₦airaland Forum

Former President Goodluck Jonathan has denied reports suggesting he has stepped aside from contesting the 2027 presidential election.

The rebuttal follows claims in a news report that the Otuoke-born statesman had opted not to run so as not to disrupt Southern unity.

Although Jonathan has not officially declared his candidacy, strong indications suggest he has begun consultations across the country to actualise a second-term ambition.

On Friday afternoon, his cousin, Azibaola Robert, dismissed the report in a post on his verified Facebook page, stressing that Jonathan never said he would not contest in 2027.

Azibaola was responding to a Newsweek Nigeria publication titled “Jonathan Rejects Pressure to Contest in 2027, Says He Won’t Be Used Against Southern Unity.” He described the story as fake and urged Nigerians to disregard it.

He further clarified that the purported “aide of Jonathan” cited as a source in the story does not exist.

According to Azibaola, while Jonathan has not yet announced his decision to run, he has equally not ruled himself out of the race.

“The former president has made it clear that he would not yield to calls not to run, since those making such admonitions had selfish motives,” Azibaola said, without specifying when or how Jonathan might formally declare his ambition.

The Apetu of Ipetumodu in Osun State, Oba Joseph Oloyede, has been sentenced to more than four years in prison in the United States.

Oloyede, 62, who holds dual U.S. and Nigerian citizenship and resides in Medina, Ohio, was on August 26 handed 56 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Christopher A. Boyko.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio in a statement on Tuesday, the monarch, was also ordered to “serve three years of supervised release after imprisonment and pay $4,408,543.38 in restitution.

“He also forfeited his Medina home on Foote Road, which he had acquired with proceeds of the scheme, and an additional $96,006.89 in fraud proceeds investigators had seized,” the statement read.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Oloyede led a conspiracy to exploit COVID-19 emergency loan programmes created for struggling businesses.

“From about April 2020 to February 2022, Oloyede and his co-conspirator, Edward Oluwasanmi, conspired to submit fraudulent applications for loans that were made available through the U.S. Small Business Association (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act,” the statement read.

In April, the duo pleaded guilty to wire fraud and tax fraud charges linked to a pandemic relief scam that siphoned over $4.2m in federal stimulus funds.


The court was told that Oloyede, who also worked as a tax preparer, “operated five businesses and one nonprofit, while Oluwasanmi owned an additional three business entities.

“Both defendants used their businesses to submit loan applications using false information.

“They obtained approximately $1.2 million in SBA funds for Oluwasanmi’s entities and $1.7 million for Oloyede’s entities,” the statement added.

According to investigators, “Oloyede submitted fraudulent PPP and EIDL applications in the names of some of his clients and their businesses.

“In exchange, Oloyede would receive 15-20% of their loans as the fee, or kickback, for obtaining the loans for them, without reporting this income to the IRS on his own tax returns.”

The funds were then used for personal gain, prosecutors said.

“Investigators learned that the defendant used funds obtained from these loans to acquire land and build a home and purchase a luxury vehicle,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office disclosed.

In all, Oloyede “caused the SBA to approve 38 fraudulent applications, amounting to $4,213,378 in disbursed loans and advances.”

His co-conspirator, Oluwasanmi, 62, of Willoughby, was earlier sentenced in July to 27 months in prison.

He was also ordered to pay more than $1.2 million in restitution, forfeit a commercial property purchased with fraud proceeds, and surrender more than $600,000 held in financial accounts.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office emphasized the significance of the conviction, noting that the case was jointly investigated by the Department of Transportation Office of the Inspector General, the FBI Cleveland Division, and IRS-Criminal Investigations as part of the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee Fraud Task Force.

“This case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Edward D. Brydle and James L. Morford for the Northern District of Ohio,” the release concluded.

The African Democratic Congress has criticised the Peoples Democratic Party and the All Progressives Congress for initiating discussions on zoning their 2027 presidential tickets.

The coalition party stated that the such moves show a disregard for the hardship Nigerians are facing.

Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Tuesday, ADC spokesman, Bolaji Abdullahi, faulted both parties for focusing on 2027 politics rather than addressing current challenges.

“The general election is still in 2027; it’s still two years away. Why are we so preoccupied and behaving in such a way that Nigerians begin to look at the political elite across the divides as if we don’t care about them?” he asked.

PUNCH Online reports that on Monday, the PDP zoned its 2027 presidential ticket to the South while retaining its national chairmanship in the North.

Similarly, in May, 22 APC governors and other organs of the ruling party endorsed President Bola Tinubu, a southerner, as the party’s sole candidate for the poll.

Both decisions were justified on the grounds of maintaining Nigeria’s unwritten tradition of power rotation between the North and South.

But Abdullahi dismissed the moves as political manoeuvre, saying that both parties are insensitive to Nigerians’ plight.

“They are very experienced people, and they know the implications of showing their way too early. So, it’s either they are playing a predetermined game or baiting some people to come around,” he said.

The ADC, he noted, has several qualified aspirants who have expressed interest in contesting the presidency, contrary to claims that the coalition was formed to serve a single candidate.

“In the papers yesterday, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar came out to say he is going to run for president. Don’t forget we still have the likes of Peter Obi, Rotimi Amaechi and others who are interested in running, and we have reiterated that they have an equal chance,” Abdullahi said.

He stressed that the ADC was not under pressure from the decisions of the PDP and APC but was focused on strengthening its structures nationwide.

“We are not bothered with what the PDP has done. Nigerians can see right into it. PDP people are not naïve people; they are very experienced politicians. For them to take that decision two years ahead of the presidential election, there must be a game on, and we can see right through it. We are not pressured; we are focused on our party,” he said.

According to him, the ADC has yet to deliberate on zoning its presidential ticket, insisting that such discussions will come at the appropriate time.

“What is most important to us is to convince Nigerians that we represent that alternative that can bring respite to their current sufferings. As far as the ADC is concerned, we are not having that kind of conversation now.

“We are focused on mobilising at the grassroots and putting up structures,” Abdullahi added.

Three operators – Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Aiteo and AA Rano – weekend, adjusted the depot prices of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol to N823 per litre from N821 per litre as crude oil rises to $67 per barrel from $65 per barrel in the international market.

Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Aiteo and Rano had previously sold the product at N821 per litre.

Checks by Vanguard yesterday indicated that the domestic market would continue to respond to global changes due to competition in Nigeria’s downstream sector.

The checks further showed that the pump prices of the product remain unchanged, but may be adjusted this week if the market situation persists.

In[b] an interview with Vanguard, Olajide Jeremiah, Chief Executive Officer of Petroleumprice.ng, said: “We are witnessing frequent adjustment of depot prices for some reasons. These include the low crude oil prices and also competition among downstream players in Nigeria.[/b]

“The market would continue to record more price adjustments in the coming weeks as new changes occur in the global oil market.

“We also expect the adjustments would be extended to pumps so that consumers would feel the impact going on in the market.”

However, in another interview with Vanguard yesterday, Billy Gillis-Harry, the National President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria, PETROAN, said the domestic market remains dynamic and responsive to development at the global market.

Gillis-Harry stressed the importance of increased and stable supply, while calling for the privatisation of government-owned refineries.

He said: “Full privatization with participation of grassroots stakeholders such as PETROAN, Major Energy Marketers Association, MEMAN, and others remains the real solution.

Meanwhile, Dangote Petroleum Refinery has concluded plans to increase its capacity by 7.7 percent to 700,000 barrels per day (bpd), from the current 650,000 bpd.

However, checks by Vanguard indicated that the refinery’s operations have already altered the previous flows of petroleum products, mainly from Europe and other markets, to Nigeria in particular and Africa in general.
Nigeria, which previously relied heavily on foreign refineries to meet its domestic fuel needs, has, through the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, helped meet domestic demand while also exporting to other markets worldwide.
This shift has affected the European gasoline market, with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC, noting that the Dangote Refinery’s production and exports will likely weigh further on the European gasoline market.

The refinery’s production has freed up gasoline volumes in global markets, prompting the need for new destination markets and adjustments in the flow of gasoline. This has led to declining petroleum product imports into Nigeria and affected Europe’s gasoline inventory levels.

Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, has called on Nigerians to acquire combat skills to protect themselves amid rising security concerns.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, Musa compared learning martial arts like Karate, Taekwondo, and Judo to essential survival skills such as driving and swimming.

“Learning combat skills should be seen as a survival instinct, like swimming or driving,” Musa said, emphasising their importance regardless of whether the country is at war.

He noted that in some countries, such skills are mandatory.

“In Europe, swimming is compulsory. Learning and teaching about security (is compulsory) because you have to learn what security is.”

The CDS proposed that the National Youth Service Corps should incorporate unarmed combat training into its programme to equip graduates with survival skills against threats.

“The NYSC has been reduced to three weeks, but it should focus on training youths in self-defence,” he said, lamenting the programme’s current limitations.

Musa stressed that self-defence, situational awareness, and skills like swimming and driving are vital for navigating today’s “dangerous world,” where individuals with malicious intent pose constant risks.

“I think it is important that we are able to give every Nigerian security awareness at whatever level. Self-defence is very important. Unarmed combat. Swimming. Driving. These are critical aspects for human endeavours.

“These are things we should never take for granted because they prepare you for the future. The world we are in now is dangerous. We have individuals who don’t mean people well. They kill for whatever reason.”

He urged all Nigerians to take responsibility for their security by staying vigilant and identifying suspicious activities in their surroundings.

Kobojunkie:
Nonsense story! 🥱🥱🥱

Make she go do DNA test to determine the identity of her actual husband abeg.

Burob:
we are waiting for hypocrite America to condemn the killing of Muslims in Nigeria.

The UK praised Tinubu’s economic reforms, as bold, brave and positive, during an envoy’s visit to First Lady Oluremi Tinubu.

The United Kingdom on Monday lauded the various economic and trade initiatives of President Bola Tinubu describing them as bold, brave and positive.

British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Richard Montgomery, thumbed up the Tinubu administration while on a courtesy visit to the wife of the President, Senator Oluremi Tinubu at the State House, Abuja.

According to the British envoy, the UK government sees a lot of positivity in Nigeria’s economy, particularly new opportunities being created by the difficult but necessary reforms undertaken by President Tinubu.

He said his home Government is impressed by the track record of RHI as a special purpose vehicle delivering empowerment to women in key areas especially in Education, Health and Humanitarian.

The British High Commissioner noted that these reforms and moves have led to enhanced trade partnership between the two nations. Montgomery noted that the UK government is also paying attention to the ongoing Constitutional Amendment and calls for Special Seats for Women in the National Assembly.

In her response, the First Lady assured her guests that the Government and the Renewed Hope Initiative, which is inline with the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Tinubu will continue to work towards meeting the challenges of Nigerians.

She said, “I believe we can help each other, if we really show concern. RHI focuses also on women empowerment in the informal sector. These are the ones we are touching their lives directly”.


She agreed with her guests that the number of women in the National Assembly is dwindling and promised to join the ongoing process to improve the numbers.

According to Mrs Tinubu, “We have to really know the right people to represent us, who can really do the work and that is what we have to enlighten our women about”.