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Tag: All Progressives Congress (APC)

  • Osun bye-election defeat won’t affect APC – Speaker

    Osun bye-election defeat won’t affect APC – Speaker

    The Speaker of  Osun House of Assembly, Mr Najeem Salaam, says the electoral defeat suffered by the All Progressives  Congress (APC) in the July 8 senatorial bye-election will  not affect the fortunes  of the party.

    Salaam,  in a statement issued on Thursday in Osogbo  by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Goke Butika, described the defeat as  an electoral set back and a wake-up call.

    The speaker, who said the development would strengthen  the APC  for  future elections, promised that all the loopholes identified during the poll  would be critically addressed.

    The APC caucus in the assembly, he said, however, passed  a vote of confidence on Gov. Rauf Aregbesola.

    Salaam said the enduring achievements of the governor in the areas of education, security, infrastructure and health could not be ignored.

    “APC administration under the leadership of  Gov. Aregbesola has saved the state from cheap death that could be caused by flood through proactive measures.

    “It secured the state from criminals that almost overran financial institutions located in the state before he took the mantle through coordinated security architecture.

    “Our loss in the election cannot affect the fortunes  of our party and government but rather,  it is  a weight shedding exercise to renew its pact with the people for better delivery.

    “We affirm our strong faith in the party, ‘’ he said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Dr Ademola Adeleke, the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party scored 97,480 votes to defeat Sen.  Mudashiru Husain, the APC flag-bearer,  who scored 66,116 votes during the election.

    Adeleke won in nine out of the 10 local government areas in the senatorial district.

  • Reps’ PDP caucus gives Buhari quit notice 

    Reps’ PDP caucus gives Buhari quit notice 

    …says there is vacancy in Aso Rock Villa

    The caucus of the People’s Democratic Party  (PDP) in the House of Representatives has asked President Muhammadu Buhari and his All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government to begin preparing to vacate the Presidency.

    The caucus also stated that it will not rule out judicial intervention to reclaim its lost seats in the House following the resolution of the leadership crisis that rocked the party by the pronouncement of the Supreme Court on Wednesday.

    The caucus said there is vacancy in Aso Rock Villa because the party is set on reclaiming the seat of power by 2019.

    Leader of the caucus, who is also the Minority Leader of the House, Leo Ogor, while addressing journalists after the caucus meeting yesterday morning, said the caucus’ optimism stemmed from the fact that all its members that left for other parties in the wake of the crisis are on their way back.
    Stating that the party has learnt its lesson from the crisis that almost led to its extinction, Ogor said the resolution of the crisis was not only victory for democracy but an opportunity for PDP to reclaim the seat of power.

    “Nigerians tasted almost 16 years of PDP, they have tasted two years of APC but that is a journey Nigerians don’t want to continue with.

    “Come 2019, we shall restore true democracy where governance belongs to the people.

    “There is vacancy in Aso rock and this is a quit notice to APC government,” he said.

    On the fate of former members that left for other parties as a result of the crisis, Ogor hoped the matter would not get to the point of engaging judicial intervention to bring them back.

    Pointing out that the caucus is currently reduced to 141 members, he said, “For members that left, we will wave the olive branch in an attempt to bring them back to the fold.

    “We believe that they will come back because there is no basis for not doing so, the ticket that got them to the House did not belong to them, it belongs to the party.

    “It is hoped that we will not get to that point but Section 84 of the constitution was clear on the matter and we will not hesitate to approach the judiciary to interpret it for us.

    “A committee will be set up to undertake this assignment; we are willing to welcome them back like prodigal sons because APC is an amalgamation of stage bed fellows”.

    The caucus implored ailing President Buhari to return home immediately, adding that he has a bigger assignment at him,

    Ogor however assured that the PDP will not only offer a credible opposition but assist the government with constructive ideas toward moving the nation forward.

     

  • Buhari in phone call with Bisi Akande over wife’s death

    Buhari in phone call with Bisi Akande over wife’s death

    President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed “heart-felt” sadness over the death of Madam Omowunmi Bisi Akande, wife of the founding chairman of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC).

    A statement by the Senior Special Assistant on media and publicity, Garba Shehu, the message was contained in a letter penned by Buhari on the heels of an earlier telephone call to the bereaved party chieftain on Wednesday.

    President Buhari described as “irreparable” the loss by Chief Akande of his wife of 50 years.

    The President’s message reads as follow:  “I received the very sad news of the death of your dearly beloved wife, Madam Omowunmi Akande this morning. I am following our phone call with this letter of condolence, which comes from my heart.

    “To lose a wife, a dear wife after 50 years, a constant and loving companion through good and bad times, is a blow only a man of unshakeable faith can withstand. Please extend my personal condolences to the immediate and wider Akande family and to friends of the family for this irreparable loss.

    “May Allah give you the strength and Iman to endure her passing away,” he said

     

  • APC vows to defend Ekiti lawmaker against attack

    APC vows to defend Ekiti lawmaker against attack

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has vowed to do everything possible to defend the Minority Leader of the House of Assembly, Gboyega Aribisogan, from attacks by the agents of the state government.

    The party also declared its full support for Aribisogan to perform his legislative functions in his new capacity as the only APC legislator in the 26-member Assembly.

    Addressing reporters in Ado-Ekiti in the wake of an alleged plot to assassinate Aribisogan, APC Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatunbosun, expressed confidence in ability of the security agencies to allow the lawmaker access into the parliamentary chamber.

    Aribisogan had claimed at a press conference on Tuesday that a killer squad has been raised to eliminate him in a bid to stall his planned resumption at the Assembly. But the authorities of the Assembly denied the allegation.

    He said the party will support the entire people of Ikole Constituency1, which Aribisogan represents, to ensure that their voice is heard in the Ekiti parliament.

    The party spokesman also accused Governor Ayo Fayose of committing a “serious breach” of the Constitution by reappointing six out of the sacked commissioners and ordering them to resume office without screening and ratification of the Assembly.

    Olatunbosun said: “We are going to do everything within the purview of the provision of the Constitution of the Federal republic of Nigeria to ensure that Hon. Aribisogan, who is an APC representative in the 26-member Assembly is allowed to perform his functions.

    “Ekiti State House of Assembly is nobody’s private business that such person will be allowed or disallowed at his whims and caprices. Those who make peaceful coexistence impossible will make serious resistance or recourse to violence inevitable.”

    On the alleged constitutional breach, Olatunbosun said: “Fayose, having dissolved the State Executive Council and coming up with a directive that the dissolved commissioners should hand over to the Permanent Secretaries has no power under the law to reappoint them and
    order them to resume at their former offices.

    “We, as a party, see this as high level of executive recklessness and rascality. Such will not be acceptable to the APC and of course to Ekiti people.

    “As a party, we feel highly embarrassed that an agent of democracy as represented by the office of governor will continue in a manner that is disregarding democratic rules, violation of the constitution, rubbishing the principle of separation of power.”

  • LASIEC clears 12 parties for July 22 council polls

    LASIEC clears 12 parties for July 22 council polls

    Ahead of the July 22 council polls, the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) says it has cleared 12 political parties out of the 23 registered for the elections.

    Mr Dapo Olatunde, LASIEC’s Director of Publicity, said in a statement that the cleared parties had met the commission’s requirements for the polls and also presented candidates for validation.

    Olatunde listed the parties as the All Progressives Congress (APC), Action Alliance (AA), Alliance for Democracy (AD), Labour Party (LP), All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Accord Party.

    Others are Kowa Party, National Action Council (NAC) , People’s Democratic Movements (PDM) ,United Democratic Party (UDP)
    and United Progressive Party (UPP).

    He said the names of the validated candidates had been displayed at the commission’s headquarters for observation by party members and members of the public.

    Meanwhile, the commission has begun a three-day “Train -the-Trainer”course for its electoral officers across the 20 local government areas and 37 local council development areas.

    According to Olatunde, the training, facilitated by the International Foundation for Electoral System (IFES), was to equip ad-hoc staff engaged for the July 22 elections.

    IFES is a United States-based organisation committed to the deepening of democracy and international best standards in election management.

    The organization operates in more than 100 countries and is supported by USAID.

  • APC chieftain, six others remanded in prison over alleged breach of peace

    APC chieftain, six others remanded in prison over alleged breach of peace

    An Osogbo Chief Magistrates’  Court in Osun  on Tuesday remanded in Ilesa prison  an All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain , Mr Fatai Oyedele, 60, and six others over alleged breach of public peace.

    The other  accused persons remanded are Salau Moshood, 43; Adekunle Onikole,40;  Oladosu Alo, 53; Funsho Babalola, 51;  Babayo Daudu, 36;  and Babalola Kayode, 42.

    Oyedele, also known as Diekola,  and the other  accused persons are facing a three- count charge bordering  on conspiracy and breach of public peace.

    The Prosecutor, Mr Chris Okafor, told the court that the accused  committed the offence on Monday  at about 12.05 pm at ring road area of  Osogbo.

    Okafor said the accused conspired among themselves to chant  abusive songs which were political  and almost led to a  breach of public peace.

    He said the offences  contravened  Sections 517, 349, and 69  and  were  punishable under Section 70 of the Criminal Code Cap 34, Vol. II, Laws of Osun, 2002.

    The accused, however, pleaded  not guilty to the  charge against them while their counsel, Mr Olarewaju Jaiyeoba, pleaded for bail.

    Chief Magistrate Ayo Ayeni, however, ordered the accused to  be remanded in prison  while their counsel should  make  a formal application for  their  bail.

    He adjourned the case till July 18 for hearing.

  • Lagos: Another PDP lawmaker defects to APC

    Lagos: Another PDP lawmaker defects to APC

    One out of the remaining two Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) members in the Lagos State House of Assembly, Mr Victor Akande (PDP-Ojo I), on Monday defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    Akande informed the House of his defection on the floor of the Assembly through a letter he addressed to the Speaker, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, which was read by the Clerk of the Assembly, Mr Azeez Sanni.

    Akande, in the letter, said he was defecting because of the factions in the PDP, which he said were not just two but four, especially in Lagos State.

    My defection is to further continue my support of adding legislative excellence to Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode and the political leadership of the Speaker of the Assembly, who has impacted on legislative standards in the state.

    “PDP has fallen apart and the centre can no longer hold, so I have chosen to follow the stable APC. I thank PDP for giving me the political platform to showcase myself.

    “I also thank my constituents and traditional rulers in my constituency for their support. I will continue to give them better representation and for me, this is a home coming,’’ Akande said.

    Commenting on the letter, Akande said he moved to APC with the blessings of his people from the Ojo Constituency I, including the royal fathers and all indigenes and non indigenes of the constituency.

    “I consulted widely before arriving at the decision to dump PDP for APC. I hereby shed the garb of PDP and I want to now be clothed with the APC garb,’’ Akande said.

    Akande’s counterpart from the Ojo Constituency II, Mr Olanrewaju Ogunyemi, said, “Akande has made our day in Ojo with this defection.

    “Actually, there is nothing more for him to do in the PDP than to move to the moving train of the APC.’’

    The Speaker of the House, Mr Mudashiru Obasa, congratulated his colleagues for their good work, which he said, made all the defections possible.

    Obasa also thanked Akande for coming on board the APC.

    He said: “We know you are a man of integrity and we are sure that image will reflect in our party,’’ Obasa said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that six out of the eight PDP lawmakers in the Assembly had defected to APC on Feb. 16.

    With the latest defection, the sole opposition lawmaker in the Assembly is Mr Dipo Olorunrinu, representing Amuwo-Odofin Constituency

  • APC chieftain predicts victory for party in C/River

    APC chieftain predicts victory for party in C/River

    Mr Vice Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Cross River Central Senatorial District, says the party will displace ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in future elections in the zone.

    Obun told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Calabar on Friday that his optimism was based on the gale of defections by chieftains of the PDP to the APC.

    “As you are aware, the senator representing Cross River Central on the platform of PDP, Sen. Owan Enoh, recently defected to the APC.

    “I want to announce to you that just last weekend, the member representing Obubra 1 constituency in the State House of Assembly, Mr Elocate Ekom, has also defected to the APC.

    “So, now we have one member in the house and more are warming up to defect,’’ he said.

    According to him, this is a clear indication that the people of the central senatorial zone are inching back to where they belonged.

    “It shows that the people of the zone are gradually getting back to the progressive politics where they belonged in the first and second republics.

    “It has been our tradition before the advent of the fourth republic in 1999, and even in that 1999, the same scenario played out until former Gov. Donald Duke collapsed everybody into one umbrella.

    “Unfortunately, now the umbrella is turn into pieces and water has started finding its level.’’

    Obun called for unity among party members in the state, saying that with unity in the party, it would record successes.

    “I appeal for a united front in order to outwit our opponents. With peace and unity in the state’s chapter, Cross River is ours to lose in the coming elections,’’ he said.

  • Obaseki distances Edo govt from grazing bill

    Obaseki distances Edo govt from grazing bill

    Gov. Godwin Obaseki of Edo on Thursday said solution to nomadic problems in the state was not contained in the Anti-Grazing Bill currently before the House of Assembly.

    He made this known in Benin during a public hearing organized by assembly on the bill intended for a law to establish control for nomadic cattle rearing in the state.

    Obaseki, who was represented by the Solicitor General of the state, Mr Wole Iyamu, said that the state government had “absolutely nothing’’ to do with the bill.

    “If the bill had gone through the rigour that executive bills go through, it will not have generated so much controversy.

    “The bill did not address the problems on ground. It fails to define who nomadic farmers are.

    “The failure of the bill to define grazing can ruin the purpose of a law during litigation. The bill is supposed to outlive us if it is properly drafted.

    “Land is fundamental to the people, therefore, when you begin to touch issues that concern land you need to be very careful.

    “The bill did not define who designates land for ranching, because government does not own land; it only holds land in trust for the people,” he said.

    The governor pointed out that there was no provision in the bill that empowered government to designate land for ranching.

    “If there is a provision in the bill that empowers government to designate land for ranching, then consent of government would be sought.
    “Again, the solution to the problems of nomadic cattle-rearing is not contained in the bill,’’ he stated.

    In his contribution, Chairman of Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the state, Mr Oyenude Kuru, said that the bill did not represent the interest of Edo people.

    Kuru noted that the grazing bill violated the Land Use Act in the state, adding that it sought to empower only the local government to allocate land for agricultural purposes.

    He noted that some sections of the bill empowered and protected the herdsmen against Edo people.

    Kuru, however, explained that the bill portended danger for present and future generations of the state.

    Also, Chief David Edebiri, announced his representation of the Oba of Benin, but said that the monarch did not ask him to contribute to the debate but to observe the proceedings.

    Edebiri, the Esogban of Benin Kingdom, however, expressed reservations over seeming disagreement between the executive and the legislature over the bill.

    Earlier, Speaker of the assembly, Dr Justin Okonoboh, said the essence of the public hearing was to get the input of the public to bill.

    Okonoboh assured that the views of the participants would be adopted holistically, in the interest of the state.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the grazing bill is a private one sponsored by Mr Bright Osayande, representing Ovia North East 11Constituency in the assembly.

    Osayande is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

  • APC Chieftain cautions party loyalists against unguarded utterances

    APC Chieftain cautions party loyalists against unguarded utterances

    Alhaji Maigoro Hukuma, a chieftain of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Katsina state, has cautioned party loyalists to refrain from unguarded utterances and be steadfast in promoting the ideals of the party.

    Hukuma made the call on Tuesday in Malumfashi in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

    He said that the APC-led administration at the national level had made achievements in enhancing national security, fighting corruption and employment generation.

    He said that agricultural support schemes, infrastructural developments, health and educational policies embarked by administration were geared at facilitating national growth.

    He added that rehabilitation of roads and railways being carried out by the government would enhance economic activities in the country.

    Hukuma urged the people to consider the slow phase of execution of some of these projects as government commitment to ensure transparent and quality services.

    Commenting on the APC-led administration in Katsina State, Hukuma said the quantity of fertilizer provided to farmers, tractors and others farm inputs supplied to farmers would help to boost agriculture.

    He said that the numbers of primary schools being rehabilitated by the government, coupled with the rehabilitation of three general hospitals in the state was an indication of the commitment of the government to improve the wellbeing of the people.

    He appealed to Gov. Aminu Masari to reconstruct the 54 kilometres Mamumfashi-Dankaniba road abandoned by previous administration.

    He said that the road linked more than 20 communities in Katsina and Kano states.