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Tag: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)

  • PDP convention: Court refuses hear members’ suit

    PDP convention: Court refuses hear members’ suit

    The Federal High Court in Lagos Tuesday adjourned till January 16 for hearing in a suit by some People’s Democratic Party (PDP) members seeking to be allowed to participate in Saturday’s National Convention.

    The suit was filed by a member of the PDP National Working Committee, Alhaji Adewole Adeyanju, Ogun State Youth Leader Femi Alao, “national delegates” for Sagamu and Ijebu North Local Government Areas Idris Muniru and Chief Tuke Omotara, chairman of Ijebu East LGA Badejo Abiodun and chairman of Sagamu LGA Kola Akinyemi.

    They sued for themselves and on behalf of “PDP Ogun State Delegates to the National Convention”.

    The defendants include the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), PDP, the party’s National Caretaker Committee, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, Senator Ben Obi, Tunde Odanye, and 25 others.

    The plaintiffs are praying the court to hold that the PDP National Caretaker Committee cannot validly prevent them and other delegates from Ogun State from participating as delegates in the December 9 convention.

    According to them, there were subsisting and binding judgment and orders of the Federal High Court in Lagos and Abuja delivered and issued on June 24, 2016 and on August 10.

    The plaintiff said by virtue of the court verdicts, only they were entitled to attend and participate in the PDP convention.

    They urged the court to restrain the PDP Caretaker Committee in Ogun State from usurping the plaintiffs’ functions as “authentic officers of the Ogun PDP Executive Committee” led by Chief Adebayo Dayo.

    The plaintiffs sought an order of injunction restraining the party leadership or their agents from preventing them from attending the conference.

    They urged the court to nullify the appointment of Odanye and others as Ogun State PDP Caretaker Committee, saying their appointment was contrary to a judgment delivered by the court on June 24, 2016.

    They said the judgment recognises the Adebayo Dayo-led executive committee as the authentic one.

    The plaintiffs further urged the court to order the Inspector-General of Police, the Department of State Services (DSS) and other security agents to seal off and close and down the Ogun PDP secretariat operated by the caretaker committee.

    Tuesday, the plaintiffs’ lawyer Mr Ajibola Oluyede said the defendants had filed their counter affidavits to the plaintiffs’ originating summons.

    “There’s no impediment to the hearing of this application. It is a substantive issue relating to PDP convention scheduled to hold on Saturday.

    “So, it’ll he tidier for this application to be taken. The matter is time sensitive. We urge the court to hear this application,” he said.

    But, PDP’s lawyer Dr Yemi Oke urged the court not to hear the application.

    Faulting Oluyede’s prayer, he said: “This type of practice is not encouraging at all.”

    He said the issue boiled down to a power tussle between Senator Ali Modu Sheriff and Senator Ahmed Makarfi, which he said the Supreme Court had resolved.

    Counsel for the Ogun Caretaker Committee, Mr Afolabi Fasanu (SAN) said: “I’m objecting to the hearing of this application today (yesterday). As at yesterday (Monday) they were still filing further and better affidavit.

    “We need to respond by affidavit. We have a Preliminary Objection which borders on the jurisdiction of this court. In the light of the above, we’ll be craving the court’s indulgence to adjourn the matter.”

    There was a heated verbal exchange between Oluyede and Fasanmi following the plaintiffs’ counsel’s bid to have the case heard in view of the soon-to-be-held convention.

    Justice Mohammed Idris advised them to “act according to law”, adding that the “conduct of counsel should be moderate”.

    The judge said the plaintiffs’ Originating Summons and the defendants Preliminary Objection would be heard together when the defendants would have filed all their responses.

    Justice Idris adjourned until January 16 for hearing.

  • Appeal Court affirms Olafeso as S’West PDP boss

    Appeal Court affirms Olafeso as S’West PDP boss

    The Court of Appeal sitting in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, on Monday granted an Interim Order staying execution of all orders granted by the Federal High Court, Ado-Ekiti restraining the Dr. Eddy Olafeso-led Southwest Zonal Executive from functioning.

    The three-man panel led by Justice Ahmad Belgore stopped all proceedings at the Federal High Court presided over by Justice Taiwo Taiwo pending the determination of the appeal.

    In granting the application for stay of execution of Justice Taiwo’s orders, the appellate court took cognizance of the pending application to commit Olafeso and his exco to prison for contempt scheduled to be heard at the Ado-Ekiti Federal High Court on 6th December.

    The court frowned at a letter dated 30th November, 2017 addressed to the Presiding Judge for the Ado-Ekiti Division, Justice Belgore, written by a factional Zonal Chairman, Chief Makanjuola Ogundipe, seeking the postponement of the hearing of the motion for a stay of execution brought by Olafeso.

    While Olafeso belongs to the Senator Ahmed Makarfi’s National Caretaker Committee, Ogundipe belongs to the sacked Senator Ali Modu Sheriff-led faction.

    The Supreme Court had on 12th July affirmed Makarfi-led exco as the authentic leadership of the party and removed Sheriff from office as the national chairman.

    Justice Belgore ruled: “All the orders and rulings of the lower court delivered on October 17, October 23, November 8 and November 27, 2017 have been stayed in the interim, meaning that those orders and rulings are of no value as from now and cannot be used anywhere having been rendered null and void and that all the proceedings at the Federal High Court have been stayed pending the interlocutory appeal that is before the Appeal Court.”

    The court, subsequently, adjourned further hearing on the appeal till 15th January, 2017.

    Ogundipe had in a suit number FHC/AD/CS/18/2017 averred that the Supreme Court judgment did not invalidate his executive claiming the verdict only affected the national body led by Sheriff.

  • I’m most qualified to lead PDP, says Secondus

    I’m most qualified to lead PDP, says Secondus

    Foremost chairmanship aspirant of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Prince Uche Secondus has declared himself the most qualified to lead the party.

    A statement by Bisi Ezekiel of his Media office quoted Secondus as saying he has that courage, experience and determination for repositioning the party for victory in the 2019 election.

    He also flaunted his records as a party leader and activist and dared other aspirants to tell the party what political battles they had won and what political school they passed out from, stressing that he had passed through tough political baptism.

    “We have passed through political hell in the hands of the opposition. We are not scared of them. We are ready to lead our party to victory. How many of my colleagues aspirants can lay claim to our records and courage in the face of political persecution?

    “In 2019, the race is for the compassionately tough as the ruling party will go after our party. We need a leader of my records and background for total victory. We are not lily livered politicians. We have faced political fire and we have survived. They attack us because they know we are the leading contender and I challenge them to compare their records with my own”, the statement quoted him as saying.

    “My accusers are scared of me and party delegates know why they are. They attack me severally because they don’t have my records. I have been the chairman before and I know what it takes to reposition the party.

    “We are not worried about the gang up as we have reached out to all delegates. They know my capacity, they know my plans and they know we are the winning camp. We premise our campaign on merit, not ethnicity and religious sentiments,” the statement noted.

    The aspirant said the “PDP needs  leaders who have taken and are still willing to take political bullet for the party; leaders who have refused to be intimidated and are still tackling intimidation from oppressive federal officials; and  leaders who have sworn to symbolically die for the party to make it regain power come 2019.

    “Who is more qualified to lead the opposition to the next electoral battle than a graduate of a political war front with winning records?  For the PDP to make it to power, leaders who have faced and survived baptism of political fire must lead it. To most delegates, winning and returning to power in 2019 is the focus and they are in for a leader with the courage and the tenacious determination for victory.”

  • Obaseki to commence payment of outstanding Pension Arrears

    Obaseki to commence payment of outstanding Pension Arrears

    The Governor of Edo State, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has expressed his readiness to commence the payment of the outstanding pension arrears his administration inherited from past governments, dating back to the years the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) held sway.

    Obaseki’s decision is in fulfillment of his earlier promise to settle the outstanding pension arrears of the State Government pensioners in phases.

    Conveying the governor’s approval, the Office of the Head of Service in the Edo State Government, in a circular signed by the permanent secretary/chairman Pension Bureau, I.D.S. Juwobor, on Thursday, explained that the payments will begin with pensioners in Batches 37 and 38.

    “In order to ensure that only bonafide pensioners are paid, all pensioners in the aforementioned batches 37 and 38 are invited to present themselves for physical and documentary verification at the small hall of Imaguero College, Sapele Road, Benin City on Wednesday 6th and Thursday 7th December, 2017 at 9:00 am each day,” the letter directed.

    The letter advised the affected pensioners to: “Check the list of pensioners in the indicated batches at the Office of the Head of Service on Monday 4th and Tuesday 5thNovember, 2017 and come to the venue of the verification exercise with the following: Pension Authority; Retirement Letter; Letter of First Appointment; Pension Identity Card; Biometric Slip; and Bank details including bank name and Account Number.”

    The circular added that “immediately upon the conclusion of the verification exercise, the outstanding pension arrears will be credited into the pension account of each pensioner.”

    Recall that the clamor for the pension arrears by Edo pensioners few months into Governor Obaseki’s administration was hijacked by members of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), which sponsored several protest marches at the Ring Road in Benin City, despite the state government’s repeated explanation that the arrears would be paid in batches.

    The governor therefore called on the good people of Edo State to trust his administration and not pay attention to detractors who want to politicize an issue as sensitive as the entitlements of the state’s senior citizens.

     

  • Atiku ‘s defection from APC, UNILORIN fake admission list dominate Google search

    Atiku ‘s defection from APC, UNILORIN fake admission list dominate Google search

    The defection of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar from the All Progressives Congress ( APC ) and the University of Ilorin fake admission list dominated searches on the internet search engine, Google, this week.

    Mr Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade, Google’s Communications and Public Affairs Manager, Anglophone West Africa, disclosed this in a dispatch on Thursday in Lagos.

    According to him, this week’s top trending search terms on Google Nigeria were dominated by both foreign and national new items.

    “Abubakar, on Tuesday resigned from the ruling APC and plans to seek the opposition Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP ) presidential ticket to run for President in 2019.

    “In his statement of resignation, he cited maltreatment by the party and the failure of the party to live up to the expectation of Nigerian youth as one of the major reasons for his resignation.

    “Interested Nigerians raced to Google search to read his full statement of resignation,’’ Kola-Ogunlade said.

    The Google manager said that the University of Ilorin came on the search light when a fake admission list was circulated on the social media.

    “The management of UniIlorin has urged candidates seeking admission into the institution for the 2017/2018 academic session to patiently wait for the release of the authentic admission list by the Institution.

    “The university in a statement on Tuesday said that its attention had been drawn to a fake admissions list currently circulating on social media, and urged students not to fall prey to admission fraudsters.

    “The institution has directed students to check their Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board ( JAMB ) portal for admissions’ updates.

    “Concerned students raced to Google to search for more information about the anticipated admissions list,’’ he said.

    Kola-Ogunlade said that the rhythm and blues singer, Bankole Wellington and wife, Nollywood actress, Adesua Etomi trended when Banky W mistakenly posted picture of his naked wife on social media.

    “On Nov. 25, R&B singer, Banky W and Nollywood actress, Etomi tied the knot in a ceremony held in Cape Town, South Africa.

    “A day after, Banky W wanted to give a shout-out to his fans, by showing them their honeymoon lodge and Zebra right outside his bedroom window but, unknown to him he posted an image on social media which had his naked wife in the background.

    “The image went viral before the mistake was noticed. Banky W deleting the image has not stopped fans from searching for more details, making ‘Banky W’ a top trending search term on Google,’’ he said.

    On the international scene, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle engagement got people’s attention online.

    “The Prince of Wales, Charles announced the engagement of his second son, Prince Harry to his American girlfriend, actress Meghan Markle on Monday at Kensington Palace.

    “The happy couple who will tie the knot by spring next year granted their first interview as an engaged couple to the BBC, where Prince Harry described how he proposed to Meghan.

    “Since the announcement, controversy has arisen about Meghan’s background, which made her name a top trending search term on Google this week,’’ he said.

    Kola-Ogunlade said that the Brazilian professional footballer, Robson de Souza, commonly known as Robinho, was sentenced to nine years in prison after being found guilty of gang rape.

    He said that the Brazilian striker was sentenced by a court in Milan for being one of a six-people involved in the assault of a 22-year-old woman at a Milanese nightclub in 2013.

    Kola-Ogunlade said that Robinho’s current club, Atletico Mineiro, had declined to comment on the sentence, stating they would only speak through the team’s lawyers, if necessary.

    The news of Robinho’s sentence has made his name a top trending search term on Google, he said.

    Google Trends launched in May 2006, allows one to see how popular, search terms and its demography have been over time on Google.

    NAN

  • Appeal Court declares Albert winner of PDP senatorial primary election in A/Ibom

    Appeal Court declares Albert winner of PDP senatorial primary election in A/Ibom

    The Court of Appeal sitting in Calabar, Cross River State, on Thursday overturned the judgment of the Federal High Court in Uyo and declared Senator Bassey Albert of the People’s Democratic Party ( PDP ) as the winner of the party’s primary election that held in December 2014.

    In February this year, the Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, had sacked Albert, who is the incumbent Senator representing Akwa Ibom North East Senatorial District.

    One Mr Bassey Etim, who claimed he was the real winner of the party’s primary election, and was wrongly substituted with the Albert, had dragged incumbent senator to court.

    In delivering the judgment, Justice Fatun Riman of the Federal High Court in Uyo, had ordered Albert to refund all salaries and entitlements so far collected as Senator, as well as asked the Independent National Electoral Commission to issue the certificate of return to Etim as Senator representing the district.

    Albert had challenged the decision in the Court of Appeal in Calabar, and delivering judgment Thursday, the Presiding Judge, Justice S. J. Adah, with Justices Iheme Nwosu and J. O. K. Oyewole, declared that he was the winner, as his challenger Etim, lacked evidence to support his claim.

    Mr Mba Okweni, SAN, who represented Etim, hinted they would be heading to the Supreme Court to challenge the decision.

    The lawyer said, “They have nullified the judgment of the Federal High Court which declared Bassey Etim as the actual winner of the PDP primaries that was conducted on the 7th day of December 2014, and then that Albert was properly the candidate of the party.

    “Incidentally, Albert is still sitting in the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, so he will continue until we test it further and know what the position of the Supreme Court will be. Sincerely within me, I feel that the judgment should be tested further until the Supreme Court makes a pronouncement one way or the other on the issue and some of the points that have been raised, which we feel are not properly placed. Then we can have a final statement on it. We believe strongly that if things continue the way they are going, impunity in our political parties would continue. A situation where elections were properly conducted and because somebody has the strength and government behind him, they sit down in government house and fill another result and remove the name of the winner cannot be allowed to remain like that. So we feel that until the Supreme Court, which is the apex court and final court in the land, review the evidence and take a position on it. The matter has not yet been laid to rest. We thank the Justices of the Court of Appeal for being able to come up with the decision early enough,” Okweni said.

    Albert’s lawyer, Oba Folaho Ojibara, said they had overwhelming evidence that his client was the legitimate winner of the primary election that eventually led to the 2015 general elections, which he won.

    “The issues before the before the Justices of the Court of Appeal were very clearly narrowed down. The kind of evidence that the appellant presented before the lower court was so overwhelming and the Justices of the Court of Appeal latched on to these bits of evidences. You must recall that the first respondent here Bassey Etim was the plaintiff at the lower court and law requires that he who has asked must prove and he was the one coming to court saying that he won the primaries and unfortunately for him, he had nothing to support his claims and that is what their Lordships of the Court of Appeal hammered on very strongly. Their Lordships were guided by their records and they looked at the avalanche of documents that the appellant presented in his matter. You must also remember that the appellant was a defendant and so the burden of was not on him, but he came to court, before the Federal High Court in Uyo and presented documents after documents, facts after facts, witnesses after witnesses, all to establish the incontrovertible fact that he won the primaries that led to the general election which he also won. So their Lordships of the Court of Appeal have affirmed the mandate of the people of that Senatorial District.

    “They overturned the decision of the Federal High Court and in so doing, they held very clearly that the decision of the Federal High Court was perverse because the decision was against the weight of evidence that was before the Federal High Court and that is what we are confronted with today. So it is a celebration for justice and something every Nigerian should be happy about,” he said.

    Akwa Ibom State legal adviser of PDP, Godwin Umoh, also said, “It shows clearly like the Justices of the Supreme Court had said that a political party is supreme. The decision of the party in relation to nomination and primaries, that decision is supreme and final. And we as a party had nominated Bassey Albert and we showed by credible evidence. I thank the court for doing a wonderful job. They were meticulous.”

  • Leave our elders alone, stop dropping names – Secondus 

    Leave our elders alone, stop dropping names – Secondus 

    The former acting National Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party PDP and a front runner in the National Chairmanship position, Prince Uche Secondus has called on his colleagues in the race to leave the party leaders alone and stop dropping their names.

    Prince Secondus said in a statement by his media office in Abuja that his colleagues should respect leaders of the party especially former President’s and Heads of state and stopping dragging them into partisan roles.

    According to the statement, the media office gathered from intelligence that some National Chairmanship aspirants have mapped out strategies aimed at furnishing media houses with stories claiming that they have been endorsed by these elders.

    Secondus said that such mischief has far reaching implications for the desired harmony and peace in the party since the elders are our fall backs for unbiased roles.

    “The motive of those supplying media houses with fake stories is clear, to discredit the convention and weaken the party ahead of the general election, but they would not succeed because our delegates will not be swayed by that.

    “Bad enough that some aspirants in their desperation to lead the party at all cost have dragged some of our revered members of the Board of Trust BOT into playing clear bias roles and now want to drag former Presidents in.

    “Severally, our leaders have been boxed into a corner by aspirants who put words into their mouth knowing that they would not want to come public to deny or concur”

    The statement said that the report in one of the National dailies claiming that former President Goodluck Jonathan wants the National chairman to come from a particular zone is not only a fabrication from the reporter but deliberately intended to mislead.

    “Former President Jonathan being a loyal and dedicated leader of the party couldn’t have said that since he is fully aware that it is the decision of the party convention to zone the chairmanship position to the three zones in the South.

    “Dr. Jonathan knows as a fact that our constitution states   clearly that nobody or group or any organ of the party can change convention decision except a convention and he couldn’t have said what is attributed to him.

    “It’s disrespectful for anybody to have dragged the name of the former President to the media, by trying to say what he did not say.”

    Prince Secondus then advised members of the party particularly the delegates to the December 9th convention to disregard the concocted story.

  • PDP will not fail followers – Bafarawa

    PDP will not fail followers – Bafarawa

    A former governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Atahiru Bafarawa, said the Peoples’ Democratic Party ( PDP ) would not afford to fail its numerous followers at the Dec. 9 national convention.

    Bafarawa stated this in Sokoto on Sunday while receiving an aspirant of national chairmanship of the party, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, who was on a campaign visit to the state.

    He said that it was unfortunate that the party encountered crisis after its convention in Port Harcourt in 2016, noting that the party was on “intensive care” at that time.

    “Now that the party is out of the intensive care unit, there is need to put the party in order.

    “We stand at risk if we don’t put our house in order. We will fail our millions of followers who are in support of this great party.

    “Honestly, what we can do is to unite ourselves and pray to God to guide us to choose leaders who will lead our party,” Bafarawa said.

    The former governor said that the North-West was yet to take any decision on who to support for the national chairmanship position, noting that the people would make the decision.

    He described Dokpesi as a man of wisdom and experience, the criteria needed by the man who lead PDP as chairman.

    “We believe that God chooses leaders, and I know that you are qualified to aspire for any position in this party and country,” the former governor told the aspirant.

    Earlier, Dokpesi had said that he knew that Bafarawa was a man who loved and always wanted the best for his people, state and the country.

    At a meeting with state executive members and convention delegates of the party at the Secretariat, he said he was in the state to seek support of party members for his aspiration to lead PDP.

    Dokpesi pledged to work with the state executive committee and members to return PDP to power in Sokoto in 2019.

    Dokpesi was also in Gasau, where he met officials and delegates of the PDP in Zamfara.

    NAN

  • PDP will not fail followers -Bafarawa

    PDP will not fail followers -Bafarawa

    A former governor of Sokoto State, Alhaji Atahiru Bafarawa, said the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) would not afford to fail its numerous followers at the Dec. 9 national convention.

    Bafarawa stated this in Sokoto on Sunday while receiving an aspirant of national chairmanship of the party, Chief Raymond Dokpesi, who was on a campaign visit to the state.

    He said that it was unfortunate that the party encountered crisis after its convention in Port Harcourt in 2016, noting that the party was on “intensive care” at that time.

    “Now that the party is out of the intensive care unit, there is need to put the party in order.

    Read Also: PDP: Intrigues ahead of December convention

    “We stand at risk if we don’t put our house in order. We will fail our millions of followers who are in support of this great party.

    “Honestly, what we can do is to unite ourselves and pray to God to guide us to choose leaders who will lead our party,” Bafarawa said.

    The former governor said that the North-West was yet to take any decision on who to support for the national chairmanship position, noting that the people would make the decision.

    He described Dokpesi as a man of wisdom and experience, the criteria needed by the man who lead PDP as chairman.

    “We believe that God chooses leaders, and I know that you are qualified to aspire for any position in this party and country,” the former governor told the aspirant.

    Earlier, Dokpesi had said that he knew that Bafarawa was a man who loved and always wanted the best for his people, state and the country.

    At a meeting with state executive members and convention delegates of the party at the Secretariat, he said he was in the state to seek support of party members for his aspiration to lead PDP.

    Dokpesi pledged to work with the state executive committee and members to return PDP to power in Sokoto in 2019.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Dokpesi was also in Gasau, where he met officials and delegates of the PDP in Zamfara.

  • PDP chairmanship: Bode George challenges co-aspirants to public debate

    PDP chairmanship: Bode George challenges co-aspirants to public debate

    A Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP ) national chairmanship aspirant, Chief Bode George, has challenged other contestants to an open debate on their vision and agenda for the party.

    This was contained in a statement issued by his political adviser and media aide, Mr Uthman Fadipe on Sunday.

    According to the statement, George gave the challenge during his visit to party delegates in Sokoto on Saturday as part of his campaign tour of the country.

    He said whoever wanted to lead the party should come a debate that would showcase the norms and traditional values of the party.

    The former PDP Vice-Chairman told the delegates that he was a committed party man who would deliver the best if elected.

    He also said that the micro-zoning of the national chairmanship to the South West would be in the best interest of the party.

    George said this was in line with the resolve of the founding fathers to promote equity and balance in the distribution of party offices.

    He praised the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar III for his patriotism and embracing of all Nigerians irrespective of their faith or tribe.

    The party has fixed Dec. 9 for its elective convention.

    NAN