Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, today, Friday, presided over the Signing of the Ogoni Trust Fund Escrow Agreement at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. In attendance Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Ogoni Trust Fund, Mr. Olawale Edun Minister of State for Environment, Ibrahim Jibrin; Ogoni Representative Board of Trustees Ogoni Trust Fund, His Royal Highness Godwin Bebe Okpabi and other members. Photo by Novo Isoro. [myad]
Governors of the thirty six states of Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have resolved to place ban on open grazing free movement of cattle across the borders from other Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) member states for the purpose of forestalling further violence and killings associated with farmers and herdsman crisis.
The governors, at their monthly National Economic Council (NEC) meeting, presided over today, Thursday at the Presidential Villa by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, said that the government can no longer continue to allow the ECOWAS Protocol that permits free movement of goods and services in respect of cattle at the detriment of its citizenry.
Minister of Agriculture Chief Audu Ogbeh, who addressed news men today shortly after the meeting along with the Governor of Ebonyi David Umahi, Governor of Jigawa, Abubakar Badaru and the deputy governor of Lagos state said that before animals would be allowed to cross the nation’s borders from the sub-region, they must be certified.
He said that henceforth, no cattle or herdsman would be allowed to cross on foot into Nigeria.
“It was agreed that we should not allow foreign herdsmen enter our country without certification. If they must come, they must come through proper certification,” stressing that the time of indiscriminate movement of animals and herdsmen across the borders is gone. We have asked ECOWAS members to control cattle.”
Ogbeh lamented that though Nigeria cannot stop anybody within the region under the ECOWAS protocol from free movement worrisome reports from the states where farmers and herdsmen clashed are prevalent showed a semblance of foreign presence and warned that Nigeria would no longer tolerate such.
Speaking on the report of the technical committee on the farmers and herdsmen, chairman of the committee, Umahi said that NEC approved the immediate halting of movement of herdsmen and their cattle from one place to the other as part of solution to the incessant killings and destruction of property in the affected states.
He said “movement by nomadic herdsmen has to stop. The most profitable way is ranching. That’s the way forward,” disclosing that the government has approved five states of Benue, Taraba, Plateau, Nasarawa, and Zamfara for the take off for grazing reserves.
The governor disclosed that the respective states have agreed to provide lands for grazing reserves as permanent solution to the farmer and herdsmen crisis in the country.
He also revealed that as part of an improved animal husbandry, the technical committee recommended the introduction of improved species of cows for high yield as well as the introduction of subsidies for animal husbandry, in the country.
Umahi stated further that NEC also approved the report of the committee for the establishment of nomadic schools for children of herdsmen. [myad]
State Governors in Nigeria have cautioned National Assembly against moves to impeach President Muhammadu Buhari on the basis of the $496 Million used to procure fighting jet from the United States of America for Nigerian army to fight the raging insecurity.
The governors were unanimous in their warning at the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting today, Thursday, presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at the Aso Presidential Villa today, Thursday.
Briefing news men on behalf of the governors shortly after the meeting, the Jigawa State governor, Alhaji Abubakar Badaru described the purchase of the jet as emergency case against the background of the short time which Donald Trum government gave Nigeria to purchase it before it elapsed.
“We forget easily. If you recall, we have been battling with approval from America to buy these equipment in 2014. We have been begging America to sell these equipment to us. We tried Dubai, they could not allow us, we tried a factory in Brazil; the Federal Government tried but we couldn’t get it. The America still could not sell to Nigeria.
“Then, luckily, President Donald Trump said it was okay (for Nigeria) to buy, so we had to quickly buy it before they change their minds. Because there is also deadline and this is a state to state transaction; no middleman.
“And we are all here concerned about security and they are raising questions on way and manner you protect people. This is an emergency situation.”
Apart from the House of Representatives calling for the impeachment of President Buhari yesterday, some members of the Senate also today, Thursday, asked that the process to impeach President Muhammadu Buhari be started, for failing to get the approval for the withdrawal of $496 million from the Excess Crude Account to purchase military aircraft.
Senator Mathew Uroghide, who moved a motion at the plenary on Thursday, specifically urged resident of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, to allow the chamber to invoke Section 143 of the Constitution.
Uroghide stated that the President had breached Section 80 of the Constitution which stipulates that all government’s spending must be appropriated by the legislature.
Also, Senator Chukwuka Utazi stated that it was time for the legislature to be decisive.
Saraki had on Wednesday read a letter from Buhari in which the President disclosed that the money had been withdrawn and paid to the United States for the 12 Super Tucano aircraft, ahead of legislative approval. This, he said, was done to beat the deadline for the arms deal.
The planes will be delivered in 2020.
President Buhari had written to the Senate saying:: “recently, approval was granted by the United States government but with a deadline, within which part payment must be made otherwise the contract relapses. In the expectation that the National Assembly will have no objection to the purchase of these highly specialised aircraft, which is critical to national security, I granted anticipatory approval for the release of $496,374,470. This was paid directly into the treasury of the United States government.
“I am therefore writing seeking approval of the Senate for the sum of $496,374,470 (equivalent to N151,394, 421,035) to be included in the 2018 Appropriation Bill which the National Assembly is currently finalising. The balance of the requirement for critical operational equipment is still being collated from the different security services and will be presented in the form of a supplementary appropriation bill in due cause.”
Senator Shehu Sani has described the expenditure as “a gross abuse of the Constitution.”
While Sani said that he was not in support of the impeachment call, he asked that the money should be refunded and the transaction started afresh to allow due process.
Senator Abu Ibrahim, however, recalled that former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan made withdrawals from the ECA without seeking National Assembly’s approval.
Describing the impeachment as “a PDP conspiracy,” Ibrahim challenged the opposition lawmakers to name any state governor who benefited from the withdrawals from the ECA and sought the approval of the state House of Assembly before spending the money. [myad]
Nigerian youths who accept challenges and are ready to conquer will wholeheartedly accept my wish for them. I am one of them, not underage, not overage. So, it is also my wish for myself. Ever since I came across this powerful wish from a Nigerian educator and author, Tai Solarin, there has been no two ways for me to success than hard work, resilience and perseverance. Whether a youth or of any age, you must believe that nothing good comes easy. There is no more divine physical manna from heaven; it is rain that falls and it heralds a season for work – time to sow for the hard times to come.
“May Your Road Be Rough” was a new year simple message by Tai Solarin on January 1, 1964 to whoever cared to listen and be self-independent. Though regarded as the most famous and controversial atheist and secular humanist in African history, Tai was an intellectual epistemologist who knew the difference between pandemic lassitude amongst “a lot of” Nigerians and the paucity of chivalry in Nigerian politics. He was quite schooled on the “special” understanding of Nigerians of things and the unusual approach of their misinterpretation, especially when the media shows special interest.
That is why he carefully started his intellectual pieces of advice with “I am not cursing you; I am wishing you what I wish myself every year. I therefore repeat, may you have a hard time this year, may there be plenty of troubles for you this year!” As if sure of being misunderstood, he quickly added: “If you are not so sure what you should say back, why not just say, ‘Same to you’? I ask for no more.”
Solarin said that “our successes are conditioned by the amount of risk we are ready to take.” How many Nigerian youths are ready to follow the rough roads to success – the road of long-term plan, not the short-cut of the devil? Definitely, there are. But they are few. So, Tai concluded his 12-paragraph scholarly counsel with a note: “If, therefore, you are out in this New Year 1964, to win any target you have set for yourself, please accept my prayers and your elixir”, still repeating his heartfelt magnetic piece with: “May your road be rough!”
I took the joy to quote this glamorous wish of all ages to juxtapose the media hoax of recent event at the CHOGM in London. President Muhammadu Buhari spoke on: “Making Business Easier Between Commonwealth Countries”, where he observed that a great number of Nigerian youths believe in entitle mentality, thereby expect free money without work hard for it. A careful perusal of the speech showed that the President, after putting Nigeria’s population at a conservative estimate of 180 million, postulated that more than 60 per cent of Nigeria’s population is youths below the age of 30. He opined that a lot of the youths have not been to school. They claim that Nigeria, being an oil producing country, means wealth in abundance. Therefore, they are provoked by such belief to prefer to sit and do nothing and yet expect to get housing, healthcare and education free.
That is what has kept the media awash for the past few weeks with a lot of criticisms to the President. Some people have gone beyond their boundaries by calling names, laying abuses and giving ultimatum. But the truth remains stark. It is not the resistance of the truth that makes it anything less than it is. It is a global byword that the truth is bitter. It irritates humans. In short, how dare you call a thief a thief to his face except under security cover? Assuredly, the President did not say anything new about the Nigerian youths or the illiteracy level amongst them. It is on record that some Nigerian leaders at the state and national levels have made clearers references before. They clearly used the word “lazy” which is nowhere found in the President’s speech while in London.
At his formal declaration for presidency, Buhari had explained APC’s resolve to bring Nigeria back to the path of development by doing things differently and putting priority on protection of lives and property; pursuing economic policies for shared prosperity and immediate attention on youth employment and quality education for development, modernity and social mobility, amongst others. At the 2015 international youth day at the state house conference centre, Abuja, Buhari paid tribute to Nigerian youths for their landmark roles in making the 2015 general elections a model for democratic governance in Africa. He called them true heroes of democracy and architects of change, assuring to place high premium in tackling challenges facing them. “Young Nigerians, let me conclude by reiterating that we are very much committed to fulfilling all our campaign promises. We must all work together towards the actualization of sustainable peace and harmony to enable this administration to build an enduring legacy.” In many other fora, he had expressed the readiness of his government to uplift the youths through many initiatives.
The reactions from Nigerians over the media misrepresentation and propaganda have been divergent. A non-governmental organization, Unified Nigeria Youth Forum, (UNYF) is querying why over 80 per cent of the current cabinet members are members of the past administrations which should be blamed for the woes of the Nigerian youths. The group said that Kemi Adeosun, late Ocholi and Solomon Dalung are the only new faces in the current government. Also the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) feels that the challenges facing the youth are the creations of Nigerian leaders whose objective is to keep the country’s youth in perpetual servitude. The Arewa Youths Consultative Forum (AYCF) looks at the government arrangement, appointment, government-youth relationship and concluded that Nigerian leaders do not have respect for the Nigerian youths. “The youths put their lives on the line to fight against the previous government but when it comes to sharing the goodies of government, the youths are nowhere to be found”, it notes.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) wonders why the President could describe the Nigerian youths who sweat on menial jobs under very strenuous conditions on the nation’s streets. The party’s national youth leader, Sunday Udeh-Okoye, in a statement in Abuja faulted the President’s comment. But a foremost PDP stalwart and minority leader in the red chambers, Godswill Akpabio, has a different view on the publicized comment. He urged Nigerians to commend the President for his “elder statesman taught”, saying that he watched the video but never heard him for a second mention the word laziness. “I urge my party member in PDP to stop this childish act and focus fact on how to win 2019”; he warned against politicizing reality, wondering why PDP members should continue fooling themselves when truth was already known.
From my own corner and concern, it is better to accept the reality so that the appropriate measure and correct solution can be made. Living in a “fool’s paradise”, methinks, is not the way of the incumbent federal government. During the two-day 2017 Nigeria’s Annual Education Conference, entitled ‘Achieving Inclusive Education through Innovative Strategies’ organized by the National Commission for Mass Education in Birnin Kebbi which led to a courtesy call on the state governor, the Minister of Education, Mallam adamu Adamu said Nigeria had about 75 million illiterates. This was publicized but it did not attract any anxiety or comment for the wailers who claim more love for Nigeria and her youth.
Interestingly too, the former Minister of State for Education now Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike, while flagging off the 2014 International Literacy Day disclosed that the number of illiterates in Nigeria was estimated at 60 million, which is about 38% of the country’s population estimated then at 170 million.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, adult illiteracy rate in Nigeria stands at 56.9%. This implies that about 70% of Nigerians are illiterates. The Country Comparison Index of Literacy Level in 2012 showed that Nigeria ranked 161 out of 184 countries with 66 per cent literacy rate. USAID study showed that an estimated 10 million Nigerian children are out of school.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has it that Nigeria has an estimated 40 to 45 million illiterate persons. UNESCO Country Representative Dr. Joseph Ngu at a Roundtable on “Cultivating Peace” in Celebration of 2012 International Literacy Day in Abuja categorically declared that Nigeria is one of the countries among the E9 countries where education is a problem and the only one in sub-Sahara Africa, because of its population.
Ochiaka Ugwu writing on Nigeria’s high illiteracy rate: What went wrong? in the Peoples Daily of October 5, 2015 quoted a statistics which showed that 60% of Nigerians have no qualifications at all and that 60% will still be jobless after five years from then. “Officially, 54% of Nigerians are unemployed and actual unemployment is projected to be much higher than that”, he noted.
If the United Nations’ universal definition of ‘youth’, as those persons between the ages of 15 and 24 years or that of the African Youth Charter as every person between the ages of 15 and 35 years is to be accepted for this purpose, then all estimates cannot be authenticated. Is it arguable that 99 percent of kidnappers in Nigeria are youths? Is it arguable that 99 percent of Niger Delta militants are youths? Is it arguable that 99 percent of Boko Haram insurgents are youths? Is it arguable that 99 percent of Yahoo fraudsters are youths? Is it arguable that 99 percent of Fulani herdsmen are youths? Is it arguable that 99 percent of IPBO members are youths? Is it arguable that 99 percent of drug and alcoholic addicts are youths? And is it arguable that 99 percent of almajiris are youths? If all these are unarguable, then there is another meaning for illiteracy in Nigeria.
Muhammad Ajah is an advocate of humanity, peace and good governance in Abuja. E-mail mobahawwah@yahoo.co.uk. [myad]
Minister of Justice, Malami AbubakarThe Yoruba have a cherished prayer that they offer in disapproval of a traumatizing battle that faces their beloved ones or associates: “Ki Olorun ki o gba wa lowo ogun ale ni ma dehin”, transliterated as: “May the Almighty God deliver us from the battle by relentless pursuers.” It is a significant prayer that goes to the roots of existential threats.
And, this is certainly an apt summation of the sticky situation in which the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Mr. Abubakar Malami (SAN), has found himself. He is sauntering in the treacherous terrain of the nation’s cloak-and-dagger politics with some forces and their back-end sponsors in hot pursuit.
There has been a series of attempts from the outset of the Muhammadu Buhari administration to short-circuit Malami in the formation of the government, despite his immense commitment and unwavering loyalty to the president. Their political relationship dates as far back as to the years that presaged the formation of the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) on which platform Buhari contested the 2011 presidential election. Malami was the National Legal Adviser of the CPC.
That was not the event that proved his steadfast loyalty to Buhari. The test of his commitment and loyalty crystallized in the presidential election petition that was instituted after the 2011 election in which the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Dr. Goodlcuk Ebele Jonathan as the winner.
Very senior lawyers were reluctant to take on Buhari’s brief. Scores of Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) represented Jonathan and the INEC while only three SANs represented Buhari, to wit: Malami, Oladipo Okpeseyi and the late James Ocholi. Okpeseyi was the leader of the legal team. Ocholi’s participation later became on and off because he had to focus on his governorship project in Kogi state.
What motivated the Buhari legal team was not pecuniary as Buhari did not even have the money to pay the standard fee. The team believed that Buhari had a case that could be proved in court: not that he won the 2011 election, but that Jonathan did not win the majority of the validly cast votes. The purpose of the petition was to convince the court to declare a run-off in which case anything could have happened. The Supreme Court, however, upheld the outcome of the election.
But in 2015, with the emergence of Buhari as president via his candidature of a coalition of parties that birthed the legacy All Progressives Congress (APC), some of the lawyers that shunned Buhari’s petition because he was acting from a disadvantaged position had gravitated into the APC and were close to some gladiators that positioned them for appointments.
That was to be the beginning of Malami’s predicament when he was named the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation. Had Malami not been named into the position, he would not have been assailed by the campaigns of calumny that are crudely choreographed by a proxy whose benefactor had planned to nominate into the cabinet solely for the position of the Minister of Justice and AGF for some selfish ends.
But unfortunately for the proxy, he could not even scale the nomination hurdle. And, interestingly, Malami was not the only lawyer nominated for ministerial appointment. There were others like Babatunde Fasola (SAN), the late James Ocholi (SAN), Udoma Udo Udoma, Adebayo Shittu, Lai Mohammed, Solomon Dalung, Aisha Alhassan, Ibe Kachikwu and Geoffrey Onyeama. In that circumstance, any of them could have been appointed as Minister of Justice and AGF.
However, Buhari decided to assign the portfolio to Malami. Having put his nose to the grindstone in a rare commitment to a Muhammadu Buhari presidency even when the possibility was remote, it was only expected that he should reap where he had sown. And, what wrong had Buhari committed by appointing a man whose capacity in the legal profession he practically knew while doing the 2011 presidential election petition in court?
Those whose fixation it was to clinch the portfolio of the Minister of Justice and AGF would turn Malami into a butt of unconscionable propaganda and relentless smear campaigns. I believe if Malami is out of that office today, which is their wish, they would forget about him and take on anyone other than their own that is appointed in his stead. But unfortunately for them, the president has not shown any indication or inclination towards changing his cabinet not to talk of removing Malami.
The central focus of their campaigns of calumny by which they have deliberately accentuated the pains of Malami is essentially to cause a collateral damage to his leadership of the Justice ministry and AGF’s office. They do not care, if in the process, reputations of Malami and others are unjustifiably injured. They have steadfastly pursued Malami from different flanks and directions as if their lives depend on his downfall.
One of the flanks used was the repatriation of the Abacha loot from Switzerland. They had tried to insinuate that the Abacha loot was being re-looted because Malami determined the contract of the Swiss lawyer, Enrico Monfrini, in 2016 and appointed a team of Nigerian lawyers to complete the repatriation process. What they would not accept was that by doing so, Malami had put an end to Monfrini’s opaque professional charges since 1999 when he was contracted by the Federal Government.
Interestingly, Monfrini had requested to be paid at least another 20 percent to complete the repatriation of the remaining $322.5 million, which Malami rejected. The Nigerian lawyers, who were contracted in his stead, accepted five percent professional fee on the value of the money to complete the process.
The Federal Government, through the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, had announced the receipt of the money to the last cent which is with the Central Bank of Nigeria. She said the amount was more than the $321 million that was widely reported in the media (having attracted about $1.5 million interest). She also clarified that there were no problems with the repatriation and the request by the Nigerian lawyers that completed the repatriation process to be paid $16.9 million. That clean bill of health is significant and underscores the transparency and integrity of the Buhari government.
Unrelenting, the same forces pursuing Malami had since resorted to using the House of Representatives to try to throw spanner in the works. Consequent upon a motion recently, the House set up an ad-hoc committee to probe the payment of $16.9 million to the Nigerian lawyers. This is another hurdle that Malami is poised to dismantle with good arguments and documentary evidence. It is just possible that, in the long run, the probe may expose a cartel that has all these years been fleecing and actually re-looting the Abacha loot.
The question is: will it be possible for Malami, as a cockroach, to get justice in the gathering of fowls? For a House that has already presented itself as rabidly anti-Malami, for a House that only recently indicted Malami, even though misguidedly, in the controversial reinstatement of fugitive Abdulrasheed Maina, such prospects look bleak. But then, there is a legal maxim: res ipsa loquitor, meaning the fact speaks for itself. As long as Malami presents irrebuttable facts of the repatriation of the Abacha loot before the committee for public consideration, the House will expectedly be careful not to play with the intelligence of Nigerians.
President Muhammadu BuhariRepeated acts of mass killings and destruction in parts of the country and Benue State in particular has been described by President Muhammadu Buhari as pointers to the evil design of enemies of peace and unity who have desperately been trying to bring the country to this sorry point.
The President therefore, appealed to Nigerians not to playing into the hands of the agents of disunity who enjoy seeing brothers killing brothers, neighbors killing neighbors and communities attacking and killing members of other communities.
President Buhari, in a statement by his special adviser on media and publicity, Femi Adesina today, Thursday, said that those behind the Church attack that left 18 people dead, including two Priests, did not mean well for Nigeria and peaceful coexistence.
“The revenge attacks that followed in which 11 members of the Hausa communities were killed are part of the agenda of the bandits and their sponsors to turn Nigerians against one another. We must resist all temptation to fall into this laid out plan.”
The President said that he is greatly pained by this persistent violence and the total disregard for the sanctity of life by those he called “these hideously evil people who have no iota of respect for humanity, decency and civilization.”
The President reiterated that the government will not rest on its oars in its determination to fish out these barbarous mass murderers and their clandestine sponsors.
He assured Nigerians that measures being put in place by the government will, sooner than later, bring to an end, these extremely brutal and wanton killings. [myad]
Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, has described the invitation which House of Representatives extended to the President to appear before it as ‘democracy in action.’
Femi Adesina who spoke today, Wednesday, in an interview with Channels Television’s Politics Today said: “it is democracy in action. The House has the right to ask anybody to appear and the President is holding the position as a trust for Nigerians. It is the mandate of Nigerians that he is holding.
He said however that the House had not communicated the summon on Buhari to him yet.
“It is a development that just happened and almost throughout the day we have been in the Federal Executive Council meeting. That meeting did not rise until after 5pm.
“So, it was after 5pm when I got back to my office that I saw that news scrolling on the television. That means that the President himself hadn’t heard of it at that time. So, when the lawmakers, the Houses of Representatives communicate their decision to the President, it would be handled appropriately.
“But when they communicate that decision to him, he will respond accordingly. I can’t be talking of what he will do until that decision is communicated to him.”
Members of the House of Representatives decided to summon President Buhari in reaction to the continued killings in Benue and other parts of the country. [myad]
Senator Oluremi Tinubu, from Lagos State, has made it clear to her colleagues that she would not support a situation where the travails which Senator Dino Melaye, representing Kogi State West Senatorial Area, is going through in the hands of the law enforcement agencies on President Muhammadu Buhari-led government.
The lawmaker, who is the wife of Bola Tinubu, national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), spoke today, Wednesday during the deliberation by the Senate on the matter.
”If we are talking about a particular issue, we should stay with it but when we are bringing in a government that a lot of people supported to be here, using whatever happened to implicate the government, I think I am against that.
“We should face the issues. I am not in support of what happened to Dino. If we have anything against the executive, we have the leadership here who is supposed to go and meet with Mr. President.
“This government is only three years old compared to 16 years of rot. It has only been in power for 3 years and inherited a lot of trouble.” [myad]
Former Nigeria’ s Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, has made it clear that he is not desperate to become Nigeria’s President in 2019.
“If I am desperate, I wouldn’t have stepped down for M.K.O. Abiola in the 1993 presidential race.”
Atiku who was speaking in an interview with BBC Hausa morning programme, said that if Nigerians could follow his political antecedent, they would not see him as a desperate politician.
“In 1993, I contested with M.K.O Abiola. I later withdrew from the race. In 1999, I was elected a governor of Adamawa state, then invited to be Nigeria’s vice president, under Olusegun Obasanjo.”
He recalled that in 2007, he contested against former President, Olusegun Obasanjo “to show the world that I have the right to contest and I did that to satisfy my conscience.
“All the times I have been contesting for the Presidency, I have been opportune only once to be presented to Nigerians as a candidate.”
He said that after that he had always ended up only at the primary election.
“I could have become Nigeria’s President in 2003 when virtually all the state governors then rallied support for me to contest which I declined. I am not desperate to be President as some Nigerians view it.
“As a former Vice President, I am opportune to know things. If I am opportune to be elected as a President, I will accomplish my mission by reviving the economy, by making Nigeria an investors’ haven.
“The present administration discouraged investors into the country, because the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) exchange rate policies are too tedious for investors. CBN has three different exchange rate policies, which is not supposed to be.
“If I’m elected Nigeria’s President, I will expand the nation’s source of wealth to cater for the growing youth population in the country.
“Nigeria can justify my claims, going by the number of youths that are working in my industries across the country.” [myad]
The Senator representing Rivers South-East Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Senator Magnus Ngei Abe has declared his intention to contest the governorship of Rivers State in 2019 on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Senator Abe, who made the declaration today, Wednesday while addressing a mammoth crowd at the inauguration of Freedom House, his liaison office in Port Harcourt, said that his decision to run for the governorship position is for the interest of the future of the state.
“I am glad to say that I have reached a decision which I am going to share with you on a burning issue if Senator Magnus Abe is going to vie for the governorship of this state under the APC or not. I have taken every advice and every opinion”.
“I have taken all these views into consideration. I have also consulted my family and most importantly, I have consulted my God. There are several persons who have advised me against seeking for the office of the governor just as there are several who have advised me to go for it. Looking back now, everybody who had spoken to me did so with the best of intentions”.
“Having taken all these into consideration, I, Magnus Ngei Dunebari Abe, I have decided to seek the nomination of the All Progressives Congress, Rivers State, in the interest of our state and in the interest of the future of our people.”
He commended his supporters for conducting themselves with decorum, saying their actions were not sign of weakness but strength.
“We have conducted ourselves with decorum; we have shown and will continue to show great respect for our leaders. This is not our weakness, it is our strength. We must not allow conflict entrepreneurs and frustrated politicians whose only hope for relevance and economic sustenance is the continuous balkanisation of our party”.
“Some of them are here and some of them are there. But, all of us need to ensure that the congresses are free, fair and transparent. Any attempt to hold another hotel-style congress in Rivers State will break faith with the people of the state that we are a party committed to doing the right thing”.
“Without the confidence of the voting public, a political party becomes a mere social club. It will be good for dancing and partying but it will not win any elections.”
In his, former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Prince Chibudom Nwuche, called on the APC to learn from the past mistakes of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) as the country approaches the 2019 general elections.
“Let APC learn from the mistakes of the People’s Democratic Party. PDP was imposing candidates and that was why some of us left. Today, it is happening in the APC but thank God, Senator Magnus Abe came up. Let us have a transparent congress and let the popular candidate emerge.”
Describing Abe as one of the best sons of Rivers State, the former deputy speaker, who is also a chieftain of the APC, said Rivers State needs a leader like the senator to treat all indigenes and residents of the state equally.
“Magnus Abe is one of the best sons of Rivers State. He has embarked on a journey to free Rivers State. Magnus Abe believes on the development of Rivers State and the empowerment of the people.
“Rivers State needs a leader like Magnus Abe, who will treat all sons and daughters equally. Rivers State needs a leader who will not victimize Rivers people and see sons and daughters of the state who have gotten national recognition as threats.”
Speaking at the occasion, the lawmaker representing Ikwerre/Emohua Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Elder Chidi Wihioka, said the people of Ikwerre ethnic nationality and Rivers East senatorial district in general will support the emergence of an Ogoni as the next governor of the state.
“Nobody can cause problem between the Ikwerre people and the Ogoni people. The cooperation between the two ethnic nationalities had been there before we were born and it will not end at our own time.
“Ikwerre people and the Rivers East senatorial district will support the Ogoni governorship ambition because the people of Ogoni supported Ikwerre people. The four local government areas in Ikwerre are in support and our senatorial district in also in support.” [myad]
