₦airaland Forum

Hours after several crowdfunding accounts were set up for the People’s Democratic Party’s presidential candidate for the 2019 election, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, his spokesman, Paul Ibe has said he is unaware of the accounts.

Popular activist, Segun Awosanya, tweeted what he referred to as the “official GoFundMe link” for people interested in supporting the defense of Atiku’s mandate in a credible Court of Law.

“Our Call to Action is therefore simple: to put our money where our votes went and deal a decisive blow against tyranny and rigging by donating freely to support the case against INEC and the ruling APC,” the fundraiser said.

The account, tagged “Supporting Atiku’s Presidential Mandate”, was created on Tuesday and has since gotten 16 donations totalling $832 of $100,000 goal set for the mandate.

However, a call to Ibe revealed that Abubakar himself is unaware of the crowdfunding accounts.

“It is not us, it is not something that we set up,” said Ibe.

“The candidate has not authorised this. However, if people think they need to do what they have to do in defense of democracy, I don’t think anybody is obliged to asking them not to do what they want to do as long as what they want to do is within the ambit of the law ” he added.


Ibe continued that Abubakar is willing to work with the fundraisers just as they worked with good-willing people who are committed to democracy and the rule of law during their campaign.

“We are (willing to work together with them). Since we started the campaign we have worked with men and women and youths of good will, people who want to change the situation we are in. People who are interested in ensuring that we get Nigeria working with the motive of creating jobs for the millions of the jobless, with the motive of creating opportunity, with the motive of changing the hopeless situation we are in. I think anybody that shares those values and visions, we are simply joining hands to achieve our aim.

“People are prepared to take their destinies in their own hands.”

Abubakar lost his presidential ambition to the incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress.

The country went to the polls a week later than planned on February 23.

After the result of the pol was announced, Abubakar called the election a sham and rejected the result and said he will challenge it in court.

On Tuesday he filed for access to all INEC materials used to conduct the presidential election before the tribunal.,

Atiku and PDP filed the ex-Parte application before the Presidential election petition tribunal seated at the Court of Appeal in Abuja.

DavidEsq:
Youth ko! Yoot ni

ClearFlair:
Go and say this rubbish in Kwara and see if you won’t be beaten blue and black for making a mockery of their suffering under Saraki.

BuhariLooter:
Operation silent treatment has begun. No more responding to any lgbo hate filled threads.WE are not the only ones in nigeria
PLS LET'S STOP COMMENTING ON POLITICS SECTION OF NAIRALAND BIKONU ,LET'S DOUCE THE TENSION UMU INNEM DA'ALUNU.

IamPatriotic:
Leave story, Atiku is not going to any court, he's only using the threats to negotiate for soft landing in the numerous corruption cases that will be pressed against him by the PMB administration.

Beninmann:
there is nothing developed about Lagos

At least two thousand members of the PDP in Kwara State on Sunday defected to the opposition APC, the second such major exodus from the party in one week after the crushing defeat it suffered in the presidential and National Assembly elections last weekend.

The mass defections took place in Taiwo area of Ilorin, led by Hon. Bamidele Aluko, a former House of Assembly member and a staunch foot soldier of Senator Bukola Saraki.

Meanwhile, the governorship candidate of the ANRP in Kwara State Dr AbdulMumeen Yinka Ajia has also declared his support for APC’s AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq, saying the latter largely represents his dream about the state.

Ajia, a leading candidate with appreciable followers among the youths in the state, said in a statement at the weekend in Ilorin that AbdulRazaq’s victory will turn the page for the political history of Kwara.

Ajia also announced his immediate resignation from the ANRP and movement to the APC “because the situation in Kwara is really not about party but our struggle against retrogressive leadership as a people.”

He called on his supporters to deliver their bloc votes for the APC candidate.

“I have also gone through his manifesto and I am assured that the progressive, people-centred Kwara that I envisioned can be kick-started under his leadership,” Ajia added.

Aluko, leader of the decampees, was chairman of the Kwara United Football Club and the PDP leader in Badari Ward of Ilorin West, the most populated local government area of Kwara State.

Other top defectors included Alhaji Alao Abdulyekeen, another PDP top gun from Baboko area of Ilorin, and Akeem Dare youth leader from Balogun Fulani ward 1.

Also on Sunday in Ilorin, over 500 PDP members from Asa local government area joined the APC.

Leaders of the defectors said the outcome of the National Assembly elections was the clearest manifestation yet “that Kwarans have decided to reject and retire Senator Bukola Saraki for reasons of bad governance, oppression and non-inclusive leadership.”

“Our people are tired. Salaries don’t get paid in the true sense of the word and the infrastructure on the ground is not commensurate with the resources the state has received over the years. Worst still, people are tired of leaders who see everything from their own comfort zone,” Aluko said at a reception held for them by the APC as represented by Barrister Kunle Suleiman and Hon. Olawoyin Magaji.

“People are tired of the status quo. People are angry and fed up with dictatorial leadership and the result is what you just said.”

The mass defection came a few days after over 500 PDP members from Osin Wara Osin Egbejila ward and others declared allegiance to the APC in Surulere area of the state capital, describing the party’s governorship candidate AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq as the “Moses of our time who is changing the political history of the state.”

6. Lukman Mustapha

Lukman Mustapha is the Chairman of Sobi FM, by far one of the most influential media platforms that dictated the pendulum of the “O to ge” movement. Mr Mustapha is a brother to Moshood Mustapha, a former aide to Mr Saraki. He defected into the APC shortly after Mr Saraki took over the structure of Kwara PDP and contested the governorship position but lost out to Mr AbdulRazaq. He has since provided support for the “O to ge” movement in Kwara, especially with his hold on the media.

7. Yahaya Seriki

A philanthropist and notable Ilorin politician, Yahaya Seriki was one of the earliest members of APC to declare his gubernatorial ambition. He, however, lost to Mr AbdulRazaq in the primaries. He has been accused of working for Mr Saraki in the APC, although he denied the allegations. He added that he would not trade his loyalty to the party for anything, revealing also that he was lured into the PDP with a promise of appointment by Mr Saraki but he rejected it.

He was later appointed the Director General of the APC campaign in Kwara Central district and indeed delivered for the party.

8. Yinka Aluko

Yinka Aluko is the former security aide to Mr Saraki during the latter’s tenure as governor of Kwara State. Mr Aluko left his former boss before the 2015 general elections to become a running mate to then PDP candidate, Simeon Ajibola. He was a member of the PDP National Executive Council until he defected into the APC in 2018. He contested the party primaries but lost out. He, however, remained a strong pillar of the “O to ge” movement especially in the heart of Ilorin.

9. Cook Olododo

Abdulganiyu Cook Olododo was born December 25, 1960 to the family of Cook at Amode Compound, Okelele in Ibagun Ward of Ilorin East. Mr Olododo was a strong ally of Mr Saraki in the past, serving as his Chief of Staff and Secretary to the Kwara State Government at different times. He is one of the strongest pillars of the “O to ge” revolt in Ilorin widely considered as vast in the knowledge of Saraki’s electioneering gambits.
On Saturday, he emerged the Reps member-elect for Ilorin South/Ilorin East by polling 56,496 votes to defeat Ayinde Mohammed of PDP who polled 27,737 votes.

10. Oba Abdulraheem

Oba Abdulraheem once served as Vice Chancellor of the University of Ilorin. He is known as the Talba of Ilorin. Widely respected and loved by the people, Mr Abdulraheem is revered in Ilorin particularly because of the doors of opportunities he opened for many when he held sway at the Federal Character Commission. He is largely seen as a part of the larger Saraki political family but fell out with Mr Saraki shortly after the death of the late Olusola Saraki. He contested for the governorship ticket in the PDP during the 2015 election but lost to Simeon Ajibola.

He defected into the APC and also contested for the governorship ticket. Party insiders told PREMIUM TIMES that Mr Abdulraheem is believed to have won the APC governorship primaries but party strategists feared that his association with the Saraki clan would affect the fortune of the party in the state. ‘

Although he was rumoured to be working for the PDP, he has since debunked the rumour and restated his commitment to the APC.

11. Iyiola Oyedepo

Perhaps the most consistent antagonist of Senate President Bukola Saraki in contemporary Kwara politics is Iyiola Oyedepo. Mr Oyedepo has ensured that the reign of Mr Saraki and by extension, the Kwara State Government, was put under check. He has also remained politically distant from Mr Saraki, moving away and into the PDP and APC respectively as the Senate president also moved in and out.

Mr Oyedepo, as the state PDP chairman, moved to the APC when Saraki returned to the PDP last year. Earlier in 2014 when Mr Saraki left the PDP for the APC, he moved away from the party.

For about five years, he is widely reputed to have been the brain behind a radio programme on Harmony FM, “PDP Gbode”, galvanising opposition against the Saraki dynasty and the state government with a critical appraisal of government’s policies and exposure of the government’s many misdeeds and alleged corruption.

12. AbdulYekeen Alajagusi

Alajagusi was until last year a member of the PDP. He would later defect into the APC alongside other members, winning a House of Representatives ticket in Ilorin. He was one of the politicians the APC relied on to weaken the influence of the PDP in Asa local government, considered the stronghold of Mr Saraki.
He won the House of Representatives seat for Ilorin West/Asa with 68,585 votes to defeat Abdulrasaq Lawal of the PDP who polled 42,068 votes.

13. Offa/Kwara South People

Although the “O to ge” revolt was said to be infectious in Ilorin, it has firm root too in Offa and other parts of Kwara South. Already the region is considered the home of opposition in Kwara politics.

The revolt that resulted in Mr Saraki’s fall on Saturday is said to have its roots in Offa and other parts of Kwara South, beginning with the Ekiti/Irepodun/Isin/Oke-Ero Federal constituency bye-election which the APC won in 2018. The anti-Saraki sentiment in the town was, however, intensified by the Offa Robbery debacle of April 2018.

14. Kwara North Youth

Although there is very little evidence people in Kwara North were fanatical about mouthing the “O to ge” mantra on their streets, they spoke louder than all of the regions with their votes on Saturday. The less chant of “O to ge” in the region, PREMIUM TIMES observes, may be due to linguistic concern, as the region does not boast of huge Yoruba population like the South and Kwara Central. But the votes from the region spoke louder than street sloganeering as the margin of victory recorded by the APC was much significant than it was in the two other regions.

PREMIUM TIMES understands that the youth in the region were at the forefront of the campaign even after local chiefs pledged allegiance to the Saraki dynasty.

15. Non-partisan traders, Cab drivers and Youth

The “O to ge” campaign was designed to appeal to non-partisan voters, largely because of its ‘revolutionary’ tone and many of them caught the vibe. In Ilorin and other parts of the state, so infectious was the mantra that residents expressed it in different forms, with motorcycle riders and cab drivers popularly using the horn of their cars and motorcycles to make the sound in the city centre. Apart from party members, many of them were non-partisan residents.

PDP’s ‘O tun ya’ response did little to dilute the potency of the mantra. Perhaps owing to its acceptance and effectiveness, it has even been adopted in Lagos by an anti-Tinubu group, with the slogan “O to ge Lagos”.

Senate President Bukola Saraki last Saturday lost his re-election bid in Kwara State.
Mr Saraki’s party, PDP, also lost the presidential and all federal legislative seats in Kwara.

That was the first time since 2003 that Mr Saraki would lose elections in the state. The phrase ‘o to ge’, which means ‘it is enough’ was popularised by Kwara residents who wanted the exit of Mr Saraki.

PREMIUM TIMES brings you some of the arrowheads of the movement.

1. Ibrahim Labaeka

Although there are conflicting accounts of how the “O to ge” mantra was birthed in Kwara, the dominant narrative is that it was coined by Islamic gospel artiste, Ibrahim Labaeka. Mr Labaeka, a member of the Islamic Musicians Association of Nigeria (ISMAN), also confirmed this in several amateur clips posted on Youtube as well as a social networking site, Facebook, in the heat of the campaign.

Mr Labaeka is a respected voice in Kwara music industry, ranking as one of Ilorin’s most influential artistes. He has often lent his voice to discourse on Kwara politics, supporting with his music the late Olusola Saraki and Governor Muhammed Lawal at different times in the past. When the Senate President was reportedly assaulted at the Ilorin Eid ground in 2015, he was also recruited to appeal to the people and indeed released a song calling on Ilorin people to protect Saraki, whom he described as “Ilorin’s Shield.”

But in the buildup to the 2019 elections, Mr Labaeka alleged that he was ‘swindled’ of millions of naira by those in Senate President Bukola Saraki’s camp, despite working for them in the past. He thereafter claimed that he would expose them as ‘deceptive hypocrites’ who failed to honour basic terms of agreements and campaign against them.

In a city with deep religious sensitivity, it was easy for him to appeal to the people’s emotions and, hence, the potency of the “O to ge” mantra.

2. Lai Mohammed

While Mr Labaeka provided the artistic inspiration for the birth of “O to ge”, Nigeria’s Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, provided the political shield. Seen as an embodiment of the “federal might” in Kwara State, Mr Mohammed successfully rallied party members to the cause despite protracted legal battles that almost scuttled the party’s plan.

Mr Mohammed himself has often identified with the “progressive” camp in Kwara politics, which has its firm root in the southern district. He contested the 2003 election in the state on the platform of Alliance for Democracy but lost to Mr Saraki of the PDP.

Unsurprisingly, on Saturday, Mr Mohammed swept the elections in his hometown, Oro, and won his Irepodun local government for President Muhammadu Buhari.

3. AbdulRazaq AbdulRahaman

The governorship candidate of the APC, AbdulRazaq AbdulRahman, remains one rallying force in the “O to ge” movement in Kwara State. An oil magnate with a deep pocket, he is the CEO of First Fuels Limited.

He is also a son of the first lawyer in Northern Nigeria, AbdulGaniyu Folorunso (AGF) Abdulrazaq, considered one of Ilorin’s most influential elder statesmen. The old man is believed to have popularised the notion that Mr Saraki’s father, Olusola, hailed from Abeokuta.

On two occasions, precisely in 2011 and 2015, Mr AbdulRazaq contested the Kwara Central Senatorial District seat. But he lost to Senate President Bukola Saraki. He defected to the APC from the PDP in the build-up to the 2019 elections and declared interest in the governorship seat.

Party insiders told PREMIUM TIMES that Mr AbdulRazaq was picked ahead of other candidates in the party primary, especially Oba Abdulraheem, because of his non-affiliation with the Saraki family. Unlike other contestants, sources said, party chieftains chose Mr AbdulRazaq because they were worried that the “O to ge” mantra may be problematic if its major candidate has no clear ideological detachment from the Saraki clan. That he is a son of one of Ilorin’s most respected elders, and the candidate with by far the deepest pocket, were only a plus.

4. Ibrahim Oloriegbe

Ibrahim Oloriegbe won the Kwara Central Senatorial seat in Saturday’s election. He is a medical graduate of Ahmadu Bello University Zaria with decades of experience in both the private and public sectors as a medical professional and politician

A one-time majority leader at the Kwara State House of Assembly between 1999 and 2003, Mr Oloriegbe contested for the Kwara Central Senatorial seat on the platform of the defunct ACN in 2011 but lost to Mr Saraki at the court of appeal. He has since been a major opposition figure in Ilorin and on several occasions, vowed to retire Mr Saraki from active politics.

5. Moshood Mustapha

Known widely as MM, Moshood Mustapha was once Special Adviser on Inter-parliamentary Affairs, Protocol and Special Duties to Senate President Bukola Saraki. Mr Mustapha has been an ally of Mr Saraki since 2002, serving as commissioner until 2005. A former member of the House of Representatives, Mr Mustapha fell out with Mr Saraki over what party insiders said were intra-party affairs at the time. He was consequently denied the ticket to return to the National Assembly in 2015, despite being among those who decamped with Mr Saraki into the APC.

He was one of the earliest governorship aspirants in the APC to declare his ambition. When he lost out in the primaries, many insinuated that he would decamp but he did not.

The Gen Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd)-led National Peace Committee members on Friday held a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari.

The meeting was a follow-up to a similar one the committee held with the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party and his running mate, Mr Peter Obi, over the outcome of the poll.

Speaking shortly after the meeting, the former head of state said the committee presented the grievances of the PDP and Atiku to the President.



The peace committee, which had Cardinal John Onaiyekan and the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Hassan Matthew Kukah, in attendance, arrived at the Presidential Villa about 3pm to meet with Buhari.

The meeting, which was also attended by the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Adams Oshiomhole, lasted one hour, ending at 4pm.

On the discussions at the meeting, the former head of state said, “Atiku presented his grievances and his observations; he did not present any condition, he gave his complaints, which we have presented and discussed with Mr President to see what can be done.”

Abubakar added that a similar meeting the committee held with Atiku a day earlier was to see how peace would flow from the presidential election across Nigeria.

“Yesterday, l met the PDP presidential candidate and his party in order to ensure peace. This is what this committee is really after, our concern is about Nigeria. And in order to listen to their grievances and what they think has gone wrong, we are here today to see his Excellency the President to relay the fears and concerns of the PDP to Mr President.

“He listened to us and has taken note of what we have told him,” Abubakar told State House correspondents.”

joseph1832:
bros Abeg wen be gubernatorial election. March 2 or 9.

joseph1832:
Haba bros. Easy on the guy now. His real shocker will come when the court declare him the loser. Lol

I believe they're saying he'll use video evidence. That the PDP agents in polling units have video recordings of the election process. I laugh oh because for my own polling unit and the surrounding unit, na flexing the PDP agent just dey flex. Guy man just dey drink beer up and down.

Ndigbo are deeply happy that Mr President secured more votes in Igbo land than he got in 2015

The Ohanaeze Ndigbo heartily rejoices and congratulates President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, on his well-deserved victory at the Presidential polls on February 23.

The Ohanaeze Ndigbo, the apex Igbo socio-cultural group, on Thursday congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari on his victory in the Presidential election of February 23.

The News Agency of Nigeria recalls that President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress was declared the winner of the election by the Independent National Electoral Commission on Wednesday, having polled 15,191,847 votes, winning in 19 states.


Buhari defeated 72 other candidates, including Atiku Abubakar, the candidate of Peoples Democratic Party, who scored 11,255,978 votes and won 17 states and the FCT, to occupy the second position.



The Secretary-General of the group, Chief Uche Okwukwu, gave the congratulatory message while briefing newsmen in Enugu.


“The Ohanaeze Ndigbo heartily rejoices and congratulates President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, on his well-deserved victory at the Presidential polls on February 23.

“His victory as exposed by the majority of votes cast has clearly shown that the President has been on the right course in the last four years.

“Ndigbo are deeply happy that Mr President secured more votes in Igbo land than he got in 2015.

“We urge all Nigerians and the international community to accept the verdict as the election was adjudged free, credible, transparent and peaceful.

“Ohanaeze is calling on all not to heat up the polity through unguarded utterances and actions,’’ he said.

Okwukwu added that the leadership of the group would be meeting with President Buhari next week to present to him an official congratulatory message on his well-deserved victory at the poll.



He, however, said that the group would use the occasion to present to Buhari the charter of their demands for infrastructural uplift of the entire Igbo-speaking areas of the country.

“Part of our demands will be the completion of ongoing infrastructure works such as the 2nd Niger Bridge, modern railway, completion of ongoing Enugu-Onitsha and Enugu-Port Harcourt roads, fixing of the Akanu Ibiam International Airport among others,’’ he said.


NAN reports that Ohanaeze members are drawn from seven states, which include; Abia, Anambra, Delta, Ebonyi, Enugu, Imo and Rivers States.

https://dailypost.ng/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/apostle-johnson-suleman-1050x591.jpg

Prior to the 2019 presidential election, most pastors, bishops and prophets made prophetic pronouncements and declarations concerning Nigeria.


While some of this clerics predicted that the incumbent President, Muhammadu Buhari, who was also the flag bearer of the ruling all progressives Congress, APC would be defeated by the candidate of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar, others prophesied otherwise.

Here, DAILY POST takes a flashback on the failed prophetic declarations.


As church leaders and prominent pastors announced God’s revelations to them concerning 2019, Apostle Omotosho Tope, of the OTJ Live Ministry, in his shocking prophecies for the year, said the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, would take over and experience victory in the elections.

But the prophecy could be said to have failed as the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC,announced President Buhari of the APC winner of the presidential election on Wednesday morning.

Also in his 2019 prophetic declarations on January 1, 2019, the founder and General Overseer of the Omega Fire Ministry, Apostle Johnson Suleman, said that most eastern states would vote for President Buhari in the presidential election.


Apostle Suleman had said, “I saw most Eastern states won by APC at the National level.”

This did not happen. However, the reverse was the case as the president failed in all the Eastern States.

Also in his declaration prior to the 2019 presidential election, a renowned prophet and Founder, Evangelical Church of Yahweh Worldwide, Primate Theophilus Olabayo, said that God had told him how the 2019 election would end. He said the election would be declared inconclusive.



The cleric called on Nigerians to gird their loins and embark on spiritual exercises to avert imminent danger ahead of the 2019 general elections.

Olabayo revealed that President Buhari would face the toughest challenge of his life in the election year.

According to him, “For the coming 2019 general elections, it will be men fighting men, and not boys fighting men because Buhari, and APC would want to use power of incumbency to influence the elections, but Atiku will not agree. They are going to fight each other, and the elections will be inconclusive.



However, the election was not declared inconclusive but rather, President Buhari was announced as the winner.

On his party, a South African based Pastor identified as Pastor Samuel Akinbodunse, said that God told him that President Muhammadu Buhari would not see 2019 elections.

In a viral video on Twitter, the pastor said Buhari “will die before the votes.”



He said that those who knew the President or had access to the Presidency shouldwarnd Buhari not to campaign for the election.

He said Buhari was crossing his boundaries because “his tenure is once, not twice.”

He said, “Warn Buhari that he is going beyond his boundary. That the Lord said his tenure is once. Not twice. If not, he’ll not see the election.



“Tell him, if you know him or you know how to email the Presidency of Nigeria. Please write him a test. If he makes a mistake to campaign for the election, before the vote he’ll die. And I’m saying the truth.”

kirkwood:
Hey paddy,

My dreams never fail.

Remember this.

I had two subsequent dreams thereafter.

They are quite personal to me.


There is no need letting you know more about them just to prove a point.

But one thing I learned is that my dreams all came to pass.

Remember this.

Even if you doubt it, I am so sure of what I dreamed both then and thereafter.

Next time, learn to take things like these seriously.

Best of life

Johnnyessence:
You haven't add Ajibola bashiru of APC, he represents osun central senatorial district. he's under investigation by the EFCC and the icpc.

Stella Oduah

Stella Oduah of the PDP won the February 23 Anambra North Senatorial election. She is a former aviation minister and is a returning senator.

She won the election with 113,989 votes against her closest rival from the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) who had 59,937 votes.

She is also on the list of people being questioned by the EFCC for alleged money laundering.

https://i0.wp.com/media.premiumtimesng.com/wp-content/files/2012/08/stella-oduah-.jpg?w=600&h=347&ssl=1
Stella Oduah Stella Oduah

In February 2018, she was questioned by the EFCC and had her passport seized.

Mrs Oduah is being investigated for allegedly awarding dubious contracts worth N9.4 billion during her stint as aviation minister in the Goodluck Jonathan administration.

Specifically, she was accused of diverting N3.9 billion from the N9.4 billion meant for the installation of security devices at 22 airports.

She has denied the allegations and is yet to be prosecuted.

Ike Ekweremadu

The deputy senate president was declared the winner of Enugu West Senatorial District for the fifth time in Saturday’s presidential and National Assembly elections.

Mr Ekweremadu of the PDP polled 86,088 votes to defeat his closest rival, Juliet Ibekaku-Nwagwu of the APC who scored 15,187 votes.

https://i1.wp.com/media.premiumtimesng.com/wp-content/files/2019/02/Ike-Ekweremadu.jpg?fit=1084%2C490
Deputy Senate President_Ike_Ekweremadu

The federal government, in March 2018, applied to the Federal High Court in Abuja for an order of temporary forfeiture of about 22 properties allegedly owned by him in Abuja, London, the United States and the United Arab Emirates.

The EFCC detained him for questioning on August 1, 2018.

He has denied all the allegations.

Danjuma Goje

A former governor of Gombe State, Danjuma Goje of APC, won the seat of Gombe Central Senatorial District for the third time.

Mr Goje polled 110,116 votes to defeat his closest rival, Abubakar Nono of the PDP, who garnered 39,760 votes.

He is currently facing a fraud charge filed against him by the EFCC at the Federal High Court in Gombe.

https://i1.wp.com/media.premiumtimesng.com/wp-content/files/2017/10/Danjuma-Goje.jpg?resize=526%2C343&ssl=1
Senator Danjuma Goje [Photo Credit: PM News]

The senator and four others have been enmeshed in a six-year-old money laundering case preferred EFCC.
The EFCC alleged that Mr Goje, then Gombe State governor, conspired with four officers of his administration to defraud the state of N25 billion via illegal acts, contrary to, and punishable under sections 15, 16, 17, 18 and 19 of the Money Laundering (Prohibition Act) 2011, as amended.

Abdullahi Adamu
Mr Adamu of the APC won Nasarawa West senatorial district election with 115,298 votes in the election that was held on Saturday, February 23.

The former governor of Nasarawa State was in 2010 arrested by the EFCC for allegedly misappropriating N15 billion alongside 18 others.

He was subsequently arraigned on a 149-count charge of fraud to the tune of N15 billion alongside his co-accused.

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Abdullahi Adamu

The case is yet to be concluded.

In February 2018, the EFCC also arraigned Nuraini Adamu, a son of the senator, and one Felix Onyeabo Ojiako before Justice Farouq Lawal of the Kano State High Court on a four-count charge of conspiracy, forgery and obtaining money by false pretence.

Aliyu Wamakko

Mr Wamakko won the re-election in Sokoto North Senatorial District.

The APC candidate defeated PDP Ahmed Muhammad-Maccido, by 172,980 votes to 138,922 votes.

https://i0.wp.com/media.premiumtimesng.com/wp-content/files/2013/08/WAMAKKO-360x3871.jpg?w=600&h=645&ssl=1
Aliyu Wamakko

Mr Wamakko, who was governor between 2007 and 2015, is under investigation over allegations of theft of public funds and money laundering totalling N15 billion, an allegation he has vehemently denied.

The EFCC in April 2018, confirmed that the commission was investigating allegations contained in a petition against Mr Wammako.

Dino Melaye

Dino Melaye of the PDP was declared the winner of the Kogi West Senatorial election held on February 23.

Mr Melaye polled 85,395 votes to defeat Smart Adeyemi of the APC, who scored 66,901 votes.

He has been accused of varying allegations on several occasions and is being prosecuted in Abuja and Lokoja.

https://i2.wp.com/media.premiumtimesng.com/wp-content/files/2017/07/Dino-Melaye.jpg?w=600&h=338&ssl=1
Senator Dino Melaye

However, unlike others, his trial is mainly not corruption-related.

Last year, he was accused of providing false information to the police and supplying arms to suspected criminals.

In Abuja, he was accused of attempted suicide and damaging government property, after he allegedly attempted to jump out of a moving police vehicle. He was later hospitalised.

The police laid siege to the Abuja residence of Mr Melaye to effect his arrest over a case of culpable homicide last year.

Earlier, Mr Melaye and his group were accused of shooting a police officer, Danjuma Saliu, attached to 37 Police Mobile Force (PMF), while on duty in Aiyetoro Gbede, Mopa Road in Kogi.

Anti-corruption activists react
A Lagos-based lawyer, Ademola Owolabi, reacting to this development told PREMIUM TIMES that there are moral and legal angles to the lawmakers’ cases.

“We have a moral angle and a legal angle. For the legal angle, they have not been convicted. But on the moral part of it all, in so many countries corrupt cases are dealt with in days. It then becomes a mockery of our moral standard if we have corrupt charges running for years like the man in Abia State (Orji Kalu).”

“They should clear their names before going into any job that warrants public trust. This country is a very funny country,” he said.

Another right activist and public affairs analyst, Ebi Vincent, said the election of politicians with corrupt charges speaks volumes of “our system”.

“We run a dying and corrupt judicial system and when the judicial system is slow and corrupt, you cannot find anything sane in the nation. All of these persons ought to screened and denied ticket even in their party let alone coming out to be on INEC ballot paper.”

“Nigerians need to demand the removal of these persons. If the people in their Constituency refused to understand that they have elected ‘thieves’, the media and right activist should continue to hold them accountable.

“For anyone to have been alleged at all, it means they have skeletons in their cupboard. The Senate should not be retirement home for looters,” he said.