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Tag: APC disagree

  • PDP, APC disagree at Collation Centre

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives party disagreed yesterday at the International Collation Centre (ICC), venue of the National Collation of the results of last Saturday’s President Election.

    The bone of contention was a request by the opposition party that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) must project what the Smart Card Readers (SCRs) captured as accreditation figure before the collation can continue.

    The PDP queried the non-usage of the SCRs in the conduct of the presidential election in some part of the country.

    But the All Progress Congress Presidential Campaign Council spokesperson, Festus Keyamo, SAN, urged the PDP to follow the right channel in laying its complaints, stressing that the gathering was primarily for collation purpose and not to entertain complaints.

    INEC Chairman Prof Mahmood Yakubu, also advised the PDP to approach the the commission’s headquarters to lodge its complaints.

    Speaking yesterday at the Collation Centre, PDP agent, Mr. Osita Chidoka, queried why the SCRs should be made compulsory in some part of the country and not compulsory in other parts.

    Chidoka, who was categorical about results from Bauchi, Borno and Yobe states, said the party has documented its observations as an official petition to the commission.

    He said: “The issue before us, Mr. Chairman, is what we feel strongly about and the chairman of the PDP has written you a petition. We are worried that the promise you made, the commitment you made, and INEC made, that as we are doing this collation of results, you will give us the details of accreditation captured by the card reader in the country.

    “Yesterday (Monday) my colleague raised the issue and we thought that when we come back this morning as we are listening to the states, we will be seeing the accreditation by the states by the card readers.

    “This, Mr. Chairman, I’ll like to be on record that we want to see the accreditation for Bauchi state, for Borno and Yobe states in particular and of course, for the rest of the country because the number as we are seeing, it seems to me that we live in two countries.

    “Why people in the south have issues with the SCRs, why complaints were all over the place, we seem to have quiet and peaceful elections in places where the people have complained of severe cases of insecurity and harassments by the military and bandits.

    “So, we would like you Mr. Chairman and I forward this letter to you to say that we will appeal that if it is possible, Mr. Chairman that before we proceed to the next stage, you should please, project to us what the card reader has captured as the accreditation in these states.

    “We are supposed to read from the card readers, the electronic collation as against the manual information that we are getting to process information here. While it isn’t yet signed into law in your guidelines it was made clear that no voting should take place where there are no card readers. So, Mr. Chairman, we must appeal to you that we would like you to project the accreditation, as done by the card readers.

    “Please, if any of your staff is available, he can please, take a copy of this letter from the chairman of the PDP saying that what we are doing here will require us to have the accreditation as done by the electronic card reader.”

    In his response, the INEC boss urged the protesting party to submit its letter to the commission’s headquarters, assuring that the commission will surely look into the petition and respond accordingly.

    Yakubu said: “Thank you Mr.Chidoka, but there is a procedure for submitting correspondence to the Commission.

    “We haven’t shut down our office. This is the International Conference Centre where we are using as Collation Centre. Kindly submit your letter to the office, it will be acknowledged. Your letter will now be studied and we will respond, accordingly. I believe that there are details in the letter that we need to study.”

    Urging the PDP to route its letter appropriately, Keyamo said the APC also has some complaints but has chosen to follow the proper channel.

    He said: “I just want contract to what my colleague of the PDP has said. Now, my simple reaction to this is that what we are doing here is guided by law and regulations of INEC.

    “In the regulations of INEC, Clause 32 to 35 of the regulations clearly states the power of the Chairman of INEC in this sitting at the Collation centre and those powers does not involve the type of inquisition my friend is asking for.

    “The details my friend is asking for amounts to inquisition into the results submitted to the Chairman of INEC. There is a proper channel to seek for inquisition into how many people were captured by the card readers and all that, compared to the results.

    “That is not the power and duty of INEC Chairman sitting at the Collation Centre and those proceedings and powers are clearly stated.

    “So, we have our own complaints about a lot of open rigging and massive thumb printing in Cross River and Rivers. So, we have a lot of complaints but we are only keeping our peace because we know the eight procedures to take to submit our complaints.”

  • PDP, APC disagree on Danjuma’s outburst

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) said the call by General Danjuma urging Nigerians to defend themselves “is yet another testimony of the tragic situation which the Buhari Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) have dragged our nation”.

    National Publicity Secretary Kola Ologbondiyan said “Nigerians are now daily paying the supreme price because of the failures of a grossly incompetent leadership and a deceitful ruling party.

    “The pronouncement, coming from an Army General, a former Chief of Army Staff and a former Defence Minister of Gen. Danjuma’s status, is weighty and directly reflects the ugly situation in the country under the APC”, the party added.

    The PDP observed that with Nigerians now resorting to self-defence, it is a clear demonstration that Nigerians, across board have completely lost confidence in President Buhari and the APC.

    “It is instructive to recall that former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Ibrahim Babangida, both former military leaders, army generals and patriots, had earlier raised the issue of unabating bloodletting and pogrom in our country under the APC and the Buhari Presidency.

    “Painfully, the APC-controlled Federal Government has not only failed in finding solution but is also contending with allegations of conspiracy and acts that are believed to have emboldened attacks against innocent Nigerians.

    “Nigerians are no longer feeling secured in their land. Our country has, in close to three years, assumed a status of killing field where defenceless citizens are despoiled, raped and mowed by insurgents and marauders in Benue, Taraba, Yobe, Gombe, Kaduna, Adamawa, Borno, Plateau, Nasarawa, Rivers, Enugu, Kogi among other states.

    “Unfortunately, the Buhari-led APC federal government remains aloof and has failed to take decisive steps that will apprehend the masterminds of the carnage.

    The PDP also rejected President Buhari’s threat of unleashing the security agencies on critics of the Armed Foces, describing it as undemocratic and completely unacceptable.

    The party said, “The PDP, as a party, after a thorough review of all issues and the fact that nobody, apart from the President himself, politicized the Dapchi issue when he boasted that his response time was faster than that of former President Goodluck Jonathan, hold that President Buhari’s pronouncement on alleged politicization of security issues is targeted at emasculating opposition and those with contrary opinions to the views of the APC interests.

    “The President’s statement completely betrays a dangerous political intolerance and utter disdain for the rule of law and constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech and opinion of citizens in a democracy.”

    But APC spokesman Bolaji Abdullahi, said: “My take on it is very clear. He (Danjuma) accused the military of being partisan and I cannot comment on it because the military is more than capable of responding to that.

    “But, my response on his call that people should take up arms and defend themselves is to say that such statement is very wrong.

    “It is a call to anarchy and we are not in support of it. If the security forces are not doing well, we have the responsibility to call on them to do more.

    “If we suspect that they have abandoned their roles, we have the responsibility to request more from them. But for him to tell people to take up arms and defend them is condemnable and a call to anarchy.

    “We are not in support of it and I feel that someone of his calibre should not be making that kind of statement.”

    Senator Shehu Sani in a post on his facebook page said: “Buhari has heard Danjuma’s Radio message. And I believe he has decoded the message.”

    “The nation is tip toeing through a minefield; the two generals are experienced to know better that its fate lies in every step.”

  • Saraki, Dogara: APC diaspora calls for sanctions

    Saraki, Dogara: APC diaspora calls for sanctions

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) Scandinavia Chapter has vehemently condemned the result of the elections held at the National Assembly on Tuesday which produced Senator Bukola Saraki as senate president.
    The APC Scandinavia Chapter condemned  what it called ‘manner and way, Saraki and his APC cohorts treacherously worked against the party to emerge the president of the 8th Senate and Honourable Yakubu Dogara as speaker of the House of Representatives respectively.
    “It is ignominy and derogatory drama that some APC members could pull together with PDP members to elect a PDP deputy Senate president and majority leader of the 8th Senate.
    “It is a clear pointer that some APC members are still having the mindset of Jonathan led administration in the present APC led administration,” noted Lawal Ayoola, National Coordinator, APC Scandinavia Chapter.
    According to Ayoola, the chapter urges the national leadership of the party to weigh in and set the record straight by meting out the appropriate sanction and punishment against any individual or group for any anti-party activity.
    “This is a litmus test and a clear opportunity for the party leadership to send the clear signal that the party’s interest supersedes any individual ambition or interest and this is real change and business unusual,” he maintained.
  • LP, APC disagree on borrowing to finance projects

    LP, APC disagree on borrowing to finance projects

    The Labour Party (LP) in Ekiti State has berated Governor Kayode Fayemi for borrowing money to finance projects.

    Speaking yesterday at a forum, Mrs. Bola Bruce, who is the spokesperson for the campaign organisation of the LP’s governorship candidate, Mr. Opeyemi Bamidele, said “borrowing is a setback for Ekiti”.

    Mrs. Bruce said it was possible for Fayemi to execute projects without obtaining loans from the capital market.

    She said: “Ekiti is not as poor as this administration has made people believe. When Fayemi leaves office, the debt burden would be on the incoming administration.

    “Another fact is that despite that borrowing, Fayemi has not made 70 per cent of the achievements of Chief Segun Oni and Oni did not borrow a dime. All that Fayemi has done could be achieved with funds from the Federation Account.”

    All Progressives Congress (APC) spokesman Mr. Segun Dipe said: “Fayemi has maintained his transparency and accountability without blemish on every financial transaction of his administration.”

    Dipe said the governor took only N25 billion and has completed over 1,300 projects across the state.

    He said the governor pioneered the e-governance system, in which every project executed by the government and its cost is accessible to the public on the internet.

    Dipe said Fayemi followed every regulation of the Fiscal Responsibility Act before taking the loan and remained true to the conditions of the grant that the sum would be committed to only capital projects.

    He said while some of the projects had started yielding fruits, nearly half the amount borrowed had been defrayed, adding that evidence abound across Ekiti that the governor took some money to finance certain capital projects.

    Dipe said: “Comparing Fayemi with Oni is like comparing light and darkness. Oni could not have approached any financial institution for a loan because it was an illegitimate government. The credibility deficit in his credential could not have allowed him to approach any financial institution.

    “People should realise that Fayemi’s achievements, including projects, were not financed by only the N25 billion. What we today see and point at as the governor’s achievements go beyond the projects upon which the borrowing was committed.

    “Can we deny that even before the fund was obtained, many projects, some of which were abandoned by past administrations, had been completed across the state? It is bad politics to give your political enemy a bad name because you want to defeat him.”

    Meanwhile, Bamidele’s campaign train was at Ijero Local Government Area yesterday, where the LP candidate pledged to exploit solid mineral deposits in the state, if elected.

    Speaking at the Palace of the Ajero of Ijero Ekiti, Oba Joseph Adewole, Bamidele said the town had a high deposit of Kaolin and Gypsum minerals, which he said could change the state’s economic fortunes, if harnessed.

    He said he would diversify the economy from its “present civil service structure”, through heavy investment in industrial development, agriculture, healthcare system and job creation.

    Bamidele said: “I am not going to be a governor that would under-employ the youth. I will give them permanent and well paid jobs, where they can have career progression and build their future, rather than mere ‘volunteering’ that cannot guarantee prospect for our future leaders.”

  • Oyo PDP, APC disagree on 2015 poll

    Oyo PDP, APC disagree on 2015 poll

    Former Senate Leader Teslim Folarin yesterday said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will defeat Governor Abiola Ajimobi in the 2015 governorship poll.

    But the State Acting Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Akin Oke, described Folarin’s statement as “a joke”.

    Oke said: “On which platform is Folarin’s PDP going to defeat Ajimobi in 2015? Is it the old or new PDP? Is it on the platform of Senator Lekan Balogun, Elder Wole Oyelese, or that of the Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Ms Jumoke Akinjide? “

    Oke and Folarin spoke in Ibadan, the state capital.

    Folarin said he had begun consultations and the outcome would determine whether he would contest the election or not.

    He said: “There are so many people in the PDP, who are qualified to be governor, including myself. We are consulting. We have been to Oke-ogun, Oyo and we are still talking quietly. We are interested but the outcome of the consultations will determine the final decision. Without an iota of doubt, PDP will win Oyo State in 2015.”

    Oke said the crisis in Oyo PDP was worse than that of any other state.

    He said: “With the kind of problem in Oyo PDP, it will be a pipe dream for the PDP to win 20 per cent votes in the state in 2015. Folarin must be a joker. He was in the Senate for eight years with nothing to show for it.

    “When he boasted that the PDP will win Oyo in 2015, did he forget that the PDP governed the state for eight years with nothing to show for it, other than bloodshed, violence and retrogression.

    “Ajimobi’s two years in office is far better than the PDP’s eight years’ reign of terror. Let Folarin tell the world which PDP he is boasting of. Is it the new or old PDP that will defeat Ajimobi in 2015?”

    On the protracted strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Folarin said it was embarrassing for the Federal Government to sign an agreement without considering its ability to meet it.

    He said: “A whole semester lost in the life of a student is really bad. ASUU and the Federal Government must synergise and make the system work. The Nigerian system is not properly run. If you have a properly run system and rules are adhered to, you won’t have this problem.

    “A minister signed the agreement in 2009 and another one is saying ‘if I pay, the economy will go bankrupt’. It is embarrassing that the government did not look at the books before signing the agreement. Granted that the mistake has been made, the government should have talked to the lecturers before they went on strike.

    “If it had told ASUU it could only pay 60 per cent now and the rest would be paid in instalments, the strike would not have started. I urge ASUU to go back to the table for discussion.”

    Folarin told warring PDP governors to allow Nigerians determine the fate of President Goodluck Jonathan at the 2015 poll, if he emerges the party’s candidate.