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Tag: APC

  • APC to receive Umana, other PDP defectors

    APC to receive Umana, other PDP defectors

    The Akwa Ibom State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has said it will formally received a former Secretary to the State Government (SSG) and leading governorship aspirant, Mr. Umana Okon Umana, into the party.

    A statement yesterday by APC State Chairman Dr Amadu Attai said Umana’s defection to APC would be followed by a mass movement of other political leaders and their supporters “to our great party”.

    The statement said a cross-over rally to welcome Umana into the APC and formalise his membership of the party would hold tomorrow at Asan Ibibio in Uyo, the state capital.

    The statement said: “The national leadership of the party, all APC governors, Speaker of the House of Representatives and all APC presidential aspirants are expected to attend the rally, which is being organised by Akwa Ibom State chapter of the party.

    “Umana, who started the campaign to actualise his aspiration to lead the state as governor on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said he is dumping the party following his illegal and unconstitutional exclusion from the party’s governorship primary in the state on the ground that he is from Uyo Senatorial District, a clear breach of the Constitution of the Federal Republic, which forbids discrimination against a Nigerian citizen on the basis of his place of birth.

    The state chapter of APC is expected to address a world press conference to give details on the new political development.

    “We are glad to welcome Mr. Umana Okon Umana and his teeming supporters into the APC family in Akwa Ibom State,” the statement added.

     

  • Court stops re-arrest of Ekiti APC leaders

    Court stops re-arrest of Ekiti APC leaders

    A Federal High Court sitting in Jos, the Plateau State capital, has restrained the police from re-arresting the Ekiti State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Jide Awe, and four party members for the alleged murder of Ayo Jeje and Juliana Adewumi in Erinjiyan-Ekiti, Ekiti State.

    Also granted relief were Faboro Ojo John, Aniramu Basiru, Falayi Busuyi and Owonifari Sefiu.

    In a motion before Justice A. Lewis-Allagoa, the plaintiffs urged the court to declare as unconstitutional the planned and threatened arrest, detention and arraignment.

    The plaintiffs argued that the offence for which they were being targeted for re-arrest had been heard by a court and the case dismissed.

    Other reliefs sought included an order of the court compelling and/or restraining the respondents jointly or severally from arresting, detaining and prosecuting them for the offence.

    Ruling on the exparte motion, Justice Lewis-Allagoa granted all the reliefs sought by the applicants pending the determination of the originating motion on notice before the court.

    He ordered the motion be served on the respondents not less than seven days before the hearing of the Originating Motion on Notice and adjourned the matter to December 3, 2014 for hearing.

    APC’s Publicity Secretary Taiwo Olatubosun has praised the ruling by the court, saying the judiciary remains the last hope of the people.

    He said this ruling would have been unnecessary, if not because of the state of siege the country has found itself.

     

  • Security agencies and 2015

    Security agencies and 2015

    •The vandalisation of APC data centre is an indication of crooked plans for forthcoming elections

    Most of the actions taken by the Federal Government and the security agencies in the past six months have shown that the 2015 elections may be marred by violence. The attack last Saturday on the All Progressives Congress’s (APC) Ikeja, Lagos Data Centre is another pointer to the government’s disregard for the rule of law. The mode of operation of the security men who invaded the centre bore marks of hoodlums who lacked training and decorum. The three private security men on duty were arrested along with data analysts, even as the invaders carted away documents and computers.

    In a bid to gain access, the gate was said to have been pulled down, computers vandalised and the server disconnected.

    The Nigerian Navy’s denial of involvement is a redeeming feature in the saga as it would be unfortunate if a force trained and empowered to secure the territorial waters could be involved in a clearly partisan operation on land. It is also reassuring the Navy is not denying the possibility of some of its personnel having been procured for the action. We hope that a thorough investigation would be carried out and whoever might have been directly or indirectly implicated punished as some of those who joined in the raid allegedly wore the Navy camouflage.

    On the other hand, the Department of State Security (DSS) might have confirmed a deep seated orientation of its operatives to work against the interest of the Nigerian state and people. Its spokeswoman, Ms. Marilyn Ogar, who confirmed the raid agreed that it was tipped off to carry out the raid by an anonymous petition. She also claimed that the DSS had watched the office for two weeks before moving against it. However, she showed the department’s lack of competence by admitting that despite having the petition and watching the facility for that long, it was unable to determine the owners and nature of activities going on there.

    How could the DSS funded to gather intelligence and nip crimes against the state in the bud claim it acted because there was no signpost to indicate that the facility belongs to the APC? Is she suggesting that it is illegal to keep an office as private as possible? It is appalling that Ms. Ogar does not know that a data centre is not a public place to which attention need be drawn. It is neither a general office nor a registration centre.

    It would not be the first time Ms. Ogar would betray the political inclination. During the Osun State governorship election when the agency deployed men in unusual uniform and was used to pick up chieftains of one of the participating parties, it was the DSS spokeswoman who spoke in a manner suggesting that the men were obeying lawful orders. She alleged that the APC had tried to bribe DSS officials but failed to supply any proof. No one was arrested for the crime of bribery.

    We are concerned that, by the action of the security operatives, democracy is being imperilled in the country. Democracy is known to stand on the Rule of Law and thrives on defined processes and procedures. But, when the government in power chooses to disregard the law and acts whimsically, the opposition and citizenry are encouraged to respond accordingly, thus provoking the break down of law and order. Last week’s show of shame by the police at the National Assembly, the recent withdrawal of security aides of the Speaker of the House of Representatives by the Inspector-General of Police and now the invasion of an APC office are all indications that, desperate to hold on to power, those in power could resort to acts subversive of the good order.

    This impunity must stop now.

     

  • Court stops re-arrest of Ekiti APC leaders

    Court stops re-arrest of Ekiti APC leaders

    A Federal High Court sitting in Jos, the Plateau State capital, has restrained the police from re-arresting the Ekiti State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Jide Awe, and four party members for the alleged murder of Ayo Jeje and Juliana Adewumi in Erinjiyan-Ekiti, Ekiti State.

    Also granted relief were Faboro Ojo John, Aniramu Basiru, Falayi Busuyi and Owonifari Sefiu.

    In a motion before Justice A. Lewis-Allagoa, the plaintiffs urged the court to declare as unconstitutional the planned and threatened arrest, detention and arraignment.

    The plaintiffs argued that the offence for which they were being targeted for re-arrest had been heard by a court and the case dismissed.

    Other reliefs sought included an order of the court compelling and/or restraining the respondents jointly or severally from arresting, detaining and prosecuting them for the offence.

    Ruling on the exparte motion, Justice Lewis-Allagoa granted all the reliefs sought by the applicants pending the determination of the originating motion on notice before the court.

    He ordered the motion be served on the respondents not less than seven days before the hearing of the Originating Motion on Notice and adjourned the matter to December 3, 2014 for hearing.

    APC’s Publicity Secretary Taiwo Olatubosun has praised the ruling by the court, saying the judiciary remains the last hope of the people.

    He said this ruling would have been unnecessary, if not because of the state of siege the country has found itself.

     

  • PDP backs raid of APC data centre

    PDP backs raid of APC data centre

    Indications emerged on Monday that Saturday’s raid on the Lagos data office of the All Progressives Congress (APC) by the Department of State Security (DSS) must have been carried out in cahoots with the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    In what many described as an after thought, the DSS, through its spokesperson, Ms. Marilyn Ogar, had on Sunday, stated that the security operatives raided the data office, following a petition that the outfit was being used to clone the Independent Electoral Commission’s (INEC) voter’s cards.

    In a statement yesterday by the National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chief Olisa Metuh, the ruling party said the “discovery” was a clear confirmation of its stand and fears by well meaning Nigerians of APC’s “criminal desperation, lust for power, plot to cause confusion and truncate our democracy”.

    The statement said: “At the weekend, the Directorate of State Security (DSS) made a shocking discovery to the effect that the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) has been engaged in the cloning of Permanent Voters Card (PVC) and utilizing technologies to hack into INEC’s data base to compromise the 2015 general elections.

    “Indeed, Nigerians now know on what strength the APC, a party that clearly lacks genuine followership among the citizens, has been boasting that they will emerge victorious in the 2015 general elections and threatening to form a parallel government if they lose.

    “Since its formation, the APC has been accusing everyone, including INEC and security agencies of working to rig the 2015 elections in favour of the PDP. Little did Nigerians realize that such were smokescreens designed to divert attention from their heinous and unpatriotic plots.

    “We believe that the APC, in its desperate attempt to grab power by all means, has already established cloning and hacking centers in all the 36 states of the federation to actualize their dubious machination to subvert the will of the people.

    “We insist that the cloning of INEC PVCs is criminal and strikes at the very heart of our electoral process. We share the fear of a majority of Nigerians that the APC may have already started cloning ballot papers and other election documents.

    “It is in this regard that we call on all Nigerians and lovers of democracy across the world to note the desperation of the APC. Our citizens must therefore remain vigilant and resist any attempt by the APC to steal their mandate.

    “We also call on security agencies to fully investigate this atrocious cloning and ensure that whoever is found culpable faces the full weight of the law.

    “This development also places an additional burden on INEC, which must now work to prove that it is not complicit in this heinous crime against the Nigerian state and its people.

    “Nigerians have made huge sacrifices for the democracy we enjoy today and we cannot afford to surrender it on the altar of blind ambition and narrow interest of the APC”.

     

  • Anger over security men’s raid on APC’s data centre

    Anger over security men’s raid on APC’s data centre

    Lawyers, others: it’s against rule of law

    Navy ‘not involved’

    THERE was outrage yesterday over weekend’s raid on the All Progressives Congress (APC) Data Centre in Ikeja, Lagos by Department of State Security (DSS) operatives.

    The DSS-led team, including men in military uniform, smashed its way into the opposition party’s data office, took away some of the computers being used for membership data collation and arrested 28 people, 25 of who were freed yesterday.

    Three of those arrested – Messrs Chinedu Auche, Olaposi Fayemi – computer operators and Chika an IT support worker – were still in custody of securitymen as at press time last night.

    The Navy yesterday denied any role in the invasion.

    A statement on behalf of the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command (WNC), Rear Admiral Sanmi Alade, by information officer Lt.-Commander  Abdusallam Sanni, reiterated the Navy’s neutrality in political issues.

    It said: “The Nigerian Navy is a non-partisan organisation and does not meddle in politics. The Navy has not deployed any of its personnel to any political party’s office.

    “However, we have commenced investigation and the video footage alleged is being carefully studied to ascertain those behind the said incident.

    ”I want to assure you that the Nigerian Navy has zero tolerance for indiscipline and unruly behaviours to the general public. If confirmed that Nigerian Navy personnel are involved in this undesirable behaviours they will be sanctioned and appropriate punishment will be awarded.”

    DSS spokesperson Ms. Marilyn Ogar, in an sms yesterday, said a petition alleged that the Independent National Electoral Commission’s permanent voter’s cards were being cloned at the outfit.

    According to Ogar, the petition alleged that the “cloning” of the cards was with the intention of hacking into INEC’s data base, corrupting it and replacing them with the “cloned” data.

    The statement said in part: “A petition was received by this Service about some activities at No. 10, Bola Ajibola Street, Allen Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos.

    “Based on this information, the Service placed the building under surveillance; and having been convinced that some unwholesome activities were going on in the building, it undertook a raid of the premises.

    “In the process, some persons were arrested while a server, three hard drives, and 31 Ghana must go bags of hard copy documents were recovered and taken away for further investigation.

    “It must be noted that the said location had no sign post indicating whether it was a private or government office.”

    The Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) said the recurring clampdown on the opposition or those with dissenting views has lent credence to the allegation of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo that a killer squad was being put in place in the country.

    In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Osita Okechukwu, the CNPP asked President Goodluck Jonathan to save the nation’s democracy.

    The statement said: “The Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP ) calls on the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and the Department of Security Service (DSS) to Save Our Democracy.

    “We are making this clarion call based on our understanding that the NPF, DSS and indeed state security agencies, be it the Army, Navy, Air Force, Road Safety, Civil Defence, as a whole are veritable institutions of democracy; without which no democracy can survive.

    “Which means that no democracy can survive without security agencies, devoted patriotically to promote, protect and defend the rule of law; we are therefore at a loss of how the Inspector General of Police and the Director General of Department of Security Service are violently descending into the political arena.

    “Few days ago it was the NPF against all known ethics that in a barbaric manner unethically engaged in double standard, by opening the gate for the Deputy Speaker and locking out the Speaker and spraying him with tear gas at the National Assembly.

    “Yesterday it was the officers and men of the DSS who ransacked the Data-Centre of the All Progressives Congress (APC), destroying equipment and the Membership Data of the party.”

    The CNPP said it was unclear if the nest of killers,  which ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo warned about, had started prowling the country.

    The statement added: “Tomorrow who knows their target? For we have not forgotten that ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo had warned us against the nest of killers in the hands of Mr President and his men.

    “Ironically these are the same security agencies three months after showing the world the master-mind of the 23rd July, 2014 attempt on General Muhammadu Buhari’s life are yet to make public their findings.

    “CNPP is worried that voter apathy, voter disquiet and voter unhappiness are on the increase election after election as a result of citizens distrust emanating from the bad habit of officials of the state security services who unabashedly demonstrate partisanship.

    “In sum, we call on President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR, to as a matter of urgent national importance, sack the Inspector General of Police and the Director-General of State Security Service, in order to absolve himself of the insinuations gaining ground that he is manipulating the security services for personal political gain.”

    The Lagos State chapter of the APC described the raid as “a bestial expression of the dangerous desperation with which the PDP wants to retain after wrecking the country and leaving it prostrate in 16 years of tragic misrule”.

    In a statement  by the Lagos State Publicity Secretary Joe Igbokwe, the party said the teleguided security men not only vandalised the data centre, they arrested 25 staffers. The party warned that Nigeria is at the very precincts of a brute, callous and dangerous era occasioned by the deadly means a party that has failed Nigeria and humanity strives to retain power at all costs.

    “We understood that the raid on our facility was intended to spread fear, intimidation and dread among our teeming members and supporters, we assure that we will remain unfazed in our determination to accede to the popular demand of Nigerians to lead the task to salvage Nigeria from the corrupt, visionless, inept and callous rule of the PDP and the Jonathan government.

    “We note that the PDP continues from one case of impunity to the other as it continues to grapple with Nigerians’s rejection of its horrible governance. We note the PDP has decided to launder fear, intimidation and ennui all over Nigeria in its inordinate desire to force Nigerians to continue with its ruinous governance but we warn that the PDP, by these acts, is sowing the seeds of danger and chaos. We warn that Nigerians will start resisting the brutality of the PDP in our collective determination to end the PDP misrule.

    “We know the brutal attack and destruction meted out on our data centre by agents of the PDP/Jonathan government was borne out of the fear of the PDP for the unknown but we warn that such brutal affront on the rights of Nigerians to carry out their legitimate businesses will lead to unsavoury reactions that will not bode well for  the Nigerian polity.

    “Coming after the unsuccessful bid to remove the Speaker of the House of Representatives through illegal police action and the sponsoring of direct attack aimed at a takeover of the Ekiti State House of Assembly by seven out of 26 members of the Assembly, we see PDP’s increasing resort to  foul and illegal means as capable of destroying the fragile Nigerian democracy.

    “The unwarranted attack on our data centre should warn Nigerians that the PDP and the government it is running is determined to adopt every foul means to muzzle Nigerians into silence as it plots to stay put in the power it had grossly misused for 16 years.

    Lagos State House of Assembly Speaker Adeyemi Ikuforiji condemned the invasion  .

    In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Rotimi Adebayo, Ikuforiji said: “ The unprovoked and needless forcible invasion of the Information Technology   Centre  of the office of the Lagos State Chapter of our party, the All Progrssives Congress, A.P.C., by agents of the State  Security Service  has come to my notice and the entire members of the Lagos State House of Assembly with total shock and disbelief..”

    “It is quite disturbing, unfortunate and dangerous that  such needless invasion of another arm of government approved by the nation’s constitution is now being  messed up by men of the security services who are being paid salaries  by the nation, and whose duty is to protect lives and  property…

    “Is it not embarrassing that our security forces  are being abused to act as an arm of the People’s’ Democratic Party, P.D.P, the ruling party in our country, today instead of facing their assigned duty  of protection of lives and property ?

    “It is very sad and  unfortunate.  It will,  therefore, be in the overall interest of our nation’s democracy  for the security forces to tread softly and resist the attempt by the ruling P.D.P to use them as its security arm. Should this illegality and brigandage persist, it may portend grave dangers for our fledgling democracy”, the Speaker said.

     

  • Ekiti APC accuses police of partisanship

    Ekiti APC accuses police of partisanship

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ekiti State has raised the alarm on threats to the lives of APC lawmakers.

    It accused the police of being partisan in the crisis rocking the state.

    Its Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatubosun, said in a statement at the weekend that the party was shocked by what it called “the undisguised support of the police for Governor Ayodele Fayose in the crisis rocking the House of Assembly”.

    Olatunbosun said the police compromised “when the seven Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members sat to illegally ratify the list of commissioner-nominees and caretakers during the purported removal of the Speaker, Dr. Adewale Omirin”.

    He said the police proved their support for pro-Fayose lawmakers by allowing them  sit and have a field day to perpetrate illegalities while APC lawmakers were prevented from entering the Assembly complex.

    “It is curious that a day after the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Idowu Adelusi, issued a statement accusing APC of plans to storm Ekiti with thugs, the police, who are supposed to be neutral, also said opposition politicians are planning to “recruit” thugs.

    “We are not surprised by the police’s role in Ekiti crisis. The police have been working in cahoots with the governor to sustain illegalities in Ekiti State.

    “The police did nothing when Fayose’s thugs invaded the court to disrupt proceedings in the perjury case. They looked on when judges, lawyers and other court officials were beaten.

    “Just last night, government agents were at the home of Deputy Speaker, Adetunji Orisalade, asking after him.

    “At Ikere-Ekiti, the same gang, in a black car with its number plate covered, visited the homes of the two lawmakers representing Ikere Local Government, Sunday Adu Clement and Yomi Daramola.

    Yesterday morning, we got several reports from each of the 19 APC lawmakers about similar threats to their lives.

    “The police should live up to their constitutional responsibility of providing security, instead of helping to turn Nigeria into a killing field.”

  • Atiku meets Lamido

    All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential aspirant and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar held yesterday a meeting with Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) board member and Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido at the governor’s home in Dutse, the state capital.

    Atiku met Lamido after his (Atiku’s) meetings with APC executives and delegates.

    The former vice president discussed with the PDP governor at New Abuja area, about 200 metres to the Jigawa State Government House.

    Their closed-door meeting lasted over an hour. Details remained unknown last night.

    Emerging from the meeting, both politicians smiled at the eager party members and other residents.

    They shook hands and took photographs outside the venue.

  • Peterside didn’t scale National Assembly gate, says Rivers APC

    Peterside didn’t scale National Assembly gate, says Rivers APC

    The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has said the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum (Downstream), Dr Dakuku Peterside, did not scale the National Assembly’s gate in last Thursday’s police siege.

    In a statement at the weekend by its Publicity Secretary Chris Finebone, the party noted that although it was not blaming those who scaled the fence, it needed to tell all that Peterside was not involved.

    The party berated the Rivers State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for lying against Peterside, a governorship aspirant.

    The statement reads: “Ordinarily, the APC in Rivers State would have stuck to its avowed decision to resist being drawn into pedestrian and very lowly propaganda of the beleaguered and embattled Rivers State chapter of the PDP but the need to protect unsuspecting Rivers people from the deceitful machinations of the Felix Obuah-led PDP house of commotion makes a response expedient at this time.

  • Invasion of APC office: Navy denies deploying personnel

    The Nigerian Navy has denied reports that naval personnel were among security operatives that invaded the All Progressives Congress (APC) data centre at Ikeja, Lagos.
    It was reported that a team comprising State Security Service operatives and other security agencies on Saturday ransacked the data centre destroying some materials and arresting staff of the consulting company.
    A statement issued on behalf of the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Western Naval Command (WNC), Rear Admiral Sanmi Alade by the command’s Information Officer, Abdusallam Sanni reiterated Navy’s neutrality in political issues.
    It said: “Nigerian Navy is a non partisan organisation and do not meddle in politics. The Navy has not deployed any of its personnel to any political party’s office.
    “However, we have commenced investigation and the video footage alleged is being carefully studied to ascertain those behind the said incident.
    ‎”I want to assure you that the Nigerian Navy has zero tolerance to indiscipline and unruly behaivours to the general public. If confirmed that Nigerian Navy personnel are involved in this undesirable behaviours they will be sanctioned and appropriate punishment will be awarded.”