The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Obanikoro

  • George, Lagos PDP elated at stall of Obanikoro’s screening

    George, Lagos PDP elated at stall of Obanikoro’s screening

    A faction of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Lagos State has hailed the postponement of the screening of ministerial nominees.

    Sources within the party said some Lagos PDP stalwarts were elated about this development as a nominee, Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, a former high commissioner in Ghana and former minister of State for Defence, is perceived as “power drunk and disrespectful of higher party authorities”.

    They said:  “It was jubilation galore when we heard the news because most of us in Lagos do not want Musiliu Obanikoro to represent the state at the ministerial level.

    “We believe that with him as a minister, he will want to lord it over us all and automatically want to unseat Chief Bode George as the party leader in Lagos.

    “A direction that we are committed to resist vehemently, especially when you consider the rising popularity of PDP in Lagos.

    “We all saw his behaviour when he was the Minister of State for Defence.

    “He turned himself to a god, though he was a junior minister. If he is now made a senior minister, then nobody in PDP Lagos will mean anything to him.

    “Look at the way Obanikoro handled his failure to clinch PDP’s governorship ticket, the decision to challenge the primaries result in court and the disdainful treatment of Lagos PDP strongman, Chief Bode George.

    “He felt because he was just coming from the federal level the ticket will be automatic not imagining he might lose to Jimi Agbaje, a relatively new PDP member then. After he lost, all hell was let loose on us.

    “You all witnessed the kind of treatment he meted out on the state leaders, Chief George and Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe, calling them names.”

    After losing the Lagos primaries, it was gathered that Obanikoro was promised a senior ministerial slot as compensation, following a reconciliation meeting led by Vice President Namadi Sambo and former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi held in Lagos in December.

    Prior to this meeting, Obanikoro had publicly lambasted his party’s conduct of the Lagos primaries describing it as a ‘sham’.

    The former minister also engaged in a war of words with Agbaje and Chief George, consequently making attempts to seek redress in court.

    Beside his penchant for vocal outbursts and power , the concerned members of Lagos PDP added that Obanikoro’s role in the ‘Ekitigate’ election rigging scandal has become an embarrassment to the party.

    “With the ‘Ekitigate’ tape and video in the public domain, his alleged role and involvement is working against the party winning the election in the state.

    “In fact, he can not be trusted as to his total loyalty to the party in Lagos State.”

  • Group faults Obanikoro’s nomination

    Group faults Obanikoro’s nomination

    A group, Nigeria United to Save Democracy (NUSADEM) has condemned the nomination of former Minister of State for Defence Musiliu Obanikoro as a ministerial nominee.

    It said screening him was a waste of time “because he is not competent”.

    The group, which stormed the National Assembly with its petition, said the former minister did not contribute meaningfully to the development of the country but rather misused his position and used the military under his ministry as an agent of terror.

    The petition, signed by the joint National Coordinators, Adebayo Adebayo and Toyin Raheem, said: “If a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Bode George, can refer to Obanikoro as ‘a desperate sinking man, grasping and thrashing in self inflicted chasm, whose antecedents reek in noisome, vagrant and untidy ruffianism’ then it is obvious that he could no longer be trusted with national responsibilities.

    “To preserve the dignity of the hallowed chambers, we call on you to refrain from considering Senator Musiliu Obanikoro for a ministerial position in Nigeria.”

  • ‘Don’t screen Obanikoro’

    ‘Don’t screen Obanikoro’

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State has reiterated its stand that former Minister of State for Defence Musiliu Obanikoro should not be cleared for ministerial appointment.

    In a statement in Lagos by its Publicity Secretary, Joe Igbokwe, the party said Nigeria must not continue to reward persons with questionable character in a nation where good and quality people were not in short supply.

    “Ekitigate scandal is such a weighty and monumental fraud that cannot be swept under carpet as it rocks and undermines the very foundation of our democratic journey.

    “Obanikoro and his co-travellers in the Ekitigate scandal must be brought to book to serve as a deterrent to others. When offenders are not punished the hearts of the people are schemed to continue to do wrong.

    “What is the purpose of reappointing the former minister who has just lost out in a primary, if not to continue to use the exalted position to plunder our common patrimony at this critical point in the nation’s history?

    “We in Lagos APC reject Obanikoro, we denounce this reappointment, and we strongly urge the Senate not to confirm him in the interest of the country and democracy.”

  • Rigging clip: Reps ask Senate to stop Obanikoro’s screening

    Rigging clip: Reps ask Senate to stop Obanikoro’s screening

    Members of the House of Representatives have asked the Senate not to confirm  Senator Musiliu Obanikoro as a minister, until the scandal of the Ekiti rigging audio clip has been investigated.

    The lawmakers said due to the weight of the allegations, there was need to ascertain Obanikoro’s involvement in the alleged rigging of the last June 21 governorship election in Ekiti State.

    President Goodluck Jonathan has sent a list of eight ministerial nominees, including Obanikoro, to the Senate.

    Minority Leader Femi Gbajabiamila, in a motion of urgent national importance, said in light of the damning audio clip, it was necessary to probe the  involvement of the army in the postponement of the elections earlier slated for February 14 and 28.

    “The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof Attahiru Jega, said the elections were postponed because the military said it could not guarantee security for the election. We should look at it critically to see if the military has a role in the postponement of the elections.”

    The motion was slated for debate today.

    In a chat with The Nation after plenary yesterday, Gbajabiamila and Chairman, Committee on Public Accounts Solomon Olamilekan  Adeola said the Senate should neither screen nor confirm Obanikoro, pending the conclusion of the probe into the audio clip.

    Gbajabiamila said:  “Part of my prayer is to have the audio clip of the Ekiti election investigated because it is a matter that this House has to address to determine whether or not the military has a role to play in our elections.

    “My prayer is to investigate it and then for the government to declare that we cannot use the military in the election. There are two court judgments now. In the last few weeks; the Court of Appeal judgment states that the military has no role in election.

    “They should fire the Commanding Officer of 32 Artillery Brigade, Brig-General Aliyu Momoh and Obanikoro because you can’t have such evidence and a week later you confirm them, it’s not done. In another country, he will be facing trial.”

    According to him, INEC as an independent body, acted within the purview of the law, adding that there was no need for consultation with the National Assembly before taking such step.

    “What led to the postponement is the question we need to ask. The commission would only require the National Assembly’s approval in case there is need for another postponement. Which they won’t get.”

    Adeola described the allegation against Obanikoro as weighty and said  there was need for an in-depth probe before the Senate’s approval.

    “We are calling on the Senate to investigate before clearing Senator Obanikoro for any appointment. If he is found wanting, his nomination should be declined by the Senate.”

  • ‘Obanikoro not competent’

    A group, Nigeria United to Save Democracy (NUSADEM) has condemned the nomination of former Minister of State for Defence Musiliu Obanikoro.

    It said screening him was a waste of time “because he is not competent”.

    The group, which stormed the National Assembly, said the former minister did not contribute meaningfully to the development of the country but rather misused his position and used the military under his ministry as an agent of terror.

    A petition, signed by the joint National Coordinators, Adebayo Adebayo and Toyin Raheem, said: “If a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Bode George, can refer to Obanikoro as ‘a desperate sinking man, grasping and thrashing in self inflicted chasm, whose antecedents reek in noisome, vagrant and untidy ruffianism’ then it is obvious that he could no longer be trusted with national responsibilities.

    “To preserve the dignity of the hallowed chambers, we call on you to refrain from considering Senator Obanikoro as a minister.”

  • Audio clip: Soldiers ready to testify in court – Fayemi

    Audio clip: Soldiers ready to testify in court – Fayemi

    Former Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, has revealed that some military officers are ready to give evidence in court over the audio clip that caught senior Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members and military chiefs plotting how to rig the June 21, 2014 governorship election in the state.

    Speaking on a live programme, “APC Change Hour,” on an Akure, Ondo State-based ADABA 88.9 FM monitored in Ado-Ekiti on Thursday, Fayemi said the postponement of the 2015 general elections was not about security but about a high-wired plot to rig the polls.

    The audio clip was aired on the radio station with the alleged voices of Governor Ayo Fayose, former Minister of State (Defence), Musiliu Obanikoro, Police Affairs Minister, Jelili Adesiyan, Osun State Peoples Democratic Party governorship candidate, Iyiola Omisore and Gen. Aliyu Momoh haggling about rigging plans ahead of the poll.

    He said the postponement was about a “desperate government and a desperate President that is afraid of a loss and using a military that became a willing tool.”

    The former governor said the PDP-led administration was trying to re-enact the rigging perpetrated in Ekiti with the alleged misuse of the military at the forthcoming general election.

    Fayemi stressed that the upper echelon of the military was guilty of treason against the state with its role in the dramatic postponement of the polls, saying the first duty of the government through the armed forces is security of lives and property.

    He deplored a situation in which the military institution has been desecrated with the army generals being harassed and intimidated by politicians desperate to rig elections for their party.

     

  • Ekiti poll audio: How Fayose, Obanikoro threatened General

    Ekiti poll audio: How Fayose, Obanikoro threatened General

    More facts emerged yesterday from the audio recording of the session held in Ado Ekiti by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftains to perfect the rigging plot for the June 21, last year, election in Ekiti State.

    Besides Governor Ayodele Fayose, who was then the PDP candidate, there were former Minister of State (Defence) Musiliu Obanikoro, Minister of Police Affairs Jelili Awosiyan, Senator Iyiola Omisore and Hon. Abdulkareem, among others, who met with Brig Gen. Aliyu Momoh.

    Gen. Momoh, according to the audio recording posted by online medium Sahara Reporters, was deployed by the military top brass to aid the rigging plan, using soldiers moved into the state for the purpose.

    The video was made available by Capt Sagir Kojoli, who said he was an intelligence officer deployed for the mission. He is now on AWOL.

    Fayose was declared winner of the election, wining in all the 16 local government areas against Governor Kayode Fayemi, who was the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    From the conversation, the plan had the backing of the Presidency and the Chief of Army Staff.

    The military men to be used for the “operation” were also to wear special stickers. They were to arrest top leaders of the APC and assist in manipulating the ballot.

    The troops were also to provide cover for those taking illegal election materials around, whose vehicles were not to be searched at checking points.

    Fayose in the audio was unhappy that Gen Momoh was not fully carrying out instructions.  He complained that “there is no vehicle that left this place without that sticker. The people you just disarmed had that sticker clear and clean. Today, they went to Efon (Alaye) to carry all the materials.

    “We are supposed to be collating these things INEC gave to us, the soft copies we have printed and everything because they see INEC thing on top of it. Why is my contact man not with them? I said my contact man will be sitting at the check point permanently.”

    Accusing Gen. Momoh of not being very effective, Fayose said at the meeting that “if the Gen. wants to spoil it (their plan), let him tie his head because we are going to wage a war against him. The war is imminent.”

    Recounting how the General was introduced to him, Fayose said: “I was in my house when the chief of army staff called me and told me he has briefed him and gave me his number because I never met him before. He told me ‘you are in safe hands; he would perform and if you have any issues, call me’… I never met him in my life. He only called me with the instruction from the Villa. Each time we explain this to this man, he is … everything is porous.”

    At another point during the conversation, Fayose also said: “We have to call the president and let him know. These people are doing something. They will not even serve the policemen that want to help us. We can’t continue like this.”

    In response to a statement by Hon. Abdulkareem, Gen Momoh said: “I’m a stakeholder. It is more in my heart than you.”

    Assuring the meeting of support, Gen Momoh said: “There are about six special teams … I have one strike force. I have almost 40 soldiers after deployment.”

    To extract full commitment from Gen. Momoh Obanikoro said: “Don’t talk too much. I want you to go and work and deliver for us. Look here, you can’t get promotion without me sitting on top of your military council. If I’m a happy man tomorrow night, the sky is your limit… I’m not here for tea party. I’m on a special assignment by the president.”

    Adesiyan added: “So that when next we have someone to send on a special assignment, it will be you”

    Among the issues discussed was the arrest of leaders of the APC prior to or on the election. Among those on the list is the Director General of the Fayemi campaign, Bimbo Daramola, a member of the House of Representatives and the Commissioner for Finance, Dapo Kolawole

    Gen. Momoh also briefed the session that “we have done a lot of arrests, me and Oga Chris.”

  • Obanikoro woos Lagosians for Jonathan

    Obanikoro woos Lagosians for Jonathan

    Former Minister of State for Defence Senator Musiliu Obanikoro has called on the people of Lagos State to vote for President Goodluck Jonathan  at the general elections.

    He described the President as a non-tribal leader, who has always avoided discrimination, nepotism or favouritism.

    Obanikoro, who spoke at a rally organised by the Goodluck Sambo Independent Campaign Group in Badagry, said those opposed to the President’s re-election’s bid are selfish.

    He added: “Jonathan has made Nigeria his constituency and has never discriminated against any tribe. We cannot continue to judge Buhari based on what we think he will do in future. He should be judged by what he did as a former Head of State.”

  • Obanikoro desperate, says Lagos APC

    Obanikoro desperate, says Lagos APC

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State has described the statement credited to former Minister of State for Defence, Musliu Obanikoro, that APC will run down Nigeria the way it ran down Lagos as the ranting of a desperate man.

    In a statement by its Publicity Secretary, Joe Igbokwe, the party said Obanikoro was oozing nonsense after his humiliation in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primary.

    The party advised Obanikoro to rehabilitate his battered political image before uttering incoherent jabs.

    It said: “It is apparent that Obanikoro is still smarting from the dazing he got when his dream of ruling Lagos was finally nailed.

    “It is apparent that Obanikoro is searching for words  to gratify himself once again to his outgoingAbuja patrons.

    “From every indication, the former minister was jesting or trying to poke fun on the fading PDP that has so disappointed him.

    “Yes, APC will “run down” Nigeria to a country where infrastructure works, where jobs are created, where there is security, where schools and hospitals work, where roads are fixed, where free housing is provided, where the economy is robust.

    “This is the type of “run down” Nigeria requires today far from the PDP “glorious” picture of massive looting, ethnic and sectarian division and acrimony, worsening unemployment, infrastructural wreckage, total unemployment, overwhelming inflation, total devaluation of Naira, where life expectancy has reduced, where poverty walks on “four” legs, where there is no light, where the citizens live in fear.”

  • Lagos PDP primaries defective, says Obanikoro

    Lagos PDP primaries defective, says Obanikoro

    • I went to court to protest injustice

    Former Lagos State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant Senator Musiliu Obanikoro has reflected on the governorship primaries, insisting that the process was defective.

    The former Minister of State for Defence said he embraced reconciliation because the interest of the party is greater than the ambition of members. But, he said he went to court so that thye mistake will not be repeated in the future.

    Obanikoro spoke on a live television programme in Lagos on the flawed shadow poll, his rejection of the results and recourse to litigation to protest the injustice. He maintained that the number of votes were more than the number of accredited delegates, adding that the discrepancy dented the image of the chapter.

    Explaining why he went to court to protest the flawed process, he said: I fought against a process that was not transparent to make the necessary correction. I went to court to correct that. The number of votes was 867. The delegates were 806. Our vision is for a greater Lagos. We needed to clean up the process. Whatever we do today can serve as a precedent. We want those coming behind us to have a worthy legacy to emulate.

    “We went to court and the leadership of the party intervened. I can assure you. We are not going to have a repeat of that in Lagos State. We have taken this to the highest level of our party leadership. We will not have a repeat of this where figures will change without explanation.”

    Obanikoro, who said politicians must not sacrifice the collective interest of their parties on the alter of personal ambition, warned against the danger of faulty primaries.

    He said, for the first time in the history of the Lagos PDP, members did not defect to another party in protest because of the flawed primaries.

    The former minister, however, clarified between what he described as a process that is tainted and a process that is illegal. He said: “Can you build legally on an illegal land? When we say something is tainted, it does not mean that it is illegal. We can remember the election of George Bush and Al Gore in the Unites States. The Supreme Court said otherwise. The society is bigger than individuals. Look at the election of Kennedy and Richard Nixon. But, the leadership preserved the country for patriotic reasons.”

    The politician said a flawed primary cannot always be avoided because of human errors. He added: “There is no perfect condition of humanity. It is continuous. We must continue to find solution.”

    Obanikoro dismissed the rumour that he agreed to support the flag bearer, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, because he was promised a ministerial position. He said President Goodluck Jonathan reserved the right to determine the person that will become a minister.

    The former minister spoke on the challenge of next year’s election, stressing that the PDP can only win the battle, if it is united.

    He stressed: “To win Lagos, we must be united. We want a government that will constructively engage the Federal Government.”

    Obanikoro also highlighted conditions for a hitch-free elections, saying that post-electoral violence can be averted. He added: “The leadership on both sides must embrace peace and their body language must lead to that. We need peace and tranquility to move Nigeria forward.”