₦airaland Forum

Chief Olu Falae has formally resigned as the National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

In a letter dated February 19, 2019 and addressed to the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, the former Secretary to the Government of Federation (SGF) said Prof. Tunde Adeniran would act as SDP national chairman for the rest of his tenure which expired in March, 2020.

The letter personally signed by Chief Falae read, “I write to inform you that I have retired voluntarily from active partisan politics with effect from Friday 8th February, 2019, and therefore ceased to be the Chairman of the Social Democratic Party from that date.

“In accordance with the provision of Section 13.2 (ii) of our Party constitution, Professor Tunde Adeniran, the Deputy National Chairman 1 from the Chairman’s Zone assumes the post of National Chairman in acting capacity for the rest of my tenure which expires in March, 2020.

“I wish to thank you, your fellow commissioners and other staff for the courtesies you always extended to me while I served as the National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party.”

On Wednesday, the SDP national leadership threatened to press criminal charges against Prof. Jerry Gana and the expelled factional National Chairman of the party, Chief Supo Shonibare.

The SDP Director of Media and Publicity, Hon. Yemi Akinbode, gave the warning to sue the two key political figures in a statement issued shortly after the media briefing by Chief Shonibare where he asked the electorate to come out en masse on Saturday and vote out the APC government contrary to the position of Prof.Tunde Adeniran-led party leadership that backed President Muhammadu Buhari.


https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/falae-formally-resigns-as-sdp-chair.html

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has said most propaganda and accusations against President Muhammadu Buhari are absurd and untrue.

Osinbajo said this on Wednesday night while responding to questions at an interactive session with Lagosians held at Muson Centre, Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the interactive session tagged: “Unveiling The Truth” was organised by some christian youths and leaders.

NAN reports that participants used the medium to ask of questions bothering on security, economy, social welfare for the unemployed, anti-corruption fight, and timing of the TraderMoni programme.

Other questions bothered on “Next Level” slogan, farmer/herders crisis, lopsided federal appointments, Islamisation, Buhari’s commitment to address critical issues in the country among others.

Responding, Osinbajo said that President Buhari was very committed to address the problems facing the country.

According to him, contrary to insinuations, Buhari is impartial in addressing farmer/herders crises and has no intention at all to Islamise the country.

“President Muhammadu is possibly one of the most committed people I have ever met. He is committed to seeing that resources of this country are used for this country.

“In general terms, we find that there is fairness in the distribution of appointments. Many of the accusations against Buhari are not true.

“Sometimes, people listen to propaganda and if we look at the facts, things are totally different. On Islamisation, first of all, it is untrue, it is propaganda.

“Anybody who complains that President Buhari is propagating islamic agenda, how is that possible?

“A lot of these are just propaganda, never listen to these. Many of these are absurd, they are deliberate propaganda. They come from the same source. Don’t believe them. Let’s be fair,” Osinbajo said.

The vice-president, who urged Nigerians not to fear or doubt the good intention of the president, advised Nigerians to stop spreading rumours about things that never happened.

He noted that the major cause of farmer/herder crisis remained pasture and water, which he said the government had made efforts to address.

On the lopsided federal appointments, Osinbajo said that the Southeast with five states had five ministers more than some regions with higher number of states.

On TraderMoni, he said that the National Assembly approved the money for it and that it was meant to lift many Nigerians out of poverty.

On the timing of implementation being close to electioneering, Osinbajo said that government kicked off the Social Investment Programme (SIP) after the budgetary allocation was passed by the National Assembly.

According to him, the party never promised N5,000 monthly stipends for the unemployed, but for the vulnerable which is ongoing.

He said the government had engaged so many youths in its N-Power programme and had to increase the number to 1.5 million.

On the standard of tertiary education, Osinbajo said that the major issue affecting education was not so much with the curriculum, he advocated private sector thinking, ideas to enhance public education.

He added that the government would continue to create enabling environment and provide funding.

On criminality, the vice president said that the way forward was local policing and intelligence as well as immediate arrest and prosecution of criminals.

On security, he said that the country had made significant progress and moved forward from what the situation was before the 2015 general elections.

He said the APC “Next Level” slogan centred on job creation, power, making credit more available to entrepreneurs, agriculture, infrastructure and others.

He urged Christian leaders to jettison thinking about any islamic agenda, saying that many Christians are in the cabinet of President Buhari.

He said that the media should desist from spreading rumours, decrying fake news about Buhari being another person from Sudan.

While addressing the accusation that the present administration often blames previous administration, Osinbajo said that the country could not move forward without considering the past.

According to him, corruption remains the bane of national growth and development, saying that most of the challenge confronting Nigeria are caused by wastefulness of past governments.

The highlight of the interaction was the high praise led by choir and power-packed prayer for the country and the general elections led by Bishop Wale Oke.

The participants prayed for God’s mercies and protection for Nigeria and the vice president especially in view of the recent air crash involving him.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/its-propaganda-buhari-has-no-islamisation-agenda-osinbajo.html

A top Yoruba monarch, Oba Adekunle Oyelude Makama, yesterday, condemned moves in some quarters to drag the military into the murky waters of politics, saying the armed forces as an institution is far above the nation’s ethno-political and religious ills.

The monarch, who is the Olowu of Owu-Kuta Kingdom of Osun State, spoke at a world press conference held in Lagos titled ‘While politicians think about next election, royal fathers think about secured and safe country’.

He, however, hailed the successes of the military in tackling insurgency and armed banditry, saying there was need for improved budgetary allocation to the defence sector.

According to him, this would bring about accelerated equipping of the Nigerian military to confront the challenges of modern, urban and conventional warfare.

The monarch said he felt gratified that of all the reasons adduced for the postponement of the election by the chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, the armed forces were never accused of bias in the discharge of their duties.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/monarch-urges-politicians-not-to-drag-military-into-ethnic-war.html

sai Atiku

Gov. Aminu Masari of Katsina state says the postponed elections will not affect the promise made by Katsina people to deliver three million votes for re-election bid of President Muhammadu Buhari on Feb. 23.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had on Saturday shifted the conduct of the Presidential and National Assembly elections to Feb. 23.

The governorship, house of assembly, FCT area council elections were also shifted from March 2 to March 9.

However, Masari told State House correspondents in Katsina that the postponement would not change the position of Katsina people, stressing that the APC Thursday’s rally had clearly indicated that the people would deliver on their three million votes for Buhari/Osinbajo ticket.

He said: “Katsina people are ready; you saw it if you were here on Thursday (rally) you would know Katsina people are ready and prepared for these elections.

“The postponement will not change anything, it will not change the position of Katsina state.

“We were ready two days ago. I believe those of you who were in Katsina since on Wednesday or Thursday you would have seen that we were more than ready as far as the elections is concerned.’’

According to the governor, the postponement based on previous experience did not come as surprise to him.

Masari, who expressed serious concern over the postponement of the elections almost at the last hours by INEC, said “I hope INEC does not develop a culture of shifting dates of elections’’.

He maintained that it would be unfair for anybody or organization to shift the blame of the postponed elections on President Buhari, adding that INEC, an independent body should be held responsible for its action.

He said: “But the fact on ground is that INEC gave assurance and the federal government has given INEC all the resources they required. So, the failure if there is any is their own.

“It has nothing to do or very little to do with the President except that being the President and the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces whatever happens under the sun in Nigeria he becomes responsible but not liable.

“If you are looking for somebody who is liable, INEC is liable to convince Nigerians why it shifted the elections because all the political parties are going to suffer the consequences of INEC’s action.

“So, obviously there will be additional cost on the political parties and also on the government. So, the president cannot deliberately orchestrate this and knowing the kind of president Nigeria has now – he has not even interfered with departments that are directly under him let alone a commission that is independent based on the provision of the constitution.

“He is somebody who believes in the rule of law.’’

On security situation in the state, the governor disclosed that the state government in collaboration with relevant security agencies at both local and state level had succeeded in securing the state from criminals.

He commended the federal government for deploying more security personnel with additional tracking and other security gadgets to locate and apprehend kidnapers and bandits within and beyond the state.

“From the time I cried out to date, one – there has been reinforcement in the police, also the Department of State Services has sent in more tracking devices and more personnel and the military are operating, the air force is in the air always.

“I think there is improvement in terms of the level of security with regards to kidnapping, armed banditry.

“We were very much concerned because we were afraid that it would affect elections in some of the wards that are bordering the forest areas.

“But luckily enough with the combined operations of the local security under the local government system, the police; the Nigerian Civil Defence and the army, the situation has improved tremendously and we can now conduct elections in more than 95 per cent of those places that were being daily attacked, because most of the attacks were coming from the forest in Zamfara.

“They hit and go on motor bikes. So, really security, yes, is still a problem but not to the extent that it will disturb the issue of elections,’’ he said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/masari-to-buhari-your-promised-3m-votes-intact-despite-postponed-elections.html

The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) says it is unfair to call for the resignation of Prof. Mahmood Yakubu as Chairman of Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over election postponement.

NANS’ National Public Relations Officer (PRO), Mr Bestman Okereafor, said this in a statement he issued in Enugu on Monday.

Okereafor said: “Even though we frown at the manner and timing of the announcement of the postponement, we still consider the decision to be in the best interest of Nigerians.

“It is a reality that the postponement of the elections by INEC has in a great way exposed the faces of betrayals and which we expect political parties to be grateful for.’’

The NANS spokesman, however, said that it was on record that this was not the first time the nation was witnessing postponement in polls.

“Something similar occurred in 2015 under INEC leadership of Prof. Attahiru Jega.’’

“NANS considers the decision by INEC to postpone the elections to be in the best interest of Nigerians in defence of our democracy.’’

Okereafor implored all Nigerian students to remain “most peaceful and calm as the nation anticipates credible polls on Feb. 23.“

NAN reports that since INEC announced the postponement of the Presidential/National Assembly Elections on Saturday, many groups, political and apolitical have been calling for the resignation of INEC boss and his management team. (NAN)

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/calls-for-resignation-of-inec-chairman-unfair-nans.html

we pray peaceful election

The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has expressed shock at the last minute postponement of the Presidential and National Assembly elections scheduled to hold last Saturday.

In a statement issued on Sunday night by the NLC President, Ayuba Wabba, he said that the Congress shares in the pains of those who show an uncommon spirit of patriotism by travelling long distances to perform their civic duty and the outrage of those who had incurred huge and unquantifiable logistic costs.

He said there was no explanation good enough by INEC to justify the sudden postponement due to the repeated assurances from it and the zeal of Nigerians to cast their votes.

He, however, said that given the fact that had the election taken place, a huge number of Nigerians would have been disenfranchised on account of gross and wide-spread logistic deficit, “the postponement, as painful as it is, is a lesser evil of the two.”

Wabba said, “ln light of this, we enjoin all Nigerians to quickly put behind them this ugly incident and brace up for the rescheduled election next weekend.

“In spite of huge costs to them, we call on all Nigerians to self-mobilise on the same scale that they did the previous weekend.

“Let them not be disillusioned or react to this postponement in a manner that will create voter-apathy.

“This will certainly be counter-productive and will in the long run work against the interests of the electorate.”

The NLC president called on institutions to be flexible with their staff to enable them travel in good time to perform their civic duty even if it means government declaring a day or two public holiday to achieve this.

“As for INEC, we do hope they have learnt their lesson. On no account ever again, should they allow this to happen.

“All effort and expertise must be deployed by INEC to guarantee free, fair and credible elections.

“We appeal to all Nigerians to put this incident behind them and go out en mass to vote next weekend,” said Wabba.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/nlc-to-nigerians-go-out-and-vote-on-saturday.html

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said that it is ready for the Presidential and National Assembly elections slated for tomorrow.

The INEC’s National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, told Daily Trust last night that everything necessary to ensure the success of the elections has been put in place by the commission.

“We are airlifting election

materials for both the Presidential and National Assembly elections. Some of the airlifts were from Abuja to Port Harcourt and Kano. And some of the contingents were conveying their materials from Kano. For instance the materials for Jigawa and Kano and other areas there were taken from Kano airport. The Central Bank gave them truck to transport them from Kano airport to the various destinations.

“The materials for the South-South were delivered to the Port Harcourt Airport. It is massive operation. Most of these materials were heavy and it is only cargo airplanes that can airlift them to their various destinations. As at today (yesterday) the Nigerian Air force were using their C-130 and Hercules aircrafts.

“So we are engaged in massive operations for the past three days till this night (last night). Our hope and prayer is that we will complete the airlift of the materials to all the states of the federation by tomorrow (today) morning so that the distribution to the local governments can be completed too,” Okoye said.

According to him, the Smart Card Readers (SCR) and the ballot boxes have gone to the local governments, even as the cubicles and others have been deployed and all the electoral officials are ready to go.

He said what remains is the complete airlift of the ballot papers to their destinations.

Okoye said one aircraft went to Maiduguri and could not land due to bad weather and had to return to Abuja. He said the materials were later taken to Kano and were on their way to Maiduguri by road.

The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, according to Okoye, was meeting the Chief of Air Staff for more aircrafts to compete the airlifts of materials, as this was same procedure adopted for 2015.

“So we are strongly partnering with the Nigeria Air Force as they are the ones with most of the aircraft that can do the shuttles,” Okoye said.

He said the chairman was also in constant consultation with the Central Bank of Nigeria governor where the commission was depositing materials, and the Nigeria Custom Service as some of the aircraft were landing at airports and had to be cleared to land and take off.

On the recent fire in the commission’s office in Awka, he said the Anambra State REC has reconfigured the SCR in 14 local governments and others would be completed by today.

Okoye told Daily Trust that the commission has also re-printed virtually all the PVCs burnt in its offices in Abia and Plateau states.

Buhari vows to consolidate gains if reelected

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday rounded off his campaign tour with a grand finale rally at the Muhammadu Dikko Stadium, Katsina.

Addressing the mammoth crowd, Buhari said money that would have gone into rice importation is now being channelled to the provision of Infrastructures across the country.

The president said since assumption of office in 2015, his three cardinal promises of insecurity, corruption and improved economy have been substantially achieved.

“My seeking for re-election was to consolidate on our earlier gains,” he said, adding that the people of North East are in the best position to tell Nigerians about the relative peace they now enjoy.

“I assure you I will not betray your trust and will not allow anyone that has done that to go scot-free nor allow anyone presently to do that,” he said

In his address, the National Chairman of the APC, Adams Oshiomhole, said the energy and agility exhibited by the president in going round the country is a manifestation of his good health and has put to shame enemies of the state who claimed he couldn’t campaign across the country.

He said the electorate should be wary of the opposition who want to “take us back to dark era of structural adjustment programmes, devaluation and unattractive privatisation for their selfish interests.”

Earlier, Katsina State Governor Aminu Masari described Buhari as a true and worthy son of the state whose quality attributes of honesty, trustworthiness endeared him to all.

Daily Trust reports that upon arrival in the state around 7pm, the president paid a royal homage on the Emir of Katsina Abdulmumini Kabir Usman.

In his remarks, the emir assured the president of support and prayed for his success at the polls.

Later in Daura, hundreds of residents trooped out to receive President Buhari who arrived the town, ahead of tomorrow’s presidential and national assembly elections.

Residents took to the streets, chanting ‘Sai Baba’, ‘Sai Baba Buhari’, ‘4+4’, among others.

The president, who came to the town by road, after his campaign rally in Katsina, went to the palace of the Emir of Daura Alhaji Umar Farouk Umar, before going to his residence.

The president spent about an hour at the palace with the emir and other traditional rulers.

The Daura emir urged Nigerians to reelect President Buhari to sustain the current level of development across the country.

“I am certain that Nigeria would continue to witness unprecedented transformations in the economy, politics, security, infrastructure and agriculture, if President Buhari is reelected,” the emir said.

Our correspondent reports that the president entered his residence at GRA area of the town around 8.15pm.

The president’s wife Aisha Buhari had earlier arrived Daura ahead of her husband, where she conducted door-to-door campaign for the reelection of the president.

The last time the president visited his country home was in August during the Eid-el-Kabir Sallah celebration.

Elect president from N/East, Atiku tells Adamawa voters

In Yola, Adamawa State where Atiku Abubakar, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, ended his campaign, his wives begged the electorate not to reject their husbands, assuring them that he will not steal.

Rukayya, the daughter of the late Lamido of Adamawa, Aliyu Musdafa, who ruled for more than 50 years, urged the electorate to remember the legacy of her late father and vote for his son-in-law. Rukayya is a sister to the present Lamido Muhammadu Barkindo Aliyu Mudafa.

Atiku’s senior wife, Titi, also assured the electorate that her husband would not steal public funds because he had enough money, adding that Adamawa should rally behind its son this time around.

The PDP candidate, who holds the traditional title of Waziri in Adamawa Emirate, also paid homage to the Lamido of Adamawa, who urged the politicians to play politics without bitterness.

Speaking at a rally in Yola yesterday, Atiku urged fellow Adamawa people to show appreciation to other Nigerians who picked him as presidential candidate by massively voting for him.

“Today is my last day (of campaign). I have not come here to campaign but to say I have come home. The rest of Nigeria has campaigned for you by giving your son a ticket. What I want to say on your behalf is that we are grateful to all Nigerians for giving us the opportunity to elect the president from Adamawa State, from the Northeast,” he stated.

Atiku accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) of mismanaging the economy and failing to protect citizens, warning voters against casting votes for President Buhari.

“Don’t vote for the APC, because they brought hunger, poverty and insecurity. So don’t vote for them on Saturday,” he said.

In his address, the National Chairman of the PDP, Uche Secondus, said the PDP would resist any attempt to postpone the polls, warning INEC against rigging the elections.

He charged the people to sack the APC government both at national and state levels to bring about rapid transformation of the economy.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/were-set-for-presidential-n-assembly-polls-inec-says.html

President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will struggle with accepting defeat, according to an analysis of the Saturday presidential poll.

The analysis made exclusively for Daily Trust by the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, United Kingdom, however said “how they (Buhari and Atiku) express their disappointment is the key issue.”

An Associate Fellow of the Africa Programme of the institute, Dr. Lena Koni Hoffman, also said the open popularity contests on the campaign trail through a succession of open-air rallies by Buhari and Atiku “are fundamentally uninspiring.”

She said, “The upside of the 2019 elections is that it has shown that Nigerians are tired of the two main parties that have dominated the last 20 years since the country returned to democracy and have an appetite for more capable candidates emerging through more credible and transparent processes.

“This means that 2019 may be significant not because of who wins but because it’s the threshold for politics-as-usual and the beginning of a transition to a different kind of politics and crop of candidates in 2023.”

Dr Hoffman added that “Lost in the intensity of this focus on the top ticket is the down ballot vote for the 360 members of the House of Representatives and the 109 members of the Senate.”

She said members of the National Assembly “are arguably the most crucial actors after the elections because of their role in addressing constitutional and legislative issues…”

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/atiku-buhari-will-struggle-with-accepting-defeat-chatham-house.html

The north central zone of Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) on Wednesday disassociated itself from the endorsement of All Progressives Congress (APC)’s Muhammadu Buhari as its presidential candidate for the forthcoming election.

Speaking on behalf of the zone, Alhaji Sule Audu, said at a news conference in Makurdi, that the recent endorsement by a section of ACF which held in Kaduna State negates the constitution of the organisation.

“We (North-Central) completely disassociate from that endorsement. And we urge all northerners to go out on Saturday and vote for a candidate of their choice,” he said.

Sule who is a staunch member of ACF and Majority Leader of the Benue State House of Assembly, added that the decision of a group of elders who met in Kaduna to adopt Buhari’s candidature for the election does not represent the views of the organisation’s whole interest.

He said the constitution of ACF does not permits the organization to align with particular candidates as its membership is devoid of political, religious and tribal affiliation, stressing that many northerners who are part of the forum are contesting for same position.

Audu added, “at state and management levels, the organization constituted of many northerners who belong to various political parties just as Buhari and PDP’s Atiku Abubakar are both serving as Board of Trustees of the organization.”

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/buharis-endorsement-divides-arewa-consultative-forum.html

To people of Cross River State, out of the avalanche of political parties and importantly the presidential candidates, there are only three presidential candidates they would likely vote for on February 16.

These are the two frontline candidates of the APC and the PDP: President Muhammadu Buhari and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar respectively. The third person is of course the son of the soil and former governor of the state, Mr Donald Duke. But the crisis currently rocking the Social Democratic Party (SDP) where Duke intends to run for the presidency seems to have affected his ambition. Factions have already emerged in the SDP. If the latest politics of endorsements is anything to go by, his presidential aspiration may have been hampered by the party whose two factions have endorsed both President Buhari and former vice president Atiku.

The chances of President Buhari to get a considerable number of votes in the state have been enhanced the defection of political bigwigs who have always influenced the direction of votes and power to the national ruling party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The APC can now boast of the former Senate leader and former chairman of the board of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, the embattled minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Usani Usani, the ever popular APC gubernatorial candidate, John Owan-Enoh, the crowd puller Senator Prince Otu, former state chairman of the PDP, Ekpo Okon, who incidentally is the running mate to Owan-Enoh, the national vice chairman of the APC for South-South, Hilliard Eta, Chief Clement Ebri (former governor of the state), Chief Okoi Obono Obla, special assistant to the president on prosecution, Alex Egbonna and countless others. These people are crowd pullers who are politically influential in their local communities and state.

The coming of these influential political stalwarts have increased the population of APC members in the state. This is seen as a greater advantage for the APC presidential candidate, Buhari.

Analysts say the sharp division existing in the party occasioned by the struggle for party leadership and governorship candidature by the minister of Niger Delta Affairs Usani cannot dissuade party members and supporters from voting for Buhari. Pundits say the division may, however, affect the March 2 governorship election.

Already, there is a sentimental factor that the president has shown the state remarkable love and support during his first term, a development which made the sitting governor, though a PDP man, to say that the president loves the state because he works more for him than many APC governors. The fact that the president has given sons and daughters of the state some key federal government appointments in also considered as a plus to his chances as the beneficiaries are expected to naturally reciprocate this kind gesture by mobilising electoral supports for their boss.

However, the current suspension and travail of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Walter Onnoghen, who hails from the state, may affect the number of his expected votes.

Analysts say though people lament over the general outcry about economic hardship in the state and the country as experienced in Buhari’s first term, the unprecedented turnout and show of love for him when he came to the state for his campaign on January 30 are seen as an indication that the incumbent president can garner appreciable number of votes in 2019 than the 28,000 he got in 2015.

As it looks, the APC may likely grab Cross River State from the PDP as many members seem to be disenchanted with the state ruling party.

Equally, the PDP presidential candidate has a number of support groups who are tirelessly mobilising for him. These supporters claim that Atiku is more articulated, more endowed and has better capacity to fight the ills of the society and turn around the socio-economic fortunes of the country.

The PDP campaigners are trumping up the issue of ethnicity and the recent suspension of their son, Onnoghen, to dissuade people from working for the incumbent president.

Besides, the PDP in the state claimed that it has the structures, massive supporters and influence to garner more than one million votes for their presidential and governorship candidates, Atiku and Prof Ben Ayade respectively.

The immediate past governor, who is regarded a master strategist in the state, Senator Liyel Imoke, was reported widely as saying that Cross River remains a PDP state and that its spirit and influence have been entrenched in the subconscious of the people no matter what the defectors say. Imoke was said to have also corroborated Ayade’s assertion that opposition cannot win election in the state.

The governor claims that his work in the areas of industrialization, massive appointments, and regular payment of salaries among others have warmed him into the hearts of the electorate, especially the widows and the youths. Therefore, he is certain of raking home massive votes for Atiku and himself.

But some pundits says whether the president or Atiku wins in the state is not of concern to the Cross River people as they expect from the eventual winner to look into social infrastructures such as fixing the major federal roads, supply of constant public power, availability of foods and reduction in the high cost of living.


https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/in-c-river-buhari-atiku-to-share-votes.html

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar on Tuesday said he would fulfil his promise to restructure Nigeria if elected in Saturday’s election.

Atiku said, unlike the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) which allegedly failed to deliver on its promises, he would fulfil his promises to restructure Nigeria and create jobs for millions of unemployed Nigerians.

He spoke in Lagos during the PDP’s presidential rally held at the Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS), Lagos.

Atiku who addressed the large gathering of PDP supporters also promised to remove congestion in Lagos state which he said had virtually crippled the economy of the state.

He said the ruling party can no longer be trusted having failed to deliver on its promises, noting that Nigeria currently has the largest unemployment rate in the history of the country.

He promised to reverse the trend by creating massive jobs as he has been doing in his private capacity.

Atiku also vowed to respect the constitution, work with the National Assembly and protect the institution of the judiciary.

He said, “Let me assure you and let me assure the people of Lagos state and South-West, you know I am not like APC. When I promise something I will do it. I promised Nigerians that I am going to restructure this country, I am going to do it.

“Look at what they have done. Our traffic cannot move. On the day the President was coming, they removed all the trucks. No sooner he left all the trucks are back. With a PDP government, you are not going to have this congestion again. So the people of Lagos, please vote for PDP all the way”.

Also speaking, the National Chairman of the party, Uche Secondus, lamented that many industries and businesses had shut down in Lagos which is the commercial capital of the Nigeria since the APC government came to power.

He said Lagos by electing a PDP government in the forthcoming elections would regain freedom from the “hand of emperor”.

“Since 2015, there has been go-slow in Lagos, all businesses shut down, all industries shut down. Unemployment has increased. Economy has collapsed. Security has collapsed,” he added.

Similarly, the Director-General of the Atiku/Obi Presidential campaign and Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki stressed that Atiku’s election means better economy, jobs for the youth and prosperity for all Nigerians.

Others who spoke at the rally included the former governor of Ekiti State, Mr. Ayo Fayose, former Deputy National Chairman of the party, Chief Olabode George and former Governor of Ogun state, Otunba Gbenga Daniel.


https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/ill-fulfil-my-promise-to-restructure-nigeria-atiku.html

chai

The lawmaker representing Tambuwal-Kebbe federal constituency, Abdussamad Dasuki, has urged members of his constituency to protect their votes during the forthcoming elections.

Addressing his supporters while rounding up his polling units campaigns in Kebbe local government area, he said the state would not go back to APC because of the neglect it suffered in terms of federal government’s projects.

Dasuki was optimistic that the people of the state would vote massively for PDP’s candidates at the polls.

He added “this is because they have utmost belief in PDP’s ability to take them to the high level and solve their problems.”

Dasuki, who is the Chairman House Committee on Navy, promised to bring more developmental projects to his constituency.

“I will also secure jobs for our teeming youth, provide scholarship to them and also support our farmers,” he added

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/sokoto-wont-go-back-to-apc-dasuki.html

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Hoodlums, yesterday, set ablaze a campaign office belonging to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial candidate in Kano State, Engr. Abba Kabir Yusuf.

The office was located at No. 36 Chiranchi Quarters in Gwale Local Government Area of the state.

A statement by spokesman of the gubernatorial candidate, Sanusi Bature Dawakin Tofa, said the office was attacked by 60 thugs allegedly led by Junaidu Abdulhamid, a personal assistant to the State APC Chairman, Abdullahi Abbas, and Habibu Dandayis, a diehard supporter of the party chairman.

The statement said during the attack, the thugs also vandalised a Volkswagen Golf – III car with registration number NSR 237 AE.

The gubernatorial candidate called on the police and other security agencies to, as a matter of urgency, investigate the matter with a view to bringing the culprits to justice.

When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Haruna Abdullahi Kiyawa, said police had so far not received any report on the incident.

The APC was also yet to speak on the matter at the time of filing this report.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/kano-pdp-govship-campaign-office-set-ablaze.html

President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, said all recovered loot will be reinvested in infrastructure.

Buhari also promised that if re-elected, his administration would continue to bring those who abused trust before the law.


He said this in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, during his campaign rally.

“We are going to continue to take those who abused trust before the law; collect what they have stolen and reinvest them in infrastructure,” he said.

National Chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole, told the crowd of supporters that the end of the Saraki dynasty had come.

“For Bukola, it is finished. I cannot wait till Saturday for Kwara people to celebrate their new-found freedom,” he said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/well-reinvest-recovered-loot-into-infrastructure-buhari.html

As the deadline for the collection of Permanent Voters Card (PVCs) end on Monday, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has said lots of registered voters have collected their PVCs to enable them vote in the coming general elections.

The commission’s National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, told Daily Trust on Monday night that INEC has done everything possible to ensure that Nigerians who registered during the continuous voters’ exercise collected their voters’ card.

“Recall that INEC had earlier set the 8th of February as the deadline, but the commission really wanted people to collect their PVCs, we have to extend it till today being the 11th February.

“We believe that sufficient numbers of Nigerians have collected their PVCs. We also acknowledged that there were some challenges for the collection by some people.

“Since the collection cannot continue non-stop, we have to stop at this particular period to enable us focus principally and fundamentally on the February 16 Presidential and National Assembly elections and also to recall all uncollected PVCs, give account of them and deposit them with the Central Bank.

“We have done reasonably well; we still acknowledged that there were some challenges and the PVC collection will continue after the elections,” Okoye said.

According to him, it will not be possible to get the number of those that collected their PVCs and also what remained uncollected as at Monday expiration.

“By tomorrow (today), all local governments are expected to mop-up uncollected PVCs and forward them the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) and thereafter give us the number.

“We would then tell Nigerians the number of uncollected PVCs and deposit them in the Central Banks (offices) of each states of the federation. We urged Nigerians to bear with us as we have all we could to ensure that they collect their PVCs and immediately after the elections, the collection will resume,” he said.

The Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, had told newsmen last Friday at a regular meeting with the RECs in Abuja, that the commission has taken the decision that the collection of PVCs scheduled to end on Friday 8th February 2019 be extended nationwide to Monday 11th February 2019, to include Saturday and Sunday from 9am to 6pm daily.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/lots-of-nigerians-have-collected-their-pvcs-inec.html

Former vice president and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has promised to improve agriculture and commerce if elected president.

Addressing a mammoth crowd at Sani Abacha Stadium in Kano, yesterday, Atiku lamented collapsed industries across the country. He accused APC-led government of crippling industries across the country, promising that when PDP assumed power, it will revive all the collapsed industries.

“The people of Kano, I am aware that yours is business and farming, if you elect me come February 16, I will provide you with conducive atmosphere for farming and business.

“I will equally improve activities of hajj to make things easy for you to perform the annual hajj exercise,” he said.

The former vice president promised to improve security in the country if elected.

Earlier, Senator Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso said looking at the mammoth crowd that received Atiku in Kano, the youth had proven that PDP will win in the state. He said, “Kano youth have proven to us that Kano is for the PDP. We are happy that the youth have answered our call.”

Also speaking, the Director General of Atiku Campaign, Senator Abubakar Bukola Saraki called on Kano people to vote APC-led government out of power come February 16.

He said, “People are suffering because there is hunger everywhere, it is only PDP that can bail you out of this situation.” The National Chairman of PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, said the crowd that converged on Sani Abacha Stadium was a sign of a gradual political revolution in Nigeria.

About 30 PDP supporters fainted during the rally because of the crowded nature of the stadium.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/kano-atiku-promises-improved-agric-commerce-if-elected.html

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday said the forthcoming general elections in the country were being threatened by corruption.

Daily Trust reports that the presidential and National Assembly elections will hold on Saturday, to be followed by governorship and state assembly polls two weeks later.

The president expressed this fear in an article titled, “Corruption threatens Nigeria – and its election.”

“As president, I have tried to judiciously exercise the trust vested in me to combat the problems of corruption, insecurity and an inequitable economy. All are important. But amongst them, one stands above the others as both a cause and aggravator of the rest. It is, of course, corruption.

“A policy programme that does not have fighting corruption at its core is destined to fail. The battle against graft must be the base on which we secure the country, build our economy, provide decent infrastructure and educate the next generation.

“This is the challenge of our generation: the variable on which our success as a nation shall be determined. But the vested interests at play can make this fight difficult. By way of their looting, the corrupt have powerful resources at their disposal. And they will use them. For when you fight corruption, you can be sure it will fight back.

“It even threatens to undermine February’s poll and – by extension – our democracy. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has raised concerns over laundered money being funnelled into vote buying. This is the problem of corruption writ large. It illustrates how it lurks in all and every crevice of public life, manipulating due process in pursuit of self-preservation and perpetuation; protecting personal political and economic interests at the expense of the common good,” the president said.

Buhari said those who have criticised his administration’s anti-corruption drive are those who opposed its mission.

“And though their lawyers may craft expensive alibis, they cannot escape that which binds them together: a raft of documents and barely legal (some clearly illegal) mechanisms – whether that be the Panama Papers, US Congress reports, shell companies or offshore bank accounts.

“Corruption corrodes the trust on which the idea of community is founded, because one rule for the few and another for everyone else is unacceptable to anyone working honestly.

“But as we have intensified our war on corruption, so we have found that corruption innovates to resist the law. This is not the sole domain of those Nigerians, but the international corruption industry: the unsavoury fellow-traveller of globalisation.

“Once the enablers are let in – as they have been in the past – the greed of those they collude with grows. We have closed the door on them, but unfortunately there still remain individuals who are willing to open windows,” he said.

The president, who is seeking a second term, said even though concrete progress had been made, there was still much to do.

“We have repatriated hundreds of millions of dollars stowed away in foreign banks. These funds have been transparently deployed on infrastructural projects and used to directly empower the poorest in society. More is still to come from our international partners in France, the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Yet the hundreds of billions sifted out of the country for the best part of this century promise more.

“We have secured high profile convictions, but greater cases remain. Lawyers table endless objections to obstruct court proceedings, whilst their clients hope it lasts until a ‘friendly’ president is voted into office. We must continue to tighten the legal framework and ensure the authorities have the investigative powers at their disposal to secure sentences. Only then will we begin to neutralise the advantages the corrupt have,” he said.

According to him, the country has saved about $550m from the removal of ghost workers from government payroll.

“More can be recovered through our whistle-blower policy ($370 million has been returned since its launch in 2016). More is still to come. But, together, we shall prevail over corruption.

“A Yoruba proverb states that only the patient one can milk a lion. Likewise, victory over corruption is difficult, but not impossible. We must not flounder in our resolve. I know many Nigerians would like to see faster action. So do I. But so too must we follow due process and exercise restraint, ensuring allegation never takes the place of evidence. For that is not the Nigeria we should wish to build.

“There is no doubt that this Administration has changed the way we tackle corruption. The choice before voters is this: Do we continue forward on this testing path against corruption? Or do revert to the past, resigned to the falsehood that it is just the-way-things-are-done? Or that it is just too difficult – too pervasive – to fix? I know which one I would choose. It is why I am asking Nigerians for another four years to serve them,” he said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/elections-under-threat-buhari-says.html

President of the Senate and Director General of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Council, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has called on Nigerians who have collected their Permanent Voter’s Card (PVC) across the nation to ensure that they come out to vote in massive numbers on February 16, 2019.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Yusuph Olaniyonu, Saraki, who highlighted several reasons why Nigerians should participate en mass in the forthcoming elections, noted that with a high voters turn-out, the results of the election cannot be manipulated.

“We have all seen how the last four years have gone. It is time for Nigerians across the nation to choose economic growth over poverty; choose security over the growing and fast spreading insecurity; and choose competent leadership over leadership that is outdated.

“If you have ever questioned if Nigeria can be better, coming out to vote and bringing your friends and relatives who have PVCs out to vote next Saturday will be your answer.

“It is not enough to tweet about this government or share WhatsApp broadcasts, the time has come for all Nigerians to take their future in their hands and vote for visionary leaders, Atiku Abubakar, Peter Obi, and the PDP’s slate of candidates, who are promising a Better Nigeria and are ready to make Nigeria work again,” Saraki stated.

The Senate President also called on all young Nigerians of voting age to see this election as a test of the strength of their numbers, adding that with 51 percent of the voters on the register being youths, they make up the most crucial voting bloc.

“To the young people of our nation, I want you to know that you cannot afford to just sit on the sidelines any longer. All across the world, young people like you are deciding who will lead their nations. The youth of Nigeria have an opportunity this time around to become the deciding factor.

“I have read a lot of comments about young people saying that they won’t vote because their votes do not matter and that people want to rig the election. Here’s my answer: “If you vote, they can’t rig!” The more people that come out to vote, the less likely it is for those that want to manipulate the results to do so — its a simple mathematics. It is the numbers of registered voters who failed to come out and vote that the riggers seek to manipulate in inflating votes for a candidate or group of candidates.

“I urge you all, take this election seriously, and together, we can make history together by saving Nigeria’s future,” the Senate President stated.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/dont-allow-them-to-rig-come-out-and-vote-on-saturday-saraki-urges-nigerians.html

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has extended the collection of the Permanent Voters Cards, PVCs, which hitherto ended today, by two more days.

The Chairman of the commission, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, said this on Friday, in Abuja.

He was speaking at a regular meeting with the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) of INEC across the country and FCT.

According to him, the meeting, coming just a week to the General Elections, was to have a final review of preparations for the elections.

“In the last couple of days, we have been inundated by calls from Nigerians to review the current process of collection of Permanent Voters’ Cards.

“In response, the Commission has taken the decision that the collection of PVCs scheduled to end today Friday 8th February 2019 is hereby extended nationwide to Monday 11th February 2019. This will include Saturday and Sunday.

“The collection of PVCs will now take place from 9am to 6pm daily. All state offices are hereby directed to review the procedure for the collection of PVCs and dedicate all the staff of the Local Government offices to the collection process. Staff are enjoined to be civil in attending to citizens and to escalate issues that they cannot immediately resolve to their superiors,” Yakubu said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/breaking-inec-extends-pvcs-collection-deadline.html

Over 1,000 policemen have been deployed to ensure adequate security as President Muhammadu Buhari presidential campaign train berths in Makurdi, Benue State tomorrow.

The state Commissioner of Police, Omololu Bishi, made this known on Tuesday at a press briefing in Makurdi.


“Over 1,000 policemen are being deployed. All areas will be covered. We may inconvenience members of the public by closing down some commercial areas for that day (Wednesday) in order to have a peaceful rally,” he said.

Bishi added that every measure necessary had been already put in place even as the police would be strategising with other sister agencies to receive the president in Benue state.


The commissioner posited that there would be no other political party rally holding tomorrow in Makurdi except that of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/benue-over-1000-police-deployed-for-buharis-visit-tomorrow.html

The Kaduna State Government on Tuesday confirmed an outbreak of strange animal disease, suspected to be Contagious Bovine Pleuro Pneumonia (CBPP), currently killing cows in parts of the state.

Malam Dahiru Abdullahi, the Information Officer, state Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, confirmed the outbreak in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kaduna.

Abdullahi said: “There were reported cases of the strange disease in parts of the state.

“The Vetenirary Department of the ministry had begun investigation and blood samples of some affected cows had been taken for laboratory test to ascertain the nature of the disease.”

NAN reports that the outbreak was reported in some communities in Kachia, Kagarko and Anchau Local Government Areas of the state.

The official, however, said that experts in animal diseases were already working round the clock to ensure it did not spread to other parts of the state.

A Fulani herder, Malam Suleiman Adamu, told NAN that disease had so far killed more than 100 herds of cattle in their own family at Kilometre 60, Doka Ward, Kachia Local Government Area, in the last three weeks.

Adamu said their father, Alhaji Dano, who has over 500 herds now live in fear and devastation following the outbreak in the area.

He expressed concern with the slow pace of measures being taken by the state government to tackle the disease which, he said, was contagious.

Another pastoralist, Malam Muhammed Dauji, who lives at Gadan Malam Mamman, a community also in Kachia local government area, told NAN in a separate interview that they had lost 40 cows to the disease.

Dauji said herds of cattle belonging to his kinsmen in Kagarko and Anchau Local Government Areas had been affected and many cows killed between September 2018 and January this year.

He, however, lamented that no proper action had been taken by government to tackle the outbreak and “it is now spreading to other areas of the state’’.

NAN reports that cattle infected by CBPP would have difficulty breathing, which constitutes the major symptom.

Other clinical signs, according CBPP experts, includes “dry husky cough, especially when the animal first gets on its feet or is made to run’’.

Affected animals show signs of grunting with signs of pain if pressure applied to the ribs, fever, nasal discharges and anorexia, among others.

“In severe cases the animal’s breathing is rapid, movement of the sides is increased and animals stand with feet wide apart to aid breathing.

“Some animals may die. Others appear to recover but can remain infectious for up to three years.
“CBPP is spread by direct contact with an infected animal, through infected droplets in the breath.’’ (NAN)

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/kaduna-govt-battles-outbreak-of-strange-disease-killing-cows.html

The Federal Government has warned that illegal higher institutions will be demolished because they pose a threat to the education system.

Government had earlier directed higher education regulatory agencies to ‘crackdown hard’ on unlawful universities, colleges of education and polytechnics. Already, about 66 universities and 68 polytechnics and specialized technical colleges were discovered to be running courses and awarding certificates without licenses.


Minister of Education, Malam Adamu Adamu said this at a press briefing in Abuja weekend. He said following the directive to regulatory bodies, to shut down unlawful higher institutions, reports indicated that “the agencies have already gone to work and the impact is being felt across the country.”

He called on the public to expose illegal higher institutions whenever they are found, with a view to dealing with the menace.


“Where necessary we shall demolish such institutions,” he said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/fg-will-demolish-illegal-higher-institutions-2.html

The Deputy Director General (Coordination) of the APC Presidential Campaign Council (APCCO), Arch. Waziri Bulama, yesterday, said President Muhammadu Buhari told his campaigners to work towards ensuring free, fair and credible elections for the votes of Nigerians to count.

Arch. Bulama, while fielding questions from journalists, said the council had embarked on engaging sensitisation and mobilisation by reaching out to Nigerians in all the nooks and crannies of the country.

Bulama, who said the APC expected more votes from the South West and North West because of the states it controlled and higher voting population, added that the council would fight for every vote by avoiding the temptation of taking things for granted.

“The APC is a national party, very strong throughout the country but most dominant in the North West and South West and more clearly we expect to have more votes,” he said.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/votesll-count-buhari-campaigner.html

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Etihad Oilfield Services Abdulrahman Bashir has said that drilling activities that started at the Kolmani River-II Well over the weekend will be completed in about 60 days.

Indigenous contractor Messrs Etihad Oilfield Services, a subsidiary of AA&R Investment Group, is the contractor handling drilling operations at the Kolmani River- II Well, a site near Barambu, a village in Alkaleri Local Government Area of Bauchi State.
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President Muhammadu Buhari Saturday officially flagged off drilling activities which is expected to confirm the presence of hydrocarbon and the quantity.

The Kolmani River-II Well will be drilled by Ikenga Rig 101 owned by the contractor Etihad Oilfield Sirvices/Drillog Petrodynamics Ltd.
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“We are drillers and normally it takes us 60 days to drill a well. In 60 days you can come back and get feedback from NNPC,” the CEO of the company said.

Bashir said the fact that an indigenous service company was handling the project was a testimony that local content is really working.

“We have only three expatriates here not like before when 50 per cent have to be expatriates on this rig. Most of the engineers on the rig are Nigerians,” he said.

Group Managing Director of the NNPC Dr. Maikanti Baru also said the well is designed to be 14,500 feet, deep which would take roughly 60 to 70 days for the NNPC reach its target depth.

“If we reach 14,500 and we still find some interests from the results and it requires that we need to go deeper, this rig is modern, it can go up to 20,000 feet,” he said.

The Kolmani River-II Well is one of four oil and gas wells that NNPC said were being planned for drilling this year on the Gongola Basin to further test the prospects identified around Kolmani River-1, Nasara-1 and Kuzari-1.

Shell had in 1999 drilled the first well in the Kolmani Rever-I but according the Anglo Dutch oil giant the amount of hydrocarbon found was not commercial.

“However, when we read the data, we observed that they did not go deep enough. So, we have come here based on the three dimensional seismic and other subsurface reviews and studies that we have done,” Baru said.

“At the moment, we are looking at deep down, we are looking at kilometers below the ground, nobody has gone there. It is only drilling that would confirm whether there is any resource there and also confirm our professional judgement which we have. So in terms of volumes, types and all that, let us wait.”

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/oil-drilling-at-kolmani-river-ii-well-to-take-60-days-contractor.html

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) on Sunday says investigation has began into Saturday’s crash landing of an helicopter conveying Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo in Kabba, Kogi State.

NCAA’s General Manager, Public Relations, Sam Adurogboye, confirmed the development to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

Adurogboye said the investigation was being conducted by the Accident Investigations Bureau (AIB), the statutory agency saddled with the task of investigating such serious incidents and accidents.

“The NCAA has been notified about the incident and we have notified the AIB to begin investigations in line with its mandate” Adurogboye said.

A source also told NAN on the condition of anonymity that the AIB had already deployed its team of investigators to the crash site to ascertain the remote and immediate cause of the incident.

Also confirming the development, Caverton Helicopters, in a statement signed by its Managing Director, Capt. Josiah Choms, said the relevant aviation agencies had been informed about the incident.

Choms said “An Augusta AW139 Helicopter, under management by Caverton Helicopters was involved in a mishap on landing in Kabba, Kogi State on Feb. 2 as a result of unusual weather conditions.

“There were no injuries to the passengers or crew on board and they were all quickly and safely evacuated.

“The relevant authorities have been duly informed and an investigation into the incident has commenced. We will, of course, support the authorities as required.

“We wish to reassure the public and our various stakeholders of our unwavering commitment to safety in all our operations,” he said.

NAN reports that Osinbajo and his entourage had crash landed in Kabba when he visited the town for his Next-Level engagements with the people.

However, the incident did not deter the Vice President from continuing with his engagements according to a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr Laolu Akande. (NAN)

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/investigation-on-osinbajos-helicopter-crash-begins-ncaa-official.html

Mammoth crowd welcome Buhari to Gombe

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/photos-mammoth-crowd-welcome-buhari-to-gombe.html

With a fortnight to the presidential and National Assembly polls, electioneering campaigns have slowed down the pace of governance in the country, especially at the executive and legislative arms of government.

The stepping up of campaigns by President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, Senate President Bukola Saraki, Speaker Yakubu Dogara and many lawmakers have slowed down the pace of governance in the country.
FEC meeting cancelled twice

The campaign has led to the cancellation of the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting which holds Wednesdays twice this year.

Section 148 ( 2 ) of the 1999 Constitution stipulates that the president shall hold regular meetings with the vice president and all the ministers of the government of the federation for the purposes of determining domestic and foreign policies of the government, to coordinate the activities of the president, vice president and ministers and lastly, to advise the president on policies and governmental affairs. The maiden FEC meeting for this year was held on January 9 and was presided over by the president. It was at that meeting that the council approved N812m for Mambilla Hydro Power Project, $9m variation for Escravos to Lagos gas pipeline, 1.7bn for Kano flight information region project and establishment of four private universities. A 24-man panel for the implementation of the new minimum wage was also inaugurated.

The second tagged ‘Extraordinary FEC meeting’ was held on January 15, also presided over by President Buhari. It was at the meeting that the issue of the new minimum wage was finalised.

But the FEC meeting could not hold on the 23rd and 30th as both the president and vice president were on campaigns in some states. On the 23rd, the president was in Sokoto and Kebbi states. He was in Cross River and Ebonyi states on January 30, thus the meeting was put off.

In the absence of the president, the vice president presides over the FEC meeting where critical national issues and projects are discussed and approved.

Barring any last minute change, it may still not hold next Wednesday as the president is set to be in Nasarawa and Benue states for his re-election campaign.

The president’s campaign programme revealed that he will be preoccupied throughout next week, moving from one state to the other for his electionering campaigns.

If this happens, it would be the third consecutive time without the meeting holding.

President Buhari had during the inauguration of his Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) assured that governance won’t suffer and that the national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, would fully be in charge of his campaigns.

Buhari said; “This campaign is going to tax us all, because we intend to touch all corners of our great and vast country. But I must also add that though we will all be deeply involved, I would like to assure the nation that I will do my part without making governance or my work suffer. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, my co-chairman, will be fully in charge, and is going to be on 24-hour vigil.”

Key things Buhari did alongside campaigns

Alongside his campaigns, the president has utilised his visits to states to commission projects. Some of the projects so far commissioned include the N6bn Baro River Port Complex in Niger state, the Ariaria Market Independent Power Project in Abia state, among others.

The president on Monday hosted at the Presidential Villa, the spiritual director of the Adoration Ministry, Enugu, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka who predicted his victory in 2015.

Also, the president hosted senators and senatorial candidates of the APC to a dinner at the Banquet Hall of the presidential Villa, Abuja. National Chairman of the APC, Adams Oshiomhole, disclosed at the end of the meeting that lasted for about two hours, that they met over the forthcoming elections.

Penultimate Friday, the president suspended the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Jusitce Walter Onnoghen following an order by the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) over issues relating to his assets declaration at the Code of Conduct Bureau ( CCB). Buhari replaced Onnoghen with Justice Ibrahim Tanko Mohammed, in acting capacity, albiet with wides scale backlash.

Before the suspension of Onnoghen, the president had signed Executive Order 007 to close the road infrastructure gap in the country. In the first phase of the program, 19 road projects covering 794km in 11 states are to be constructed by six companies through tax credit.

Same day, the president hosted governors and governorship candidates of the APC at the presidential Villa, Abuja. Issues relating to the forthcoming elections were said to have dominated the event.

On January 23, the president assented to the Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018. The day also witnessed the transmission of the new Minimum Wage Bill to the National Assembly. Buhari on January 22 presided over the Council of State meeting.

The president on January 15, appointed an acting Inspector- General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, following the attainment of the mandatory retirement age of 60 by Ibrahim Idris.

On his part, Osinbajo presided over the National Economic Council ( NEC) meeting where various national issues including the new minimum wage and farmers/ herders clashes were discussed. The vice president had also launched, ‘ The Green Imperative’ agricultural mechanization programme with a $1.1bn loan from the Brazilian government.

Presidential spokesman, Femi Adesina, said there is no rule that says FEC meetings must hold every week. He said during President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua’s administration, the meeting was held bi-weekly.

“What are they basing their conclusion on? Go and check the rule. There is nothing that says FEC must hold every week. Under Yar’Adua, it was held bi-weekly. There is no rule that says FEC must hold everyweek,” he said.

Legislative activities suffering in senate

At the senate, lawmaking, which is the topmost function of legislators, has since taken the back seat from the day the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) gave the go ahead for campaigns late last year.

A total of 68 senators are seeking re-election, hence they have since embarked on vigorous campaigns to retain their seats, as a result of which they now pay less attention to legislative activities.

The first casualty of the senators’ attitude is the 2019 budget estimates that has been before them since December 19, 2018. Having resumed from their Christmas and New Year break on January 16, it was expected that senators would give adequate attention to the budget and pass it for second reading so that it would be referred to the various committees for further action.

However, from January 16 through 24, there was no mention of the budget debate anywhere on the floor of the senate. Instead, the legislators embarked on about a month break to concentrate on their campaigns.

They have so relegated legislative activities that on January 22, they could not meet the required quorum to sit at plenary. On that day, only nine senators were present when plenary was to commence at about 10: 33am.

That was the second time the senators would adjourn their plenary sitting in about three months due to lack of quorum.

On November 13, 2018, the senators were forced to adjourn their plenary due to similar reason of not meeting the required quorum. There are 109 senators and based on their rules, a plenary sitting can only be held when there are at least one-third of them present at the commencement of the session. One-third of the senate is at least 36 senators.

It was observed that the senators present at the commencement of plenary on January 22 include Senate President Bukola Saraki, Chief Whip Sola Adeyeye (APC, Osun), Minority Whip Philip Aduda (PDP, FCT), Deputy Whip Francis Alimekhena (APC, Edo), Deputy Minority Whip Emmanuel Bwacha (PDP, Taraba), Barnabas Gemade (SDP, Benue), Gbenga Ashafa (APC, Lagos), Shaba Lafiagi (PDP, Kwarai) and Andrew Uchendu (APC, Rivers).

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/political-campaigns-take-spark-off-governance.html

Chairman, Independent National Elections Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu has said that the commission will investigate every campaign finance used by politicians and political parties if there is any form of violation.

Speaking on Friday in Abuja when he visited the Headquarters of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), he told journalist that “there have actually been lots of comments on the issue of tradermoni, money being shared by the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osibanjo to traders, and people have insisted that it was a form of vote buying.”

He said although people make comments which are partisan in nature and it was not for the commission to join issues with but “we will study all the comments we have heard from people and know if it is the type is issue we should be tracking.”

He said that the commission has a mechanism for tracking campaign finances “but this doesn’t seem to fall in terms of campaign financing and in terms of expenditure by candidates and parties.

He also assured that every measure has been put in place to ensure that no form of vote buying takes place during the elections.

On his visit, Yakubu said the commission came to seek for partnership with the FRSC so that they could help track vehicles that will be used in conveying election materials from one area to another so that no driver will escape with the materials.

https://www.dailytrust.com.ng/tradermoni-inec-to-investigate-campaign-finance-violation.html