, it manholes? that have come to characterize most of the federal roads in South Eastern states, in recent years (including the Isam Olu Ilu’s said three-and-half years) and curse people collecting the money meant for the roads and putting them into the Single Treasury Account, my curse (cause?) fit reach Aso Rock o. I swear! Make nobody talk, say I no tell am o.
In fact, all that I need to do is stay inside one of the man-size potholes (manholes?) and do some incantations and everybody telling lies, flies or bedbugs in Abuja, about APC-led government’s so-called ‘massive infrastructure in South East’ will begin to fall ‘sic’ (sick?), worm by worm (one-by-one?).

So? In light of these facts, Brothers and Sisters in Crisis, what is my conclusion? I want to believe that what Isam Olu Ilu? meant to say is Mars-sieved, not ‘massive’ infrastructures. Who knows, the typist or secretary who typed the press statement probably made a mistake! Or, what do you think?

Posted By: Augustine Ehikioya,



President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday directed the setting up of an inter-ministerial committee to fashion out how medicines and livestock drugs can be made available to the Nigerian public at a fraction of the prevailing prices.

While receiving the executive board members of a pharmaceutical company, Graham Foggs Ltd, at State House, Abuja, the President also reiterated his commitment to the improvement of the quality of lives of Nigerians.

The President, in a statement by the Special Adviser on Media and publicity, Femi Adesina, then charged the Ministers of Health and Agriculture and Rural Development to work with the pharmaceutical company, “short-circuit disruptive bureaucracy, and brief me from time to time.”

The company, led by Chief Sam Nda-Isaiah, a pharmacist and newspaper publisher, seeks to make essential medicines and livestock drugs available to the public, at significantly reduced prices.

Nda-Isaiah said “It has been established that 70% of Nigerians cannot afford modern medicines produced by multinational pharmaceutical companies due to their high prices,” According to him, most of the companies operate at less than 30% of installed capacity.

“And it has been so for a very long time. The only break was during the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF) days, when drug manufacturers were achieving 80% of installed capacity.” he said.

Graham Foggs Ltd plans to bring down the prices of most of the commonly used medicines by up to 60%, producing only generic medicines as against patented ones.

“This would be achieved without a single kobo subsidy from government, with Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) or bulk raw materials imported from China and India for the approved local production companies in Nigeria,” Nda-Isaiah said.

He noted that the finished products would be sold at fixed prices, to achieve the objectives of the programme.

“Millions of jobs would be created across the country as pharmaceutical plants would be operating at near-maximum capacity, and this would be for medicines of all classes including livestock drugs to boost the agricultural sector.

“The price of every medicine, including those under the health insurance scheme, will come down.” he said.

It will be recalled that President Buhari had earlier in the life of this administration reduced tariff on pharmaceutical raw materials, and increased the one for finished imported products.

It was aimed at boosting and encouraging local production of medicines, for the benefit of ordinary Nigerians.

Eniola Akinkuotu, Abuja



Former President Goodluck Jonathan says pictures of his mock coffin displayed in the media during the anti - fuel subsidy removal protests of 2012 traumatised his aged mother who had lost eight children .

Jonathan said this in his recently published book titled , My Transition Hours .

The former President said , “ The protests continued unabated . In all of these, one woman I pitied most was my aged mother who was with me in the State House .
“ Every day , she watched on television protesters carrying a casket with my picture on it and having the inscription ‘ Rest In Peace . ’

“ I could imagine her trauma . This is a woman who had 10 live births with only my elder sister and I surviving. ”

Jonathan said during the protests, several notable Nigerians visited him , asking him to reverse the increment in the pump price of petrol .

Some of the prominent Nigerians who visited him include: General - Overseer , Living Faith Mission ( Winners Chapel ) Bishop David Oyedepo ; Primate of the Anglican Church , Rt. Rev Nichola Okoh and eight other clerics .

He said what was more disheartening was the fact that the opposition in Lagos had hijacked the protests.

Jonathan added that even the Nigeria Labour Congress which had been briefed on the matter before the subsidy removal was announced was co- opted into joining the protests.

The former President added , “ In Lagos State for instance , it was like a carnival . Musicians, comedians and other celebrities were engaged by opposition elements to join the protests. Refreshments were served to protesters .

“ Every morning Lagos State government workers cleaned up the Gani Fawehinmi Park and prepared it for the day’ s protests. It appeared as though the protesters were very special guests of the Lagos State Government . Similar scenarios played out in other opposition controlled states . ”

Jonathan further stated that the House of Representatives , which was led by pro -opposition Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal , decided to exploit the situation.

He said the House accused him of fleeing the country in a bid to exploit the situation for political gain .

The former President added , “ The House of Representatives whose Speaker, Aminu Tambuwal , was hobnobbing with the opposition (he eventually defected to the opposition) did not help matters .

“ Thinking that I had left the country for South Africa to attend the centenary celebration of the African National Congress, Speaker Tambuwal convened the House to sit on a Sunday just to condemn the deregulation .

“ That was the first and only time in Nigeria’ s political history that the parliament sat on a Sunday. At that sitting , an opposition member of the House got up to allege that I had abandoned the nation at such a crucial time to join festivities in South Africa .

“ Unknown to the House , on that same day while they were sitting , I was at Eagle Square to inaugurate mass transit vehicles my administration purchased to cushion the effect of the subsidy removal . ”

by Mayowa Tijani


Segun Sowunmi, spokesperson of the Atiku Campaign Organisation, and Rotimi Amaechi, minister of transport, had a clash of words at the first 2019 presidential debate.

The debate, which was hosted by The Osasu Show and held at NAF Conference Centre and Suites, had Sowunmi as the representative Atiku Abubakar, while President Muhammadu Buhari sent no one.

Speaking on the plans of the Atiku campaign as raised by Sowunmi, Amaechi, who was not on the debate panel, raised up his hands to ask questions from the Peoples Democratic Party representative.
He said the Atiku-Obasanjo led a privatisation of Nigeria’s assets to their cronies.

“The first question is that they privatised, to who? Who did they privatise to? To themselves, and they are coming back. Then I was a young man, I didn’t have money to buy,” Amaechi said.

“Question number two, let me thank the woman who said power had improved. Under them, with $16 billion, we had 3,000 megawatts of power, now we have 7,000.

“Three, and finally, on railways, we all go to Kaduna. We are talking about railway, who has the railway? Our government right?”.

Responding to Amaechi, Sowunmi said Amaechi was speaking trash, rather than sticking to an issue-based campaign.

“An eight-year governor of a state in PDP comes to public space, riding on the alleged integrity of just President Muhammadu Buhari, and speaking trash to the people, what exactly is this,” Sowunmi said.

“Now, we had assumed, we had signed up to an issue-based campaign, and we just want to beg the operators of this present government to stick to the issues.

“We speak about opening up the economy to make sure that those who have the competencies to drive growth must be given the enabling environment to create value, and our people can plug in.”

Sowunmi went on to speak to some of the issues regarding the campaign, on behalf of his principal, saying the government should stick to regulation and let those with capacities run businesses.

Posted By: Vincent Ikuomola.



In his memoirs, “My Transition Hours”, former President Goodluck Jonathan debunked reports that he sent emissaries to President Muhammadu Buhari not to probe his administration. He also suggested ways corruption can be tackled, writes Vincent Ikuomola.

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has said that he has no reason to send people to beg President Muhammadu Buhari on his behalf over allegation of corruption.
Jonathan said if there was any need to speak with the President, he would do so himself.

Jonathan, who stated this in his book, “My Transition Hours,” in response to the report that he sent the Bishop Mathew Hassan Kukah’s National Peace Committee to plead on his behalf. “The dust of handing over to my successor had barely settled when the political smear campaigns began against members of my family, former appointees and aides. The goal was to destroy everything we did and consign our legacy to the bin. The attacks were so intense that Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah asked the government and the ruling party to spare some thoughts for my graciousness in conceding defeat without taking the country through bloodshed as we had witnessed before in many African countries.

“I remember that after Bishop Kukah and members of the Peace Committee met with President Buhari, propagandists had gone to town with the fable that I had sent the National Peace Committee to the President to plead on my behalf. Let me categorically state that such stories are false. Why would I need anyone to plead on my behalf? What wrong have I committed that I cannot speak to President Buhari myself? I have a conscience that is devoid of bitterness towards any man.

“Specifically, to those who accused me of sending Bishop Kukah to plead on my behalf in respect of corruption, I have the following response. The premier global agency universally recognised to gauge corruption perception index stated that the last time Nigeria made progress was in 2014 while I was President. The country had moved eight places forward from 144 to 136. “

He said corruption is as old as independent Nigeria. According to him, that is why all military takeovers of government since January 15 1966 coup had always been justified on the basis of ridding the country of corruption, insisting that every successive administration has fought corruption one way or the other but the surge still remains.

Besides, he posited that corruption fight cannot be effectively fought and won by the executive arm alone, as it requires the involvement of other arms of government. Throwing light into the phrase attributed to him that “stealing is not corruption”, Jonathan said it was not true. He noted that he never said stealing is good; rather he said since corruption encompasses many things, a thief should be called by his proper name and not the blanket word like corruption.

On how he went about it, the former President said his administration deployed the use of technology, knowing that it was endemic. He also noted that his government supported the institutional development of secure systems and mechanisms to curb corruption in public places. He cited the Treasury Single Account (TSA), the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and the Bank Verification Number (BVN).

Jonathan further posited that the effective implementation of the various policies in the fight against corruption brought positive results as the country made its best improvement ever in Transparency International (IT) corruption perception index. According to Jonathan, “Immediately after the 2011 elections, my administration was repeatedly accused of being corrupt. Despite the blackmail, I remained committed to combating corruption in a systemic way, knowing it was endemic. We vigorously devised and implemented a thorough and strategic plan to fight corruption, using technology, albeit within the context of the rule of law and due process.

“Before I go deeper into this, let me address a false narrative my detractors have used to besmirch my name. They claim that I once said that ‘stealing is not corruption.’ This is not true. Following the constant stigmatisation of Nigerians as corrupt, I invited the leadership of the legislature and judiciary to a meeting.

“In attendance were the Senate President and his Deputy, Speaker of the House of Representatives and his Deputy; the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), the President of the Court of Appeal, the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court and six States’ Chief Judges from each of the six geopolitical zones. Also invited were heads of the two anti-corruption agencies viz, the Chairman of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other related Offences Commission (ICPC). I presided over the meeting with the Vice President.

“My thinking was that the executive arm of government alone could not effectively eradicate the scourge of corruption, hence the need for that meeting. I personally appealed to them and argued that only an all-inclusive approach could bring about tangible successes in the anti-corruption fight. The judiciary, the legislative and the executive arms of government needed to join forces if we were to end the theft of public resources and stop corruption. I went on to methodically present my case and propose that we work together to curb corruption. When matters of corruption are presented to the courts, there would be no effective results if they were not treated in a painstaking and timely manner. The parliament needs to play a fundamental role in passing strong and effective laws. When laws are weak, the judiciary would not be able to do much.

“The then Chief Justice of Nigeria, Honourable Justice Dahiru Musdapher, in his contributions acknowledged that he was of the same opinion. He added that because of the perception of corruption in Nigeria, he had to isolate all the case files before the Supreme Court having to do with corruption charges. He said that after reading through those files, he discovered that more than 70% were not corruption cases, per se, but crimes of stealing. The individuals involved were however not charged to court for stealing but rather in preparing the case files, the prosecutors used the term ‘corruption.’

“It was on the strength of his submission that I expounded to say that we should stop calling a spade an agricultural implement. Corruption does not fully capture the act of stealing. A person can indeed be corrupt without stealing a dime. Those who are incapable of comprehending this elevated thought and the mischievous crowd, go about claiming till date, that I said ‘stealing is not corruption.’ They never bothered to even check the context in which I spoke. If you ask many of those clinging to that falsehood and mouthing the malicious misrepresentation, to quote where I said it, they will tell you ‘they only heard.’

“Let me categorically state that I have never said stealing is good and that people should steal; neither did the CJN. Stealing is stealing and instead of calling it corruption, let us call the thief by his proper name and not use a blanket word like corruption. Corruption encompasses many things. According to Transparency International, corruption is defined as the ‘abuse of entrusted power for private gain’. The Merriam Webster’s dictionary defines stealing as ‘to take without permission or legal right and without intending to return.’ If a government minister upon a cabinet dissolution takes a vehicle that he is not entitled to and converts it to personal use, then that is stealing.

“We must not lump everything together and say stealing is corruption. We must isolate stealing and make it as plain as day because Nigerians hate thieves. I abhor jungle justice, but we have witnessed Nigerians show their hatred for suspected thieves by burning them alive. It is important also to note how we supported the institutional development of secure systems and mechanisms to curb corruption in public service and plug revenue leakages. My administration spearheaded the development of the Treasury Single Account (TSA), the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) and the Bank Verification Number (BVN).

“No administration can either be entirely bad or perfect. Good governance is a process. Rather than media hype or arresting and parading suspected offenders on television, my strategy was to strengthen our public institutions and law enforcement agencies to prevent people from defrauding the system ab initio.

“Let me explain how we went about doing this, using the corruption in the fertilizer sector as an example. My experience as Deputy Governor, and Governor of Bayelsa State, as well as Vice-President and President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria had exposed me to the challenges in the fertilizer sector. We did extensive research and finally were able to establish how the States and Federal Government were spending billions of naira on the fertilizer regime, but only about 11% or less of the fertilizer subsidy benefitted the end users, Nigerian farmers.’

“It became more apparent that the remaining 90% were either being stolen or siphoned out of the country through clever schemes. It was not easy, but we came in, took action and cleaned it up.

Coincidentally, my Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Akinwurni Adesina, did his PhD research work on fertilizer distribution in West Africa. His knowledge of the field came in handy in our quest to curb the fraud. We developed what we called the Electronic Wallet. This was a policy that cut out the middle man and got millions of farmers to register for the e-wallet using their cell phones from which they received text alerts directly from the ministry, telling them where to pick up their fertilizer, and how much to pay.

“According to Velocity Capital, a Dutch private equity firm, in its independent assessment, showed that the electronic wallet initiative of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development under the Growth Enhancement Support Scheme (GESS), had saved the Federal Government of Nigeria over $192 million by 2012, the first year in which it was introduced.

“My administration developed and implemented the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS), which was initiated by the Obasanjo Administration towards the end of his tenure. Through this technology, we arranged for federal, civil and public servants to register their biometrics as a condition for receiving their salaries and as a result we weeded out over fifty thousand ghost workers and saved N15 billion every month which was then equivalent to $100 million.

“In December 2014, attempts were made to divert monies meant for salaries and emoluments to some other government expenditure. When that happened, the software which had its own defence mechanism shut the system down.

Consequently, thousands of workers in some Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) could not get their December salaries paid early. They were eventually paid as soon as the anomaly was rectified. I apologised to those families who suffered but I believed that to fight corruption we had to take necessary measures to establish and strengthen our institutions by adopting the best available technology. This is the only way to systematically and successfully fight corruption.

“The effective implementation of these policies in 2014 brought positive results as Nigeria made its best improvement ever in Transparency International’s (TI) Corruption Perception Index. Nigeria was ranked the 136th out of 175 nations surveyed; an improvement from the nation’s previous position of 144th in 2013, 139th in 2012 and 143rd in 2011. It is important to note that despite the many sensational stories, dramatic arrests, seizures and accusations, many of them false, since I left office, the fact remains that Nigeria has not made any improvement on TI Corruption Perception Index since 2014.

“In fact, the 2017 corruption perception index released in 2018 by TI placed Nigeria as number 148, a retrogression in which the nation went 12 places backward. In other words, Nigeria is more corrupt in 2017 than it was when I handed over to the Buhari administration in 2015. Some people may be misled with smoke and mirrors but the TI Corruption Perception Index relies on unsentimental facts and figures.

“Interestingly, just as I was about to end my work on this book, the Tribune, a newspaper founded by Chief Obafemi Awolowo, one of the founding fathers of independent Nigeria, of blessed memory, on the third year Democracy Day Anniversary of my successor, wrote a very interesting editorial. The newspaper, while coming down hard on all past leaders of Nigeria under the democratic dispensation, including me, said this about its Perception of the anti-corruption fight and gave a verdict that corruption has worsened; ….Nineteen years on, not only is the polity still afflicted by worsening cases of poverty and corruption, the country’s democratic credentials are virtually in tatters. Indeed, it is doubtful that democracy is being practiced in the country let alone being entrenched…”

“One of the affirmations that my administration fought corruption also came from an unlikely source, Femi Falana, a Senior Advocate (SAN) and one of my unrelenting critics. While speaking on TV, he affirmed that I fought corruption in my own way: ‘Even President Goodluck Jonathan fought corruption in his own way. You will be surprised how he got results.

For instance, last year, when the government had to withdraw the charges against Mr. Mohammed Abacha after 14 years, between year 2000 and 2014 that the case travelled between the FCT High Court to the Supreme Court. And when the government was now going to withdraw the charges at the High Court, because the Supreme Court said go back and have your trial, the Office of the Attorney General issued a statement to the effect that the withdrawal was occasioned by the fact that $970M from the Abacha loot has been recovered by the Jonathan’s government.

Under that Government, $458M was also forfeited by the United States Government which has not been repatriated yet; the United States government, the Obama regime simply decided not to. This was from the Abacha loot alone. And from the Halliburton, from Siemen’s scandal and some of them, through some Plea bargain, the government made about $120M. That was the Jonathan government! So, every government in Nigeria investigates the past, usually the previous regime but for the past 16 years, the PDP government and the Abdulsalami Abubakar junta recovered about $3.2B from the Abacha loot.

“It is the most successful loot recovery in the world. And it has not ended yet; the government’s not done yet with the Abacha loot alone. Again, to be fair to President Jonathan, he sacked three Ministers one of them on them on the ground of conflict of interest for corruption…”

“The accusation was made that my body language did not suggest I was willing to fight corruption. What some people wanted me to do was to go around the world announcing that Nigerians are corrupt. I believe that is not what a President should do. A President should fight corruption without stigmatising its citizens. Yes, there are corrupt Nigerians but there are also many credible Nigerians at home and in the Diaspora. This is the case all over the world, albeit in varying degrees.

“There are two options before us as a nation. We can continue to strengthen our institutions and plug the loopholes like my administration did and come up with reforms as I had earlier enumerated, or we keep parading a few individuals in handcuffs to feed the appetites of those who have entertained negative expectations while leaving intact the architecture of corruption.”

The United States Embassy in Nigeria has announced that its offices in Abuja and Lagos would be closed on Thursday, November 22, 2018.

Giving the reason for the closure, the US Embassy stated that the closure would be in observance of Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving is a federal holiday in the United States celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November.

The embassy announced the closure through its official Twitter handle, @USEmbassyAbuja via a tweet that read: "The U.S. Embassy in Abuja, and the U.S. Consulate General in Lagos, will be closed on Thursday, November 22, in observance of Thanksgiving. Thank you for being part our community!!! Happy Thanksgiving!"

The U.S. Embassy in Abuja, and the U.S. Consulate General in Lagos, will be closed on Thursday November 22 in observance of Thanksgiving. Thank you for being part our community!!! Happy Thanksgiving!
— U.S. Mission Nigeria (@USEmbassyAbuja) November 21, 2018

Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto state has nominated Alhaji Manir Dan’iya as his deputy to replace Alhaji Ahmed Aliyu, who resigned on Nov. 13. Tambuwal disclosed this in a letter to the State House of Assembly presented at plenary on Wednesday by the Speaker, Alhaji Salihu Maidaji.“Following the vacancy created in the office of the Deputy Governor of Sokoto state by voluntary resignation of Alhaji Ahmed Aliyu.

“I wish to nominate Alhaji Manir Dan’iya as Deputy Governor in accordance with the provisions of section 191 (3) (c) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, for approval of the House of Assembly,” he said.

The lawmakers unanimously agreed to screen the nominee on Nov. 22, during plenary.

Aliyu, who is the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate for the 2019 poll in the state, resigned his position to enable him concentrate on his campaign.

The Minister for Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola (SAN) says the South West has more to gain by re-electing President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2019 presidential election.

Fashola, who was in Lagos on Tuesday for the inauguration of 5000 foot soldiers for the campaign of Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, said that the South West already had high stakes/appointments in the current administration.

He said that the promise of the Secretary to the Federal Government (SGF) slot by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is not enough for the South West to lose the positions it is currently occupying.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that Chief Gbenga Daniel, the Director General of the Atiku Abubakar Campaign Organisation, said that the position of the SGF would be given to the South West, if Atiku emerged as president in 2019.

“As a South West indigene, I will vote for the Buhari/Osinbajo ticket Westerner, because my people stand to gain more from it,” fashola said.

He said that the re-election of Buhari would guarantee that power would come to the South West in 2023.

“ The South West is presently occupying the position of the vice president. We have three sitting ministers and many different federal appointments from the present administration which we cannot afford to lose.,” he said.

The Minister explained that although the APC promised change In 2014, the party did not promise to do it in four years.

“The APC has done more in three years than 16 years of PDP administration, yet they say president Buhari is too slow.
“President Buhari is taking Nigeria to the next level. We are going to the Next Level.

“The 2019 presidential election is a choice between going back and moving forward to the next level and also a choice of whom Nigerians can trust with their money,” he said.

He noted that the APC-Buhari led administration has done more in three years with less money than the PDP with all the monies that accrued to the nation in 16 years.

“Buhari has inaugurated a structural infrastructure fund for road construction. N15 billion has been released for the continued construction of Lagos-Ibadan expressway.

“There is need for the progress to continue. Dubai was built with oil-money, Nigeria can be built with it too. The past administration squandered oil revenue.

“Federal Government is constructing at least one road in every state in Nigeria. We are also constructing houses in 34 States in Nigeria.

“We have collected 690 containers for the construction of 90 transmission stations and through our policy of mini grids, our markets now have uninterrupted power supply.

“In the last 3 years we have constructed 40 kilometres of roads per year. In 2015, the total number of roads completed nationwide was 80 kilometres. In 2016 after we took over, we completed , 274 kilometres of road, 478 kilometres in 2017 and 474 kilometers in 2018.

“Electric generation has moved from 4000 Megawatts that we met to 7000MW. That’s an increase of 3000MW, an average of 1000MW a year. We have started an IPP in 9 universities in Nigeria. We have accelerated the distribution of meters by outsourcing it to distributors,” he added.

NAN reports that at the event are Sen. Gbenga Ashafa, (Lagos East), former Deputy Governor of Lagos State Mrs Adejoke Adefulire and Mr Obafemi Hamzat, running mate to Lagos APC governorship candidate, Babajide Sanwo-Olu among others.

Posted By: Jane Chijioke


MINISTER of Works, Housing and Electricity  Babatunde Fashola  said yesterday the government is deploying solar energy in nine universities.

He spoke at the 32nd Convocation Lecture of Yabatech College of Technology.

Fashola said the power plant would deliver 12 megawatts of electricity in the universities to aid power generation.

“We are deploying solar energy in Nigerian universities today. The first nine  schools are under construction and  they will deliver 12megawatts of electricity to these schools.  We will move from phase to phase until we complete it in the 37 states,” the minister said.

Fashola, who spoke on the theme: “Sustainability  of technological advancements – a key to  industrial  growth”, noted that the ministry has  invested in innovative areas that would improve power generation and distribution.

He urged the graduating students to be technological and innovative-minded to move the wheels of economic growth.

The minister said: “I want to see new things. You are graduating into a world of artificial intelligence.  This is a world that you will answer the skills that the school has empowered you with.  No matter how much progress  you think has been made, there is still room to do more. This is really the heart of technology in the pursuit of knowledge.

“The interesting thing today is that it is still difficult to store electricity, but not totally impossible. That may be the next revolution. That may be a student here  who will change what we know about electricity, to bring that revolution to light.  Some people  are already ahead but you can overtake them and be the one who turns the story of Nigeria and Africa around because there are so much to do with this wheel called electricity.

“Some people have generated it,  some people have transported it, some have distributed it, but who can store it? You cannot afford to sleep; add value. I believe if this problem is solved, it will improve the value chain of electricity.  In the next few years, we will not have all these problems because we can carry 10 megawatts of electricity in our pockets and is safe.  So, it is very possible to store electricity, if we find a better way out.  But I will continue  to do my work before we get there.”

Samson Folarin



The Peoples Democratic Party has said the All Progressives Congress is afraid of participating in a presidential debate because it has nothing to show for the years it has been in the saddle .

The National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan , said this while reacting to the Director -General of the President Muhammadu Buhari Campaign Organisation , Rotimi Amaechi .

Amaechi , in an interview with
Arise News Television on Thursday , had reportedly said he made the decision for then candidate Buhari not to participate in the 2015 presidential debates because it was not necessary .

He said the campaign committee would sit to deliberate before deciding if Buhari would be part of a debate for the 2019 elections.

Ologbondiyan , however , responded that the ruling party was scared.

“ The APC and its presidential candidate are scared . If you say President Buhari should debate, what will be the basis of his debate? He has failed to fulfill the three promises he made to Nigerians in 2014 /2015 , so the referendum , as far as the 2019 elections is concerned , is the failure of President Buhari in office and they don’ t want PDP to speak on that.

“ We are not surprised that they are laying the foundation of running away . But Nigerians want to hear from anybody who desires to be their president in 2019.

“ They want to listen to what such a candidate has to offer and what he is bringing to the table and what difference he will make. So , if President Buhari comes to debate, will he talk about his taxation ? Or the grinding economic condition of our nation or the hunger he has plunged Nigerians into ?

“ Is he going to talk about the incompetence of his administration ? But we will drag them to the debate.

“ Our candidate , Atiku Abubakar , has been accepted across boards by Nigerians and he will emerge victorious, ” Ologbondiyan said .

By Omeiza Ajayi


ABUJA – In what appeared a subtle threat to some of its aggrieved governors and their proxies, the ruling All Progressives Congress APC has threatened to activate constitutional provisions regarding the several court actions instituted against it as a result of the outcome of its recent nationwide congresses.

Vanguard learned the decision was taken at Monday’s meeting of the National Working Committee NWC of the party.

Confirming the development in a statement, Monday night, National Publicity Secretary of the party, Mallam Lanre Issa-Onilu said the NWC “frowned at the actions of some Party members who have resorted to litigation as a way of addressing their perceived grievances and disputation without exhausting the party’s dispute resolution mechanism”.

Article 21(D)(v) states; “Any member who files an action in court of law against the party or any of its officers on any matter or matters relating to the discharge of the duties of the party without first exhausting the avenues for redress provided for in this constitution shall automatically stand expelled from the party on filing such action and no appeal against expulsion as stipulated in this clause shall be entertained until the withdrawal of the action from the court by the member”.

In Imo state, a son in law to the governor, Uche Nwosu had instituted a court cade against the party as part of measures to retrieve what he described as his “stolen” governorship candidacy.

In Zamfara and a handful of other states, high-profile members of the party had also instituted several court cases against the party.
The party has now warned against the growing trend which it described as “manifest indiscipline”.

“The actions, it should be noted, is considered as anti-party as it goes against our Party’s constitution.

For emphasis, according to Article 20, Subsection 10 of our Party’s Constitution, offences against the Party include the following: ‘Filing an action in a Court of Law against the Party or any of its Officers on any matters relating to the discharge of the duties of the Party without first exhausting all avenues for redress provided for in this Constitution.’

“The Party intends to activate constitutional provisions to penalise such members as their action is capable of undermining the party and hurt the Party’s interest.

“We hereby strongly advise such members to withdraw all court cases, while approaching the appropriate party organs with a view to resolving any outstanding disputes. In addition to this, aggrieved members are urged to take full advantage of the reconciliation committees the party has just put in place.

“APC members should understand that as a progressive party that operates on the principle of change, it is not a matter of choice to keep to the rules.

“We therefore advise such members to take this warning very seriously as failure to comply with the party’s dispute resolution procedures would be met with the stipulated disciplinary actions”, the party warned.

The NWC has also set up reconciliation committees to interface with all aggrieved elements in the party.

The committees were set up on geopolitical basis with seven members each, including governors elected on the platform of the party. Three aggrieved governors, Rochas Okorocha of Imo, Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun and Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara were however excluded from the committees.
The mandate of the committees is simply to reconcile aggrieved parties and not to recommend the alteration of the candidates’ lists.

Briefing journalists at the end of the meeting, National Chairman of the party, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole took a swipe at the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP, Atiku Abubakar for promising three million jobs per year, querying why he did not do that when he was part of the presidency.

“If you say you are going to create ten million jobs you have to tell us why when you were in government, you could not do that. By the time that government was out, we had lost Michelin, Dunlop closed down, the entire textile industry closed down. We were witnesses to the unprecedented levels of industrial obituaries. Factories were closing one after the other just at the time the then PDP government promised to create more jobs. These are issues we really want to engage. It will be every interesting to play back what people are saying”, he said.

On Senate President Bukola Saraki, he said; “For me even more outstanding is the humiliating defeat Saraki suffered in the hands of Kwara people who are determined to dismantle the saraki failed attempt to install his own variance of a political culture of which he is the only constant decimal.

I think the good people of kwara state have dealt him a big blow as the proclaim leader of the opposition PDP and he has had to lead the campaigns to so many other places. Now here is a native doctor who was busy going to other states now unable to heal his own people. That defeat in kwara state as far as we are concerned particularly by person he did not put in place to stand election means a lot to us.

We are not going to accept a Nigerian variant where a minority party preside over the affairs of the national assembly whether as dictated by Bukola Saraki as as represented by Yakubu Dogara in the House of Representatives of the PDP because it is not right.

In his own case what the people of Kwara have done to him is that they are going to politically bury him come February next year and he has seen the first warning .I am sure Saraki would be politically retired by the good people of Kwara that he has mismanaged their economic and political rights over the years. So I am very excited about that and we think that this is something worth celebrating and we took time to celebrate it today.

Less than four months to governorship election in 29 states of the federation, the political atmosphere is already tense.

Governorship candidates of various parties have commenced subtle and surreptitious campaigns. While the incumbent governors of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) seem to be rated high in terms of capacity to get re-elected in 2019, little information is known about candidates in the opposition-controlled states, especially where the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is in charge.


Benue: Emmanuel Jime

In Benue State, Emmanuel Jime, a lawyer, is the APC governorship candidate. He is challenging Governor Samuel Ortom of the PDP and Dr Hwande Terungwa Stephen of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Other governorship candidates are Sam Tyonenge Abah, a veteran broadcaster, who is flying the flag of the United Peoples Party (UPP), and a clergy, The Rev Frederick Ikyaan of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP).

At the moment, Jime’s chances at the poll seem bright as political pundits think the battle would actually be between him and PDP’s Ortom. It is believed that both men have 50-50 chances to win the state in 2019


Abia: Dr Uche Sampson Ogah

Dr Uche Sampson Ogah is the APC governorship candidate in Abia State. Ogah is in the opposition party alongside Dr Alex Otti of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA). The PDP has been ruling Abia State for over 10 years and is fully on ground with structures, unlike the APC.
Pundits say that with the present factions in the state, the APC has a slim chance as each camp has its own executive and party offices. They are also working seriously against the interest of one another.


Akwa Ibom: Nsima Ekere

The managing director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr Nsima Ekere, is the gubernatorial candidate of the APC in Akwa Ibom State. He will be contesting the seat with Governor Udom Emmanuel of the PDP.

Political analysts are of the opinion that with the likes of Senator Godswill Akpabio in the APC, the PDP has a lot to contend with, particularly as the former is the party controlling the central government, a situation its members are banking on to clinch the governorship seat come 2019.
But the PDP is undeterred as they insist the party is like a religion in the state. They believe that Governor Emmanuel would return to the Government House in 2019 as his achievements would speak for him.

Another determinant would be the unwritten policy of zoning. Previous governments of Obong Victor Attah and Senator Godswill Akpabio satisfied the two terms zoning policy for Akwa Ibom North-East and North-West senatorial districts respectively, while the incumbent is serving the first tenure of Akwa Ibom South and is expected to complete it with a second term.
In the race for the Government House, the achievements of Governor Emmanuel could count for him at the polls, but the opposition party will not go down without a fight.


Gombe: Inuwa Yahaya

In Gombe, the APC gubernatorial candidate is Alhaji Muhammad Inuwa Yahaya,. He also contested in 2015, but lost to Governor Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo.
Yahaya defeated eight other aspirants in a fiercely contested primary election to emerge as the flag-bearer of the APC. He will now slug it out with Senator Usman Bayero Nafada of the PDP, Abdulganiyyu Bello Akko of the PRP and other contestants.

Political observers in the state are of the opinion that Inuwa has a brighter chance this time, with the APC in control at the federal level and the unflinching support President Muhammadu Buhari enjoys at the grassroots, which many believe will work in his favour.

Inuwa is also believed to be a man of honour as he was never seen disrespecting the elders or playing dirty politics, particularly during his campaigns in 2015.


Ebonyi: Senator Sonni Ogbuoji

The gubernatorial candidate of the APC in Ebonyi State is Senator Sonni Ogbuoji. Sen. Ogbuoji, who is the vice chairman Senate Committee on Appropriation, is representing Ebonyi South. He is challenging Governor David Umahi of the PDP.
Ogbuoji hopes to gain the support of his kinsmen in Afikpo North and South, as well as the central zone.


Cross River: Senator John Owan-Enoh

Although there are two contenders for the APC governorship ticket in Cross River State, John Owan-Enoh, who represents Cross River central in the Senate, is the candidate recognised by the national secretariat of the party.
The other contender is the minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Usani Usani, who many think is doing all he can to become the party’s authentic candidate.

Owan-Enoh will be contesting against Governor Ben Ayade of the PDP.
Ayade is reported not to have political structures on ground, but he has many foot soldiers, many of whom he gave political appointments.
However, there are indications that many of Ayade’s supporters and appointees may have jumped ship, thereby creating the suspicion that many could work against him.

The other governorship candidate is that of the SDP. He is a former attorney- general and commissioner for justice in the state, Mr Eyo Ekpo. Ekpo, who is believed to be backed by a former governor of the state and the SDP presidential candidate, Donald Duke, could garner enormous votes from the southern senatorial district, especially the Efik.


Taraba: Alhaji Sani Abubakar Danladi

Alhaji Sani Abubakar Danladi is the APC governorship candidate in Taraba State. His main challengers are the incumbent Governor Darius Ishaku of the PDP and the former minister of Women Affairs, Hajiya Jummai Alhassan of the United Democratic Party (UDP).

Danladi, who was an acting governor of the state, was said to have played a big role in the emergence of Governor Ishaku in 2015.
He is said to have initiated a move to reconcile with all the aggrieved aspirants who followed Hajiya Alhassan to the UDP.

Recent events in the state showed that many APC members who followed the former minister to her new party are now returning to the APC. But from all indications, only the incumbent governor poses a threat to Sani’s ambition.


Delta: Great Ogboru

The fifth time governorship contender, Chief Great Ovedje Ogboru, is the candidate of the APC in Delta State.
Chief Ogboru, who joined the APC last year from the Labour Party (LP), emerged from a contentious factional primary held on September 30, 2018 at the Federal College of Education (Technical), Asaba.

Three other aspirants, Prof Pat Utomi, Rt. Hon. Engr. Victor Ochei and Dr Cairo Ojougboh, opted out of the APC gubernatorial primary over allegations of irregularities and lack of transparency.

But the Major-General Martins Onoja committee sent by the NWC went ahead to conduct the primary, with a controversial consent list that produced Ogboru.
Pundits say that with a severely fractured opposition, the chances of the APC to achieve victory in 2019 against Governor Ifeanyi Okowa are slim.


Kwara: Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq

The APC gubernatorial candidate in Kwara State is Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq. He will be slugging it out with Razak Atunwa of the PDP, Comrade Issa Aremu (Labour Party), Ayorinde Adedoyin (Accord), Alabi Morakinyo (KOWA), Abdulazeez Yinka Oniyangi (NPM) and Murtala Tunde (ACPN) and many others.

The chances of Abdulrazaq and his party, the APC, are very bright, judging from the political atmosphere in the state.
Daily Trust on Sunday gathered that Kwarans seem prepared to change the status quo by challenging the Saraki dynasty.

Pundits say that Abdulrazaq’s chance is bright because of the antecedents of his father, who happens to be the first lawyer from northern Nigeria and the first person to build the first secondary school in Ilorin.
Analysts say the determination to have somebody without any link to Senate President Bukola Saraki is an added advantage for him.


Rivers: Tonye Cole

The APC governorship candidate in Rivers State is Architect Tonye Cole. He is challenging Governor Nyesom Wike of the PDP, who has been scored high in terms of provision of infrastructure and payment of salaries to civil servants.

However, the unresolved crisis in the APC over who flies the party’s ticket is yet to be resolved as Senator Magnus Abe, who has gone to court to challenge the circumstances that brought Cole, may work against him.


Enugu: Senator Ayogu Eze

Senator Ayogu Eze of the APC will slug it out with at least 38 candidates from various political parties, including Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of the PDP.

Like Ugwuanyi, Senator Eze hails from the same Enugu North senatorial zone.
It is believed that an average Enugu man would rather vote for the PDP to enable Ugwuanyi complete his second term so that the office would rotate to another zone.

By Hamza Idris & Ozibo Ozibo, Andrew Agbese, Romoke W. Ahmad & Kabiru A. Anwar


The muddy waters of power has already made casualty of some politicians as politics, law and morality come to play ahead of the 2019 elections over the issue of academic and other qualifications with many politicians who have tasted the sweetness of office having sleepless nights to remain in the corridors of power amidst resistance by their opponents and ‘whistle blowers’.

The recent publication of particulars of candidates for various offices by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) showed a kind of “humility” by many aspirants who simply showcased the minimum academic qualifications required by law which is their secondary school results in order to shut out those trying to undermine them.

Findings by Daily Trust revealed that this is unlike what obtained in previous elections when aspirants looked for additional papers to fill in all sorts of certificates in the CF001 as required by INEC in line with Section 31 (3) of the Electoral Act, 2010 (as amended), which mandated the electoral empire to publish particulars of all candidates for public scrutiny.

Shortly after the latest publication by INEC, the debate on certificates, rather than issues relating to development, took the centre stage of political discuss.


President Buhari

On November 2, the West African Examinations Council (WAEC) issued an “attestation certificate” to President Muhammadu Buhari after much furore.

Before the presentation, Buhari had been severely criticised by opposition politicians and activists soon after they scrutinized his particulars and discovered that he said his school certificate was still with the military authorities.

To a certain extent, the announcement by spokesperson, Femi Adesina, in a tweet from his verified handle that WAEC presented an attestation certificate and confirmation of school certificate result to President Buhari “softly” laid to rest, the debate over the matter though some people are still asking WAEC to indicate the exam number of the president, and even questioning the photograph used in the document.

Buhari was actually in the eye of the storm despite the fact that there are over 70 presidential aspirants in the race who have all showcased various kinds of certificates.

“What will the naysayers say next?” Adesina queried.

Buhari had experienced similar criticism ahead of the 2015 general elections when he was an opposition presidential candidate.


Bindow’s WAEC controversy

The certificate controversy surrounding the candidacy of Adamawa State governor, Muhammadu Jibrilla Bindow, came to public knowledge when the Abuja Division of the Federal High Court ordered an accelerated hearing of a case of certificate forgery filed by a non-governmental group, Incorporated Trustees of Global Integrity Crusade Network, against the governor.

There are fears that unless Governor Bindow escapes miraculously, he might likely be replaced by the APC ahead of next year’s election to avoid losing the governorship seat to the opposition if the court establishes that he actually forged the result he is claiming.

It is alleged that the governor who attended Government Secondary School Miango in Plateau State, did not sit for the final secondary school examination conducted by WAEC and therefore submitted a fake result to INEC in 2015 before he became governor.

Those who took him to court had already obtained and published a result with the serial number the governor is claiming but a different name. Ruling on the application for a motion experte brought before him on October 22, Justice B.O. Quadri granted the prayers of the plaintiff for accelerated hearing as well as leave to serve the originating summons on Governor Jibrilla and WAEC at their respective addresses in Adamawa and Lagos.

Those joined as defendants are WAEC, INEC, APC and the Nigeria Police.

Back in Yola, an APC youth group loyal to Nuhu Ribadu, the Black Cap Revolution, staged a public protest to the state House of Assembly, demanding a probe of the governor over the alleged certificate scandal.

The group leader, Mustapha Atiku Ribadu, urged the legislators to investigate the forgery allegations against the state’s chief executive to ascertain the truth and do justice to all parties involved.

“We are not saying the governor is guilty, we are simply demanding an investigation into the matter. We’re law abiding citizens who nurture transparency, integrity and good governance. There is an allegation against our governor that the certificate he presented which earned him the leadership is a syndicated forgery, which is synonymous with corruption,” Mustapha said.

“We want Governor Bindow to come out clean and clear. We want him to appear before the state lawmakers to defend the allegation.

“However, should the allegation hold water, Bindow should honourably resign in addition to withdrawing from the 2019 gubernatorial race and face legal case, lest our state be reduced to the republic of certificate forgery forever,” he said. Receiving a letter from the group, the Clerk of the Assembly, Francis Ngangso promised to deliver it to the House leadership for consideration.

However, the Speaker of the House, Kabiru Mijinyawa, dismissed the demand at a plenary, saying the House could not investigate a matter that was already before a court of law.

Meanwhile, an aggrieved APC governorship aspirant, Mahmud Halilu who is younger brother to the wife of the president, Aisha Buhari, has threatened to drag Jibrilla to court for using a fake WAEC certificate.

Besides the court threats, the controversy became more interesting when INEC released names and credentials of 28 governorship aspirants in the state as voters and critics discovered that Jibrilla who emerged the APC candidate attached a school testimonial to his nomination form rather than a WAEC certificate.

The inclusion of “a mere testimonial” seems to have confused some of his supporters and emboldened his critics while curious voters were seen snapping the document with their handsets and flipping through other papers attached to the form.

Efforts to see what Jibrilla presented to INEC ahead of 2015 were not successful. Before he became governor, Jibrilla had served as senator and it is only what happens in the coming days in the court that will unravel the mystery behind his credentials.


Ashiru’s certificate case and Kaduna PDP

There have been reports since Alhaji Isa Ashiru emerged the governorship flag bearer of the PDP in Kaduna State, that there are issues with his credentials.

It has remained one of the issues his media team had to battle with it for weeks but just as the matter was about to die down, a major stakeholder in the party, Dr. Muhammad Sani-Bello, brought it up.

Dr. Bello, one of the PDP governorship aspirants who later withdrew from the race to support Ashiru, made the observation about discrepancies in the educational qualification of Ashiru formal by publicly making it an issue in the factors that made him resign from the PDP.

While announcing his decision to quit the PDP, Dr. Bello said he was not comfortable working with Ashiru as his academic credentials were allegedly under question.

He said, “Based on my findings, the documentation of the candidate contains certain flaws which remain unexplained,” but made no effort to explain further.

Checks by our correspondent at the INEC office in Kaduna showed that Ashiru attached photocopies of all the educational qualifications to his form to substantiate his claim of attending various schools from primary to university.

Ashiru in the form said he attended LEA Primary School Kudan, Kufena College in Zaria, Katsina Polytechnic, Kaduna Polytechnic and Bayero University, Kano from where he obtained the LEA Primary Certificate, the General Certificate of Education, June 1980, National Diploma Business Administration, 1985; Higher National Diploma Business Administration 1989; Post Graduate Diploma, Marketing, 1999 and Masters in Public Administration, 2002.

The PDP candidate who said he was born on October 23, 1962, said he completed the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) programme in Borno State in 1990.

Ashiru explained that there are no discrepancies in his credentials and that his certificates which he presented to INEC for the forthcoming election are all genuine and complete.

He described the allegation as a manifestation of the desperation of the APC to create doubt and confusion in the minds of the people of Kaduna State about him.

The PDP candidate had contested and won elections four times in the past as he was a member of the Kaduna State House of Assembly from 1999 to 2007 and member of the Federal House of Representatives from 2007 to 2015.

Since Dr. Sani has left the PDP, our correspondent learnt that no formal complaint has been sent to the party to interrogate the issue further.

There are indications however that one of the aspirants who contested the primary with Ashiru is trying to take up the matter with the party so that the ticket of the party would be handed to him.

PDP leaders in the state say the matter is not an issue as they are sure that Ashiru’s papers are genuine but the APC, our correspondent learnt, is highly interested in the matter and is trying to establish the discrepancy as a counter-strategy in the scheme towards dislodging the PDP at the polls.


Atunwa’s problem in Kwara

There are allegations that the governorship candidate of the PDP in Kwara State, Razak Atunwa, did not participate in the NYSC programme.

Atunwa was alleged to have sourced a forged NYSC discharge certificate which he submitted to the PDP to prove his eligibility for the office of governor.

In his previous contest, it was gathered that nobody knew what he presented since the issue of certificate was not as serious as it is today, but Atunwa is said to be a graduate of Law.

For this election, it was learnt that Atunwa submitted a secondary school certificate.

The development has generated a lot of disquiet in the state and among members of the party, with insinuations that if fully established, he might likely be replaced by Malam Bolaji Abdullahi, the erstwhile national publicity secretary of the APC who recently followed Senate President Bukola Saraki to the PDP.

Sources within the party say things have really “fallen apart” and the “centre can no longer hold.”

It was rumoured that one of the PDP aspirants during the primary election who is close to Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed, blew the whistle about the fake NYSC certificate.

Findings revealed that Atunwa remains the preferred choice of Bukola Saraki even though other forces within the party want someone else.

It was gathered that the aspirant who blew the whistle believes that if Atunwa is eventually dropped as the PDP candidate, he might get the ticket but surprisingly, Atunwa’s name appeared in the INEC list as the PDP candidate for the next year’s election.

Meanwhile, Atunwa while reacting, said, “I did not submit any unsupported NYSC certificate as suggested by you.

“I strongly advise that you verify each and every assertion you wish to make. You may wish to make formal enquiries/verifications of all institutions concerned.

“You should also be circumspect enough to authenticate the provenance of any document you may be handed if it’s not from a formal and official source.”

Atunwa may survive the heavy wind because of the support he enjoys from Saraki who is the political leader in the state and considering that he only submitted his secondary school certificate.

But, in the event he must be replaced, many feel the ticket might be given to somebody from Kwara North, including Zakari Muhammed, Aliyu Ahman – Pategi and Shaaba Lafiagi, while others feel Malam Bolaji Abdullahi might still be the lucky man.


Adebayo Shittu screened out

The Minster of Communications, Mr Adebayo Shittu could not also actualize his dream of becoming governor in Kwara State after he was screened out by the APC over his failure to participate in the NYSC.

Shittu, a SAN who has already gone to court to seek interpretation, said he believed serving as a member of the House of Assembly soon after graduating from the Law School was enough replacement for the NYSC programme.


What the Constitution says

Section 131 of the 1999 Constitution sets out that a person can vie for the office of president of Nigeria if he has certain qualifications and with the exception of age, the qualifications are similar to other offices such as governor, member of the national or state assembly.

The requirements include being a citizen of Nigeria and attaining the required age, being a member of a political party and sponsored by that political party, and must have been educated up to at least school certificate level or its equivalent.

Section 318 (1) of the Constitution defines what school certificate or its equivalent to mean a secondary school certificate or its equivalent, Grade II Teacher’s Certificate, City and Guilds Certificate; or Primary Six School Leaving Certificate or its equivalent and service in the public or private sector in the federation in any capacity acceptable to INEC for a minimum of 10 years, and attendance at courses and training in such institutions as may be acceptable to INEC for periods totaling up to a minimum of one year, and the ability to read, write, understand and communicate in English language to the satisfaction of INEC and any other qualification acceptable to INEC.


A lawyer speaks

An Abuja-based lawyer and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Professor Agbo Madaki, says there are reasons why many politicians are desperate to forge their way into public office, despite the fact that the basic requirements are not difficult to come by. “Mind you, the law did not say you must have a degree or HND. But the truth is that ours is a culture of flaunting what we don’t have. Unfortunately, that has become part of our culture such that you find people who don’t possess some of these higher certificates and the tendency is for them to forge so that people now regard them as having what ordinarily they don’t have. I think low self-esteem is part of the problem here,” he said.

“And that is also possible because people have been forging successfully in this country. That is not to say that the law is weak because forgery is a criminal offence in Nigeria and punishable by both the Criminal Code and the Penal Code.

“However, the problem here is that of selective application of justice. Simply because most of the people involved are the elite or people of high means, in other words, the rich and famous, they often escape without prosecution,” he said.

“Law enforcement in Nigeria is weak and porous. Why the offenders escape is because the law enforcement mechanism in Nigeria is weak. I believe the Nigeria Police, by virtue of their training, have the capacity not only to investigate but also to prosecute, especially going by the Supreme Court decision recently. They should ensure that the offenders are apprehended and prosecuted,” he said.

By Onwuka Nzeshi and Johnchuks Onuanyim


National Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, yesterday accused the top hierarchy of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) of working in tandem with certain members of the APC to oust him from office through a smear campaign linking him to bribery and corruption. In recent weeks, Oshiomhole had been under intense pressure following allegations that he collected huge sums of money from political aspirants in exchange for tickets during the recent primary elections in the ruling party. The bribes, said to have been collected in hard currencies, led to his invitation and interrogation by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) last week.

Oshiomhole described the allegations against him as malicious attacks from those who appeared too eager to see his exit from office as the APC chairman, but argued that the primary elections of the APC, which were at the root of the allegations, had come and gone. In a statement released by Simon Ebegbulem, his Chief Press Secretary, Oshiomhole denied any wrongdoing, but lamented that instead of commending him for resisting criminal overtures to compromise him, he is being relentlessly harangued, abused and accused of receiving phantom bribes.



He said that while it was understandable that those who lost out in the “transparent exercise” conducted by the party have been exercising their rights to protest, the open smear campaign against him must stop. He said that the allegations of corruption were aimed at maligning his hard-earned reputation and warned that no one will get away with any action that is capable of tarnishing his image and integrity.

His words: “It is curious to note that some elements in the top hierarchy of PDP appeared to be too eager to see the exit of the APC chairman from office and may be working in tandem with certain APC members. While it makes sense for PDP to wish for cure for their headache that Comrade Oshiomhole has become, it should not be taken for granted that anyone can get away with any action that is capable of tarnishing the unassailable integrity of the APC chairman.

“We are aware that part of the strategies discussed in Dubai, where the PDP leaders recently visited and held their meeting, was to continue to dish out lies against top APC leaders with a view to distract the leadership of the APC ahead the 2019 general election. But they have failed because the National Chairman and APC leaders are focused and will never be distracted.

“However, it is time these irresponsible lies stopped; otherwise, anybody who continues to make unsubstantiated allegations against the person and character of the National Chairman should be ready to provide proofs in a court of law. It cannot be just a political game to smear the character of Comrade Oshiomhole by people whose track record is unenviable. “We want the public to note that if the exercise of the APC primaries were to be about money-taking or money-making, the state governors, some of whom are embittered about the outcomes in their states, were in a better position to dish out mega bucks. But the National Working Committee (NWC) of APC under the leadership of Comrade Oshiomhole was motivated by higher ideals and the pursuit of noble democratic principles.

“It is sad that instead of commending the National Chairman for resisting criminal overtures to compromise him, he is being relentlessly harangued, abused and accused of receiving phantom bribes.” Oshiomhole stated that as president of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), he fought the government without collecting bribe.



“This is a callous and wicked enterprise. The National Chairman’s credibility is unassailable. His reputation as president of Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) is a matter of fact. “Significantly, as NLC president, he fought the PDP-controlled Federal Government in furtherance of pro-people policies without collecting money to compromise the struggles.” According to him, his credibility and reputation had remained unassailable right from his days as a unionist up to his tenure as the Governor of Edo State.

“He rode on the crest of his credibility and reputation to step in the saddle in Edo State as governor for eight years where he turned around the fortune of the state. “Indeed, owing to his performance in Edo State, Oshiomhole was able to get the people’s support to ensure victory for APC governor as his successor.

“The national chairman views the current attempts to tarnish his image as uncalled for and has vowed that he will seek legal redress against anybody or media, whether the traditional or in the social media, who makes such unsubstantiated allegations henceforth,” he said. However, President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, has said that the corruption allegations trailing Oshiomhole over the conduct of the APC primaries would be another litmus test on the anti-corruption war as Nigerians would be waiting to see how President Muhammadu Buhari would handle the serious allegations of bribery. Saraki, in a statement by his Special Adviser (Media and Publicity), Yusuph Olaniyonu, described the threat by the former Edo State Governor to sue him over his opinion that Oshiomhole ought to quit politics on moral grounds over the allegations against him as an empty boast, as he (Saraki) will be ready to meet him (Oshiomhole) in court. “Nigerians are waiting to see how the President will handle the serious allegations against his party chairman. We expect the President, with his anticorruption campaign, to institute thorough and transparent investigation into the allegations against his party chairman.

“The failure of the President to get to the root of the matter will finally destroy his ability and that of the party to continue to talk of any anti-graft battle. The President should let the investigation be thorough, open and transparent. This is no time for any cover-up,” he stated. Saraki maintained that until the outcome of a thorough investigation is known to Nigerians and the APC chairman is cleared of the allegations against him, Oshiomhole is not on a firm ground to talk about morality or fight against corruption. Also, the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of APC, Yekini Nabena, has asked Oshiomhole to come clean on the bribery allegation.

Nabena, who was the immediate past acting spokesman of the ruling party, said that Oshiomhole should leave propaganda and address allegations against him. “Simon, please stop all this media propaganda and face the reality on ground. The damages are affecting the party,” he said. Meanwhile, the APC has described the endorsement of PDP presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar by the Igbo leaders as affront to the Igbo people. National Publicity Secretary of APC, Lanre Issa-Onilu, in a statement issued in Abuja said: “The APC considers Atiku and his PDP co-travellers as people who have lost any sense of shame.



“The purported endorsement of Atiku and PDP by some leaders of the South- East for the 2019 general elections is an affront on the Igbo people who were frontline victims of the 16 years of the PDP misrule. “It will be interesting to know what the PDP will be telling the Igbo people during the campaign. The South-East people have three and half years of visible progress in terms of massive infrastructure and the thousands of common people who are benefiting from the social programme investments under APC to compare to the PDP’s 16 years of retrogression. “We in APC are confident that the Igbo won’t be fooled by any group, by whatever name, to sell a thoroughly discredited party like the PDP to the very discerning Igbo people,” he said.

Everest Amaefule, Abuja



Contrary to the claim by Governor Kayode Fayemi that governors in Nigeria earn N500, 000 per month, the official monetised salary of a governor in the country is actually N648,580.62, findings from an investigation have shown.

Fayemi had said that professors in Nigerian universities earned as much as he earned, and that, in some cases, they earned more than him on a monthly basis.

He said that as a governor, he earned N500,000 monthly salary, arguing that a professor sometimes earned more than that.

The governor berated Nigerian academic for allegedly not taking advantage of certain opportunities which, he said, he was privy to.

However, a document, Remuneration Package of Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders, obtained from the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission by our correspondent in Abuja on Thursday, showed that there were other allowances which the governor was entitled to.

While a few of the allowances are paid periodically, there are others that are not monetised which the state provides fully, according to the preference of the governor.

The governor’s monthly salary is made up of three items – basic salary, hardship allowance and constituency allowance.

According to RMAFC’s document, a governor is entitled to a monthly basic salary of N185,306.75. He is entitled to a monthly hardship allowance of N92,654.37 and monthly consistency allowance of N648,580.62.

These add up to a monthly salary of N648, 580.62 or an annual sum of N7, 782,967.50.

Other allowances of the governor that are not part of the monthly emoluments are 10 per cent leave allowance which amounts to N222,370.50 per annum.

Should a governor so desire, he is entitled to 400 per cent Motor Vehicle Loan which amounts to N8,894,820.

When a governor completes his tenure, he is entitled to 300 per cent severance allowance, which amounts to N6,671,115. This is apart from what is provided by each state as pension and gratuity.

However, the majority of the allowances that a governor is entitled to are not monetised. This means that the state makes full provision for such items – to the taste of the governor.

Such allowances include the following: Motor vehicle fuelling and maintenance, special assistant, personal assistant, domestic staff, entertainment, utilities, security, and newspapers/periodicals.

Other allowances that are fully provided by the state for the governor are accommodation, furniture, duty tour allowance, estacode and medical.

According to the document, the annualised salary and allowances of the President is N14,058,820 while that of the Vice-President is N12,126,290.

For a senator, the salary and allowances add up to N20, 669,280 per annum. Those of a member of the House of Representatives add up to N17, 271,347.75.

For a minister, the salary and allowances add up to N14,705,164, while those of presidential aides add up to N14, 085,843.75.

On the face value, therefore, it appears that even the aides appointed to serve both the President and the Vice-President earn higher than these two key officials of the state.

However, the reason is that while most of the allowances of lawmakers, senators and presidential aides are monetised, the allowances that are supposed to be earned by the President and the VP are provided by the state – without any limit, just like the governor.

Apart from the salary, the regular allowances that are monetised for the President are only hardship allowance, N1, 757,350.50 per annum; and consistency allowance, N8, 786,762:50 per annum.

For the Vice-President, the hardship allowance is N1, 515,786:25 per annum, while the consistency allowance is N7, 578,931:25 per annum.

The irregular allowances for the President are the severance allowance – 300 per cent of the annual salary or N10, 544,115 – and leave allowance – 10 per cent of the annual salary or N351, 470:50.

The irregular allowances of the vice-president are the severance allowance – 300 per cent of the annual salary or N9, 094,717:50 – and leave allowance – 10 per cent of the annual salary or N303, 157:25.

Other allowances that the President and the Vice-President are supposed to enjoy which are not provided in monetary terms include motor vehicle fuelling and maintenance, special assistant, and personal assistant.

Others are domestic staff, entertainment, utilities, security and newspapers/periodical allowances.

These irregular allowances include accommodation, furniture, duty tour, estacode, medical, and severance/gratuity.

Two other officials of the state whose most allowances are not monetised but provided for by the state are the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives.

In the states, governors and Speakers of the State Houses of Assembly enjoy similar privileges.

These items, which are supposed to constitute allowances for the President and the VP are to be fully provided for these key office holders by the state according to the Remuneration Package of Political, Public and Judicial Office Holders prepared by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission and passed into law in 2007 by the National Assembly.

The country’s annual budgets give an indication of how much the nation spends on the items required by the President.

Following the outcry of citizens for a downward review of the emoluments of political office holders as a result of dwindling oil earnings of the country, President Muhammadu Buhari had in 2015 directed RMAFC to review the emoluments.

The work of the agency which was concluded in 2016 came to nothing as the President could not act on the report which was submitted to his office.

Posted By: Osagie Otabor


A 34-year old Pastor of the Global Influence Ministry, Mr. Joseph Igwemoh, has been arraigned before an Oredo Magistrate Court for alleged abduction and having carnal knowledge of a married woman identified as Stella George.

The woman is said to be a chorister in his church and it was Pastor Igwemon that wedded her to her husband, Mr. Paul Nosakhare.

Pastor Igwemon who was arraigned on charges bothering on abduction and act likely to cause breach of peace was accused of sleeping with Stella inside his church.

Read Also:Pastor docked for abducting and sleeping with married woman
He pleaded not guilty to the charges.

According to the charges, “That you Pastor Joseph Igwemon on the 15th day of October, 2018 at about 1200 hours in your church, Global Influence Ministry at No 16 Owosenj Street, off Mission Road did conduct yourself in a manner likely to cause the breach of peace by having carnal knowledge of one Stella George who is a chorister in your church having wedded her and her husband one Paul Nosakhare and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 249 (d) of the Criminal Code Cap 48 Vol II Laws of the defunct Bendel State of Nigeria 1976 as applicable in Edo State.

“That you Pastor Joseph Igwemon on the same date, time and place in the aforesaid Magisterial district did abduct one Mrs. Stella George by keeping her in your house for months knowing that she is married and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 361 of the Criminal Code Cap 48 Vol II Laws of the defunct Bendel State of Nigeria 1976 as applicable in Edo State.”

Presiding Magistrate, Mrs. Isi Ukhun Iyoha, granted the Pastor bail in the sum of N200, 000 and a surety in like sum who must be again fully employed.

The case was adjourned to November 29, 2018 for definite hearing.

Onyebuchi Ezigbo, Adedayo Akinwale and Mercy Apollos in Abuja

The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Uche Secondus, has accused the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of designing special card reader and result sheets for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

The chairman also warned the Chairman of the commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, that history would be unkind to him if he fails to conduct free and fair election in 2019.

But in a swift reaction, the Chief Press Secretary to INEC chairman, Mr. Rotimi Oyekanmi, said there was no iota of truth in what Secondus said, adding that the commission will not be joining issues with any political party.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has also accused the main opposition party of engaging in propaganda and dissemination of fake information as a means of scoring cheap political points.

Secondus stated this while hosting election team of the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) led by Mohammad Conteh at the party’s national campaign headquarters in Maitama, Abuja.

The PDP chairman alleged that the electoral commission is working in conjunction with the ruling APC to rig the elections in 2019.

He therefore cautioned that manipulation of election in 2019 would be a recipe for crisis in the country, stressing that INEC chairman would be held accountable.

The PDP chairman in a statement yesterday by his Media Adviser, Ike Abonyi, alleged that the commission used the governorship elections in Ekiti and Osun States as rehearsal to practice their rigging strategy for 2019.

He stated: “They have finished their rigging arrangements with preloaded cards and special election result sheets all doctored to favour the ruling APC.

“The INEC chairman has no strong will to follow our electoral laws and constitution as well as the laid down international standards in his processes towards 2019, and we want to let the world know this before it happens.

“They have finished plots to isolate states of Kano, Benue, Rivers, Bauchi, Akwa Ibom, Delta, Imo and Kwara and Lagos for disruption during the general election so that they can plan well to mobilise the rigging.”

Secondus alleged that the commission’s rigging agenda is being propelled by the security agencies especially with the current Inspector General of Police (IG) who he said has proved to be the most violent bias police boss in the country.

He noted that his party was using the INEC template they saw in Ektiti and Osun States to reiterate their lack of confidence in the commission as nothing has happened to show that there is going to do anything different from what they did in those two states.

However, the Chief Press Secretary to INEC chairman, Mr. Rotimi Oyekanmi, said there was no iota of truth in what Secondus said, adding that the commission will not be joining issues with any political party.

According to Oyekanmi, “There is no iota of truth in the allegations being made by the PDP. The commission is focusing on preparations for the 2019 general elections at the moment and will not join issues with any political party, especially the one that has perfected the art of raising false alarms.”

Also, the APC has accused the PDP of engaging in propaganda and dissemination of fake information as a means of scoring cheap political points.

In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Mallam Lanre Isa-Onilu, the ruling party said rather than focus on development issues, the PDP and its agents have chosen to populate the mainstream and social media space with ludicrous fake news and infantile conspiracy theories, moving from one absurdity to another.

“Disturbingly, the country’s main opposition, PDP, and its discredited agents have continued to deploy the loathsome strategy of fake news, misinformation and distortion of facts as focal campaign strategies for the 2019 elections,” it said.

APC said it is not surprised at the PDP’s typical theatrics in an attempt to evade scrutiny for its 16 years of bad governance, adding that it is instructive to the electorate that no lessons have been learnt by the prodigal party.

According to the ruling party, “It is indeed clear to the electorate that the PDP is not a party to either be trusted or taken seriously as it has missed out on the opportunity to apologise and show remorse for the cruelty it wrought on our country while in power.

“Instead of engaging the electorate on serious issues of development such as health, education, economy, foreign policy, security, corruption, pension, job creation, infrastructure development among others, the PDP and its agents have chosen to populate the mainstream and social media space with ludicrous fake news and infantile conspiracy theories, moving from one absurdity to another.”

APC further said the PDP is engaging in shadow-chasing through fake news and spurious allegations, insisting that PDP cannot pull the wool over the eyes of the good people of this country

By Sodiq Oyeleke



The Bus Conductors Association of Nigeria (BCAN) has endorsed President Muhammadu Buhari for the 2019 general elections.

According to the group, the only way to guarantee a better ‎future for Nigerians is to ensure the president wins in the next election.

National Liaison Officer of the group, Prince Israel Adeshola, disclosed during an inauguration of the State chapter executives in Kaduna.

He explained that as a group there strength and weapon is their Permanent Voters Certificate (PVC).

“Our PVC is our strength and weapon we will use to dismantle the opposition and install the leadership we all crave for, which is the return of President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019,” he said.

He said the last 16 years witnessed the destruction of the economy through massive looting never before witnessed in the history of the country.

Prince Adeshola added that the impunity that pervaded the previous administration greatly undermined the economic growth of the country.

According to him, there is no doubt President Buhari is committed to ensuring that regains her place as truly the giant of Africa both economically and politically.

Senate President Bukola Saraki has asked Adams Oshiomhole, national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to quit politics.

Saraki made the statement in Ilorin on Wednesday, on the sidelines of a remembrance ceremony held in honour of his late father.

On Sunday, the Department of State Services (DSS) had detained Oshiomhole after some APC governors alleged that he received bribes during the party’s primary elections across the country.

Saraki said based on allegations leveled against Oshiomhole, he had no right to remain the APC chairman, let alone remain in politics.

“Oshiomhole has no locus standi to talk about morality in today’s Nigeria’s politics. That must be a joke coming from Oshiomhole talking about moral ground,” he said.

“Oshiomhole is somebody who has been told to have been collecting not even naira but dollars from candidates and he is being accused by his party’s aspirants and governors.

“I don’t think he has any moral ground, even to continue to be in politics not to talk about being a chairman of a party.

“I remember in those days even Oyegun, they never accused him of something like this. I have left that party. I’m sure the president, based on integrity, knows the right thing to do. So, on moral ground, he cannot speak on moral ground.”

During a show on Arise Television on Tuesday, when asked if there are plans to impeach Saraki, Oshiomhole said it’s an “issue of morality,” adding that the senate president now belonged to a minority party which shouldn’t have oversight over a majority party.

Lagos – The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Tuesday said Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, was diverting funds budgeted for the Ministry of Information to run campaigns for President Muhammadu Buhari ahead of the 2019 presidential election.

But in a swift reaction, the minister debunked the claims of the party, saying it was only jittery and raising false alarm having realised that it would be defeated again in the forthcoming elections.

Speaking with Daily Independent , Kola Ologbondiyan, the party’s National Publicity Secretary, said while many chieftains of the PDP were being prosecuted for allegedly using public funds to prosecute the 2015 general elections, the Buhari Campaign Organisation (BCO) was currently bidding for contracts in various ministries without following due process, claiming that it will use the proceeds of the contracts to work for Buhari’s re-election.

According to the PDP, the national leadership of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), under Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, also gave approval to the BCO to go and look for such contracts.

Ologbondiyan said: “As a matter of fact, all the issues bordering on spending government funds for campaign purposes are all in court and awaiting judgment.

“But having said that, it is a known fact that the Buhari Campaign Organisation is bidding for contracts in various ministries and they even have the approval of their party hierarchy to go and look for such contracts.

“Even as we speak, the Federal Ministry of Information fund, monies budgeted for the ministry for national assignment, is being used to organise campaigns for President Muhammadu Buhari.

“But as the PDP will always say, there is nothing to APC as a party because it is manifest that they came into government without a plan and, as such, cannot implement anything.

“As we speak, the referendum for Buhari’s re-election in 2019 is the manifest failure of his administration. He came on a three-prong promise: to revive the economy, but he has run the economy into recession.

“He promised to chase insurgents out of our country from the fringes where PDP chased them to, but now insurgents are attacking our military formations.

“He also promised to fight corruption, but we all know what the likes of Babachir Lawal have done to his anti-corruption fight. We all know what the NHIS boss has done to his anti-corruption fight. We all know the level of corruption operating under his nose at the Villa. Nigerians have realised that they voted for failure.”

However, the minister, in his response to PDP’s claim, said the opposition party, having realised the success the policies of the Buhari administration such as the School Feeding Programme has achieved, was beginning to panic and make unfounded claims that the funds earmarked for the Information Ministry were being diverted for election purposes.

According to the minister, the funds being used for the programmes were budgeted for and were being used judiciously to achieve the aims of the programme without undue interference from APC appointees.

Lai Mohammed said: “I usually don’t respond to the PDP because they really don’t have anything tangible to say. I think the PDP is just waking up to the realisation that they can’t win this election if the campaigns are based on issues.

“Our Social Investment Programme didn’t start last year. It didn’t even start in 2016. It started right from day one when we came to office.

“This Social Investment Programme is the most apolitical programme of any government you can ever find.

“As a matter of fact, the truth of the matter is that APC politicians and appointees are very unhappy with the scheme because it does not follow the normal line of political patronage. People involved in this programme are completely apolitical. You apply online and if you are successful, you are chosen.

“There is no way it can be manipulated. At a point in time, some political appointees complained that you don’t do this. But the vice president and his team insisted that it is a social investment programme and it must be apolitical.”

“The PDP is now suddenly frightened by the success of this programme. That is the honest truth. When this programme started in 2015, PDP thought it was impossible to achieve. Today, this programme comprises of four major components.

“There is the school feeding programme. Today, this programme feeds nine million, three hundred thousand pupils, one meal per day. It covers 26 states, about 60, 000 primary schools and in the process, it has employed over 97,000 cooks.

“So, the PDP is definitely frightened by the success. A government that feeds nine million, three hundred thousand pupils in every school day and, in the process, employs over 97,000 cooks is a government that has left an indelible mark in the sands of time.”

A member of an armed robbery gang met his waterloo as residents of Amarata suburb of Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, mobbed him to death after dispossessing customers of a popular supermarket of their valuables.

The dead member of the robbery gang, identified as the driver of the getaway tricyle popularly known as 'Keke NAPEP', was accidentally shot in the back by one of his colleagues, who was aiming at the mob chasing them.

At about 9pm on Monday, the four-man robbery gang arrived at the popular supermarket located along the Imgbi road, and raided the few customers present by collecting mobile phones and cash realised from sales for the day.

However, things went south for the robbers, when some youth seated across the supermarket noticed their attempt to escape. They pelted the robbers with bottles despite gunshots fired to scare people away.

It was also gathered that despite the gunshots fired by the fleeing robbers, the angry mob chased after them and caused the fleeing tricycle to collide with a stationary car along the street.

An eyewitness who identified himself as Chinedu said: "In the process of colliding with the car, the tricycle somersaulted and we heard another gunshot. Later, we discovered that one of the robbers loaded guns went off and hit the tricycle driver on the back. Three of the robbers escaped, while the tricycle driver attempted to escape with gunshot wound but was chased to the back of First Bank in the area and he was handed over to the Police."

Evangelist Parkinson Ekide, Chairman of the Bayelsa State Vigilante service, and the State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Asinim Butswat, confirmed the development.

Meanwhile, Joseph Mukan, the State Commissioner of Police, has held a consultative meeting with the leadership of the State Vigilante Service and the Bayelsa Volunteer Force on Monday, over the rising cases of cult killings and armed robbery incidents.

Mukan assured the youth of a new order in the operations of the Police Command in the state with needed protection for the identity of those that supply information to the Police and the "diligent prosecution of those caught with firearms and involved in violent crimes".

He also expressed concern over the quick release of arrested suspects from Police custody, stating that "it is disheartening to hear that suspects caught will be on the streets under 24 hours. Such acts will not be condoned except they are released by the court. Our approach will be total."

"During my tenure, the law will be allowed to take its full course," he said.

By Ademola Adegbite




THE vacancies to recruit 213 new staff for the National Population Commission (NPC) approved and certified by the Federal Character Commission (FCC) has been jettisoned, while another new list has now been manufactured and used for the current employment.

But the commission in its reaction claimed it followed due process and that there was no new list.

Investigations by Sunday Tribune revealed that the commission had conducted interview for officers of Level 8 and 9 to fill in the existing vacancies in the commission following a later dated 8 June, 2018 from the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, giving approval for 300 positions to be filled.

It was further gathered that the Head of Service had approved the recruitment of 40 Cartographers on Level 8; 10 on Level 9; 40 Statisticians 40 on Level 8; 5 on Level 9; 30 Vital Registration Officers for Level 8; 5 for Level 9; 30 Administrative Officers for Level 8; 10 for Level 9; 40 Programme/System Analysts for Level 8; 10 for Level 9; 40 Planning Officers for 8; 10 for Level 9; 10 Accountants for Level 8; 5 for Level 9 and 10 Information/Public Officers for Level 8; 5 for Level 9.

The letter warned NPC to obtain clearance of the Budget Office of the Federation in line with the provisions of the extant circular issued by the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation before the recruitment; and adhere to extant rules including the Federal Character principle while filling the vacancies.

The letter, which emanated from the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, read: “Kindly note that on no account should the approval be varied or exceeded in order not to increase the personnel costs unduly; the officials of this office are required to be present during the exercise to ensure compliance with the waiver; and the list of candidates who are successful in the recruitment exercise should be forwarded to this office for record purposes.”

In a letter dated 20 June, 2018 from the Federal Character Commission (FCC) addressed to the Chairman of the NPC said: “having satisfactorily complied with the provisions of our circular letter titled “Procedure for Recruitment into the Federal Public Service” reference FCC/CHM/S.18/1c dated 1st September 2014, I am to inform you that the Ag. Executive has acceded to your request.

“Consequently, I am pleased to issue this certificate of compliance in your favour as authority to issue letters of appointment to the two hundred and thirteen (213) successful candidates, as contained in your list herewith attached.” It warned.

The FCC further warned that the certificate covers only the current recruitment exercise with the candidates whose names are contained in the list; and for any future recruitment exercise, a separate certificate of compliance has to be obtained.

It said the letters of appointment are to be issued to the successful candidates within three months from the date of issuance of the certificate, otherwise, it shall become lapsed and require revalidation.

The FCC further warned that on no account shall any of the names be substituted/replaced/altered without prior written consent of the commission; and upon issuance of letters of appointment to the successful candidates, “you are to, within three (3) months, forward the updated staff nominal roll to the commission.”

Contrary to the directives from the Head Service of the Federation and FCC, the National Population Commission (NPC) generated its own list with 219 new intakes completely abandoning the certified FCC stamped list and started recruiting staff, who were not interviewed but found their names in the list.

Sunday Tribune’s findings showed that the financial outlay for the 213 successful candidates which the commission allegedly cancelled was N19,114,331.28, annually as against the new generated list by the commission, which has no financial outlay.

In their separate reactions, the Head of Service and FCC said that anything done contrary to the approval was illegal as the authenticated list is what was transmitted to the commission.

According to the sources, who wanted to remain anonymity, any other appointment issued by the commission is illegal and void; expect the one approved by the FCC.
It was further gathered that the NPC has commenced the distribution of appointments to the alleged generated list.

Reacting to the story in his office, on Thursday, the Director, Human Resources of NPC, Alhaji Sa’ad Sani Saed confirmed the waiver but quickly added that there was no different list as commission still used the approved and certified list from FCC.

He explained that the commission only embarked on replacement after the field exercise which showed that some have died, while some have even secured another employment.

According to him, when there was a shortfall, the new people have to be brought in. There was no different list apart from that of Federal Character Commission (FCC). Not all of them are still available.

Some have gotten job. Some have died and they need to be replaced. After all these, after the field exercise, we went back to FCC, some were even lying but we need to replace them, so there was no new list.

Taiwo Amodu and Jacob Segun Olatunji - Abuja



The plot to oust the embattled national chairman of the APC has suffered a setback, Sunday Tribune can authoritatively reveal.

A party source told Sunday Tribune in confidence that a certain governor in the South-West, who is the arrow-head of the orchestrated plot may have decided to review his hard-line position on the anti-Oshiomhole project following the interviention of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Findings revealed that the aggrieved governor whose anointed choice as successor lost the party ticket in the recently conducted primaries met with President Buhari during the week and was assured that his interest would be accomodated after the next general elections.

The party source further revealed that President Buhari expressed grave concern at the meeting with the governor that his electoral fortunes may suffer serious jeopardy in the South-West zone if the cold war between the aggrieved governor, who is his ally in the South-West on one hand and a national leader of the party, Senator Bola Tinubu and the national chairman of the party on the hand, continued.

The president, it was learnt, insisted on a ceasefire.

Other governors fingered to have instigated Oshiomhole’s invitation and interrogation were Abdul-Aziz Yari, Rochas Okorocha and Rotimi Akeredolu, governors of Zamfara, Imo and Ondo states, respectively.

Findings revealed that as part of his trouble shooting efforts; President Buhari is expected to meet certain leaders of the party this week.

Further checks, however, revealed that the governors are not relenting and are pushing for meetings of statutory organs of the party, the national caucus and the National Executive Committee, (NEC) as against the reconciliation meeting at the behest of President Buhari.

But meetings of the national caucus and NEC being instigated by the governors are practically impossible as it could only be convened by the man at the centre of the storm, Oshiomhole.

National publicity secretary of the APC, Mallam Lanre Isa-Onilu told Sunday Tribune on phone that he was not aware of any plan for NEC meeting, saying: “Not to my knowledge. I am not aware.”

Meanwhile, the last may not have been heard on the drilling of Oshiomhole, as more facts have now emerged about his invitation by the DSS last week during which he ended up spending over nine hours with the operatives of the DSS before reprieve finally came his way.

Top sources in the Presidency and the Services told the Sunday Tribune in Abuja on Saturday that the former governor of Edo State was invited to clear the air on the various petitions pending before the nation’s secret police against him and the DSS did not need to consult with any quarter before carrying out such constitutional duties.

The source clarified that the DSS was fully aware of the foreign trip of the APC boss and that he was expected back at the DSS this week for further investigation.

BY MCBRIAN



The claim by the Nigerian Minister for Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed that the Nigerian Government spends N3.5 million per month to feed the detained leader of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) also known as Shiites has continued to generate reactions among Nigerians.

For some people, being a prisoner in the custody of the Nigerian Federal Government might be the new cool because free people were till struggling to be paid only N30,000 per month contrary to N3.5m used to feed a prisoner who has been granted his freedom three times by the court.

Consequently, this young man wrote a passionate letter of application to President Buhari applying for the seemingly juicy position of Prisoner of the Federal Republic.

Read the Contents of the Letter Below;

#1000 Ali Akilu Road
Kaduna
08/11/2018

The President
Federal Republic of Nigeria
Abuja – Nigeria

Through;
The Minister of Information
Federal Minister of Information
Abuja – Nigeria
Sir,

APPLICATION FOR THE EXALTED POSITION OF A PRISONER

With reference to your amazing revelation that El-Zak Zaky is fed with 3.5million naira monthly and the other equally amazing revelation by the Minister of Interior, General Danbazau, that 14k is used to feed one prisoner a day, I wish to apply most honourably for the position of a prisoner in any of the prisons where this 14k is used to feed the inmates.

I am a harmless person and ordinarily I have no business with the prisoners and would never have any reason to sleep there, but with the “good” life the prisoners are enjoying under this regime, and considering that the daily feeding per prisoner costs only 4k less than the national monthly minimum wage, I have decided to submit myself for consideration to enable me enjoy with the inmates.

I am sure you will soon see more applications than you can handle after giving my application a favourable consideration. You may wish to be sending 10k of my own portion of 14k daily to my GTB Account of 0021732123 and use the balance of 4k to feed me. I always love to use JW wine when I eat. Please I am not comfortable with anything other than Bottled water.

I have studied up to first degree and am currently enrolled for an MSc programme. Find attached copy of my curriculum vitae.
I look forward to your invitation for interview.

Yours faithfully,

Emmanuel J.Z.

A highly placed source told Saturday Sun that other broadcast frequencies seized from Radio Biafra will be allocated for the use of Radio Nigeria stations in Bayelsa, Enugu, and Ibadan.


Ade Alade, Abuja and Vincent Kalu

Three years after the Nigerian security apparatus coordinated by the office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) Gen. Babagana Monguno successfully shut down all the broadcast frequencies of Radio Biafra operated by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) the federal government has deployed four of the shortwave bands for the use of Radio Nigeria, Hausa service, Kaduna, which went off air over 30 years ago. The radio station returned to the airwave two weeks ago after the NSA office released four broadcast frequencies harvested from IPOB” for the use of the federal government owned radio station, which now broadcasts in Hausa language 12 hours daily. The four shortwave bands include 7315khz on 41 meter band, 13840khz on 22 meter band, 17525khz on 16 meter band and 7235khz on 41 meter band.

A highly placed source in the nation’s security circle told Saturday Sun that other broadcast frequencies seized from Radio Biafra will soon be allocated for the use of Radio Nigeria stations in Bayelsa, Enugu, and Ibadan. “The harvesting and shutting down of Radio Biafra broadcast bands were made possible after our security system penetrated IPOB foreign partners and network in October 2015 following credible intelligence on the modus operandi of operators of Radio Biafra. Having achieved that feat, the government feels the same technical backbone can be deployed for the use of a national goal. This explains why IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu can only address his people now through Facebook,” the source added.

A top official in the Federal Ministry of Information and another at the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN) headquarters in Abuja who confirmed the development yesterday however said they only knew that the broadcast bands were released for the use of Radio Nigeria by the NSA’s office but could not say whether they were seized from IPOB.

In a reaction to the development, IPOB detailed how the federal government made frantic efforts to frustrate its broadcast stations. “It is on record that Nigerian government and her agency Nigeria Broadcasting Corporation tried all they could to stop Radio Biafra from broadcasting from London but failed. They went as far as putting pressure on the British government to close out studios in London, that too failed. They purchased Satlink an Israeli company that provided us satellite services. They did this through a company in the United States.

As soon as the company assumed control of Satlink, they terminated our contract. We moved to another supplier and have been with this supplier for five years now. One important thing to understand is this, the federal government of Nigeria never successfully shut down any Radio Biafra frequency since inception.

“That is a fact. They repeatedly tried and repeatedly failed because Almighty Elohim Chukwu Okike Abiama is in control of IPOB and its activities. “Our contract expired with our service providers and we stopped the service hence any changes in frequency.

We are not aware that Nigerian government moved their beloved Hausa Service to the frequency once occupied by Radio Biafra. Hausa Fulani radio service is meant for Hausa Fulani not Biafra.

“We have our own Radio Nigeria Hausa Service run by Radio Biafra. Biafra radio and television services have come to stay which this Nigerian Government headed by the Fulani caliphate cabal cannot stop.

Anybody thinking of stopping Radio Biafra and Biafra Television is hallucinating. Our media platforms must continue to disseminate undiluted and accurate information to the people of Biafra and Nigeria until the end of time.

Biafra freedom is important and sacrosanct to the people of Biafra especially IPOB members worldwide, therefore we are fully determined to fund the running of Radio Biafra and Biafra television till Biafra sovereignty is restored,” the response signed by IPOB spokesman, Emma Powerful stated.

by Onyedi Ojiabor, Abuja; Damisi Ojo, Akure; Uja Emmanuel, Makurdi; n Bisi Oladele, Ibadan; Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt; Adekunle Jimoh, Ilorin; Ndidi Okodili, Owerri and Kolade Adeyemi, Kan




The outcome of the 2019 elections in many of the 36 states of the federation will be determined largely by the raging power play between state governors and senators wishing to return to the Red Chambers, according to an investigation conducted by The Nation.

Be it Akwa Ibom, Benue, Enugu, Imo, Kaduna, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Yobe or Zamfara, the story is the same in various states with its many plots, subversions, conspiracies and disappointments.

The degree of disaffection between the gladiators may differ but no state is spared the bitter political manoeuvrings.
For the gladiators, it is all about battle for political survival.

Nobody wants to be outdone. You either throw everything and anything into the battle to remain relevant or you get swept aside.

The recently concluded primary elections merely brought to the fore what had been going on behind the curtains over the last three years or so.

In some states, the battle ground has shifted to Abuja for the intervention of the party’s national leadership, while in others, it is the courts that are being asked to adjudicate.


ZAMFARA

Take the hostility between Governor Abdulaziz Yari and the Senator representing Zamfara Central, Kabiru Garba Marafa, for example. The recently concluded All Progressives Congress (APC) primary in the state worsened what observers described as a lingering personality clash between Yari and Marafa.

Observers say Marafa’s disagreement with Yari may have been fuelled by the controversial motions he sponsored on the floor of the Senate about the handling of banditry in Zamfara State. The Zamfara Central senator has been ceaseless in his criticism of Yari’s handling of incessant attacks by bandits in the state. For him, Yari failed woefully in dealing decisively with bandits who kill, maim and terrorise the state.

Marafa also opposed a petition by governor Yari to the Senate on President Muhammadu Buhari’s nominee for the position of Resident Electoral Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). President Buhari reportedly nominated Ahmad Bello Mahmud, but Yari asked the Senate to turn down the nominee. Yari, in his petition, claimed that the nominee does not hail from Zamfara State.

Marafa on his part was enraged and prayed the Senate to ignore the petition and confirm the nominee, saying that Yari himself did not hail from Zamfara State. The nominee was temporarily rejected, but President Buhari later renominated Mahmud.

In June, the Senate, acting in concert with Marafa’s insistence, confirmed the nominee. The confirmation of Mahmud did not go down well with Governor Yari. No doubt, Yari was waiting patiently for an opportune time to extract a pound of flesh from Marafa.

In May this year, Governor Yari and Marafa held parallel congresses at ward, local government and state levels. The parallel congresses produced two executives in Zamfara chapter of the APC.

And the just concluded primaries did not help matters. While Marafa showed interest for APC governorship ticket, Yari endorsed his commissioner of Finance, Mukhtar Shehu Idris. It was not surprising that Marafa teamed up with eight other governorship aspirants, including Deputy Governor, Ibrahim Wakala, a former Governor of the State, Mahmud Aliyu Shinkafi to battle Yari over his choice of Idris. The development forced the APC not to conduct primaries in the state.

Last week, a protest by Governor Yari’s supporters took place in Gusau, the Zamfara State capital. The protesters who came in their numbers demanded the sack of the National Chairman of the APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

But Marafa promptly dismissed the protest as the handiwork of Yari. For him, it is Yari who should be expelled from the APC and not Oshiomhole. On Monday, Marafa issued a damning statement listing 10 alleged misdeeds of Governor Yari and why the governor should be immediately sacked from the APC.

Observers are of the belief that the outcome of the 2019 elections in Zamfara State will be determined by Yari and Marafa’s face-off.


BENUE

The no love lost between Governor Samuel Ortom and his estranged godfather, Senator George Akume, will surely impact on the 2019 elections in the state. The defection of Ortom from the APC to the PDP is seen by many as the defining moment of politics in the state.

Before his defection, Ortom had claimed that the APC in the state had given him a red card. While it was not clear who actually gave him the red card, observers believed that the governor was referring to Akume.

Akume, a former governor of the state and the senator representing Benue North-West, has already taken sides with Hon. Emmanuel Jime as the governorship candidate of APC in the state.

The two gladiators have been fighting dirty with their supporters applauding them. While Akume accused Ortom of misrule and squandering the resources of the state, Ortom has challenged Akume to showcase his achievements in his 11 years as a senator “instead of castigating me at every opportunity.”

Ortom said: “Akume should showcase his score card. He has been in the Senate for more than 11 years and the constituents want to hear what he has done. He appears obsessed with abusing me every minute. That is not what the people want to hear.”

The governor, who spoke through his Special Adviser on Media and ICT, Mr Tahav Agerzua, added: “The man (Akume) keeps insulting me at every turn. But while he is raising questions about me, more questions are being raised about whether he has been an asset or a liability to the people.”

The governor also criticised a situation where politicians arrogate divine powers to themselves, saying only God has the power to decide the fate of any man.
“Nobody should boast that he can make someone governor. Only God can do that.

Mr Aper Aku became the first civilian governor of Benue without anyone’s support. Rev. Fr. Moses Adasu moved from the church to Government House without a political godfather. So, it is wrong for anyone to claim that he made me governor and could unseat me,” Ortom insisted.

Akume fired back, describing Ortom as a non-performer who was allegedly parading a fake doctoral degree. He also accused the governor of running the Social Investment Programme in the state like his family entity.

For Akume, Ortom needed to be voted out of power in 2019 in the interest of the state.
“Ortom said he has PhD from the Commonwealth University of Berlin, but there is nothing like Commonwealth University. At least, I am a graduate of the University of Ibadan, where I bagged my first and second degrees. I am also a fellow of the Institute of Management and I have honorary PhD from the University of Jos.

“He said I was a protocol officer while he was a local government chairman and that I served him. I never saw Ortom in the Government House that period.

“He is saying I never won an election, but I won an election in 1999, he (Ortom) was in SDP. Also in 2003 when I moved to ACN, I also won elections, but in the last election, Ortom lost in his local government. When I was building PDP, where was Ortom?” Akume asked.

Akume also accused Ortom of always insulting President Muhammadu Buhari at the slightest opportunity. He challenged Ortom to clear the backlog of salaries owed workers and pensioners in the state, who, he said, were dying of hunger.


AKWA IBOM

Former Senate minority leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio’s defection from the PDP to the APC was like a bolt from the blue.

The defection unsettled political calculations in the state and more or less put the PDP in the state in disarray.
While the APC has continued to celebrate the big catch, the PDP went back to the drawing board. Although Governor Emmanuel Udom has dismissed Akpabio’s defection as a non-issue, he knows that the Akwa Ibom North West senator cannot be taken for granted.

Akpabio, a two time governor of Akwa Ibom State, is regarded as a political master strategist. He has pledged to take the people of Akwa Ibom State and the South South to the centre for meaningful visibility.

Akpabio, who left the opposition PDP to APC at a mega rally held at the Ikot Ekpene township stadium, told the cheering crowd at the rally that he decided to join APC because he discovered that President Muhammadu Buhari “is a man of integrity and a nationalist.’’

He added that he decided to join a party that would sweep away poverty and impunity.

“The country is at war and all hands must be on deck to salvage the situation and not to aggravate it. As keepers of national emergency, everyone should put heads together. I decided to join to emancipate the people and provide succour for the people,’’ Akpabio told the huge crowd.

For him, the PDP of today has no vision and the leadership is replete with arrogance.
It not clear yet how Akpabio will achieve his promise of delivering Akwa Ibom State to the APC in 2019.

Udom and his supporters are no pushovers either. The 2019 elections will certainly be interesting in the state. Akwa Ibom State, observers say, will be one of the states to watch. Others described the state as one of the battle grounds.

The shape of the 2019 elections has been designed. The signs of mayhem are clear in some states. The race though, may not be for the swiftest.


KANO

The story of Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State and his predecessor, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso, is not just about a leader and follower but two close associates, friends and brothers.

But that was before their relationship turned sour not long after Ganduje assumed office. Over the last few years, the situation degenerated further and further until Kwankwaso left the APC for the PDP.

Kwankwaso, who is seeking a return to the Senate from Kano Central on the platform of his new party, will be too glad to stop Ganduje from getting a second term as governor, and he is said to be ready to do everything in his power to make that happen.

Ganduje on his part is determined to demystify Kwankwaso in Kano politics and ensure that the former governor fails at the polls. He has a common ally in another former governor of the state, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, who defected from the PDP to APC soon after Kwankwaso came over.

Shekarau, an immensely popular politician in his own right, will be contesting the same Kano Central Senatorial District election with Kwankwaso. Pundits believe that Kwankwaso’s chance of returning to the Red Chamber of the National Assembly looks slim, following Shekarau’s entry into the race.


ONDO

Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu is on record as saying that he was not aware that the Senator representing Ondo North, Prof Ajayi Boroffice, was a member of the APC. And that position seems to have informed his opposition to, and rejection of Boroffice’s bid for a return to the Senate.

Their quarrel is a fallout of the 2016 governorship primary of their party which favoured Governor Akeredolu among other numerous aspirants, including Senator Boroffice.

Soon after the APC primary, Chief Olusola Oke, who was one of those who contested the party’s ticket, switched to the Alliance for Democracy (AD). Akeredolu’s supporters accused Boroffice of working for Oke in the election.

The accusation has refused to go away with the APC leadership in the state alienating the senator from the affairs of the party. The party soon got factionalised in the state ahead of just concluded primaries.

The faction loyal to the governor, in picking its senatorial candidates, settled for Dr. Tunji Abayomi (Ondo North), Chief Tayo Alasoadura (Ondo Central) and Lucky Ayedatiwa (Ondo South).

The list was, however, thrown out by the National Working Committee (NWC) which then proceeded to give the three sitting senators—Ajayi Boroffice (Ondo North), Tayo Alasoadura (Ondo Central) and Yele Omogunwa (Ondo South)—the nod to re-contest.

The list from the NWC shocked the APC State EXCO, particularly the emergence of Boroffice, who they regard as a non-member of the party.


OYO

Governor Abiola Ajimobi wants to return to the Senate from Oyo Central District at the expense of the incumbent, Adesoji Akanbi. Ajimobi represented the zone between 2003 and 2007. He was elected governor in 2011 and 2015.

Akanbi defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to African Democratic Congress (ADC) last month soon after Ajimobi picked the APC ticket during the primary.

The two contenders are neighbours in Oluyole Estate, Ibadan. While Ajimobi hails from Ibadan South West Local Government, Akanbi is from Ibadan North West Local Government. The two had enjoyed a cordial relationship until the governor signified his intention to take over Akanbi’s seat last year. Akanbi had dropped his governorship ambition earlier in the year to concentrate on returning to the Senate.

The district comprises the six inner city local governments in Ibadan and the three local governments in Ibarapa.

As the electorate await February 16, 2019 to cast their votes, whoever wins between the two major candidates will celebrate an endorsement of his leadership. The result will be a judgment of Ajimobi’s eight-year administration and four years of Akanbi’s representation.

If the governor wins, based on the strength of his party, his achievements and popularity, it will amount to positive signals for the APC governorship candidate, Bayo Adelabu, in the governorship election coming afterwards. If Ajimobi loses, it will be interpreted as a rejection of his leadership and his party, APC. This may also have a negative effect on the governorship election.

Oyo South Senatorial district has the highest population among the three districts in the state. This is due to the huge voting population of the Ibadan inner city councils. For this reason, those councils will be the battleground for the two major candidates and others jostling for the seat.

Ajimobi won in most of the nine local governments in his 2015 election. Akanbi also defeated his closest contender in the election, Sen. Olufemi Lanlehin, in most of the councils in the same election. He defeated Lanlehin with over 50,000 votes to win the race. But whether the popularity is of the party or the individual contenders will be determined in the 2019 election.

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Adebayo Lawal, will also have his popularity and that of his party tested in the race.


RIVERS

Governor Nyesom Wike is currently practically without a voice in the Senate. His party, PDP, had two senators at the outset of the 8th Senate, but one, George Thompson Sekibo (Rivers East), was sacked by the court, paving way for Andrew Uchedu of the APC, while the other, Osinakachukwu Ideozu (Rivers West), defected to the APC on account of differences with the governor.

This time around, Wike will want to throw everything at his disposal into the election to sweep all the three senatorial seats.

His predecessor in office and current Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi and his party, APC, are leaving nothing to chance either. They want to win all the elections in the state.
Both gladiators –Wike and Amaechi – are bitter rivals.

The APC believes Wike is using Senator Magnus Abe who wants the party’s governorship ticket to destabilise the party. Abe’s faction got the Supreme Court to invalidate the list of candidates submitted to INEC by the Amaechi faction.

The APC has said that it will conduct fresh primaries to pick its candidates, but it remains to be seen how the damage can be mended between now and the commencement of the elections next year.


KWARA

Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed of the Peoples Democratic (PDP) and Architect Lola Ashiru of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will be slugging it out in Kwara South. The current occupant of the seat, Dr Rafiu Adebayo Ibrahim of the PDP, whose tenure expires next year, only had a shot at the seat.

Ahmed emerged through a consensus arrangement. He was affirmed by all delegates from the seven local government areas of Kwara South Senatorial district at the zonal primaries held in Omu Aran.

Before his affirmation as the party’s candidate, others who aspired alongside the governor were the incumbent Senator Ibrahim and a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon Gbenga Makanjuola.

Both Hon. Makanjuola and the governor are of Igbomina extraction of Irepodun and Ifelodun Local Government Area of the state, while Senator Ibrahim hails from Ojoku, Oyun Local Government Area.

The governor attributed his emergence to the inclusiveness championed by the Saraki political family in the state.

But the governor’s Igbomina ethnic stock are not comfortable with his emergence as the party’s candidate for Kwara South. Their grouse with him stems from alleged lackluster performance while in office.

An observer of Kwara politics who hails from Kwara South said: “We are waiting for him. This is payback time. Since he has been in office, Kwara Southerners have not felt his impact. Even the governor will be humiliated in Ifelodun Local Government Area where he hails from.

“Maybe he wants to be the senator of Share where he was born. I am confident that we will not vote for him. We will embarrass him at the polls. He has not proved to be our worthy ambassador.”

The APC candidate has been a grassroots politician. He once aspired to be governor of the state. In 2015, he was the Kwara South senatorial candidate of the PDP. He lost to the then Hon. Ibrahim.

Lola Ashiru, according to pundits, stands in good stead to cling the slot. Offa where he hails from is predominantly APC. His political clout in other local government areas of the state is legendary. Besides, given the general disenchantment of Kwara South people with Governor Ahmed’s administration, the odds seem to be in his favour.


IMO

What would have been an epic battle between Governor Rochas Okorocha and the serving Senator for Imo West Senatorial zone, Hope Uzodinma, has been averted as the Senator will be contesting the governorship seat on the platform of the APC.

He got the nod over Okorocha’s son-in-law, Uche Nwosu, after he was dropped by the National Working Committee of the party.

Senator Uzodinma, who defected to the APC a few months ago, foreclosed his bid for a return ticket to the National Assembly after the Imo governor indicated interest to go to the Senate after serving out his tenure as governor.