The Nation Newspaper

Tag: ACPN

  • Update: INEC rejects Ezekwesili’s withdrawal

    The Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC ) has rejected the purported withdrawal of presidential candidate of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN) Dr Oby Ezekwesili.

    The commission noted Ezekwesili’s withdrawal was outside the window of opportunity granted to political parties contesting in the 16th February 2019 presidential poll.

    72 candidates were listed for the election, which is just 21 days away.

    The commission stated her withdrawal contravenes the Electoral Act 2010 as amended, which stipulated that a candidate can only withdraw from election 45 days to the poll.

    Ezekwesili declared her presidential ambition last October.

    Read Also: APCN endorses Buhari, accuses Ezekwesili of lobbying to be minister

    Responding to the development, the Chief Press Secretary to the Chairman of INEC, Mr. Rotimi Oyekanmi said her decision was also outside the commission’s timetable and schedule of activities for the forthcoming polls.

    He stated: “It is impossible for any presidential candidate to withdraw from the race now.

    “According to the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2019 General Elections, the last day for withdrawal by candidates or replacement of withdrawn candidates by political parties was 17th November, 2018 for Presidential and National Assembly Elections.

    “Therefore, the deadline for Ezekwesili or any candidate in that category to withdraw or be replaced has passed.“

  • I’m the only one that can fix Nigeria, says Ezekwesili

    Presidential candidate of Allied Congress Party of Nigeria ( ACPN ), Prof Obiageli Ezekwesili on Thursday said she is eminently qualified to lead Nigeria to the Promised Land.

    She lamented Nigeria has over the years lack quality leadership that can take the country to where it ought to be in the comity of nations.

    Addressing a group of artisans, youths, students, people with disabilities and some market women at popular Arewa House, Kaduna, the former Education Minister said she was the only candidate with the capacity and competency to deliver the country from its complex problems.

    She said: “We have lacked quality leadership in Nigeria. It doesn’t matter that all those that have governed us are men. It doesn’t make any difference in quality of life of Nigerian persons.

    “I am that candidate with competence and capacity to solve the complex problems that seem to have eluded us for so long.

    Read Also: 2019: Ezekwesili promises hope, new nation

    “We cannot afford to have many more millions of Nigerians to join more than 87 million that are already poor.

    “Therefore, anyone who is thinking of me being a woman has not come in term with other Nigerians I have interacted with in the course of our campaign. They have always saying Oby is the candidate we can trust.”

    She added: “When you are tired of mediocrity, the only person you can think of is Oby Ezekwesili, who is offering herself to lead.

    “The reason is simple. I have always been known in this society as one who has a strong voice for the fact that Nigeria can be better than it is now.

    “Nigeria has no reason to be a failure and that is why I am running in this election.”

    Asked if she was not happy with the current government because she was not given political appointment, she said: “I rejected to be a minister many times since I was a minister in this country. I don’t need to be a minister.

    “What I need is that this society must be mobilised immediately to see how we can come out of the whole failure and incompetence they have thrown us into.”

  • Ezekwesili promises poverty reduction, if elected

    Dr Obiageli Ezekwesili, the Presidential Candidate for Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN) has promised to reduce poverty to the barest level in the country, if elected in 2019.

    Ezekwesili made the pledge during a courtesy visit by ‘Women in Politics Organisation’ to her campaign office in Abuja on Thursday.

    According to her, poverty can not be completely eradicated from the society, but she would work hard to minimize it through inclusive economic growth and job creation for the youth.

    The candidate said that being a woman was not a challenge for her to win the election, reiterating that she was keen on giving dividends of democracy to all Nigerians.

    “The unemployment figure in the country is scary and huge number of graduates come into the labour market every year without jobs.

    Read Also: 2019 Budget: FG liaises with NASS on presentation date

    “Some will argue that gender equality is a deal that cannot be achieved, but I disagree because the society is already moving in that direction.

    “I will ensure good representation, poverty alleviation and good economic policy for the development of the economy,” she said.

    Ezekwesili also promised to put in place policies targeted at empowering women to tackle poverty, as well as establish a sustainable financial system that would address discrimination against women.

    She called on youths in the country to shun all forms of vices, and not to allow themselves to be used by politicians during and after the general elections.

  • 2019: I am candidate of the people – Ezekwesili

    The presidential candidate of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN), Mrs Oby Ezekwesili, on Monday said the endorsement of all Nigerians, including former President Olusegun Obasanjo was needed for her to lead the country in 2019.

    Ezekwesili, a former Minister of Education, told newsmen in Lagos that it was impossible for her to realise her ambition of becoming Nigeria’s first female president without the collective endorsement of all Nigerians, including Obasanjo.

    The News Agency of Nigeria reports that she was reacting to a question by one of the journalists on whether she would need the endorsement of Obasanjo, under whom she served as minister, to realise her ambition.

    NAN reports the former president had, on Thursday, openly endorsed the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, after a reconciliation meeting in Abeokuta.

    Ezekwesili said that democracy was all about popular choice, and she would not leave anyone out of the journey to become the president in 2019.

    “I need the endorsement of everyone. I need the endorsement of the youths, the old and the oldest segment of this country who look at the country and ask ‘What happened’?

    “I need the endorsement of everyone. I am not leaving anyone out because I am the candidate of the people, so every Nigerian is my electorate.

    “There is no power greater than the power of the people. It is a collective. I am the person with the right understanding of governance. I am the people’s choice and I am in the race to win,” she said.

    The presidential candidate said the country was faced with serious economic, security and other challenges which required a leader with the right capacity to fix.

    Ezekwesili, a former Vice-President of the World Bank, said she had the vision, experience and passion to reposition the country, promising that Nigeria would witness massive turnaround if she was elected.

    The candidate said the country’s economy was experiencing what she called ‘fiscal crisis’.

    She said there was the need to pursue vigorous sectoral and structural reforms to achieve real economic growth and promote the prosperity of the country.

    The candidate said her economic vision for the country was an economy that thrived on diversification and one in which the cost of government was drastically reduced for development.

    “We need to get our fiscal crisis sorted out. Fiscal crisis in the sense that the 2017 budget performance report that was released by the Federal Government shows we are in a state of fiscal imbalance.

    “The oil revenue is not sufficient to cover the personnel cost of government, and when you think that we are about 186 million people and about two million people in the civil service consume the entire revenue, that tells you we are in post-oil times and we have not yet shown an understanding of the situation. So, there has to be a drastic set of measures.

    “On the expenditure side, we have to look at the cost of government. The cost of government was already put on the agenda in the Oronsanye Report.What happened to the implementation?

    “We need to update the report and be determined to implement the recommendations therein,” she said.

    On the revenue side, Ezekwesili said the country needed to explore an economic strategy to open diverse sources of revenue.

    The presidential candidate said there was the need to develop the human capital to drive productivity and competitiveness in the economy.

    Ezekwesili said she would drive the prosperity of the country through investment in human capital, if elected.

    She decried the precarious security situation in the country, saying creative solutions were needed to address the problem.

    The ACPN candidate said she would deploy the right cutting -edge technology and invest massively in security institutions to address the problem, if elected.

    Read Also: Exam malpractices: FG charges Adeleke, four others

    She said critical areas like education, health and environment would receive the desired attention, to improve livelihoods and life expectancy.

    Ezekwesili said the idea of restructuring was being variously defined by politicians to suit their agenda and gain cheap popularity.

    The candidate said the only form of restructuring that she would pursue, if elected, was one that would guarantee prosperity,equality, opportunities and other things expected of a working nation.

    She said her quest for presidency was gaining momentum by the day with many people volunteering support, and expressed the optimism that she would win.

  • Why ACPN ‘merged’ with NEPP

    The Nigeria Elements Progressive Party (NEPP) has said its merger with a faction of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN) has better positioned it to implement its manifesto of hope, peace, quality education and health care.

    It spoke in Akure, Ondo State capital, following the defection of over 20 state chairmen of ACPN to the NEPP ahead of 2019 polls.

    Chairman of NEPP’s Board of Trustees, Chief Adetuwo Ogunjumelo, who received the defectors, declared that the party is poised to take over leadership in the country.

    Ogunjumelo said: “We are bringing change, a different kind of change, not like the change mantra of the All Progressives Congress (APC), a new change. The acronym NEPP also captures our concept of change whereby N stands for nationhood, meaning one entity with all Nigerians living together in a secure environment. E represents Education for all Nigerians, because without good education there’ll be nothing for our children and grandchildren. The two Ps represent peace and prosperity.’’

    Ogunjumelo, an accountant, who was honoured as Ondo State Man of the Year, explained that the party is not satisfied with the security and economic state of the country.

    He said: “NEPP’s message to Nigerians is that we are coming to change this situation. When there is no peace, there can be no development, no good education, no good healthcare and no roads; but when there’s peace, things will improve. So, one of our priorities as a party is to create conditions for lasting peace and prosperity in Nigeria.’’

    A former ACPN chieftain, Chief Belawu Ayoade Adebola, who for the defectors, said they left following unresolved issues with ACPN National Chairman Alhaji Ganiu Galadima

    He said: “We dumped the party en masse to NEPP because of a variety of reasons. Since 2015, we never had a National Executive Committee meeting. Sometime last year, I called all the state chairmen so we could find a way forward, but I was berated and accused of attempting to remove the party chairman, etc. The matter was reported to our leader in Oyo State, Chief Mrs Oluremi Ojengbede. The woman told him to call us to a round table and find a solution to the problem, but he never did anything.’’

    NEPP Ondo State Chairman Chief Adeyemi Isaiah and National Secretary Adelokun Tosho Babatunde assured the defectors of fair treatment and urged them to unite with other members to boost the party’s chances in 2019.

    The congress featured the presentation of flags to state party chairmen.

     

    Picture: Ogunjumelo, (centre) with other members of the party.

  • Why ACPN ‘merged’ with NEPP

    The Nigeria Elements Progressive Party ( NEPP ) has said its merger with a faction of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN) has better positioned it to implement its manifesto of hope, peace, quality education and healthcare for Nigerians.

    It stated this in Akure, the Ondo State capital, following the recent defection of over 20 state chairmen of ACPN to the NEPP ahead of the 2019 general poll.

    Chairman of the NEPP board of trustees, Chief Adetuwo Ogunjumelo, who received the defectors, declared that the party was poised to take over the mantle of leadership in the country.

    Ogunjumelo said: “We are bringing change, a different kind of change, not like the change mantra of the All Progressives Congress (APC), a new change. The acronym NEPP also captures our concept of change whereby N stands for nationhood, meaning one entity with all Nigerians living together in a secure environment. E represents Education for all Nigerians, because without good education there’ll be nothing for our children and grandchildren. The two Ps represent peace and prosperity.

    Ogunjumelo, an accountant who was recently honoured as the Ondo State Man of the Year, explained that the party was not satisfied with the security and economic state of the country.

    He said: “NEPP’s message to Nigerians is that we are coming to change this situation. When there is no peace, there can be no development, no good education, no good healthcare and no roads; but when there’s peace, things will improve. So, one of our priorities as a party is to create conditions for lasting peace and prosperity in Nigeria.

    A former ACPN chieftain, Chief Belawu Ayoade Adebola, who spoke on behalf the defectors, explained why they left.

    He said there were several unresolved issues with ACPN National Chairman of ACPN Alhaji Ganiu Galadima

    He said: “We dumped the party en masse to NEPP because of a variety of reasons. Since 2015, we never had a National Executive Committee meeting. Sometime last year, I called all the state chairmen so we could find a way forward, but I was berated and accused of attempting to remove the party chairman, etc. The matter was reported to our leader in Oyo State, Chief Mrs Oluremi Ojengbede. The woman told him to call us to a round table and find a solution to the problem, but he never did anything.

    NEPP Ondo State chairman, Chief Adeyemi Isaiah and the party’s national secretary, Adelokun Tosho Babatunde, assured the defectors of fair treatment and urged them to unite with other members to boost the party’s chances in the 2019 general poll.

    The congress also featured the presentation of flags to all the state party chairmen.

    Picture: Ogunjumelo, (centre) with other members of the party.

  • ACPN gets caretaker committee in Ondo

    The National Secretariat of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN)has appointed caretaker committee members to run the affairs of the party in Ondo State.
    Its former Chairman,Bosun Omosule,was suspended over allegations of corruption and anti party activities during the last governorship election.
    Also suspended with him were the Secretary, Oluwaseye Akintoye, and the Public Relations Officer(PRO), Alade Adeniyi.
    At a meeting in Akure,the Ondo state capital, which was attended by members of the National Working Committee (NWC), its Deputy National Chairman, Moruf Ogundare, said the decision was based on the recommendation of the five-man committee set up to look into the various allegations against the former State Chairman and other officers.
    A five-man Caretaker Committee was set up to run the affairs of the party in the state.
    The committee is headed by Alhaji Bello, while Chief Adedigbo Adeboye, Mr O.Agboola and two others are to serve as members.

  • ‘Why Ondo ACPN members were expelled’

    The governorship candidate of the llied Congress of Nigeria (ACPN) in last year’s governorship election in Ondo State, Chief Adetunwo Ogunjumelo, has justified the expulsion of the party chairman, Bosun Omosule.

    Ogunjumelo said the allegations against Omosule, particularly on  anti-party behaviours and mismanagement of party funds, led to his expulsion from the party.

    He said: “Leaders and party supporters across the state resolved to expel the chairmanhim based on his alleged anti- party activities of romancing candidates of two major parties in the state and pretended to be too smart”

    “The decision of the party members and the executive is supreme and must obey the order with immediate effect.

    The ACPN flag bearer alleged that Omosule collected the sum of N1.42m from him as security allowance, which he diverted for his personal use.

    Omosule had since last week been expelled from the party. But, he insisted that those who purportedly sacked him were not party executives as required by the law the and constitution of the party.

    The embattled chairman added that the National Executive Committee(NEC) of the ACPN had cleared him of the allegations.

  • My plan for Ondo, by ACPN candidate

    My plan for Ondo, by ACPN candidate

    The governorship candidate of the Allied Congress Party of Nigeria (ACPN) in Ondo State, Chief Adetuwo Ogunjumelo, has said the state needed a refinery as an oil-producing state.

    Ogunjumelo was reacting to insinuations that the state has been unlucky to have good leaders since its creation.

    He said the only industry in Igbotako, Ilaje Local Government Area, the hometown of the disputed governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Jimoh Ibrahim, and Major General Olu Bajowa, was established by him.

    He said: “Let any of the governorship candidates in Ondo State point to any industry that has added any economic value to either the state or his local government. As a chartered accountant and Chairman of Korede Microfinance Bank since 1992, I promise that anybody in Ondo State who is above 70 will be provided with free medical care with allowances.”

    Ogunjumelo, who is the first chartered account in Okitipupa division, said no civil servant would be owed salaries.

    He added: “Without the federal allocation, our government will create jobs within the first two years and also be able to pay.”

    He promised to revive the oil palm and Oluwa Glass Industries.

    He would declare a state of emergency in the agricultural sector in the state in order for Ondo to be restored as an oil producing state.

    Ogunjumelo: “I have a role for women in my government and that was why I have appointed a female deputy. I also want to assure you that 45% of those that will form part of the State Executive Council (SEC) will be women. In the area of housing, being a chartered accountant, I will create a kind of mortgage that will enable a level one officer in the state’s civil service to own his own house which he or she can pay within 15 to 20 years. What Ondo needs in the area of education is proper funding of the tertiary institutions so that they can carry out a proper research that can add value to the people of the state.”

  • Pharmacists okay national drug guidelines

    Pharmacists okay national drug guidelines

    THE Association of Community Pharmacists of Nigeria (ACPN) has allayed the fear of the Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Group of the Manufacturer Association of Nigeria (PMG-MAN) on the new national drug distribution guidelines agreed on by pharmaceutical experts and approved by the Federal Government.

    Its National Secretary, Adeoye Afuye, said yesterday that the greatest fear of any human globally “is the fear of change” and asserted that the guidelines would bring sanity to the nation’s “chaotic drug distribution channels”.

    He noted that the ACPN, as an important stakeholder in the pharmaceutical health care delivery system”, deemed it fit to educate the public and other critical members of the pharmaceutical professions on the issue.

    The guidelines, he explained, were formulated by the Federal Government through a committee comprising all stakeholders in the pharmaceutical section with PMG-MAN inclusive.

    Afuye added that members of the committee included experts from the Federal Ministry of Health, Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), World Health Organisation (WHO), National Institute of Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), and Pharmacist Council of Nigeria (PCN).

    Others were National agency for food, Drug, Administration and control (NAFDAC), ACPN and PMG-MAN.

    He said after thorough deliberation, the guideline was produced and the implementation date was fixed for July 2014 and was later shifted to July 1, 2015.

    Afuye noted that it was agreed that the guidelines be implemented by the Federal Government as contained in the policy document and that any short-comings or challenges would be addressed as it occurs.

    “It was a big surprise to hear from one of the originator of the document after two years of suspended implementation that the document, if implemented, would hand over the pharmaceutical industry to cartels and syndicates,” ACPN official said.