THE DICE IS STILL ROLLING

By - YUSUF MUBARAQ AUTHORITY


"After a storm, comes a calm and after the dark night comes the glorious dawn. Tough time never lasts but tough people do, sooner or later the man who wins is the man who thinks he can!"

The above caption clearly illustrates how all things are transient and how inevitable the situation changes hands.


"We are all naked to death," says Steve Job.
Power above all other phenomenal is transient and its transiency is paramount so as for the current holder of it not to be tyrannical.

Constant and consistent changing of power is a major factor that beautify our nascent democracy. It is undemocratic and uncivil for an individual to hold on to power for ages, if by virtue of death he's not removed surely by the revolution he must leave, hence transiency of power and all that relates with it.


The Saraki's of Kwara is one pointer to this, having ruled the state for more than four decades with many achievements and setback, power in his transiency swings against them at the recently held general elections, that's to say "even the mighty can fall".

I leave my audience to judge the circumstances that led to the eventual downfall of a once-powerful dynasty.
The current administration rode on to power on a platter of gold and massive goodwill was enjoyed across the state by each candidate.
Folks at home are tired hence the inevitable clamors for power change.
The rolling of the dice once again swings to the other side of the divides and the once-powerful scrambled for shelter.

It's so easy to manage defeat but more complex to manage a victory.
Defeat teaches us among many things, humility, perseverance, and patience to mention but few.

Defeat has a great way of influencing people in a positive manner which will eventually shape their inevitable coming if Allah so wishes.
Victory, on the other hand, came with arrogance and the thinking of 'we are better than thou' which in most times consumed a winner and rendered him/her useless.

Making a mockery of the Saraki dynasty is a way of strengthening their political force but the people in the other divides seem not to realize this or are novice of it.
Maybe just maybe the current "power rangers" thought is all over for the dynasty?
Do they not realize what they enjoyed in terms of free entrance to governance can hitherto swing against them too?
Have they forgot the popular saying during the electioneering campaign "Even if a goat is on the ballot, he will win any PDP candidate"?
That's to say it's neither their pedigree nor their might earned them their individual position of today but by the dictate of Almighty Allah.


The rolling dice is yet to stop and will not for any reasons stops and if the APC is not able to manage its victory well then the outcast dynasty that is able to manage its defeat is on the course of resurfacing.

Let us all have it at the back of our mind that nothing lasts forever and transiency is inevitable.
Be the best you can be and leave the rest for people's assessment.
As the situation stands now I see nothing but the eventual coming of a deposed dynasty.
As we marched towards 2023, I pray for easy and calmness in our darling country.

Kwara cabinet screening, matter arising.

YUSUF MUBARAQ AUTHORITY.

After what seems like an eternity, The Kwara moses, Governor Abdulrahman ABDULRASAQ sent his long awaited cabinet list to the indefatigable Kwara House of Assembly under the leadership of Rt. Hon. Salihu Yakub Danlandi.
Let me digress a bit, you would all recalled, immediately after the 2015 general election that saw to the emergence of President Muhammadu Buhari, pressure was mounted on the presidency to as a matter of urgency constitute it cabinet for effective governance and administrative convenience.
Buhari, under the guise of wanting a good and all time best cabinet took months in bringing home his list, a list which in later years proved To be inconsequential and unworthy of the time wasted.


Seeing some names of retired looters further lent credence to wasting time in selecting such an undeserving cabinet.
Fast forward to 2019, our moses, governor Abdulrahman enjoyed the same honour as that of Buhari.both are serial contestants and just after the emergence of Governor Abdurahman, he chooses to take his time in assessing the best brains to work for him, a feat Buhari equally hide in during his first tenure and the result of which is not favorable.They are similar in that aspect equally, I only hope our moses succeeds.


Luckily, after many highbrow was raised from all corners in Kwara, the cabinet was later constituted and as law demands, sent to the appropriate quarter-house of assembly.
We witnessed a new dawn yesterday when these brains shortlisted were screened by the indefatigable House of Assembly, I believe they all performed wonderfully well.


Now, where I still need more explanations is how industrious this selected brains are to take our dear state to the next level of dynamism as envisaged by the governor?
Hope after taking all this time, the result won't be of blame game or failure of the shortlisted names to perform their respective duties?
Hope the confidence reposed on APC led administration won't be shattered with the set of brains in government.
This and many other questions are having battle in my mind and now I have shared them with you all.
Interestingly, the governor is making some giant strides in redefining Governance but may I say his good is noticed but his best is highly craved.
Governance should be more than making national headlines alone, we need to take it as it is, a tedious task deserving of our best.
I don't have problem with his cabinet make up for I believe his list is made after a tedious search and a thorough assessment of the nominees.


But if anybody can clear the air on why a governor would choose to appoint an immediate graduate (Miss Kolo Joana) with little or no experience of administration and at the expense of qualified candidates, I will so much appreciate it and while I wait for clarification on that, may I say may AA will succeeded?
Let all that concerns in this echoe it to the hearing of our Moses that no excuses will be tolerated for maladministration and that the people's should henceforth be the utmost priority.
I hope to see the best this deserving individuals will bring in restoring sanity and the lost glory back to Kwara.


As we set on a new pace of governance, I beseech Allah in his infinite mercy and magnanimity to crown the effort of our darling governor in order to actualize his aims and objective for all kwarans.

Yusuf Mubarak authority writes from the sunny city of Abuja

Press Release
24th October, 2019


STOP WASTAGES, GROUP CHARGES KWARA GOVERNOR.

The People's Voice's attention has been drawn to the front page story of the National Pilot Newspaper dated on 24th of October on the extravagant spendings of Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq led administration on the alleged purchase of 2 bullet proof vehicles for the outrageous sum of ₦480 Millions in this harsh economic period.

According to the statement of the Assistant Publicity Secretary of the group, Abdulraheem Olaitan Kehinde, he said it is quite shocking reading that a man whom an average kwaran begins to think that his simplicity is second to none could embark on extravagant adventure in the face of uncertainties hitting the state economy. So sad that it is coming at a time when the people of Kwara State are battling with high inflation due to the mismanagement of the country's fiscal and monetary policies. This sudden switch of His Excellency from his adopted ostentatious lifestyle to a flabouyant lifestyle further established the popular view of the people on the street that the Governor is only acting a poorly drafted script of a man who takes life simple.

"We expect to see someone whose knowledge of governance came from his extensive background fieldwork in the parts of the state prior election period and follow its closely in order to make a great developmental stories out of it. But the case here is quite otherwise as what we are seeing here in Kwara is a Governor who is still rehearsing his script when others have already swang to actions. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State is a perfect close example of the exemplary Governor who is also a first timer like Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq of Kwara State.

"In addition, while this APC administration have failed to honour their promises of clearing the salary arrears of local government and SUBEB teachers as promised by them during electioneering campaigns, it is pertinent to urge the government to embark on costs cutting measures and not adding to the cost of governance as depicted by this act of unwise and frivolous spendings on automobiles.

"The moment has come for Kwarans to start asking the proper questions and draw the right inferences about what the governor is doing with our treasury. More reason why we are imploring tthe government under the leadership of Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq to end the secrecy by publicly updating Kwarans on the state IGR and make the FAAC allocations coming to Kwara State open to all and sundry so that we can monitor how funds are utilised for the benefit of the people of Kwara State. That, we believe, is not too much to ask.

"Again, we might need to remind ourselves that this APC led government came into power with the mantra of change which we have yet to see an inch of this in their undertaken so far. Yes, we understand that the present government is new in the system and will need some time to plan its programmes before proper implementation. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has no two heads yet he his developmental blueprint are in the public domain practically taking effect. If we watch and allow a man to spend months rehearsing madness, when is he going to take to street and put it into action?

"Maybe the government needs someone to tell them that the political honeymoon is over as Kwarans are earnestly waiting to see real performance in terms of improvement in infrastructures, clearing of backlog of salaries owed workers and not blame game as it has been witnessed in government circle of recent.

"Our concern, as a group, is to see a new Kwara where justice, equity, transparency, accountability and fairness will be the watchwords of governance.


Signed:

Comrade Abdulraheem Olaitan Kehinde,
The Assistant Publicity Secretary,
The People's Voice

Press release
22nd October, 2019.

KWARA CITIZENSHIP FORM SHOULD NOT TAKE THE DIRECTION OF RICE IN THE MARKET, GROUP CAUTIONS.


We, the people's voice, are deeply disillusioned by the ineptitude of the state government towards the indigenes of Kwara State on the increase in the application fee for citizenship certificate based on what we read on the portal and other online media outfits, the government is shifting away from the promises its made to the electorates during electioneering campaign.

Paying over the odds for citizenship application form does not validate indigeneship but promotes dishonesty by cutting corners in their ploy to get the certificate. The last administration did well by harmonising the process of collecting citizenship certificate devoid of fraudulent practices and increase revenue accruable to the local governments.

The apolitical Kwarans have every reason to be despair at any slightest provocation going by their high expectations from Kwara APC campaign manifesto. This attitudinal tendency may explain why some members of the ruling political party in the state were aggrieved for not having their share in the spoils of war.

Also, on the monthly disclosure of FAAC allocation to the state and the 16 local governments, we implore the state government to borrow a leaf from the immediate past administration by making available the amount Kwara gets from federal account allocation every month. The Kwara State Internal Revenue Service Should continue with the usual practice of briefing the public on the amount generated monthly in order to afford people the opportunity to know what comes into the public coffers and subsequently demand for dividends of democracy based on the state's financial information available to them.

On the issue of the sun set teachers disengaged by SUBEB based on the allegation of not being professional teachers, we enjoin the state government to pay these set of workers their salaries for the month of September as they have diligently worked and deserved to, at least, be paid the month's salary.



Signed:


Comrade Abdulraheem Olaitan, The Assistant Publicity Secretary,
The People's Voice.

Press release
22nd October, 2019.

KWARA CITIZENSHIP FORM SHOULD NOT TAKE THE DIRECTION OF RICE IN THE MARKET, GROUP CAUTIONS.


We, the people's voice, are deeply disillusioned by the ineptitude of the state government towards the indigenes of Kwara State on the increase in the application fee for citizenship certificate based on what we read on some national dailies and online media outfits, the government is shifting away from the promises its made to the electorates during electioneering campaign.

Paying over the odds for citizenship application form does not validate indigeneship but promotes dishonesty by cutting corners in their ploy to get the certificate. The last administration did well by harmonising the process of collecting citizenship certificate devoid of fraudulent practices and increase revenue accruable to the local governments.

The apolitical Kwarans have every reason to be despair at any slightest provocation going by their high expectations from Kwara APC campaign manifesto. This attitudinal tendency may explain why some members of the ruling political party in the state were aggrieved for not having their share in the spoils of war.

Also, on the monthly disclosure of FAAC allocation to the state and the 16 local governments, we implore the state government to borrow a leaf from the immediate past administration by making available the amount Kwara gets from federal account allocation every month. The Kwara State Internal Revenue Service Should continue with the usual practice of briefing the public on the amount generated monthly in order to afford people the opportunity to know what comes into the public coffers and subsequently demand for dividends of democracy based on the state's financial information available to them.

On the issue of the sun set teachers disengaged by SUBEB based on the allegation of not being professional teachers, we enjoin the state government to pay these set of workers their salaries for the month of September as they have diligently worked and deserved to, at least, be paid the month's salary.



Signed:


Comrade Abdulraheem Olaitan, The Assistant Publicity Secretary,
The People's Voice.

THE “STARBOY”, THE SACRIFICIAL LAMB

By Abdullateef Ishowo

According to the Urban Dictionary, the term “starboy” refers to a man who enjoys the company of more than one woman at a time. By implication, a star boy is a womanizer, a philanderer, a man who has sex with many women. However, in the present Nigerian political context, the term “starboy” has been coined to refer to a popular government official, the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Professor Yemi Osinbajo.
A sacrificial lamb is a metaphorical reference to a person or animal sacrificed for the common good or interest of a particular group or society. And the term is derived from the traditions of Islam where lamb was used as a symbolic reference when Prophet Ibrahim was to sacrifice his only son, Ismaheel and a ram eventually appeared as a sacrificial lamb replacing Ismaheel. Christianity also partially concurred to this that Isaac asked his father where the animal for the burnt offering was and Abraham replied “God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering”. The animal that appeared was a ram.
In a chess game, a sacrifice is a move to give up a piece with the objective of gaining tactical or positional compensation in other forms, or a deliberate exchange of a chess piece of higher value for an opponent’s piece of lower value. Even a valuable player can become a sacrificial lamb to protect the King. Kindly note this, “to protect the king”.
In Sidney Sheldon’s “Windmills of the gods”, Mary Ashley was the American fictional “starlady” and her husband, Dr. Ashley became the sacrificial lamb that had to go to pave way for Mary, in an international political chess game between the USA and an Iron Curtain country (Romania). The little Ikemefuna was the sacrificial lamb in our own Achebe’s “Things fall apart”. The boy had to be sacrificed to restore peace back to Umuofia and Mbaino. In the ongoing African Magic soap opera “AJOCHE”, Alochenu, an adopted son of the King and the only heir to the throne was the “starboy” at the climax of the play. He eventually became the sacrificial lamb in the hands of the cabals who prefer Prince Ape to an adopted child of King Odaleku when the rest of the episodes fell to anticlimax. The King himself became a lamb to be sacrificed to pave way for the son of a desperate general.
The starboy of the then General muhammadu Buhari administration during his first coming as military Head of state between 1983 and 1985 was the stern looking and no nonsense soldier, Late General Babatunde Idiagbon. He was everywhere, many young Nigerians then (including myself as a young boy) mistaken him for the Head of state because of his name echoing everywhere in Nigeria. But the luck Idiagbon had was that he was operating in a military administration that had no respect for the rule of law. Besides, the then unsuspecting cabals were working against both himself and his boss; unlike the present situation of Prof. Yemi Osinbajo where the cabals are working against everyone but the President and his men.
In President Buhari’s first term in office between 2015 and 20019, the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo was the “starboy” while the immediate past Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, was the needed sacrificial lamb. Now that the scenario has slightly changed in this second term as Saraki is out of the way, the hyenas have turned their attention to a new prey as the “starboy” of yesterday has suddenly turned a sacrificial lamb in the hands of the ferocious cabals. Isn’t it an obvious fact that the “starboy” of the Muhammadu Buhari administration is presently experiencing trying times with the kind of political chicanery orchestrated by the invisible cabals in the power house called Aso Villa against the gentle “man of God”? The Nigerian political landscape was agog following the tersely released bombshell by Femi Adesina, announcing the establishment of a new Economic Advisory Council (EAC) to advise PMB on economic policy and management. The EAC, he said, would replace the former Economic Management Team (EMT) headed by the Vice-President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo and which was responsible for overseeing and coordinating the economy in the administration’s first term. The Economic Advisory Council will report directly to the President. In the same week, the Presidential Committee on Asset Recovery which was also under the supervision of the Vice President was equally dissolved and the functions of the office were transferred to the office of the Attorney General of the Federation. His role as the supervisor of the Special Intervention Project (SIP) activities has equally been transferred to another ministry. Even though the allegation has been refuted, as soon as the “starboy” was alleged to have mismanaged the N90b purportedly released to him by FIRS for 2019 elections campaign was made public, a group petitioned EFCC to probe the Vice-President. The question is who sponsored the group?
However, while many see all these developments as signals to 2023 political permutations, others see them as normal routine in Nigeria’s governance arena. Though the VP has not been stopped or disturbed in any way from performing his constitutional responsibilities, but there is no smoke without fire they say. Besides, no action is inconsequential in politics.
As we keep watching from near and/or afar, many questions beg for answers: are the cabals comfortable with our referred “man of God” in spite of his roles in the removal of Manman Daura, the immediate past DSS boss and the confirmation of the former CJ of the federation, Justice Water Onoghen against the will of the power that be? Has the journey to 2023 begun? Who is flashing Osinbajo and for what purpose? At what point has his loyalty to PMB become a doubt? Is Osinbajo a sacrificial lamb to get at someone or the main target? And how is he a factor in the 2023 political game?

Press Release


7th October, 2019.


Kwara State Government should stop extorting parents through sale of textbooks, a group cautions.


1. We, the People's Voice, strongly rise against the backdrop of Kwara State Ministry of Education trying to cause more hardship for parents and guardians through sales of Mathematics and English Language textbooks to JSS1 and SS1 Students in every Public Schools in Kwara State.

2. It is quite disheartening that this is coming at a period when scholars have come to the agreement that education is the next big thing which will earn Nigeria enormous revenues. We expect the government to be looking at how to improve its quality by providing necessary infrastructures and instructional materials such as textbooks for free especially in core areas such as Mathematics and English Language.

3. If it will not be out of place, we will love to implore the Kwara State Governor to borrow a good leave from his Oyo State conterpart who is already in the process of refunding over ₦28million extorted from students to their parents and guardians. This was after Governor Seyi Makinde has repositioned the state education policy from profit making venture to people driven; returned over 43 per cent of its out-of-school children population back to class in Oyo State; renovation of 100 state-owned schools in which 40 have been completed, and 60 are at advanced stages of renovation and close to completion.

4. Like many people, we are as well curious to know what stops Kwara State Ministry of Education to formally adopt the REUSE OF OLD TEXTBOOKS in all public schools across the state. The heaps of textbooks in many homes is becoming alarming since they have been rejected by govenment on the ground that there are newer versions in the bookstore. We cannot afford to start thinking that Ministry of Education and some governments approved Publishers have formed an alliance to extort parents every session through the sales of textbooks. The insensitivity of the government to the economic condition of the parents/guardians has further worsened the situation.

5. Parents and guardians are already groaning because of the harsh economic situation in the country, the government should not be adding more pains to the precarious condition. The present APC government in Kwara State came in with a lot of promises to improve the living standard of our people and not to harden it. The government should use whatever intellectual honesty and mental discipline to drive people oriented programmes which will provide a leverage for these learners to become the pride of the state in the future. For instance, Ogun State Government scrapped the N3700 charges on all public Secondary school Students by the last administration

6. In lieu of the above, we implore the Kwara State Government, through its Ministry of Education, to reverse its decision whereby parents pay exorbitantly for these textbooks(N2,900) despite efforts by some individuals in the society to provide these for free. The world is becoming a knowledge driven economy and Kwara should not be left behind in the name of politics and sentiments which could put a clog in the wheel of our progress.

7. Without fear of equivocation or favour, we want to make it clear that any attempt by the Kwara State Government to play dumb and deaf on this subject matter will amount to running an anti-poor education policy and it will have bad effects on the reputation and image of Kwara State around the globe.

8. A stitch in time saves nine.


Signed:

Comrade Abdulraheem Olaitan,
Assistant Publicity Secretary,
The People's Voice.

Press Release.

10th June, 2019.

*PAY SUBEB, LG WORKERS FROM THE N5.4B TAX REFUND, GROUP URGES GOVERNOR ABDULRAHMAN.*


Following the news and the release of the sum of N5.4 billion tax refund due to Kwara State on May 28 of this year, we, the People's Voice, wish to submit our resolutuons in this regards:

1. That, the Kwara State Government under the leadership of His Execellency Alhaji Abdulrasaq Abdulrahman may wish to exercise the powers conferred on him by the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to order that the money should be used to pay PART of the outstanding salaries of both SUBEB and Local Government workers.

2. That the refund money in question is outside the 2019 signed budget, therefore, the State government is at liberty to graciously and judiciously use it in championing any developmental project of public interest. And by our assessment, as a patriotic group of Kwarans, we found the payment of the outstanding salaries of the category of workers' mentioned above as paramount.

3. Our research also reveals that, both the Local Government and SUBEB (and their respective pensioners) will cost Kwara State Government N2.1 billion to pay for a month salary, therefore the available fund can cater for two and half payment or better still pay 2 months. While we suggest that the remaining N1.2 billion should be set aside for other infrastructural development projects in the state.

4. We wish to emphatically re-register our stance that the non-compliance with the court verdict and other relevant regulatory provisions that has to do with the State Government taking full charge of the running of Junior Secondary School Education in Kwara State away from Local Government Councils cannot promote nor guaranty academic excellence if it is allow to continue. The group through its Deputy Publicity Secretary call for immediate compliance actions on the part of the state government.

5. The group members observed that, leaving the financial commitment of Junior Secondary School in the hand of helpless tier of government like Local Government Area Councils is simply puting part of our Basic education in comatose And if the state government continues to play hide and seek game with the issue of Junior Secondary School Education funding in the state, it will not only spell doom in the future of our young ones but also on the generation yet unborn.


God bless Kwara State.


Signed:

*Comrade Abdulraheem Kehinde,*
*Assistant Publicity Secretary,*
*The People's Voice.*

*What Do Bukola Saraki’s Colleagues in the 8th Senate Think of Him?*

As the 8th Senate ends it historic tenure on June 9th, 2019, on Thursday, June 6th, 2019, it held its final valedictory session.

At the event, Senators spoke about the last four years, and what the institution has been able to achieve during that time.

One trend that stood out, were the comments made about outgoing Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, the Senator representing Kwara Central in the 8th National Assembly.

These were a few of their comments:

“Senate President, Senator Bukola Saraki, you are truly a great team player. That is one thing we will be willing to share with your successor,” said Senator Emmanuel Bwacha, the Senate Deputy Minority Leader


“I salute your leadership courage, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, to work for the common purpose of making laws for the federal republic of Nigeria. I will not forget the troubled times we have been through. As far as the 8th Senate is concerned, you have led us well,” said Senator Philip Aduda, the Senate Minority Whip.


“Your leadership has been the most impactful, Bukola Saraki. History will be kind to you. In effectiveness, the 8th Senate has a good place in history and the 9th Senate will have a lot to learn from it. This Senate led by Bukola Saraki has passed a high number of Bills and Motion. We’re forever grateful for this rare opportunity,” said Senator Bassey Akpan, the Senator representing Akwa Ibom North- East.


“Nothing good comes easy, but sometimes we have to give way. Thank you, Bukola Saraki, my leader, my mentor,” said Senator Binta Masi Garba, the outgoing Senator representing Adamawa North Senatorial District in the 8th Senate and a staunch Buhari supporter.


“I thank the Almighty who is the supreme controller of the universe. When canckerworms and caterpillars attacked you, I addressed you as the irremovable Senate President, Bukola Saraki. To my surprise, many of those who orchestrated your downfall and removal have now called you their mentor, only God give and take power. The happiest day in my life was the day Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki emerged as the Senate President,” said Senator Dino Melaye, the Senator representing Kogi West, and a key ally of outgoing Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki.


“I urge my colleagues, especially those coming back to see this country as one nation. I want to particularly thank the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, and DSP, Ike Ekweremadu. May God continue to bless them for their leadership,” said Senator Obinna Ogba, the Senator representing Ebonyi Central Senatorial District.


“I have been here for 20yrs and I can say without fear that you, Bukola Saraki, have developed the Senate to an enviable height,” said Senator David Mark, the President of the 6th and 7th National Assemblies, and the Senator representing Benue South Senatorial District in the 6th, 7th and 8th National Assemblies.

“I respect you for your resilience and always standing for what you believe in Bukola Saraki. I have never taken anybody consciously on personal basis, I do that based on what I think is right,” said Senator Ali Ndume, former Senate Leader and a key contender for the Presidency of the 9th Senate.


“80% of my votes came from the IDP, so I am an IDP Senator. I remember the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, taking a trip to Maiduguri to assess the Security situation. This development gave rise to the North-East Development Commission Bill (NEDC Bill). And also, the commitment and contributions from our colleagues both in cash and kind,” said Senator Abubakar Kyari, the Senate representing Borno North Senatorial District in the 8th National Assembly.

”Whatever has a beginning must have an end and so today, the 8th Senate comes to an end. You directed us very well and did your best, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki,” said the Chairman of the Senate Services Committee, Senator Ibrahim Gobir.

“When I came here, you, Bukola Saraki, gave me opportunity to serve well, even though I resumed this 8th Assembly late. I have been very active for the 17months I have been in the Senate and I sponsored two Bills during this period. This Senate has gotten so much work done,” said Senator Victor Umeh, the Senator representing Anambra Central in the 8th National Assembly.

*Absolve the beneficiaries of late recruitment made by the immediate past government, Group urges Kwara State Governor.*


We, the People's Voice, wish to submit our views on the ongoing late recruitment saga which has denied its gross beneficiaries the rights of their MAY salaries entitlement.

We are aware that some people, mostly from your political party, have resolved that the beneficiaries of the late recruitment made by the immediate past administration should be sacked and laidoff immediately. Politically Speaking, these set of people could be right in their respective submissions if we choose to follow the pattern of partisan kind of governance we have practised and practising in Nigeria.

We even read how some party men were citing the case of Ogun, Bauchi, Oyo among others on how their 'sunset employees' were sacked with immediate effect. That, again, could be politically justified if we decided to dig deeper. But with the mix of human feelings and a bit of leadership touch, Kwara State can wear a new moral look under Abdulrasaq Abdulrahman and at least Zamfara State Government has set the pace in this direction. Can't Abdulrahaman led administration queue behind this?

Even far away from that, moral justification should be the sentiment the incumbent Executive Governor must ride on if he wants to be crowned 'The People's Governor' instead of the party governor.

If we must summon enough courage to face the Governor with strong worded truth, he didn't win the last election with little support from his party men. In raw fact, more of the supports came from the relatives and friends of this late recruitment beneficiaries. Whatever may be the last resolutuons of his administration, the last regretable thing he will want to do is to go against the same people who gave him leadership voice after his several past electoral outings in the State.

Fine, we are totally in support that academic merit in any past and future recruitment process should not be traded off. Screening is allowed and indeed a welcome development. But at the same time, the Governor must be wary of who will make the Screening Committee in order to avoid any form of political payback at the detriment of the committee's tasks. If that happens, the spoil of political war might take long to cleasen. And the Governor's name will always come to mind. May God forbid!

Another issue of great concern is the helpless mode of operation and management of Junior Secondary School Education in Kwara State. We urge your Excellency to take responsibility for its funding in order to put a natural end to the issue of Salary in percentages for both Local Government Area Councils workers and their SUBEB counterpart.

With utmost sense of sincerity, the recent press release made through the office of Deputy Chief Press Secretary on why SUBEB and Local government received 81% confirmed that the issue of percentages payment to the Junior Secondary School Workers and SUBEB workers goes beyond the wrong impression we have long been developed against the immediate past administration but rather the short of fund right from Federal distribution.

And giving the bastardization, disorientation and weather beaten style of operation of local councils in the state, we cannot afford to place education fate of our children in their hands. To this end, we urge your Execellency to put an end to this by upholding the judgement made in favour of Local Government Area Councils that it is the responsibility of the state government to pay the JSS Workers. If the court verdicts does not matter, knowing that our children does not deserve the unfortunate reality is enough a reason for your Execellency to oblige us of our request.

God bless Kwara State.


Signed:

*Comrade Abdulraheem Kehinde,*
*Assistant Publicity Secretary,*
*The People's Voice.*

Group Felicitates with new Governor of Kwara State and Charges him on Priorities


The People's Voice joins numerous kwarans both home and Abroad to Congratulate Alhaji Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq as the new Executive Governor of Kwara State that May your tenure bring infrastructural, educational and economic fortunes to the State.

Sir, as you officially resumed work, we want your Excellency to look into the followings as Priorities

1. Domestication of Freedom of Information Bill and seeing to its full implementation in the State Ministries and Agencies.

2. Subvention payment to State Higher Institutions .

3. Taking up of the full running of Junior Secondary Schools Education in the State away from Local Government Area Councils.

4. Reduction in the Students' tuition fees in Kwara State University, Malete.

Your Excellency Sir, addressing the above-mentioned issues with all sense of seriousness will place Kwara State in the league of states with good record of good governance, economic transparency and financial accountability.

Once again, congratulations your Execellency.


Signed:

*Comrade Abdulraheem Kehinde,*
*Assistant Publicity Secretary.*

Delay The Payment of Kwara's share of the Paris Club Debt Refund, group charges FG


Following the plan of the Federal Government to start the disbursement of the Paris Club Debt Refund to each state of the federation, we, The People's Voice are compelled to establish the following views as Nigerians with the rights of expression:

1. The People's Voice in her strong words, urges President Muhammadu Buhari to delay the disbursement of Paris Club Debt Refund acruel to Kwara State till after May 29 when the newly elected Governor, Alhaji Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq would have been sworn into office. By so doing, the group believes it will among other reasons gives room for proper accountability and transparency. While doing otherwise will amount to grave error which is capable of throwing the incoming government and its people into unfathomable financial predicament.

2. It is noteworthy that majority of Kwarans find it strange that Mr. President would consider it appropriate at this critical moment to disburse the last tranche of the Paris fund at the 11th hour of the tenure of the incumbent State Governor, Alhaji Abdulfatai Ahmed, who has just few days left to officially transit power to the newly elected Executive Governor. Such idea may not be in the best interest of the populace as they've lost confidence and trust on the outgoing government.

3. PV says this based on the information gathered from the press conference release credited to the Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed on the plan of the Federal Government to disburse N649billion Paris Club Debt Refund through the Central Bank of Nigeria as soon as possible.

4. Available information indicates that some State Governors are likely to misuse the fund going by the failure to properly account for the implementation of the past Paris Club Debt Refund hence the outcry of the masses against the Federal Government's plan.

5. The unacceptable level of financial recklessness and egoistic attitude displayed by the Governors of some states should be discouraged through legal means.

6.the mass group believes that the delay in disbursement of Kwara State share represents the views of an average Kwaran. And the group hopes that the Federal Government will toe the path of the masses so as to reaffirm the commitment of good governance.



_7. The group, through its Deputy Publicity Secretary, Comrade Abdulraheem Kehinde further implores the outgoing Executive Governor of the State to make official statement on the debt profile of the state and in particular what the state is expected to receive from Federal Government's pulse and this should cover the Federal Capital projects and other related projects executed by the state that are yet to be refunded by the FG and the balance of the Paris Club refund so that the public will be well informed on her financial status.


Thanks.


Signed


*Comrade Abdulraheem Kehinde*
*Deputy Publicity Secretary*

Press Release
May 7, 2019

EFCC Should Stop This Witch-Hunt Against Saraki

1. We have noted a statement issued yesterday by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in reaction to a news story published by a national newspaper, based on the letter written by the commission to the Kwara State Government in which it demanded for all details of salaries, allowances, estacode or any other entitlement enjoyed by Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, the President of the Senate, during his tenure as Governor of Kwara State between 2003 and 2011.

2. While we have kept quiet over the series of letters sent to various institutions where Dr. Saraki had served or is serving in which the commission stated that it is conducting various investigations, we are compelled to make our positions known on the less than noble and patriotic objectives behind these investigations because we believe it is a mere witch-hunt exercise, aimed at settling scores, laced with malicious and partisan motives.

3. We will first make clarifications to put a lie to some of the claims made by the EFCC in the statement issued yesterday. The EFCC claimed that “the commission’s letter to the Kwara State Government House, which sought an inquest into Saraki’s earnings as the state Governor, from 2003 to 2011 was dated Friday, April 26, 2019, predating his announcement as IHRC ambassador at large which came on Sunday, April 28, 2019 with two clear days”. It should be noted that the IHRC letter informing the Senate President of his appointment is dated March 16, 2019, that is about 40 days before the EFCC wrote its letter conveying the investigations to Kwara State Government House. In fact, the media team of the Senate President held on to the announcement of the appointment for several weeks so that we could do due diligence on it.

4. At this point, we need to remind members of the public that Dr. Saraki’s tenure as Kwara State Governor has been investigated several times since his last months in Office in 2010 till date. In fact, at a point, as incumbent Governor, he voluntarily waived his immunity and submitted to investigation and yet nothing was found against him. Also, members of the public should be reminded that during the proceedings of his trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) between 2015 and 2018, it became clear that the evidence relied upon was from investigations conducted by the EFCC on his tenure as Governor and that is why the lead witness for the prosecution was an EFCC agent, Michael Wetkas. Yet, the CCT in its judgement dismissed the 16 charges filed against Dr. Saraki and that verdict was upheld by the highest court of the land, the Supreme Court.

5. This new investigation into his activities as Governor of Kwara State is a repeat performance. The EFCC is fishing for evidence that they did not get in the past investigations which has spanned almost nine years. However, we need to remind the Commission that Dr. Saraki is not an outgoing Governor. Since 2011, tens of governors have been in and out of our various State Houses. Like wise, hundreds of Senators and Representatives have been in and out of the National Assembly. To single out one individual for persistent investigation can only be logically and plausibly interpreted to be a witch-hunt. This is definitely no fight against corruption. It is a battle waged against a ‘political enemy’. It is a ‘label to damage’ plot.

6. Not satisfied with the reports submitted by its various teams which worked on the Saraki case in Ilorin and Lagos, the EFCC constituted a fresh team to investigate the Office of the Senate President and despatched another letter late last week to the Clerk of the Senate signed by Mohammed Umar Abba, Director of Operations, in which it requested for the following: “the Certified True Copies of the following: i) All Cash Books, Payment Vouchers, Contract Award Letters, Evidence of Contract Bidding, Agreement and Certificate of Contract Completion from 2015 to date. ii) Certified True Copies of all Financial Retirement made within the same period. iii) Any other information that may assist the Commission in its investigation”.

7. We observed that this type of letter was only written to the Office of the Senate President and not to both chambers of the National Assembly. Also, it is the first time such a letter is written to the office of the Senate President at the twilight of the tenure of the National Assembly indicating hostile investigation along these lines. None of his predecessors got such ‘exclusive’ treatment in which their office was investigated by state officials seeking to nail them at all cost. What EFCC does not know is that all the issues they are seeking to probe in the office of the Senate President are handled by the National Assembly Management, that is the bureaucracy of the federal legislature. The Senate President has nothing to do with such issues. However, in the eagerness and desperation to nail Dr. Saraki, they ignored even the basic facts upon which the entire investigation rests.

8. Some people who have called Dr. Saraki about the EFCC statement have wondered whether this is the Commission’s way of settling scores by blaming the non-confirmation of its acting chairman, Mr. Ibrahim Magu, on the leadership of the Senate. For those who reason in this direction, our response has always been that the decision not to clear Magu was not a personal issue between both men. It was an institutional decision which was taken on a day that the public freely follows the proceedings through live coverage on television. This was done to avoid accusations that some people seized the process to deliberately deny Mr. Magu fair hearing.


9. Let it be known that the usual claim by the EFCC that its actions were directed against corrupt elements does not apply to Dr. Saraki because he is a man who at every point in his public service life has sought to institute transparency and accountability in governance. Dr. Saraki has always worked to promote transparency in governance in all the places he had held public office. For example, as Governor of Kwara State, he waived his immunity to enable his regime be probed and introduced the Price Intelligence Unit, the first by any state. This unit reduced leakages in government revenues. The idea was later adopted by the Federal Government as it became Bureau of Public Procurement(BPP).

10. Kwara State under his governorship was the first state to be rated by Fitch, the global rating agency which affirmed its National Long term rating at AA-(minus) and ratings of B+ in public finance transparency. In 2006, the EFCC under Mallam Nuhu Ribadu in a report presented before the Senate gave Kwara State under his tenure a clean bill of health, alongside five other states. At the end of his tenure in 2011, the anti- corruption agency did not find any reason to invite him for any questioning. It was more than a year after he left office when he moved the controversial motion calling for investigation into fuel subsidy that the EFCC first invited him for investigation and nothing came out of that effort. Again, Dr. Saraki in his first term in the Senate was the one who through a motion on the floor exposed the biggest fraud in the country then. That is the oil subsidy scam. Such a person can definitely not be said to be a corrupt element.

11. There is need to once again put it on record that the Eighth Senate led by Dr. Saraki has played key roles in institutionalizing the fight against corruption, which is the national objective for setting up the EFCC and other anti-corruption agencies. Among the bills passed to facilitate the fight against corruption include the National Financial Intelligence Agency Act, which, in-line with international best practices, created an autonomous Financial Intelligence Unit in the country that would allow Nigeria to have access to information relating to financial investigations in the 152 member countries of the EGMONT Group. The Senate got commendation from the Financial Intelligence Database Agency (ultrascan) for passing the NFIA Act and enabled the nation to be readmitted into the Egmont Group. In fact, the latest directive by the NFIA preventing Governors from accessing local government funds and banning banks from allowing transactions from State Joint Local Government Account without monies first reaching the accounts of the particular local government is also a derivative of the NFIA law passed by the Eighth National Assembly.

12. Another one is the Proceeds of Crime Bill which now pave the way for the country to become full member of the Financial Task Force (FATF). South Africa was the only African country on the task force before now. The Senate also passed the Federal Audit Services Commission Bill, which is aimed at empowering the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation to ensure that MDAs comply with the Fiscal Responsibility Act in the management of public funds and in the timely submission of their audited accounts for scrutiny. The bill came out of the oversight by the Senate in which it uncovered the fact that over 300 MDAs have not submitted their reports to the office of the Auditor-General in the past years. These are definitely not the acts that a corrupt element will prefer.

13. Other anti-corruption bills passed by the Eighth Senate include the Whistleblowers Protection Bill, which seeks to ensure that individuals that are in danger of reprisals in relation to whistleblower activities are protected under the law; Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act which sought to among other things identify, trace, freeze, restrain, recover, forfeit and confiscate proceeds, property and other instrumentalities of crime; Witness Protection Bill, which is geared at encouraging witnesses of crimes, especially organized crimes, terrorism or other crimes to come forward and assist government and its agencies by offering protection to witnesses willing to provide information, and evidence for the purpose of ensuring proper investigation.

14. These are more fundamental issues that can make permanent the anti-corruption war and remove it from the realm of whimsical pursuits. All these are legislative measures taken by the Eighth Senate led by Dr. Saraki to make the EFCC and other anti-corruption agencies more efficient, and generally, in aid of the fight against corruption.

15. It is to the credit of the Senate President and his colleagues in the Eighth National Assembly that there has not been any case of bribery scandal or misappropriation in the procurement process. Dr. Saraki promised more transparency on his inauguration as Senate President and the Eighth National Assembly has promoted transparency tenets in which the full details of its budget are now available for public scrutiny. The engagement of the Eighth Senate with the public in the process of conception, drafting and passage of bills are unprecedented.



16. Dr. Saraki led a senate where the leadership do not get involved in contract awards. It has initiated public hearing as part of the process for annual appropriations bill passage and has helped to make the legislative institution more responsive to the yearnings of the ordinary people.

17. While we do not wish to obstruct the EFCC in the performance of its tasks, we reiterate our position that the Commission should be professional, ethical, transparent and consistent. It cannot be deemed professional when the agency is not consistent in the application of its rules and the laws to all cases and individuals. The recent onslaught against the Senate President by the anti-graft Agency is definitely a case of different laws for different folks.

End

Signed

Yusuph Olaniyonu
Special Adviser (Media and Publicity) to Senate President

Causes of Marital Crises
Marital crises could originate from different sources some of which could be psychological and / or psychosomatic in
nature. Tobin (2004) attesting to the above claim retorts that more and more marriages run into crisis and eventually pack
up because one partner has a borderline personality disorder such as narcissist, antisocial, psychopathic personality
disorders. These sort of people are abusers by nature where as some are even unaware or unconscious of their near
helpless conditions.
3.1 Social Incompatibility of Marriage Partners.
There is no doubt that some marriages have absolutely no foundation or basis for being contracted at the first instance.
This is so because the pair is socially incompatible and may only manage to get along for a short while before signs of
incompatibility would start to manifest. It would then be discovered that the couple are strange bed fellows - socially,
religiously and ideologically. Crises are bound to ensue in a situation where a marriage partner sets high and unrealistic
standards in the home. The fallibility of man is unquestionable and as such it is not possible that such idealistic standards
are realized. This is capable of degenerating into crisis in the home. Many married people become disillusioned when
they discover that their union is not all they had expected and that their spouse is not quite what they had envisioned
him/her to be (Awake, 2008). Additionally, some couples unrealistically expect to get more out of marriage than they put
into it.
3.2 Sexual Incompatibility
Poor sexual-satisfaction on the part of a marital partner may spice up crisis in the union which not properly-.and timely
detected and managed could lead to extramarital sexual affairs - a situation that if on its own leads to disaffection and
loss of trust.
3.3 Extreme Sexual Orientation
Extreme sexual orientation of one of a marriage partner is capable of endangering a marital union. Such orientations like
homosexuality, lesbianism, bestiality, sodomy, MouthAction, excessive sexual appetite especially when the other partner is at
the other extreme of the scale can generate crisis in the homes. Most of the time, such extreme sexual behaviours or
orientations are discovered rather too late or midway into the marriage that it becomes very difficult to pull out of the
engagement. And when once a partner cannot get along crisis ensues.
3.4 Extended Family Affairs/Issues.
Some once upon -a-time happy couples have had their marriages rocked for their inability to properly manage extended
family issues. In most cases, women find it difficult to accommodate relations of the husband (especially mothers and
sisters - in-law) and vice versa on the part of some husbands, a situation most marriage partners may find difficult to
accommodate. Some men/women often quarrel with spouses whose interests are only on the betterment of their own
relations.
Lack of Mutual Respect between Partners
Mutual respect for one's spouse is critical for marital union sustenance and lack of it is a crisis factor capable of rocking
even the strongest marital foundation of hitherto blissful homes. The Holy Bible admonishes couples thus: wives respect
your husband who in turn should love their wives as they would their own body. One can quickly assume that each of the
above mentioned conditions is a sine qua non for the other since a husband might find it difficult to continue to love a wife
who doesn't respect him or his authority; neither would a wife respect the husband who does not love her. Respect and
love are reciprocal variables in every marital union and as such, a spouse owes it an obligation to respect and love
his/her marriage partner, failure which fans the embers of marital discord and discontent.
3.6 Dishonesty and Moral Decadence
Dishonest behaviour coupled with moral decadence in the family can generate crisis in the home. A situation where a
couple cannot tell each other simple truth is not healthy for the union. Once such morality gap is discovered in any of the
spouses, mistrust sets in and confidence gradually gets eroded with crisis eventually taking over the home front. Poor
morality or decadent moral culture may unwittingly be imbibed by the children of such a family in which case the entire
family fabric weakens due largely to an atmosphere of mutual mistrust that eventually envelops it. (Buckwell, 2010)
3.7 Negligent Behaviour of Spouses
Negligent behaviour on the part of marital partners is a critical crisis factor. In taking marital vows, a couple normally
would promise to oblige the partner of his/her responsibility towards him/her, while avoiding indulgences that could mar
their union. But experience has shown that soon after, some marriages collapsed on the strength of negligence of such
avowed obligations. On this, a partner would start to feel cheated thus giving opportunity for tension to build up.
3.8 Poor Marital Communication
A factor that has occupied central position in all discourse concerning successful marriage is 'marital communication1
(Edger, 1996). Inability of spouses to communication effectively with each other is very unhealthy to the union. Effective
marital communication entails that couples discuss issues, respond to questions, call for explanations and accept same
timely (when given), as any delay may send out a wrong signal which a partner is bound to interpret same way. Effective
marital communication can in fact assuage many other marital disquiets before they could degenerate into crisis
situations. Put differently, poor marital communication has been blamed for some other marital problems that have even
culminated into divorce or separation of spouses. Purposeful open dialogue between couples often tends to be overtaken
by incessant arguments about anything, everything, and nothing; misinterpretation generates misunderstandings; verbal
attacks are countered by keeping silence especially on the husband’s side (Awake, 2008)
3.9 Unwholesome Social Behaviour
Bickering, unnecessary criticisms, gossip or what may simple be tagged nagging has rocked some good families. It is not
an over statement that majority of the women take to nagging instead of politely confronting their husbands with issues.
Most men in turn do not take kindly to such threats and would go a long way to crushing such tendencies. This case of
attack and counter attack is crisis prone, as no reasonable man would want his authority as the family head be usurped.

The prevalence of conflict in the country has become a major concern for the well-meaning Nigerians considering the impact on the peace, security as well as the economy of the nation. Destruction of lives and properties has almost become an everyday affair. These happenings have created a fearful atmosphere that discourages investors both domestic and foreign. By and large the economy of the nation is threatened. In explaining the political situation in the country; three terms need to be clarified. They include: crisis, conflict and violence. Crisis is the aftermath of conflict and violence. According to Idowu (1999), violence is often the manifestation of extreme, consistent and intense level of conflict. It is the harm perpetrated on persons ranging from restriction of their movement to torture or death and also the harm inflicted on properties ranging from mere damage to complete destruction. It is better imagined. Peace may not be appreciated without prior experiences of violence futility. Conflict occurs where there is an interaction between at least two individuals or groups whose objectives differ. The socials cost of conflict is so enormous that the government of a nation should do all within its capacity to discover the best strategy for conflict resolution.
Communal and ethnic conflicts have become one of the most urgent issues of concern to nation states as well as the regions where they occur. Furthermore, destabilization of state and regions could have a major impact on political and economic global stability. Commonly, most communal crisis are results of ethnic conflict that exist in a nation states that are composed of more than one ethnic group. Nevertheless, not all conflict turn violent. Even those that turn violent do not necessarily extend over long periods. Rather, many tend to erupt occasionally, and some tend to last for a short time: days or weeks, while some last for months or years. Those violent conflict that last for longer periods put a lot of stress on the Nigerian State and often affect the region around it, with the potential to affect the international community (Shihade, 2012).
Communal conflicts have been one of the most challenging problems of Nigeria and indeed any African Nations. All across Nigeria, there is an ever lengthening thread of communal conflicts as a result of ethnicity. Since May 29, 1999 when the country return to a civilian administration, the ethnic stew-pot in Nigeria has been boiling, wracked by severe ethnic violence in all parts of the country. In Lagos, Shagamu, Kaduna between (Zango and Kataf), Kano (between various permutation of the Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa-Fulani), Nasarawa (between Tivs and the Azare), Benue (between Jukuns and Tivs). In Osun (between Ife and Modakele),Ekiti (Emure Ekiti and Ise Ekiti), others include conflict within the Igbos in Aguleri and Umuleri, and between the Urhobos and the Itsekiri in Delta State, and most recently between the Fulani and Hausas in Jos, and between the Share and Tsaragi in Kwara State. These are not isolated events but are interconnected. What is more, they do not drop from the sky: powerful social and economic factors give rise to then and these violent crises have led to loss of lives and properties and they have threatened the existence of Nigeria as a nation.
Kwara State, which came to existence in 1967 has sixteen Local Government Areas, is also highly heterogeneous with diverse traditional cultures. It comprises of mainly Yoruba, Nupe, Fulani, Baruten, as well as Tiv, Biroh Busa, Chamba, Kanberi, Vere, Efik, Idoma and Juke. Each group has a distinct way of life. Members of each group participated in a wider network of social relations but sustained their boundaries myth and symbolism.
Edu and Ifelodun are two (2) contiguous Local Government Area of the 16 LGA(s) in Kwara State. Tsaragi is a predominantly Nupe speaking community located in Edu Local Government Area while Share is Yoruba (Igbomina) speaking community under Ifelodun Local Government Area. The traditional Head, leader of Nupes is addressed as the Ndakpoto, the Etsu Tsaragi, whereas the Oba of Share is referred to as the Olupako of Share (Odepitan 2009). The two communities have a long history of peaceful co-existence as far back as 1845. However, in the year 2008, the relationship between the two communities assumed a worrisome dimension as a communal clash ensued between a Yoruba man and Nupe man with a sharp reaction and disagreement on a piece of farmland. Quarrel started from the farmland and spill over to the town. According to Odepitan (2009), the two communities who had been co-habiting together are at war with each other. Dane guns, cutlasses, stones and petroleum were used as weapons of war and destruction. During the crisis properties worth millions of Naira were destroyed. Houses were burnt, motor vehicles destroyed and people lost their lives”.
Also in another scenario in December 2015, No fewer than four people were feared dead while thirty others were injured and 50 houses razed in renewed communal clash between the people of Share and Tsaragi despite the previous curfew imposed by Kwara State Government. It was reliably gathered that 30 other people sustained serious injuries in Share town in Ifelodun Local Government Area of Kwara State following the invasion of the town by people suspected to be youths from Tsaragi.
The two communities of Share and Tsaragi in the state had been engaged in face-off over a land dispute. According to an eyewitness, the irate youths suspected to be from Tsaragi town, armed with dangerous weapons including guns, invaded Share town and started burning some houses allegedly belonging to the people of the town. The sources informed that the invasion by the irate youths suspected to be from Tsaragi town took the people of Share unawares as the earlier presence of anti-riot policemen drafted to the warring towns gave them assurance of full protection until the irate youths came to attack the Share community with dangerous weapons.

Documents Show Osinbajo, Fashola Lied About Rise In Power Generation
In February, Babatunde Fashola, Minister of Power, Works and Housing, had claimed that power generation in Nigeria had improved by 100% within the space of three years. In April 2019, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo had also claimed that power generation had improved from 4000mw to 8100mw.


BY SAHARA REPORTERSAPR 29, 2019



Power generation and supply in the country has plumetted from 4,000 megawatts to 2,039 mw.

In February, Babatunde Fashola, Minister of Power, Works and Housing, had claimed that power generation in Nigeria had improved by 100% within the space of three years.

In April 2019, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo had also claimed that power generation had improved from 4000mw to 8100mw.

However, documents seen by Vanguard from the office of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo state: “On April 23rd, 2019, average power sent out was 87,061.8 MWh/day. The reported gas constraint was 2,039.5 MW.

“The reported line constraint was 0 MW. The reported frequency management constraint due to loss of DISCO feeders was 1,963 MW. The water management constraint was 150 MW. The power sector lost an estimated 2,048, mw due to constraints on this day.”

The situation is compounded because the Nigerian Gas Company (NGC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), was not able to complete the rehabilitation of the Escravos-Lagos Gas Pipeline System.

Consequently, Egbin, Omotosho, Olorunsogo and paras power stations were not able to generate power for transmission and distribution, thus forcing many electricity Distribution Companies (DISCOs) to express their helplessness to consumers.

Corroborating the document, the Transmission Company of Nigeria, TCN, said : “The National Grid is experiencing reduced power generation due mainly to emergency maintenance by NGC of its gas pipeline supplying gas to Egbin, Omotosho, Olorunsogo and Paras Power Stations.

“This was reportedly caused by leakage on the Escravos-Lagos gas pipeline, necessitating the total shutdown of the four power generating plants on 25th April, 2019.”

Saraki to Tinubu: Despite Your Smear Campaign and Hatred for Me, You Should, At Least, Dwell on Facts

1. Yesterday, Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu, released another of his now well expected quarterly vicious attack on the person of Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, the President of the Senate. In the statement, one could see the master of media spins getting ensnared in his own game as he struggled to extricate himself from the narratives about the contest for leadership positions in the Ninth National Assembly.

2. Since we have taken it for granted that Tinubu’s attack on Saraki every three months (Quarterly) will come as expected, we would just have ignored his statement but for the fact that it was filled with untruth, fallacies and misrepresentations. The statement was another effort to sell a concocted narrative about the Eighth National Assembly and its leadership.

3. First, he alleged that national budgets were delayed, distorted, padded, new projects introduced, funds for projects reduced, “to halt progress of government”. It is unfortunate that a man like Tinubu who had been in the Senate (though for 22 months and under a military regime) should have a better understanding of how the legislature works. The passage of budgets is definitely not the exclusive responsibility of the leadership of the Senate. Most of the work is done in the various committees. These committees are headed by Senators representing different parties. It is the level of co-operation between the committees and the MDAs in the timely defence of the budget proposals and the ability of the two chambers of the National Assembly to reconcile their figures that usually determine how soon the budget is passed. To put the blame of budget delay on the Senate President or Speaker can only be mischief, or at best, playing to the gallery.

   

4. It is also a known fact that any so-called delay in the passage of budgets under the Eighth National Assembly is traceable to the refusal of heads of MDAs to defend the budget proposals for their agencies on time. Last year, the President himself had to direct the Secretary to Federal Government to compel heads of MDAs to appear before the National Assembly committees following the report made to him by Dr. Saraki and Speaker Yakubu Dogara. So, if a man like Tinubu is spreading this falsehood about budget passage and delay being deliberately orchestrated by the National Assembly leadership, one wonders whether he tries to even understand what happens in the federal legislature at all or is that the only thing that is of interest to him is  “jockeying and maneuvering for influence”, as he puts it.

5. To further make the points here clear, we invite  Tinubu to look at the records of the time of submission of budgets and their passage since 2010 and he will see that with the exception of the 2013 budget which was passed on December 20, 2012, all the budgets have been passed between March and May of the same fiscal year. This  should give him a better understanding of the fact that the date the Appropriations Bill is submitted to parliament and the readiness of the MDAs to defend the proposals submitted as well as timely agreement on the figures by both chambers of the National Assembly are the main determining factors in when the budget is eventually passed. So, Tinubu should see that the facts cannot support his spins and fake narrative.

 

6. In all the three budgets already passed by the National Assembly, we challenge Tinubu to make specific reference to where Dr. Saraki and the leadership of the National Assembly “sought to pad with pet projects” as  he alleged. Tinubu should be graceful enough to substantiate this allegation. We consider that allegation careless, irresponsible and callous. We therefore demand that he should withdraw it.

7. However, there is need to let him know that it is the constitutional responsibility of the National Assembly to review the proposals sent by the executive and where it deems necessary, it is within the power of the legislature to make changes. A good example, is the decision by the National Assembly to include in the 2018 budget the one percent of the total budget, amounting to N33 billion, as allocation for Universal Health Coverage as provided by an extant law,  which had been hitherto observed in the breach. Is this what Tinubu considers as budget padding? And this was a decision which was praised across the world as a real benefit to ordinary people across the country. 



7.  Tinubu also claimed that the Senate leadership “stymied APC legislative initiatives while attempting to hoist noxious reactionary and self interested legislation on the nation”. We wonder what these “legislative initiatives” are because in the four years of the Buhari administration, it has only forwarded 11 bills to the Senate, apart form the routine annual appropriations and supplementary budget proposals. Two of these bills, the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Bill and the National Minimum Wage Bill,  have been passed. One of the bills, the Money Laundering Prevention and Prohibition Act (amendment) Bill was withdrawn by the executive following the disagreement between the Attorney General and the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Also, another one, the National Water Resources Bill was rejected because it infringed on the rights of states to develop their water resources. The remaining seven which are the National Centre for Disease Control and Prevention Establishment Bill, Federal Institute of Industrial Research for the Development of Micro, Small and Large Industries Bills, the Suppression of Piracy Bill, Communications Service Tax Bill, 2015; Federal Institute of Industrial Research Bill, 2017; Raw Materials Research and Development Council (Repeal and Re-enactment Bill 2018; Nigeria Natural Medicine Development Agency (Establishment etc) Bill, 2018- are at various stages of passage.

    8. As a leader of the Eighth National Assembly, Dr. Saraki is proud that under his watch, the Senate has surpassed the records of all previous Senate in the number of bills passed, the significance of these bills to the revival of the economy, the fight against insecurity and corruption, improvement in the provision of health service and the education sector, as well as better social service delivery  to the generality of the people. The bills passed, motions moved, intervention made and frequent engagement with the people were all directed towards addressing the day to day issues that affect the lives of the ordinary Nigerians. This Senate has passed 282 bills (the highest any Senate had passed is 129 bills recorded by the 5th Senate), among which is the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act, Public Procurement Act (amendment) Bill, Petroleum Industry Governance Bill, Electoral Act (amendment) Bill, Police Reform Bill, Police Trust Fund Bill, Nigeria Railways Authority Bill, Company and Allied Matters Act (amendment) Bill, Secured Credit Transactions Act, Whistleblowers Protection Bill, constitution amendment bills, Discrimination Against Persons With Disability Bill, Electronic Transaction Bill, Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, North East Development Commission (NEDC) Act, Witness Protection Programme Bill, Credit Bureau Reporting Bill, Sexual Harassment in Tertiary Educational Institution Bill and Compulsory Treatment and Care of Victims of Gunshots Bill, National Financial Intelligence Agency Act, Federal Audit Services Commission Bill, among others. It will be good to know which of these Bills Tinubu believes is “self interested” and not in the interest of Nigerians.


9. We will like to point the attention of Mr. Tinubu to the fact that most of the bills listed above got international and national endorsement from stakeholders who lauded the Senate for the move. For example, the Financial Intelligence Database Agency (Ultrascan) commended the Senate for passing the NFIU Act which enabled the country to be re-admitted into the Egmont Group. Also, the Nigerian Police leadership have praised the Senate for passing the Police Reforms Bill and the Police Trust Fund Bill. Again, when the National Assembly in the 2018 budget gave effect to the law allowing one percent of the budget to be devoted to Primary Health Care Delivery, it got kudos from Bill Gates, Bono, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus of WHO, and various national groups who believe the move would bring health care delivery to the poor people across the country. The passage of the UBEC Act (amendment) Bill was praised by Pakistani child education campaigner and youngest Nobel Laureate, Yousafzai Malala. When the PIGB was passed, APC led by Tinubu, National Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE),  among others, hailed the Senate for a good job.  Even, the World Bank commended the National Assembly for the passage of the Company and Allied Matters Act and Secured Transactions in Movable Assets and Credit Bureau Reporting Act. Of course, all these initiatives will be ignored by a man who is still sulking because his vow in 2015 that Saraki and Dogara will never lead the National Assembly did not materialize.


10.  Tinubu and his mob have been sponsoring the narratives in the media that the emergence of the present leadership of the National Assembly was a mistake. We hereby submit that Dr. Saraki and other leaders of the National Assembly were democratically elected by their colleagues. And it is because they are the choice of their colleagues that they have remained in office for the past 46 months, despite all the plots hatched by anti-democratic, reactionary and fascist elements pretending to be ‘progressives’. In fact, Tinubu should know that if there was any mistake made on June 9, 2015, It was the miscalculation by himself and his small cabal in the APC who felt they could decide for the Senators-elect and House of Representatives Members-elect. When they failed after their grand-standing that they could always got whatever they desired, they resorted to undermining the institution of the legislature  and waging a campaign of calumny against the law making body. It is now clear that those who took Senators away from the chambers contrary to the directive contained in the proclamation signed by President Muhammadu Buhari on June 9, 2015 are ‘mistake personified’. It is obvious that If they repeat that arrogance during the inauguration of the Ninth National Assembly, they will fail again because Nigeria is greater than them. The institution of the legislature is bigger than the over-bloated egos of these power mongers and dirty schemers.


11. Let us repeat again that we know that a Machiavellian politician like Tinubu will forever agonize over his erroneous belief that Dr. Saraki frustrated his ambition from becoming running mate to President Muhammadu Buhari through a Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2015. In his usual cavalier manner, he will stop at nothing to punish Saraki for that. We know that this attack is not about the interest of the nation or that of President Muhammadu Buhari. It is about his 2023 ambition and it is obvious in the statement as he struggled to explain this away.

 12. However, Tinubu should leave Dr. Saraki out of his schemes and manipulations towards 2023. It is obvious his arbitrary and tactless interference in the process for the emergence of the leadership of the Ninth Assembly is already falling through. The frustration from this experience might have been responsible for this needless and baseless outbursts. Our only advice for him is that if he is interested in the stability of the National Assembly, he should allow the members to elect their leadership in consultations with the party leadership. He should stop treating the legislators like hapless pupils receiving orders from a cane-wielding headmaster. A situation where he, Tinubu, is dictating to elected legislators and ordering them to either comply with his directives or get out of the party will not augur well for the legislature in the next dispensation. History should have thought him that only a leadership that truly enjoys the support of members can help the President and his administration to achieve their objectives. It is a good development that the candidates for the various positions are already reaching out to their colleagues and forging alliances. We can see that after he realized that he has misfired, he is trying to retrace his step and in his usual devious manner, he is looking for scapegoats. We advise him to leave Dr. Saraki out of his manipulations and “jockeying and maneuvering for influence and power”,  as he termed it.

13. The Eighth Senate has done very well and will leave a good legacy. Despite all the underhand tactics to undermine the legislature by outsiders and the public posturing, members have always worked as a team on critical issues that have benefits for our people and our nation. That is why hitherto unachievable legislations like the PIGB, Police Reforms Act and other bills or amendments to existing laws were passed with ease because the members and the leadership know that they are elected as Senators of the Federal Republic not as party representives.

14. Tinubu should know that while we await his attack for the next quarter, we can only advise him to stay on facts.

Signed

Yusuph Olaniyonu
Special Adviser (Media and Publicity to Senate President)

Press Release
April 17, 2019

Senate Passes Re-Drafted PIGB, Electoral Act, Others
...Police Reform, NHIA Bills Too[img][/img]

In its determination to reform the nation’s political process, as well as the operations of the petroleum industry, the Senate today, passed a re-drafted version of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Act 2010 (Amendment) Bill, 2019, the Petroleum Industry Governance) Bill, 2019, and five other Bills to which President Muhammadu Buhari earlier declined assent.

Also today, the Senate passed the much-awaited Police Reform Bill, which is expected to radically change the operations and effectiveness of the Nigerian Police in the performance of its law enforcement duties, in addition to the National Health Insurance Act (Repeal and Re-enactment) Bill.

Other redrafted Bills passed today are: The National Institute for Hospitality and Tourism Bill, 2019; the National Research and Innovation Council Bill, 2019; the Stamp Duties Act (Amendment) Bill, 2019; the National Agricultural Seed Council Bill, 2019; and the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme Fund (Amendment) Bill, 2019.


It should be noted, that following the President’s refusal to assent to the afore-listed Bills, the Senate set-up a 7-member technical committee headed by Senator David Umaru, chairman of the Senate Committee on Judiciary and Legal Matters to look into the Constitutional and legal implications of withholding of assent to the Bills by the President and to make appropriate recommendations on the way forward. The Committee reviewed 6 constitutional amendment Bills and 11 private member Bills.

In its 34-page report, the Committee recommended that the Senate should re-consider and pass again 11 Bills, including the five Constitutional Amendment Bills; it should override the President’s veto on a Constitutional Amendment Bill, and the Industrial Development (Income Tax Relief) Amendment Bill, 2018; and that the Senate should entirely withdraw four other Bills.

At its unusually extended plenary today, the Senate, voting on a Motion moved by the Senate Leader, Senator Ahmed Lawan, in which he noted that the technical committee worked on President Buhari’s observations and re-drafted the affected clauses, thereby addressing the rationale for withholding of the presidential assent. The Senate, then unanimously, passed the seven re-drafted Bills at the Committee of the whole, Chaired by the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki.

Also, in fulfilment of its promise to address the issues affecting the performance of the Nigeria Police in effectively serving the Nigerian public, the Senate today considered and passed the Report of its Committee on Police Affairs and passed the Police Reform Bill.

Speaking on the passage of the Police Reform Bill, Saraki stated that the Reform Bill would go a long way to show the responsiveness of the 8th Senate.

“This Bill will go a long way to show that we are a listening Parliament and a listening Senate. There is nothing better we can do in honour of those who have lost their lives along the way due to the fact that our laws at that time were not in line,” Saraki said.

The passed Bills, will now be sent to the House of Representatives for concurrence before it is re-transmitted to the President for his assent.


END

Signed:

Media Office of the President of the Senate

PICTURE NEWS: Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, presenting an award on behalf of the Body of Benchers to Alhaji A.G.F Abdulrasaq (SAN) — the first lawyer in Northern Nigeria.

As the recipient was not around to receive the award, his son, the Governor-elect of Kwara State, Mr. Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq received the award on his behalf. Yesterday.

*Saraki: Kwara PDP 'll Emerge Victorious In Governorship, Assembly Polls*

Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, today urged his teeming supporters not to be discouraged by the outcome of the presidential and National assembly elections in the state, but should troop out en masse to vote for the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) governorship and house of assembly candidates come March 9 elections.

Saraki who was given an heroic reception on arrival at Ilorin International Airport by a mammoth crowd of supporters and well wishers, expressed confidence that the PDP has the number to emerge victorious in the remaining elections.

Addressing his supporters at the Charity House at his Iloffa GRA residence in Ilorin, the Senate President urged his people to close ranks and work in unison for the PDP in the governorship and house of assembly elections.

Appealing to his supporters and other aggrieved stakeholders to overlook wherever the system might have erred in the overall interest of Kwara state, Saraki reminded them that "those you voted for in anger are not your people and cannot attend to your needs as we, who are your brothers will do."

He thanked the people of the state for their support, assuring them that he would always be around to cater for their needs.

He added "I can't run away. My covenant with my people transcends politics. I will never abandon my people. We should not fight. I leave everything to God. I will not fight even with those they declared winnners of the last weekend's elections. We must cooperate for the governorship election. Once we do this, we shall win the election."

The Senate President charged his followers to be more committed like the opposition's supporters.

"We should stop internal wrangling. We shall emerge victorious in the remaining election. I'm here to assure you that I shall never abandon you, my people. The people you have voted for are not known to you. We should forgive ourselves and move forward in the interest of our state, " he stated.

END

Atunwa is in it, to Win It! PDP Candidate is Still in the Race

The Head of New Media of the PDP Campaign Council in Kwara State, Baba Idris, has stated that the Governorship Candidate of the PDP, Hon. Razak Atunwa is in the race for Kwara State Governor.

Baba Idris said:

“The PDP Candidate, Hon. Razak Atunwa is in this race for Governorship, to win the race.

“This is because he knows that he has the requisite experience, both legislative and executive, to put Kwara on the path of development.

“The upcoming election is not about PDP or APC, it is about who has the most experience to push our state forward. It is about who can and will always PUT KWARA FIRST.

“Disregard any such statements coming from the opposition. ATUNWA IS RUNNING FOR GOVERNOR, and ATUNWA WILL WIN, by the grace of the Almighty and the votes of the people of Kwara,” the New Media Head said.

*—POLICE BEGIN CLAMPDOWN ON KWARA PDP LEADERS —*


*BREAKING: Police Begin Clampdown on PDP Leaders in Kwara State*
-Arrest Kwara PDP Senator Rafiu Ibrahim
-Plot to Take Him Out of Circulation for #NigeriaDecides

The Nigerian Police have once again began a systemic clampdown on leaders of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara State as this evening, officers of the Nigerian Police Force, forcefully arrested Senator Rafiu Ibrahim, the Senator Representing Kwara South Constituency in the 8th National Assembly, and the candidate of the PDP for the seat in the upcoming elections.

Tonight’s action by the Police is a clear indication that Officers of the Nigerian Police Force have decided to take sides against the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara State and across the nation, as the reasoning behind Senator Ibrahim’s arrest is currently unknown, and reminiscent of last year’s arrest of Kwara PDP leaders in Kwara South constituency during the bye-election.

As at the time of this story, Lola Ashiru, the candidate of the APC for the Kwara South Senatorial District, was holding a late-night rally, where he celebrated the arrest of Senator Ibrahim stating that the party had the “full support of the Government at the center.”

We, the youths of Kwara South Constituency, hereby call on the international community, specifically, observers who have come to witness the February 23rd election, to take note of the partisan and irresponsible antics of the Nigerian Police Force.

We also call on all well-meaning Nigerians to join us to call for the release of Distinguished Senator Rafiu Ibrahim, who is known as a peace-loving and highly-performing legislator who always puts the needs of his constituents first and foremost.

Additionally, we call on the Acting Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar Adamu, to cease and desist from utilising institutions of state from harassing leading political figures in our state. Elections are not do or die affairs, hence, all candidates should be free to test their popularity at the polls without fear of intimidation by men of the Nigerian Police who are sworn to ‘serve and protect’ all citizens irrespective of their party affiliation.

Signed:

Hon. Muideen Abdulrahman
Chairman, PDP Kwara South Youth Forum

Kwara PDP denies attack on VP Osinbajo

The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Kwara State has denied involvement of its members and supporters in the attack on Vice-President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo’s convoy in Ilorin on Wednesday.

Osinbajo was in Ilorin for the door-to-door campaign rally of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and other activities of the party, when his convoy was attacked.

The Kwara PDP in a statement by its State Publicity Secretary, Mr Tunde Ashaolu, however noted that the incident was an intraparty affair involving members of the APC, arising from the endless crisis confronting the party.

Ashaolu explained the Vice-President had earlier visited Agbaji, the ancestral home of the Senate President, Dr Abubakar Bukola Saraki, where he went about his activities without any confrontation or crisis.

He added that crisis, however, broke out when Osinbajo got to Alanamu ward of Isale-Aluko, which is the base of two former governorship aspirants of the APC, Lukman Mustapha and Moshood Mustapha, who have been engulfed in superiority war.

“It was also gathered that the money released to be shared among party supporters triggered the violence.

“Our party has no time for violence as we have been busy preparing for the presidential and national assembly elections coming up on Saturday as well as the governorship and State Assembly elections.”

“Once again, we emphasise that the PDP has no hand in the fracas and we reject any attempt by the APC to link our party to the crisis. We advise them to resolve the lingering crisis in their party.

“We also urge security agencies to thoroughly investigate this matter and not to indiscriminately arrest innocent people who have no connection with this unfortunate incident.”

Breaking News: APC Supporters in free-for-all fight over money sharing in Isale Aluko during Vice-President Osinbajo’s visit to Kwara.

Details soon.

TAKEAWAYS FROM @BUKOLASARAKI’S REMARKS AT THE 84TH PDP NEC MEETING

“Nigerians are tired of insecurity, unemployment and poverty. Nobody wants to be insecure, unemployed or poor. This is why our message has resonated across the country.” -@BukolaSaraki

“It is not time to ruin this democracy because of one person’s ambition.” -@BukolaSaraki

“We have 4 more days to go. I want to appeal to Nigerians: do not let them frustrate you. When there is a low turn out, they can rig, but if you come out to vote, they cannot.” -@BukolaSaraki

“PDP is against election rigging. The law must apply to people that rig.” -@BukolaSaraki

“When you come out to vote on Saturday, do you want a Nigeria that that adheres to the rule of law, or do you want a Nigeria that is governed by jungle justice.” -@BukolaSaraki

“On Saturday, when you come out to vote, vote for Nigeria.” -@BukolaSaraki

“INEC, we know that they do not want you to hold that election on Saturday, but we want you to hold that election on Saturday.” -@BukolaSaraki

“As they say, when your time has come, your time has come, President Atiku Abubakar, your time has come!” -@BukolaSaraki

*Election Postponement Shocking and Disappointing, Says Saraki*

Senate President and Director General of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Council, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, has said the last minute postponement of the Presidential and National Assembly elections has caused a great inconvenience to many Nigerians who are poised to vote for their choice as president and federal legislators.

Saraki in a statement in Ilorin expressed shock and disappointment that after all the preparations by the electoral commisssion, the security services and other agencies of government, issues of logistics and related matters are now said to be responsible for postponing the federal elections at a time when Nigerians were ready to cast their votes.

“Waiting till just a few hours to commencement of voting before announcing postponement of elections is extremely sad. Nobody can quantify the difficulty that this will bring to people at every level. I empathize with youth corps members who have been relocated from their places of primary assignment to asssit with the conduct of the elections. My thoughts also go to civil servants who left their bases to go and vote in their hometowns. I also sympathize with millions of ordinary Nigerian traders whose businesses were suspended because of the no movement order. Thus, the costs of this postponement are incalculable.

“However, I want to appeal to Nigerians not to be deterred, discouraged or disappointed. They must continue to be strong and determined to cast their votes for their preferred candidates. Next Saturday, they should try and forget the current setback and troop out en masse to vote for their preferred candidates. Not voting because of the postponement is not a good option for Nigerians. My appeal to our people is that we must still go out next Saturday to exercise our franchise.


“At this point, Government and INEC should focus on what is the way forward and ensure that the elections take place as rescheduled. They should move swiftly to smoothen all the rough edges. The commisssion must ensure we do not have a repeat of what happened today. We have been saying it that the 2019 elections should be a clear improvement on that of 2015.

“Nigerians are wiser. They will definitely punish this government that has displayed incompetence, lack of capacity and foresight and vote for the team that will get Nigeria working again.

“Let me urge our people to continue in their determination to cast their votes. They should remain resolute and come out en mass next Saturday to vote for the PDP. The Atiku-Obi ticket have the momentum on its side. This postponement will not slow us down. We have seven more days to get more voters to come out next Saturday and vote massively for PDP candidates”, Saraki stated.



Signed
Yusuph Olaniyonu
Special Adviser (Media and Publicity) to Senate President

*MUST WATCH — APC LIED (Again): “Give Atiku 90 Percent of Your Votes”, Saraki Tells Kwarans*

Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, on Thursday called on Kwarans, specifically those in Kwara Central Senatorial District, to give Atiku 90% of their votes.

In a video that has been circulated online and shared virally on WhatsApp, the Senate President was quoted as saying: “By God’s grace, all the votes in Kwara Central should be given to Atiku. Let’s give him 90%.”

This video entirely discredits the doctored video being shared on social media channels by loyalists of the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, who is known for employing underhanded propaganda techniques during elections to attempt to gain the upper-hand.

Watch for your self.

Kwara ramain a no go area for a seasonal politician or one Lagos landlord, Saraki's dynasty is a big goal in Kwara and nothing can stop that.

Otunya ni Kwara.

BREAKING

2019: Kwara Workers Declare Support For PDP; Sign MOU


Workers in Kwara state have declared their support for the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP), ahead of Saturday's presidential and National Assembly elections.

The workers announced their decision to vote for all the PDP's candidates at a meeting with government representatives led by the state governor, Alh Abdulfatah Ahmed ). The meeting was held at the the Labour House in Ilorin on Monday.

The PDP gubernatorial candidate in the state, Hon. Razak Atunwa was also present at the meeting.

Governor Ahmed had in his opening remarks announced plans to implement the N30,000 minimum wage for workers in the state.

He also said that he has approved the release of funds for payment of one month salary arrears to all local governments, SUBEB and local government pensioners .

The organised labour in the state later documented the workers' decision to fully support all the PDP's candidates in this month and March general elections.

The organised labour's letter reads in part: " In view of the MoU, the Nigeria Labour Congress(NLC), Trade Union Congress(TUC),Joint Negotiations Council(JNC) and all affiliated unions resolve to fully support Kwara state government and all candidates of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the 2019 general elections.

The MOU was signed by Yekini Agunbiade,(NLC), Nasir Olumo (TUC),Salihu Sulyman( JNC), Toyin Salihu (NUT),Yusuf Salihu(NULGE) and Seidu Oladimeji, National Union of Pensioners(NUP).

END

*Kwara North: Beyond Powershift*

*By Rt. Hon. Razak Atunwa*

I am delighted that our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party, under the leadership of Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki has brokered a pact with the political and traditional leaders of the Kwara North Senatorial District whereby power will shift to Kwara North come 2023.

As the PDP gubernatorial candidate for the forthcoming 2019 General Election, I reaffirm my full and unconditional support for this pact. I was actively involved in the events leading to it. I am glad that I also had the privilege of being a signatory to this historic moment.

Equity and fairness can not be ambiguous. That is precisely what our leaders, and our fathers have jointly expressed by this pact. This is a conscious and positive way of saying loudly to the average Kwara northerner that they are equal partners in the affairs and governance of Kwara.

Kwara North occupies a pride of place in the socio-political firmament of Kwara State. Kwara North, inarguably is Kwara's Food Basket. With a rich and fertile landmass spanning several thousands of squaremetre, the Kwara North has contributed immeasurably to the development of Kwara state as a whole.

From the North, Kwara has produced brilliant and sound human resources for Nigeria, and for the world. We recall to mind the likes of Prof. Abubakar Halidu, the cerebral Emeritus Professor of Public Finance; Dr. Amina Ndalolo, the Former Minister of State for Health; Prof. Farooq Adamu Kperogi is a Nigerian academic, media scholar, public speaker and newspaper columnist. He is a Professor of Journalism and Citizen Media at Kennesaw State University, Georgia, USA. There are numerous industrious and erudite sons and daughters of Kwara North who are making us proud around the globe. This is how much Kwara North, like its other counterparts from the Central and the South, have contributed to the development of Nigeria.

But beyond powershift, what else do the PDP promise Kwara North? We promise accelerated development of the length and breadth of the North. From Moro to Patigi, Edu to Kaiama, down to Baruten, Kwara North will enjoy a different level of attention and presence of government like never before.

We shall focus particularly on the four cardinal areas of;

Agriculture;

Education;

Human Capital Development, and

Basic infrastructure.

We have mapped out the specifics in consultation with select stakeholders of Kwara North. We will continue to do more of such consultations in the days ahead, so as to tap from the depth of knowledge of others who are willing to share their insights and ideas on how to permanently lift Kwara North off the baseline.

We will explore specific comparative advantage of each of the Local Government Areas and aggressively drive these to fruition. For example, Kaiama and Baruten are blessed with expansive arable lands that annually churn out tons of tubers, grains and beans. They also have mineral resources in abundance. The role of the government will be to help harness these potentials to the maximum benefit of the locals and the state at large.

Patigi and Edu have a large body of water that produce aquatic resources of different grades. Our Administration will help to better harness these potentials through technology driven initiatives and expertise that will make the aquaculture far more lucrative, far more easy and far more attractive.

But more importantly is the development of Kwara North's huge human resources through sound education and skill acquisition. The young men and women from Kwara North will be better equipped with sound and qualitative education. This is non-negotiable because that's the future of Kwara North, and we must never toy with it!

We will also tap into the depth of resources in the creative industries and culture and tourism opportunities available throughout Kwara North.

These are not mere political promises. These are specific development agenda that have been researched and developed with actionable timelines.

Let us all continue to work together in unison in an all inclusive administration which only the PDP can provide in order to achieve sustainable development.

Above all, we will be driven by one thing, and one thing alone: Putting You First...Putting Kwara First

*Razak Atunwa is the PDP Gubernatorial candidate for Kwara 2019!*

PDP, Kwara North Stakeholders Sign Pact On Power Shift


Senate President and national leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Bukola Saraki and stakeholders of the party in Kwara state on Sunday night signed a pact with traditional and political leaders from the northern part of the state, agreeing to a shift of power to the north by 2023.

By implication, the party's gubernatorial candidate, Alhaji AbdulRazaq Atunwa will spend only one term if the party wins the forthcoming election on March 2, 2018.

These were revealed last night at a press briefing addressed by the party's state chairman, Alhaji Kola Shittu and Director General of the PDP campaign council in the state , Professor Suleiman Abubakar.

Abubakar who read the communique issued at the end of the meeting, indicated that traditional rulers from the zone as well as the Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu-Gambari witnessed and endorsed the Memorandum of Understanding(MoU).

It was also agreed at the meet Kwara north will produce the Secretary to the state government (SSG) and Speaker if the PDP wins the 2019 election in the state.

The text of the communique reads: "About an hour ago, the PDP Kwara State Leadership just completed a meeting with Leaders of Thought from the Kwara North Senatorial District. The meeting was also attended by leaders of the party across the state.

"The sole purpose of the meeting was for us to have an understanding on specific terms on issues bordering on power shift, cohesion, giving sense of belonging and inclusiveness to our people across all the three Senatorial Districts.

"The conclusion of the meeting is that there will be power shift to Kwara North in 2023. Also, the positions of Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly and Secretary to Kwara State Government have been zoned to Kwara North in the post- May 2019 government.

"The understanding has been committed to writing and signed by all key stakeholders present.

"The stakeholders present at the meeting include National Leader of PDP, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, Governor Abdulfatai Ahmed, gubernatorial candidate of the party, Rt. Hon. Rasak Atunwa, Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Dr. Alli Ahmed, Director General of the Mandate 2019, Prof. Abubakar Sulaimon, Chairman of the Party, Eng. Kola Shittu and other leaders of the party in the three Senatorial districts.

"Traditional rulers from Kwara North Senatorial District and Emir of Ilorin, Alhaji Ibrahim Sulu Gambari were consulted on the understanding and they gave their royal blessing to the terms and contents.

"In their speeches at the meeting, the traditional rulers expressed support for any move that will ensure equity, justice and unity among all the various zones in the state. They also noted that their decision to serve as witnesses is based on the need to ensure that political leaders honour and respect the contents of the understanding and work for peace and progress of the state before, during and after the general elections.

"Also, in return, the people of Kwara North have agreed to deliver the bloc vote from the zone to the Peoples Democractic Party (PDP) in the general elections.

"We believe this understanding aimed at re-enforcing the unity, harmony and even development of our dear state is definitely necessary for the continued progress of Kwara State now and in the future."

Ends

STATEMENT BY RT. HON. RAZAK ATUNWA, KWARA STATE PDP GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE


I WILL PAY THE N30,000 MINIMUM WAGE IF ELECTED


The current agitation by the Nigeria Labour Congress and its affiliated unions for N30,000 minimum wage has been lingering for the past one year.

It is somewhat disheartening that this issue has been allowed to drag on for this long with the resultant negative effect on the average worker who is struggling to make ends meet. Whilst it is understandable that any responsible Government must balance the competing demands on its resources, it must be understood that the Government as an employer of labour must adequately remunerate its workers.

It is my firm belief that every worker deserves to earn a decent wage which will accommodate his basic needs in life. Every employee should be able to afford to look after himself and his family without resorting to unnecessary borrowing or begging. The minimum wage must be a ‘living wage’.

We are all aware that the cost of living in Nigeria has quadrupled since 2015. Cost of basic food items, fuel, transportation, housing etc have skyrocketed. However, wages have remain stagnant in the same period.

Accordingly, I have no hesitation whatsoever in saying that if elected into office as Governor of Kwara State in 2019, I shall adopt and pay the N30,000 minimum wage.
In addition, I will committed to workers welfare and working conditions.

I have always believed that every worker must earn a dignifying wage. I was a leading member of the Kwara State Government negotiating team that recommended that Kwara State Government should implement the N18,000 minimum wage.

Given the cost of living indices in Nigeria of today, paying the minimum wage is the only proper thing to do.

9 January 2019
Rt. Hon. Razak Atunwa
Kwara State
Gubernatorial Candidate