The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)

  • Atiku urges prayers for military in counter insurgency at Christmas

    The presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has urged Nigerians to spare a thought for the nation’s military and security forces who are on the front lines of the counter insurgency operations in the Northeast.

    In his Christmas goodwill message, personally signed by him, Atiku said he had had cause to telephone a family member of the late Lt. Col. Ibrahim Sakaba who was one of the military men killed by the Boko Haram insurgents in Metele, Borno State on November 18.

    “I was touched by the devotion and love they had for the man who paid the supreme sacrifice for Nigeria.

    “I urge all Nigerians to think about these heroes who make the relative peace we live in possible. They endure so that we all can enjoy. Because they gave their all, we all have some peace.

    Read Also: Why Atiku won’t win in South-West

    “So, when next you see a soldier, boost his or her morale by acknowledging their sacrifices and thanking them. Nigeria owes so much to the gallant officers and the men and women of our armed forces.

    “They epitomize the spirit of Christmas, which is sacrificial giving. Let us also celebrate the sacrifice our armed forces make for Nigeria.

    “Finally, seeing that the essence of Christmas is that Christ came to earth to reconcile us to God, should we not, as beneficiaries of such divine reconciliation, reciprocate it by being reconciled with one another during this Yuletide period and beyond?

    “There are too many divisions in our nation today and it is up to each and every one of us to inject the healing and unifying serum of love for our neighbours into the nation’s consciousness this Christmas.

    “We may be Muslim, Christian or traditional religion adherents. But we are all creatures of God deserving of the love of God and of our neighbours’.  Let that be the attitude we embrace this Christmas and beyond.

    “Once again, on behalf of me and my entire family, we wish you all a Merry Christmas and a safe, prosperous and New Year”, Atiku added.

  • Kwara ex-councillors protest against non payment of entitlements

    Former councillors in Kwara state have protested against non payment of their entitlements by the state government.

    The ex-councillors who are members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state also threatened to dump the party should the state government fail to settle their severance packages.

    The councillors served between 2013 and 2016 across 16 Local Government Areas of the state.

    The affected PDP members include 166 councillors, 80 supervisory councillors 16 secretaries and 16 vice chairmen.

    Spokesman of the group Bisi Oloyede told The Nation that the concerned members had taken several steps to resolve the issue amicably without success.

    Oloyede noted that Governor AbdulFatah Ahmed had promised several times to address the problems but all to no avail.

    “The Senate President, Bukola Saraki who is also the leader of the party has equally promised to find lasting solution to this problem, but yet unresolved,” he added.

    The aggrieved ex- councillors regretted their unalloyed loyalty to both the party and Senate President, threatening to go to any length if their issues are not quickly addressed.

    Read Also: Kwara APC reports judge to NJC

    He warned that if no step is taking to address the issue,  they may be forced to take drastic actions against the wish of the party.

    He urged the government to do the needful by paying all their entitlements within the shortest reasonable period of time to retain their membership in the party.

    “We built PDP structure together.  We love our party and the dynasty,  but unfortunately we are disappointed  for their negligence on our issues,” he said.

     

  • PDP accuses Buhari, APC of fraudulent depletion of ECA

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said the revelation of furtive depletion and siphoning of $1.68 billion from the Excess Crude Account (ECA), further showed that President Muhammadu Buhari presides over a corrupt government that is bent on draining the treasury and foisting more suffering on the people.

    The party accused President Buhari of superintending over the surreptitious withdrawals from the ECA, without recourse to the statutory appropriation of the National Assembly, saying funds are being frittered from the account to private purses of the cabal at the Presidency and corrupt All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders.

    A statement on Thursday by the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, described the excuses being peddled by the Buhari administration on the depletion as hazy, muddle-up and cannot find basis under the due process of statutory legislative approvals.

    The main opposition party wondered why the President is presiding over such impunity, if he is not drawing personal benefits from the obvious racket for which ECA has been turned into APC’s Automated Teller Machine (ATM).

    The statement said, “Apparently realizing that they have been rejected by Nigerians ahead of the 2019 general elections, the APC and the Buhari Presidency now want to drain our treasury and as usual, blame it on past administration.

    “Nigerians can recall that the PDP, which established the ECA as a buffer account to cushion the effect of any economic down turn, left $2.07 billion in the account only for the Buhari administration to drain it down to $631 million.

    “The PDP condemns this manifest impunity by the Buhari Presidency and demands that no more withdrawals must be made from the account by this corrupt and inept administration.

    “Finally, our party urges Nigerians to unite in condemnation of the depletion of our ECA by the Buhari administration, which has less than five months to leave the governance of our country for good”.

  • Ishaku gets PDP flag, ready for 2019 poll

    Taraba State Governor, Darius Ishaku, has received the flag of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to fly it at the 2019 governorship election.

    The governor, who clinched the ticket in landslide, was given the flag by the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, in Abuja on Wednesday.

    Ishaku, who is seeking a second term, on Thursday showed the flag to the party stalwarts and supporters in Jalingo when he landed at the Danbaba Suntai Airport in the State capital.

    Read Also: Ishaku declares self only PDP governorship aspirant in Taraba

    He was accompanied in the Overland aircraft by senators Emmanuel Bwacha (representing southern zone) and Shuaibu Isa Lau (representing northern Taraba) among other dignitaries

    On arrival, the governor handed the flag to the PDP State chairman, Victor Bala, who together with the Deputy Governor, Haruna Manu, Speaker Abel Peter Diah, the governor’s wife, Anna Ishaku, and other government officials, received him.

    Ishaku is now ready for the 2019 governorship poll. His return with the PDP flag in the State capital heralded wide jubilation by the PDP supporters.

     

     

  • ‘Bring killers of Badeh to justice’

    The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has urged the Federal Government to ensure that the killers of former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh are prosecuted.

    The opposition emphasized that his killers must not go the way of others.

    The party’s National Vice Chairman (South West), Dr Eddy Olafeso in a statement issued in Akure, the Ondo State capital said the killing of Badeh demonstrated the level of insecurity in Nigeria.

    In the statement signed by the South West zonal publicity secretary of the party, Ayo Fadaka, the PDP leader said “the circle of bloodletting that has viciously characterized our national life shows that Nigeria is insecure.”

    Read Also: Badeh: Killing unacceptable – Chief of Air Staff

    Olafeso noted that the killing of a high profile Nigerian was absolutely uncommon; stressing that there must be diligent investigation on his death.

    He  noted that Badeh continued to remain under EFCC investigation till his death, urging government to go extra mile to unearth the factors responsible for his assassination and bring the culprits to book.

  • Atiku knocks Buhari over latest unemployment report

    The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has knocked President Muhammadu Buhari over what he described as a forged unemployment report.

    Describing the job report released on Wednesday by the National Bureau of Statistics as terrible and catastrophic, Atiku countered that 20.93 million Nigerians lost their jobs under the All Progressives Congress (APC) administration.

    In a statement on Wednesday by his media adviser, Paul Ibe, Atiku accused the Presidency of arm-twisting the Statistician General of the Federation, Dr. Yemi Kale.

    The statement said, “We expected a terrible job report, particularly with the comment on live television from the President’s spokesman, Garba Shehu, that President Buhari had ordered the Statistician General of the Federation, Dr. Yemi Kale, to fudge the latest job reports.

    “However, the job report released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday November 19, 2018, is not just terrible, it is catastrophic. They show that under the All Progressives Congress administration, a whopping 20.93 million Nigerians have lost their jobs!

    Read Also: Buhari urges ASUU to suspend strike in national interest

    “To put this in perspective the unemployed population in Nigeria is now twice the population of Benin Republic!

    “Nigeria cannot continue like this, especially with an administration that continues to blame others for things that they should find solutions for with the latest ridiculous episode being President Buhari’s blaming of former President Jonathan for his own inability to appoint ministers for six months, an action that is directly responsible for the sorry state of unemployment in Nigeria.

    “We urge Nigerians to note that a President who can’t create jobs or wealth in his own private business cannot create jobs or wealth for the public because you cannot give what you do not have.

    “Right now, Nigeria is the world headquarters of extreme poverty and our main challenge is jobs. Atiku Abubakar is an expert at job and wealth creation having created 50,000 jobs in his own private capacity.

    “Whatever is entrusted into the hands of Waziri Atiku Abubakar blooms. This is a man who will never have 150 cattle year in and year out. This is a man who will never blame others and will always accept responsibility for changing things. Nigeria needs jobs and Atiku means JOBS.

    “Finally, we would like to commend the Statistician General of the Federation for having the courage to stand up to President Buhari by releasing the inconvenient truth about the state of unemployment in Nigeria.The party was reacting to a directive by the President to the Statistician General of Nigeria, Mr. Yemi Kale, to change the existing data on unemployment”.

  • PDP, Secondus celebrate Saraki at 56

    The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has celebrated the President of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, as he turned 56 on Wednesday.

    The party described Saraki as a pillar of democracy, a very courageous and patriotic leader and an exceptional administrator, who has continued to make sacrifices for the unity, stability, development and protection of democratic tenets and good governance in our dear nation.

    A statement by the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, said the the PDP noted with pride, Saraki’s courage in providing outstanding leadership in the National Assembly.

    It added that Saraki had upheld the independence of the legislature and its focus in serving only the interest of the people, despite the “harassment, intimidation and siege” on his persons and the parliament, by the Executive arm of government.

    Read Also: 2019: Saraki battles new foes in Kwara

    Similarly, the National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, also felicitated with Saraki, describing him as a defender of democracy.

    In a statement in Abuja on Wednesday, Secondus said Saraki is a foremost democrat who always stands for the rule of law, adding that contributions to the deepening of democracy in the country stands him out.

    The party chair added that Saraki’s return to the PDP from the All Progressives Congress (APC) where he defected to in 2014, was a good political decision that showed his love for true democracy and Nigeria.

    Secondus noted that the prospects of a better Nigeria is very bright if democracy flourishes and great minds are allowed to make meaningful contributions.

  • PDP accuses Buhari of attempting to doctor unemployment figures

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused President Muhammadu Buhari of attempting to doctor unemployment figures in the country, to create the impression of massive job creation by the administration.
    The party was reacting to a directive by the President to the Statistician General of Nigeria, Mr. Yemi Kale, to change the existing data on unemployment.
    In a statement Tuesday by the spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, the main opposition party condemned what it described as brazen attempt to manipulate official statistics in favour of the administration.
    It described it as a new low in the All Progressives Congress (APC) led government’s established “culture of deceit, falsehood and criminal subterfuge”, in its desperation to hang on to power.
    The party further stated that in desperation, the administration is now trying to force the Statistician General of Nigeria to alter genuine data and smuggle in fictitious employment figures.

    The statement said, “Our party holds that the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) is a professional body, insulated from government interferences, with statutory responsibility to compute credible and verifiable data and statistics, for national planning.

    Read Also: We’ll defeat PDP, Agbaje roundly – Sanwo-Olu

    “The PDP is therefore shocked at this attempt by the Buhari Presidency to corrupt our system through the falsification of employment statistics just to shore up its failed economic policies that have brought untold hardship on the Nigerian people.

    “Nigerians can now see why the Buhari Presidency has deliberately starved the NBS of funds; to prevent it from conducting surveys and releasing further data that highlight the failures of the APC administration.

    “Unfortunately, President Buhari appears to have forgotten that statistics is like a mirror. If the government does not like the ugliness of its reflection, then the problem is not with the mirror.

    “If the NBS backs down for political expediency or intimidation, it would have dealt a mortal blow to the credibility of official statistics emanating from Nigeria. In the future, such official reports from it would be regarded worthless and unreliable.

    “We therefore call on the Statistician General not to succumb to the blackmail of the Buhari Presidency but remain on the path of truth and facts, in the course of his duty”.

  • Atiku, Obi to hold town hall meeting with Aba business community

    The Presidential Candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Alh. Atiku Abubakar and his running mate, Mr. Peter Obi will on Wednesday, hold a Town Hall Meeting with the Aba Business Community.

    The interaction, according to a release by the State Coordinator, Atiku/Obi Presidential Campaign Organisation, Chief Charles Ogbonnaya will hold at Aba Sports Club by 12:Noon.

    Ogbonnaya in the release stated that the essence of the Town Hall Meeting was for the Candidate to understand first-hand the challenges facing the business community in Aba.

    The release has it that Alh. Atiku Abubakar will be accompanied on the trip by his Running Mate, Mr. Peter Obi, National Chairman, PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, Senate President and Campaign DG, Dr. Bukola Saraki and other National Directors of the Campaign Council.

    The Town Hall, which will be interactive, will see businessmen in Aba sharing their challenges with the PDP Presidential Candidate and listening to his plans to improve their business environment should he emerge President of Nigeria.

    Ogbonnaya further disclosed that the Governor of the state, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu will be the Chief Host while various Atiku Pro Groups and Political Organisations are expected to mobilise their members to the venue of the event.

    “It is common knowledge that since Governor Okezie Ikpeazu mounted the saddle as Governor of Abia State, Aba has taken its rightful place as the SME Capital of West Africa attracting unprecedented attention from Governments and Development Partners,” part of the release read.

  • APC plots to rig election, PDP alleges

    The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has again accused President Muhammadu Buhari, the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of plots to rig the 2019 elections.
    At a media briefing in Abuja on Friday, spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, alleged frenzied desperation to foist President Buhari back on Nigerians against the wish of the majority.
    Ologbondiyan said, “Having realized that there is no way they can win in a credible, free and fair presidential election, the Buhari Presidency and the APC, in cahoots with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), have been engaged in series of provocative machinations aimed to corrupt the electoral process, trigger violent dissentions and ultimately derail our democratic process.
    “You will recall that on Thursday, the PDP vehemently rejected the plots by INEC and the Presidency to rig the election by creating illegal polling centres in Chad and Niger Republic, under the guise of ‘special arrangement’ for displaced Nigerians in those countries to participate in the presidential election.

    “The PDP had exposed the plot to use such illegal centres for allocation of fictitious votes, massive ballot stuffing, voting by aliens, underage and unregistered persons to pull millions of fictitious votes in favour of President Buhari.

    “Having been busted, INEC beat a retreat only to invent a fresh ruse by announcing that the ‘special arrangement’ would only be for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) within the shores of Nigeria, while secretly retaining the illegal offshore voting plot”.

    Read Also: APC to PDP: Nigeria more secured under Buhari’s govt

    The party spokesman said intelligence available to the PDP indicated that instead of the open offshore voting centres, the Presidency had directed INEC to circumvent the checks by secretly opening illegal voting centres at the desert fringes and remote border lines with Chad and Niger, and use them to achieve its original plans to rig the presidential election.

    According to the main opposition party, part of the plot is to use the illegal remote centres, which will not have functional Smart Card Readers, to allow unchecked voting by aliens, and underage persons as well as provide the unlimited latitude for criminal allocation of fictitious votes for President Buhari and the APC.

    The PDP also alleged plots to compromise security personnel operating in the affected areas to provide official cover for the rigging plot.

    Continuing, the PDP said, “Furthermore, it is instructive to inform Nigerians that, as part of the Buhari Presidency’s rigging plot, INEC has been instructed to deploy defective Smart Card Readers to IDP camps, particularly in some strategic northern states, to pave way for direct manipulations, including alteration of voter register and voting by unregistered persons, particularly, with the foreclosure of incident forms for manual accreditation.

    “This grand plot to rig is the essential reason President Muhammadu Buhari has deliberately refused to sign the amendments to the Electoral Act, which among other things checked manual manipulation by insisting on the use of card readers for biometric accreditation of voters and elimination of over-voting.

    “It is clear that the Buhari Presidency is desperate to re-enact the same rigging scenario, which, in 2015, allowed 13.5 million unauthorized persons to participate in the presidential election, paving the way for the illegal allocation of millions of fictitious votes to President Buhari and we urge Nigerians to unite in condemnation of this ignoble scheme.

    “The PDP therefore rejects, as completely deceptive, the untenable assurances and lip service by this overtly compromised INEC that it can deliver a credible election without an across-the-board biometric accreditation of voters and the use incidence form.

    “Our party completely rejects the plan by INEC to substitute biometric accreditation with manual verification on self-recognition and thumbprint on the voters register.

    “Such primitive method of accreditation only opens the way for unlimited rigging, multiple, underage and alien voting, as well as ballot stuffing which will afford President Buhari and the APC to manipulate themselves back to power against the wish of majority of Nigerians.

    “The PDP, therefore in very unambiguous term, cautions INEC under Prof. Mahmood Yakubu not to be used to set our nation on fire but to immediately retrace its steps and untangle itself from the wicked scheme of the APC as Nigerians will never allow them to have their way.

    “For the purposes of emphasis, the PDP rejects all forms of fraudulent “special arrangements” tailored to rig this election. Our party insists that elections must only hold in statutorily designated polling centers across our country.

    “The PDP and indeed, Nigerians are not ready to accept any fabricated result from any illegal polling center created to assist President Buhari to rig the election.

    “This is essentially because all IDP camps in our country fall within the catchment area of an already delineated polling unit. Therefore any individual who is displaced from his original area of registration is at liberty to have his registration transferred to an exiting statutory polling center near his or her IDP camp of residence. This is a provision that is clear to all, including the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu.

    “The whole world has now seen that the only reason President Buhari has refused to sign the Electoral Act is because he knows that there is no way he can win in a peaceful, credible, free and fair election. President Buhari is not ready for elections. His only hope in contesting the election is getting INEC and security forces to assist him and the APC to rig.

    “For PDP, our party and Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, are ready for the election but we caution INEC under Prof. Mahmood Yakubu to note that by playing the Buhari/APC rigging script, it is running on collusion course with the people.

    “This anti-democratic tendency may attract dire consequences as Nigerians are now, more than ever before, ready, willing and resolute to take back their country from the incompetent, divisive and arrogantly corrupt Buhari administration, come 2019.  Enough is Enough”.