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Tag: Yemi Osinbanjo

  • Oshiomole, Osibanjo to receive decampees from PDP

    National Chairman of All Progressive Congress Comrade Adams Oshiomole will be in Jos, the Plateau state capital to receive thousands of APC supporters who recently decamped from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and other opposition party.

    The reception for the Plateau decampees is incorporated into the campaign flag off ceremony for the state governorship campaign and other party candidates.

    State chairman of APC, Latep Dabang made this known in a press conference in Jos on Tuesday.

    According to Dabang, “Vice President of the Federation, Professor Yemi Osinbanjo, National Chairman of the All Progressive Congress APC Comrade Adams Oshiomhole amongst other dignitaries are to receive thousands of decampees from the main Opposition Party, the People’s Democratic Party PDP as well as other Political parties on Friday, 4th January, 2019 in Jos.

    Read Also: Anti-Oshiomole protest rocks Imo

    According to him all security arrangement has been concluded the event will hold at the Rwang Pam Stadium Jos.

    “There is no PDP in Plateau State again; PDP is death since, Friday event will bring together all Plateau State People from 17 LGC as one APC family”.

    “APC is running a government in the state where developments are made practical and people-oriented. Hence people of the state have resolved not to remain in any other party apart from APC, we are receiving the few ones that are still left in PDP and those in other parties.

    “Figure of the decampees cannot be ascertained at the moment, we are still compiling it because they kept coming every day, the actual figures will be revealed on Friday” said Hon Dabang.

     

  • Osinbanjo: APC badly needs Katsina Senatorial bye-election

    The Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbanjo on Thursday disclosed 3 reasons why the All Progressive Congress (APC) must win Saturday’s bye-election for the Katsina North Senatorial district.

    Speaking at Kaingiwa square in front of the Emir palace in Daura during the grand finale of the APC campaign ahead of the poll, Osinbanjo said the APC wants to win the election in order to form a majority in the Senate.

    He said the second reason was to honour the memory of late Senator Mustapha Bukar, the lawmaker who occupied the position before his death on April 4, this year.

    While the third reason, he said was to ensure that the win honoured President Muhammadu Buhari, being the son of the soil and that the election would be taking place at the senatorial zone where he comes from.

    A total of six candidates from same number of political parties are contesting for the position, with Hon. Ahmed Babba Kaita being the APC flag bearer.

    He said “three reasons why we must make sure we vote for our candidate: first, we must have a majority in the Senate. Politics is about numbers. We must vote for him because we want to maintain the majority’’.

    “Secondly, we must honour the memory of late Mustapha Bukar. We should not allow anyone to be there outside our own senator’’.

    “Thirdly, this zone is Buhari’s and a vote for Kaita is a vote for Buhari.”

    He said what the country was currently going through was battle between good and evil, and that evil men trying to bring down Buhari administration would never succeed.

    He called on Nigerians to “vote for the APC in the interest of the common man,” adding that “so long as Buhari ruled the country, Nigeria will only get better and better.”

    Read Also: Osinbanjo, senators, others for prayer for the nation

    He said the current federal government has been up and doing in terms of socio-economic transformation of the country, especially in the area of roads construction.

    “All of these things we are doing when we were earning far less than what was earned when we were not in government,” he said.

    Speaking, the APC national chairman, Comrade Adams Oshiomole, said the Buhari administration had “restored the confidence of the country in the eyes of the international community.”

    Oshiomole, who spoke in Hausa language, said many Nigerians, and himself included, could now confidently go abroad without being embarrassed about the country.

    He said that money belonging to the public was wantonly embezzled in the past, but that under Buhari, Nigerians can sigh a relief that their commonwealth was in safe hands.

    On the Saturday election, he called on voters to “accept monies given them by politicians from other parties,” but “vote for the choice candidate of the APC.”

    The rally had several dignitaries in attendance including the Kano state governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, Minister of state for aviation, Hadi Sirika, and Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha.

    Others were the water resources minister, Suleiman Adamu, Kaduna state governor, Nasiru El-rufai who was represented by the commissioner of lands, Suleiman Abdulkwari.

    The host governor, Aminu Bello Masari, senators from Katsina, Umar Kurfi (Katsina central), Abu Ibrahim (Katsina south), among others, were also at the event

    Also speaking at the occasion, the state Governor Aminu Bello Masari, said the party will win landslide come Saturday. He appealed to the people to troop out in numbers to vote for APC

  • Fracas as Police on VP convoy clash with customs officials in Katsina

    There was a mild drama on Tuesday along Katsina Jibia road as Police officers attached to the convoy of Vice President Yemi Osinbanjo attacked and beat up three customs officials in Katsina state.

    The incident occurred at Daddara village in Jibia council area, when the vice president was in the state to condole with victims of the natural disaster which left more than 50 people dead.

    Trouble started when the customs officials had apprehended a vehicle of which a couple of youths had allegedly smuggled contraband from neighboring Niger Republic.

    It was while the customs officials were struggling to impound the vehicle belonging to the suspected smugglers that the vice president’s convoy passed the village while on its way to the metropolitan area.

    An eyewitness said the customs officials were threateningly brandishing their rifles to ward off several youths who stormed to the scene in show of sympathy to the smugglers.

    Read Also: Katsina PDP rejects Atiku, others, backs Lamido

    He said the police in the convoy of the vice president, on seeing what the customs officials were doing with their weapons, perceived it as a security threat.

    “Several policemen immediately came down from their vehicles and descended on the customs officials. One of them even fired a shot into the air.

    “I saw one of the policemen struggling to collect a rifle from one of the customs officials, but when he couldn’t, he continued to slap the customs official,” he added.

    He said that the suspected smugglers however used the opportunity of the commotion to tow their vehicle away.

    “Some of the youths that had gathered threw stones at the customs officials’ vehicle and continued to boo them till they left the area.”

  • We are expecting additional 1,129 MW in 2018 – Fashola

    We are expecting additional 1,129 MW in 2018 – Fashola

    The Federal Government on Monday announced that when some power generation projects were completed by 2018, they could generate additional 1,129 Mega Watts to the current 7,000 Mega Watts in the country, the Minster of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola revealed.

    The Minster said this at the 22nd monthly meeting of stakeholders in the power sector at Geregu, Kogi.

    Fashola said “the Azura power plant will give us another 450MW; I know that we will also get 10MW of wind power from Katsina State.

    “I know that we will get 115MW from Gbari and 30MW from Kashimbila.

    “From Afam III, we will give 240MW of power in 2018, while Gurara is working to deliver 30MW, as Dadinkowa in Gombe will provide 29MM and Kaduna will generate 215 MW.

    “All these power plants do not involve the mini grids and solar systems that are coming.”

    The minister explained that in spite of the attainment of the current 7,000MW in the country, 2,000MW of the total power was not being distributed to Nigerians.

    He said it was important to devise means of taking the unutilised 2,000MW to Nigerians who needed power, noting that “we cannot afford to keep power; that is not good for business, especially those who invested in it.

    “One of the steps we are taking with the Niger Delta Power Holding Company ( NDPH ) is to try and complete some of the distribution projects under the Nigerian National Integrated Power Project (NIPP) projects.

    “In Kogi, the distribution project that will affect the people positively are the ones in Okene, Igba, which will be completed in the first quarter of 2018.”

    Fashola said the narrative must change from not enough power to how unutilised power could be distributed.

    He explained that he had contacted the President of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) to discuss how its members could key into the undistributed power.

    Read also: Why I believe power sector ’ll be fixed, by Fashola

    He added that “Director Generator, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and other chambers of commerce had been contacted on how to take up the 2000 unused megawatts

    “We are also working on how Distribution Companies (Discos) could benefit from the entire process.”

    The minister, who said the sector had made progress on power Generation and Transmission, added that Distribution issues would also be cleared soon.

    He attributed the success recorded in the sector so far to government polices, “especially the provision of N701 billion assurance guarantee fund that enabled the payment to gas suppliers by Generating Companies (Gencos).

    “The assurance guarantee brought confidence to power production business, which resulted to increased power production which took us to all-time high of 7,000MW power availability.”

    “As at Dec. 5, 2017, power supply stood at 5,019MW, which was below the 5,074MW achieved in January 2016.

    “However, grid supplied power peaked at all-time high of 5,155MW on December 8, an increase over the January 2016 figure of 5,074 MW.”

    He said the success was due to teamwork and leadership provided by President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice-President Yemi Osinbanjo and other stakeholders.

    He then urged stakeholders to join hands in solving the problems in the sector, saying it was a privilege to be involved in salvaging the challenges in the sector.

    The Managing Director of Geregu Power Plant PLC, Mr Aderemi Adenuga, said owners of the company injected 94 million Dollars to overhaul and upgrade the plant.

    He said the company was comfortably running the tree turbines in the plant and thanked Nigeria Bulk Electricity Trader (NBET) for payment of the electricity generated to the company.

    NAN

  • Farmers, union kick as fake fertilizer saturates Yobe markets

    Farmers, union kick as fake fertilizer saturates Yobe markets

    The Chairman Yobe State Association of Fertilizer Sellers Potiskum Branch Alhaji Ali Maitaki has decried the circulation  and sales of fake fertilizers in the market.

    Equally, farmers in the state are also worried over the activities of the dubious traders saturating the market with the fake products in the state.

    Alhaji Maitaki while addressing journalists in his home town in Potiskum called on the Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Komptu Idriss to with immediate effect sanction the unpatriotic elements by arresting and prosecuting them.

    He disclosed that his association has uncovered the dubious traders and reported them to the police, stressing that only the police can halt the circulation of the fake products in the market.

    “On Sunday 16th July,  2017 our Members and  Customers reported to us the advertisement and  circulation of a Federal Government impersonated fertilizer labeled N5,500 with inscription FGN Agro  and coat of arm sold out at one store along Ibrahim Alkali Avenue in Potiskum town,  we rushed to the store and confirmed that it is true, picked some samples for analysis and confirmed it is fake,  it was filled with sand, we summoned Exco meeting and resolved to report the case to Potiskum Police Divisional Office,  the suspects were arrested, we were asked to come back on Monday 17th July  2017.

    “When we resumed Monday morning, we met the police writing the statement from the suspects, they told the police that they have remaining unsold 460bags in their store, we informed the Police that despite the arrest,  the sale is ongoing at the store    but the Police assured us that it will stop.

    “We therefore want to use this medium to appeal to the Inspector General of Police, Ibrahim K. Idriss to come to our aid by directing the proper investigation of the matter and bringing the culprits to book,” Alhaji Maitaki said.

    While expressing his confidence on the IGP to bringing the culprits to book, Maitaki said, “We are aware of the honesty and transparency of the IGP in ensuring that justice takes its course in the Nigeria Police.  Only the police can stop the wickedness of these bad elements”

    He maintained that, “We would not fold our alms to allow saboteurs of President Muhammad Buhari to impersonate federal government fertilizer and cheat our farmers, we would not remain silent and compromise justice that is why we held this Press Conference.

    “They are undermining Mr. President and his team, they want to spoil the name of this government at all cost, our customers threatened to stop patronizing Federal Government fertilizer.”

    Alhaji Maitaki accused some officials of the FG saying, “the suspects connived with some FG officials and used their store to carry out their business”.

    The Chairman of Movement for Justice, North East Zone, a justice watch organization  Zakari Adamu  said he was also aware of the incident, adding that  ” it’s unfortunate that some people  are desperate to sabotage the Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbanjo.   Why should they impersonate Federal Government fertilizer at this critical time when people are into farming.

    “They are selling the fake fertilizer at N5,500 and when applied on crops it destroys it “.

    “I reported it to OC CID in Damaturu, Yobe State Capital  but  the suspects were not prosecuted, I also met the DPO but he said he is not aware of the remaining large quantities of the fertilizer. He promise that they will act on the information”, Adamu said.

  • I was nominated for VP, says Osinbajo

    I was nominated for VP, says Osinbajo

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Wednesday night disclosed that he was nominated for the office of the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in last year’s Presidential election.

    Part of Professor John Paden’s book on the President, titled: “Muhammadu Buhari: Challenges of Leadership in Nigeria,” had claimed that Osinbajo emerged as Vice President despite pressure against it by the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

    But many Nigerians had faulted the claim as they insisted that Osinbajo was nominated for the position by Tinubu.

    Osinbajo on Wednesday night, during the Dinner organized in honour of outstanding graduants of the Presidential Amnesty Programme at the old Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, confirmed that he was actually nominated for the position.

    He said: “I was in a group of young men and women and one of them asked the question how did I become Vice President, I was never a politician or anything like that. So I tried to explain – it is quite simple that someone somewhere has to recommend you. Somebody somewhere has to give you a helping hand, whether to be a Vice President or to be an aircraft pilot or to be an engineer, somebody somewhere has to give you an opportunity and I think that all of you that are here today are the beneficiaries of the opportunities that you have somehow received.

    “And this is why this event is so important. I think that it is one way we have to remind ourselves that we are bound as individuals to give opportunities to everyone.” He added

    A representative of the beneficiaries of the programme, Alexander Obiechina, urged the Federal Government to continue to sustain the programme.

    According to him, the beneficiaries have collectively resolved to work against vandalism and make militancy to a thing of the past in the region.