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  • APC presents 16 bills, 23 motions in three months

    APC presents 16 bills, 23 motions in three months

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) caucus in the House of Representatives presented 16 bills and 23 motion between October and December of last year, it emerged yesterday.

    Leader of the caucus and Minority Leader Femi Gbajabiamila, in a statement yesterday said the modest achievement was in continuation of the party’s determination to ensure transparency and accountability in its legislative responsibilities.

    He also said it was a way of reaffirming the loyalty of the APC lawmakers to Nigerians and their collective bid for change.

    It reads: “In continuation of our determination to ensure transparency and accountability, the All Progressives Congress (APC) House Caucus hereby unveils Bills and Motions presented by its members.

    “The APC House Caucus members presented 16 Bills and 23 Motions between October and December last year.

    “The crux of some of these value- laden Bills is to provide timeframe of not exceeding two years within which casual or temporary job employment shall be regularised to permanent status; to include National Security Agencies and Nigeria Police in the first line charge of the Consolidated Revenue Fund.

    “Another was, to make mandatory for immediate issuance and release of certificates to graduating students in all tertiary institutions in the country; and to ensure non-parallel requirement for candidates aspiring to join the House of Representatives and Minister in certain ministries requiring technical expertise contrary to provisions of Section 147(5) of 1999 Constitution amongst many other citizens-centered provisions in Bills presented.

    “Our members also put forward 23 Motions which addressed issues of security, economy, probity and accountability.

    “Among those motions are the legislative instrument mandating the House to investigate the alleged lopsidedness in admission and recruitment into Nigeria Defence Academy, Kaduna; investigate the NCAA over the alleged purchase of bullet proof cars for the former Aviation Minister; passage of the 2014 – 2016 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper amongst others.

    “With the release of two quarterly editions after making our intention public during our press conference in 2013, members of APC House Caucus do reaffirm their loyalty to Nigerians in our collective bid for change.”

     

  • We joined APC to change lives, says Ahmed

    We joined APC to change lives, says Ahmed

    •Governor distributes 100 cabs

    Kwara State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed said yesterday that he joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) to give voice to the people and secure their well-being.

    Ahmed spoke at the distribution of 100 taxi cabs to commercial drivers on a revolving loan scheme.

    “I invite those who continue to cling to the notion that our move does not enjoy the support of the people of Kwara State to wake up to the reality.

    “The people of Kwara State are enthused by our determination to uphold their interest and are firmly behind our leadership.

    “As the nation moves towards the elections in 2015, I urge you to utilise your votes judiciously.

    “I have often said that good governance and respect for the rule of law should be the guiding principles of our democratic experience. I urge you to be guided by these values as you make your choices in 2015.”

    The governor said the state spent N150 million as an empowerment scheme for beneficiaries.

    He added that his administration had disbursed N674 million to grow micro and small scale enterprises since 2012.

    Ahmed said the first tranche of N50 million of the N150 million approved for the transport scheme was applied for procurement of 100 units of taxis, adding that the scheme would include buses and trucks.

    The governor appealed to beneficiaries not to see the scheme as government largesse. He urged them to repay on schedule for others to benefit.

    The governor advised the transporters to adequately maintain their vehicles.

     

     

     

  • Gundiri dumps APC for PDP

    Mr. Markus Gundiri, one of the founding members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Adamawa, has dumped the party for the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP).

    Addressing newsmen on Monday in Yola, Gundiri said that his decision to defect to the PDP was based on “breach of trust and lack of accommodation’’ in the APC.

    Gundiri, a gubernatorial candidate on the platform of the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) in the Feb. 2012 election in the state, said his action was aimed at “strengthening democratic norms and principles.’’

    He said that he was initially optimistic that the fusion of the ACN, CPC and ANPP to form the APC would provide a rare opportunity for the APC to defeat the PDP in the 2015 gubernatorial election in the state.

    He listed “injustice and impunity’’ displayed by the interim committee of the APC as other reasons that forced him to dump the APC for the PDP.

    Gundiri criticised the way the interim committee of the APC was constituted in the state without “due recognition and respect’’ for senior partners in the coalition that formed the APC.

    He alleged that trained registration supervisors were not allowed to handle the APC membership registration in some local government areas of the state as demanded by law, adding that the exercise was cancelled in some local government areas.

    He called on his supporters and the electorate in the state to support the PDP to move the state forward in 2015.

    He said that arrangements were on to receive him and his supporters into the PDP.

     

  • Tension in Kwara ahead of Jonathan’s visit

    Tension in Kwara ahead of Jonathan’s visit

    Tension is building up in Kwara State ahead of tomorrow’s visit to the state by President Goodluck Jonathan with the All Progressives Congress (APC) accusing the police of arresting seven of its members on trumped up charges.

    The Police have denied the allegation.

    The APC sees the planned visit of the President as insensitive, ill-timed and utterly inhumane, coming so soon after the Boko Haram attacks in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States.

    The party’s Interim Publicity Secretary in the state, Alhaji Sulyman Buhari, said the PDP should allow Jonathan enough time to mourn those tragedies first before coming to Kwara.

    He said:”May we remind these insensitive politicians in the state and all those irrelevant politicians that he seeks to rehabilitate in the state that the saner thing to do by all patriotic Nigerians is to feel and act sober, draw the grief-stricken people together, share in their pains and attempt to restore hope in the almost hopeless situation that parts of the country have been thrown into.

    “We therefore call on our peace- loving President to turn the request of these desperate politicians to further justify his well known position that no individual ambition worth the blood of a single Nigerian.”

    But the Publicity Secretary, Caretaker Committee of the PDP in the state, Mohammed Alhassan, said the APC is shocked by the success of PDP’s outing in the state last week.

    The PDP said: “Without doubt, the shock of unexpected large crowd of people witnessed on Sunday, 23rd February, 2014 at the PDP reception would for a long time continue to cause blood-ripples and nightmares in the camp of the APC in the state.

    Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed called on politicians and their supporters to conduct themselves lawfully as well as avoid any action capable of disrupting the peace in Kwara.

    In a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Dr. Muideen Akorede, Ahmed said: “Although the president is not on a state visit, we welcome him to our state of harmony.

    “We will accord him all the courtesies and arrangements benefitting of his office.

    “As a peace- loving administration, we urge all to keep the peace, be lawful and avoid any actions or utterances capable of rupturing our reputation for harmony.”

    He added: “Regardless of political affiliation, our people must remain mindful of the rule of law and shun all actions that contravene the law, especially the maintenance of public order.”

    The APC also accused the state police command of becoming agent of the PDP after allegedly arresting seven of its members being in possession of APC posters in Ilorin, the state capital.

    The Interim Chairman of the APC in the state, Alhaji Ishola Balogun-Fulani asked the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Abubakar to call the state Police Commissioner, Ambrose Aisabo to order.

    Balogun-Fulani added that the police also invaded the premises of printer engaged by the party to produce street signposts and destroyed his equipment, carting away over 300 signposts of APC produced by the printer.

    Said he: “As if that was not enough, the people engaged by party to erect these signposts after being manhandled they were arrested and detained in the police cell for doing their lawful job.

    “The police command had gone to stop the APC members while erecting billboards; it also tampered with the street signposts of the party in all roads in the state leaving those of the PDP intact.

    “For the avoidance of doubt, the party met all the required guidelines laid down by the Kwara State Signage and Advertisement Agency (KWASSA) regarding erection of billboards in any part of the state as that is the only agency that is empowered by the law to remove or stop erection in any part of the state.

    “This police command in Kwara State has confirmed our initial position that the commissioner was posted here to intimidate our members, by his open partisanship apparently to satisfy his paymasters in Abuja and their cronies in the state.

    When contacted the commissioner Mr. Ambrose Aisabo denied the allegations, claiming that the command only arrested the APC members because it had intelligence report that the party was planning to use its posters to deface those of the PDP, whose national leaders, including President Goodluck Jonathan, are on a visit to the state on Monday.

    His words: “We had information that APC was planning to print several posters and use it to deface that of Mr .President and we went there and indeed we saw several thousands of posters that they had printed. We impounded them but the people explained to us they had no plan of defacing the posters of Mr. President and I now warned them and allowed them to go with their posters. I am not against anyone pasting posters but I am against when people use it to deface those of others because there is enough space for everybody; politics is a game of choice. I am not here for any party. And I even called the APC chairman to tell him what I have done, so it is not true that anyone has been detained because we have released all of them.”

  • APC urges prayers for leaders

    APC urges prayers for leaders

    The Sokoto State Chapter of the APC yesterday urged Nigerians to pray for more wisdom for their leaders in their bid to ensure a peaceful, prosperous and united Nigeria.

    The party made the appeal in a message to Gov. Aliu Wamakko of Sokoto State, who turned 61 on Saturday.

    The message, signed by the Interim Chairman of the party in the state, Alhaji Inuwa Abdulkadir, observed that Wamakko had dedicated his life to the service of humanity and the development of the state.

    ‘‘It is heart-warming that this significant milestone coincides with crucial moments when major decisions had to be taken on the political turf.

    “We are happy that our great leader has never been found wanting as he had correctly read the mood of his people.”

    The statement said that the APC would continue to identify with the lofty ideals and political agenda of Wamakko, calling for support from stakeholders toward a stable Nigeria and a better Sokoto State.

  • CP advises against do-or-die politics

    CP advises against do-or-die politics

    The Nasarawa State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris, yesterday advised politicians against “do-or-die politics.’’

    The commissioner gave the advice at an interactive session with leaders of the All Progressive Congress (APC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the councils’ polls slated for March 22.

    He said that politicians should make decorum their watchword while playing politics, describing that as necessary for peaceful elections.

    “Politicians must avoid acts that portray them as desperate, they must avoid being selfish.’’

    Idris admonished the leadership of the two parties to enlighten their followers on the need to be orderly during the election, vowing to deal decisively with anybody or group, who might want to foment trouble.

    He said that the police had made adequate arrangements toward a peaceful election, calling for support from stakeholders toward a rancour-free poll.

     

     

    Idris cautioned politicians against using thugs to disrupt the elections, saying that he would arrest such thugs and make examples of them.

  • PDP,APC disagree over kidnap of members

    PDP,APC disagree over kidnap of members

    THE All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State has rejected the accusation that it was responsible for the kidnap of some Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members.

    The PDP accused Governor Rotimi Amaechi and the APC of masterminding the kidnap of three of its members in Port Harcourt.

    Gunmen, on Wednesday, reportedly abducted the Port Harcourt City Local Government Area (PHALGA) PDP Chairman Ikechi Chinda, former House of Representatives member Chinyere Igwe and Allwell Ihunda from their homes in the Eagle Island axis of Port Harcourt.

    The party, in a statement yesterday by its chairman, Felix Obuah, accused Amaechi and his loyalists of the kidnap.

    He said: “After a careful examination of the circumstances surrounding the abduction of our party leaders, the party believes that the abduction was masterminded by Governor Rotimi Amaechi and the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    “We are shocked that Governor Amaechi is playing politics with the security of life and property in the state.”

    He gave him 72 hours to release the victims or face protracted mass protest of PDP members.

    Obuah also linked the government to the killing of another PDP member at Ibaa, a community in Emuoha Local Government last week.

    The PDP chairman said the government was beginning to justify its reasons for insisting on the removal of the former Commissioner of Police Mbu Joseph Mbu.

    Amaechi denied the allegations, describing PDP members as liars.

    He challenged them to provide evidence.

    The governor advised them to channel their complaints to the appropriate quarters and allow the police carry out their investigations.

    Speaking through the Chief of Staff, Government House, Tony Okocha, Amaechi said: “They know where to channel their complaints. They should await the police to do their investigations and come up with their report.

    “They should substantiate their allegations with evidence.”

    Police spokesman Ahmad Mohammad could not be reached for comments.

    The Nation gathered that the abductors were yet to contact the victims’ families.

  • ‘More PDP, AP members’ll defect to APC in Oyo’

    ‘More PDP, AP members’ll defect to APC in Oyo’

    A Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), in Oyo State, Alh Abass Oloko has confidently disclosed that more opposition party members from Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and Accord Party(AP) in the state will soon join APC ahead of the 2015 general elections.

    He spoke yesterday while addressing journalist in his office at Mokola, Ibadan, Oyo State capital.

    He said APC is a coalition of the strongest parties, adding that the recent achievements by the APC governors has been responsible for the defections of the members of the opposition party to APC in Oyo State and the country at large.

    “APC is stronger now and the PDP is already jittery. Look at the rate at which people are trooping into the APC. Look at the just concluded registration exercise. It shows we have the love and support of the people to floor the PDP in 2015.

    “I supervise the registration in Ibadan and I can confidently tell you that we recorded close to 900,000 registration in Ibadan alone, and most Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Accord Party members also registered enmass.”

  • Jonathan’s comments on Borno wrong, says APC

    Jonathan’s comments on Borno wrong, says APC

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) has condemned President Goodluck Jonathan’s statement on Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima during his media chat on Monday night.

    It described it as unwarranted and petty.

    In a statement in Abuja yesterday by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said President Jonathan was wrong to have threatened, no matter how subtly, to withdraw from Borno, the troops battling Boko Haram insurgents.

    APC urged him to apologise to Borno indigenes and to Nigerians for the presidential indiscretion.

    It said the threat, which was in response to a statement credited to the governor that the soldiers need to be better equipped and motivated, showed that President Jonathan did not have a good grasp of what was expected of him as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

    “Mr. President, your most important duty as President is to ensure the welfare and security of Nigerians, irrespective of the criticisms you may face or whether or not they voted for you. Therefore, you are not doing anyone a favour by performing that duty. It is the role you swore an oath to perform.

    “Even if you feel that the Governor should not have made that statement, it is incumbent on you, as the President and the father of the nation, to take the higher road, instead of choosing a public forum to air your grievances. Wittingly or unwittingly, Mr. President, you have played into the hands of the insurgents, who must by now be gloating at the discordant tunes in government over the battle against them,” APC said.

    Using the President’s exact words to the Governor during his media chat, the party said: “A (President) should be mindful of what they say. Yes there are issues, but no matter how frustrated you are you don’t make this kind of statement.”

    It said based on the anger exhibited by President Jonathan while commenting on Governor Shettima’s statement, the party was justified in its call on the President not to go ahead with his reported plan to remove the Governor and replace him with a military administrator.

    “President Jonathan should know that a leader cannot afford to be taking decisions on the basis of a perceived slight or criticism, because such decisions are most likely to be wrong and counter-productive. He should also use his enormous powers as President for the benefit of the people, not to their disadvantage.

    “By his threat to pull out the troops from Borno for one month, he has further victimised the good people of the state, who have been at the receiving end of the senseless attacks by Boko Haram. A retraction of his threat and an apology to the people will be a good starting point for Mr. President to make amends,” APC said.

     

  • Akume weeps over herdsmen’s killings in Benue

    Akume weeps over herdsmen’s killings in Benue

    Senate Minority Leader George Akume wept yesterday when he visited internally displaced persons arising from suspected fulani herdsmen attacks on Benue farmers.

    The Senate Minority Leader was at St. Francis Catholic Church Daudu, to sympathise with victims of the attacks, who are taking refuge under the care of a priest, Rev. Solomon Ukeyima.

    Over 10,000 people from five settlements- Waku, Kaseyo, Umenger, Tomotaa and Akaahemen- in Guma Local Government are currently taking refuge in Daudu.

    Akume was accompanied by the member representing Makurdi North, in the House of Assembly, Avine Agbom, All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftains

    Justice Utsaha, Nanevwua Uhondo, Targema Takuma, Philip Anza and Beck Orpin.

    Ukeyima told the vistors that the church was overwhelmed by the number of displaced people.

    When the priest told Akume that the people had lost everything, the senator broke down in tears.

    The former governor appealed to the displaced to remain patient. He praised Ukeyima, who he described as a priest with large heart.

    Akume lambasted those who are responsible for the security of the nation but failed to halt the activities of hired mercenaries in Benue State.

    He donated an undisclosed sum of money and assorted relief materials for the victims.