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Tag: Kogi APC

  • Kogi APC, PDP trade accusations

    Kogi APC, PDP trade accusations

    •PDP planning to destabilise Kogi, says APC chieftain
    •APC camping aliens, PDP counters

    A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi State, Hon. Ganiyu Salaudeen, aka Erunkutu Yagba has raised the alarm on alleged plans by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to orchestrate unrest in the state.

    Salaudeen, a former member of the Kogi State House of Assembly representing Yagba East told The Nation yesterday in Lokoja that the APC has uncovered plans by the PDP to co-opt members of organised labour in the state into the plot to cause unrest, beginning Monday.

    He disclosed that the plan was to cause unrest in the state under the guise of protesting alleged unwillingness of the President Buhari-led administration to release Kogi’s share of the Federal Government bailout fund to states.

    The politician alleged that the PDP had already enlisted the support of the Comrade Onuh Edoka-led state council of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to disturb the relative peace in Kogi.

    He said that while the state NLC was already on the standby for the project, the PDP was yet to secure iron-clad support from the National Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE) who are owed accumulated salary of about 17 months.

    He said: “The PDP is planning to disrupt the peace of the state by instigating the workers to embark on protest over the bailout fund.

    “Again, there are insinuations from PDP that Prince Audu Abubakar is working against the release of the fund. How can an individual work against APC, the party he helped to nurture to stardom. How can an individual in the state become so powerful as to prevent a constituted authority from gaining access to the funds provided in the first place by the APC-led federal government?

    “What kind of government do we have in Kogi State? I believe labour is supposed not to be partisan by dragging unsuspecting civil servants into a cause that they ought to hold the Kogi State government responsible.

    “If Katsina State where President Buhari hails from just got its bailout last week and from investigation the PDP-led administration did not do the needful ab initio, why should they want to hang the blame on Audu and APC in Kogi State?

    “PDP is pitching the workers against APC, whereas APC is not responsible for their woes.

    “The Buhari APC administration is not unaware that generally the people of Kogi State voted en masse for APC and will be glad that the fund is released to the state as soon as the state has completed all that is required as done by other states.”

    The state government however countered the allegation levelled against the governor, describing it as an attempt by APC to divert the attention of the people of the state from a plot by the latter to destabilise the state.

    The Chief Community Manager to the Governor, Mr Phrank Shaibu, in a statement noted that the government rejected the allegation. The APC should stop seeking political capital from imagined scenario, he pointed out.

    He said: “The Kogi State government led by Capt. Idris Wada rejects the futile attempt by the APC to divert attention and criminally create a nexus between the state government and their own plot to destabilise the peace of the state.

    “While we advise that people desist from seeking political capital from scenarios they imagine would advance their parochial cause no matter how banal such causes may seem, we restate that Nigerians and Kogites in particular are aware that we have remained a model for peaceful engagement and political dialogue. Any inclination at portraying us otherwise will not be acceptable.”

    In a separate statement, the PDP alleged the presence of aliens in Kogi, accusing the APC of a plot to unleash mayhem.

    Through a statement by its publicity secretary, Mr. Bode Ogunmola, the state PDP said it unearthed a plot by the rival APC to unleash mayhem towards disruption of the election.

    Ogunmola said security reports reaching the party headquarters in the state indicated that “strange youngsters had recently encamped in some communities to the utter discomfort of their hosts.”

    He said: “The unknown guests, who are most prominent in Ajaokuta and Ijumu local government areas, reside in nondescript hotels, guest houses and indeed in cells in the forests.

    “They strut around the communities in small groups and clusters, moving around local pubs and bars and have reportedly been found consuming prohibited substances, even as they have no defined mission.

    “The youngsters in Ijumu are most prominent in Iyamoye and Ekinrin-Adde, fuelling apprehensions that they may be Diaspora supporters of Hon. James Abiodun Faleke, running mate of Prince Abubakar Audu, the APC governorship candidate.”

    Ogunmola called on security services in the state to investigate the development in order to spare the state potential confusion and disorder. “We of the PDP, as law abiding citizens, owe our people and our country the obligation to expose anything and everything which may constitute a breach of the peace, law and order in our environment.

    “We cannot be crying wolf where there is none, which is why we call on all security agencies to dig into this report to nip this development in the bud.

    “We call the attention of the Kogi State Commissioner of Police, the State Director of Security Services (DSS), the Zonal Commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), among others, to investigate the allegation.”

  • Group rallies support for Kogi APC governorship aspirant

    Group rallies support for Kogi APC governorship aspirant

    A group, Bello Support Organisation (BSO), has thrown his weight behind the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship aspirant in Kogi State, Yahaya Bello.

    The group said Bello would launch the state into a new era of development and empowerment, if given the opportunity to serve.

    Speaking during a mobilisation visit to Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, a leader of the group, Andrew Adeniyi said this is the time to free the state from the “shackles of failure and underdevelopment.”

    Adeniyi said: “BSO is an organisation that is committed to the development of Kogi State. We can’t expect a different result if we keep recycling old hands who have lost touch with modern realities of governance. We have presented to Kogi People, a 21st Century leader who is versed in development economics, a pragmatic industrialist and employer of labour, a detribalize Kogite who is a believer in the hope for a greater Kogi state.

    “With the wind of change in the country, Kogi state cannot afford to remain behind in the scheme of things. The PDP has been rejected nationally for failing us. But we must ensure the best material is used to remove Kogi from becoming the only North Central state under PDP.

    He added: “Alhaji Yahaya Bello has promised to reinvent our state, make it the food basket of the nation. He has pledged to use our nodal situation to make Kogi State the centre of commerce in Nigeria. It is a shame that Kogi is relying on Federal Allocation to pay workers with all the water and mineral resources at our disposal.

    “We are here today to herald the good news of hope. We are here today to present the agenda of the symbol of unity  to our people. We are here today to assure our people that our Messiah has come who will liberate us from hopelessness.”

    He urged Kogites to re-enact the “Buhari phenomenon” in the next governorship election in the state, saying, “the time for change is now”.

    He also hailed the people for their unalloyed support for the aspirant, saying it is an indication of the “unimpeachable resolve of the Kogi people for meaningful change”.

  • Kogi APC elders reject ex-Governor Audu

    Kogi APC elders reject ex-Governor Audu

    Elders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kogi Central have urged former Governor and chieftain of the party, Prince Abubakar Audu, to step aside from the party’s leadership in the zone.

    The elders, in a letter to President-elect Muhammadu Buhari urged him to prevail on Audu to allow the rule of law and the wind of change to take root in the zone.

    They blamed APC’s dismal performance in the House of Assembly election on the former governor’s alleged dictatorial tendencies.

    The APC chieftains stressed that Audu was more interested in building structures for his governorship ambition than working for the collective good of the party.

    The letter by the Chairman of the APC Elders’ Vanguard, Isa Sani Omolori, said it was necessary for the President-elect to intervene in the matter.

    The letter reads: “The House of Assembly election in Kogi State …shows that APC might lose the state when the governorship election comes up later in the year, except steps are taken to rectify the ugly trend.

    “The main problem of the party (APC) in the state is not that of followership but leadership, which zeroes down on former Governor Abubakar Audu, whose dictatorial politics would destroy rather than build the party.

    “Kogi State has rejected the leadership of Prince Audu. The national elections have come and gone but the ripples are much with us.

    “Audu leaves in the past and does not believe in the wind of change. Kogi Central has an entrenched progressive idea and is ready to abide by the rule of law.

    “What happened at the last national elections was for Audu to put up structures to launch his governorship ambition rather than abide by the party’s constitution and follow due process in the primaries.

    “Despite the fact that APC’s delegation from the National Working Committee (NWC) prevailed on Audu to abide by the constitution and conduct primaries, Audu simply anointed candidates of his choice and ignored the due process that would have seen popular candidates emerge.

    “Buhari’s electoral tsunami ferried the good, the bad and the ugly to victory during the presidential election. But the House of Assembly election result shows the true state of Audu’s atrocities as the dismal performance is reflective of his rejection.

    “All entreaties made to APC’s national headquarters, the last on February 2, 2015, to bring Audu to order, seemed to further boost his grip on the party.

    “Although eight of the National Assembly aspirants from (Kogi) Central are jointly in court seeking justice from Audu, we call on …Buhari to address this issue before the party goes the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) way – from grace to grass – in Kogi State. Leaving the matter with the Judiciary alone will definitely inflict more damage to the party rather than build it.”

     

  • No crisis in Kogi APC, say chairman, Audu

    No crisis in Kogi APC, say chairman, Audu

    The Kogi State All Progressives Congress (APC) said yesterday that Mr James Ocholi (SAN) was not the party’s deputy national legal adviser.

    In separate statements by the Chairman, Alhaji Haddy Ametuo, and Dr. Tom Ohikere, an APC chieftain, the party dismissed Ocholi’s claim that it (APC) was in “crisis”.

    It said Ocholi closed his eyes to the party’s growing strength  because he was nursing a hidden agenda.

    Addressing reporters in Lokoja a few days ago, Ocholi said Kogi APC was in crises and accused former Governor Abubakar Audu of being responsible for it.

    He also accused Audu of being the chief campaigner for the re-election of Governor Idris Wada of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The APC said: “The APC in Kogi State is at the stage of consolidating gains under Audu’s able leadership in preparation for victory in the2015 general elections. If a SAN can toy with impersonation, knowing fully well that he is not the national deputy legal adviser of the APC, then something is fundamentally wrong with the title – SAN.

    “That Audu gave a clean bill of health to Wada is laughable. Audu is one of the few Nigerians, who have never been members of the ruling party, whilst Ocholi was in the PDP, Labour Party (LP), the defunct Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) and now APC.

    “It is wrong for this SAN to use the word ‘crisis’ for Kogi APC at a time we are preparing to welcome prominent indigenes from the PDP to APC. On September 22, two former House of Assembly speakers and former acting governors, some state legislators, many former council chairmen (some from Dekina LGA, where Ocholi hails from), former PDP governorship candidate Mr Isah Jibril (echocho) and former PDP state chairman will formally defect to the APC in Lokoja. If this is what Ocholi calls crisis, then it is either he takes pleasure in self-ridicule or he is affected by the law of diminishing returns.

    “Kogites are never in doubt about Ocholi’s mole status. At the last governorship election, he polled 5,000 votes, losing his ward and polling unit. This is clear evidence that this man cannot win councillorship election in his ward. Ocholi is presently on suspension for anti-party activities.

    “Kogi APC has grown above what it was when Ocholi was a national officer in the interim management team. This is why he is not happy. The APC is set to take over government in the state. Kogi citizens are becoming wiser by the day. They know who to trust and who they want. Their desire for this positive change is becoming a raging storm. It is inevitable; it is divine.”

    Also yesterday, Audu said Ocholi was an interim legal adviser of the party.

    In a statement by the Director-General of the Abubakar Audu Campaign Organisation, Mr. Dino Melaye, the former governor said there was no crisis in the party.

    He said: “Our attention has been drawn to a press conference addressed by Ocholi that there is chaos in Kogi APC, where he also accused Audu of being responsible for it. Ocholi also accused Audu of being the chief campaigner for Wada, whose tenure ends in January, 2015. In essence, he was accusing Audu of anti-party activities and claiming that because of Audu, APC can’t win Kogi State in 2015.

    “I state unequivocally that the APC in Kogi is big, strong and reliable. It has no faction, no fracas and no crisis. We held an elaborate meeting last Sunday under the indomitable leadership of Audu. The myopic, porous, parochial and intellectually stagnant imaginary crisis that only exists in the head of Ocholi is not only false but also a dream. Suffice to say that a party in crisis will not on September 22 welcome over 5,000 credible defectors from the PDP, among whom are former Acting Governors Clarence Olafemi and Bello Abdullahi.

    “Others are Chief John Odawn, who was the PDP state chairman for nine years; four House of Assembly members and nine former local government chairmen.

    “If political and democratic progression are what Ocholi refers to as crisis, then the legal profession is in crisis. His claim that he is the APC’s deputy national legal adviser is an act of impersonation and falsehood.

    “My advice to Ocholi as he celebrates his political obituary is to retire back to his chambers and concentrate on what proper SANs do. When the battle is lost, slander becomes the only tool of the loser. APC will not only win the State and National assemblies’ seats, but also the governorship. My task for Ocholi is to identify one credible leader in Kogi State that associates with him.”