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Oshiomhole: ‘ God Will See Me Through, My Travails Not From Edo’

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The National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, has blamed his recent travails on some chieftains of the party outside his state, saying “God will see me through, he knows my heart”

Oshiomhole spoke to State House Correspondents after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari Thursday evening at the Presidential Villa, just hours after a Federal High Court in Kano gave a restraining order in his favour.

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He said despite efforts by those he dubbed as ‘blacklegs’, whom he accused of holding membership of other opposition parties, his leadership of the party would be determined by God.

According to Nation, The party Chairman lamented that those who have been working to undo him had committed themselves to the fight not because he had performed poorly but because he had refused to allow them to abuse their privileged places in the party.

READ ALSO: ‘Are You Looking At Me With Pity?’, Oshiomhole Asked Journalists

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He also claimed that the ambition of some leading members of the party to contest the office of the President in 2023 had been a major motivation for many of the plots against him.

According to him, the court order, which called for his suspension was generated by the National Vice Chairman (Northwest), Comrade Mustapha Salihu and four others, adding that his lawyers had faulted the order gotten against him, saying it was issued by a court out of jurisdiction.

Speaking about those he alleged were behind the onslaught against him and their alleged motives, he said: “Those behind this plot, the hands you saw which includes as you saw yesterday, the Edo State governor and his people jubilating but that is the irony of life that you will help give birth to a child and the child look for cutlass to want to chop off your neck. It has happened in history, it has happened in this country so I won’t be only person.

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“But there are other forces who see me for whatever reason as a threat to them. And those leading this anti-Oshiomhole campaign, some of them I emphasize, cannot even boast of a counselor in their state even as they lay claim to leadership position in our party.

READ ALSO:Oshiomhole’s Suspension: Ize-Iyamu Talks Tough, Says ‘We Will Resist Attempt To Rubbish Him’

“I am proud to say that I have done my best not only when I was a governor, I have done my best as chairman of this party.

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” I have worked not only along members of the party and with support of the good people of Nigeria for the president to be re-elected, for us to have majority in the two chambers of the National Assembly.

“I also worked hard to deliver my unit, my ward, I worked hard to deliver my local government, I worked hard to deliver my federal constituency three of them in my senatorial zone, I also worked hard to deliver my senator.

“Those fighting me couldn’t deliver even a counselor of a local government in their unit.

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“And they just feel that if they cannot give me orders then they must do everything to embarrass my person, but I believe that he who God stands with no man born of a woman can bring him down.”

READ ALSO: Just In: Court Sets Aside Ruling Suspending Oshiomhole As APC Chairman

He went on: “I can’t say more than that. Those who are parading themselves, holding meetings at night, my prayer to my God is that let them meet at night, what they do at night will be destroyed my light in the day time.

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“I don’t go for night business I do day business. They know themselves, they know me and I know them.

“It is just unfortunate that if you have out of 100, 90 people are happy with you, will call and say well done, those 10 who are not are the ones that will call press conference to denounce you, they are the ones who will hold midnight meetings in a minister’s house to say how do we bring him down.

“They are the one who will plot how do we get rid of him because they want to be president in 2023 even when their hold on their state at the moment is doubtful If they were to go for referendum in terms of their approval rating.

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“But God will see me through, He knows my heart, He knows my conscience and He knows the wishes of the overall majority of our members and to them I remain ever grateful”, he said.

On why they want him out, Oshiomhole explained: “You see there is an issue in this country. People want strong leadership, the averaged Nigerian want to have a strong leader for Nigeria, they want to have strong leaders in various institutions, they want institutions that are strong enough that cannot be controlled by individuals. That was why President Obama said, what Africa needs are strong institutions not strong persons.

“Unfortunately, very few section of our elites want to weaken institutions so that they can control and if you refuse to oblige them the misuse of your institution then they go for your jocular, that is the only thing. Otherwise I ask you, remember the confusion we had at the last NEC meeting?

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“That meeting took place exactly a week or about 10 days after we had won Kogi election, Bayelsa election before the court took it and donated it to somebody else.

“Yet in the face of this victory, people said Oshiomhole must be removed, precisely because we won more seats.

“But you see whatever you do, those who want to fight you will fight you. But I know that my tenure will be defined my God not by man.

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“And I worry more about what I will be remembered for when I was chairman rather than how long I was chairman.

“And I am convinced that I have done my very best, mistakes would have been made and I want to see the one person who will say he has never made mistakes.”

Speaking on the court order obtained against him, Oshiomhole said “just yesterday (Wednesday) morning suddenly I saw in the news that an FCT High Court has suspended me as national chairman.

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And that the person who went to court includes one of my vice chairmen, north East, one Mustapha (Mustapha Salihu APC National Vice Chairman Northeast) and four others. I was taken back because in the same suit they joined the APC, the police as the DSS.

“Our lawyers told me that in law that when you sue a federal agency, FCT High Court has no jurisdiction to entertain it. Number two, the purported suspension of my person by my ward, first I am going to give you a document to that effect so that you can form your opinion.

” Number three, I am not an officer of my ward, I am the national chairman of my party, elected at a national convention by over 7,000 delegates, so how could nine persons sit down somewhere and purport that they have removed a national chairman.

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“And the court contrary to all logic, all judicial precedence find comfort in granting an interim interlocutory order to stop me from functioning pending when the matter is determine.

” In other words, he has given the order without the facts being laid before him and in the process adjourned the case to 7th of April.

“The calculations are clear that between now and April 7th, my opponent in the system would have had ample time to do all the mischievous plans they have in place to distabilise the APC.

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“Because, some of them have membership of more than one political party.  But happily this afternoon, a federal high court that I believe that has jurisdictions on federal issues because the DSS, the police are not state institutions but federal institutions, has given an appropriate order to restrain the so called suspension that was allegedly impose on me by my ward in Edo State.

“I thought that I had a duty to brief Mr. President as the overall leader of our party about this development. Incidentally, when I requested for the audience yesterday I wasn’t sure what has happened today will happen.

“But I had a duty to inform him about the court order. But happily before coming here, the order from a Federal High Court that has made nonsense of what the  FCT court purported to have done has already settled the question.

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“And I showed to the president the resolutions of my ward even though a ward executive does not have the powers to remove a national chairman, just to say that the document that we have says clearly that my ward passed vote of confidence on me.

“How the court can hold vote of confidence and twist it to mean vote of no confidence, only that judge can explain it to himself.

“But the good news is that this is not a final court nor is it the only court, incidentally it is just the court that didn’t have the jurisdiction even to listen to this matter.

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“And our lawyers so pointed it out but the judge was determined to obliged those who want to distabilise the All Progressive Congress.”

(NATION)

PHOTO: File

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Police Pension Scheme Violates Constitution, IHRC Tells Tinubu

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The International Human Rights Commission, Nigeria, has thrown its weight behind the renewed push by the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, for a comprehensive reform of the Contributory Pension Scheme, as it affects retired officers of the Nigeria Police Force.

This is contained in a diplomatic memo addressed to President Bola Tinubu and titled “A Diplomatic Appeal for Police Pension Welfare Reform in Line with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

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In a statement signed on Saturday by IHRC’s Head of Media and Strategic Communications, Fidelis Onakpoma, the commission said the current pension arrangement for police personnel amounts to a constitutional breach and urged the President to take urgent corrective action.

The Head of Mission, IHRC , Ambassador Duru Hezekiah, was quoted in the statement as saying, “The commission firmly supports the Inspector-General of Police’s ongoing advocacy for a just and equitable pension scheme for retired police officers.

“We call on President Tinubu to urgently address the systemic flaws in the Contributory Pension Scheme, which violate constitutional provisions guaranteeing dignity and adequate social support for public officers.”

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READ ALSO:Human Trafficking: Police Rescue 40 Ghanaians, Arrest Three In Ondo

Citing Sections 17(3)(f) and 34(1)(a) of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), IHRC said the Nigerian state is legally bound to ensure the welfare and dignity of its retired officers, a responsibility it is currently failing in.

According to the commission, thousands of retired police officers are living in hardship under a pension system that disregards the realities of law enforcement service.

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The Constitution mandates the state to ensure the wellbeing of retired officers, not to abandon them to a broken system.

“The current structure of the CPS as applied to the police is inadequate, unfair, and incompatible with Nigeria’s constitutional values. These officers spent their lives in service—often in the face of extreme danger—yet they retire into poverty and indignity,” the IHRC stated.

The commission’s intervention follows a high-level meeting convened by the IGP on July 1, 2025, at the Force Headquarters in Abuja.

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READ ALSO:Police Arrest Cleric Over Alleged Defilement Of Underage Girl In Osun

The meeting brought together delegations from the National Association of Retired Police Officers of Nigeria, led by AIG Paul O. Ochonu (retd.), and the Coalition of CPS Retirees, led by CP Henry Njoku (retd.), to address mounting concerns over pension inadequacies.

During the meeting, Egbetokun reiterated his resolve to push for a more just and practical pension structure, describing the current system as a gross injustice.

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Our retirees deserve dignity, support, and a structure that reflects their sacrifice and service to Nigeria.

“We cannot continue to subject our heroes to a pension scheme that is clearly unfit for the nature of their work and the risks they bore,” the IG declared.

Egbetokun’s comments echoed sentiments he had expressed earlier in February during an interactive session with retired officers at the Police Resource Centre in Abuja, where he criticized the CPS as “deeply flawed and unfit for the realities of Police service.”

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READ ALSO:NMA Gives FG 21 Days To Avert Doctors’ Strike

The IHRC amplified this concern, highlighting what it described as an unjust disparity between Police and military retirees.

While the latter are exempted from the CPS and benefit from a more suitable pension arrangement, police retirees, the commission said, continue to suffer from a scheme that fails to provide basic security in old age.

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The military has rightly been removed from the CPS because of the peculiar nature of their job. The same logic applies—if not more so—to police personnel.

“Our police officers risk their lives daily, and they deserve a pension structure that reflects that reality. Anything less is an affront to justice, equity, and national security,” said Hezekiah.

In line with Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the IHRC urged the Presidency to act decisively in addressing the disparity and upholding the constitutional and moral obligations of the state to its law enforcement agents.

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Reforming the police pension structure is not merely a policy issue—it is a constitutional and moral obligation. We believe this government has the opportunity to right this historical wrong and restore dignity to our Police retirees,” the statement read.
(PUNCH)

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FG To Spend N17bn On Lagos Bridge Damaged By Fire

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The Federal Government has negotiated the cost of the Iddo Bridge rehabilitation from an initial N27bn to N17bn.

The Minister of Works, Sen. Dave Umahi, made this known to journalists during an inspection of the bridge on Friday in Lagos.

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He said, “Julius Berger quoted, I think, N27 billion or thereabout, but after much negotiation and discussion, we now arrived at N17 billion.”

Umahi commended Julius Berger Nig. Plc. for demonstrating a sense of cooperation under its new leadership.

He described the company as a “born-again Berger”, attributing the breakthrough in negotiation to the understanding and openness of its new managing director.

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READ ALSO:FG Gives Overstaying Foreigners Ultimatum To Regularise Visa

The minister reiterated the government’s commitment to prudent spending, insisting that all contractors must align with the ministry’s standards and directives.

Umahi noted that the project had been reviewed from mere rehabilitation of the burnt section to a major work.

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He expressed concern over the poor condition of the bridge, blaming it on years of neglect and human abuse, including illegal occupation and collisions by heavy-duty trucks.

He said that three spans of the bridge were severely damaged by fire, which he attributed to activities of illegal occupants who had built makeshift homes under the bridge.

READ ALSO:FG Closes Case In Alleged Terrorism Trial Against Nnamdi Kanu

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They brought in chemicals, built block walls and set up homes. Then, they set up fire that burnt the bridge and damaged three spans. Now we are going to fix the bridge completely,” Umahi said.

The minister said the Iddo Bridge, now with a headroom of about 4.5 metres, had suffered significant structural damage due to continuous hits from trucks and illegal structures beneath it.

He announced that the ministry would be creating a headroom of at least 5.6 metres.

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He said that the Federal Ministry of Works was committed to restoring the bridge for the safety of all Nigerians and ensuring such incidents would not occur again.

READ ALSO:NMA Gives FG 21 Days To Avert Doctors’ Strike

On the issue of displaced persons, the minister said that no one would be allowed to return under the bridge.

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“Nobody will stay under Iddo Bridge again as long as I remain the Minister of Works.

“The lives of the people are more important,” he said.

He warned that the government would no longer tolerate any abuse of national infrastructure.
NAN

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Ex-Army Chief Proposes Mandatory Military Training For Nigerians

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Lt.-Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika (retd.),

A former Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika (retd.), has called for the introduction of mandatory military training for all Nigerians, beginning with the National Youth Service Corps.

This, he said, is a way of promoting national unity, discipline, and resilience in the face of growing security and social challenges.

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Ihejirika made the call on Friday night at the 50th anniversary of the Nigerian Defence Academy Regular Course 18 Alumni Association in Abuja.

He reflected on his early days in military service and the camaraderie built over the years with fellow officers.

READ ALSO:FULL LIST: Nigeria Emerges As Africa’s Third Most Formidable Military Force

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The former Army chief said the discipline and patriotism instilled in them during training were instrumental in shaping their careers and national contributions.

Given the current situation of things in our country, I believe it’s time we start thinking about mandatory military training for our citizens.

“We can start with the National Youth Service. This will help us build a generation of Nigerians who understand sacrifice, responsibility, and patriotism,” he said.

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Ihejirika praised the government’s decision to restore the old national anthem, saying it reinforces the spirit of unity.

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He emphasised that the line “Though tribe and tongue may differ, in brotherhood we stand” perfectly captures the essence of national service and shared identity.

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He also expressed concern over how the national anthem is now reduced to mere fanfare at official events.

It should be a daily reminder of our oath of allegiance. It must return to schools, communities, and national ceremonies,” he said.

Drawing from his own life experience, Ihejirika recounted his humble beginnings from his village in Abia and how military discipline transformed him.

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He credited the support of colleagues and mentors for his successful career, which culminated in his appointment as Nigeria’s 22nd Chief of Army Staff.

READ ALSO:542 Senior Military Officers Retire

Beyond his advocacy, the retired general also commended the current leadership of the Nigerian Armed Forces, describing them as highly experienced and well-trained.

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Many of the officers leading today served in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and other conflict zones.

“They have earned their stars through real battle experience and are doing remarkably well,” he added.

He urged Nigerian leaders at all levels to prioritise peace and stability, reminding them that no office or position is sustainable in the absence of national unity.

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The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the dinner had in attendance the Minister of State for Defence, Chief of Defence Staff and representatives of service chiefs amongst other dignitaries.

NAN

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