Category: Lead

Former Senate President David Mark on Sunday urged losers of this year’s general election to congratulate winners rather than go to court.

He called for an end to politics of bitterness.

In a statement by his Special Adviser, Paul Mumeh, Mark said: “All the stakeholders: Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), political parties, security agencies, Media and civil society organisations (CSOs) should take it as a call to national service to ensure hitch-free polls.

“I crave for an electoral process that is devoid of irregularities.

“I hope for an election result that will not attract litigation where the loser willingly congratulates the winner.

“This is the foundation and a sure way towards the socio-political and economic emancipation of the country.”

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He noted that Nigeria has had a chequered political history in terms of electioneering challenges and hoped that the past experiences will guide the conduct of the 2023 elections.

Mark was optimistic that the outcome of the 2023 elections would be satisfactory to all stakeholders if all the actors comply with the rules of the game.

He warned against electoral violence that may portend grave danger for the country and urged candidates to educate their supporters against any act that could undermine the process.

Irrespective of different political affiliations, Mark reminded political gladiators that everything must be done to protect and preserve the interests and territorial integrity of the country, saying: “Whichever way it goes, we have no other country than Nigeria”.

God won’t give power to treacherous people, those who want to sell nation’s assets – Rivers gov

Atiku’s campaign chief Udom confers with Wike, Ortom

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Chairman, Dr.Iyorchia Ayu, has launched what looks like his own counter offensive  against the Nyesom Wike-led G-5  governors in the party, ahead of next month’s elections.

Ayu, according to an investigation by The Nation, has shredded the lists of polls agents compiled by the governors and forwarded to the party’s national secretariat in Abuja for onward submission to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Only party agents accredited by INEC are allowed at polling stations and collation centres.

Ayu’s  fear is that the party cannot entrust its destiny into the hands of those nominated by the dissenting governors.

The Electoral Act allows each party to be represented at each of the polling booths and collation centres .

The agents are required to sign the result sheets before the outcome of voting at the polling units and collation centres are announced.

It was gathered that Ayu and his team at the PDP National Secretariat decided to subject the lists of prospective agents from the G-5 and a few other states to scrutiny for what a source described as safety reason.

“Well, I don’t understand what you are trying to drive at but I must tell you that it is the responsibility of the National Secretariat to forward the lists of party agents to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ahead of the election,” the source said.

“The state chapters can assist in the compilation of such list for their states but the decision of who does what as party agents lies with the National Chairman. Don’t forget the presidential candidate too may have his own preferred people in the states. The election is his own, and he should have the prerogative to choose those who will represent him as agents at the poll.

“Moreover, there is no way we will have the state leadership of the PDP campaign committee in place and some other people will be the ones compiling lists of agents. The arrangement is that the campaign committee oversees all elections for the party. So, it is not out of place for the party to insist that all stakeholders should liaise with the PCC in their state in compiling the list of party agents.

“If that is what you mean by Ayu rejecting some lists, you need to understand that it is the normal procedure to avoid duplication of the lists in question.”

A party source confirmed the rejection of the names of some nominees to serve as agents but said those dropped are currently in service as government appointees. 

The source drew attention to the provisions of the Electoral Act 2022 which prohibit government appointees from being party agents during elections.

The Act however prescribed that such government appointees must resign their positions three months before the election to be eligible to stand as party agents at voting centres.

Sources also said Ayu, in response to the lists of party agents sent to the National Secretariat by PDP state leaderships in the affected states, urged them to work with the leadership of the campaign committees in their state for the final list.

A PDP chairman in one of the South South states said: “He  (Ayu) made it clear it is the lists from the campaign committee that will be profiled and sent to INEC by the NWC. The decision is unusual as it has always been the state executives that compile and send agents’ lists to Abuja. We see this as an attempt to undermine the leadership of the party in our state and we understand where it is all coming from.”

The Nation also gathered that the aggrieved governors and their supporters are displeased with Ayu’s alleged decision on the matter and are poised for a showdown.

An aide to one of the G5 governors said: “there is no way we will leave our destiny in their hands when we know Ayu is not wishing us well. If they want to nominate the party agents that will work during the presidential election, no problem since they no longer trust the people in charge in the states.

“But how can they also reject our lists for other elections? This is where we smell some rats.”

Governors Samuel Ortom (Benue), Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu) and Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia) are also in the G-5.

They want Ayu to quit as chairman on the premise that it is against the spirit of the PDP constitution for a section of the country to have the presidential candidate and national chairman at the same time.

They have excused themselves from Atiku’s campaign.

Atiku’s campaign chairman, Udom, meets Wike, Ortom in Rivers

The Chairman of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council and Akwa Ibom State Governor, Emmanuel Udom, yesterday met with Rivers State governor, Wike and Benue State governor, Ortom at the Rumueprikon country home of Wike in Obio-Akpor.

Details of the meeting were not disclosed but it came 24 hours after the dissenting governors returned from their latest strategic meeting in London.

Udom, according to political sources in Port Harcourt,was in town to pacify  the G-5 to join the Atiku campaign train.

The campaign council was said to be bothered about Wike’s continuous outbursts, which were daily weakening the PDP’s presidential campaigns and reducing the personality of Atiku in the eyes of members of the public.

The G-5’s insistence that they would not work for Atiku was reinforced on Friday shortly after the aggrieved governors returned from their London trip.

Wike had earlier set aside January 2023 to declare his preferred presidential candidate and mobilise support for him ahead of the 2023 poll.

The Rivers governor said on Friday that the PDP national chairmanship position must be ceded to the South as a minimum requirement for peace was not negotiable.

Udom,Wike and Ortom told reporters at the end of yesterday’s meeting that it was devoid of politics.

Wike said his relationship with Udom had not diminished regardless of their opposing stands on Atiku.

He stressed that, ideally, politics should never be allowed to create unwarranted friction between brothers.

Read Also: Sack me if you can, Wike dares PDP

He said: “Politics is not what will divide brothers and divide friends. Everybody knows my relationship with Udom, and we will continue to maintain that relationship. We may have different political affiliation or thinking, that should not divide the brotherly love or create a gap among us.”

Udom explained that his visit was not political, but a demonstration of brotherly love in the spirit of the yuletide season.

He said: “Actually, this is the season of love. Within this period if we don’t demonstrate that love, love not shown is love wasted. I think that is what we are trying to demonstrate, brotherly love, friendship. And then in the spirit of the season, we must visit one another.”

Ortom said part of their discussion also centered on how they could best add value to governance in Nigeria.

He said: “We are going into 2023 and we shared among ourselves how can we best add value to our government, how can we best add value to our people, how can we do things that will help add value to our country Nigeria.

“And that if there are any issues in the past which we have done wrong, we looked at them and said, look, let’s forgive one another and move forward. They are private issues.”

‘God will never give power to the wicked’, Wike replies Okowa, Tambuwal

Governor Wike, in a veiled response to statements made on Friday by Delta State governor, Ifeanyi Okowa and Sokoto State governor, Aminu Tambuwal, said God would never give  power to the ‘wicked’ and those he said would  sell off Nigeria in a fraction of a second.

Okowa who is Atiku’s running mate in next month’s election had said that only God and not the G-5 would determine the winner of the election, while Tambuwal who doubles as the Director General of the Atiku/Okowa presidential campaign organization,said the PDP would respond at the appropriate time to what he called  the antics of the five governors.

But flagging off the construction of Ogbo-Ihugbogbo road in the Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State yesterday,Wike said: “We can never play God because we know the role that God has played in our lives.

“Don’t be treacherous because you want power…God will never give power to the wicked.”

He said the G5 has the backing of God and that is why the group continues to wax stronger.

“Some people said it is only God that will decide who will be president and not G5…We are where we are because of God.

“Nobody can even breathe air if not God, not to talk about holding position.

“So, nobody can tell us that it is only God; we know that it is only God that gives power but our prayer is to our God: don’t allow those who will sell off Nigeria in one second to be in power. “Our prayer is: God, don’t allow anybody that you’ll have an agreement with and the next two minutes the person will change.

“Our prayer is: God, don’t allow those who will betray their brothers when they have agreed with their brothers to do something. God, may you never allow such persons and that is why God is still making G5 to be stronger.”

Wike said those in Atiku’s camp desired to cause the split of the G5 but  it has never worked.

On the Tambuwal statement, he said: “Somebody said they will handle us when we decide. These are the things that annoy us.”

Pressure mounts on PDP for sanctions against G-5 members

Some PDP hawks are said to be pressurizing the party’s hierarchy to punish the dissenting governors.

A top member of the party who craved anonymity, said the PDP must summon enough courage to wield the big stick if the governors make good their threat to dump the party’s candidate.

The party chieftain said: “The only way the PDP can redeem itself is to apply the appropriate sanctions against these governors if they eventually declare support for another candidate.

“It would amount to anti-party activity if these governors opt to support a different candidate and the party’s constitution is very clear on sanctions against anti -party activities.

“The PDP is bigger than any individual no matter the positions they hold today. It’s a different matter if the governors had defected to another party and choose to work against the PDP. But they cannot remain on a platform given them by the PDP and still use the same platform against the party.

“Some people are making comparison between the G-5 and the five PDP governors that defected to the APC in 2014 to work against the PDP presidential candidate in the 2015 election.

“We have made it clear that there is no basis for comparison in the two cases. In 2014, the five PDP governors and other PDP chieftains officially left the party and joined the APC.

“But the G-5 governors have been working against the interest of the PDP while still enjoying the privileges of being members of the party. They are free to leave the party if that is their wish. It is abuse of privilege and no party worth its name will condone such recklessness”.

However, another PDP chieftain posited that it’s rather too late to impose any sanctions on the G-5 governors at this critical time.

The party chief, who also did not want his name in print, said with the general election barely two months away, it would be counter- productive to sanction the governors.

He said: “What sanctions are we talking about and what effect will such sanctions have at this point in time? If you want to suspend or even expel them, due process must be followed as prescribed by the PDP constitution.

“Following due process requires giving them fair hearing, which will also take some time. But we are running out of time so any sanctions at this point will be meaningless and will have no effect on them. From the look of things, the G-5 governors have become a bone stuck in the throat”.

 Says I’ve done my best for Nigeria in last New Year message as president

Lawan, Gbaja, Atiku, govs, others push for peaceful elections

With the 2023 elections set to commence 56 days from now,President Muhammadu Buhari  has vowed that any activity designed to disrupt the polls will be met with the full force of the law.

He wants the generality of Nigerians to resist  any move to sabotage the elections.

Buhari ,in his new year message, says it is incumbent  on all to “take responsibility to ensure we participate in ensuring that the 2023 elections are free and fair by not engaging in anti-state activities and other nefarious acts that may affect the run of the polls.”

The next five months according to him, will be critical for the country and his administration which, he says ,will  focus on three key areas  -Security, Economy and the Anti-corruption campaigns.

He highlights some of his achievements over the last seven and a half years  ,stressing that he is not unaware of the various thoughts and opinions of people about the legacies of his government.

But he explains that having done his best for the country he welcomes both the accolades and criticisms of his performance by all.

Similar  new year messages came in from Senate President Ahmad  Lawan,House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila,presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP),Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and that of Labour Party (LP),Mr. Peter Obi,among others.

“As we welcome the New Year, let us look with hope to 2023, a year to move forward as a Nation, towards unity, progress and prosperity. I offer my own personal felicitations, mindful of the various opinions and interpretations of our executive legacies,” Buhari said.

“I welcome and accept both the accolades and criticisms in equal measure, secure in the conviction that I did my best to serve our dear country Nigeria and I pray that the next president will also pick up the baton and continue the race to make Nigeria one of the leading countries of the world by the end of this century.”

He described the new year as  very significant because it will see the transitioning from one elected administration to another, and urged Nigerians to play their part in ensuring free and fair elections.

His words:”In the next five months we would have gone to the polls and elected a new president along with new governors and a plethora of other elected officials at both the national and state levels. 

“All these electoral and democratic principles are working in concert because of the transcendent beliefs, beyond partisan politics, of you the great citizen of Nigeria. In addition is my personal commitment and executive promise to see to the letter that the 2023 elections being diligently conducted by INEC will be free and fair. The collective electoral will and votes of Nigerians will be fulfilled, even in the twilight moments of my watch. 

“In year 2023, Nigerians  go to the polls to exercise our right to vote and elect a new administration, it is an important year for our country to ensure that we have another smooth transition of government, to whoever the people have decided upon. This administration’s landmark Amended Electoral Act will ensure that we have free and fair elections across the nation. 

“We as Nigerians must also take responsibility to ensure we participate in ensuring that the 2023 elections are free and fair by not engaging in anti-state activities and other nefarious acts that may affect the run of the polls. We must also resist every attempt to be used by politicians to create unrest in any form to disrupt the elections. We, as government will ensure such activities are met with the full force of the law.”

He listed his achievements to include  the gains in the fight against terrorism, banditry and kidnapping as well as managing to stabilise  the economy despite the hardship imposed on, not just Nigeria, but the entire world in 2022 by the recent COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia/Ukraine war.

He said: “Reflecting on year 2022 allows us as a government to examine our legacies of successes and challenges. As we celebrate our wins and review obstacles, we all must understand that governance is a continuum, which still places a transitional responsibility on this administration to provide for the incoming government a non-partisan and objective roadmap for 2023. 

“We as Nigeria; one country, united under the will of God and actively growing as an indivisible entity, have been enabled year after year, decade after decade, to weather all stormy waters and emerge stronger and better where others have fallen and disintegrated. This has made us a unique nation across the globe and our continent.

“Despite the ongoing global economic crisis, we have been able to weather the storms. Inflation across the globe is at its highest, the Federal Government has been resolute, through its economic interventions, to remain above water during this period. 2022 brought a combined impact from ongoing wars and aftereffects of COVID-19. 

“Though creating its own fiscal challenges, we have continued to subsidize our energy costs to buffer households from inflationary pressure of high energy costs. In 2023, we are focused on building on our GDP and sustain the huge surge in the non-oil GDP growth.”

On the fight against insecurity, he said: “as our security agencies continue to make the country proud, we must continue to assist our patriotic forces by providing much needed community intelligence. It is our collective responsibility to ensure that Nigeria remains safe and peaceful for us all. Therefore, we have a duty and obligation to support our troops and intelligence agencies by being alert and reporting anything suspicious. 

“The fight against insurgency in the North East region has continually recorded very clear wins in the past year. The Federal Government and the Borno State government, have started the journey of returning internally displaced persons to their ancestral homes earlier taken by the insurgents.

“Also, over 82,000 insurgents with their families have surrendered to the Nigerian military. A number of surrendered insurgents are currently being processed by the rehabilitation (Operation Safe Corridor) program. The fight against banditry, kidnapping and other crimes in the North West and other regions is gaining momentum and showing very clear results. One of which is the resumption of Train Service along the Kaduna to Abuja corridor.

“In the aftermath of the EndSars, our administration took heed and instituted the ongoing Police Reform program, based on a new Presidential Vision for Policing in Nigeria. This new vision is framed in a clear road map that transcends the tenure of this administration and it is predicated on six principles: a) Building Trust and Legitimacy b) Leadership, Accountability and Oversight c)Technology and digital media d) Community Policing and Crime Reduction ) Officers Training and Education f) Funding, Officers’ Welfare, Wellness and Safety. 

“This reform program is very much in its foundational phase, but has recorded noteworthy successes in improving police welfare and their emoluments. Other gains have been the ongoing training of 500 police cadet trainers to enable a better training regimen for the 2022 first batch of the 10,000 new cadets with an additional 10,000 set for 2023. In support of these reforms has been the provisioning of new material for the Nigeria Police to steadily improve on its constitutional responsibility to enforce law and order, protect lives and property as well as street level peace and security.”

Read Also: Leave legacy of free elections, Reps Minority caucus tell Buhari

He said the recently passed Nigerian Startup Act is a “ huge step in lowering our unemployment figures by boosting job creation and supporting the entrepreneurial drive of our youths. If you recall in my 2021 New Year speech, I had mentioned the need to secure the future of our youth recognizing that our young people are our most valuable natural resource, at home and abroad.

“In this regard, we worked with the legislature to develop an enabling law to turn their passions into ideas that can be supported, groomed and scaled across regions. 2023 will see the implementation of the Nigerian Start Up Act nationwide.”

He said his administration will be focusing, in the next five months, on Security, Economy and Anti-Corruption, also known as the ‘SEA’ Agenda.

“The year 2023 would, indeed, be a time when we would work to solidify on delivering key strategic priorities under our “SEA” – (Security, Economy and Anti-Corruption) Agenda. Some of the key priority areas we would direct our attention and strengths to include:

 “Focus on SECURITY; we will continue to engage, push back and dismantle the operations of both internal and external extremist and criminal groups waging war against our communities across the Nation. We will also focus on ensuring that free and fair elections would be held come February 2023. Our security forces are working in partnership to ensure the wins we have got in war against insurgency, banditry, secession and other crimes are sustained and more wins acquired.  

“For the ECONOMY; our focus would be on maintaining and building economic growth through the national economic diversification agenda that supports the goal of national food self-sufficiency and growth in non-oil sources. The ongoing infrastructure revolution by our administration will see us deliver the key projects across the nation in power, rail, roads, ports and technology. 

“ANTI-CORRUPTION: On the anti-corruption drive of our administration, we have created new records in this fight, growing from 117 convictions in 2017 to 3,615 convictions as at December 2022. We as a government are committed to ridding our nation of all forms of corruption, through the collaboration with all the arms of Government to effectively prosecute this fight.”

Lawan: We have kept faith with Nigerians

Senate President ,  Ahmad Lawan , said the Ninth National Assembly has kept faith with Nigerians by remaining unwavering in the implementation of its Legislative Agenda.

Lawan appreciated and commended the people for having faith in their country and for always supporting efforts at building a virile nation.

The Senate President also urged Nigerians to seize the opportunities provided to take active part in the ongoing electoral process.

Lawan said the Electoral Act 2022 had ignited hope in the system and heightened expectations about the forthcoming general elections.

Lawan said: “The Ninth National Assembly has been a very active participant in this process of nation building.

“At our inception in 2019, we set out a robust Legislative Agenda to advance our collective aspirations as a nation and make positive impacts in the lives of our people. A Senate that works for Nigerians. We have remained unwavering in our commitment to the agenda.

“It is less than six months to the end of this Assembly. I am proud to say that all of us have kept faith with the Nigerian people as their representatives.

 “The Ninth Assembly has been the breaker of many legislative jinxes in this Fourth Republic, having recorded breakthroughs in many areas of our national legislative environment that had defied the interventions of previous Assemblies.

“First and foremost, we have enhanced stability in governance through productive cross-party collaboration with the other arms of government, particularly the Executive. This has yielded fruits in the unprecedented number of quality Bills passed by the National Assembly and duly signed into law by the President.

“Some of the most critical of such Bills that have been signed into law include the Deep Offshore and inland Basin Production Sharing Contract (amendment) Act, 2019, Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020, Nigeria Police Reform Act, 2020, Petroleum Industry Act, 2021, and Electoral Act, 2022, just to mention a few. These are critical legislative interventions relevant to the promotion of good governance in our dear nation.

“For instance, the Electoral Act (amendment) Bill 2022 has rekindled interest in political participation in our country and raised confidence in our electoral process. We passed this Bill early enough and with some innovations to guarantee better conduct of our elections especially beginning from the 2023 elections. 

“We were also able to reset our financial years to make our budget cycle stable and predictable. This change has helped immensely in the implementation of projects and programmes, as well as in general performance of the national budgets.”

Gbajabiamila optimistic about Nigeria’s future

House of Representatives Speaker, Femi Gbajabiamila, said the new year would  be significant for Nigerians as the  citizens will be electing  new leaders to pilot the affairs of the country.

Gbajabiamila said he is optimistic about the opportunities and possibilities that lie ahead and urged Nigerians to remain resolute and determined as a people.

He noted that 2023 is a defining year for Nigeria, which is why the citizens should be united and speak with one voice.

The Speaker wished Nigerians success individually and collectively in 2023, calling for prayers for successful elections.

Atiku: 2023 is defining moment for our great country Nigeria

Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, in his own new year message, said he is “inspired by the compelling need to provide leadership that will propel Nigeria to greater heights, to overcome our challenges and together as ONE Recover and Rebuild a United, Strong and Prosperous Nigeria.”

He  asked Nigerians not to despair with the situation of things in the country but to trust his party to make things right again.

Let’s join to build a new nation, Obi urges Nigerians

The presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Mr. Peter Obi, called on Nigerians to unite their efforts in the journey of taking back the nation from the cold hands of corruption, insecurity and unproductivity.

He explained that the nation cannot continue in its all-round retrogressive movement in the coming years, as that will result in total collapse of the nation.

“2023 is an existential year in the history of our nation. It is a year we all must unite against the continued abuse of our nation’s democracy and economy. The power is in our hands to take back our nation, in the coming year, and make it work,” he said.

Omo-Agege charges Deltans to reflect on state’s liberation, devt.

Deputy Senate President and governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Delta State, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, charged Deltans to reflect on how to free the state from incompetent hands and betrayers in the year 2023.

Omo-Agege said every challenge in the state would  be overcome and urged the people of the state to seize the opportunity offered by this year’s elections to elect people who will redress the wrongs of governance in the state.

He said:”We have before us in the March 2023 election, an opportunity and responsibility to take back our state from the hands and control of the people who wasted our resources and betrayed our people.

“Responsible leadership is needed now, more than at any other time in our history, to provide guidance, hope and inspiration for our collective success.”

Southern Senators to Nigerians: Only unity, patriotism can bring progress, prosperity

The Southern Senators Forum said  Nigeria can only witness progress and prosperity if all citizens value unity and patriotism.

 As Nigerians step into another new year, the Senators stressed  the  need to forge a united nation, fortify the country’s bonds and make it strong to overcome the cankerworms of corruption, insecurity and economic deprivation.

The forum’s Chairman and Senator representing Ekiti Central, Michael Opeyemi Bamidele, in a statement in Abuja appealed to religious and political leaders not to make incendiary and inflammatory comments that can further widen the existing cleavages and stoke the fire of disunity that has been the main challenge ripping the country apart.

He said the country was brought together through God’s design without the input of any mortal and urged Nigerians to guard the country’s unity jealously.

•APC candidate currently in Saudi Arabia for Lesser Hajj
•Implores Nigerians to back his presidential bid

The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu yesterday rubbished media reports of an alleged secret meeting in London between him and the G5 governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The reports, he said, were written in bad faith and with evil intention.

The APC flag bearer who is currently performing Umrah (Lesser Hajj) in Saudi Arabia, said the reports were designed to advance the political interests of the writers and their sponsors.

His media aide, Tunde Rahman, said in a statement in Abuja that Tinubu was focused on his campaign objectives.

“While in the United Kingdom, Asiwaju Tinubu noted some articles in some national newspapers in Nigeria, alleging a secret meeting was held in London between him and the G-5 governors who are members of Peoples Democratic Party,” Rahman said.

“These reports, to say the least, are not only in bad faith but also evil intentioned. They were published to advance the political interests of the writers and their sponsors.

“The Presidential Standard-bearer of the All Progressives Congress, HE Asiwaju Tinubu, is neither bothered by these articles nor by their sponsors who are well known.

“He is resolutely focused on his campaign objectives which are geared towards achieving victory in the upcoming presidential election to deliver the APC’s Action Plan aimed at giving a Renewed Hope to our people in all facets of their lives.”

The presidential hopeful however pointed out that he is entitled to meeting any political actor or stakeholder that is important to his campaign and plans for the country and who desires to engage with him.

He asked the sponsors and writers of unsubstantiated articles and those peddling rumours about him to desist forthwith.

Highlighting his London trip, the statement noted that the former Lagos State governor usually takes time off his busy schedule as the year comes to an end to rest before proceeding to Saudi Arabia to observe Umrah (Lesser Hajj).

Rahman added: “Tinubu came to London on Boxing Day Monday, December 26, 2022, to spend a few days preparatory to his trip to Saudi Arabia.

“After spending some time in London, he has now proceeded to Mecca where he is at present observing Umrah. He is scheduled to return to the country within the next two days to continue with the campaign.”

APC Campaign Council to Nigerians: vote Tinubu

Also yesterday, the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) urged the electorate  to vote for Tinubu in next month’s election.

The committee enjoined Nigerians to move forward to a year of renewed hope and victory.

In its new year message signed by the Director of Media and Publicity, Bayo Onanuga, the Council described the Tinubu/Shettima ticket as the key to solutions to the myriad of socio-economic and political challenges confronting the country.

Read Also: ‘Tinubu will shock Atiku, Obi, Kwankwaso in 2023 Election’

“2023 is significant to the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the people of this blessed nation. It provides another opportunity to the people, the true and authentic sovereigns, to delegate to elected representatives in the legislative and executive arms their fundamental, inalienable rights to participate in making decisions over the human and material resources of our country,” Onanuga said.

He added: “This is a duty that every citizen qualified to vote cannot transfer to another person. It is a responsibility that should not be exchanged for money. It is a sacrifice for the consolidation of democracy and federalism, the sacred values of our Constitution.

“Every vote is a testament of renewed hope, the certainty of victory over poverty and the conviction that our country carries within its bosom the potentials of the world’s next super power, indeed, the first black super power.

“Nigerians all over the world have sown those seeds of greatness in the work they do and the positive impact they are making as doctors, lawyers, engineers, entertainers, athletes, teachers and professionals in all fields of endeavour.

“To move from where we are to where we want to be, we need to maximise our resources, feed ourselves with what we grow, give our youths education that will make them excel, provide shelter for the homeless and bring constant electricity and technology to make production easier and convenient.

“2023 is our chance to make these dreams come true. Let us seize the moment.

“As the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Party, with 41 million registered members, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu  presents the best vision for the future for our collective prosperity with pledges that are practical, immediate and valuable to our journey towards development.

“The current administration of President Muhammadu Buhari has tried its best in spite of its challenges. It is like building a tarmac, a solid, concrete foundation. The coming administration of APC under the leadership of Asiwaju Tinubu and Senator Kashim Shettima, when elected, by the goodwill of Nigerians, shall put an aeroplane on the tarmac already built by President Buhari that will take us at supersonic speed to our destination. The world shall watch Nigeria soar higher and higher.

Security, infrastructure, education, health, housing, tourism shall be transformed to provide jobs and boost the economy.

“The APC Presidential candidate and his running mate have clearly laid out a grand vision for a better Nigeria in their Action Plan.

Let us seize this moment as we work to vote for the All Progressives Congress in the new year to continue the progressive governance we started over seven years ago.”

In the light of the fact that Governor Nyseom Wike of Rivers State, a leading member of the G5, has claimed that some APC Governors are meeting with Waziri Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the PDP, in Dubai and elsewhere (an allegation which I cannot possibly confirm or deny), I am constrained to make the following submission.

For those that may be attending such meetings or are considering the possibility of doing so kindly consider the following.

A violation of the sacred covenant and betrayal of the honorable commitment of a power shift to the South in 2023 will take us back to the June 12th 1993 crisis and will have grave consequences for democracy and our national unity. Nigerians were NOT born slaves and will NEVER be slaves.

An Atiku Presidency would represent a violation of that sacred covenant and would be manifestly unjust to the people of the South.

There can be no peace where there is no justice and there can be no unity where there is no peace.

If Waziri Atiku Abubakar, a Northern Fulani man from Adamawa State, emerges as President in February, Southerners would then be forced to ask themselves whether we are equal partakers in Nigeria and whether we really have a place and stake in the nation.

Nothing would confirm the notion that we are nothing but second class citizens and slaves more than an Atiku Presidency given the fact that we would have just finished eight years of Northern Fulani rule under President Muhammadu Buhari.

If it had been a non-Fulani from the North that was contesting on the platform of the PDP it would have been easier to accept but to have a Fulani to Fulani succession is unacceptable just as it would have been unacceptable for President Olusegun Obasanjo, who is a Yoruba, to have been succeeded by another Yoruba man or for President Goodluck Jonathan, an Ijaw, to be succeeded by another Ijaw man.

Read Also: 2023: God‘ll determine next president not G-5 Govs – Okowa

In any case this whole ugly and unfolding scenario begs for an answer to a wider question, namely should the South be denied the Presidency for the next eight years having not had it for the last eight simply because we come from the “wrong” part of the country?

Whether you stand with Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, as I do, or with Mr. Peter Obi, as my friend and brother Bashorun Akin Osuntokun does, is neither here nor there because for either of the two to win there must be a power shift, the North must be ready to let go of power and an Atiku Presidency must not be allowed to see the light of day.

They say politics and democracy is a game of numbers and this is true but it must also be guided by justice, decency, principle and honor.

We are free to make our choices about who to support but let those choices be bound in equity, justice and fairness.

The tyranny and injustice of the so-called majority cannot be visited on the so-called minority without consequence.

History proves that and posterity will confirm it.

In the light of this I say, in the name of God and for the sake of our collective future, let power shift from the North to the South next year, let us avoid the ugly conundrum of perpetual Northern rule and let us, in peace, love and unity, rebuild the bridges of trust between our people and heal our land.

Whether Northerner or Southerner, Nigerians are ONE, but to confirm that, we must pass the baton of leadership between North and South in an equitable, reasonable and just manner.

As we enter the New Year kindly ponder on this matter.

The consequences of getting it wrong would be dangerous, dire, too hard to bear and too troubling to enunciate.

Let us hope and pray that sanity prevails.

Happy New Year!

Former pope Benedict XVI, who became the first pontiff to resign in some 600 years, has died aged 95.

Pope Francis, who replaced him as head of the Catholic Church, had asked the faithful to pray for him at the end of his general audience on Wednesday morning.

The Vatican said Benedict’s body will lie in state in St Peter’s Basilica from Monday.

“With sorrow I inform you that the Pope Emeritus, Benedict XVI, passed away today at 9:34 in the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in the Vatican,” a spokesperson said, according to Sky News.

“As of Monday morning, 2 January 2023, the body of the Pope Emeritus will be in Saint Peter’s Basilica so the faithful can bid farewell.”

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The health of the Pope Emeritus, as Benedict was called after he stepped down, had undergone a “worsening in the last hours” due to his age, the Vatican said, and doctors were constantly monitoring his condition.

Francis had gone to visit Benedict at the Mater Ecclesiae Monastery in Vatican City after the audience.

Cardinal Vincent Nichols, the head of the Roman Catholic Church in England and Wales, said Benedict was “one of the great theologians of the 20th century”.

He said: “I am deeply saddened to learn of the death of Pope Benedict. He will be remembered as one of the great theologians of the 20th century.

“I remember with particular affection the remarkable Papal Visit to these lands in 2010. We saw his courtesy, his gentleness, the perceptiveness of his mind and the openness of his welcome to everybody that he met.”

“He was through and through a gentleman, through and through a scholar, through and through a pastor, through and through a man of God – close to the Lord and always his humble servant.

“Pope Benedict is very much in my heart and in my prayers. I give thanks to God for his ministry and leadership.”

Benedict had lived in the Vatican, a separate nation-state that is within the boundary of the Italian capital Rome, after he ceased being pope in 2013.

He had become increasingly frail in recent years after dedicating his post-papacy life to prayer and meditation.

For hundreds of years before Benedict became the Holy Father, popes had headed the Catholic Church until their deaths.

On 11 February 2013, Benedict’s surprise announcement to stand aside shocked the Catholic world, and forced the church to grapple with an event it had not seen in centuries.

He said he wanted to resign as he no longer had the physical and mental strength to run the church.

Before being elected pope in 2005, the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger served as the head of the Vatican’s doctrinal watchdog, called the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

He held the powerful role for 24 years, earning the nickname “God’s Rottweiler” for his strictly conservative theological views.

Some ultra-traditionalists even refused to acknowledge Pope Francis as a legitimate pontiff after Benedict stood down, criticising Francis for his more welcoming approach to members of the LGBTQ+ community and to Catholics who divorced and remarried outside the Church, arguing both were undermining traditional values.