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Tag: ado

  • ‘Fielding unpopular candidates will cost Buhari 2019 election’

    Aspirants who contested the various positions in the recently concluded party primaries have warned that the party will find it difficult getting the required number of votes for President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2019 presidential election if the go ahead and field unpopular candidates in the states.

    One of the aspirants for the House of Representatives seat for Ekiti Central Constituency 1 comprising Ado, Irepodun and Ifelodun local government areas, Olayinka Olafemi Daniels described as a conspiracy against the President, attempt by some party leaders to foist unpopular candidates on the people.

    Daniels said in an interview in Abuja that any attempt by the party leaders at the National, level to succumb to the manipulations at the state level will force the people; it may force the people to vote for the opposition party, thereby causing the president the required votes.

    He said “If they pick the wrong candidate, that person will definitely lose the general election and it will no doubt affect the chances of the President. The programmes of the president are laudable, but should not be truncated by these desperate acts of some of our leaders.

    “I am not a desperate politician because I have my profession and a source of livelihood. But we are passionate about this party and want the President to succeed.

    “We should not undertake the opposition and I must tell you that the emergence of Atiku as the Presidential candidate of the PDP is a major challenge in the south west. So, I want the leadership of the party to declare me the candidate of the party because i am the most popular among the aspirants”.

    Also, speaking in the same vain, One of the Senatorial aspirants of the party in Delta North, Ambassador Gabriel Chukwuma Oyibode said the party will find difficult to get votes for President Buhari in 2019 general election if he is excluded from the exercise which he described as a kangaroo exercise.

    Chukwuma, who said he was one of those who obtained nomination form, screened and cleared to contest Delta North senatorial primary alongside, Doris Uboh and Dr. Mariam Ali claimed that he excluded from the ballot paper during the primary at the party’s state secretraiat.

    He alleged that Dr. Mariam Ali who was reportedly declared winner of the primary was sponsored by the major opposition party, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

    Dr. Mariam Ali is the wife of the former National Chairman of the PDP, Senator Ahmadu Ali.

    Read Also: 2019: Hurdles before Buhari, Atiku

    Ambassador Chukwuma told newsmen apart from the fact that his name was omitted from the ballot, the primary election did not hold in the state wondering how the winner emerged.

    He said: “Three aspirants, Mariam Ali, Doris Uboh and myself were screened by the party’s screening committee after obtaining the nomination and indication of interest to contest the senatorial seat for the Delta North Senatorial District, but unfortunately, the primary election never held on the stipulated date as we waited at the venue and both the Independent Electoral Commission (INEC) officials were not there till about 3.30 pm.”

    According to the aspirant, after waiting all day, the primary was said to be postponed to the next day where it was held in a different venue outside the official designated venue, the Technical College of Education Asaba which he claimed he reported to the party election committee chairman, Gen. Lawrence Onoja (Rtd).

    “I was disfranchised along with my delegates who are the largest in number against a Kangaro election held without my name found on the ballot paper and two boxes provided instead of three”, wondering how three candidates will be screened for an election and two will be made to contest.

    “This act is tantamount to electoral fraud and I want the world to know what the party has done in the state regarding the primary election”, he said.

    Chukwuma noted that he has sent his complaints to the party chairman, comrade Adams Oshiomhole and the Appeal Committee headed by Professor Osunbor but has not heard from neither and so, called on the party to declare him winner of the senatorial primary election in Delta North.

    “I’m calling on anybody who cares that there was no senatorial primary election in Delta North. I don’t intend leaving the party, but if nothing is done quickly, I will go to court to seek redress”, he threatened.

  • Ado should produce next governor, says Ojudu

    All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirant, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, has insisted that it is time Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, is given the opportunity to produce governor.

    Ojudu urged the party delegates to consider the fact that Ado-Ekiti has the highest concentration of voters in the state with the indigenes ready to vote their son at the July governorship election.

    The Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters said he is fit for the job on the strength of his clean public service record, advocacy for good governance and human rights, good name, integrity and closeness to the people in the grassroots.

    The journalist-turned politician, who urged delegates to entrust him with their votes, spoke with our reporter on Monday in his Ado-Ekiti country home ahead of this Saturday’s APC governorship primary election.

    Ojudu, who represented Ekiti Central as a Senator in the National Assembly between 2011 and 2015 said his kinsmen don’t want Governor Ayo Fayose and his preferred candidate, Prof. Kolapo Olusola, over alleged disrespect to the throne of the Ewi of Ado-Ekiti and demolition of houses which he alleged did not follow due process.

    He said: “Ado-Ekiti has registered voters of 180,000 plus, the next local government to it is Ikere with 65,000. In our party primary, we have 33 persons contesting across the state.

    “From that population of 180,000, I am the only one contesting from that local government; there is a reason for that. Ado people want their son to be governor this time around and they are backing him with their votes.

    “Oye Local Government Area where Dr. Kayode Fayemi comes from, there are five aspirants there and they are not pushovers. A former senator is there, a former member of House of Reps is there, former  chieftain of the PDP who actually won the primary of the party in 2007 and it was taken from him and given to Segun Oni is also from there.

    “In Segun Oni’s local government, there is (Muyiwa) Coker, in Emure with less than 40,000 voters, there are two aspirants from there. In Gbonyin, which does not have a large population of voters, there are two aspirants from there. Same goes for Efon.

    “I am the only one from a local government that has over 180,000 voters; if Ado supports you in any election, you have won. If Ado is against you in any election, you have lost. I don’t want us to lose this forthcoming election.”

    He added: “This man (Fayose) is ruining Ado-Ekiti, he has demolished several homes and rendered thousands of people homeless.

    “He has abused our traditional ruler. So, they are angry and they are poised to punish him by voting for their own son to become governor who will then redesign this state and make this state a good place to live in.”

  • Is this much ado about nothing?

    Among the legacies of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its 16 inglorious years as the country’s ruling party, there is this curious matter of the profile of Professor Wale Oladipo who emerged as the party’s national secretary at some point.

    A high-profile columnist on June 21 focused on this curiosity in a piece titled “A nuclear scientist at the crossroads”.  It was a curious piece about a curious issue.

    The columnist asked: “Who is he, really, and where is he coming from?  What positions has he held in the nuclear science establishment?  What books or scientific papers has he published?  Does he by any chance hold a patent?  If so, for what product or process?”

    He went on to say: “His formal designation is professor of Nuclear Analytical Techniques, and his last known workplace address is the Centre for Energy Research and Development (CERD), at the Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife. CERD would therefore seem to be the appropriate starting point for learning more about Professor Oladipo.”

    It is interesting that this columnist’s efforts to learn more about the man resulted in further unclarity. He said: “At this writing, he does not figure on CERD’s web site.  I sent an email to CERD asking for information about him.  No luck.  I followed up with a phone call; no luck.  Perhaps it is CERD’s policy not to give out any information about their faculty and staff, for security reasons.  And CERD is nothing if not a national security facility.”

    The search continued: “My Internet search turned out more information about Oladipo as PDP national secretary than about his scholarship in the arcane field of particle physics.  It also yielded more information about his time in prison custody with Iyiola Omisore in the investigation of the murder of the former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Chief Bola Ige, than about his scientific work.”

    The curious columnist went further: “Even his home page, such as it is, says nothing about his education and the universities he attended.  There is no picture showing him at a nuclear facility, or at his study surrounded by books and scientific papers; no picture showing him with colleagues at a conference; none showing him in any scientific context whatsoever.”

    This cannot be a dead end. Could this be a failure of research or the failure of a researcher? Curious observers want more information, and more information should be made available, considering the public’s high impression of the man’s impressive designation. Or is this much ado about nothing?

  • Ado Poly reschedules post-UTME test

    The Federal Polytechnic, Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State, has rescheduled its post-UTME screening earlier scheduled to hold from today and Wednesday.

    A statement yesterday by the Polytechnic’s Deputy Registrar, Information, Ade Adeyemi-Adejolu, said the post-UTME will now begin from October 5 to October 9.

    The latest postponement, the statement said, was due chiefly to challenges experienced by many prospective candidates in possessing their e-transact PIN from banks.

    It said: “The rescheduling became imperative to enable a hitch-free preparation and successful conduct of the screening test.

    “We urge parents, guardians, and qualified candidates to note that the Computer-Based Test will now hold from October 5 to October 9 at the Polytechnic Digital Library.

    “Consequently, all interested candidates who are yet to complete their online application now have the opportunity to do so until midnight of Wednesday,  when the admission portal will be closed.”

  • Ado welcomes Udiroko

    Ado welcomes Udiroko

    The people of Ado-Ekiti, the Ondo State capital, last Saturday celebrated this year’s Udiroko, the traditional “New Year Day” of the people.

    It was the finale of a weeklong activities involving rites meant to sanctify the town afresh for its indigenes and residents.

    The festival, a yearly event, is usually held inside the sprawling precincts of the Palace of Ewi (the monarch) of the town.

    It is a customary event for many dignitaries and residents who normally turn-out in their bests to grace the event.

    As early as 11a.m last Saturday, residents and other participants started streaming into the palace in groups of two and more.

    By 3p.m, all that could be distinguished as space in the vast and high walled enclosure had been filled to capacity.

    Amid intermittent booming of canons were chants of rich Ekiti dialect songs from the now familiar Aluluogo band, including various dance forms and songs.

    Prayers and benedictions were copiously offered by the monarch, Oba Adeyemo Adejugbe, Aladesanmi III, for obedient subjects, who took turns to pay homage, kneeling, prostrating, assuming whatever form and shape that lent eloquent reverence to the revered ancestry of the town, as symbolised by the monarch.

    People of other tribes also showed appreciation to the traditional ruler.

  • Much ado about a terminal

    Much ado about a terminal

    What does the concession agreement between the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited say about the General Aviation Terminal (GAT)? Does it cede control of the terminal to Bi-Courtney? Bi-Courtney says it does, but FAAN disagrees.Who is telling the truth? KELVIN OSA OKUBOR asks.

    It used to be a random facility. But now the General Aviation Terminal (GAT) at the domestic wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, can compare with any of its kind in the world.

    When it was being remodelled, airlines moved to the other terminal commonly referred to as mmII. now, they are planning to return to the refurbished GAT over which the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited are squabbling.

    Their quarrel borders on control of GAT.Bi-Courtney is claiming that the ownership of the terminal is covered in the concession agreement it signed with the government some years ago.

    FAAN disagrees, saying Bi-Courtney’s position, is at variance with the terms of the concession agreement.

    On their part, airline operators, workers and passengers, who are fascinated by government’s efforts within a few months to deliver such a world-class remodelled terminal, have expressed concern over what becomes of the facility because of their rift.

    Speaking through its General Manager, Corporate Services, Yakubu Dati, FAAN insists that the agreement the authority signed with Bi –Courtney only covers a 12-year tenure. The arrangement, he said, did not confer the ownership of the GAT on Bi-Courtney.

    Dati  said it became imperative to clear the air over the issues because of the misinformation being fed to the public. The agreement conceived under the (Build, Operate and Transfer BOT) model, may be jeopardised because of the rift, he added.

    He said: “We are constrained to restate that the General Aviation Terminal of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, is not included in the Build, Operate and Transfer concession agreement between the company and the Federal Government. The authority is constrained to ask to members of the public, especially aviation stakeholders, to discountenance that often-bandied claim because it is false, misleading and mischievous, to say the least.

    “We observed, with interest, quotations from questionable documents or portions of documents that suits their assertion about the duration of the BOT concession and government’s directive for the so called take-over of the General Aviation Terminal. We consider this unfortunate because Bi-Courtney knows that the only authentic documents on the agreement, limits the duration of the concession to 12 years and that the area of land occupied by the General Aviation Terminal is clearly outside the area of land granted Bi-Courtney for the concession. These facts have been stated for the umpteenth time.”

    Dati said Bi-Courtney was only crying foul because the Federal Government has decided that there should be transparency and fairness in a concession agreements with government agencies. He added that it is convenient for Bi– Courtney to deceive unwary Nigerians into thinking that the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Terminal One (which is named MMA 2, by Bi- Courtney) controversy will discourage private investors in the industry. Ill-motivated, manipulated and unbelievable concession agreements skewed against the interest of the Nigerians cannot stand the test of time, Dati said.

    “No amount of playing to the gallery, twisting the law and facts, or appeal to undue sentiments can change this,” he said.

    He noted that the transformation agenda of the government in the aviation industry, among other things, is geared towards eliminating selfish business models that create personal business empires, and not a level playing field for stakeholders capable of contributing meaningfully to genuine growth of the sector.

    As the feud over the ownership of the GAT heightens, skeletal services have started at the terminal, even as the installations of operational facilities are on-going.

    But, Bi-Courtney,  speaking through its Public Relations Manager, Mr Steve Ajulo Omolale, said FAAN should keep to the terms of the agreement it signed with the firm, insisting that the terms of the agreement gave it control of the GAT.

    He said it was a show of lawlessness, the insistence by FAAN that the tenure of its concession agreement remains 12, and not 36 years, describing the action by FAAN as a disdain to the judiciary.

    Omolale said: “By insisting that the General Aviation Terminal is not Bi-Courtney’s and that our concession tenure of 36 years is now 12 years, despite the court order to that effect, they have further shown how lawless they are, as well as their disdain for the judiciary. They should allow the Supreme Court to hear their appeal over the concession agreement they signed with us instead of putting forward shallow and irrational argument.

    “We are aware of their grand conspiracy to render MMA 2 useless, send over 2,000 Nigerians into the job market, and also render our billions of naira investment in MMA 2 useless, with the building of the General Aviation Terminal. If they so much love Nigerians, they should go and answer the several summons of Nigerians’representatives in the National Assembly to x-ray their Ministry’s activities.

    “For now, the General Aviation Terminal belongs to Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited and will continue to be until they are able to overturn the appellate court’s judgment.”

    The Minister of Aviation, Princess Stella Oduah, said the government would not allow the interest of businessmen or investors to dwarf the overriding national interest.

    “The GAT belongs to the Federal Republic of Nigeria. This terminal does not belong to him; this General Aviation Terminal belongs to FAAN. Nobody, I mean nobody, can hold the entire nation to ransom. We must protect what belongs to all of us. Nobody will usurp what belongs to the people of Nigeria; we will not allow it and we must protect the interest of the nation,” she stressed.

    Also speaking, the Managing Director of FAAN, Mr George Uriesi, explained that in general, the principle that concerns the concession with Bi-Courtney, it has a limitation on the specific plot of land upon which to build a terminal and to operate and transfer it after 12 years.

    He said: “But, in general principle,the concession to Bi- Courtney is a very specific plot of land upon which they have a concession to build a terminal and to operate and transfer it after 12 years. That is what they have, within that concession. It does not prevent us from operating the General Aviation Terminal. The government, absolutely, is not contravening any aspect of the concession agreement.”

    The former Secretary-General of African Airlines Association (AFRAA), Mr Nick Fadugba, cautioned on how concession agreements are delivered in Nigeria, saying that they are not well-packaged to attract investors.

    He said: “Before we sign deals, whether they are concession agreements on airport terminals, including the General Aiation Terminal, we should ensure that they are favour of  Nigeria.  Many deals have been signed that were not properly done including the agreement involving Bi- Courtney.

    “Before we put pen to paper, we must have a solid deal that would be all-beneficiary and all- encompassing. This presents a problem; so I believe the government has to bring the private sector but ensure they make the transactions thoroughly planned or agreed; so it is a win win situation for the government, the country and the private sector.”

    The Head of Research and Strategy, Zenith Travels, Mr Olumide Ohunayo, said until issues on public-private partnership are sorted out as they affects concession agreements, contention over the GAT would continue to pose a distraction to investors.

    Speaking through her Media Assistant, Mr Joe Obi, Oduah said: “Information at our disposal indicates that Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Ltd, the Concessionaire to MM2,  is apparently threatened by the imminent opening of the newly reconstructed and remodelled GAT, Lagos.

    To be sure, the area where GAT is located has never been part of the area concessioned to Bi-Courtney Ltd. The agreement with Bi-courtney has a Survey Plan clearly marked in Square metres and the area of the GAT was never contemplated to be part of the area leased to Bi-Courtney.

    “Nigerians can vividly recall the dilapidated and decrepit state of the nation’s airports,  including GAT prior to the assumption of office of the Minister. Today, 11 airports, including the GAT are an elegant testimony of the desire and determination of the Minister to give Nigerians what they truly deserve-airports of their dreams that compare to any such facility anywhere around the world.

    “It is inconceivable that anyone would not only contemplate, but also  hold fast to the jaundiced belief that a nation as big and great as Nigeria ought not to progress beyond having a terminal like MM2. “

    Mrs Oduah further said: “Regarding allegations that there are subsisting court orders restraining anybody, including FAAN, which is the landlord of Federal airports in Nigeria from further development of the GAT, we need to stress that the cases are still on-going. In fact, our case is before the Supreme Court, challenging the orders being referred   to mainly, but not limited to the fact that in several of these cases, FAAN, as a principal interested party, was never fully represented.

    “Most of the cases and attempts at arbitration were conducted without the full incorporation and participation of FAAN. Those behind Bi-Courtney, relying on their privileged positions and closeness to the corridors of power at the time conspired to leave out FAAN in most of the adjudication and arbitration processes.

    “Perhaps it is pertinent to emphasise that most of the concession and lease agreements in the aviation sector prior to the coming on board of the minister were heavily skewed against national and public interest. The review and cancellations of some of these agreement are, therefore, done in the overriding public and national interest. The interest of an individual investor or corporate entity cannot be allowed to override the public.”

    As FAAN and Bi-Courtney sort out the ownership status of the General Aviation Terminal, airlines, including IRS Airlines, Overland Airways, Medview Airlines and Arik Air, have taken space at the terminal to boost their flight operations.

    Scores of passengers continue to salute the courage of the government in delivering a terminal that could only be compared with what is obtainable in most developed countries.