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COVID-19 Palliatives: Presidency, Ndume In Verbal War

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…I Stand By My Submission- Ndume

… Prove Your Allegations Or Keep Quiet-Presidency

Following a reply by a presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, to Senator Ali Ndume (Borno South),
the war of words between the Presidency the former Leader of the Senate may not end soon.

Ndume, had at a press briefing in Borno State, called for the immediate sack of COVID-19 Palliatives Measures Committee headed by the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadia Umar Farouq.

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The APC Senator representing Borno South picked holes in the way and manner distribution of palliatives to Nigerians at this critical time of COVID-19 lockdown is being handled by the Humanitarian Affairs Ministry.

Ndume who kicked against the approach adopted by the Ministry in a chat with journalists said the emergency national assignment should be taken away from the Ministry and given to a fresh committee that will use governors of the 36 States as links of distribution across the federation.

READ ALSO: COVID-19: Warri-based Billionaire Pastor Doles Out N1.1billion Charity, Challenges Others To Give

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His words, “My concern is the manner and the way the COVID-19 palliative measures provided by the president is being handled or executed. We have received numerous complaints and it is actually very unfortunate.

“In fact, left to me, I am strongly calling for the humanitarian committee headed by the minister of Humanitarian Affairs to be dissolved with immediate effect and the president should as a matter of urgency, form a taskforce that would deal with the issue of palliatives, headed by the military, police, civil defence, voluntary organisations, and the NYSC among others.

“It should be formed as taskforce committee headed by governor of each state, and those materials or cash be allocated and distributed house to house, instead of the fake or dubious way they have been handling the matter by just going to Television House or Government House to demonstrate.

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“If you see a Minister or big person anywhere going personally to do something, then know that there is something wrong. If not, what has the Minister got to do with going from state to distribute palliative? They should be in the ministry monitoring the activities.

READ ALSO: Women Arrested For Raining Curses On Ogun Gov, Others

“While the pitiable situation of the poor is visible to everyone, few individuals are rushing to squander the money meant for the poor.

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“We have reliable information that the names they generated are fake and that they connived with some of the banks to defraud the poor. It is better to stop the exercise because it is full of lies and if the president don’t do something to stop it now, we will end up investigating and later on going back and forward to the court.”

However, in his reply to Ndume’s claims, Shehu urged the Borno South senator to prove his claims instead of accusing unnamed faces in his latest attack.

In a statement issued on Friday in Abuja, the Presidency accused Ndume of politicising a national emergency and challenged him to name the alleged kleptocrats in Buhari’s government.

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READ ALSO: Ken Saro-Wiwa’s Son Dies Of COVID-19 In UK

The SUN reports that Shehu in the statement, urged Ndume to keep quiet as according to him, no serious government changes a winning team in times of war.

The statement titled: ‘Senator Ali Ndume should figure out his mentioned kleptocrats around the President or be quiet’, reads in part, “Claiming that the COVID-19 Palliative Measures Committee is not functioning as it should be not the same as presenting proof for such a claim.

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“No one replaces an institutional government body in the midst of the global pandemic without clear and irrefutable evidence that it needs replacing.

“A press briefing from a discontented politician is rarely the source of such evidence.

“At this difficult time of the battle by Nigeria against Coronavirus, everyone should help the fight and not seek to make political capital out of it, whatever his or her grievances.”

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But in his reaction to the statement, Ndume said he stands by his observations and recommendations as far as distribution of palliatives arising from COVID-19 is concerned.

Ndume, who reacted through a telephone conversation, however, said he was not ready to join issues with anybody having made his observations known.

READ ALSO: Lockdown Claims More Lives In Nigeria Than Pandemic, As Security Personnel Kill Two More

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“I’m not ready to join issues with anybody on palliatives distribution, having made my observations known based on information I got from the grassroots as a grassroots person. I’ve made my position known on the programme and I stand by it,” he said.

(SUN)

(PHOTO: File)

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Okpebholo Launches 1bn Interest-free Loan For Edo Traders

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Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State, has officially launched a ₦1 billion interest-free loan scheme, as part of the fulfilment of his campaign promises.

The governor at the launching also said it was a direct alignment with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda for national progress.

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Okpebholo, addressing market women and men, described the initiative as a beacon of hope for over 5,000 farmers and small business owners across the state, adding that it would inject vitality into grassroots commerce.

He said “There is an adage: follow who knows the road. That is why we decided to follow the footsteps of our President, Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”

READ ALSO: Okpebholo Prioritises Security, Workers Welfare, Says Idahosa

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He added, “Today, what we are doing in Edo State is the implementation of the agenda of the President. We thank God for the kind of leadership He has given to Edo State and Nigeria. Now, it is time for the progress for our people.”

The Governor underscored the personal commitment behind the scheme, recalling his campaign promise to provide soft loans.

He emphasized that this N1 billion fund was the fulfillment of that pledge, but with a crucial safeguard.

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“I just wanted to be sure that this money will not go into the wrong hands. That is the essence of this gathering. Because, with my past experience, whenever the Executive gives out loans, the money does not get to the grassroots,”  Okpebholo noted.

READ ALSO:Join Govt In Fight Against Hunger, Okpebholo Urges Nigerians

“If you do not get this, come back to me and report.” He also revealed that this initial rollout is a “pilot test,” with its success paving the way for future replications of the scheme.

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In his statement, Honourable Commissioner for Finance, Emmanuel Ehidiamen Okoebor, said: “It is with great pride and a sense of responsibility that I stand before you today to welcome everybody to this occasion of the launching of the N1 billion interest-free loan to Edo people, our traders, our market women, our brothers and our fathers in the state,” he declared.

Okoebor said the scheme would “boost the economy of our rural areas and semi-urban areas, create jobs, and reduce poverty.”

He added, “Now, he has come to empower the people.” Crucially, he explained the zero-interest feature that sets this loan apart. “Before now, our mothers collected loans and paid 10% on N200,000. For this, there is no interest. You pay back what you borrowed.”

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“Each of the 5,000 beneficiaries will receive N200,000, with a generous 12-month repayment period and a one-month moratorium, offering vital breathing room for businesses to stabilize.”

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Open Letter To The Speaker, Parliament Of The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide 

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The writer, Mr Godswill Doubra Wuruyai (Right) andHon. Gabriel Allen Tomoni

Date: 14th June 2025

To:
Rt. Hon. Gabriel Allen Tomoni
Speaker,
Parliament of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide

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Dear Mr Speaker,

RE: THE STATUS OF OPTION A4 AS VOTING MECHANISM AND MATTERS ARISING

I bring you warm greetings of solidarity and unwavering commitment to the Ijaw struggle.

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It has become necessary to issue this Open Letter in response to your recent communication dated 13th June 2025, titled “Clarification on Applicable Constitution Guiding Electoral Activities in Lagos Chapter”, and to set the record straight regarding the status of the Option A4 voting mechanism as duly adopted by the Convention of Ijaw Youths at the Odi Constitution Convention 2024.

Permit me to respectfully state from the outset that the matter of Option A4 is neither open to debate nor subject to discretionary legislative ratification by Parliament, the NEC, or any Zonal or Chapter organ of Council. It is a constitutional matter, having been overwhelmingly adopted at the Odi Constitution Convention 2024—the supreme legislative convention of the Ijaw Youth Council, which carries the highest constitutional authority within our organisation.

READ ALSO: Meet Comrade Godswill Doubra Wuruyai, A Willing Ijaw Youth To Man The IYC National Secretariat

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The Convention is the apex legislative authority on matters of constitutional amendment and review. By both precedent and constitutional logic, once a Constitutional Convention concludes with the majority adoption of any provision, it becomes valid and binding immediately upon adoption by Congress—the highest sovereign body of the Ijaw Youth Council. The notion of “presidential assent” is ceremonial in nature; it does not possess the force to invalidate or delay the decisions of Congress. Signing ceremonies remain symbolic, not constitutive, in effect.

It is, therefore, anomalous and potentially unconstitutional for Parliament, or any of its officers, to purport to subject the decision of Congress to further parliamentary debate, rectification, or ratification. This represents not only a fundamental misreading of the IYC’s constitutional architecture but also a dangerous precedent that could undermine the very foundation of our collective legitimacy.

Furthermore, no Zonal structure, Chapter, or stakeholders’ forum possesses the jurisdiction to review, reject, or suspend a decision reached by a duly convened Constitutional Convention. The only valid forum that can revisit the matter of Option A4—or any other constitutional provision—is another Constitutional Convention convened specifically for that purpose.

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READ ALSO: Wuruyai Rolls Out Innovative Manifestoes As He Eyes IYC Secretary-General’s Office

The role of Parliament as a stabilising institution within the IYC structure is to promote order, not to precipitate constitutional crises by attempting to override the sovereign will of Congress. Should Parliament insist on such actions, it risks dragging the IYC into an avoidable constitutional conflict that could jeopardise the unity of our noble Council.

The Lagos Chapter, like all other organs of Council, is bound by the supreme decisions of the Constitutional Convention and must conduct its electoral processes in strict adherence to Option A4, as adopted.

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Accordingly, I call on you, as Speaker of Parliament, to respect and uphold the supremacy of Congress and its resolutions. Anything short of that amounts to an attempt to overturn the will of the Ijaw people through administrative fiat, which must be firmly resisted by all well-meaning Ijaw youths.

Let me conclude by reminding all concerned that we must not allow petty personal interests or ego-driven conflicts to derail the hard-earned democratic processes within our Council. This is not a time for power tussles, but a time for unity, maturity, and constitutional discipline.

I trust that you will act in accordance with the Constitution and in the enduring interest of the Ijaw nation.

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Yours in service of the Ijaw struggle,

Mr Godswill Doubra Wuruyai
Stakeholder/Member
Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide

Cc:
Comr. Williams Ayoromiegha Junior, Clerk of Parliament
All Members of Parliament, IYC Worldwide
The President, Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide
NEC Members, Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide
All Zonal and Chapter Chairpersons, IYC
Ijaw Youth Stakeholders Nationwide

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Reps To Quiz Edun, Cardoso Over Non-compliance With Fiscal Responsibility Act

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The Joint House of Representatives Committee on Public Accounts and Public Assets has invited the Minister of Finance, Mr Olawale Edun, and the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr Olayemi Cardoso, to appear before it on Monday over allegations bothering on non-compliance with the provisions of the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007.

The duo are also expected to respond to the 2021 audit queries relating to internal control weaknesses identified by the Office of the Auditor General for the Federation (oAuGF).

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In a letter jointly signed by the Chairmen of the House Committee on Public Accounts, Rep. Bamidele Salam, and the Committee on Public Assets, Rep. Ademorin Kuye, the lawmakers requested the Finance Minister and the CBN Governor to provide details on the remittance of operating surplus to the Federation Account by the apex bank in line with the provisions of relevant laws and regulations.

READ ALSO: Reps Move To Make Voting Compulsory For Nigerians

The Fiscal Responsibility Commission and the Auditor General for the Federation had, in reports submitted to the joint committees, accused several Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), including the CBN, of failing to remit or under-remitting their operating surpluses as required by extant financial laws and regulations over the last six years.

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According to the Public Accounts Committee Chairman, “these violations have negatively impacted the liquidity of the federal government and constitute a hindrance to effective implementation of the budgets passed by parliament.”

The committees stated that both the Finance Ministry and the apex bank had been given ample opportunity to reconcile their accounts and present their positions in order to determine the degree of financial liabilities involved, hence the need for a final hearing to resolve the issues.

The committee is equally reviewing a report in the Auditor General for the Federation’s statutory report which suggests that a number of public assets, which had been fully paid for, have not been completed or put into use for many years.

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Some of these projects in Dutse, Abeokuta and other locations were awarded between 2011 and 2016 but yet to be completed according to audit reports.”

 

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