Politics

Adamu Uncovers ‘Ghost Workers’ In APC Secretariat

Published

4 years ago

October 21, 2022

The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, has unearthed a can of worms plaguing the party’s secretariat, saying he inherited baggage of corruption, salary arrears and ghost workers.

Adamu made the revelation during a media parley with journalists at the party headquarters in Abuja on Thursday.

The clarification is coming on the heels of report that the former Nasarawa State governor had replaced some suspended departmental directors of the secretariat with his relatives and cronies.

The six affected directors namely Elder Anietie Offong (Welfare); Bartholomew Ugwoke (Research); Abubakar Suleiman (Finance); Dr Suleiman Abubakar (Administration); Salisu Dambatta (Publicity) and Dare Oketade, Legal Head, were allegedly accused of mismanaging N7.7bn.

Adamu had on April 22 ordered the directors to proceed on a “compulsory annual leave.”

Although the former Nasarawa governor promised to run a staff audit, the result of the exercise which showed an over-bloated workforce was not implemented.

Instead, the party chairman consequently set up an investigative panel headed by an ex-Governor of Jigawa State, Ali Kudu, to study the handing-over notes of the defunct Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee.

It was the fallout of the committee’s recommendations that compelled Adamu to place the departmental directors and head of legal services on an indefinite suspension.

In the last one week, the media has been awash with report of new helmsmen replacing four of the six axed directors.

Defending his action in a media parley with newsmen on Thursday, Adamu disclosed that the move was necessitated by the need to sanitise the system.

This was as he denied allegation that the new replacement were his cronies.

He said, “That the report is false. The fact of the matter is, go through the secretariat, there is not one person since we came in here that is my blood relation. Not one, whether primary or part of my extended family.

“It is a fallacy (that I have my people working here). In fact, when we came here, it was to reorganise and reconstitute the party. You don’t see the party in a state of mess and look the other way just because you want to be decent and not offend anybody.”

While claiming that he met a cesspool of corruption, tardy staff and a register containing over 200 names including ghost workers, the APC chairman swore that it was not in his DNA to overlook such anomalies.

He also swore that his action was done out of motivation to right the wrongs and not as prejudice as being speculated in the media.

“We came and found the party where people are fixing all manners of things. We had a bill of N7.5bn to settle on legal matters alone. We came to find that here everybody was like me, on his own. No control, no system and no due process. Everybody doing what he wanted to do. It is just because you don’t want to be accused of anything that you will allow those kinds of people.

“My DNA has a terrible allergy to that. I am sure most, if not all, of my members in the NWC share in this. So we found the necessity to reorganise the centre and only God knows the extent of appreciation we probably have won. Of course, every situation of change has a victim of its own and ours is not an exception. And we didn’t do anything with bias or prejudice. The main thing is the interest of the party.

“I know we will be abused and falsely accused but we are humans. I am not saying we don’t make mistakes. But the fact of the matter is that there is nothing we have done deliberately just to promote our own interests. We don’t do it. There is a lot of falsehood going on.

Ghost workers in APC headquarters
“Recently, we tried to introduce table payment. If you are a member of this chapel, you know we don’t have 200 people working for us here. But if you go through the payroll, we are over 200 people. Who are they? How did they come up on their bill? What are they doing for us? Where are their letters of appointment? What condition of service do they have?

“You don’t, because you are afraid of negative media reviews, ignore this. People went to the market square saying we are arranging salaries but can’t pay. That is very far from the truth. We met and paid some arrears when we came in. I don’t have any qualms about this. We did everything in good faith,” he said.

The PUNCH also reached out to the affected directors to get their reactions.

An unhappy Salisu Dambatta, who was the former Director of Publicity in the APC, told The PUNCH that he doesn’t want to join issues with the party.

According to him, it will not be good for the image of the party, especially at a time when the Presidential Candidate of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has commenced his campaign.

Former Legal Head of the APC, Dare Oketade, also told our reporter that the ex-director of administration was in a better position to relate their plight.

He also believed their predicament was more of a witch-hunt than the flimsy allegation of corruption Adamu was trying to rope them with.

When contacted, the emotional admin director, Abubakar Suleiman, told The PUNCH that the whole drama looked like it was pre-arranged.

Suleiman accused the Adamu-led NWC of failing to narrate their “sin” before plunging them into “compulsory annual leave,” an act that culminated in appointment of their replacements.

“Adamu lied. My brother, nothing went wrong. The secretariat was in good hands. What necessitated his decision was not known to us or anybody. It was an agenda. Nobody was indicted. I am sure you must have heard from others too. Nothing went wrong anywhere.

“As directors, we don’t approve anything. Our job was to implement,” he bemoaned.

Asked where the allegation of N7.7bn was coming from, he dismissed the idea, saying it was non-existent.

He noted, “Nothing like that. Nobody is aware of the N7.7bn you said he talked about. No money was missing. There were also no ghost workers anywhere. Every staff you see at the secretariat there was duly engaged with letters of employment. At the time we left, the staff strength was about 211 workers.

“All these talks of corruption and others must have been an after-thought, I am sure. All the suspension letter told us was that it was based on the recommendation of the committee set up.”

A copy of the letter written to them by the party’s national secretary and made available to our correspondent indicated that they were removed as a result of the recommendations contained in the report of the Transition Committee Adamu appointed.

The director of administration lamented that at the bottom of the letter, “each of us was wished well in his future endeavours.”

Despite writing President Muhammadu Buhari and copying Tinubu, members of the Progressive Governors’ Forum, National Executive Committee and party chieftains, no action was taken, according to the director.

A pensive Suleiman, however, concluded that they might consider litigation if all entreaties to reinstate them fail.

This was as he reiterated that Adamu and the NWC lacked the power to recruit or disengage staff without the approval of the National Executive Committee of the Party.

He said, “The power given to them by NEC then was only to organise primaries and national convention. They have acted beyond their remit by sending us on compulsory annual leave which is strange to the APC staff condition of service and breached the APC constitution by saying that they have removed us.

“An Establishment Committee is the only body that can make recommendation to engage or remove staff of the APC secretariat. And even then, it can only become effective when or if the NEC approves. There must be genuine reasons for either recruitment or disengagement.

“Our dismissal has not followed any due process. It is unfair. You just don’t go about tarnishing people’s image. You were about the only journalist that called to verify the truth.

“I have put 22 years of service into this party through the whole transition and merger process from the AD. But what Adamu just did was to bring in his cronies and people to run things at the secretariat.

“If he tells you his people are not working at the secretariat, he lied. Quote me anywhere. He has his people in positions of leadership including those he brought in as aides and personal assistants. We need to call a spade a spade.”
PUNCH

Politics

2027: NDC Unveils Electoral Committee Members For Primaries

Published

4 hours ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

The Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, has released list of Electoral Committee Members to Conduct primary election.

The exercise is for State House of Assembly, House of Representatives, Senate, Governorship and Presidential Primaries across all States in Nigeria and the FCT.

This was contained in a statement posted on its verified X handle on Thursday.

The party had provided updates concerning its upcoming Presidential, National Assembly, Governorship, and State Assembly primaries.

According to the party’s National Chairman, Moses Cleopas,
and Barr. Ikenna Alex-Morgan Enekweizu, National Secretary, the primaries are confirmed to take place across the nation on May 29, 2026, adhering to the previously established timetable of May 28 and 29.

Politics

APC: Fubara Has Been Treated Badly, It’s Dangerous For Tinubu – Otubanjo

Published

4 hours ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

The director of research at the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Femi Otubanjo, has said the treatment of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, in the just concluded All Progressives Congress’, APC, primary poses political danger to President Bola Tinubu.

Otubanjo stated this on Thursday while speaking on Arise Television’s Morning Show, where he also criticised the role being played by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, in the political affairs of Rivers State and the All Progressives Congress.

According to him, the handling of Fubara’s political crisis remains one of the most surprising developments in Nigeria’s political landscape.

Otubanjo further argued that Wike, who is not a member of the APC, appears to be dictating political activities within the ruling party in Rivers State.The research director warned that the current political arrangement in Rivers State could negatively affect Tinubu politically, insisting that Wike was pursuing his personal agenda rather than that of the president.

He said: “The treatment of Fubara must be one of the American wonders of Nigerian politics. Fubara has been badly treated. We have a situation in which Nyesom Wike who is not even in the APC is taking the primary decision in the APC. I hope the tactical team of President Bola Tinubu is not sleeping.

“The reality is that what they have done is very dangerous for Tinubu. What has emerged in Rivers today is that Wike is pursuing his own agenda, not Tinubu’s agenda inspite of PBAT and all of that combination.”

“If Wike really wants to pursue Tinubu’s agenda, he must retain Fubara.”

Politics

In Defence Of Khalifa Jarrett Tenebe: The Generational Shift Reshaping Edo Politics

Published

1 day ago

May 27, 2026

Editor

By DAN Osa-Ogbegie

For decades, Edo politics remained trapped within a narrow and predictable cycle of political recycling. The same ageing actors moved endlessly from one office to another, from one administration to the next, and from one political alignment to another, as though leadership in Edo State had become the exclusive inheritance of a permanent political aristocracy.

Meanwhile, thousands of intelligent, energetic, and capable young Edo people watched helplessly from the margins while opportunities for leadership, governance, party administration, and public service remained tightly controlled by individuals whose political relevance dated back several decades.

That unhealthy political culture is now gradually changing.

Today, one of the most important political transformations taking place within the All Progressives Congress in Edo State is the deliberate transition from recycled political gerontocracy to a younger generation of political actors. That transition is unfolding under the leadership of Senator Monday Okpebholo, Governor of Edo State and Leader of the APC in Edo State, together with the State Chairman of the party, Khalifa Jarrett Tenebe.

Predictably, such a shift has unsettled entrenched interests.

Those who became accustomed to monopolising political relevance naturally feel threatened by the emergence of a younger generation that is increasingly assertive, visible, influential, and institutionally empowered. Yet, history teaches a simple lesson: no political structure survives indefinitely without renewal.

No serious political party can continue recycling the same exhausted political machinery forever while expecting innovation, grassroots energy, modern governance ideas, and long-term political sustainability.

That reality appears to be clearly understood by Governor Monday Okpebholo and Khalifa Jarrett Tenebe.

Much of the criticism unfairly directed at Khalifa Jarrett Tenebe in recent times stems from the fact that he has become one of the visible faces of this generational transition within Edo APC. Beneath the noise, propaganda, and political bitterness lies an undeniable truth: the party is consciously opening spaces for younger people in ways not seen for many years.

From the youthful Deputy Chairman of APC in Edo State, Sylvester Aigboboh, to several younger commissioners, Special Advisers, members of the State Executive Council, board chairmen, local government administrators, and strategic appointees across government, the evidence of deliberate political renewal is becoming increasingly impossible to ignore.

In Uhunmwode Local Government Area, Hon. Austin Imafidon has emerged as one of the young faces of focused governance and grassroots administration. Beyond politics, he has already established himself successfully in business, bringing into governance the mindset of productivity, enterprise, and modern administrative engagement.

In Etsako, Hon. Sunny Ekpeson has continued to attract national attention as the youngest ALGON Chairman in Nigeria, representing a clear departure from the era where local government leadership was treated as the permanent preserve of ageing political operators disconnected from younger demographics.

In Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area, Hon. Eric Osawaru represents another example of the younger political generation now entrusted with leadership responsibilities, while in Oredo Local Government Area, Engr. Gabriel Iduseri equally reflects the growing confidence being reposed in younger administrators within the APC structure.

In Owan, Hon. Aitalegbe Ernest, popularly known as “China Boy,” has also emerged as one of the prominent young political figures gaining traction as the incoming Chairman of the local government, further reinforcing the expanding generational transition currently taking shape across Edo State.

The same pattern is visible across government institutions and strategic agencies.

Pastor Stanley Dave Ighodaro, a successful entrepreneur with thriving business interests in Europe, now heads the Edo State Parks and Gardens Agency. His emergence reflects an increasingly important shift towards bringing professionally exposed and globally minded younger individuals into governance and public administration.

Similarly, Kassim Otono, who serves as Special Adviser on Oil and Gas to the Executive Governor of Edo State, represents another example of younger technocratic involvement within the present administration. His inclusion within such a strategic sector underscores the growing confidence being placed in younger professionals and politically aware technocrats within government.

This is how enduring institutions are built.

A political party that refuses to regenerate itself eventually becomes intellectually stagnant, structurally weak, and electorally disconnected from evolving social realities.

Governor Monday Okpebholo deserves commendation for recognising that governance in a rapidly changing society cannot remain permanently tied to political methods and leadership assumptions developed several decades ago. Contemporary governance demands adaptability, technological awareness, stronger grassroots engagement, administrative energy, and a deeper connection with younger populations.

Khalifa Jarrett Tenebe equally deserves credit for helping stabilise the party while managing this difficult but necessary transition process. Generational shifts are never easy within political systems historically dominated by established interests. Resistance is inevitable. Political resentment is expected. Internal anxieties naturally emerge whenever old monopolies begin to weaken.

Leadership, however, requires courage.

The recently concluded primaries further revealed this evolving direction within the APC. The emergence of candidates such as Rt. Hon. Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama, Osazee Igbinovia, Dr. Emmanuel Paddy Iyamu, Omosede Igbinedion, Sir Lucky Eseigbe, and Odianosen Okojie reflects a growing political philosophy that increasingly values capacity, grassroots relevance, contemporary appeal, and generational continuity.

Equally symbolic is the emergence of several young Acting Local Government Council Chairmen who are now candidates of the party in the forthcoming local government elections. That development sends a powerful message across Edo State that political participation is gradually becoming more accessible to younger people with competence, commitment, and organisational value.

For too long, many young people in Edo politics were reduced to political spectators, social media defenders, praise singers, or election-day foot soldiers while actual power remained tightly guarded elsewhere. Such a model was never sustainable.

A society that continuously sidelines its younger generation ultimately weakens its own political future.

The ongoing transition within Edo APC does not amount to hostility towards elders or experienced political actors. Experience remains valuable. Elder statesmen still possess institutional memory and political wisdom that younger actors can benefit from immensely. Mentorship, however, must never become political suffocation. Guidance must never evolve into permanent political domination.

Every generation deserves the opportunity to participate meaningfully in shaping the future it will eventually inherit.

That is precisely why the current direction of the APC leadership in Edo State deserves objective acknowledgement rather than emotional hostility.

Many of those attacking Khalifa Jarrett Tenebe today are not truly angry about party administration. Their deeper discomfort arises from the reality that political influence is gradually shifting away from old centres of control towards a newer generation of actors who may no longer depend entirely on traditional political gatekeepers for relevance or survival.

Societies evolve.

Political cultures evolve.

Leadership itself evolves.

No generation owns political power forever.

Ultimately, the future of Edo State cannot be built exclusively around recycled political veterans whose greatest political moments belong largely to the past. A forward-looking society must continuously create room for younger leadership, newer ideas, fresh administrative energy, and modern political thinking.

That future is already unfolding within the APC in Edo State.

History may eventually remember Khalifa Jarrett Tenebe and Governor Monday Okpebholo as central figures in the difficult but necessary political transition that began moving Edo away from recycled political dominance towards a broader and younger leadership culture capable of preparing the state for a different era.

Daniel Aroren Noah Osa-Ogbegie is a Benin based legal practitioner and public intellectual from Uhunmwode Local Government Area.