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Tag: Olabode George

  • I will fulfill all promises – Atiku

    The presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, on Tuesday said he would fulfill all his electoral promises to Nigerians if elected.

    He gave the assurance in Lagos while speaking at the party’s presidential rally.

    The Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki; Atiku‘s running -mate, Mr Peter Obi; the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, were some of the prominent personalities at the rally.

    Former governor of Ekiti, Mr Ayo Fayose; former Ogun governor, Otunba Gbenga Daniel; Sen. Ben-Bruce, a former presidential spokesman, Chief Doyin Okupe; were also at the rally.

    Atiku and his entourage were welcome to the state by a former Deputy-National Chairman of PDP, Chief Olabode George and the party’s governorship candidate, Mr Jimi Agbaje and a mammoth crowd of party faithful.

    Atiku emphasized that he would not renege on his promise to restructure the country to fast track development.

    The PDP candidate said he would fulfil his promise to revamp the economy and create jobs.

    He said the spate of killings and other security challenges in the country was disturbing, promising to tackle the problem head-on.

    Atiku urged Nigerians to reject the All Progressives Congress (APC), saying the party had failed the people in all its electoral promises.

    “When I say I am going to do something, I am going to do it; I am not like APC that will promise something but will not fulfil them.

    “I promised Nigerians that I am going to restructure the country, I am going to do it.

    “I promised Nigerians I am going to create jobs, I have been creating jobs and I will create more jobs for you.

    “The APC promised to create jobs, but we have been losing jobs, we have the largest unemployment case in our history.

    “APC said they were going to improve security; we had security challenges only in the North East; today, we have insecurity in the North West, North Central, they have failed Nigerians.

    “They said they were going to revamp the economy, today, we are the headquarters of poverty in the world.

    “I promise you, I am going to reverse all these when I am elected”, he said.

    Atiku said Lagos residents deserved a better deal than they were currently getting from the APC government.

    The PDP said the problem of traffic and other problems were surmountable with the ideal government in place.

    He said he could vouch for the credibility, passion and capacity of Agbaje to move the state forward .

    Atiku urged Nigerians and Lagos residents to vote PDP from top to bottom for good governance.

    In his speech, Obi said the PDP was the best bet for the progress of the country and the well-being of citizens.

    He urged all Nigerians to cast their votes for the party on Feb. 16 and March 2 “for a better Nigeria “.

    Speaking, Saraki said a vote for Atiku was a vote for a better and a prosperous Nigeria .

    Read Also: I am the author of restructuring – Atiku

    He said the PDP candidate had the capacity to revamp the economy and hence, create massive jobs for citizens.

    Saraki claimed the APC government had brought sufferings to the country, urging Lagos residents to reject the ruling party at the polls.

    “When you vote for Atiku Abubakar, you vote for a better economy, when you vote for a better economy, you vote for jobs, and when you vote for jobs for the youth,you vote for prosperity and a better Nigeria.

    “I urge Nigerians, particularly Lagos residents, to end the sufferings in the country by rejecting the APC and voting for Atiku,” he said.

    Agbaje, in his speech, said the PDP and Atiku had solutions to all the problems bedevilling the country.

    He said it was time Lagos freed itself from what he called the political hegemony of people with vested interests, and embrace a government that truly cares.

    He said if elected, he would deliver service and provide the real governance that residents deserved.

     

    NAN

     

  • Why Nigerians should vote for my husband, by Titi Atiku

    Mrs Titi Atiku-Abubakar, wife of the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, on Wednesday urged Nigerians to vote her husband on Feb. 16 to move the country forward.

    She made the call in Lagos while addressing PDP faithful and residents at an interactive meeting of the party.

    The News Agency of Nigeria reports that prominent members including a former PDP Deputy National Chairman, Chief Olabode George; the party’s governorship candidate, Mr Jimi Agbaje; and his running-mate, Mrs Haleemat Busari, attended the meeting.

    A former governor of Ogun State and Director-General of Atiku Campaign Organisation, Otunba Gbenga Daniel was also among hundreds of party faithful present.

    Mrs Abubakar said the task to reposition the country and set her on the path of prosperity required somebody with the right capacity like her husband.

    The candidate’s wife said her husband had the experience and the passion to further the country ‘s progress, adding that a vote for Atiku is a vote for a better Nigeria.

    “Atiku is what Nigeria needs right now to move her forward. My husband is experienced and he has the capacity to improve the fortunes of the country.

    “He is an educationist, a philanthropist, a businessman and a lover of the masses. Atiku is committed to a new Nigeria. So, on Feb. 16, I urge you to vote my husband to end all the sufferings in the country,” she said.

    She decried the high rate of poverty in the country, saying the situation had turned many Nigerians, especially young people, to crime and prostitution.

    Abubakar blamed the situation on what she called absence of the right policies and programmes to create jobs and empower the youths and women.

    The candidate’s wife said her husband would fulfil the promise to run an all-inclusive government to create opportunities for all segments of the society, especially youths and women.

    “Atiku knows the youths and the women of this country are suffering and he wants to put an end to all the sufferings.

    Read Also: How pastor confessed to defrauding Atiku’s wife, by EFCC detective

    “Atiku cares about young people and women and he will create opportunities to make their lives better.

    “For the women, he said he is going to give us 30 per cent in his cabinet and that he is going to give the youths 40 per cent.

    “Our youths are jobless, our ladies are roaming the streets, everywhere you go, what you see is suffering and this must come to an end, and for this to come to an end, we need to vote the man Atiku to get Nigeria working again,” she said.

    According to her, Nigeria witnessed great leaps in the economy when her husband was in charge of the economy as Vice-President to former President, Olusegun Obasanjo.

    She said some of the economic legacies of Obasanjo/Atiku government like banking consolidation, pension reforms and telecommunication revolution were still standing.

    The candidate’s wife said her husband would also bring his business acumen to bear on the economy to create jobs and prosperity.

    She said Atiku would unify the country as he was a detribalised Nigerian, not given to bigotry or nepotism.

    Abubakar urged Nigerians to reject the All Progressives Congress (APC), saying citizens were better off in the 16years of PDP than the three and half years of the present government.

    She said that Agbaje was committed to a better state and urged residents to vote him along other PDP candidates.

    The candidate’s wife commended George for facilitating the meeting, saying the chieftain had always demonstrated commitment to the progress of the party.

    Speaking on the chances of PDP in the state, Daniel said victory was sure for the party with Atiku as presidential candidate.

    “By the time Atiku wins the presidential election on Feb 16, the people of the state would automatically vote for Agbaje in March,’’ he said.

    Daniel urged Nigerians to use the opportunity of the election to vote Atiku to deliver what he called the right leadership.

  • ‘Learn from Shagari’s forgiving spirit’

    Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Chieftain Chief Olabode George has urged politicians to learn from former President shehu Shagari’s patriotism, simplicity and forgiving spirit.

    In a condolence message, he said: “Our former President, Alhaji Shehu Shagari, who transited the way of all mortals and was buried yesterday in his humble homestead of Shagari Village was a true patriot without adornments, stripped of hubris, fully fleshed in modesty and calmness of purpose.

    “His passage at the age of 93 has robbed this nation of a man whose leadership was unforced, whose vision was focused, whose devotion to the nation was thorough without any tincture of ethnic bias. He was straight laced in all ramifications.

    Read also: Shagari… His dreams for Nigeria

    “He bore no grudges nor was he embittered by any experience. He calmly moved on, undetained by enmity.

    George added: “Our first Executive President was without malice, cheerful and confident, distant from rancor, beholding totally to the forgiven spirit.

    I first met him when he came to launch the Nigerian Naval flagship, NNS Aradu sometime in 1980. Even as the rallying leader of our nation, he shown with certain poise and instinctive humility. He carried about him a candid nobility, long tempered by accustomed natural simplicity.

    It is this softened, friendly, radiating defining aura that ultimately molded the essential corpus of this great man throughout his life.”

     

  • Bode George to youths: Don’t repeat mistakes of the past

    Former Deputy National Chairman (South) of the People’s Democratic Party, Chief Olabode George has warned Nigerian youths against repeating mistakes of the past.

    He said that without the knowledge of history amongst the youths, the mistakes that led to the civil war ans disagreement in the western region could be repeated.

    Speaking in Abuja at the elder statesmen’s reflections on Nigeria and the launch of a national compendium organised by the National Orientation Agency (NOA), he said that most youths, 35 years downwards are unable to say what led to the civil war or disagreement in the western region.

    His words, “The great American philosopher George Samtayana said ‘those who forget the past will be condemned to repeat it’ these days we realise that history is no longer taught in our schools, civic education is no longer taught in our schools, it must be made compulsory in our schools.

    Read Also: Obasanjo and I are reunited at last – Bode George

    “It gives them the foundation of understanding where the nation is coming from, they can appreciate the enormous problems of those who are in governance and the pitfalls of the past which can be avoided.

    “Take anyone from the age of 35 downwards and ask them what led to the disagreement of the old western region or the Nigerian civil war they will not know. We have remained a nation for 104 yrs that in itself is a great achievement. Let us beam further on the part of progression and Pacific relations and continue to stampout the ideology of hatred.”

    Director General, NOA said that the compendium  beams the searchlight on gladiators who fought to keep Nigeria together despite the odds.

    His words, “It bears a searchlight on Nigeria’s 100years of historic bonding and the legends who have contributed their quota as captured in the compendium of the peace gladiators who against all odds fought to ensure that stands firm and tall, the challenges and hiccups witnessed in some parts of the country is just a pasaing face.”

  • Bode George tasks INEC on electoral neutrality

    Chief Olabode George, former Deputy National Chairman (South) of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has tasked the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to be neutral in the conduct of the 2019 elections.

    George, who spoke in an interview with the our reporters  on Wednesday in Port Harcourt, urged the election umpire to  conduct free and fair elections.

    He challenged the body to put on record an election void of hindrance that would not endanger the will of the majority.

    “My appeal is that there should be nothing to hinder the election process, the election must be fair, just and equitable,” the PDP chieftain said.

    He alleged that there were electoral irregularities in the Ekiti and Osun state elections, urging the election umpire to ensure a more transparent process in 2019.

    “The display in Ekiti and Osun state elections, simply put, was an absolute charade.

    “It was disheartening for me, because this is 21st century, we should always think about the perception of the international community concerning our democracy.

    “If you read their reports on Ekiti and Osun state elections, it speaks volume about the irregularities perpetrated in those elections.

    “My sincere appeal to INEC, please don’t manipulate the process, let the will of the majority be respected and sustained,” he said.

    The party chieftain expressed optimism on his party’s chances of winning the 2019 general elections, urging the ruling party, APC, to exhibit same level of statesmanship displayed in 2015 by former President Goodluck Jonathan if it eventually loses to the PDP.

    “If we lose this election, we shall go back and prepare ahead of 2023, but if we win, please don’t manipulate the process.

    “The statesmanship exhibited by former president Jonathan was indeed a hallmark of our renewed strength, because through that, we went back to our drawing board.

    “We did a postmortem and we saw where we went wrong and we are set to deliver good government to our people based on our renewed strength and knowledge,” he said.

    NAN

  • You are free to move to any party, Bode George tells Salvador

    Former National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Chief Olabode George has said the party was not in crisis in Lagos State.

    He said Lagos PDP chairman Moshood Salvador was free to move to any party.

    At a conference in Lagos on Monday, he said those speculating that Lagos PDP was in crisis was a figment of some people’s imagination.

    He Lagos PDP would remain united irrespective of the decision of the minority views in the party.

    He said the decision by Salvador to move to another party was quite instructive on the investigation about the murdered Lagos PDP chieftain Adeniyi Aborishade.

    He said: “Why is it now that the man is moving to another party. Why did he not provide security at the venue PDP was meeting when Adeniyi Aborishade was attacked and murdered.

    “Those who are alleging that I am the cause of crisis in Lagos are out of their minds. There is no crisis in Lagos, we are united in our resolve to advance the cause of the party.”

    George said the killings of PDP chieftain was unfortunate, calling on party members to support the deceased family to overcome the pains.

    Read Also: Bode George to Buhari, Obasanjo: Let’s sheath the sword

    He said the party would not relent in the efforts to get justice for the slain politician who was killed on July 21.

    “There is something terribly disturbing about our justice system. The rule of law is now being distorted, savaged, abused, treated with contempt, trampled upon with callous indifference.

    “There is palpable uncertainty everywhere as no one is sure when and how right prevails over the festering wrongs, and how and the scale of Justice prevails in sweeping latitude.

    “Without the strict adherence to the sacrosanct largeness of the rule of law, without the natural guidance of the enlightened spectacle of societal thematic truth, we are all endangered, democracy itself becomes wobbly, teeters upon the cliffhanger of ruin.

    “But this should never happen. We must all defend and protect this hard earned democracy. We can’t fold our hands and pretend a stoic indifference while the normative essence of the democratic order is gradually being trampled and dragged in the mud,” he said.

    Salvador who later addressed party chieftains at his office said he had dumped the PDP for the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    He said no few than 15,000 party members would move with him to the APC, noting that he could no longer be in the same party with George.

    The Lagos PDP chieftain maintained that George was the problem of the party, stressing that he frame him up over the slain Aborishade.

    He said: “I am not happy that I some people in the state have been frustrating my efforts to win  the state for the PDP, but since they don’t appreciate this, I have to move to where my efforts will be recognized.

    “The PDP chairman and other party chieftain s have been calling me to discourage me on the move, but no looking back. I have to take my people to where they will will make progress, so the APC is the only party that can guarantee this.”

    He said he would formerly decamped on October 3.

  • How not to assess Lagos under Ambode

    I say without any equivocation that this young man who is there now-AkinwunmiAmbode-he has raised the stake of performance (in Lagos State) especially in infrastructure.— Olabode George, chieftain of the opposition People’s Democratic Party,( PDP).

    About the time strident critics in Nigeria had begun to come to terms with the reality of Lagos as standing out of the pack in an environment of ill-performing states posting distressing infrastructure-deficit indices, a global body has turned out a report suggesting the contrary. So on the one hand, we have the rare acclaim of a known censurer of the Ambode government; and on the hand we are being offered the partial picture of what is on the ground.

    According to the 2018 Global Liveability Index released by The Economist Intelligence Unit(EIU) World Bank, ‘’Lagos is the third worst city to live in.’’ It examined 140 cities and placed Nigeria’s economic and commercial hub at 138, Syria and Bangladesh being the only two lower.

    Vienna, the Austrian capital, was ranked the most liveable city in the world. Melbourne in Australia came in second place after a seven-year at number one. Japan’s Osaka came in at third position.

    The ranking was based on five parameters: Political and Social Stability, Education, Culture, Environment, Infrastructure and Access to Health. For Infrastructure among the other factors, ‘’the quality of road network, quality of public transport, international links, availability of good quality housing, quality of energy provision, quality of water provision and quality of telecommunications were considered.’’

    Interestingly, by the reckoning of a widely-travelled and respected Nigerian financial expert Mr. Bismarck Rewane, these are areas where Ambode’s Lagos has fared excellently. Not known for flippant comments on political and economic matters because of his integrity, Rewane has become a favourite of newsmen on hot-button issues. So when the EIU report came up, he spoke what many have regarded as the objective view.

    He criticized the world body for its judgment that Lagos is the planet’s third worst city to choose to live in. It’s an unfair and harsh verdict, Rewane told an interviewer on a leading TV News station operating from Lagos last week. He declared solemnly: ‘’First and foremost, I think then report is subjective and it is based on warped criteria. Certainly, in a survey that says that number 86 is Johannesburg when you talk about crime, terrorism, insurgency and Lagos is 138 out of 140, it’s unfortunate. I feel safer in Lagos than in Johannesburg…I must come out strongly that the EIU …is a bit subjective and does not reflect the truth. Lagos is definitely not the third worst city to live in in the world. I stand by that and I am ready to join issues with the Economic Intelligence Unit whom I respect anyway…’’

    His stand tallies with those of most dispassionate observers who taken keen interest in developments in this state growing by leaps and bounds every day. Adjudged the fastest growing and the fifth largest economy in Africa, Lagos is heading for the 20 million population mark, earnings it the mega polis epithet. That poses inherent security and infrastructure challenges characteristic of such climes.

    But that is precisely where to dig deep to find out if the Lagos authorities are aware the world is watching them to know if they are tackling the issues appropriately and in accordance with global best practices. The world has become a small space, any corner of which you can access from the comfort of your room. What happens in your backyard or bedroom is in the world domain, not even public domain. So the world can’t but notice the mammoth activity of urban renewal in Lagos. The entire state has become a veritable construction site, where new roads are either being built or existing ones are experiencing a face-lift via expansion and modernization. And to secure lives, residential and office apartments which have failed safety are being pulled down to make way for befitting centres of commerce and habitation.

    The transport sector is similarly being driven to the next level, with the phasing out of the ubiquitous molue. The more appealing luxurious Lagbus fleet are taking over on newly created corridors not only to add aesthetic beauty to the city landscape, but also to deepen the security of commuters.

    There is now an unprecedented move by the Ambode government to trash the notorious slums in the state into the dustbin of the past. He has come under attack for attempting what his predecessors dared not to undertake: displacing the huge ghettoes and rickety markets to create for modern and affordable settlements and business centres.

    But, as ex-Ghanaian President Jerry Rawlings told complaining compatriots when he was rebuilding Ghana after years of decay, ‘’it is a bitter pill that must be taken for lasting relief’’. Time is proving him right, because Ghana has enjoyed a sane and equable political and economic history since his days. It was a challenge the current generation of Ghanaian would have been battling with if Rawlings hadn’t confronted it then.

    I think when reports of the nature under review are coming up, their authors must also consider on-going projects of renewal in societies being assessed. That way, they would avoid producing halfway verdicts of the type being criticized by well-meaning Nigerians. The critics are not those in government or so-called sponsored commentators. They are those who believe the EIU has not been fair to an administration whose members are having sleepless nights in order to make Lagos safe and turn it into a tourism haven as well as the investors’ dream destination.

    • Anibaba, a journalist wrote from Ikorodu, Lagos State

     

  • Convention: PDP clears Daniel, Agbaje, Secondus, six others

    Convention: PDP clears Daniel, Agbaje, Secondus, six others

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) screening committee on Friday cleared all the nine national chairmanship aspirants to participate in the party’s national convention holding on Saturday.

    The aspirants are – Otunba Gbenga Daniel, Mr. Jimi Agbaje, Prince Uche Secondus, Senator Rashidi Ladoja, Prof. Tunde Adeniran, Dr. Raymond Dokpesi, Mr. Aderemi Olusegun, Prof.Taoheed Adedoja and Chief Olabode George.

    The committee chairman, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, presented certificates to the aspirants at the party’s National secretariat in Abuja.

    According to Ize-Iyamu, the list of other aspirants cleared for other positions would be displayed at the party secretariat before the national convention.

     

  • PDP chair: Lagos chapter endorses Bode George

    PDP chair: Lagos chapter endorses Bode George

    The Lagos State Chapter of the PDP on Sunday night endorsed Chief Olabode George as their preferred candidate for the National Chairmanship position during the forthcoming  December 9 National Convention of the party.

    Dr Moshood Salvador, the State Chairman of PDP, gave the certification at a feedback meeting between George and members of the party, held at the party’s secretariat in GRA, Ikeja.

    Reports say that George had been on campaign in the Southern states of the country to seek support for votes ahead of the National Convention.

    There are about eight aspirants jostling for the National chairmanship seat of the party from the south.

    They include: the former Governor of Ogun State, Chief Gbenga Daniel, former Minister of Education, Prof. Tunde Adeniran.

    Others are: the former Minister of Youth Development, Prof. Taoheed Adedoja and former Lagos State PDP governorship candidate, Mr Jimi Agbaje, Prince Uche Secondus, a former acting National Chairman of PDP, and Chief Raymond Dokpesi.

    Read also: Bode George consistent, dogged, says Ayade

    Salvador said: “ On behalf of Lagos PDP, we must vote for Chief Bode George come December 9;  the South west is the rightful region to have the chairman of our great party.

    “In the last dispensation, Ekiti produced the Vice- Chairman while Osun and Oyo states took the highest office. It is only Lagos that is left and what we want is the chairman.

    “The South-east and the South-south have produced a chairman before that is why it is our turn to have the chairman of PDP,’’ he said.

    Earlier, George assured members that if given the opportunity to serve, he would re-establish the culture and tradition put in place by the founding fathers of  the PDP.

    “If I am given the opportunity, I will not be new to the management of this party because the party’s constitution is not going to be new to me; I know its provisions as I know the back of my hand.

    “We grew up with the party and the founding fathers handed over the culture of the party to us and that is what we would re-establish.

    “Just check out, from the end of our convention to the national election is a very short time, it is not a time where you can do experimentation, it is not a time you can bring a green horn to be the chairman of the party.

    “If you are desirous that you want to win that election, on that day before you cast your votes search your consciences and think very carefully.

    “Secondly, it is not a matter of life and death, if I don’t believe that I have anything to offer, I will not be here.

    “I will not compromise on things that are not right and are not in the constitution.

    “ I will do things the way they should be done and everybody will be happy. That was how our founding fathers were moving the party forward ,’’ George said.

    NAN

  • Senate caucus grills Dokpesi, Adeniran, others for PDP chair

    Senate caucus grills Dokpesi, Adeniran, others for PDP chair

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) caucus in the Senate Monday night met with six aspirants to the position of the party’s National Chairman.

    The meeting, which was still holding at the Asokoro private residence of the Senate Minority Leader, Godswill Akpabio was still in progress at the time of filing this report.

    The aspirants that appeared before the senators included Chief Olabode George, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, Prof. Tunde Adeniran, Prince Uche Secondus, Prof Taoheed Adedoja and Mr Jimi Agbaje.

    The purpose of the meeting, which was being chaired by Akpabio was to interact with the aspirants, with the view to determining the suitability of each of the aspirants for the position of chairman.

    Secondus and Agbaje who are in their 50s, are the youngest of the aspirants and are considered late entrants into the race.

    George and Adeniran are in their 70s while Dokpesi and Adedoja are in their mid-60s.

    The aspirants are billed to also meet with the National Chairman of the PDP, Senator Ahmed Makarfi shortly before today’s National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting at the party’s Abuja secretariat.

    The NEC will be considering approval for the December 9 date and venue for the convention.