The Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), John Oyegun, has said that he would not respond to the national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, who accused him of bending the party’s rules in the Ondo state governorship primary, saying that his focus now is how the party will win the Edo state governorship election coming up tomorrow, Wednesday.
At a brief encounter with news men in Benin, the Edo state capital today, Tuesday, Chief Oyegun said: “we don’t want to lose focus and I know Asiwaju also wants us to win because we all have worked hard for this.
“But may be after Edo elections, after we must have emerged victorious, we may speak on some of the issues raised.”
The APC Chairman who denied the allegations as raised by Tinubu, explained: “all I can say now is that most of the things said in the papers about me are not true. I have always believed in internal democracy, that the credibility of primaries must be taken seriously.”
Chief Oyegun said that considering the position of Tinubu in the APC, he would have to make wider consultation before issuing a response even after the election in Edo.
“Asiwaju is a well-respected leader of our party so, I cannot be seen speaking evil against him. I have to consult properly with other leaders of the party before we make any definite statement.”
Asiwaju Tinubu had accused the chairman of betrayal and fraud even as he rejected the unofficial “national leader” title conferred on him by the party members.
“Evidently, some errant members believe promises and vows are mere words to be easily spoken and more easily broken.
“Chairman John Oyegun has breached these good pledges in a most overt and brazen display.In doing so, Oyegun has dealt a heavy blow to the very party he professes to lead. It is an awful parent who suffocates his own child for the sake of a few naira.” [myad]
American popular singer, Ms Katy Perry displayed some fun by going naked as her own way of drumming the need for Americans to go out en mass and cast their votes in the November Presidential election.
Perry, who is a noted Democrat and Hilary Clinton supporter, is the latest celebrity to make her voice known ahead of National Voter Registration Day in America.
In a new video with the folk over at Funny or Die, Katy Perry got naked so people would be reminded to vote.
“November 8 is Election Day and I’ve got some great news,” Perry said, looking slightly worse for wear in a pair of pyjamas.
“This year, you can look like shit when you vote. Yep, I’ve briefly scanned the constitution and nowhere does it say you can’t just roll out of bed and come to the polls in whatever state you woke up in. In the name of democracy, any just-out-of-bed look is a-okay.”
So off Katy Perry goes to her local polling station to demonstrate all the bizarre looks you can vote in, including wearing child’s onesie, an oversized t-shirt or even covered in slime.
To prove her point that voting in this year’s election is simple, Perry then loses her stars and stripes pyjamas – only to be tackled by two police officers who don’t quite approve of her birthday suit message.
“Turns out you can’t quite vote completely naked, but like the star, we applaud anyone who will turn out to the polling station to vote for a new President this November,” Perry said. [myad]
The leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Edo state chapter has fingered three top female and one male officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) who are alleged to be collaborating with the state government to offer two million naira bribe in nine local government areas of the state.
The party also alleged that the amount is meant to enable those listed alongside party supervisors to produce results in favour of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) during the governorship election holding in the state tomorrow, Wednesday.
However in swift reaction, Edo State Chairman of the APC, Hon Anslem Ojezua, described PDP allegation as a figment of its own imagination, adding that it is a clear sign that the PDP has lost the election.
Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Chris Nehikhare who raised the alarm at a news briefing a the party’s secretariat in Benin, specifically accused the Public Relations Officer of INEC in Edo state, Mrs. Pricilla Sule and one Hajia Amina Zakari, an INEC commissioner, of allegedly serving as fronts for the APC led government to distribute the said N2million to each of the supervisors in the unidentified local government areas.
Also fingered in the plot is the Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Delta state, who the PDP said was allegedly coordinating for the commission’s national officials, one Amina Zakari and the Deputy Director (Operations) of the electoral umpire, one Mr. Ken.
Nehikhare warned: “if anybody tries to present that fake results from the nine local; governments which they have written, the two million they collected will be used for their burial. It is not a threat, it is a promise.
“Now, it has come to our attention that INEC and the state government have seriously compromised the election that is going to take place tomorrow (today). The staff of INEC that is involved in this compromise is spearheaded in Edo state is being coordinated by Mrs. Sule who is the PRO of INEC. I am calling her name so that you know exactly that I know what I am talking about. People involved in this conspiracy are people that are involved that leaked this to the PDP and they have told us to act very fast.
“I know a couple of days ago Sule make a remark that we should go aheaqd and campaign which we had been doing but now I have specific and credible information that Mrs. Sule is coordinating the comprise of supervisors for and on behalf of Edo state government. They have sent two million naira to supervisors in at least nine local governments of Edo state. It is under the control of the REC from Delta state and he is coordinating on behalf of the national commissioner, Amina Zakari.
“The Deputy Director (Operations) Mr. Ken is also involved in this conspiracy to subvert the will of people of Edo state. What they ahev done is that they have written results in the nine local governments on behalf of the APC, these results are being held by the supervisors from the collation officers at the points where they plan to fix these results at the local government level tomorrow after the elections are done.”
Efforts to get the comment of Mrs. Sule and the REC of INEC in the state, Mr. Sam Olumekun on the allegation failed as they refused to answer called to their GSM phone by our reporter yesterday.
And Ojezua reacted by saying: “I am the state chairman of APC, I have been in my home area for three days, campaigning from unit to unit, door to door. So what time will I have to go and talk about bribing INEC. If anything at all it is the PDP People that know the INEC people, after all most of these INEC officers were employed during the PDP government.
“Any serious minded party like our own, we have trained our agents and they are determined to be very vigilant. The truth is that all the plans PDP made to create havoc in Edo state have virtually failed. All the efforts they have made to manipulate the process have also failed. They can now see that there is nothing other than the true transparent process that will give us result in this election.” [myad]
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has given a graphic description of how the governors with whom he operated forced him not to save for what he called ‘rainy day’ when the price of crude oil was high and money was flowing in.
Accusing the former governors of being the major contributors to the present economic recession in the country, when he spoke at the 2016 World Pension Summit in Abuja today, Tuesday, Obasanjo lamented that many of the former state executives frustrated his genuine attempt to save a substantial portion of the country’s resources when there was excess oil revenue.
Obasanjo said, at the event which was attended by global pension players and top government officials: “I remember when I was in government and I told, particularly, the governors, ‘please let us save for the rainy days.’ They said no!
“There was no rain at that time, now that the rain has come; there is nothing we can fall back on to cushion us.”
Obasanjo, however, commended the secured nature of the pension scheme, stating that despite the many years of sleaze in the Nigerian polity, the pension funds were not touched.
“One of the things that make me very happy in the pension scheme is that in the last five years, when almost everything goes, concerning public funds, pension funds remain sacrosanct. I believe that the pension funds are something we must preserve, no matter what we do.”
Obasanjo however called for caution in introducing innovations into the pension scheme to ensure that the ability of people to access their pension funds when they retire is not jeopardized. this was even as the nation’ s Head of Service of the Federation, Mrs. Winifred Oyo-Ita, said that Nigeria’s Contributory Pension Scheme had generated over N5.8 trillion assets as at 30th June 2016.
Oyo-Ita said the summit would enable countries and stakeholders to brainstorm on how to tackle their economic challenges.
“Nigeria in 2004 established contributory pension scheme due to its advantages such as sustainability as a system with framework that would eliminate incentives for corruption.
“Also, It is noteworthy that within 12 years of implementing contributory pension scheme in the country, it has to large extent, stabilized our pension administration system.
“For instance before the reform, Nigeria has huge pension liabilities in trillions of naira but now the contributory pension scheme has generated over N5.8 trillion assets as at 30th June 2016.”
Oyo-Ita said that the assets had been invested in the various sectors of the nation’s economy.
She explained that globally, pension matters occupied a strategic place not only as a vital component of social security but also as a vehicle for nation-building.
The Head of Service said that African countries had given considerable attention to pensions due to myriads of challenges encountered in the administration of pensions.
Oyo-Ita said the Federal Government had extended the pension scheme to states and local governments in line with Pension Reform Act of 2014, adding that many states had adopted the scheme.
She stressed that states and local governments presently, were on various stages of implementing its pension schemes.
She called on the National Pension Commission to extend its net to people in informal sector.
Oyo-Ita also directed PENCOM to step up its enforcement drive to public and private sector institutions to ensure full compliance and in line with the enabling law.
She said the current administration will make funds available to address some issues of liabilities in the pension scheme.
Founder of the World Pension Summit, Eric Eggink, said that due to innovation of Android phones, many people could now invest on pension scheme anywhere they used their mobile phones.
Eggink called on workers, both in private and public sectors, to register for the pension scheme, to save for the rainy day.
Director-General of PENCOM, Mrs. Chinelo Anohu-Amazu, said that after a long period of faltering economic performance, there has been resurgent growth over the last decade in African countries’ GDP.
She listed African unique entrepreneurial/innovative spirit, emerging from its industries, smaller innovative initiatives such as the portable irrigation technology as some of the factors that led to the growth of African economies.
She explained that Africa’s infrastructure by far remained the most deficient sector hampering the continent’s development.
The summit was attended by important dignitaries including Governor Nasiru el-Rufai of Kaduna State; former Governor of Cross River, Donald Duke; NLC President, Ayuba Wabba and President of TUC, Kaigama Bala.
President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed happiness over the proposed investment of five billion US dollars in the Nigerian economy. The pledge was made by the Indian delegation who visited Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, today, Tuesday.
The President, who said that India had already invested 10 billion US dollars in the Nigerian economy, said that Nigeria will continue to expand its relationship with that country in the areas of health, education, agriculture, technology and trade.
Buhari, who received the Indian Vice President, Mohammad Hamid Ansari, said that Nigeria had, over the years, also benefited from the cooperation of the Asian country in trade and investment, agriculture, technology and the fight against terrorism.
He said that Nigeria would continue emulate the Asian country’s agricultural model and capacity to feed its 1 billion population, and also export to other countries, describing the country as “sustainable and prosperous.”
The President promised that Nigeria would continue to support the reform of the United Nations Security Council, and that it is unfair on the rest of the world for five countries to exercise power of ‘‘yes or no’’ in the UN.
That was even as the Indian Vice President said that his country, which is the leading buyer of Nigeria’s crude oil, will increase its purchase of the commodity in addition to natural gas.
According to him, the relationship between Nigeria and India is near perfect as both countries ‘‘have nothing to quarrel about.” [myad]
Residents along the banks of Rivers Niger and Benue in Lokoja, Kogi State are now gripped with fear of possibility of flooding as the water level in both rivers rose to 9.2 centimetre, threatening to overflow their banks.
A statement in Lokoja by Kogi State Ministry of the Environment, confirmed that the water level in both rivers was close to the 9.9 centimetres, which led to the 2012 flooding.
“With this development, flooding is very likely in some communities along rivers Niger and Benue and their tributaries.”
The statement, signed by Dorathy Onoja, Public Relations Officer of the ministry, advised residents living along river plains to immediately relocate to higher grounds for safety of their lives and property.
It was observed that some of the apprehensive residents are already in panics.
The 2012 flood ravaged 43 communities in nine local government areas of the state. No less than 33 persons lost their lives, while properties including houses, livestock and farms worth billions of naira, were destroyed in the disaster. [myad]
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Musa Bello has promised to make available a plot of land to the Sports Writers Association of Nigeria (SWAN) for the building of its Corporate Headquarters.
The minister, who was responding to a request to that effect by the National President of the Association, Honour Sirawoo, when he led the National executive officers of the Association to pay him a courtesy visit in his office, said that his government would give full backing to sports development in the FCT to provide an outlet for the teeming youths of the Territory to channel their energy in a positive manner.
He therefore challenged the Association to help mobilize the teeming youth, resident in the Federal Capital Territory by engaging them in sports.
The Minister asked the Association as well as other stakeholders to come up with at least two different sports where the FCT has competitive advantage and sufficient talents, for further sponsorship by the FCT Administration.
“I would like to task the FCT Chapter of SWAN to identify one or two sports that you know the FCT has competitive advantage and let’s sit down and support that particular sport seriously so that we can make the FCT national champion and even African champion in those particular sports.”
“As you know of course, all sports are being done here; but you as writers will be able to say historically, the FCT has been known to have talent in these particular sports so that we deploy full resources and provide the best training facilities, so that we continue to excel as a Territory that is known for these particular sports. Then others can copy and we can even provide good facilities that other States can even come here to use.”
Muhammad Bello, who described sports as a unifying factor in the country, said the FCT Administration will continue to leverage on it to ensure that this unity is sustained and improved upon in the capital city.
“FCT has a long history of sports activities. As a matter of fact, we currently have in Ilorin, a contingent of about 80 Athletes who, by the grace of God, we are confident are going to make us proud. I can assure you that I will continue to support you and sports administration, which really we have been doing.
“ Apart from funding the large delegation, we have also been supporting the hockey federation and other federations that have headquarters here. Even during the last tennis tournament, I personally went there and attended one of the sessions. I will continue to provide support to sports within available resources.”
Speaking earlier, the National President of the Association of Nigeria, Sirawoo praised the Minister for sending over 80 Athletes to Ilorin for the on-going National Youth Games.
The National President reiterated that sports development has critical role to play not only in national development but also in wealth creation and therefore urged the FCT Administration to take advantage of that robust platform. [myad]
President Muhammadu Buhari has approved new appointments in 13 Federal Government agencies. The Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), in a statement signed by the Director of Press, Bolaji Adebiyi, gave the new appointments as follows:
Industrial Training Fund (ITF) Director-General: Mr. Joseph Ari
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) Director-General: Dr. Isa Ali Ibrahim (Pantami)
Nigeria finance minister, Kemi Adeosun has said that the country is seeking a $1 billion loan from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to help cover its 2016 budget deficit.
The minister, who announced the loan negotiation in Abuja, explained that the $1 billion would be concessionary and carry an interest rate of 1.2 percent.
“We are talking with AfDB for a $1 billion budget deficits finance support,” Adeosun told reporters following a meeting with AfDB head Akinwunmi Adesina and Nigeria’s Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo.
Nigeria’s economy is in recession for the first time in more than 20 years, largely due to low price for oil, sales of which generate 70 percent of government revenues.
Attacks on energy facilities in the Niger Delta have meanwhile cut crude production by around a third since the start of the year.
Nigeria has been left struggling to fund a record 6.06 trillion naira ($18.6 billion) 2016 budget that aims to stimulate growth by tripling capital expenditure.
In recent times, suggestions have been made that Nigeria sell some of its assets to fund the deficit instead of going on a borrowing binge.
On Tuesday, a summit of finance minister, state commissioners of finance and business leaders will also open in Abeokuta, Ogun state to discuss alternative income to crude oil export. [myad]
Nigeria Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed has threatened to sue Independent Newspaper, published in Lagos, for libel if within the nex seven days, starting from today, Monday, it did not retract an alleged damaging publication about him.
Lai Mohammed, through his lawyer, Femi Falana, emphasized that if the newspaper did not retract the alleged damaging publication, he would sue it “with a view to restoring his reputation which your reckless publication has damaged.” The letter, signed by Oludare Falana, reads:
We are counsel to Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Honourable Minister of Information and Culture of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on whose behalf and instructions we write this letter. Our attention has been drawn to your highly libelous statement published and circulated in Volume 14, No. 208 of the 15th of September, 2016 Edition of your newspaper with the screaming headline “’CHANGE BEGINS WITH ME’ CAMPAIGN GULPS N3.4BN”. You also claimed, in the aforesaid publication, albeit falsely, that the “CHANGE BEGINS WITH ME” launched by President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday, 8th September, 2016 was stolen by our client. Having damaged our client’s hard-earned reputation by your reckless action, we have his instruction to demand a retraction of your libelous publication with 7 days of the receipt of this letter. TAKE NOTICE that if you fail or refuse to accede to our client’s demands, we have his instruction to sue you with a view to restoring his reputation which your reckless publication has damaged. [myad]
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