₦airaland Forum

The 2023 governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress in Kano State, Dr Nasiru Gawuna, is set to dump the Nigeria Democratic Congress for the African Democratic Congress following ongoing negotiations between both parties, The PUNCH has learnt.

Findings by our correspondent revealed that discussions between Gawuna’s camp and the ADC leadership in Kano had reached an advanced stage, with both sides expected to hold a final meeting on Monday to conclude the arrangement.

The Kano State chairman of the ADC, Musa Ungogo, confirmed the development in an exclusive interview with The PUNCH on Monday, saying Gawuna initiated the talks through emissaries who met with the party leadership over the weekend.

Ungogo dismissed claims circulating on social media that the ADC was courting the former deputy governor, insisting that the move came from Gawuna and his associates.

“The story being circulated that the ADC approached Gawuna is not correct. It was Gawuna who approached us. He sent a delegation to meet us, and discussions have been ongoing since then,” he said.

According to the ADC chairman, Gawuna’s delegation included a former Chairman of Kumbotso Local Government Area, Alhaji Sagir Fanshekara, and Hon Kadawa.

He said the delegation met with him and the party’s state secretary on Saturday as part of efforts to negotiate the terms of Gawuna’s entry into the party.

Ungogo disclosed that among the demands presented by Gawuna’s camp was the ADC governorship ticket for the 2027 election.

He added that the former APC governorship candidate was also seeking political accommodation for some of his loyalists interested in contesting state assembly and National Assembly seats.

“They came with a number of requests. One of their major demands is that Dr Gawuna should emerge as the party’s governorship candidate. They also requested opportunities for some of their supporters who are interested in the state assembly and National Assembly tickets,” he said.

The chairman further revealed that Gawuna’s camp had proposed a consensus arrangement under which other governorship aspirants in the party would withdraw from the race.

“They told us that even if the party decides to conduct primary elections, aspirants should step down for him because, according to them, he has political strength in several local government areas and possesses the capacity to lead the party to victory.

“They specifically requested a consensus arrangement and asked that the other aspirants support him,” Ungogo said.

According to him, the ADC leadership had requested a formal written submission detailing all the demands and political interests of Gawuna’s camp.

“We asked them to provide a written document outlining all their requests. We also asked them to indicate the positions they are seeking and the local government areas where they have interests.

“We are expected to hold another meeting today. After receiving the document, we will study it carefully and make our position known,” he said.

Despite the ongoing negotiations, Ungogo stressed that no final agreement had been reached.

“Consultations are still ongoing. Nothing has been concluded yet. We want a solution that will be acceptable to all stakeholders and beneficial to the party,” he added.

A close associate of Gawuna also confirmed the talks to The PUNCH but declined to comment further.

“I am not his spokesperson, and I am not authorised to speak on the matter. What I can confirm is that consultations are ongoing,” the source said.

The latest development comes barely three months after Gawuna resigned his membership of the All Progressives Congress and stepped down as chairman of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria.

Following his exit from the APC in March, Gawuna briefly joined the ADC alongside members of the Kwankwasiyya Movement before defecting to the Nigeria Democratic Congress in May alongside the National Leader of the movement, Dr Rabiu Kwankwaso, and a large number of their supporters.

Upon joining the NDC, the former Kano governorship candidate accepted the party’s Kano Central senatorial ticket, while the party settled for the immediate past deputy governor of Kano State, Aminu Gwarzo, as its consensus governorship candidate for the 2027 election.

The development is expected to further reshape Kano’s political landscape ahead of the 2027 general elections, with major parties intensifying consultations and political realignments across the state.

slivertongue:
What pleases him is okay

Akpakomiza2:
Up up Abba. A big blow to kwankwaso and obi

slivertongue:
He would have contributed to the basket but his decision is final. I don't even see how that will happen because he isn't an adc member right now. Above all he contributed nothing to ok in 2023 so they can navigate without him

insidelife22:
Did you know
Tinubu and Apc supporters are now buying fuel and cooking gas at 70 and 50 naira respectively.
Just wear an Apc 👕 with Jagaban 🧢 and go to any filling station with your Apc membership card.

yarimo:
Did you know obi is wanted in UK

Ofunaofu:
Gawuna going to ADC will further deplete the already depleted APC votes

Kano and Kwankwasiya is locked down for NDC✌️

Akpakomiza2:
Up up Abba. A big blow to kwankwaso and obi

yarimo:
Did you know obi is wanted in UK

Nwaikpe:
Peter Obi was forced before today.
With or without Kwankwaso, Peter Obi will be the force.

AMINDA:
Lol. In one breath, you claim Gawuna is irrelevant and in the next one, you say his leaving will be a huge loss to Obi and Kwankwaso. Should we then say that his joining the ADC will be a huge win for the party or he's still irrelevant?

Ofunaofu:
Gawuna going to ADC will further deplete the already depleted APC votes

Kano and Kwankwasiya is locked down for NDC✌️

insidelife22:
Did you know
Tinubu and Apc supporters are now buying fuel and cooking gas at 70 and 50 naira respectively.
Just wear an Apc 👕 with Jagaban 🧢 and go to any filling station with your Apc membership card.

BestLife247:
My brother, let really focus to make the OK Presidencial Ticket a reality. It would be a very great fulfilment Lifetime Masses as they would surely be Masses-focused Government. Obi's 4 Years or 8 Years followed by Kwankwaso 8 Years would be the best Government Nigerians has ever enjoyed.

NLCreator:
Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 elections, has defended the purchase of sports utility vehicles (SUVs) for members of the national assembly.

There have been reports that the leadership of the 10th national assembly has bought SUVs for all lawmakers.

Each SUV is said to be valued at N160 million.

The LP had asked members of the party in the national assembly to kick against “wastage”.

While responding to questions during a press conference in Abuja on Monday, the former governor of Anambra said the SUVs are not personal cars of the lawmakers, noting that they are for official use.

“Let me start with the issue of Labour Party members in the house. I have actually discussed this issue with them,” Obi said.

“Surprisingly, I can tell you I heard that these vehicles are official cars. They have to use it. It is meant for office.

“So it is not as if it is their vehicle. They said it is official cars and you are meant to use it while you are in the senate.”

Obi also hinted at contesting for the country’s number one position in 2027, adding that Nigeria deserves dedicated and visionary leaders who will lead the country towards a brighter future.

https://www.thecable.ng/theyre-for-official-use-obi-defends-purchase-of-n160m-suv-for-lawmakers/amp

LibertyRep:
Every man needs an SPV , don't blame Gawuna

ijustdey:
Nigeria will pay an interest of 11.85 percent per annum on the $3.3 billion “pre-export finance facility” (PxF) facilitated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd and arranged by Afrexim Bank, TheCable can report.

Until now, the fine details of the transaction, which has a five-year tenor, had been withheld by all parties involved.

A similar cocoa-backed $800 million facility arranged for Ghana by its cocoa marketing board attracts an interest of 8 percent per annum.

Bilateral lenders, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), would typically charge 1-3 percent with a longer tenor.

In the details seen by TheCable, Nigeria pledged a total of 164.25 million barrels of crude oil — at 90,000 barrels per day — starting from 2024 to repay the loan through Project Gazelle Funding Ltd, an “orphan” special purpose vehicle (SPV) incorporated in Bahamas for the PxF.

Effectively, the NNPC has pledged 38.58 percent of five years’ worth of tax and royalty oil to secure the loan.

Nigeria pledges over $12 billion worth of oil
At the beginning of 2024, a barrel of Nigerian oil was sold at the international market at $77.93 per barrel, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) data.

At $77.93 per barrel, the 164.25 million barrels of oil pledged by Nigeria equals $12.8 billion — about three times more than the facility taken.

Pre-2014, the national oil company used to remit an average of $3 billion from oil sales every month.

Officially, Project Gazelle Funding Ltd (PGFL) is the borrower while the NNPC is the “sponsor” and will pay with oil to the SPV to liquidate the loan.

To make the repayment, the NNPC will forward-sell 90,000 barrels per day of Nigeria’s share of offshore crude oil under the production sharing contract (PSCs) with the oil companies.

Under PSCs, the companies usually pay royalties and taxes by giving the oil equivalent to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) respectively.

The NNPC in turn exports the oil on behalf of NUPRC and FIRS and remits the proceeds to the agencies.

This is part of the revenues paid into the federation account and shared by the three tiers of government.

But under the PxF, the revenue from 90,000 barrels per day will be used to service the loan in the next five years.

The loan arrangers will get a commission of $66 million or 2% of the facility, TheCable further learnt.

Nigeria will pay 2 percent penalty per annum in the event of a default.


‘DOLLAR LIQUIDITY TO STABILISE THE NAIRA’

The national oil company announced in August 2023 that the PxF was to support the federal government “in its ongoing fiscal and monetary policy reforms aimed at stabilizing the exchange rate market”, describing it as “a relief for the naira”.

It called the facility “crude oil repayment” with an upfront cash loan “against proceeds from a limited amount of future crude oil production”.

At the time, the dollar exchanged for an average of N775 in the official market and N885 on the streets.

The rates have now moved to N1,035/$ (official) and N1,230/$ (parallel).

Nigeria’s outstanding forex liabilities are currently thought to be over $7 billion.

In an explainer after announcing the PxF last year, the NNPC said its exposure is very limited, “covering just a fraction” of their entitlements and that “there are no sovereign guarantees tied to it”.

It said it “will also equip the Federal Government with the necessary dollar liquidity to stabilize the Naira, with limited risk”.

A strengthened naira as a result of the initiative, it said, “will lead to a reduction in fuel costs. This means that if the Naira appreciates in value, the cost of fuel will drop and further increases will be halted”.

It also ruled out subsidies, maintaining that a stronger naira “will result in lower prices from the current level, making subsidies unnecessary. The deregulation policy remains unchanged”.

Critics questioned NNPC’s involvement in getting loans to boost forex reserves when it should be concentrating its efforts on bringing in more oil revenues.

There were also questions over the decision to pledge the tax and royalty oil belonging to the entire federation to secure the loan.

Analysts also queried why the details of the deal were never made public.

https://www.thecable.ng/exclusive-nigeria-to-pay-11-85-interest-on-3-3bn-afriexim-nnpc-loan-pledges-164m-barrels-as-security/amp

Yemmysworld91:
This is funny. You don't really understand what's going on in kano that has the governor, shekarau, ganduje, senate deputy president against Kwankwanso. Kwankwanso is weakened. But enjoy celebrating your imagination
I can't wait for 2027 before una start to shout rigging again

Yemmysworld91:
This is funny. You don't really understand what's going on in kano that has the governor, shekarau, ganduje, senate deputy president against Kwankwanso. Kwankwanso is weakened. But enjoy celebrating your imagination
I can't wait for 2027 before una start to shout rigging again

insidelife22:
Did you know
Tinubu and Apc supporters are now buying fuel and cooking gas at 70 and 50 naira respectively.
Just wear an Apc 👕 with Jagaban 🧢 and go to any filling station with your Apc membership card.

Ofunaofu:
All the people you mentioned, except Abba Gida, who is now the governor, were against Kwankwaso, yet he still delivered.

Some lessons can't be taught, they have to be learned the hard way.