Category: Northern Reports

Kwara Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq has called on members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to sustain the momentum and guarantee the success of the party in Saturday’s Governorship and Assembly elections.

“We must not relent because of the success recorded in previous elections. We must redouble our efforts to consolidate on the success.

“We must continue to canvass and campaign for our party and all our candidates. We must all come out and vote next Saturday,” AbdulRazaq said on Saturday evening at APC Adewole Ward meeting in Ilorin West Local Government Area.

The Governor congratulated party faithful and all residents of the State for the support to the APC, which he said earned it a huge victory in the presidential and National Assembly elections.

“I want to congratulate you for the success recorded in the presidential and national assembly elections.

“We are glad that Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and all our National Assembly candidates emerged victorious in the polls. We say AlhamduliLlaah. And we thank the people of Kwara State for their support. In the coming elections next Saturday, our party will also emerge victorious, and we will say AlhamduliLlaah again,” he added.

The Governor called on party supporters to be peaceful and wary of the opposition elements who may want to disrupt the electoral process.

“By the grace of God, we will win the next Saturday’s governorship and House of assembly elections. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu acknowledges the support, and he has asked me to thank all of you,” he said.

“The opposition knows they can’t win this election. They are bent on disrupting the process. Don’t allow that. Come out peacefully and ensure that you vote for APC massively. Don’t resort to violence. We shall win this election, in Shaa Allaah.”

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been given 24 hours to announce the results of National Assembly election for Plateau Central Senatorial zone.

Evangelist Sam Mbok, Media Aide to the candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC) for the zone, Hon Diket Plang, gave the charge in a press conference in Jos at the weekend.

Plang said: “I contested as the candidate of my party APC in the National Assembly election for Plateau Central Senatorial zone, and I’m worried that eight days after the election, INEC has not announced the results.

“I hereby use this medium to call on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to announce the results of the National Assembly election result for Plateau Central Senatorial zone without delay.

“The call has become necessary because INEC was the one that conducted the said election; it is the same INEC that collated the results from all the local governments that made up the zone, and everything is in the hands of INEC.

“INEC has not informed me why the commission is withholding the results when the people who voted are eagerly waiting for the results since 25th of February.

“I am convinced by the copies of the results of the election given to my agents that I scored the highest votes cast. I won with over 400 votes and I should have been declared winner since that day. But to my greatest dismay, INEC is withholding the results of the election.

“As far as I am concerned, as well as my party, the APC, the people of the zone have spoken through the ballots and have made their choice; why then is INEC refusing to announce the results?”

The Director of National Youth Mobilisation of APC Presidential Campaign Council, Kazeem Kolawole RAJI, has applauded 

Friday’s ruling of the Supreme Court on the hardships faced by Nigerians occasioned by the recent naira redesign by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

In a statement issued in Abuja on Saturday, he said the judgement was timely, stressing it would arrest the socio-economic conundrum resulting from the poor implementation of ill-timed monetary policy.

”No doubt, yesterday’s ruling of the Supreme Court is highly appreciated by all lovers of the Nigeria project. 

“The ruling has the capacity of restoring normalcy and sanity back into the financial sector of the economy. 

“The hardships experienced by Nigerians in the last two months in accessing their hard earned money is better imagined than experienced.

“This ruling is therefore, commendable, applauded and appreciated, as it would rescue the nation from the brims of collapse,” he said. 

The Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision, ruled that old naira notes shall co-exist with new Naira notes, and old notes shall continue to be legal tender until 31st December, 2023.

The Director of APC-PCC specifically commended the roles played by the Progressives Governors Forum (PGF) in challenging the harsh, and poorly implemented economic policy. 

”Let me at this juncture commend the bold and courageous stance of the APC Governors Forum in challenging the proprietary of the policy and going to the extent of challenging it in the apex court. 

“But for their intervention, the nation would still be wallowing in ocean of hardship and intensive pain heralded by the harsh implementation of the policy”, it added.

RAJI also commended the courageous and open condemnation of the policy by the Presidential candidate of the APC, now the President-elect of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, *Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu*, for standing firm when others faltered at the peak of the gnashing effect of the programme even at the risk of his ambition. 

“He stood decisively and openly campaigned against the poor implementation of the policy whereas the Presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP,  Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, openly embraced it and praised the Federal Government and CBN for unleashing this terror on the people”, it noted.

While stating that the cashless policy on its own is not a bad idea, as it was designed to achieve macro-economic stability, it however, noted that the Nigeria version of the policy is the worst globally, in terms of conceptualization and implementation without carrying all stakeholders along.

“The policy was politically motivated, hence it’s inability to achieve the desired goal”, he said, adding that: ”It is my fervent believe that Mr. President, through the CBN Governor, will take necessary actions towards implementing the Supreme Court judgment which will ultimately ease tension in the country”.

THE recent endorsement of the Taraba State PDP governorship candidate, Agbu Kefas, by the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), may have triggered a move by the opposition parties to join forces in order to wrestle power from the ruling party.

There are five top governorship contenders in Taraba for the March 11 polls, four of whom are Christians while only one is Muslim. They are Agbu Kefas of the PDP, Emmanuel Bwacha of the APC, Danladi Baido of the SDP, Joel Ikenya of the LP, and Professor Sani Yahaya of the NNPP.

Religion plays a major role in Taraba politics. CAN has always been a player in Taraba politics where it often endorses its favourite candidate. It is not different in this dispensation,

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) had in a letter signed by the State Secretary, Bishop Manasseh Silas Rifore, asked Christians to vote for the PDP governorship candidate, Agbu Kefas.

“I have been mandated to instruct all bloc leaders, local government coordinators and the CAN wing to strictly adhere to the following: 1. A single choice from the five governorship candidates must be made so that the Christian votes will not be split. 2. Dire caution must be exercised so that we Christians don’t lose our ancestral land to another faith.

“All Christians in Taraba State are hereby directed to accept, mobilise and massively vote Col. Agbu Kefas (rtd) of the PDP for the governor as her endorsed candidate,” the letter read.

The sudden endorsement has however created ripples in the camp of the oppositions, causing the likes of Bwacha, Baido and Kefas to rally together, with the sole motive of forging an alliance.

The Nation learnt that there is the fear that should the endorsement stand, the Christian votes might split over the four Christian candidates, thereby giving the only Muslim candidate the advantage with a bloc Muslim vote.

Moreso, the Muslim community, in reaction to CAN’s endorsement of Kefas, are bracing to give massive votes for the only Muslim candidate, Sani Yahaya.

“Presently, we are more divided than before and as a responsible person, it is not fair. They have gone out of their schedule. Some of us feel ashamed to call ourselves Tarabans when we go out. We want a home grown politician to take over Taraba; one who will not be remote controlled by anybody. We want to be remote controlled by the people. We want Tarabans to choose whoever they want to choose. We will remain committed to our people,” Ikenya reacted to CAN’s endorsement of Kefas.

SPOKESMAN to the North West APC Presidential Campaign Council, Muhammad Shehu Molash, has said that the zone contributed the highest votes to the victory of the president-elect, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Addressing a press conference in Kaduna, Molash noted that that the North-West produced the cumulative votes of 2,950,393 out of the 8,794,726 votes scored in the entire county for Tinubu.

He said the votes represented about 33.55% of the entire votes cast in favour of the president-elect, even as he added that all governorship candidates in the zone should be accorded similar support during the forthcoming election.

“The North-West APC Presidential Campaign Council under the able leadership of the zonal coordinator, Governor Bello Matawalle and his deputy, Salihu Lukman, wish to express its most profound gratitude to all those who contributed immensely towards the success of the APC in the just concluded 2023 Presidential elections…

 “We equally wish to specially acknowledge the tenacity and doggedness of the six APC governors, despite the stiff attempt to whip up ethnic sentiments by some supposed elders from the zone. Thankfully, the zone rejected the antics of these “Atikus elders” masquerading as Northern elders!

“In the light of the foregoing, the North-West APC Presidential Campaign Office wishes to appeal to all the people of the zone to come out en masse and vote for all APC gubernatorial candidates in the zone on the 11th of March 2023 In sha Allah.

 Molash said  the zone parades the best candidates, starting with Senator Uba Sani, who is angling to succeed governor Elrufai in Kaduna State; Dr Nasiru Gawuna in Kano State and Dr Dikko Radda in Katsina.