Tag: Osita Okechukwu

A foundation member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON), Osita Okechukwu, has faulted the African Democratic Congress (ADC) over its criticism of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s push for Nigeria to secure a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council.

Speaking with journalists in Abuja ahead of Nigeria’s 65th Independence anniversary, Okechukwu described Nigeria’s quest as a bold and visionary move, aligning with Vice President Kashim Shettima’s call at the UN for fairness, African representation, and institutional reform.

He emphasised that Nigeria’s contributions to global peace, including its role in World War II, justify its claim for a permanent seat and representation on behalf of Africa.

Okechukwu urged political stakeholders to support the initiative as a unifying national aspiration rather than framing it around domestic challenges.

“In the 2023 presidential election, they erroneously breached zoning, an unforced error, hoping to harvest northern voters they quarantined in a dormitory. They paid dearly with voters’ punishment.

“Penultimate week again, ADC recklessly dismissed the time-tested convention of rotation of the presidency – a glue that binds our fragile 4th Republic democracy. Even when their mother party, PDP recanted.”

Read Also: 2027: Okechukwu dismisses opposition’s consensus plan, says rotation favours Tinubu

He also cited the false claim of Tinubu’s Life Presidency Agenda, recalling, “Last week, they hallucinated by alleging that Mr. President was plotting for a life presidency, as if Nigeria operates in a banana republic without a constitution or institutions to check such excesses.

“Yesterday, they incongruously derided Nigeria’s push for a permanent UN Security Council seat, speaking as though the seat is President Tinubu’s personal property, instead of a lifetime strategic gain for Nigeria and Africa.”

Reacting to ADC National Publicity Secretary, Malam Bolaji Abdullahi’s vile statement condemning the country’s request for a UN permanent seat, Okechukwu stressed that asymmetrical security challenges should not be used to undermine Nigeria’s hard-earned international seat, noting that every great nation balances political parties’ ambition with patriotic goals.

“Methinks that this UN Security Council seat is not for Bola Tinubu’s Emilokan, but a strategic asset for Nigeria and Africa. Albeit a step towards resorgimento, where our voice is heard and we participate in shaping global peace and security.

“For ADC to ridicule such a quest is not only a short-sighted, unforced error, but purely unpatriotic to our collective national interest.”

Okechukwu concluded by appealing to ADC leadership that instead of divisive tendencies and unforced errors, to as a matter of urgent national importance, apologise to our sister political party – Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), they demolished.

“Sincerely, we in APC, in the interest of viable democracy in our dear fatherland, we want ADC to unite with PDP and form a formidable opposition party before they start playing blame games.”Okechukwu submitted

Former Director General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON) and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Osita Okechukwu, has dismissed claims by the African Democratic Congress (ADC) of a national consensus to unseat President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2027, describing it as a mere dream.

In a statement issued in Abuja on Sunday, Okechukwu argued that the only existing national consensus is the rotation of the presidency between the North and South, a convention that, according to him, guarantees Tinubu a second term in 2027.

He noted that the zoning arrangement, instituted in 1999, remains a milestone of the Fourth Republic, ensuring equity, justice, and fairness.

Okechukwu criticized ADC members, many of whom he described as defectors from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), saying they destabilized the PDP and should return to fix it rather than blaming Tinubu.

READ ALSO: How Nigeria can achieve ICT’s 21% GDP target – MTN boss

He further dismissed ADC’s reported strategy of fielding a northern candidate against two southern aspirants as unrealistic, stressing that it failed in 2023 and would fail again.

According to him, Tinubu still enjoys significant support in the North, including what he described as a large portion of former President Muhammadu Buhari’s “12 million vote bank.”

“The northern electorate is among the most sophisticated in the country and cannot be swayed by simplistic permutations,” Okechukwu said, insisting that the opposition’s plan is “dead on arrival.”

The immediate past Director-General of Voice of Nigeria (VON), Osita Okechukwu, has faulted former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, over what he described as a misrepresentation of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s role in President Muhammadu Buhari’s 2015 electoral victory.

Mustapha had come under fire following remarks he made during the public presentation of a book titled: “According to the President: Lessons from a Presidential Spokesman’s Experience,” authored by Garba Shehu, former Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity. At the event, Mustapha appeared to downplay the significance of the legacy parties that merged in 2014 to form the All Progressives Congress (APC), suggesting they played a minor role in Buhari’s eventual win.

Responding in a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday, Okechukwu emphasized that Tinubu’s contributions were pivotal, describing them as the “premium golden victory votes” that secured Buhari’s path to Aso Rock in 2015.

“May I plead that there is no need for controversy. My friend, Boss Mustapha, should be excused because he wasn’t with us in 2003 when Buhari began his presidential journey. He was in the ACN and wasn’t privy to the realpolitik that defined the alliance. That’s likely why he is relying solely on vote arithmetic rather than political context,” Okechukwu said.

Read Also: Tinubu’s reforms boosting economic recovery

He recalled Buhari’s previous electoral contests, including the contentious 2003 election, where Justice Sylvester Nsofor’s minority judgment highlighted issues with vote counting, and the 2007 election, which was widely regarded as flawed—even admitted as such by then-President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

“In 2011, our initial merger talks with Tinubu’s ACN failed and Buhari lost. But when we rekindled the talks and successfully merged in 2013, it led to the golden victory votes that propelled Buhari to power,” he said.

Okechukwu stressed that Tinubu’s unflinching support was decisive, noting that Tinubu had assured Buhari of his full backing and political structure despite his relationships with other northern political figures like Atiku Abubakar and Rabiu Kwankwaso.

“As a delegate of the defunct CPC, I witnessed how we were instructed to negotiate only with the ACN. At Chief Tom Ikimi’s house in Maitama, we refused to engage with ANPP and others. It took extensive negotiations before the APC was formed in July 2013. Truly, without Asiwaju’s premium supplementary votes, there would have been no two-thirds spread and no victory,” he stated.

Former Director General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON), Osita Okechukwu, has urged federal, state, and local governments to commit at least 15-20% of total public expenditure to education, in line with UNESCO recommendations, to address the declining quality of teachers in Nigeria.

Okechukwu made the call following the release of the results of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN)’s Batch ‘A’ Professional Qualifying Examination (PQE), which revealed that 4,169 out of 12,874 candidates failed.

Speaking to journalists during the Igwa Nshi annual festival in Eke, Idi Local Government Area of Enugu State, Okechukwu described the results as alarming, noting that the poor performance of teachers directly reflects in the quality of students produced by the system.

He stressed that without well-trained and motivated teachers, Nigeria’s education system will continue to underperform, to the detriment of national development.

Read Also: Tinubu’s reforms in oil and gas regulation are worth celebrating, says Energy group

“The government must treat this as a matter of urgent national importance,” he said. “Allocating at least 20% of the national budget to education is essential. Our greatest resource is human capital, and with a youth population making up over 70%, we have a unique opportunity in an ageing global workforce.”

Okechukwu called on policymakers to take bold steps toward investing in teacher development, education infrastructure, and curriculum reform to secure the nation’s future through sustainable human capital development.

“I’m pained over the heartbreaking crisis of inadequate funding and poor quality in our education system. To be frank, we need an urgent paradigm shift to increase investments in education and learning; for with our uncommon 70% youth demographic advantage, we can comfortably outsource skilled labour to the global community.” Okechukwu retorted.

As the 2027 general elections approach, a founding member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Osita Okechukwu, has called for the implementation of the recommendations of the Justice Muhammadu Lawal Uwais Electoral Reform Committee as a more effective way to boost voter participation.

Speaking with journalists on Sunday in Abuja, Okechukwu responded to the proposed mandatory voting bill sponsored by Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abbas, and Hon. Daniel Asama, who represents Bassa/Jos North Federal Constituency. 

He argued that while low voter turnout undermines the legitimacy of elections, the judiciary, and democratic institutions, forcing citizens to vote is not the solution.

The proposed bill titled, “A Bill for an Act to Amend the Electoral Act 2022 to Make It Mandatory for all Nigerians of Majority Age to Vote in All National and State Elections and for Related Matters”—seeks to make voting compulsory for all eligible Nigerians.

Hon. Asama defended the bill, citing examples from countries like Australia, Belgium, and Brazil, where mandatory voting has increased political participation and accountability while reducing electoral apathy and vote-buying.

While commending the concern shown by the bill’s sponsors over declining voter turnout, Okechukwu warned against enacting laws that could punish victims of electoral malpractice. 

He argued that the majority of Nigerians are already disillusioned due to flawed electoral processes, compromised judiciary outcomes, and poor governance.

“It would be double jeopardy to punish Nigerians who are already victims of electoral fraud and a weakening democracy orchestrated by political leaders,” he said, urging the National Assembly to revisit and adopt the Uwais Electoral Reform Committee’s recommendations for genuine democratic advancement.

The former Director-General of Voice of Nigeria (VON), maintained that the only politically correct antidote to halt electoral malpractices, opaque judiciary and restore electoral legitimacy and strong democratic institutions is to adopt good laws therein Uwais Report.

He argued that to attract seamless mass voting, public nomination of both National and State Electoral Commissioners should be adopted as recommended by the Uwais Committee. 

He cited Albert Einstein’s admonition which says, “If you continue to do one thing all over and expect better results it is nothing but insanity. 

“Therefore, it is arrant fallacy to assume that BIVAS and other digital technologies will guarantee free, fair and transparent elections when Mr Osita Okechukwu or whosoever is allowed to nominate his cronies, family and party members to manage our electoral system.

“May I commend Honourable Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas and Honourable Members for sharing our concern over poor turnout of voters, opaque judiciary and recession of democracy in our clime and appeal to him to adopt the fine tenet of Uwais Report that mandates Nigerians to nominate National and State Electoral Commissioners.

“Permit me as well to state that there is no time more auspicious for our great party, the APC to consolidate the legitimacy of our democracy and put Nigeria top in the map of the world than now; when we have a true democrat as president, control more than 20 States, the Senate, House of Representatives and State Houses of Assembly of our dear country.

“No excuse, if for nothing else there is no better time to recover the legitimacy of our democracy, fulfill the noble intendment and immortalise our famous democrat, President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, of blessed memory, who patriotically admitted that the electoral process which made him president was flawed than now we are in charge. And there is no doubt that if he had outlived his tenure he could have implemented the fine grains of Uwais Report.” Okechukwu retorted.

Osita Okechukwu, a founding member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON), has assured Nigerians that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration will revitalise the economy and usher in national prosperity. 

Speaking to newsmen in Abuja on Sunday, Okechukwu predicted that once the administration’s economic reforms are fully implemented, Nigerians will experience “Gross National Happiness.” 

Assessing the crisis within the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), he blamed its decline from a major to a minor opposition force on internal impunity. 

Expressing disappointment, Okechukwu recalled that with APC’s formation in 2013, he had envisioned fierce political competition between two strong parties—a hallmark of advanced democracies. 

However, he dismissed concerns that APC would exploit PDP’s decline to establish a one-party system, emphasising that the ruling party has won past elections without resorting to such dominance.

He added: “What true democrats want is a formidable PDP which will act as checks and balances and catapult Nigeria to democratic maturity, not a weak coalition.

“In fact, one was in league with those who cried out, when PDP violently breached the rotation convention of president from north to south and vice versa, a toolkit conceived by patriots in 1999 for peace, unity, and good health of our democracy and dear country, and Section 7 of their constitution. The outcome is the disintegration of the party, for he who cultivated ill wind will surely reap whirlwind.” Okechukwu insisted.