The Nation Newspaper

Tag: disagreement

  • Disagreement over list stalls Taraba congress

    THE All Progressives Congress (APC) in Taraba State did not hold at the weekend.

    This followed a disagreement between some APC key stakeholders and the Appeal Committee over the “delegates list” for the congress.

    It almost resulted into a big fight, but for the security that was tightened.

    A document containing the names of delegates was collected from the committee chairman, Gen. Danjuma Danbazzau and tore as not authentic.

    Gen. Danbazzau, who briefed reporters, said the list the committee was given from the party’s headquarters was discovered to have been doctored and so the committee resolved it would generate a new list from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the election which was to hold at the Jolly Nyame Stadium, Jalingo, the capital.

    “We were sent here with a list of delegates from the party’s headquarters for the conduct of this exercise. But on reaching here, we discovered the list was doctored.

    “So, we have to depend on INEC to generate a new authentic list, only for some of the actors to come and display this show of shame, calling us all sorts of names. It is unfortunate,” Danbazau said.

    He stopped the exercise indefinitely, pending when the issues will be resolved.

    Some of the governorship aspirants insisted that the delegates list issued by the party’s headquarters was the only list that was valid for the exercise.

    “INEC is only an observer; it cannot make a more authentic list than the body that is charged with the responsibility of conducting the exercise,” one governorship candidate was heard saying loudly.

    David Sabo Kente, another governorship aspirant, accused the delegate appeal committee of “conspiracy to rig the process”.

    He lamented that the stakeholders had asked the committee to display the delegate list ahead of the congress, so that everyone would know their status before the exercise.

    “But they refused and only for them to come up with a list that they have also agreed is not from the headquarters.

    The state APC had been in firm grips of the Minister of Women Affairs, Sen.  Aisha Alhassan, who was the party’s candidate in 2015 governorship election.

    Alhassan, who is also running for the 2019 governorship, was senator on PDP platform before joining APC.

    A faction, the Integrity Group, which metamorphosed into the Unity Forum, made up mostly of people who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) into the ruling party, was later formed to neutralise Alhassan from holding sway as the party’s leader in Taraba.

    The Unity Forum is made of former acting governor, Sani Abubakar Danladi, former Minister of Labour, Sen. Danlami Ikenya, former deputy governor, Uba Maigari, Sen. Abubakar Tutare, Prof. Yahaya and Aaron Artimas, who is their spokesman, among others.

    The Nation gathered that the Unity Forum has fielded former SSG and House of Representatives member, El-Sudi Tukur for the party’s chairmanship. The Aisha Alhassan group has Abdulumumini Vaki, a former and longest serving state chairman of PDP, for the chairmanship position.

    Another APC chieftain, Ahmed Yusuf, said they have accepted the suspension of the State congress in good faith, since it was by the committee sent from Abuja. He added that they are ready to participate in the exercise any day the headquarters will give.

     

     

  • Disagreement over list stalls Taraba congress

    THE All Progressives Congress (APC) in Taraba State did not hold at the weekend.

    This followed a disagreement between some APC stakeholders and the Appeal Committee over the “delegates list” for the congress.

    It almost resulted into a big fight, but for the security that was tightened.

    A document containing the names of delegates was collected from the committee chairman, Gen. Danjuma Danbazzau and tore as not authentic.

    Gen. Danbazzau, who briefed reporters, said the list the committee was given from the party’s headquarters was discovered to have been doctored and so the committee resolved it would generate a new list from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the election which was to hold at the Jolly Nyame Stadium, Jalingo, the capital.

    “We were sent here with a list of delegates from the party’s headquarters for the conduct of this exercise. But on reaching here, we discovered the list was doctored.

    “So, we have to depend on INEC to generate a new authentic list, only for some of the actors to come and display this show of shame, calling us all sorts of names. It is unfortunate,” Danbazau said.

    He stopped the exercise indefinitely, pending when the issues will be resolved.

    Some of the governorship aspirants insisted that the delegates list issued by the party’s headquarters was the only list that was valid for the exercise.

    “INEC is only an observer; it cannot make a more authentic list than the body that is charged with the responsibility of conducting the exercise,” one governorship candidate was heard saying loudly.

    David Sabo Kente, another governorship aspirant, accused the delegate appeal committee of “conspiracy to rig the process”.

    He lamented that the stakeholders had asked the committee to display the delegate list ahead of the congress, so that everyone would know their status before the exercise.

    “But they refused and only for them to come up with a list that they have also agreed is not from the headquarters.

    The state APC had been in firm grips of the Minister of Women Affairs, Sen.  Aisha Alhassan, who was the party’s candidate in 2015 governorship election.

    Alhassan, who is also running for the 2019 governorship, was senator on PDP platform before joining APC.

     

  • Disagreement over dirty naira note turns bloody in Lagos

    A disagreement between a commercial motorcyclist and his passenger over a dirty naira note turned bloody  yesterday in Lagos as irate youths beat the cyclist to a state of coma. The cyclist, Okon Akpan, according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) had conveyed his passenger, Titilope Fatai, from Okokomaiko to Iyana Iba market, for a fee of N200.

    Trouble however started when Fatai paid the cyclist with a N500 note  but when Akpan gave his passenger her N300 balance, made up of N200 and N100 notes, the lady returned the N100 and requested for replacement on the grounds that it was “too dirty”. A heated argument soon ensued as the cyclist insisted he did not have a neater note to replace the one rejected  by his passenger.

    As Akpan tried to leave without reaching an accord, the lady slapped him and he in return, started beating her. Unkown to the cyclist, the lady was popular among the street urchins in the area, who in turn, reacted by also beating Akpan to a state of unconsciousness, and thereafter dispersed. His fellow commercial motorcyclists had to come to his rescue, after which they took him to an undisclosed hospital.

  • Otukpo: Disagreement over death of five at APC meeting

    …Nobody was killed at the said meeting
    – Yaro, APC state chair

    There is disagree-ment over the death of five persons, allegedly killed at a zonal caucus meeting of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Benue South Senatorial District in Otukpo, Benue State.

    According to an eyewitness, Omale Obande, the meeting was attended by the Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogbeh, and other elected and political office holders from Benue State, including the chairman of APC in Benue State, Abba Yaro.

    Mr. Obande told The Nation that there was disagreement over the purported endorsement of the chairman of APC, Abba Yaro, as some party men and women who attended the zonal caucus meeting kicked against his endorsement for a second term as chairman.

    The chairman of the APC, Benue State Chapter, Abba Yaro, has been in a running battle with some APC members and they have vowed to replace him at the coming party congress.

    But the chairman, according to some sources, is scheming behind the scene for re-election and his ambition is generating tension within the state chapter of APC.

    But at the zonal meeting, where the matter was discussed, according to the eyewitness, some thugs attacked some members alleged to be opposed to Yaro’s re-election. This degenerated into a fracas where five people were allegedly killed while many others sustained serious injuries.

    But in his reaction, the chairman of APC, Abba Yaro, told The Nation that nobody was killed at the zonal meeting held in Otukpo.

    “The meeting took place at Double K Hotel in Otukpo and it was peaceful and ended on a peaceful note,” he said. Abba Yaro added that his enemies are the ones spreading the dangerous rumour.

    Police spokesman Moses Yamu’s official confirmation could not be obtained as he failed to pick his calls yesterday.

     

  • Resource control disagreement tears Conference apart

    Resource control disagreement tears Conference apart

    Northern delegates to the National Conference yesterday remained unyielding in their opposition to the 18 per cent derivation principle proposed by the conference committee on Devolution of Power.

    Today’s concluding session of the conference has be tagged “a make or break session.”

    A source close to the leadership of the conference told our correspondent in Abuja that the refusal of the leader of northern delegates, former Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Coomasie and others to sign some proposed amendments to the key recommendations of the Devolution of Power committee is a source of worry to the conference leadership.

    Apart from Coomasie, others who did not endorse the proposed amendment are Alhaji Mohammed Umara Kumalia, Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu, Prof. Jerry Gana, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu and Comrade Bobboi Bala Kaigama.

    The proposed amendment  is entitled “Amend recommendation (a) on page 39 of the report of the committee on Devolution of Power by substituting with the following.”

    The new document was endorsed by Prof. Ibrahim Gambari, Adamu Maina Waziri, Senator Ibrahim Ida, Chief Olu Falae, Gen. Alani Akinrinade, Gen Ike Nwachukwu, Prof. Anya O. Anya and 18 others.

    The proposed amendment states: “1(a) Provided that the principle of derivation shall be constantly reflected in any approved formula as being not less than 18 per cent of the revenue accruing to the federation account directly from any natural resources.

    “1(b) That not less than 50 per cent of the total derivation fund accruable to a mineral bearing state shall be due and payable to the host communities within the state where the resources are derived in accordance with the production quota contributed to such community.

    “2, There shall be established a mineral’s development fund which shall not be less than 5 per cent of the revenue accruing to the federation accounts. The funds shall be applied to minerals development in the state. This is borne out of the need to urgently and practically expand the economic base of the country, increase the gross domestic product, generate employment and promote the general development of the country.

    “3, There shall be a national intervention fund which shall be 5 per cent of the annual revenue accruing to the account of the federal government for the stabilisation, rehabilitation and reconstruction of infrastructure in areas affected by terrorism and insurgency, especially in the Northeast zone of Nigeria and any other state in Nigeria that may be affected by terrorism and insurgency.”

    The source noted that “all entreaties to convince Coomasie and a few others to endorse these amendments have failed.”

    He added that “tomorrow’s (today’s) session will be the make or mar session of this conference.”

    Information emerged yesterday that some southern delegates met on Saturday in Abuja to articulate how they would vote as block on some sensitive recommendations of the Devolution of Power committee.

    A source who attended the meeting assured that “we are united and resolved that it is 18 per cent derivation principle or nothing.”

    He added: “We have the believe that some northern delegates planned to break up the conference on the pretext of opposition to resource control.”