Politics

Aregbesola’s Loyalists Kick, Demand Osun APC Primaries Cancellation

Published

3 years ago

May 30, 2022

Ten State House of Assembly and two National Assembly aspirants on the platform of All Progressives Congress in Osun State on Monday demanded the cancellation of the party’s primaries in the state.

The aspirants, who belong to ‘The Osun Progressives,’ a caucus in Osun APC supported by the Interior Minister, Rauf Aregbesola, accused the state Governor, Adegboyega Oyetola, of acting with impunity and in disregard to democratic principles governing the conduct of the party’s primaries.

Addressing newsmen in Osogbo, an ex-member of Osun state House of Assembly, representing Olorunda State Constituency, Waseeu Adebayo, who was flanked by other aspirants, said the APC leadership could not announce the results of the primary days after they were held because of manipulation being perpetrated with the outcome.

He said, “Our people were at the various collation centres and nothing was happening until around 5pm when some factional Ward Chairmen from the Governor’s camp surfaced, claiming to be the Presiding Officer for the primary election.

“The chairmen did not come to the collation centres with any electoral materials like APC membership register, result sheets, e.t.c. They just asked the party members to raise up their membership cards, queue and without any proper accreditation, did the counting, wrote the results on a piece of paper and left.

“Even with such fraudulent and reprehensible conduct, our supporters were more than those of our opponents and we had the highest number. In some wards, there was no counting of APC members at all. There and then, we went to various collation centres for the Local Government where the results for the local government ought to be collated. Nobody showed up at the Local Government Collation Centre till we left there around 8:30, 9 pm and 10 pm as the case may be.

“The same scenario was repeated for the House of Representative’s primary which took place on Friday 27th May 2022 and up till this moment, there are no official results for both the State House of Assembly and National Assembly primary elections in Osun.

“Finally, the information at our disposal is that all the results sheets are currently in the custody of Governor Gboyega Oyetola and the results sheets are being filled with the names of the Governor’s cronies who never won the primary elections, hence the need for this conference.”

But when contacted for reaction, Osun state Commissioner for Political Affairs and Intergovernmental Relations, Taiwo Akeju, said the committees sent from Abuja by the APC national leadership were in charge of the primary and would release the result.

“No one is writing names inside government house. The conduct of the primary was not our duty. Committees from Abuja were in charge of the exercise and they will release the results. They should not spread rumour,” Akeju said.

PUNCH.

Politics

Oshiomhole Blasts Amaechi, Says He Built Railway To Niger Republic Instead Of Port Harcourt

Published

18 hours ago

November 24, 2025

Editor

Senator Adams Oshiomhole on Monday criticised former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, accusing him of poor judgment and misplaced priorities during his tenure in office.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Oshiomhole said: “Rotimi Amaechi is the most terrible. Look at the choice of language. A guy who shut down Rivers judiciary because he wanted to appoint his own personal favourite as chief judge of Rivers State. Once he couldn’t have his way, the Rivers State judiciary was shut down for almost two years.

“Look at the crisis in the railway system that he superintendent over for eight unbroken years. He was unable to get the priorities right, playing to the gallery.

“Now he rather constructed a rail, not to Kano, not to Port Harcourt, where he came from, but to Niger Republic.

“Which goods are we sending to Niger Republic? He was a minister. And if you were a minister under Buhari, you will be fair to him, life or death, that Buhari gave anyone he appointed free hand to do the job he assigned to you. That is what Buhari was.”

Politics

State Police Can No Longer Be Delayed – South-West Governors

Published

18 hours ago

November 24, 2025

Editor

The Southwest Governors Forum is set to create a South West Regional Security Fund to strengthen responses to insecurity in the region.

This initiative aims to address the rise in kidnapping, banditry, illegal mining, and unregulated interstate migration.

The decision was reached during a meeting of the six governors on Monday at the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Ibadan, Oyo State.

In the communiqué issued at the end, it was agreed that all six states would support coordinated operations, joint intelligence sharing, and rapid-response initiatives across Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ondo, and Ekiti states.

The governors also emphasised that the establishment of state police “can no longer be delayed.”

They applauded President Bola Tinubu for security interventions in states affected by kidnappings, while urging sustained attention on regional development.

Politics

JUST IN: Atiku Officially Joins ADC, Registers With Party In Adamawa

Published

1 day ago

November 24, 2025

Editor

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has officially registered as a member of the African Democratic Congress in Adamawa State, signalling a major development in Nigeria’s opposition politics ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The registration took place on Monday, following Atiku’s announcement to ADC supporters and stakeholders in Adamawa over the weekend.

Abdul Rasheeth, an aide to the former vice president, had confirmed the development in a statement obtained by The PUNCH.

Videos and photos from the event showed Atiku’s convoy arriving in the town to the cheers of supporters, who beat drums, sang, and carried placards with his image.

Atiku waved and greeted well-wishers from his vehicle as he received his ADC membership card.

In a brief X (Formerly Twitter) post on his handle shorty after his registration, Atiku wrote,” It’s official. -AA”

This move formalises Atiku’s association with the coalition party, which he had previously endorsed in July as a platform for opposition figures, including Peter Obi and Babachir Lawal, to challenge President Bola Tinubu in 2027.

Until now, Atiku and other opposition leaders had delayed their formal registration with the ADC.

The former vice president’s registration is expected to strengthen the party’s profile and consolidate the opposition ahead of the next general election.