Politics

APC Crisis: Adamu’s Greatest ‘Sin’ Was Trying To Impose Lawan As Presidential Candidate – V’Chair

Published

9 months ago

July 23, 2023

National Vice Chairman, Northwest, of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC, Salihu Moh. Lukman on Sunday said the level of impunity under the leadership of the erstwhile National Chairman of the party, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, reached its height when the former Nasarawa state governor sought to unilaterally impose a presidential candidate on the party.

He said apart from freezing statutory organs of the party, Adamu wanted foisting the then Senate President, Ahmad Lawan on the party but was swiftly cut to size by state governors and Asiwaju Bola Tinubu who was then an aspirant.

Lukman in a statement said it was however regrettable that the APC has continued to move from one leadership crisis to another, lamenting that today, the National Working Committee NWC has become a distant observer in the process of recruiting a new National Chairman.

He said; “After winning the campaign to get the Caretaker Committee organize a National Convention, which produced the current NWC led by Senator Abdullahi Adamu, in no time the party was returned to the old mode of business as usual whereby statutory organs of the party were frozen. No meetings of party organs were taking place and the NWC became practically an observer whereby the National Chairman and National Secretary basically usurped the powers of all organs of the party.

“The height of it was when the National Chairman attempted to impose Senator Ahmad Lawan as the 2023 Presidential Candidate of the party. Progressive Governors and many members of the NWC had to rise to the occasion and check the excesses of the National Chairman, which produced President Bola Tinubu as the candidate of the party for 2023 elections. The rest, as is often said, is now history.

“However, we continue to move from one unhealthy situation to another during both the 2023 electioneering campaigns and the process of negotiations to produce leaders of the National Assembly after the elections. It was as if the party under the leadership of Senator Adamu was either contesting the authority of President Tinubu or at the least working at cross purposes”.

Agreed zoning formula favours North Central

Lukman also reminded President Tinubu and the Progressives Governors Forum PGF that the agreed zoning formula in the party ceded the position of National Chairman to North Central.

According to Lukman, restoring constitutional order to APC would require some demonstration of commitment to give life to the statutory organs of the party so that the debate about replacing the National Chairman and all existing vacancies, including that of the National Secretary will be done within the structures of the party.

Lukman was again reacting to reports that former Kano state governor, Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje has been tipped to replace Senator Adamu as the next national chairman.

According the him, the inability to revive statutory organs of the party will suggest that the process of replacing existing vacancies will be manipulated to suite some narrow interests within the party even if it means violating provisions of the APC constitution.

“As NWC members, we must be seen to be active in the debate of the way forward. A situation whereby President Tinubu and Progressive Governors are being alleged to have decided on Dr Ganduje as the next National Chairman of APC without consulting other power blocs in the party and without meeting any of the organs of the party, including the NWC, is very risky and potentially damaging to President Tinubu and the party.

“If this was associated with a President who comes from a military background, it would be understandable. But to be associated with President Tinubu whose background is outrightly civilian having led the struggle for democracy in Nigeria for almost four decades, it will be highly unimaginable.

“We must therefore appeal to all those sponsoring this campaign to nominate Dr Ganduje for the position of APC National Chairman, especially His Excellency, Hope Uzodinma, Chairman, Progressive Governors Forum to come to order and allow due process within the party to take its rightful course in the selection process of who becomes the next APC National Chairman.

“Nobody, including the PGF, should be allowed to seek to entrench arbitrariness and injustice in the determination of who emerges as the next National Chairman of APC. We must remind everyone, including President Tinubu that so far, the agreed zoning formula in APC cedes the position of National Chairman of the party to North Central.

“Therefore, the relevant sections of APC constitution with respect to filling vacancies should be respected. Anything short of that will amount to illegality and will constitute an act of injustice against members of the party from North Central. A party envisioned to be progressive must not be associated with that especially if one of our objectives now is to return the APC to its founding vision of emerging as a progressive party.”

While calling on other NWC members to speak up, the APC chieftain said: “The vision of producing a progressive party cannot be produced with a reticent leadership. As NWC members, we need to appreciate that part of our responsibility is to ensure that all our elected representatives are guided to produce outcomes based on provisions of our manifesto and all our campaign promises. This is a function of the knowledge and skills of individual members.

“We must challenge ourselves to rise to the occasion by demonstrating the required capacity and competence. A situation whereby we sit in our ‘comfort zones’ and expect our elected representatives to come calling and recognizing our powers to provide leadership to the party only suggests gaps in competence”, he added.

Politics

JUST-IN: PDP Clears All 33 LGA Chairmanship Seats In Oyo

Published

9 hours ago

April 28, 2024

Editor

The Oyo State Independent Electoral Commission (OYSIEC) has declared all the 33 candidates of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) winners in the local government areas elections conducted across the state on Saturday.

The declaration on Sunday came amid controversy of irregularities as echoed by the main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC), which alleged irregularities in the voting process.

The APC in the state while the exercise was ongoing on Saturday had described the election as a sham which it noted was capable of causing the Pacesetter state untold disrepute if allowed to stand.

The opposition party then sought the rescheduling of the election for another day when OYSEIC “is ready to conduct a free, fair and credible poll.”

Oyo State APC Publicity Secretary, Olawale Sadare, in a statement regretted that “another opportunity to deepen democracy and return power to the people at the grassroots has had to be missed due to the insensitivity and insincerity on the part of the ruling class in the state.

“With what is happening at the moment in most Polling Units across the state, Gov. Seyi Makinde has again disappointed the whole world. He promised the people that their votes would count today but the opposite is the case. The good people of the state desired to participate in an election to elect a new set of council officials but what they are experiencing is nothing but a sham.

“Even if OYSIEC comes out later to declare all the candidates of the APC, we would not rate this election as credible and acceptable as it falls below the minimum global standard of election conduct. The best thing is for the Commission to suspend the exercise and choose another date for a proper conduct rather continue to connive with a few anti-democratic elements in the ruling PDP to perpetrate electoral fraud and desecration of democracy in the land,” the statement read in part.

The Oyo state government however disagreed, insisting that the victory of all PDP candidates in the Saturday’s elections was predictable.

The state Commissioner for Information, Prince Dotun Oyelade, after the announcement of the results, attributed the victories of the PDP candidates to outstanding performance of Governor Makinde in the last five years.

The Commissioner also attributed the election result to the quality of the candidates which the ruling party presented.

“This is a glowing tribute to the governor and his government as this is the last election under his watch till 2027 when he and the just elected LG chairmen and councillors will end their tenures.”

He lashed out at the opposition for starting to rehearse their complaints barely 30 minutes to the commencement of the elections as early as Saturday morning.

Oyelade charged them to behave like sportsmen and stop mixing fantasy with democracy.

The Commissioner hailed the commitments of the security team, the OYSIEC chairman and his team for daring to make a difference after the challenges of the past two local government elections.

Politics

Ondo 2024: lT Expert Emerges As SDP Candidate

Published

12 hours ago

April 28, 2024

Editor

An Information Technology expert, Dr. Segun Oyebolu, weekend emerged the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic party, in Ondo state.

Oyebolu, will be the party’s flagbearear in the November 16, governorship election in the state.

He emerged during the party’s governorship primary held in Akure, Ondo state capital.

The election, was supervised by the officer of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and security agencies.

Speaking at the end of the exercise, the Chairman of the partys primary committee in the state, Joseph Abu, declared Oyebolu as winner

of the exercise having polled 59 votes of the 60 votes cast by the party’s delegates.

Abu who explained that one of the votes was voided, described the election as free and fair and devoid of any rancour or any trouble.

He said that “We have a single candidate and all the delegates voted for the candidate.

” I want to assure you that SDP will win the next governorship election in the state come November by the grace of God.

“I want to thank the people of Ondo state for embracing our party and I am assuring them that SDP will deliver dividend of democracy at their doorsteps.

In his acceptance speech, Oyebolu, assured that his government will focus in freeing the state from the vested interest that had contributed to the underdevelopment in the state.

Oyebolu said that “enough is enough, we are taking our state back”.

“This is therefore a notice to Governor Ayedatiwa to start parking his bags and baggages as our dear Ondo State prepares to replace him with SDP.

“We are duly set to uproot the APC from Ondo State Government House. This is therefore your quit notice served in advance.

“For many of our people yearning for a new day and a new hope – My administration will bring back the good, old days.

“The many destructions wrought on us as a people shall end and in November 2024, SDP shall indeed begin the emancipation of the South West.

” I want to reassure you that the days ahead will witness challenges which collectively we shall overcome as we prepare to return power and comfort to our people”

According to him, SDP is a better alternative to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state.

He said the ruling party in the state had not changed the lives of the people for better but said the SDP was ready to find solution to the problems of Ondo State if voted to power in the November governorship election.

He noted the current economic crisis facing the people of the state was as a result of the maladministration and ineffective leadership on the part of the party in power in the state.

“We are here today to signal a completely new path, new way and new mindset. What you may call a shift from the unrealisable transformation programme of the APC.

“Our party seeks new way and better alternative entrenched in integrity of managing people, infrastructure and economy for people’s empowerment and emancipation,” he said.

He expressed assurance that the party would defeat the APC and PDP to win the governorship election, said the party is ready to work for the people of the state to rebuild and reposition the state.

The National Secretary of SDP, Dr. Olu Agunloye, while reacting to the primary exercise said “the issue at stake in Ondo State is about ensuring a breakthrough to take the State from its present moribund state to become a prosperous model state.

“This is by leveraging on its abundant human and natural resources, not about the despicable struggle for the purse strings of the State to perpetuate further underdevelopment because of personal interests and unethical agenda.

“In our great Party, the Social Democratic Party we are focused on efforts to move the State forward to social justice, peace, progress, and prosperity”

Politics

Edo Poll: AAC Guber Candidate Unveils ‘Humanity First Manifesto’, As Thousands Of LP Members Defect To Party

Published

13 hours ago

April 28, 2024

Editor

Thousands of Labour Party, LP, members in Edo State on Sunday defected to the African Action Congress (AAC) at the official flag-off of the campaign of the governorship candidate of the party, Dr Udoh Oberaifo.

INFO DAILY reports that Edo State governorship election holds September 21st, 2024.

The defectors drawn from the three senatorial districts of the state, formally defected to the AAC alongside the running mate to Oberaifo, Lord Osunde, who was said to have been a staunch member of the LP and a pioneer Edo Obidient Movement leader.

The running mate who told newsmen that he had defected to the AAC two months ago before the official unveiling, was the organiser of the first Two Millions Obidient Movement Walk in the state in the build up to the 2023 general election.

Speaking at the event, the gubernatorial candidate, Oberaifo, said he decided to make Edo people first in his agenda if elected, hence christening his manifesto ‘Humanity First’, meaning the people (Edo people) first.

A cross section of party members at the event on Sunday, April 28, 2024.

“By God’s grace, my leadership, if elected, will stand for true leadership; will stand for a new perspective; will stand for vibrancy. My government will stand for innovation, and it will answer all the questions of Edo people especially the youth and the women and Edo people in general.

“Humanity first at this time means Edo people first. The People before politics; the people before power mongering; the people before godfatherism; the people before profits. You must put the people first as a good leader, and you will get it right. That means that when you see people through the eyes of God or the way God sees them, you will definitely get it right. I repeat, humanity first,” he declared.

The governorship candidate who said the AAC was an alternative to rescue the state and its people from political, social and economics quagmire it has found itself, lamented that the state had experienced the era of PDP and APC without tangible results.

Speaking on how he intends to develop the state, Oberaifo said being a young businessman, he intends to invest hugely in small businesses in the state, adding that this will boost the state’s IGR and also reduce unemployment.

He said: “We must empower our small businesses. It is the sure way and the easiest way the government can raise IGR. An IGR is what we need to develop our state. it is the only way the government can solve the problem of unemployment.

“When you empower MSMEs, they are better, they create jobs. And when they create jobs, the unemployment rate reduces. The people will have more jobs because if I empower you now, I support you by giving you all you need for you to run your business, one year time, you might employ ten, and five years time, you might employ 20, and the chain continues.”