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Tag: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)

  • PDP senatorial candidate, Amusan, 50,000 supporters back APC’s Abiodun

    Former House of Representatives member and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ogun State on Wednesday formally announced his defection from the PDP to the All Progressives Congress(APC).
    Amusan, who represented Abeokuta North, Obafemi Owode and Odeda Federal Constituency for eight years on the platform of PDP, said he is leaving former party for the ruling APC with over 50,000 thousand supporters he has been nurturing in the last 19 years.
    The property magnate, who was also the senatorial candidate of PDP in the last National Assembly election  for Ogun Central, told reporters during a press briefing  in Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital that his defection would further boost the chances of Prince Dapo Abiodun succeeding Governor Ibikunle Amosun.
    Amusan said he knows the capacity of Abiodun as a successful entrepreneur and business man, saying he is the type of man the Gateway state required now to run the affairs of the state, urging his supporters and Ogun people to cast their ballot for the APC governorship hopeful.
    He also called on the electorate to support the candidacy of Abiodun and desist from the habit of making unnecessary demand from those who signify interest to serve, saying such attitude would scare away people with genuine desire to serve.

  • APC, PDP set for legal battle

    Atiku, PDP seek access to election materials

    We’ll prove our candidate won, says APC

    Secondus, others march on INEC to reverse verdict

    A legal battle is set to begin between the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over the February 23 presidential election won by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The PDP and its candidate, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar yesterday approached the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal (PEPT) for permission to inspect the materials used for the poll.

    They are seeking the tribunal’s order to compel the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to grant them and their agents access to the materials.

    Also yesterday, the leadership of the PDP took its protest over the poll to INEC’s doorstep in Abuja.

    They were led by the party’s National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus.

    But the APC said its legal team would defend the ruling party’s victory at the tribunal with facts and figures.

    According to it, the PDP has taken the only democratic route to register its grievances by approaching the tribunal.

    The Director of Strategic Communication of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Festus Keyamo, (SAN, said the ruling party is prepared to prove that the election, won by its candidate President Buhari, was conducted in a free and fair atmosphere, deviod of rigging as being claimed by the opposition.

    In a statement in Abuja yesterday, Keyamo noted that resorting to court was the only democratic way for Atiku to ventilate his perceived grievances about the election, stressing that the council was not in any way prevailing on the former vice president not to seek judicial redress.

    Keyamo denied reports that the council had written to some international organisations and development partners to prevail on Atiku not to challenge the outcome of the election in court, adding that the body that wrote the letter was not known to the council and does not speak for it and the President.

    The statement reads: “Our attention has been drawn to some news item and posts on social media reporting that we wrote a letter to some international bodies to prevail on Alhaji Atiku Abubakar not to proceed to court to challenge the result of the 2019 Presidential Election.

    “Our investigation reveals that a letter to that effect was purportedly written by a certain ‘Buhari Campaign Organisation’. This is the second time we will be informing the public that the said ‘Buhari Campaign Organisation’ does not act at the behest of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, nor does it represent the Muhammadu Buhari Campaign Organisation in any way.

    “As a result, whatever it has released does not represent the position of the APC Presidential Campaign Council or President Muhammadu Buhari.

    “Our official position is that we believe that Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has a constitutional right to seek redress in court and we do not seek in any way to curtail that right. In fact, it is the resort to court that is the only democratic way to ventilate his perceived grievance and any attempt to restrict or discourage the exercise of such right would be an invitation to anarchy.

    “In addition, we are very anxious to meet Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in court in order to show the world in a conclusive manner the free and fair nature of the comprehensive defeat of Atiku at the polls. An election is not termed ‘rigged’ only by the mere claim of it by the loser.

    “That is what Atiku and the PDP want to ram down our throats. Unfortunately for them, international, continental and sub-regional observers (who can be seen as neutral by all standards) ALL declared the election to be free, fair and credible. No ego-massaging narrative can change that.

    “We therefore totally disassociate ourselves from the letter purportedly written by one of, perhaps, many support groups of President Buhari. They may have a right to their opinion, but it does not represent our official position.”

    In their application to the PEPT, Atiku and the PDP prayed that they be allowed to examine election materials

    Their prayers are contained in a motion ex-parte they filed before the tribunal in Abuja, in which they are seeking leave to inspect the voters register, the Smart Card Reader (SCR), ballot papers and other vital documents used in the conduct of the presidential election.

    They also want the tribunal to order INEC to allow their agents to scan and make photocopies of vital documents used for the election to enable them establish what they  alleged were irregularities in the exercise.

    In the motion filed by their lawyer, Chris Uche, (SAN), Atiku and the PDP said that the reliefs being sought against INEC were for the purpose of filing and maintaining an election petition, which they are preparing to file against the outcome of this year’s presidential election.

    The Director, Contact and Mobilisation of the Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign Council, Col. Austin Akobundu (rtd), deposed to a 12-paragraph supporting affidavit filed with the motion.

    INEC, President Muhammadu Buhari and his APC have been listed as respondents to the motion.

    No date has been fixed for the hearing of the motion.

    The Nation learnt yesterday that the motion, being one of the preliminary steps towards initiating an election petition, may not necessarily be heard in the open, but in the chambers of the tribunal.

    A member of the Atiku/PDP legal team confirmed to our reporter that the motion was filed to enable the team gather sufficient materials to prepare their petition.

    The member said that such a motion was one of the preliminary steps in filing election petitions.

    He said: “Since the petition was intended to challenge the outcome of the election, it was necessary to inspect vital materials used for the election to enable the intending petitioner source sufficient materials to prepare his/her petition.”

    He was optimistic that his team would file the petition before the end of this week.

  • PDP takes protest to INEC

    The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Tuesday took its protest over the conduct of the February 23 presidential and National Assembly elections to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) Headquarters in Abuja yesterday.

    Led by its National Chairman Uche Secondus, the PDP restated its rejection of the presidential election, won by incumbent President Muhammadu of the All Progressives Congress (APC)

    The party chieftains were received at the commission’s main entrance by three INEC National Commissioners, who stood in for their chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu.

    Secondus told the INEC officials: “We want to place on record and bring to your attention the very obvious and noticeable infractions and violations of the Electoral Laws and the Regulations/Guidelines regulating the 2019 general elections which have very negative implications on the credibility, transparency and integrity of the entire electoral processes, particularly the just concluded presidential and National Assembly elections.

    “This has become imperative as we approach the gubernatorial and State House of Assembly elections billed for Saturday, March 9, 2019.”

    The party chairman listed the infractions and violations to include, non-usage or selective enforcement of the Smart Card Reader (SCR) machines.

    He expressed regrets that the usage of the machines was enforced strategically in the Southsouth, Southeast and the Northcentral zones of the country, which he felt “are essentially PDP strongholds”.

    Secondus said: “This is radically different from what transpired in the Northwest, Northeast and the Southwest which were estimated as the APC strongholds.

    “This is quite contrary to the provisions of Paragraph 10(a) & (b) of the Regulations and Guidelines governing the 2019 General Elections and all the assurances you, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu frequently gave up to the last hours before the elections.”

    The party chair carpeted INEC for non-deployment of the Electronic Collation System (E-Collation) for election results from the units, through the ward centres to the Presidential Collation Center in Abuja as provided for in the 2019 Electoral Regulations and Guidelines.

    He said: “This is more so when you have never bothered to explain to Nigerians the justification for this sudden official somersault on such a critical component of the electoral process, especially with all the tax payers’ money spent to install the facilities.”

    He informed the electoral umpire that some collation centres were cordoned off to pave the way for the manipulation of results, alleging that INEC accepted the results that were tampered with.

    He listed Lagos, Rivers, Nassarawa, Abia, Benue, Plateau, Ondo and Osun as the states where results were illegally cancelled.

    Secondus faulted plans by INEC to conduct supplementary election in some areas on Saturday after it had announced the results.

    INEC National Commissioner Festus Okoye had explained that the supplementary election has nothing to do with the presidential poll.

    Okoye said the supplementary election that will be conducted simultaneously with the Governorship and Houses’ of Assembly election is in respect of cancelled National Assembly election results.

    INEC National Commissioner (Legal Services) Mrs. May Agbamuche-Mbu, thanked the party chiefs for the orderly manner they conducted themselves.

    Agbamuche-Mbu said: “I want to say that in INEC, we are here to do a professional job. But don’t forget that INEC cannot do the work alone. First and foremost, INEC has received your complaint.

    “We are going to look at it critically, where we need to change, we will change, where we need to come together, we will come together and work together

    “This country belongs to all of us and we must protect it with all our might. I believe that on Saturday, the elections will go on very well but our mantra in this election is that we want peace in our country.

    “I supervised Rivers and Bayelsa States, so, I know what it means to invest in that area, and the people of Rivers and Akwa-Ibom know what they want.

    “Because this election is very crucial, we intend to make it free and fair election. All we ask is that for your own sake too, your mantra should be peace.

    “If you ring peace to the people on the field, you can rest assured INEC and the security agencies would do their part and we look at it again”.

  • PDP to petition UN over role of military in elections

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has resolved to petition the United Nations (UN) over the role played by the Nigerian military in the February 23 presidential and National Assembly elections.

    The party added that other global democratic institutions will also be petitioned on the alleged unprofessional role played by the military.

    Rising from an expanded caucus meeting at the party’s Abuja secretariat yesterday, the party lamented what it described as partisan role of the military in the polls.

    Briefing reporters shortly after the meeting that lasted about four hours, the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan said the petition will detail what it termed unconstitutional militarisation of the elections.

    This, according to the main opposition party, led to the intimidation, harassment and killing of many innocent Nigerians by soldiers in different parts of the country during the polls.

    Ologbondiyan said: “Caucus further noted the role of the military in the February 23 election and resolved that we will report the action of the military through a petition to the United Nations, as well as other global democratic institutions on the role of our military  in the February 23 election.

    “Caucus further raised issues about the harassment, intimidation and cajoling of our members on the plot by the Buhari Presidency as well as APC to intimidate the people’s President, former Vice President Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and the resolve of the PDP to go to court by insisting, blackmailing and saying that he should not go to court.

    “Caucus commended Nigerians for refusing the harassment, intimidation and militarisation of the electoral process and participating in the election but noted that the mandate that was freely given to our candidate was stolen and as such the party and the candidate jointly resolved to go to the tribunal and reaching the end of what is permissible within our legal system to get back our mandate on behalf of Nigerians.

    “Caucus also reviewed the situation in Kano State particularly as it concerned the court decision and noted that an appeal had been filed against the judgment and we will continue to study and follow the situation as they arise.

    “On the forthcoming governorship election, we decry the militarisation of the South South and the rigging which the APC is plotting ahead of the election. We urge Nigerians to come out enmass and participate in the election and ensure they vote for the candidates of the PDP”.

    The PDP said that its petition against the re-election of President Muhammadu Buhari would be filed at the Election Petitions Tribunal any time soon.

    Speaking earlier, the PDP national chairman, Prince Uche Secondus said the party’s resort to legal action was largely informed by what he described as overwhelming rigging of the polls by the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    The party chair alleged that officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were intimidated into falsifying results in favour of the APC, while soldiers were intimidating voters at the same time

    Secondus said: “Nothing will make us waver in the pursuit of justice. The decision to go to court has been finalised and the process has begun.

    “We will file our petition today (Monday) or tomorrow (Tuesday), no matter what anyone will do or what the APC will say. We will seek justice up to the highest court of the land.

    “What happened during this election has never happened in the history of this country. They are celebrating criminality, they are celebrating evil.

    “Our leaders are not talking and if you don’t speak against evil, it will consume everybody. The National Peace Committee is not saying anything.

    “INEC and its ad-hoc staff were intimidated and everyone is quiet. If nothing is done, we will nosedive and go deeper and deeper in this situation we have found ourselves.

    “Our lawyers have been assembled and no one can stop us. No matter the propaganda of the APC, we will seek justice with the last drop of our blood. We believe justice will be done and God Almighty will give us justice”.

    Secondus lamented the alleged irregularities that trailed the presidential election, bemoaning the manner in which the military and other security agencies were allegedly deployed to  undermine the integrity of the polls.

    Some of the party chieftains that attended the meeting, which was chaired by Secondus, included the presidential candidate, Atiku Abubabar; Deputy President of the Senate Ike Ekweremadu; Senator Dino Melaye and Senator Philip Aduda.

    Others included a former Deputy President of the Senate Ibrahim Mantu; chairman PDP Board of Trustees, Senator Wali Jibril; a former governor of Kogi State, Idris Wada; among others.

  • Defections, court battles as parties intensify campaigns

    •Support base for Abiodun swells in Ogun      •Kano PDP exco defects to APC

    •Oyo APC accuses PDP of peddling rumours      •Judge refuses to stop Bindow

    •‘Kwara governor intimidating workers’      •Ortom: no plan to compromise INEC

    PARTIES and their candidates are intensifying their preparations for the rescheduled Governorship and State Assembly elections on Saturday.

    President Muhammadu Buhari was in Delta and Akwa Ibom states to lead the All Progressives Congress (APC) campaign for the governorship elections. It was in a bid to take the Southsouth states into the ruling party’s basket.

    In many of the states, stronger candidates are making overtures to weaker candidates to gain more strength ahead of the elections and to form a formidable opposition to dislodge incumbent governors.

    Major challengers are accusing governors of deploying government structures to emasculate the opposition.

    There have also been judicial interventions in some states. Here is a state-by-state situation ahead of the elections:

    Kano

    In Kano, a Federal High Court nullified the primaries that produced Abba K. Yusuf as the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate.

    Justice Lawis Alagoa ruled that Yususf’s candidature was not recognised by law because no primary election was held to produce him.

    The Judge, however, ruled that the PDP should conduct a fresh primary to produce a candidate who can be recognised by law before Saturday’s election.

    A PDP gubernatorial aspirant, Ibrahim El-Amin Little,  challenged the process that produced Yusuf.

    His grouse was that the party denied him the right to contest the primary election, even as he bought his expression and nomination forms.

    The development has unsettled the opposition party with members of its Executive Council defecting to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

    Led by Senator Masa’ud El-Jubrin Doguwa, the executive and thousands of the party’s supporters announced their defection yesterday.

    Explaining why he collapsed the state leadership of the PDP into the APC, Doguwa said it was “due to the injustice being meted out to us by the Prince Uche Secondus National leadership”.

    He said: “I called this press conference just to brief you of a very painful decision that we have taken. This is so painful, but we have no choice but to take this decision of leaving the PDP. Today, we have decided to move to the APC.”

    Read also: My intervention in Oyo APC was for genuine reconciliation, by Tinubu

    Niger

    In Niger State, a Federal High Court in Minna yesterday dismissed a case of alleged certificate forgery filed against Governor Abubakar Bello.

    The PDP had gone to the court, seeking Bello’s disqualification from the election in.

    It accused Bello, who is the APC candidate, of presenting a forged certificate of statutory declaration of age to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    Justice Aminu Aliyu, held that the suit was filed out of time, thereby negating Section 285 (9) of Nigeria’s constitution.

    Justice Aliyu held that the plaintiff’s case lacked merit and could not establish that Bello presented a forged certificate to INEC.

    He dismissed the matter and awarded N500, 000 cost to Bello and APC.

    Counsel to the plaintiff, Aliyu Lemu, expressed dissatisfaction with the judgment, saying that his client would appeal.

    Mr Jibril Okutepa (SAN), Yunus Usman (SAN) and Johnson Usman, counsel to Bello and APC, described the judgment as a further proof that the judiciary was the last hope of the common man.

    Adamawa

    A Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Apo, yesterday dismissed a suit alleging that Adamawa State Governor Mohammed Bindow of submitting forged certificates to the INEC for lack of territorial jurisdiction.

    Justice Olukayode Adeniyi held that the court lacked the jurisdiction to hear the case on the ground that the suit originated from Adamawa State and ought to have been filed in the state and not in Abuja.

    A non-governmental organisation, under the aegis of Incorporated Trustees of Kingdom Human Rights Foundation International, tendered documents before the court to substantiate its claim that the defendant who is a flag-bearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC), falsely declared his educational qualification and date of birth.

    Among other prayers, the claimant was seeking the disqualification of Bindow from participating in the election.

    Bindow denied presenting forged documents to INEC.

    The governor, through his lawyer, Chief Chris Uche, SAN, told the court that he won the primary election on October 9, last year in Yola.

    Meanwhil, the governorship candidates of 10 political parties in the state have resolved to work for the PDP to ensure victory for the opposition party.

    The candidates announced the decision after a meeting with the Adamawa PDP candidate, Alhaji Umaru Fintiri, in Yola.

    The candidates are: Sadiq Khaliel of MRDD, Danjuma Musa of FJP, Naziru Sa’ad of ZLP, Ahmed Hassan of DA and Salihu Danjuma of APM.

    Others are: Abdullahi Usman of NCP, Bappari Umar of KOWA, Lami Musa of PPN, Elizabeth Isa of CAP and Frank Simon of MEGA party.

    The candidates, who took turns to speak at the meeting, said they had decided to partner with the PDP and work for the success of the party and its candidate in the election.

    Ogun

    In Ogun State, the support base of the APC candidate, Prince Dapo Abiodun, swelled with some opposition figures promising to support him.

    A top chieftain of the APC in the Gateway State confirmed to The Nation that talks were ongoing between the party and key opposition figures.

    The APC leader, who pleaded to remain anonymous, said: “Our party has opened talks with the PDP, ADC and other opposition parties on how to collaborate so that Dapo Abiodun can really be the symbol.

    “Some APM members are returning home to work for the party. This is why I called it the realignment of forces in Ogun State.”

    A member of the state House of Assembly, Akinpelu Aina, said the APC would win Saturday’s governorship poll, despite the stand of Governor Ibikunle Amosun.

    Governor Amosun is backing the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) candidate, Adekunle Akinlade, who lost the governorship ticket to Abiodun at the primaries.

    The lawmaker noted that the APC candidate was credible and remained the best for the position.

    Benue

    Governor Samuel Ortom’s  Special Adviser on Media & ICT, Mr Tahav Agerzua, said there was no need for the governor to compromise INEC personnel.

    Agerzua, who spoke in Makurdi, was reacting to the allegation by the APC in the state that Ortom had allocated large amounts of money to INEC staff, with the intent to compromise them.

    He said: “These unfounded allegations being circulated in the media are surely the last kicks of a dying horse. The results of the Feb. 23 Presidential and National Assembly polls indicate that the party (PDP) is the preferred choice of the Benue people.

    “Ortom, who has grass roots support, need not compromise INEC staff to get votes through the backdoor. The people are poised to, once again, vote for him massively like they did in 2015, without any undue influence on the electoral umpire.”

    Sokoto

    The state chapter of the APC in Sokoto raised the alarm over alleged desperate and undemocratic moves by the PDP to cause a breach of the peace. It urged law enforcement agencies to apply appropriate sanctions to serve as deterrent to others.

    It alleged that the PDP had planned to deploy ‘area boys’ in Sokoto Marshall uniforms to join the joint security patrol team that will monitor the election to accomplish its designed plan.

    “We do not trust the state government owned security outfit. We reject that unlawful arrangement and demand that only security agencies backed and duly recognised by federal laws should monitor elections”, the APC said.

    It described as detrimental the calculated inciting statement by the state PDP chairman, Alhaji Ibrahim Milgoma and the state Zonal Vice Chairman, Alhaji Muhammadu Dangwaggo, at a youth solidarity rally on March 2.

    At a news conference, the Sokoto APC Chairman, Alhaji Sadiq Isah Achida, observed that the PDP was rattled by the overwhelming victory of the APC across the country, describing the actions and unguarded statements by the opposition party’s chieftains as capable of causing a breach of the peace.

    Achida quoted the duo as saying: “We must win election by all means. We either win or there will be death. Any government official seen at the polling unit should be beaten up to death and his corpse thrown away in a refuse dump.

    “The statements are not only inciting but a recipe for lawlessness and anarchy,” Achida said.

    Oyo

    The Oyo State chapter of the APC warned PDP leaders to steer clear of the state because its funds cannot be used to fund the party (PDP).

    APC Publicity Secretary AbdulAzeez Olatunde said the failure of the PDP to win the presidential election had caused its members to go delusional, noting that the allegation that Governor Abiola Ajimobi plans to use fake police and NURTW members to cause unrest is “a figment of their puerile imagination and a product of hallucination”.

    Dr. Olatunde said: “Everyone in this state knows that Ajimobi stands for peace and he will not trade it for anything. Nigerians cannot forget in a hurry the violent years of PDP and the ruins caused by the party, which is gradually being salvaged by the APC administration of President Buhari.”

    The APC spokesman warned that it would resist what it called the rigging and vote buying plans of the PDP, adding that it will not allow the PDP to turn Oyo State into a micro finance bank.

    He said: “We wouldn’t have responded to PDP hallucinatory statements since the people know the party is synonymous with violence, maladministration, financial recklessness and mudslinging. With their rejection by Nigerians in the February 23 election, we assumed that they would have changed their ways.

    “But like the saying goes, old habits die hard. The habit of PDP to peddle falsehood is their second nature. Their antics to get to Oyo’s seat of power will be another futile effort. The electorate knows them; they know how they ruined the country’s economy and perpetrated a lot of violence in Oyo State and across the country.

    “The peace currently being enjoyed in Oyo State was elusive during the ruling years of PDP. It is only PDP that will lay the foundation of peace and destroy same with its hands.

    “The present administration in the state is people-oriented and it has vowed to sustain peace, safety and security.”

  • A poll and its aftermath

    Here we go again – was my gut reaction to the rejection of the outcome of the February 23 presidential election by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, former vice president Atiku Abubakar.

    “If I had lost in a free and fair election, I would have called the victor within seconds of my being aware of his victory to offer not just my congratulations, but my services to help unite Nigeria by being a bridge between the North and the South”.

    That was Atiku moments after INEC declared the incumbent president, Muhammadu Buhari winner of the February 23 presidential poll. Well, he didn’t “lose”; rather his opponent won. And the victory is as emphatic as can be: 15,191,847 votes for the incumbent as against Atiku who polled 11,262,978 – which means that Muhammadu Buhari and Yemi Osinbajo will remain in charge for the next four years.

    By the way, when compared with his showing of 15,424,921 in the 2015 election against incumbent president Goodluck Jonathan, the latest showing might seem not only modest but indicative of how fewer friends the president has made since; however, when his foray albeit limited,into such states as Akwa Ibom, Abia and Rivers – states which hitherto presented as a formidable iron curtain are factored in, the surge in the mandate become understandable. And this is aside the four million-vote margin between him and the closest challenger. That is as unassailable as can be.

    Could Atiku have won the election?

    I certainly understand the anger of those who, frustrated by what they perceive as the many ‘sins’ of the Buhari presidency,are led to think that the country deserves better than what is on offer more so at this time. To this group, the sins of this presidency are legion:they range to an allegedlack of sensitivity to the nation’s diversity evidenced by the lopsidedness in appointments, the administration’s rather poor handling of the herdsmen/farmers clashes to the slow pace of governance etc. To them, nothing of the so-called infrastructure deliverables can assuage for the grievous sin of a lack of inclusion.

    But then, let’s flip the question in another way: could the incumbent, President Buhari, with all the foibles of his administration in the last four years, have lost against an Atikuwho in fact offers nothing spectacularly different from the incumbent?

    To begin with, Atiku is hardly a new product on offer; other than the singular factor of name-recognition which unfortunately carries with it a lethal baggage, the only other thing that can be said as going for him is that he has been there before and so should able to understand how the system works. Yes, Nigerians know Atiku – but for what? Secondly, he says nothing new that Nigerians are not too familiar with. As for his public thoughts on governance and economy, not only are they dated but are increasingly seen as toxic! While he boasted of his pedigree as a job creator, Nigerians struggled to find the vintage entrepreneur but found instead the archetype Nigerian comprador-investor who thrives in state subsidies! In any case, I didn’t hear our policy wonk offer new perspectives on the unemployment situation or a coherent strategy to deal with it. In the end, his touted recordcould only sound hollow if not dubious. And that is not counting terrible damage inflicted on his brand by no less a personality than his former boss, Olusegun Obasanjo.

    That was the man presented by the PDP to run against the saintly Muhammadu Buhari, the perceived nemesis of the corrupt elite; and friend of the talakawa in a process that became more of a referendum on the performance on the incumbent rather than a true electoral contest. While it amounted to a censure of sorts for the incumbent, it was in the end, a case of no contest between them.

    So where do we go from here.

    All of course depends on how the victory is managed. Given the volume of bile spewing daily on the world-wide-webfrom partisans on both sides of the national divides, you’ll think that the country is already on a full-blown war as against merely ruing the import of a mere electoral fest. Currently, all it takes is a minor joke on the social media sites for textual fusillades to be unleashed by those presumably hurting from the loss of their candidate on perceived enemies.

    Welcome to the season of ethnic baiting – a season when nothing is held sacrosanct and our common humanity perches on a fragile thread. As friends turn enemies over differences in political choice,our traditional fault-lines have not only been exacerbated, our country is left swinging dangerously towards the precipice. It is truly Silly Season 11. Whereas the election may have produced clear winners, now itseems increasingly doubtful that the country will be allowed to savour the fruits of victory.

    I am not here writing of an Atiku going to court to retrieve his “stolen mandate”; but of growing animosities that have divided the country along the lines of faith, geography and ethnography; along the tribe of wailers and hailers. The battle unfortunately is one the country is least prepared for or even likely to be able to win.

    To be fair to President Buhari, he has been most conciliatory – and statesmanlike in victory. I wish yours truly can say this of the hordes of supporters of ruling APC who in their moments of mindless triumphalism have long cast off any restraints or humility; or their sparring partners who think little of delegitimizing the process simply because they came short.

    For a country in the throes of terrorism and its malignant variants, the omens are simply not good. It is like pouring more petrol on an already combustible surface. It is the surest route to Armageddon.

    As it is, President Buhari has his work out: time to embark on a healing mission. As the president may have found out in nearly four years of being in the saddle, it requires far more effortto court the minds of menthan it would in building concrete bridges on the Niger. Imagine his poor showing in Anambra – a state where the on-going Second Niger Bridge would ordinarily have guaranteed a haul of votes. That task must begin now.

  • EFCC arrests Atiku’s campaign chief

    The Deputy Director General (Admin) the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Organization, Tanimu Turaki SAN, has been reportedly arrested and detained by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    A statement last night by the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, said Turaki’s arrest and detention was part of the grand plot by the Buhari Presidency and the All Progressives Congress (APC) to use state apparatus of power to intimidate PDP leaders and scuttle the party’s determination to reclaim its February 23 presidential election victory in court.

    Demanding the immediate and unconditional release of Turaki, who was said to have been arrested Monday, the party said the campaign chief was arrested and detained for no reason.

    The statement said, “Since the people’s candidate, Atiku Abubakar and the PDP expressed our unwavering determination to reclaim our victory at the tribunal, being armed with overwhelming evidence, our leaders have been subjected to escalated harassments, constant threats, blackmails, cajoling and contrivances by the APC to drop our legal option.

    Read also: Buhari hosts Presidential Campaign Council to dinner

    “It is instructive to state that Tanimu Turaki was arrested and detained upon invitation by the EFCC to endorse a bail document for the Finance Director of Atiku Abubakar’s company, Babalele Abdullahi, who was arrested earlier by the commission over flimsy allegations.

    “The PDP, however, states in clear terms that the APC and the Buhari Presidency are fighting a lost battle as no amount of harassment and threats will ever make the party to buckle in its determination to take back the mandate, in line with the wishes and aspirations of Nigerians.

    “Nigerians are resolute on this struggle to reclaim the mandate freely given to Atiku Abubakar at the polls and the PDP will pursue this decision to its logical end and secure justice for the Nigerian people”.

  • PDP’s allegation, product of hallucination — Oyo APC

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Oyo State says People’s Democratic Party (PDP)’s allegation that Gov. Abiola Ajimobi intends to cause mayhem during Saturday’s election is a figment of the opposition’s puerile imagination.

    The APC Publicity Secretary in Oyo State, Dr Azeez Olatunde, said this in a statement in Ibadan on Monday.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the PDP in the state had alleged that the APC and Ajimobi were planning to cause unrest during the election using transport union members.

    “Our attention has been drawn to an allegation by the PDP that the governor is planning to use fake police and NURTW members to cause unrest in the state.

    “We like to state categorically that this allegation is a figment of their puerile imagination and a product of hallucination,” the party said.

    The APC said that everyone in the state knows that Ajimobi stood for peace and would not trade it for anything.

    It said that Nigerians could not forget in a hurry the violent years of PDP and the ruins it caused which was gradually being salvaged by the APC administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The APC warned that it would resist election rigging and vote buying plans of the PDP in the gubernatorial election, stating that it won’t allow PDP to turn Oyo State into a macro finance bank.

    “We wouldn’t have responded to PDP hallucinatory statements since the people know the party is synonymous with violence, maladministration, financial recklessness and mudslinging.

    “With their rejection by Nigerians in the Feb. 23 election, we assumed that they would have changed their ways.

    “But like the saying goes, old habits die hard. The habit of PDP to peddle falsehood is their second nature. Their antics to get to Oyo seat of power will be another futile effort.

    “The electorates know them, they know how they ruined the country’s economy and perpetrated a lot of violence in Oyo State and across the country,” it said.

    It said that the peace currently enjoyed in the state was elusive during the ruling years of PDP, saying it is only a party like PDP that would lay the foundation of peace and destroy same with its hands.

    The APC said that the present administration in the state was people oriented and has vowed to sustain peace, safety and security that would bring evident development, growth and progress to the state.

    It warned the leaders of PDP to steer clear of the state, saying the state’s fund could not be used to fund the PDP. (NAN)

  • 15 PDP councillors defect to APC in Kwara

    No fewer than 15 serving Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) councillors in Kwara on Monday, defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of Governorship and State Assembly Elections.

    The defectors, who were drawn from five out 16 local government areas of the state, said they defected to APC in the interest of the masses.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that they were elected on the platform of PDP in November 2017.

    Speaking on behalf of the defectors, Hon Suleiman Taoheed representing Ajanaku Ward in Moro Local Government Area, explained that the current PDP administration in Kwara had failed.

    “We are tired of lies and poor performance of the incumbent administration in the state and as a result, we cannot be left behind in building better and brighter Kwara.

    “Everybody is complaining about the political hegemony in Kwara because the system has not brought positive changes to the people of the state,” Taoheed said.

    He promised on behalf of the defectors to mobilise electorate in their respective wards and vote en masse for all APC candidates on Saturday.

    They also pledged their support for AbdulRahman Abdulrasaq, the APC governorship candidate, stating that he had good plans for the state considering his antecedents.

    They revealed that more serving councillors would join APC before Saturday.

    Receiving the defectors, Dr. Alimi Abdulrasaq, an APC stalwart and brother to the governorship flag bearer said that they would not regret their decision.

    Abdulrasaq noted that his brother, when elected would ensure that local governments have full autonomy, and draw government closer to the people at the grassroots.

    He urged them to mobilise electorate to vote Abdulrahman Abdulrasaq and all APC state assembly candidates in the elections.

    The defected councillors are: Adam Tsado, (Edu), Ogundele Segun, (Isin), James Kayode, (Ilorin East), Aremu Jamiu, (Moro), Olorunrinu Suleiman, (Ilorin South)

    Others are: Omolara Sanni, (Isin), Adebayo Olatayo, (Isin) Saheed Abdulwasiu, (Isin) Saheed Musbau, (Isin) Adeyemi Oladele, (Isin) Suleiman Taoheed, (Isin), Ishola Seunayo, (Isin) among others. (NAN)

  • PDP chides Obiano over suspension of taxes

    The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Anambra state has described as deceptive the suspension of taxes by the State government few days to the State House of Assembly election.

    The party said it was worrisome that the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA)-controlled government would at any election time suspend taxes the people have paid at the beginning of the year.

    The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the party in the state, Nnamdi Nwangwu in a statement Monday in Nnewi, said the State Governor, Willie Obiano could no longer deceive the people of the state.

    Nwangwu urged the people of the state to use the March 9 Assembly election to prove to the governor they were not fools by voting the PDP candidates so they could check the governor’s excesses.

    Read Also: 2000 PDP members defect to APC in Kwara

    He said, “As far as we are concerned in PDP, the circle is complete for the Governor. He cannot take the good people of the state for a ride again. Enough is enough.

    “The House of Assembly needs quality individuals who can come up with laws that will push Anambra State to her pride of place in the comity of states and at the same time carry out their oversight functions accordingly.

    “A situation where the Assembly has been reduced to a rubber stamp institution that takes instructions from the governor is neither good for the state nor democracy.”

    Nwangwu reminded those blaming the people for voting for PDP in the presidential election, that it was the people’s inalienable rights to vote for whoever they wished.