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Tag: defectors

  • Akpabio: defectors planning to truncate Buhari’s govt

    Former Senate Minority Leader Senator Godswill Akpabio yesterday warned that there are forces trying to truncate the President Muhammadu Buhari administration, even before the 2019 presidential election.

    Akpabio said the development is the plan of majority of those that recently defected to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

    The senator, who vowed to make sure that Buhari is re-elected into office in 2019 through a free, fair and credible election, attributed his decision to leave the PDP for the All Progressives Congress (APC) on the basis of national interest.

    The former governor of Akwa Ibom during an interview with reporters in Abuja on the state of the nation, said his projection is that in spite of the political rigmarole, aliment and re-aliment, 2019 victory belong to the APC “and most especially President Muhammadu Buhari will be retuned for the second term in office”.

    He said: “I am saying so because God loves Nigeria. This is a man, who has tried for so many years to be President of this country under democratic dispensation. At a time he said he was no longer interested. But from nowhere again, a lot of people came together from People’s Democratic Party (PDP), some from Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), some from his party, the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), and they went back to appeal to him to come.

    “He came in spite of his resistance and then confusion entered into the PDP family and God is a master planner and from here and there, Buhari emerged president of Nigeria. Atiku and others will be defeated in 2019.

    “When he emerged President, the incumbent President, then Goodluck Jonathan, did not wait for the final result of the election. He called Buhari and congratulated him. And Nigeria had a very smooth and peaceful transition.

    “I believe that in 2015, we all had our chooses but God had his way. And also when God has a hand in something, I do not think he is the master of uncompleted projects. I believe that God completes projects.

    “This is not a decision of man, it was the decision of God and I believe God will give him strength and you can see the calibre of political personages that he has continue to attract despite the rigmarole by some members of the same political party, the APC.”

    On why he defected to the ruling party, Akpabio said: “I left PDP for national interest. And I keep re-emphasising that word, in the national interest. Because I believe that the nation has to survive first before we can have election. But if you saw what was going on in the country, there were forces to truncate the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, even before the election.

    “But these actions were also capable of bringing democracy to an end. The intension then was to crash the government before even the election. Major forces, including state governors of the APC extraction were defecting to the PDP. And this was capable of destroying the polity.

    “So, there was the need for us the people who have stake in the country to come out and stabilise the polity before the election. That was why I defected to APC in the national interest.

    And I said I will like to join the conspiracy where we conspire to end Boko Haram, to bring peace to the Southeast region and put an end to IPOB, to see to an end of militancy and vandalisation of pipeline, to bring employment to Nigerians and not to converge to bring down any government.”

     

     

     

     

  • 11,500 AAN members defect to SDP in Adamawa

    The Social Democratic Party (SDP), Adamawa State’s third most popular party after ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has received 11,500 members of the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN), including its state chairman, Mr Robinson Mathias.

    Mathias who led the defectors to a reception held for them at the SDP state Secretariat in Yola Friday, said their decision was prompted by ‘gross injustice’ meted out to them by the national headquarters of the ANN, and that they were in any case never satisfied with the manifesto of the party.

    Read Also:2019 : Ebonyi APC chieftain dumps party, picks SDP governorship ticket

    “Having carefully evaluated the manifesto of the party and the injustice by the national headquarters, we opted for the SDP which has a state chairman and governorship candidate that we have faith in,” Mathias said.

    Receiving the decampees on behalf of the National Chairman of the SDP Chief Olu Falae, the Adamawa State Chairman of the party, John Muva, assured that the new members and the old members would be treated in equal fairness.

    “The SDP is waxing stronger daily and we are set to win the state,” he stressed.

    The governorship candidate of the SDP in the state, Chief Emmanuel Bello, is a former House of Representatives member who has done much over the months to give visibility and reckoning to the party.

  • ‘Defectors from APC will regret their actions’

    Rivers State All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain and leader of Rivers Unity House Kingsley Wenenda Wali spoke with Southsouth Bureau Chief BISI OLANIYI on the agitation for power shift in the Southsouth state and why President Muhammadu Buhari deserves a second term

    As the leader of Rivers Unity House, what is the group about and why have you been moving round the 23 local government areas of Rivers State?

    If you have been in Rivers State for more than five years, you will easily agree with me that the language of political conversation in Rivers State has become venomous. We felt that it was not doing our state any good, because children and the younger ones were beginning to feel that it was okay for them to hold conversations based on insolence.

    You cannot discuss with somebody rationally. People are unable to develop rational arguments from your statements. All they do is to insult people. I sit back and get very hurt, seeing people who are supposed to be elderly watch this kind of sad situation fester.

    For example, you are in a group conversation on the social media, especially Facebook, you will see 21 year-old-person telling an elderly person to shut up, calling the person an idiot. Meanwhile, there will be another elderly person, in the course of the conversation, who because he has issues with the person being insulted, he will not call the young person to order. It is beginning to become the norm. Abnormal has become the normal in Rivers State in every way.

    Discussions should be devoid of threats of violence and real violence. What we have in Rivers State is war, war, war. Rivers State is about the only state in Nigeria now that runs politics from May 29, 2015 to date. If we continue to allow this type of conversation, when are we going to have conversation that is development based?

    We felt we should remind Rivers people that governance should not just be about battles, but providing services. Not just you sitting back and blaming government, you must put yourself where you enjoy the moral high ground.

    Apart from Mr. Tonye Cole, we have other governorship aspirants on the platform of the APC in Rivers State, including Dr. Dakuku Peterside, Senator Magnus Abe, Chief Dumo Lulu-Briggs, and Mr. AkpoBari Celestine. How will your friend, Tonye Cole, survive during the primary?

    The beauty of democracy is about choices. Any governorship aspirant who feels that Tonye Cole is not popular should wait until the primary election and defeat him. They said the same thing of Anambra State, but you know that Governor Willie Obiano is making progress. Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode was a civil servant and doing well as Lagos governor. Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (Minister of Power, Works and Housing) was Chief of Staff to Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, but became governor and performed excellently. We must look for the best and use the best. That is why you can find people who have capacity being given responsibilities in countries all over the world.

    If USA could trust Barack Obama from Kenya to be the President for eight years, let us give capacity a chance in Rivers State. There is nobody who is unpopular or popular in politics. Party politics is about everybody bringing his own popularity and donating it to the candidate of the party, thereby making him popular. Supreme Court of Nigeria says people do not vote for individuals, but the political party. If we select capacity, then members of the political party will bring their grassroots support.

    How can the governorship candidate of your political party, APC, in Rivers State emerge victorious in 2019, when Governor Nyesom Wike, fondly called Mr. Projects, of the PDP is seeking re-election?

    What is project and where are the projects in Rivers State by Wike? Is governance all about what has been achieved? A lie consistently told can be taken to be the truth. Wike is doing the bit that he can, especially resurfacing roads, providing street lights and repainting public buildings. Are those ones projects that will attract the title of “Mr. Projects?” Let us stop deceiving ourselves.

    Rivers people ought to be reminded that Point Block (one of the tallest buildings in the state) at the Rivers State secretariat and other capital-intensive and people-oriented projects were put in place by the pioneer governor of the old Rivers State, Alfred Diete-Spiff (now the Amayanabo/King of Twon-Brass in Brass LGA of Bayelsa State).

    The road from the Port Harcourt International Airport to the boundary between Rivers and Imo states was reconstructed and dualised by the Rotimi Amaechi’s administration, in spite of being a federal road. Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi (Transportation Minister), as governor of Rivers state, also embarked on many landmark projects, just as Chief Rufus Ada-George and Dr. Peter Odili also tried their best.

    There is nothing wrong in Wike completing the projects that Amaechi started. That’s a fantastic thing to do, but we must always consider legacy. Resurfacing of roads by Wike is not a legacy. When the history of the Trans-Amadi Industrial Layout road will be told, the name of Amaechi will be written in gold.

    We need legacy projects in Rivers State. Time will tell, if Wike’s title of “Mr. Projects” is appropriate or not. Wike is an energetic person and strong willed, but I am not sure he is delivering on governance.

    Look at the states surrounding Rivers State being developed, besides our Siamese twins, Bayelsa State, because as Rivers State is not moving, Bayelsa State too is not moving, since we do things alike, as we were together in the old Rivers State, before the state creation by Gen. Sani Abacha on October 1, 1996. Nothing is happening in Bayelsa State and nothing is happening in Rivers State.

    Look at neighbouring Abia State, some movements are taking place there and Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu is working. This is not about political party, but about performance and good governance. Abia State governor is transforming the state and empowering his people.

    If Tonye Cole vies for Rivers governorship on APC’s platform in 2019, he will win and Wike will easily be defeated because Tonye has capacity.

    Doing a little projection about 2019 general elections in Nigeria, considering the violence associated with previous polls, especially in Rivers State, do you have any fear about next year’s elections?

    There are fears of possible violence, because our society is still having issues reconciling with the fact that there are civilised ways of having discussions. In the last few months, I have experienced, first hand, how friends and brothers can actually turn against you, because you hold strong views contrary to theirs. I always prefer working with or supporting people with capacity to deliver, devoid of ethnicity, tribalism or nepotism.

    The minds of most people are already poisoned, but I am believing that if we sustain the conversations that will prick their conscience, it is possible for change to be effected. All we have been doing in Rivers Unity House is to remind the youths that on election day, most likely on Saturday, but guns will be given to them on Thursday to shoot or kill people during the poll. The results will likely be announced on Sunday or Monday and they will still ask the youths to hold the guns on Tuesday, in order to calm down anybody who dares to ask questions about the election.

    By the following weekend, the big man who gave guns to the youths to kill the electorate, in order to win the election, may not come back to the youths. I do enjoy the look I see on the faces of the young men, whenever I say that. If we are able to sustain the argument and the elders, chiefs and big men who do not like violence, begin to preach against it, there will be positive changes.

    If somebody gives AK-47 rifle of about N500,000 to a youth to kill during election, that same big man, if he actually cares, can easily buy products worth N250,000 for the young man to start a business, if he cannot give the entire N500,000 to him, the youth will positively contribute to societal development, rather than being a burden or threat to the society. If the big man does that for ten youths, four of them will excel.

    Things are this bad in Nigeria, because some people who felt sidelined by the seizure of corruption incorporated, which they used to enjoy, decided to revolt. For things to get better in this country, we need a National Assembly and judiciary that are responsible.

    I can assure you that President Buhari will win the 2019 election very well without stress, because of his integrity and he is not looting Nigeria’s money. There will be no serious challenge to his emerging victorious at the poll next year.

    Governors, members of the National and State Assemblies, as well as other politicians who defected from the APC to other political parties, I am very sorry for them. All the senators and members of the House of Representatives who recently defected from the APC, they have said bye-bye to the National Assembly. The lawmakers in the states who also defected from the APC to other political parties will find it very difficult to be re-elected into their Houses of Assembly in 2019.

    My friend/schoolmate in Ilorin, he ran for House of Representatives in 2015 on the platform of PDP. He told me that the big photo on his poster was Buhari of the APC, but he decided to attach his photo in a small corner and the people voted for him. They do not care about the political party.

     

     

  • I won’t be distracted by defectors, opposition – Buhari

    …Says his government is focused

     

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday said that the efforts of defectors and their backers in the opposition will not distract his administration from the good work it has been doing for the benefit and development of Nigeria.

    He spoke during lunch with some governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), and some members of the National Assembly and Commissioners in Daura, Katsina State.

    Read Also:Buhari forecloses former DSS boss Daura’s return

    According to him, his administration is focused in delivering the 2015 campaign promises in the area of improved economy, security and fight against corruption.

    Buhari, in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said that the APC has the full understanding of Nigeria’s challenges and was encouraged by the support of Nigerians in addressing them.

    He said, ‘‘We are always encouraged when all our constituents are happy with the work we are doing and our genuine efforts to make sure that what we campaigned for in 2015 is still very much in our minds and we have not lost focus.

    ‘‘In terms of security, economy and the fight against corruption we have maintained focus. Even the opposition with all their resources cannot fault our identification of Nigeria’s priorities and the efforts being made to better them.

    ‘‘We will continue to do what we ought to do in the leadership position God has placed us and we thank the constituents for the support,” he added

    On the defections within the major political parties, Buhari reiterated his earlier message to them: saying ‘‘for those who have decided to change camp for whatever reason, we wish them good luck.’’

    The leader of the delegation and Chairman of the Progressive Governors Forum, Rochas Okorocha of Imo State commended the President for his great efforts in keeping the nation together through visionary leadership.

    He noted that President Buhari had remained focused and unshaken by situations and circumstances, adding ‘‘it shows that your administration is approved by God.’’

    Okorocha said ‘‘we are here to encourage you to keep doing what you are doing as Nigerians are very pleased with you.

    ‘‘We also want to inform you that we had wonderful and peaceful Sallah celebration across the country because of security of lives and property you have guaranteed in our nation.’’  he said

    Governor Okorocha was accompanied by the Governors of Katsina, Kebbi, Kano and Niger States.

  • Defectors do not fit into APC vision, says lawmaker

    The lawmaker representing Akoko-Edo Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Peter Akpatason, has berated those who recently defected from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying they do not fit into the vision of the APC.

    Akpatason said the defectors would loose next year’s general elections, because “they left good people in the APC to join bad people”.

    The lawmaker, who spoke to reporters in Bénin City, the Edo State capital, said the defectors triumphed in the 2015 general elections because of the APC platform.

    Akpatason described the PDP as a dumping ground for those he termed waste products.

    He said: “For you to effect development, you need the good, the bad and the ugly. But, in the process of development, you begin to see the good from the bad and the ugly.

    “At some point, it becomes clear to some people that they do not fit into the system and that is what is happening now. They jumped ship to where they actually belong. Some people jumped ship some years ago, because they wanted to contest election and they were attracted by the APC platform, particularly the Buhari tsunami. The factors also include the dynamics of their local politics.

    Akpatason “The PDP is a dumping ground for waste products and not a beautiful bride. Somebody who defected four years ago and is defecting now is a waste product. They don’t have value to add to the system. People of value command respect and do not defect, but only political merchants who see political parties as a platform do.”

  • SNAPSONG: Delinquent Defectors (Part 2)

    Here, once again,

    Our Prostitutes in Power (PIP)

     

    This, once again,

    Is their season of migration

    Corpulent Birds of Prey who bury the people’s fate

    In the pit of their putrid stomachs

     

    Umbrella in the morning

    Broom at noon

    Hammer and Sickle at night

    All these and more the following day

     

    Strangers to Honour

    Perverters of Principle

    Venal vagabonds who dangle sacred Loyalty

        Before the highest or lowest bidder

     

    Their mouths are graveyards

    For assassinated Truth;

    Their dreams nightmares

    For a mad, misbegotten country

     

    Caucuses at night

    Caucurses during the day:

    Nigeria’s Prefects of Perfidy

    Are leagued against our commonweal

     

    Our Very Right Honourables are back again,

    Shameless dogs to their wormy vomit

    Rigging, rampaging, and romping all the way

    While the people watch in damnable silence

  • Defectors will fail, says Seriki

    Lagos State All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain Chief Akanni Seriki has said that defectors from the party to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will fail in their plot to abort the second term ambition of President Muhammadu Buhari.

    He accused the defectors of political kleptomania, saying that many of them got better positions after the 2015 elections more than the founding fathers of the ruling party.

    Seriki told reporters in Lagos that the party could have averted its current travails, if the president has backed the call for party supremacy and discipline championed by experienced party elders.

    He however, said the defections notwithstanding, President Buhari will retain his position beyond 2019, based on his performance and support base across the six geo-political zones.

    Seriki said: “The PDP defectors came to the APC to take over the party and the government and it is impossible for them. They nearly succeeded. They became Senate President and House of Representatives Speaker, only to galvanise their PDP colleagues. Their target is the presideny.

    “Asiwaju Tinubu had foresight. He saw the disaster coming. That was why he was canvassing support for party supremacy and discipline. While Asiwaju was calling for party supremacy and discipline, Buhari said he was for nobody and for everybody. If the president had put his feet down on the election of National Assembly principal officers, this trouble would have been averted. Despite all these, Buhari will win. The party only has to work for victory.”

    Seriki urged the pr4esident to look at the genuine grievances of committed chieftains who are loyal and steadfast.

    He said many committed party chieftains may not have been given a sense of belonging by the BUhari administration, adding that many PDP chieftains were retained in government, despite the change of government in 2015.

    The politician said there should be an institutionalized way of rewarding party loyalty and commitment, warning that, if this is not done, loyal members can be discouraged from staying focused.

    In his view, the president should consult critical party leaders regularly on party affairs to prevent the impression that he has sidelined them.

  • Makarfi to PDP: Don’t give defectors undue advantage

    Former caretaker chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Ahmed Makarfi, has cautioned the leadership of the party against giving undue advantage to returnee members and those defecting.

    Addressing the leadership of the Kogi State chapter of the party and other stakeholders in Lokoja, Kogi State yesterday, the former two-term governor of Kaduna State said the survival of the party was due to the steadfastness of committed members.

    Otherwise, he said, the party could have become history.

    Offering himself as the presidential candidate of the party ahead of the 2019 general election, he recalled the difficult days of the party after it lost the presidential election in 2015.

    He said: “Some people, when you pinch them like this (touching his arm), they will run to another party. When the going was tough, I stayed on. But you accept them into your house and give them your guest room. Next, they take the master bedroom. Next, they drive you out of your house. We must not allow this nor give undue advantage to them, so that we do not alienate our people.

    “Modu-Sheriff was brought in from another party. They said he had three jets, he had billions, but what did he do? He was taking the party down. But I, the ‘bush boy,’ with the support of others, was able to make members close ranks, and today, we can all see.”

    Makarfi also delved into the vexed issue of restructuring, saying that only Nigerians can restructure the country under a trusted leadership.

    He said: “We fought the battle together. The praise and credit I’m receiving is to God and to all of us.

    “To me, Kogi is home. When Alhaji Ibrahim Idris (Ibro) was governor, we used to come and spend weekends with him. Kogi remains a home to me.

    “We have many problems confronting us in Nigeria—insecurity, lack of national consensus, hunger, poverty. Our economy has gone down, but there are few people benefiting. Nigerians are in lack. They are not able to provide for their families, access good healthcare, and all sorts of deprivation. People are being witch-hunted.

    “Some people talk of restructuring, but when they talk of restructuring, they talk of sharing money and resources. I tell you, we need institutional restructuring.

    “Only Nigerians can restructure Nigeria. People are asking for restructuring due to lack of belonging, lopsidedness in appointments, the feeling of being cheated, and so on.

    “Who can restructure Nigeria but Nigerians with a leader that can be trusted. I offer that and much more.

    “What I tell you is that now, if you’re in power, you’re right; if you’re in opposition, you’re wrong. We must get to a level in Nigeria where if you’re president, a governor, you can be charged for wrongdoing; not you being in power and witch-hunting every other person.

    “That is turning Nigeria into a ‘Banana Republic’. We must therefore restructure our institutions.

    “Gentlemen, a tree does not make a forest. They will come with bags of money; collect but do the right thing. There is no receipt.”

  • Buhari tells Saraki, other defectors: you’re bad eggs

    PDP seals deal with 39 parties

    Wammako hits Tambuwal

    Kwara PDP chief joins APC

    President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday referred to defectors from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as “bad eggs”.

    He said as the 2019 elections approach, “God will continue to fish out the bad eggs among us”.

    He reiterated his resolve to ensure that nobody is allowed to loot the treasury.

    Said Buhari: “What I will never exhibit is to allow selfish politicians loot public treasury and allow the masses be cheated.

    “All what we are doing is in the interest of the people and our dear country.

    “I pray to God to expose sycophants that are still within our party, who are bent on trying to loot our resources.”

    APC National Chairman Adams Oshiomhole said the defectors were afraid of the government’s anti-corruption war, adding that many of the looters of the treasury during the 16 years of the PDP administrations would end up in jail.

    They spoke in Bauchi yesterday while campaigning for the APC candidate in the August 11 Bauchi South senatorial by-election.

    The seat became vacant following the death of Senator Ali Wakili. The APC candidate is Hon. Gumau Lawal Yahaya.

    The President urged party faithful not to be perturbed by the defections.

    Senate President Bukola Saraki and three governors – Aminu Tambuwal (Sokoto), Samuel Ortom (Benue) and Ahmed Abdulfattah (Kwara) led the defectors.

    Buhari said: “The work we are doing is because of God, our country and you. I want to inform you that with the knowledge we have garnered over the years, we won’t allow you to be cheated.

    “Like we promised, what will determine a good future for the country are security, strong economy and to stop corruption.

    “We campaigned on these things, you voted for us and we will never forget.”

    “The President got a thunderous applause from party supporters at the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Stadium, Bauchi, venue of the rally.

    Buhari endorsed the candidate saying: “We have confidence in him and we trust him.”

    He praised the crowd for defying the downpour to turn out in large numbers for the rally.

    Lambasting the defectors, Oshiomhole said:

    “This is a clear indication that some of them (defectors) have been sharing the country’s resources for 16 years, but failed to do that in the last three years.

    “ Most of them are afraid of the anti-corruption crusade being waged by this administration, and are sure that most of them will find themselves behind bars.

    “There is no going back on sending those found wanting to jail, no matter how highly placed they are.

    “We are happy over such defection because we are fed up with the nefarious activities being perpetrated by them.”

    Bauchi State Governor Muhammed Abubakar blamed members of the National Assembly for the country’s under-development, adding that he was happy that “most of them are leaving our party”.

    He called on Bauchi South Senatorial District to vote for the APC candidate.

    The APC’s state chairman, Alhaji Uba Nana, said defections had not affected the party in the state.

    He said instead of members defecting to other parties, the APC in the state had witnessed a mass influx of people from other parties.

    The chairman said 25 other political parties in the state had formed an alliance with the APC to enable the party emerge victorious in the by-election.

    Governors Simon Lalong (Plateau), Abdulahi Ganduje (Kano) and Rochas Okorocha (Imo) were at the rally.

    House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara, who hails from the senatorial district, did not attend the rally. He is among members of the APC believed to be on their way to the PDP.

    Also yesterday, the PDP National Executive Commmittee (NEC) met in Abuja.

    The meeting formally received Senate President Bukola Saraki, Benue State Governor Samuel Ortom and Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal – who just defected – to the opposition party.

    Saraki told the meeting: “I am happy to see some of my colleagues here who have given me faith in this country, who have made me believe there are still men of character, that there are still men who are still ready to make sacrifices for this country.”

    Describing Saraki as key in the renewed struggle to “free” Nigeria, Secondus praised the defectors, saying history would be fair to them.

    He said: “The bold steps you took to return to the party where you truly belong, is a sacrifice not for yourself but for Nigeria and history will be fair to you.

    “Today is the beginning of the great journey to freedom, the great journey to free our people and rescue this country from the damage done to it by the APC in the last three years”.

    Senator Aliyu Wamakko faulted Tambuwal’s defection, saying he made a “the worst decision in his life.”

    He said Sokoto State would remain an All Progressives Congress (APC) state in spite of the governor’s exit.

    In Abuja, the PDP sealed its alliance with a coalition of 39 political parties to fight the ruling APC.

    Secondus said it was time for the coalition to rescue Nigeria from the “misgovernance”, which h said is typified by senseless killing of innocent Nigerians and harassment of opposition elements.

    A National Executive Committee ( NEC) member of the PDP from Kwara state, Hon. Ahmed Yinka Aluko, has defectedto the All Progressive Congress( APC).

    Aluko, who was the deputy governorship candidate in the 2015 elections resigned his elective position and membership of PDP during the party’ s NEC meeting yesterday.

    The former Special Adviser on Security matters in Kwara State accused the opposition of impunity and undemocratic practices.

    Aluko said he was irked by the decision of PDP National leadership to hand over the structure to Senate President Bukola Saraki.

    He said: ” It is therefore shocking that the party at the national level has resolved to hand over the party structures and all electable positions to defectors without any regards for those who stood by the party and built it Into a strong winning machine in Kwara. It is even more shocking that as the only national officer from Kwara state I was not consulted”.

    This National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Chief Olu Falae.

    He said: “We must be wary of those who will come to scatter us by trying to sow seeds of discord, spread fake news and adopt divisible measures to achieve their sinister motive”, Falae added

     

  • Ajomale: Defectors from APC are political jobbers

    Former Chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Lagos State Otunba Oladele Ajomale spoke with SINA FADARE on the gale of defections from the party and the preparations for next year’s polls.

    You are the former Chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Lagos State.  What were the challenges?

    There are a lot of challenges. When you get there, you are to look at the welfare of the party members as a first step and you monitor the ward and know what is going on there. If there is any problem, you quickly tackle it by involving party members who are not in that zone so that he or she will be neutral and be able to say it the way it should be.

    Some of the challenges range from looking for money to run the party to running after your members to contribute money for the party. Otherwise, you may not get anywhere. You have to prepare for any election that may come up at any time, the normal and sudden one in case someone died. Apart from that, the party members contacted you for many things, those who want to pay school fees, those who have just lost their fathers, those who have just been sent out of their rented apartment.

    They all expect you to solve these problems day in day out. As a leader, you have to attend to them and solve them. Apart from this there are a lot of meetings, both at the ward level and national to attend to. As a chairman of the state, you are an automatic member of the NEC. Once a while NEC meetings is called to resolve pertinent issues.

    You must be ready to solve disputes that may arise any time within the party. When you leave a problem lingering for so long, then, you find out that it becomes a monster and developed into a crisis, when it does, it is difficult for you to manage it.  My style is to tackle it immediately it surface and settle it once and for all. That is why you find little problems arising from conflicts in the party.

    In spite of the challenges, Lagos State is the most stable and progressive, in terms of service delivery to the people. What is the magic?

    You must have the attitude of getting all the reports from the wards to the local governments and anywhere there is conflict, I quickly moved there to nip it in the bud. If you do not monitor what is going on when it bust out, you are in trouble. So, what l do in most cases  is to make sure l get it at my fingertips what is going on in all the wards and the local governments in the state, by so doing it make things easier for me.

    How are you able to survive the power play?

    There is always power play everywhere, even in the churches, but l know how to play my game. I have an understanding leader, that is Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and other leaders of the party in the state. They have never given me any problems. Asiwaju is just like a family and always ready to assist the party. Any one that l cannot solve, l run to him. He may select other elders in the party to go with me to tackle the crisis at hand. He has a large heart and ready any day any time to listen to me.

    Sometimes, it is the leadership that creates the problem. So, when l get there, I lay my claim on the table and l pick somebody from other zone to follow me to solve the problem. That one will be neutral and will be ready to call a spade a spade. In my experience in life, l am versed in dispute resolution and  coupled with my background as a lawyer, l was able to develop a model that has assisted me a lot to go far and solved a lot of problems in the party that do not get to the public.

    For 12 years, we have been doing it with a good result. l am expecting the new chairman to fine tune this and inject a lot of innovations that will assist the party to continue to achieve the best in its future enterprise.

    What do you think make the party teak, despite the odds?

    I will say the major key factor is sincerity. The more you are sincere with your members, the better for you. If you see anything black, call it black not white. If we do not have money, l will tell them that we have no money and let us wait for a while. I make sure that when the money comes l used it to settle the most urgent on our priority list.

    Asiwaju Tinubu has the ability to identify talents. At what point did you cross each other’s path?

    Yes, he has that ability; you can only give that to him. I met him in 1989 when he was not even a politician. He was in Mobil Oil as Chief Accountant and my brother worked with him. We met and our chemistry just worked together. We are in the same group called Primose, within the Social Democratic Party (SDP). He came out to contest into the  Senate. l have my chamber around Mushin area then. We are challenging Alhaji Lattef Jakande. The Lagos West was a verse area that covered areas like Mushin, lkeja, Ajegunle and Badagry.

    I asked him if he could cope and he told me that he has some friends around those areas and l joined him. That was how we started. We know he cannot give us anything, but for prestige purpose, we worked for him. Our group must just get it because we had other groups, though in the same party, the SDP.

    In the primary, we were able to defeat the Ase group and in the real election, that day was serious; rain everywhere, we were drenched to our pants, including women. We stayed on the line and when the votes  were eventually counted, we won. It was easy because when you see Asiwaju, you cannot but like him. He is a straight forward person. When he says he is your friend, he is, without any reservation. He cannot betray you, in fact he preferred you betraying him rather than him betraying you.

    I know that over the years he is a man that l can trust. He cannot for any reason leave you in the cold, very dependable and trust worthy. Even when he was forced to go to exile, we continue to work and give him reports of happening at home. When he came back and he said he wanted to be governor, we went to primaries again with the same group and we won.  Alhaji Dawodu put up Funso Williams, who happened to be a family friend, but this was politics, we eventually won at the larger election. Asiwaju gave us the needed foundation and that is why others are building on it. That is why Lagos is progressing.

    What is your reaction to the recent defection of members of your party in the National Assembly to the PDP?

    We know from day one when they came into the party, that they do not have the interest of Nigerians at heart. They were trying to create their own nest, somewhere like a bird. They are used to sharing of money in a situation where thousands of Nigerians have no job. The government is creating avenue to tackle those problem, we have graduates that are roaming about the street, yet you are thinking about yourself alone.

    They are complaining that they were not given this or that appointment. At what stage? Instead of them to sit back at home and let the younger generation come up and take those appointments.  They are used to getting free money in the PDP, but could not find such opportunity in the APC. That is why they are not comfortable. So, they have to go to where it is business as usual.

    They got the Senate President seat and that of the Speaker of the House of Representatives and some others appointments. Four years is too short for you to agitate if you have the love of Nigerians at heart. But they are used to getting free money and when that one was not forth coming, they have to defect. Whereas the President is waging a serious war on corruption. They do not share such a vision, but just to share everything that is available.

    It cannot be business as usual. Nigerians are not fools. So, let them go to where they belong. They want to loot the country at the detriment of all Nigerians; many of them are broke and cannot get money to steal anymore because the president did not give them the opportunity of stealing any money. That is why they are back to where they belong and want to plunge the country back again.

    How are we sure that these people are not the one that is creating a lot of problems and incessant killings that we are experiencing so that the country will not be governable for the President because they do not see anything to chop? To me, their going is good radiance so that we know how many of us remaining. Even, if they’re re-branding, they are still the same set of people, Nigerians are watching. They are not threat to the APC.