The Nation Newspaper

Tag: PDP

  • PDP stares at the abyss

    One of its former national chairmen, Vincent Ogbulafor, once famously predicted that PDP would rule Nigeria for 60 unbroken years. Beyond reacting with consternation to that comment the opposition were in no shape to mount any credible bid for power, and such was the ruling party’s dominance of the political space it was hard to fault him.

    A mere two weeks to voting day Jonathan was still bravely declaring that his party was too large to lose. After last weekend’s drubbing it is now clear that size couldn’t keep ‘Africa’s biggest party’ in power. Even worse, its huge proportions may just be its undoing out of office.

    One of the things that kept the PDP growing over the years was access to federal patronage. It was what president’s used to keep rebellious party men in line and what they used to seduce the desperate from opposition ranks.

    In Nigeria government remains the biggest business – especially for the political class. For them being cut off from the central administration in Abuja is like an organism being separated from its life source. It is that mindset that produces statements like ‘our people have never belonged to the opposition’ as though being out of government was a leprous affliction.

    It doesn’t require clairvoyance therefore to predict that in the North where the Buhari-APC Tsunami has swept away a slew of PDP office holders we would witness massive defections to the new party in power in coming months. The same thing is bound to happen in the South-East and South-South.

    The president-elect in one of his earlier speeches after his election triumph declared that the one-party state was dead. I disagree. In another couple of months the APC might become the dominant party as the hungry flood its ranks in search of patronage.

    I predict that the PDP will shrink dramatically unless it can throw up strong-willed leaders in the years ahead who are prepared to makes the sacrifices necessary to rebuild the party.

    A sharp decline of the Nigeria’s once dominant political force would be a disaster. As the birth of the APC has shown, this country desperately needs a credible alternative at all times to keep whoever runs Abuja on their toes.

  • Ignore PDP lies on minimum wage, Fashola tells Lagosians

    Lagos State government at the weekend refuted claims by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that it was yet to implement the federal government approved minimum wage structure.

    It said Lagos was, in fact, the first state to implement the wage structure as far back as 2011.

    It urged public servants to disregard posters by PDP’s governorship candidate in the state, Jimi Agbaje that he would implement the national minimum wage and pay leave allowances, if elected.

    A statement by the Special Adviser on Media to the Governor Raji Fashola, Hakeem Bello, explained Lagos settled the issue of minimum wage on Tuesday, February 7, 2011 when it signed an agreement with the 14 approved labour unions in the State Civil Service to pay N18, 780 to the lowest paid workers.

    The agreement, brokered by the then Commissioner for Establishment and Training, Jide Sanwoolu, Bello said, increased the minimum wage of the lowest paid worker by 69.6 percent, which is a 7.6 percent increase over the federal government approved national minimum wage.

    He said apart from commendations from the national leadership of the labour unions then, the chairman of the Joint Negotiating Council (JNC) of the approved labour unions, Comrade Henry Akinwunmiju, thanked the state.

    On leave allowance, Bello said the governor recently met with public servants and explained his administration did not stop payment.

    Rather, Fashola, he added, explained the system of annual payment of the allowance changed when the public servants requested to be moved from harmonised salary structure to consolidated salary structure as obtains in the federal civil service.

    “What is happening now is that the worker is getting N10 because we are not saving N1 anymore,” Fashola reportedly said, adding that the workers have since requested to be placed back on harmonised salary structure.

    Fashola also dismissed insinuations that the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate, Akinwunmi Ambode, was dismissed from the Civil Service.

    Ambode, he countered, retired voluntarily from the public service after 27 years of meritorious service, pointing out that he even wrote him a letter of commendation.

    Urging Lagosians not to be deceived by such lies, the governor pointed out the federal government-led PDP has neglected the state in the last 16 years.

  • PDP lost to APC ‘s brilliance – Agbakoba

    Former President of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Chief Olisa Agbakoba, has attributed the defeat of the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) at the presidential poll to the brilliant performance of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    “To me, PDP seem to have concentrated more on hate campaign which of course, the APC also did and we condemned it. But what I saw was an APC as an absolutely brilliant football team, if I should use the analysis of a football team.

    “APC is like a good football team with best players in the like of Governor of Lagos State Babatunde Fashola, Dele Alake and Wale Edun. They were the thinkers of the party; they were the ones that made the difference and that is why APC defeated the PDP. The PDP was a weak football team with a weak manager and that was why the party and its candidate, President Jonathan lost the election.

    He explained that ethnicity was the major cause of the huge votes recorded in the South East, South South and North East of the country for Jonathan and Buhari.

    “It is incredible for Jonathan to have won the type of votes he won in the South East.It doesn’t do the leaders of the South East any good, neither does it do leaders of the North East any good that Gen Muhammadu Buhari scored the huge numbers there. It was the failure to understand the need for balance voting pattern that cost PDP and its candidate, President Goodluck Jonathan victory at the poll. On the contrary, the consistence of balanced voting pattern garnered by General Buhari in the North and Southwest zones got him victory during the election. “

    Agbakoba praised President Jonathan, the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof  Attahiru Jega and APC for their heroic performance during and after the election.

    “Indeed, President Jonathan, Chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega and APC are the heroes of the election. I picked Jonathan because of the way he maturely conceded defeat; Jega for the calmness and seriousness with which he conducted the election and made it a success. Jega has also done well by responding with maturity to the misbehaviour of former Minister of Niger Delta, Godsday Orubebe, while APC made the cut for its brilliant transformation from an opposition party and taking power at the centre for the first time.”

    He urged Gen. Buhari to overhaul the civil service and restructure anti-graft agencies for effective performance.

    “The Buhari administration should decapitate the civil service because the civil service as it is now is over bloated and should be cut down so that government can have more money. The era of federal lawmakers receiving huge salary should also be discontinued.

    “I also want to see the enactment of a new counter-corruption framework for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for effective performance because the present framework is not working. Once people realise that a new anti-corruption frame work is working, they would behave themselves and stay off corruption, “he added.

  • PDP congratulates Buhari, hails Jonathan

    PDP congratulates Buhari, hails Jonathan

    AFTER reviewing Saturday’s election, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has congratulated President-elect Gen. Muhammadu Buhari for his victory in the election and hailed President Goodluck Jonathan for his statesmanship.

    In a statement by its National Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, yesterday spoke of a plan by his party to document the irregularities it observed during the polls and take the appropriate step in line with the rule of law.

    The statement reads: “Sixteen years ago, Nigerians gave our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) the mandate to build, nurture and deepen democracy after three decades of military rule in our country.

      “That historic mandate was freely given in recognition of the courageous and patriotic role of the founding fathers of our party whose resilience and doggedness championed the return of democracy and the personal freedom we all enjoy today.

      “Within this period, our party worked very hard in rebuilding and strengthening democratic institutions, tenets and norms while lifting our status as the leading democracy in Africa and one of the best in the world.

      “It is incontrovertible that under the PDP-led government, our nation moved from a near pariah status to a strong actor in the international democratic arena, a product of various electoral reforms and our iron-cast commitment to transparent, free and fair electoral process at all levels.

      “Even in the midst of obvious threats to our democracy, the PDP and the government it sponsored continued to stabilise the polity through strict adherence to rule of law and liberalization of the political and economic space.

    “In the last 16 years the PDP-led administration achieved significant milestones in our social and economic lives. We moved Nigeria from a debtor nation to Africa’s largest economy and one of the fastest growing in the world, a feat, which is accompanied with unprecedented expansion of the private sector as well as multi-sectorial infrastructural development, all, great legacies we achieved for our nation.

      “Presently, our nation is at the threshold of history and its defining moment for the future. As you are aware, in the early hours of Wednesday, April 1, 2015, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) returned the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari as winner of the 2015 presidential election.

    “However, we have received reports of serious irregularities that characterised the conduct of the election and we shall channel our protests to the appropriate quarters in line with our profound respect for the rule of law and democratic ethos.

    “Our party comes with great values and tradition and we will adhere to them and ensure that nothing is done to truncate our democracy, which we have proudly worked so hard to nurture and sustain to maturity.

      “Therefore, if the outcome of the election is truly the reflection of the wishes and aspirations of our citizens, the PDP will most willingly respect that wish.

      “What is paramount to us is the survival of our democracy, the unity, peace and progress of our dear nation and the happiness of all our people. Nigeria is bigger than any political party, individual or group and her overall interest must be our priority at all times.

    “It is in this light that we as a party commend our flag bearer, President Goodluck Jonathan for his heroic act in conceding to the voice of the people, an action that stands him out as a true democrat and a statesman.

    “We also congratulate the APC flagbearer, Gen. Mohammadu Buhari for his resilience and victory in this election while wishing him success in the onerous task of leading our nation once again.

       “On the same note, we wish to also commend the electorate for the peaceful manner with which they conducted themselves in the course of this election.

    “For us in the PDP, we want to state in very clear terms that we are not down. We are only at our redefining moment. Rather than demoralise us, this election has afforded us great lessons and we are now more than ever before reinvigorated for the race ahead.

    “As we return to the electorate for the April 11, 2015 governorship and state assembly elections, we go recharged with faith in our heart. We assure all our candidates in the remaining elections that the party will stand with you, campaign with you and work vigourously to ensure your total victory at the polls.

    “Finally, we call on our party faithful to remain steadfast in our renewed effort to deliver our flag bearers in the remaining elections.”

  • The fall of PDP

    SIR: All this while, my writings and stance had been anti-Buhari until few days to the general election when a Facebook friend sent a post that read: ‘Slavery is when you buy fuel in order to power your generator in your house, and you still come out to shout, continuity.’

    That post reminded me of the altercation that ensued between a petrol attendant and me when I went to buy fuel recently. The president had announced reduction in the petrol pump price from N97 to N87 naira but almost all filling stations were selling the product at N100.

    The first lesson is, never undermine the youths. I have not seen any general election that the youths all over the country participated as this one. The youths never minded coming from different ethnic and religious backgrounds to shout for and work for change in the government at the centre. Why did the youths participate with all their lives in this year’s presidential election? In 2011, President Jonathan came out with youth-friendly slogans such as: ‘Nigerians need fresh air’ and  ‘ I once had no shoes’ etc. Coming from a poor family background is something that is common among Nigerian youths, hence they voted in one of their own. They believed that the president, having come from a similar family background, would ensure that their problems were solved.

    However, the president on assumption of office surrounded himself with advisers who are anti-Nigerian youths. They brought up the issue of SURE-P, dishing out millions of naira to an individual in the midst of many that are hungry and unemployed, amongst them several graduates. How can such process be going on when NYSC members are receiving less than N20, 000 per month, corroborating international community’s report that majority of Nigerians live below USD1 per day?

    What of the recent immigration service interview that ended tragically? What the government should have done was to compensate the bereaved families and at the same time give automatic employment to all that attended the ill-fated interview .The applicants could be employed across all the federal civil service in order to assuage the citizenry. However, the advisers of Mr President never deemed it necessary because they believed that whether the people liked it or not, they were going to ‘fix’ the presidential election.

    The same youths that voted for Mr. president in 2011 were the same people that voted him out in 2015, what a paradox? Yes, there were mild irregularities in the elections, but I am cocksure that in any free and fair

    election, the current APC will beat PDP. The advisers and foot soldiers of Mr president that were prodding him could not even deliver their own polling units. What a shame!

    Finally, in this series, Nigerians, especially our leaders, should learn not to bite the hand that fed them. Anywhere in the world, there are kingmakers. Even in developed democracies like USA and UK .God used Chief Olusegun Obasanjo to singlehandedly bring up our current president right from the level of a deputy governor to where he is today, passing through different political positions. Baba, as Chief Obasanjo is fondly called resigned his post as the PDP BOT chairman because of skirmishes between him and the leader of the party. Other party leaders left thereafter.

    Surprisingly, the advisers of the president were still assuring him to go on and within a little space of time, the strong PDP structures in the country collapsed. As PDP was going down, APC was going up and the whole scenario culminated in the first defeat of the ruling party since we returned to our current democracy in 1999. The rest is history.

     

    • Dr Paul John

    Port Harcourt , Rivers state

    mazipauljohn@gmail.com

  • Will APC be PDP’s nemesis?

    Will APC be PDP’s nemesis?

    Not many Nigerians took me seriously when on August 2, 2013, I wrote the piece being reproduced here today. Precisely twenty months after the registration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in July of 2013, the party has made history as the first opposition party to deracinate a ruling party from power at the centre. The party’s presidential candidate, Alhaji Mohammadu Buhari defeated incumbent President Goodluck Jonathan fair and square in the March 28, 2015 Presidential election. He scored 15,424,921 votes; Jonathan scored 12,853,162 votes. The total number of votes-28,288,053. The election was a true reflection of the Latin phrase: ‘Vox populi, vox dei.’ Indeed, the voice of the people is the voice of God. The myth surrounding the once impenetrable central ruling party, for several decades, was shattered on that day. This victory is for God that made it possible; the victory is for the majority of Nigerians that trooped out on election days, who endured scorching sun and heavy downpour to cast their votes for the winner. And the man behind the most successful political merger in the country and, the most successful politician in the nation’s history is Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He deserves special recognition in whatever we do under this outgoing administration and that of incoming dispensation. His story will be told soonest in this column. Not to forget Professor Attahiru Jega, chairman of INEC for his calm courage in the face of outright provocation by devilish agents of Jonathan and for his transparent approach throughout the entire process. Thank you Professor. And to other writers of truth like yours sincerely, we all deserve a pride of place at the appropriate time. Anyone that still doubts whether columnists are not prophet, should kindly savour this reproduced piece, first written less than five days, after APC’s formal registration. Enjoy yourself.

    The late John F. Kennedy, 35th president of world’s most powerful country – the United States of America – in one of his widely reported statements, once said: ‘Victory has a thousand fathers, but defeat is an orphan.’ This quote aptly captures the mood in the polity as more previously doubting Nigerians are now struggling to identify with the All Progressives Congress (APC), the newest political party in the nation’s political firmament. The party was formally registered two days ago by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    The road leading to the eventual registration of the APC was littered with doubts arising from the ruthless antecedent of the ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to always circumvent seeming new viable democratic initiative. The path was strewn in prickles aimed at stagnating the progressives’ efforts of ensuring the birth of a formidable political party to wrest power from obviously bungling PDP.

    Personally, l doff my hat for those progressive leaders of APC for their selfless pursuit of their party’s registration to a fruitful end: They sacrificed their self-interests and endured personal discomforts. When it looked as if the set goal of registration was impossible; when their political hecklers were already jubilating that they had reached a dead end, they remained unrelenting. They must have strategised day and night to lay the unassailable foundation, through APC, for the imminent dethronement of PDP’s impunity in the governance of this country. Now that the APC has been registered, it is pertinent to ask whether the new party is ready to restore confidence of the people in their government if it wins the presidency in 2015. Or will the APC be another rabble-rouser in power like the current ruling party?

    From this moment, all eyes will be on APC. And what the new party’s detractors might be saying do not count; what really matters is what the party does rightly to rescue the nation from the siege of PDP before the next general elections. Mr. Kofi Annan, former United Nations (UN) Secretary-General once observed that “good governance is perhaps the single most important factor in eradicating poverty and promoting development.” What Nigeria lacks for several years of democratic rule is good governance. The PDP in barely over 14 years has shamefully succeeded in enthroning graft and visionless leadership on the nation. And Nigerians are waiting in the wings to see whether APC would deliver on this if given the opportunity to govern so that poverty and retarded development could be banished from the country.

    The attainment of this lofty goal cannot be by mere rhetorics. The new party with its array of tested and accomplished political leaders must earnestly unveil its manifesto to the Nigerian public. Nigerians desire a manifesto with rigour/empiricism: A manifesto that has intrinsic and extrinsic correlations with people’s basic needs over time. Nigerians want good roads; they want affordable education; functional and effective healthcare system that is currently a charade under this PDP led administration. Nigerians want inexpensive and safe housing; they want gainful employment and a country that is safe for all to live in.

    The people of this country want to see a well developed agricultural sector that could guarantee a situation where food items would be the cheapest things after inhaled air. With the deplorable state of federal roads across the country, it has become clear that the lives of Nigerians plying those roads mean very little to the government at the centre. For instance, the Lagos/Ibadan Express road remained a death trap for 14 wasteful years of PDP tyranny over the nation. The healthcare system, as typified by the debilitating state of most federal hospitals, is in shambles. A visit to the National Hospital, Abuja would give credence to this reality.

    This PDP government seems confused over the state of insecurity in the nation. Also, the administration of the ruling party has embarked on more actions that would increase unemployment rate than those that could promote employment generation. The pursuits of selfish political ambitions by members of the ruling party have relegated general public interests to the background. The touted mileage in agriculture has remained a paper thing with no direct impact on the production and prices of agricultural produce.

    The Nigerian public has increasingly become weary of sustained on-going trend of ineptitude in the running of the country’s affairs. They desire long over-due change of political baton from the on-going inglorious routine of misrule and systemic corruption. That is why yours sincerely thinks that with proper planning; a vision driven by a mission and resolve to think less of selves by the leadership of the APC, the days of PDP in power might just not exceed 2015.

    What the country needs most at this crucial period is a party that could inspire the country to do what she is capable to be what she could be. A party that would throw up principled leaders of courage to occupy salient positions; let us have a party that is not only about techniques but also above average in traits of character and public spirited restraints. So far in the south-west, the laudable governance skills of Governor of example, Babatunde Raji Fashola, is a pointer of what to expect in APC. The other governors in the southwest including the focussed and principled Abiola Ajimobi in Oyo state; the astute precursor of renowned ‘Opon-Imo’ and high performer, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola of Osun State among others, are not doing badly in their various jurisdictions. Their performances have set the template and teasers of what to expect from the newly registered APC.

    Is APC the long awaited party that would checkmate the long, excruciating run of PDP in power? There is no doubt that public expectations are very high on APC and it is believed that the party will not disappoint Nigerians. The indefatigable strategist leader of the APC and former governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Tinubu, has assured that the formal registration of the party will usher in ‘an irreversible cause of positive change and people oriented development’ in the country. Indeed, the new dawn is perhaps around the corner.

  • PDP congratulates Buhari, to challenge defeat

    PDP congratulates Buhari, to challenge defeat

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has congratulated the President-Elect, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, saying the nation was at a threshold of history and defining moment for the future.
    In a statement on Thursday by the National Chairman of the PDP, Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu, the party said it would still channel its protests on the conduct of the election to the appropriate quarters in line with the rule of law and democratic ethos.
    The statement said: “Presently, our nation is at the threshold of history and its defining moment for the future. As you are aware, in the early hours of Wednesday, April 1, 2015, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) returned the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari as winner of the 2015 presidential election.
    “However, we have received reports of serious irregularities that characterized the conduct of the election and we shall channel our protests to the appropriate quarters in line with our profound respect for the rule of law and democratic ethos.
    “Our party comes with great values and tradition and we will adhere to them and ensure that nothing is done to truncate our democracy, which we have proudly worked so hard to nurture and sustain to maturity.
    “Therefore, if the outcome of the election is truly the reflection of the wishes and aspirations of our citizens, the PDP will most willingly respect that wish.
    “What is paramount to us is the survival of our democracy, the unity, peace and progress of our dear nation and the happiness of all our people. Nigeria is bigger than any political party, individual or group and her overall interest must be our priority at all times”.
    The party also commended President Goodluck Jonathan for what it described as his heroic act in conceding to the voice of the people, adding that the action stood him out as a true democrat and a statesman.
    “We also congratulate the APC flag bearer, Gen. Mohammadu Buhari for his resilience and victory in this election while wishing him success in the onerous task of leading our nation once again.
    “On the same note, we wish to also commend the electorate for the peaceful manner with which they conducted themselves in the course of this election.”

  • Court dismisses Omisore’s appeal

    Court dismisses Omisore’s appeal

    The Court of Appeal sitting in Akure on Thursday dismissed the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party’s governorship candidate, Senator Iyiola Omisore, in the August 9 governorship election in Osun State.

    Given the ruling on the appeal, the court also upheld the cross appeal by Governor Rauf Aregebsola of the All Progressives Congress that Omisore’s petition ought to have been dismissed as an abandoned petition in the first instance by the State Election Petition Tribunal before hearing by the Justice Elizabeth Ikpejime led tribunal panel.

    The Appeal Court presided by Hon. Justice A G Mshelia in an unanimous decision delivered Thursday dismissed Omisore’s appeal for incompetence, stressing that the ground for the appeal does not arise from the judgment of the tribunal.

    In determining the appeal, the court adopted the seven issues formulated by the appellants, Omisore and the PDP.

    But before considering the main appeal, the court upheld the preliminary objections by Aregbesola and APC’s Counsel challenging ground 13 of the Notice of Appeal, the complaint of the appellant (Omisore and PDP) on ground 13 of appeal is that the tribunal failed to act on admission made by Aregbesola’s counsel in a chart contained in their written address before the lower tribunal.

    The Court of Appeal in holding that the ground of appeal is incompetent held that the ground does not arise from the judgment of the tribunal.

    The Court of Appeal held that the decision of the tribunal was that Aregbesola’s counsel did not make any admission, therefore having failed to appeal this specific decision of the tribunal, the Court of Appeal held that ground 13 is incompetent and consequently struck it out together with issue 5 formulated from the ground.

  • Ojukwu’s son slams PDP for electoral fraud

    The son of the late Biafran warlord, Dim Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, Emeka (jnr.), has blasted the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Anambra State for malpractices during last Saturday’s Presidential and National Assembly elections.

    He described what happened as a daylight robbery.

    According to him, for the PDP to have claimed victory in the poll with 44,747 votes allotted to its candidate, Mr. Chris Emeka Azubogu and 30,994 given to him, as “purportedly announced” by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), was a shame.

    Emeka (Jnr.) said he rejected the result, adding that INEC should not issue a Certificate of Return to the purported winner, “because I will challenge his so-called victory at the tribunal.”

    The former Nnewi North Local Government administrator said perpetrators of electoral malpractices disrespected his late father.

    He noted that the fraud  lent credence to the saying that “the Igbo don’t respect their leaders.”

    Emeka (Jnr.) said it would have been a different thing if he had been defeated at the polls, which he added was impossible, accusing the PDP of electoral fraud.

    His words: “We have enough evidence to prove that we won the Nnewi North/Nnewi South and Ekwusigo Federal Constituency seat.

    “We campaigned vigorously to deserve victory and our people voted en masse to ensure our victory. At the appropriate time, we shall reclaim our stolen mandate.”

    Emeka (Jnr.) alleged that PDP bigwigs stormed the collation centre at the INEC office in Nnewi South Local Government headquarters with written results when collation was on.

    He said they chased away INEC officials and ad-hoc workers and scattered INEC’s sensitive materials,

    adding: “It was in the course of that action that the fraud was committed in a commando style.”

  • PDP agent declines signing result sheet

    PDP agent declines signing result sheet

    The Peoples Democratic Party agent, Dr. Bello Fadile, declined to append his signature on the final result sheet announced by the Independent National Electoral Commssion (INEC) Wednesday in Abuja.

    The result sheet was signed by all party agents except the PDP.

    Jega however declared Buhari as the winner of the election.

    Fadile, who merely shook Jega’s hand, said he had “no instruction to sign the result sheet.”