The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Peoples Democratic Party

  • Gombe: Governorship aspirant pledges to tackle youth unemployment

    Mr Muhammad Dan-Barde, the Gombe State gubernatorial aspirant under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has promised to create job opportunities for youths if voted into power in 2019.

    Dan-Barde made this pledge at a news conference on Wednesday in Gombe.

    He said that the rate of youth unemployment was alarming in the state.

    According to him, the present administration has failed in the area of employment, health care service delivery, water supply and education sectors among others.

    He promised to do his best to ensure the development of the state by providing drinkable water in all the nooks and crannies of the state.

    The gubernatorial aspirant also promised to revive the moribund industries in the state in order for the youth to be engaged, to reduce the rate of unemployment.

    Read Also: Gombe governorship aspirant promises to revive agriculture

    Dan-Barde said that the Dadin-Kowa and Balanga Dams would be fully utilized for irrigation and other economic activities.

    According to him, this will also impact on the Internally Generated Revenue of the state apart from other sources of income to reduce over dependence on the federation allocation.

    He added that women would be given equal opportunities with men to enable them contributing to the development of the state.

    Dan-Barde further called for the unity of the party to ensure that the APC take over the governorship position from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.

    “We will make sure we form a government by the people and for the people to transform Gombe State to greater heights,” he said.

  • PDP Govs. decry alleged persecution by security agencies

    Governors elected on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) have decried what they described as the politicization of the nation’s security agencies by the All Progressives Congress (APC) led federal government.

    Rising from an emergency meeting of the PDP Governors’ Forum held at the Ekiti State Governor’s Lodge, Abuja on Monday, the governors accused the security agencies of having become organs and tools of the federal government to harass and intimidate opposition and dissenting voices.

    In a communique issued after the meeting and signed by the Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, the governors also complained that security agencies were being used to perpetrate electoral fraud.

    They cited instances of such abuse in states like Ekiti, Osun and Rivers states. They urged the security agencies to be non-partisan in the performance of their duties in accordance with the provisions of the constitution.

    The communique read, “The Forum further condemned the flagrant violation of democratic ethos by operatives of this government as shown recently in the infamous act by the Police at the residence of Elder Statesman, Pa Edwin Clark, and the harassment of innocent Nigerians across the country on frivolous claims.

    Read Also: Sokoto PDP is united, focused -Tambuwal

    “The Forum noted the INEC needs to reinvent itself as a truly independent umpire of the electoral process in the country. For now, we have no confidence in INEC. The commission has conducted itself as a tool of the APC-led Federal Government, especially with the roles of the Chairman, Prof. Mahmud Yakubu, and a National Commissioner, Mrs. Amina Zakari.

    “The Forum condemned the surreptitious, selective and suspicious payment of N16 billion purportedly from the Paris Club Refund. We are of the view that the money is to fund corrupt inducement of voters in the forthcoming Governorship election in Osun State on September 22, 2018.

    “The Forum resolved to have an all-inclusive meeting with all the presidential aspirants, with the National Chairman, two national officers of the party, and the leaders of the party in both chambers of the National Assembly in attendance”.

    The governors also condemned unequivocally, the refusal or failure of President Muhammadu Buhari to sign into law the amended Electoral Act.

    According to them, the action of the President was an indication that Buhari and his party were afraid of electronic voting or the introduction of technology into the electoral system.

  • Kwara PDP alleges illegal PVC’s collection

    The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in Kwara State on Monday raised the alarm over illegal collect of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)’s permanent voters cards (PVC).

    The party added that the PVCs were being allegedly collected from house-to-house by some staff of a radio station.

    In a statement, PDP spokesperson in the state, Mr Tunde Ashaolu alleged that staff of the said radio station have been moving round houses in Ilorin, luring people to release their PVCs in exchange for loans.

    The party said this move was aimed at using the collected PVCs to manipulate the outcome of the 2019 general elections in the State.

    “As a party, we call on the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the general public, security agencies, and relevant stakeholders to be aware and stand up against this dubious act orchestrated by opposition elements as it is capable of truncating our democracy,” the statement reads.

    Read Also: Kwara PDP members defect to APC

    The PDP also urged all Kwarans and residents of the State to resist every attempt by political opportunists and their agents to lure them into releasing their PVCs for pecuniary gains.

    It also charged them to see their PVC as a tool to elect representatives of their choice, and should, therefore, not release it to anybody or group.

    The party also warned politicians to stop alleged criminal and unauthorised collection of PVCs from the people, stressing that voters have the inalienable right to vote for candidates of their choice.

  • Bayelsa to aspirants: don’t allow primaries’ outcomes divide us

    The Bayelsa State government at the weekend appealed to Peoples Democratic Party  (PDP) members vying for the party’s tickets to keep PDP’s unity intact whatever the results of the primaries.

    Speaking in his office in Yenagoa, Commissioner for Information and Orientation Daniel Iworiso-Markson said the primaries should not throw up negative reactions that could lead to exit of members.

    He said only one person would emerge in each of the state and federal constituencies as well as senatorial zones, adding that victors should be supported by others to win the election in 2019.

    He noted that only bad losers and those without sound political ideology will dump the party because of their desperation and parochial interest.

    Iworiso-Markson argued that the collective interest of the party is more important than that of any individual, and urged aspirants to work hard to win delegates at the primaries.

    The Information commissioner maintained that every loyal member of the PDP should work to keep the party together and confront challenges of winning the elections next year, rather than opt out to other parties.

    While praising Governor Seriake Dickson for the political stability in the state, Iworiso-Markson noted that the state would have been up in flames because of political tension, if not for the governor’s intervention.

    He also hailed the leadership of PDP in the state for their maturity, and expressed confidence the primaries would be free, fair and credible.

    Iworiso-Markson noted that some saw political offices as the easiest way to financial freedom, a mentality consistent with Nigeria’s political system.

    He said: “What I am excited about is the peace and stability in the state. The elections are here and yet we don’t have the usual security challenge caused by unecessary political tension as it was in the past. If you listen to the developments in other states, some of the neighbouring states around us you will here the drums of war.

    “So we have Governor Dickson to thank for that. Let me use this opportunity to call on all aspirants of the PDP, to remain loyal members of the party, despite what will be the outcome. They should be patriotic in defeat by remaining in the party. All hands need to be on deck to win the general elections”.

  • Nigeria: A journey through my identity

    In the past few weeks, I have traversed the length and breadth of Nigeria, asking my compatriots, especially members of our political party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to give me a chance to fly our flag and eventually lead our country.

    Along the way, I have met Nigerian people in their domains and felt their pulse. I have had the benefit of the introspective wisdom of the old and, in meetings with young Nigerians; I have seen not only the vibrancy of youth, an uncommon creativity and a unique zest for life, but also the hope for our future as a people.

    Our women, our source, ever hardworking and ever multi-tasking, remain, in the north, east, west and south, more precious than gold as our best resource. In our men, I encountered uncommon leadership, diligence, hard work, character and commitment to edifying values in such ways as only a few other societies can boast of.

    As I took in the essence of Nigeria at every stop, my joy multiplied in bounds and, today, my pride in my identity as a Nigerian is fully affirmed.

    No doubt, these are not the best of times for our country and its people. But their resilience remains unassailable and their desire to live a life of worth is a message I have got so comprehensively.

    Nigerians are proud of their Nigerianness. And the elite must stop their devious manipulations that divide Nigerians. The savage attack on the national commonwealth by a few persons cannot build a healthy nation and must stop now.

    Just because of the greed and selfishness of the ruling elite, our time-tested values of hard work, honesty, integrity and unity are being debased. Our education has been robbed of its visionary robustness and development-oriented content. Nigeria’s diverse but unifying cultures, rich in content and edifying in values, have been fed to the dogs. Our young ones, our future, are being denied the joy of being young and seeing themselves as the future of Nigeria.

    As the future beckons, what Nigeria needs is a new model of leadership and a compassionate style of governance the signature of which is prudence, simplicity and people-centredness, above everything else. With a moral and ethical compass that sets a lot of store of love and sacrifice for the common good, it must be a leadership style diametrically opposed to that of self-aggrandizement.

    For our nation to find its way to the fulfillment of its manifest destiny, it needs a leader with the moral strength to seek the good of all, a leader with the courage to do so accountably, responsibly and with the highest level of integrity.

    Nigeria needs a leader who can be trusted in the south, north, east and west, irrespective of tribe, tongue, religion or political or social inclination.

    The truth must be told: Ours is a broken country today, torn apart by an inept leadership but, happily, held together only by the graceful spirit of a resilient people who would have nothing else but a united Nigeria.

    Because we are a broken people and with the country divided as has never been before, the job of mending Nigeria should go to a man in whom every tongue and every tribe, all faiths and creed find a symbol of their oneness.

    In the Nigeria I grew up in and the essence of which has been reinforced during my current journey, with the right leadership, all the things that ail Nigeria are curable, given the good hands as well as the good hearts The Almighty has blessed the country with.

    The impression that Nigeria is a country run by a corrupt and inept political class that is self-seeking, impervious to knowledge and bereft of understanding should not be reinforced.  It must change. Disgraceful indifference by leaders to the plight of the people, arrogance in the face of little or no knowledge, greed and avarice cannot be ways to building a united, peaceful and prosperous Nigeria.

    I have also seen that our people are aware of their own culpability in the parlous state of Nigeria. It is however gratifying to observe their readiness to make amends. They yearn for a leadership that would consciously rouse them into war against their own passivity over their own affairs, a leadership that will shake them out of the apathy that encourages impunity against them.

    With appropriate and development-focused education, therefore, our people must be empowered to find their voice. They must be empowered to boldly point out failed promises of leaders and political parties.

    Nigerians want to and must be enabled to ask critical questions and interrogate vague or nebulous statements that politicians make instead of specific plans. The people must be given well thought-out and effective strategies for addressing the problems of widespread insecurity, poverty and want in the midst of so much abundance. Nigerians want to be told of homegrown policies for growing their economy and they seek a leader who will find new ways of pushing the frontiers of excellence.

    I have met a people who believe the time has come for an end to cruel and unlawful enrichment of selves by public office holders at the expense of the people and destruction of their future. They want to see a leadership that ensures those who pillaged the collective treasury even in the past are brought to justice for their crimes against the Nigerian people.

    They want to see a country where there are no sacred cows in the investigation and prosecution of corruption cases, a leadership that diligently wages the war against insurgency and one that ensures the crimes being perpetrated by herdsmen, whoever they are, have no place in their Nigeria.

    In our country today, of course, publicly declared commitments to education, wealth and job creation, security of lives and property and industrialization abound.  But the will to implement anything has been absent. The message I got from Nigerians is therefore simple: The era of power for its own sake must, of necessity, end!

    Visionary leadership, which our people need and deserve, does not run on impulse, on mere body language or on a hunch. Its signature is genuine personal capacity, deep respect for facts and figures, appreciation of diligently generated data and research findings germane to running the economy as well as an ability to deploy the best of all things, the best of all persons, in pursuit of the best for all.

    A healthy respect for good data and the appropriate use of same in the management of the nation’s human and material resources must, therefore, be the hallmark of the leadership that will liberate Nigeria.

    The leader Nigerians want and deserve now is one who looks beyond these times, one with the capacity to dream big dreams. That leader must also have the energy or vibrancy to stay awake to make those dreams come true.

    Our signature as a nation and a people is boldness in speaking truth to each other in the knowledge that a nation that deceives itself and willfully lives a lie can only live in eternal damnation. Nigerians must, therefore, engage in a deep thought over their national life with a view to charting a new course for the country.

    We must therefore return to the work of nation building started by our parents, the late President Nnamdi Azikiwe, Sardauna Ahmadu Bello, Chief Jeremiah Oyeniyi Obafemi Awolowo (a hero whose entire thoughts I have read and committed to heart), Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Micheal Opara, Harold Dappa-Biriye, Joseph Sarwuan Tarka, Aminu Kano, Anthony Enahoro, Margaret Ekpo, Hajiya Gambo Sawaba, Sa’adu Zungur and many other departed great compatriots, ably assisted by devotees to what I call the Nigeria as My Identity (ID) idea.

    Departed or still alive, Nigeria as my Identity, for the likes of Sunday Bolorunduro Awoniyi, James Ajibola Ige, Adekunle Ajasin, Bisi Onabanjo, Bello Ijumu, Bukar Dipcharima, Jolly Tanko Yusuf, Dan Suleiman, Ndubuisi Kanu, Yakubu Jack Gowon, Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, David Akpode Ejoor, and many others too numerous to mention, would not be a phrase just for mouthing but an idea to live and die for.

    On this journey through Nigeria, my identity, I have found that our country, indeed, needs to be led by a man of impeccable character, a man of integrity, one who will ensure sustainable prosperity, keep Nigeria united in peace and progress, propelled by the rule of law and driven by strong institutions.

     

    • Dr Dankwambo is the governor of Gombe State and presidential aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

  • PDP leader joins APC in Akwa Ibom

    The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Akwa Ibom State on Saturday suffered a devastating blow with the defection of the party’s leader in Ika Local Government Area, Dr Francis Udoikpong.

    Dr Udoikpong, a PDP state caucus member and former Commissioner for Health, defected with about 5,000 others, including Sir Godwin Idungafa, a former Ika local government vice chairman; Mr Harry Eduo, a former Ika local government secretary and councillor; and Uyo Udom, a lawyer and politician.

    The defection of the PDP leader is coming barely a month after Deputy Inspector-General of Police Udom Ekpoudom (rtd) and Obong Otu Robert Akpan, his counterparts in Etim Ekpo and Ini local governments, joined the APC with Senator Godswill Akpabio, former Senate Minority leader.

    Dr Udoikpong, also a former chairman of Ika Local Government and past Chairman of the State Agency for the Control of AIDS (SACA) who for the defectors, said they were leaving the PDP because the Udom Emmanuel Administration had neglected Ika, a boundary local government with Abia State.

    He condemned inclusion of their names in Emmanuel campaign organisation without their consent, and demanded their names be removed.

    Mr Ini Okopido, state chairman of APC, who received the defectors, noted that with their coming Ika is now APC.

    Mr Okopido, himself an indigene of Ika, assured them of accommodation and equal rights as old members in the APC.

    Gabriel Toby, member for Ika/Etim Ekpo State Constituency, who joined the APC recently, told the crowd that with major Ika political gladiators in one camp, APC would sweep the 2019 elections in the area.

    Among APC chieftains that witnessed the defection are Sir Ernest Ukpong and Akanimo Edet, former House of Assembly members and Chief Edem Obot, the Adaha Ika.

  • 2019: APC, PDP fight over ‘fake’ presidential aspirants

    A fresh row has broken out between the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The PDP is accussing the APC of planting presidential aspirants in its fold .

    The APC yesterday rejected the claim and advised the PDP to leave it out of the challenges of choosing a presidential candidate from its deluge of aspirants.

    APC National Publicity Secretary Yekini Nabena told The Nation that it will never descend to the level of planting aspirants in any party as, according to him, was the tradition with the PDP when it was in power.

    He was responding to an online interview in which Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike said the opposition was aware that some of those jostling for the PDP presidential ticket were being sponsored by the ruling party and the Presidency.

    Wike said in the interview:  ”Those who are complaining about me are those who are afraid because they are the agents of APC. We know those APC presidential aspirants who are agents of PDP. We know them. The Presidency and the APC have planted people within our party, and we know it.

    “They planted Modu Sheriff and we fell for it. I bought into it, not knowing it was a set-up. And then when we realised, we said no, we have to fight it. And we fought it. I cannot again fall for the fool that I became under Ali Modu Sheriff. I know some of our presidential aspirants who are running on the sponsorship of the APC and the Presidency.”

    Wike did not name such aspirants.

    But Nabena faulted his  claim, saying the moles planted in its fold by the former ruling party, were back in PDP.

    The APC spokesman said: “That is not true. We will never descend to that level of planting people in the PDP. We all know that they were the ones planting people in the past. We have no business with whatever they are doing.

    “The PDP should face their problems and address them. We have better things to do than think of how to plant aspirants in their party. The people that left our party for the PDP were those they planted in the party and when they failed to achieve their aim of destroying the party, they left.

    “So, the PDP should face its problems and leave us out of it. We have nothing to do with the party and its aspirants”.

    Later in a statement last night, the ruling party challenged the PDP to name such aspirants, adding that the PDP in its despair over its failed 2019 election bid for the presidency has resorted to comical conspiracies.

    The statement, signed by Nabena, said: “Instead of putting its house in order, it is laughable that Governor Wike and his PDP cohorts are clutching on straws in their desperate bid to remain in public reckoning in the face of imminent 2019 defeat.

    “Meanwhile, we challenge Governor Wike to be brave enough and name the APC-sponsored aspirants among the crowd that have signified interest to run for the presidency under the PDP.

    “We urge the PDP to quickly wake up to the reality that the 2019 presidential elections have been won and lost.

    “The PDP is a dead party and we urge its members who share our progressive ideals to leave the sinking and rudderless ship and come over to the APC, which is rebuilding and repositioning the country in all facets.”

    Some of the aspirants in the PDP are: Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; former Kaduna State governor Senator Ahmed Makarfi; Dr. Datti Baba Ahmed; former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido; former Sokoto State Governor Attahiru Bafarawa; ex- former Plateau State Jonah Jang and former Jigawa State Governor Sule Lamido.

    Others are former Senate President David Mark; Gombe State Governor Ibrahim Dankwanbo; former Kano State Governor, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwakwanso; former Minister Tanimu Turaki; Senate President Bukola Saraki and Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal.

     

  • Oshiomhole to Shekarau: progressives like you are needed in APC

    It is now all over between ex Kano State governor, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau and the Peoples Democratic party (PDP).

    Shekarau yesterday hosted the   National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, and Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano State in his Kano residence to wrap up talks on his switch to the APC.

    The former minister is said to be upset by his alleged ill-treatment by the PDP after what was perceived as too much concession to Dr. Rabiu Kwankwaso following his recent defection from the APC.

    Oshiomohole described Shekarau as one of the progressives much needed in the party.

    He said: “For me, it is a rare opportunity to be in your home and reunite with you. I know from your lifestyle, your background, from what you did as the governor of Kano State, nobody can claim to be more progressive than you.

    “I am also fully aware that you are one of the founding fathers of the APC. You may not have expected the amount of efforts you invested in the formation of the All Progressive Congress which you did not enjoy.

    “I have always said that we should be going forward. This meeting has offered us the opportunity to reunite once again as progressives.

    “I have come to pay my respect to His Excellency (Shekarau). I have spoken to my brother, the executive governor of Kano State, on the need for all of us to work together for the development of Kano State and the development of our nation, Nigeria.

    “I want to believe that this is a happy reunion and we shall continue to play progressive politics for the good of the Nigerian people.”

    Governor Ganduje, who was part of the APC delegation, recalled his relationship with Shekarau and how Kwankwaso had treated him in the past.

    His words: “I and Malam Ibrahim Shekarau belong to the same constituency even though we were never in the same political party.

    “The reason why I said we are from the same constituency is that Malam Ibrahim Shekarau is a bureaucrat and I am a bureaucrat. When I was Commissioner for Works, Housing and Transport, some 20 years ago, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau was Permanent Secretary.

    “When we came in 1999, myself as Deputy Governor, the former Governor of Kano State, Kwankwaso, was the governor and Malam Ibrahim Shekarau was permanent secretary in the Cabinet Office.

    “I could recall that because of a statement by sycophants of former Governor Kwankwaso, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau was given a query. He came to my house at 7 am to tell me that he was given a query. I said go and make a photocopy of that query. He made a photocopy and brought it to me.

    “I met with Governor Kwankwaso and asked him what is happening? The Permanent Secretary in the Cabinet Office said he was given a query. What is the problem?

    “He (Kwankwaso) said he learnt Malam Shekarau was holding meetings with some Ulamas in order to contest election.

    “I said, ‘What is wrong in holding meetings with Ulamas? Even myself, through my Ganduje Foundation, I hold meetings with Ulamas. What is the problem? Please withdraw that query.’

    “But the Governor refused to withdraw the query, and he had the right to do that.

    “What later happened was that Malam Shekarau was posted out to the Ministry of Education. I called the Commissioner of Education at that time and said Malam Ibrahim Shekarau has been posted to your ministry. I asked him to discuss with Malam Shekarau what type of job he would want to do in the Ministry of Education.

    “Then the Honourable Commissioner asked Malam Shekarau what he would want to be, and Malam Shekarau said he wanted to be a classroom teacher, and Malam Ibrahim Shekarau was posted out as a classroom teacher.

    “As God would have it, in less than two months, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau became the Governor of Kano State. He defeated the incumbent governor. He defeated Kwankwaso and myself. He sent us out of Government House.

    “One important thing is that Malam Ibrahim Shekarau and myself have always been good associates. We have always been good friends. In fact, we are like minds; and for him to be in APC, I am the happiest person in this state today.

    “Before, a friend, a brother in different political party, now our dreams have come true; now we are together in the same political party.

    “We understand ourselves. We believe in the same ideology. We believe in commitment—the development of our people, the development of our state.

    “I think there is no better time to have a brother, to come together and serve the people of Kano State.

    “I tell you today that all other things would be sorted out between Malam Ibrahim Shekarau and myself; between Malam Ibrahim Shekarau and our government; between the followers of Malam Ibrahim Shekarau and our government, everything will be sorted out peacefully.

    “So, Malam Ibrahim Shekarau, we welcome you to this very important party, the APC. You are one of the founding fathers of APC. The hyena that drove you out of APC is the same hyena that drove you out of PDP. We are happy that you will soon make your pronouncement. Let us come together and fight that lion.”

    Malam Shekarau who said his position for membership of APC would be made known in a few hours, said: “I am happy today for you (Oshiomhole) and His Excellency, the Executive Governor of Kano State, to pay me this special visit. I feel highly honoured; I feel highly respected.

    “I am not totally surprised because the National Chairman has been a long-standing friend, a long-standing colleague and a long-standing comrade.

    “I am not surprised also when he emerged the chairman of the APC. I want to assure you that those of us here in Kano are aware of all that has been happening because history is repeating itself.

    “All along, I have been beating my chest with pride that anybody writing the history of APC and the name of Ibrahim Shekarau is not there, that history is incomplete. I had the singular honour of being the chief midwife of APC.

    “For me and Governor Ganduje, regardless of any political party we find ourselves, our mission is always one—sincerity of purpose to move Kano and Nigeria forward. Our consultations are in full gear, in the next couple of hours, we will make it known to the world our stand as far as membership of APC is concerned.”

    Other dignitaries in the APC delegation were Senator Kabiru Gaya (Kano South), Senator Barau Jubrin (Kano North), Speaker of Kano State House of Assembly, Kabiru Alhassan Rurum; Chief Whip of Kano State House of Assembly, Bappa Babba Dan Agundi; Senator Mohammed Bello; Senior Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on National Assembly Matters, Abdulraman Kawu Sumaila; Private Secretary to Ganduje, Ibrahim Kankorofi; members of Kano State executive council, among others.

    A grand rally has been scheduled for today in Kano to formally receive Shekarau.

     

  • I ‘ll clinch PDP presidential ticket—Saraki

    Senate President Bukola Saraki   has said he is sure of emerging  the presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the party’s October 6 primary.

    He stated that his desire to become  Nigeria’s President is not just an ambition but a reality.

    He, therefore, enjoined  Nigerians to stop President Muhammadu Buhari’s plan to continue in office beyond 2019.

    Saraki stated that “voting out Buhari is the only way to ensure national unity and security”.

    The Senate President was in Owerri, the Imo State capital, to meet with PDP stakeholders ahead of the primary.

    According to him, “Nigeria needs a president who would unite all parts of the country, respect national character, grow local businesses and support entrepreneurial skills”.

    He said “poverty, loss of job opportunities and hardship are currently on the increase”.

    Saraki  further said: “Nigeria has never been this  divided. People are afraid to be called Nigerians. Ethnicity and religion have taken over. There is no inclusion anymore,no fairness, no federal character.

    “Businesses are dying; survival of businesses is survival of the country. Poverty is everywhere.”

    He said if not for God and the masses, Buhari would have removed him as the president of the Senate three years ago.

    He said: ”I will continue to fight for the masses. We have to change the leadership. We need a leadership that would ensure justice and fair distribution of national appointments.  I will restore global reputation. Countries are built by hardwork and vision.

    “South East people are hardworking;  their entrepreneurial spirit is wonderful. As a president, I will partner South East to emerge the next tiger of Africa in business.  You don’t build what you don’t have. I, therefore, appeal to the delegates to vote wisely.

    “We must change Buhari with a man that has capacity, integrity and vision in order to realise our potential. I believe in restructuring that would give states the opportunity to realise their potential. I promoted made-in-Aba products. As a president, I will support local businesses.

    “ We need to have a president that will ensure prosperity.  I am committed to the development of South East  because it is in the best interest of Nigeria. You need the president that has the youthfulness and  energy to deliver.”

    The Chairman of the PDP in Imo State, Charles Ezekwem, said  Igbo were interested in a presidential candidate that would restructure the country and create an additional state in the South East.

    Ezekwem said: “ I have seen everything positive in Saraki. His defection will ensure victory for the PDP.

    “Igbo want restructuring and fairness. Saraki has the capacity, strength, pedigree, academic background to move Nigeria. “

  • APC and direct primaries

    Hurriedly cobbled together into a coalition to wrest power from the then ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) at the centre in the run up to the critical 2015 general elections, the All Progressives Congress (APC) appeared to have rapidly exhausted its historic possibilities with its realization of its primary aim of becoming the country’s new ruling party.  The legacy parties that coalesced to constitute the APC apparently never had a common conception either of the progressive ideology that was supposed to weld them together or the philosophy of change that was promised to be the driving force of both its style and substance in government and which elicited such high expectations among Nigerians.

    Thanks to President Muhammadu Buhari’s personal asceticism and aversion to corruption (mind you, I am not saying he is a saint) the degree of venality and sheer pecuniary banditry in public life has been substantially reduced under the APC while there is a more serious commitment of resources to ameliorating the plight of a large number of the poor and vulnerable, infrastructure renewal and expansion as well as addressing the country’s severe security challenges.

    Yet, there is no discernible, deliberately and carefully fashioned as well as systematically and methodically implemented plan by the APC to achieve fundamental value re-orientation or sustainable behavioural change both at the individual and institutional levels. If there is, it has certainly not been effectively communicated to the public. The party also has to take more meaningful steps towards removing the structural and constitutional impediments to the practice of true federalism in the country. This is the minimum condition necessary for actualizing any concrete change that goes beyond the superficial exchange of PDP faces for those of the APC in public office.

    As the legal term of its first national and state executives was coming to an end, the APC approached a historic juncture. It could either choose a new, refreshing, revitalizing and rejuvenating path or opt to mummify itself in the seal of operational inefficiency, organizational incoherence and inefficacy as well as ideological insipidity exemplified by the erstwhile Chief John Odigie-Oyegun-led National Executive of the party. Interestingly, a not insignificant number of members of the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) preferred the latter option.

    The real Buhari suddenly showed up at this critical time. Casting aside his taciturnly and seemingly disdainful disposition to party politics, PMB asserted his leadership of the party and insisted that the constitution both of the party and the country must be adhered to and intra party elections held to party executive offices at all levels. That principled stand nailed the coffin of the tenure elongation lobby. It steered the APC away from the ultimately self-immolating path it seemed bent on charting.

    It certainly would have been disastrous for the APC to have entered the electoral fray next year in a complacent and somnolent state of mind numbing itself to the seething discontent eating deep into its sinews. The intra-party congresses and conventions enabled these grievances and dissensions come to the fore rather than being dangerously hidden and repressed with future negative and more damaging consequences.

    Again, the defeat of the tenure elongation agenda and the attendant holding of the APC congresses and national convention facilitated the speedy exit from the party of disgruntled elements who believed that their interests could not be actualized within the APC. This is surely not illegitimate since politics is most times about the pursuit of private interest dressed in seductive altruistic garbs.

    Yes, there has also been a flurry of defections to the APC mostly from the PDP.  Many of those moving to the ruling party are seeking refuge in the new perceived ‘Noah’s Ark’ from the haunting flood of indictments and relentless prosecutions by the anti-corruption agencies particularly the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).  This indeed poses a grave moral dilemma for the APC. Many wonder how the party can credibly claim to be fighting corruption and yet gladly, even enthusiastically, welcome persons indicted for alleged corruption into its fold. It is clearly unrealistic to expect the APC to reject members seeking to join the party especially those with a strong electoral base.

    It appears that those persons who see membership of the APC as granting them immunity from prosecution and possible punishment for corruption have apparently not learnt the appropriate lessons from the fate of ex-governors Joshua Dariye and Jolly Nyame currently serving jail terms for corruption. The austere and inscrutable General from Daura is unlikely to bat an eyelid or lift a finger if they are found guilty of corrupt practices despite their migration to the ruling party.

    Within a very short while of his emergence as National Chairman of the APC, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole’s invigorating and rejuvenating influence is being felt both within and beyond the APC. The party is gradually being stirred awake from its organizational stupor. Both ministers and national legislators of the party are being made to realize that they hold their positions by virtue of the fact that they belong to a political party or were appointed by someone who won election on the platform of a party.

    The party is gradually becoming, once again the centre of gravity around which both the members of the executive and legislature belonging to it revolve. And Oshiomhole is obviously learning very fast the art of diplomatically asserting the supremacy of the party without necessarily resorting to the confrontational or hectoring tactics of the latent radical trade unionist in him.

    One of the most momentous decisions taken by the Oshiomhole-led National Executive of the APC so far is to utilize the method of direct primaries in picking candidates for elective offices at all levels with the exception of states where the majority of stakeholders opt for consensus or indirect primaries as permitted by the constitution of the party. This is indeed a revolutionary step to enthrone card carrying members of the party as the true sovereigns and owners of the party.

    If Oshiomhole and his NWC were actuated by a desire for concentration of power at the centre or opportunities to utilize his position as a means of accumulation, then the consensus or indirect delegates system would have been the preferred option for the NWC.  Empowering every party member to have a say in the emergence of candidates for elective offices decentralizes power within the party, re-federalizes the party structure and minimizes although not totally eliminating the influence of money in the candidate selection process.

    Of course, there is understandable resistance to this radical change from some quarters within the party who want the retention of the status quo. Oshiomhole has the responsibility of persuading and convincing the vast majority of party members that the direct primary method is in the best interest of the party. It is the best way of ensuring inclusiveness in the intra-party elections and limiting the possibility or efficacy of protest votes in general elections.

    Luckily, PMB has shown the way by not objecting to direct primaries in choosing the party’s presidential candidate. All levels of the party should certainly follow the president’s example. Osun State has already blazed the trail in showing that direct primaries are indeed feasible and practicable. The fear of insecurity can certainly not be an excuse. Otherwise, a persuasive case can also be made not to hold the 2019 general elections, which are even more all encompassing than intra-party elections, for security reasons.

    Those who claim that they do not have a reliable data base of party members have a point for exemption from direct primaries given the shortness of time. But this is an indication of leadership ineptness, which does not do the image of a self-proclaimed modernizing party of change like the APC any good.

    There are many factors that stand the APC governorship candidate in Osun in good stead for the September 22 governorship election. With a B. Sc degree in Insurance and an MBA from the University of Lagos, Alhaji Isiaka Oyetola is certainly knowledgeable in financial and economic management, which is crucial in a post-Aregbesola era. As Chief of Staff in the Aregbesola administration for over seven years, his office was critical in the conceptualization and implementation process of infrastructure projects and social welfare programmes, which makes him well placed to sustain and improve on the legacy of Aregbesola in this regard.

    Given his natural reticence, restraint and mature temperament, Oyetola is reputed to be a consummate negotiator with the capacity to maintain harmonious labour-government relations. Again, Oyetola has over 30 years experience in the private sector having run a solid and successful business before being appointed to public office. Not given to oratory or loquacity, the APC candidate is a restrained and competent technocrat in the mould of a Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) or Akinwumi Ambode, both highly accomplished successors of the visionary Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu in Lagos.

    All these factors pale into insignificance, however, beside the fact that Oyetola emerged through direct primaries garnering the support of no less than 127, 000 party members who already have a stake in the governorship election and will surely feel motivated to ensure their party’s triumph in the general election by participating enthusiastically in the exercise.