No fewer than 600 Ilorin Emirate traditional rulers yesterday declared their support for the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State. The traditional chiefs who pledged their loyalty to the APC are spread across five local government areas of Moro, Asa, Ilorin South, Ilorin East and Ilorin West of the state. The monarchs, under the aegis of Alanguwas and Magajis Forum, made this declaration during a courtesy visit to the APC leader in the state, Dr Bukola Saraki. They were led by the chairman of the forum, the Alaguwa Alajagusi, Alhaji Abdulwahab Alajagusi. They said the visit was to publicly declare their support and acceptability of the party and political leadership in the state. The monarchs, who spoke through their vice chairman, who also doubles as the Magaji Nda of Ilorin, Alhaji Woru Mohammed, said, ”We, the Alaguwas and Magajis from Ilorin Emirate, which comprises five local government areas, namely, Ilorin west, Ilorin East. Ilorin South, Asa and Moro, under the leadership of His Royal Highness, the Emir of Ilorin, Alh Ibrahim Sulu- Gambari (CFR), wish to state publicly that we and all our people have embraced APC as our party and we have registered along with our people.” He added: “As representatives of His Royal Highness in our various domains, we do not recognise any political party, but we only Know and recognise Bukola Saraki as our party and leader and whereever he goes, we go with him and our people move along. Therefore, APC has come to stay in Kwara State”. Responding, Senator Bukola Saraki thanked the monarchs for their support and prayers at all times, adding that this has been a source of strength in the struggle to take Nigeria to the next level.
Tag: APC
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Nyako, Amaechi, Kwankwaso protest service of court process
Five governors, who defected from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressive Congress (APC) on Thursday, rejected the wrong service of court processes in respect of a suit filed against them by the party.
The PDP in the suit instituted last December, seeks to sack the five governors, who defected to the opposition party.
The governors are – Alhaji Murtala Nyako (Adamawa), Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers), Aliyu Wamakko (Sokoto), Rabiu Kwankwaso (Kano) and Abdulfatai Ahmed (Kwara).
On Thursday, lawyers representing the governors faulted the pattern of service of court processes on their clients.
Former Attorney General of the Federation, Akin Olujimi, John Baiyeshea, Lateef Fagbemi, Awa Kalu and Yusuf Ali (all Senior Advocates of Nigeria) told the Federal High Court in Abuja that they appeared in protest.
Baiyesha (for Nyako) said his client has not been served and that his appearance in court was based on the hearing notice he saw on two national dailies as ordered by the court.
“We have not seen all the processes including the originating summon filed by the plaintiff and that was why I said earlier that I appeared under protest and we have filed a motion reacting to the purported notice of hearing,” Nyako’s counsel said.
Fagbemi (for Amaechi) told the court that he filed a notice of conditional appearance dated February 5. He said he appeared under protest due to the non-service of processes on his client by the court’s plaintiff.
A similar case was made for Wamakko, Kwankwaso and Ahmed by their lawyers.
Olujimi told the court presided over by Justice Gabriel Kolawole the defendants have served the plaintiff’s lawyer with their motion challenging the “purported” service of hearing notices because according to Olujimi, “It is a threshold issue and we pray the court to hear us.”
The defence lawyers said they rejected the service because it was improper.
The defence team also rejected the suggestion, by plaintiff lawyer, Alex Iziyon (SAN) to hand the processes to them in court for their clients.
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Kwankwaso’s exit won’t kill PDP in Kano – Shekarau
The former Kano State governor, Ibrahim Shekarau, on Thursday said the defection of Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) will not adversely affect the party in the state.
He gave this assurance while speaking with State House correspondents after a meeting with Vice President Namadi Sambo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
According to him, Kwankwaso’s defection cannot kill PDP in Kano.
He said, “His defection cannot kill PDP. Those current with situation on ground knew that the governor of Kano had long before now been out of PDP. What he is running is Kwankwasiya, a cultism kind of a group.”
“PDP has always been there, so what we are doing is we are now joining PDP and his group has gone into APC. We shall see whether we are the ones on ground or the Kwankwasiya APC.”
“We checked out from the APC when we discovered that some of the principal actors in the merger did not mean well.”
Asked whether his ideology is the same with that of PDP, he said: “I have always argued that these parties are one and the same. It is all about Nigeria and Nigerians. It is all about what we do to move the nation forward. Everybody is talking about serving Nigerians.
“We are all heading to the same destination, the only difference is that we are taking different routes. As far as I am concerned, I am just continuing to make myself available to serve humanity regardless of the platform.”
He said that he has never been part of the clamour for a northern president in 2015 as he has always opposed rotational presidency.
“I have never subscribed to the argument of localizing the Presidency to a particular region. If you had followed my arguments and my presentations or debates in the presidential election, I said so. My concern is what do we do to get the right leadership regardless of where it is coming from”
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Register with APC to save Nigeria, lawmaker urges Nigerians
The lawmaker representing Ibadan North in the National Assembly, Abiodun Awoleye, has urged Nigerians to register with the All Progressives Congress (APC) to save the country from the wasteful governance of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration.
He spoke yesterday when he registered at the APC Polling Unit 24, Jagunmolu Compound, Ward 4, Ibadan North Local Government Area, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital.
According to him, APC is ready to take Nigerians out of the political masquerade of the PDP.
Awoleye promised that the party would accommodate those of age and wanted to be partisan, adding that it would do everything to save Nigerians from PDP’s misrule.
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APC decries Asari-Dokubo’s call to war
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described as reckless, irresponsible and condemnable the threat by Mujahedeen Asari-Dokubo that there will be war, if President Goodluck Jonathan is defeated in 2015.
In a statement yesterday in Abuja by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said despite the attacks by oil militants in the Niger Delta and the insurgency by Boko Haram in some parts of the North, Nigeria had not witnessed a clearer and louder call to war since the country’s civil war ended in 1970.
It said Nigerians were waiting to see what the SSS, which detained the APC’s Deputy National Secretary Nasir El-Rufai for his warning against election rigging in 2015, would do now that an ally of President Jonathan had threatened the existence of Nigeria, by saying he and his fellow militants would cripple the economy of the country not only in the creeks but also in Nigeria’s territorial waters.
‘’What on earth gave Asari-Dokubo the confidence to issue threats against the nation? If he doesn’t care about elections and democracy, how else could his hero, President Jonathan, have come to power? Does he know the meaning of anarchy? Does he think anyone, no matter how big, is more important than his country or bigger than its constitution?
‘’When he said President Jonathan ‘must complete the mandatory constitutionally-allowable two terms of eight years’ or the militants will make Nigeria ungovernable, was he aware that even the North that has become his favourite whipping boy did not complete its own eight years before his kinsman became President?
‘’It is not Asari-Dokubo’s fault. When we warned against the handing over of the nation’s maritime security to a company owned by an ex-militant in 2012, many thought we were crying wolf where none existed. But the threat by an ex-militant to ensure that no vessel will be allowed to enter the nation’s territorial waters unless President Jonathan is re-elected has shown the dangers inherent in such actions,’’ APC said
The party wondered why President Jonathan, who said his ambition was not worth anyone’s blood, had neither condemned nor call to order his out-of-control kinsmen like Asari-Dokubo, who speak either on his behalf or for his benefit.
It said Asari-Dokubo has overstretched his luck by trying to dictate to political parties to field only Southsouth candidates for the Presidency in 2015, wondering what gave him the audacity to make such a careless statement.
‘’We, in the APC, will never be cowed by the senseless, emotional outburst of a man, whose sense of decency stretches the size of a coin. We say that Nigeria will survive and thrive, whether or not some people want it. We reiterate the truism that election is the bedrock of democracy, and that anointing of candidates – as Asari-Dokubo would want Nigeria’s political parties to do – is the antithesis of democracy,’’ the party said.
It said the SSS must act immediately or be damned.
‘’There is no better test of the fairness, non-partisanship and professionalism of the SSS than the Asari-Dokubo’s threat of war on his country. If Asari-Dokubo is not above the laws of the land, he must be hauled before the SSS, just as the service did to our deputy national secretary, to explain his statement,’’ APC said.
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Ajimobi mobilises APC members for registration
Oyo State Governor Abiola Ajimobi has urged members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to endure whatever discomfort they may encounter during the membership registration, which begins tomorrow.
He spoke yesterday at the Mapo Hall in Ibadan while sensitising members for the registration.
Ajimobi said inconveniences, such as long waits at registration centres, to be encountered during the five-day exercise, were necessary.
He said: “I urge you to endure any difficulty you may encounter during the registration, bearing in mind that you are yet to become bonafide members of the APC until you are registered. It is only when you are registered that you can take part in the party’s activities.”
The governor urged members to be involved in party activities and attend meetings regularly.
He assured members of a level playing field, saying there was no old or new member in the APC.
Ajimobi urged aggrieved members to be patient, saying their grievances would be addressed by the party’s leadership.
Chairman of Oyo APC Registration Team Shola Akinwumi said the registration would be hitch-free.
Oyo APC Chairman Chief Akin Oke urged members to participate in the exercise.
The highlight of the occasion was an address by an American, Mr. Kevin Barry, who spoke Yoruba language fluently to the delight of the crowd.
Barry told the crowd that his adopted Yoruba name was Kayode and hailed the governor for the changes in the state in the last two-and-a-half years.
He said: “People in this country struggle to get visa to America, but now, Americans struggle to get visa to come to Nigeria and Oyo State. When I first came here some years ago, Ibadan was dirty and disorganised, but when I returned here last year, I saw changes. The time of peace, safety and comfort has come.”
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‘Ekweremadu won’t read defecting senators’ letter’
The anticipated showdown at the Senate over the plan by 11 former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senators to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC) did not happen yesterday.
Before the Senate resumed plenary yesterday, tension was high because the defecting senators were determined to ensure that their letter, which they submitted to Senate President David Mark, must be read.
That was not to be.
The leadership of the Senate, sensing danger, summoned an emergency closed-door session that lasted over an hour.
Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu presided over the secret meeting. Mark was said to have excused himself to attend the Council of State meeting.
After the meeting, the door to the Senate gallery was open to reporters and other observers.
Ekweremadu, who did not make reference to the closed-door meeting, read a couple of personal letters.
To the disappointment of most of those in the gallery, the letter on the defection of 11 PDP senators to APC was not among those read.
After reading personal letters, Ekweremadu signalled to Senate Leader Victor Ndoma-Egba to read the Order Paper.
There was no objection or Point of Order by the defection senators.
It was, however, learnt that at the closed-door session, the defecting lawmakers were asked to attend a rescheduled meeting with Mark.
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Non-indigenes to join Rivers APC
Thousands of non-indigenes in Rivers State have stormed the office of the All Progressives Congress (APC), seeking registration and promising to mobilise 800,000 non-indigenes to APC.
The coordinator of non-indigenes in Rivers State, Uchenna Okokoba, said this yesterday in Port Harcourt, when he led non-indigenes to visit the APC interim executive.
Okokoba said they came to APC secretariat to assure the party that thay would register as members.
He said he would mobilise 800,000 non-indigenes in Rivers State at the party’s registration, which starts today.
Chief Okokoba said: “You can see the crowd that followed me here, we are seeking APC registration, as the coordinator of the group, we have done it before. And I will do it again, as I said, 800,000 non-indigenes must participate in this exercise.
“We are out to follow Governor Amaechi, who gave us his support since he started ruling this state, he gave us appointment and he never discriminated against our identity or origin. So anywhere he decides to be that is where we will go.”
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2,000 PDP members join APC
Over 2,000 officials and members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Guzamala Local Government Area of Borno State.
The officials, who stormed the Government House, Maiduguri, said their council area had lost much.
Declaring their loyalty before the state’s party leader, Governor Kashim Shettima, the defectors maintained that they moved out of the PDP on their own.
They said: “We had to come to pay our allegiance to your party because we need basic things, which our former party could not bring to our people, despite the federal connections.
“Mr. Governor, we need development and we know we will get loads of it from your party.
“We are here on our own and not at the prompting of anybody.”
Shettima assured them that the APC was the real home of progressives, who were out to make life better for the electorate.
He said as soon as possible boreholes would be sunk for them to ameliorate their drinking water problem.
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Osun APC petitions IGP on alleged assassination plot
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has petitioned the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Abubakar, alleging plans by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to “eliminate” some of its members.
APC also alleged that the PDP wanted to create mayhem in the state by registering its members on the same day of the APC’s registration.
It said: “A crescendo of desperation has taken hold of the PDP. As we hear, they have put in place plans to kidnap and assassinate Osun APC leaders.”
The petition, signed by the party’s State Interim Chairman, Mr. Adelowo Adebiyi, condemned the activities of a PDP governorship aspirant.
It reads: “A reliable source in the PDP told us that we would be taking this information with levity at our peril, which is why we hurried to inform security agencies of it.
“We do not intend to let off our guard and we are confident that the security agencies will take serious the alerts we have been giving them in the last months about the nefarious plans of the PDP, which could inflame the state and destroy the country’s democracy.
“We have it on good authority that the PDP plans to create mayhem in the state by conducting the registration of its members on the same day and at the same premises where the APC will be doing a similar exercise from February 5 to 10.
“The planned PDP exercise is an isolated case involving Osun State alone, which makes it suspect and patently dangerous. There is no way violent incidents will not occur at such massive clash of interest. Also, we have information that the PDP is planning a major confrontation during the governor’s ‘Walk to Live’ exercise in a manner that will provoke violence and possible fatalities.
“We are aware of a series of other plans by the PDP to create mayhem in the state to intimidate people from voting for the APC in the governorship election, but we have confidence that the police command and other security agents will keep Osun safe and peaceful.”