Politics

Fani-Kayode denies being arrested by EFCC for alleged forgery

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Former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, has denounced reports that he was arrested by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Tuesday, November 23.

Taking to his Instagram page on Tuesday night, FFK stated that he was only ‘invited’, contrary to reports that he was arrested.

He went on to state that he was granted bail on self-recognition.

He wrote:

”Just arrived at the George Hotel for dinner. I was never arrested by the EFCC. I was invited & I flew down to Lagos to see them. I arrived in their office at 2.00pm & left at 8.30pm. I was granted bail on self recognition. They were very polite & professional. Thanks be to God.”

He however did not say anything about the allegation of forging a medical report for which he was said to have been ‘invited’.

Politics

Adegboruwa questions Lagos govt’s motives in wake of backlash on #EndSARS report

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Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, a lawyer who was a member of the Lagos Judicial Panel for SARS Related Abuses and Other Matters, has queried the intentions of the state government in the wake of the report’s publication.

Adegboruwa made this assertion via a statement he published on Tuesday, in Lagos State.

Even though the panel functioned under the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney-General, Moyosore Onigbanjo (SAN), never tried to influence the decisions, Adegboruwa said, “the response of the same government to the outcome of the Panel’s activities is rather shocking.

“If ever the government had a preconceived idea of what happened at the Lekki Toll Gate, this was not disclosed to us at all.”

He stated that the members proceeded upon the premise that they were free to dig out the truth and nothing but the truth.

If judicial officers are given free hand to operate without undue interference, justice will come back to our land, impunity will cease and everyone will fall in line”, he added.

Nonetheless, he commended Sanwo-Olu for assembling men and women of integrity, many of whom he never met including Justice Okuwobi.

“The Chairperson is a no-nonsense and fearless judicial officer, who had demonstrated rare integrity on the Bench before she retired honourably.

“She recorded all proceedings of the Panel in longhand and had her own personal record and files for every petition.

“The other Panel members were people with vast experiences in human rights, civil society organisations, criminology, and indeed general law enforcement mechanisms.

“There were no preconceived notions or ideas but rather superiority of intellectual arguments based on rational convictions.”

Politics

Buhari, Lawan meet on Electoral Act Amendment Bill

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President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday met with the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, on the Electoral Act Amendment Bill.

Lawan, who spoke with State House correspondents after the closed-door meeting with the President at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, expressed hope that Buhari would sign the bill soon.

The National Assembly forwarded the Electoral Act Amendment Bill to the President last week.

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, met with President Buhari on the matter on November 18.

Gbajabiamila also expressed optimism that the amended bill would soon be signed into law by the President.

The Senate President, however, maintained that the National Assembly had done its job by transmitting the bill to the President for him to sign into law.

He said: “Sometimes this kind of disagreement happens. And when they do, I think the best way forward is for people to engage.

“I always believe, and I have conversed over this, that National Assembly members are major stakeholders; governors of All Progressives Congress (APC) are major stakeholders and in fact, the presidency is a major stakeholder.

“In fact, the presidency is the biggest stakeholder because it runs the administration, and our party must always try to bring everybody together.

“I don’t think there will be any day that you will have a political issue that everybody will say the same thing.

“So when we have any section of a party disagreeing with something, we should be engaging; that’s why we are politicians; we must have that kind of a platform where we discuss issues.

I don’t think it is right to say that governors have disagreed. Maybe some governors might have said they didn’t like it this way.

“That’s normal. So it’s for us to engage and engage and engage.”

Politics

The type of leader Nigeria needs in 2023 – Tambuwal

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The Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal, on Monday urged Nigerians to vote for politicians with genuine interest of the people in the 2023 general elections.

Tambuwal, who made the call in his keynote address at the 4th Annual Criminal Law Review Conference of the Rule of Law Development Foundation, encouraged Nigerians to work with the governments at all levels to tackle insecurity and poor economy in the country.

The governor stressed that Nigerians should avoid a “parochial and provincial politician,” and go for an incorruptible leader who understands that the best way to fight corruption is by personal examples.

He blamed the heightened insecurity in the country on poor leadership.

Tambuwal said: “Nigeria needs a leader that is versatile, one that has friends and associates across the length and breadth of this country and a leader with a broad world view and not a parochial and provincial politician.

“We need an incorruptible leader who understands that the best way to fight corruption is by personal examples and also by the building of strong institutions that can withstand shocks and manipulations.

Nigeria needs a leader in tune with the times, who is reasonably aware of the modern demands of technology in solving societal problems.

“Yes, Nigeria needs a bridge builder. A compassionate leader, sensitive to the needs and aspirations of the poor and needy; a leader whose words count and can be counted on, indeed, a leader with courage, an accountable leader who can be trusted to face the challenges of nationhood squarely without sentiments or pandering to interests that are inconsistent with national goals.

“For leadership that galvanises, mobilises, and directs Nigerians on the path to sustainable peace, progress, and development, such a leader will not regard any part of the country as conquered people.

“We must find and support such a leader in 2023 so that Nigeria can begin the long walk back to peace, security, and prosperity for all her citizens.”

Politics

#EndSARS report: Hold government responsible if anything happens to me – Lagos Panel member, Adegboruwa

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A senior lawyer and member of the Lagos Judicial Panel of Enquiry on police brutality,  Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa has said his life is currently under threat over the report on the Lekki toll gate shooting.

In a statement on Monday, the Senior Advocate alleged that since the panel submitted the report last week, “there have been lots of threats and attacks” on him by those he suspected to be agents of the government.

He had made similar claims last week.

The panel submitted its report on November 15, but the state government is yet to make its contents public.

However, a leaked version of the report indicted the Nigerian Army and the Lagos state government in the killing of unarmed protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate and a subsequent cover-up.

In his statement, Adegboruwa said Nigerians should hold the government responsible if anything happens to him.

He further alleged that one of the prominent EndSARS protesters, Miss Kamsiyochukwu Ibe, who testified before the panel, was attacked on Sunday night.

The statement reads; “I have not committed any crime beyond joining other eminent Nigerians with unblemished integrity, to accept the nomination of government on behalf of my constituency, the Nigerian Bar Association, and the civil society and the indeed the masses of our people, for a national assignment,” he said.

Two prominent lawyers of the government have openly incited opinions against me on national television, with mindless accusations. I have however refused to be intimidated or bend to the tactics of government to be silenced.

“I urge the good people of Nigeria, my professional colleagues in the Nigerian Bar Association, my comrades in the civil rights movement, and the people of Nigeria, to hold government responsible should anything happen to me.

“Just last night, one of the prominent EndSARS protesters who testified before the Panel, Miss Kamsiyochukwu Ibe, was attacked and dealt serious machete blows, in what was clearly an attempted murder, as reported by her counsel, with very disturbing photos.

“I heeded the clarion call to serve by the government with the honest belief that the Panel was meant to say the truth and nothing but the truth, which is what we have done. It is left for government and Nigerians to do the needful with the report of the Panel.”

Politics

I advocate for bandits in national interest – Gumi

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The controversial Islamic cleric, Ahmad Gumi, said on Sunday the unity of Nigeria was the primary reason for his often derided advocacy for bandits.

Gumi, who stated this in a chat with journalists, implored the Federal Government not to declare the bandits as terrorists over the fear of a possible increase in criminal activities in the country.

On his interaction with the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, on the nation’s insecurity, he said: “The National Security Adviser met with me. I spoke with him; in fact, I told him my view about the issue. So, he is in the picture.

“The top military commanders too, we had a meeting with them and they know, the governors, they know my stand.

Although they may have a different view about the issue, they all know my stand and I am doing it for the national interest. I am looking for a lasting solution that will seal the problem, not giving Panadol to somebody suffering from malaria. You know Panadol will suppress the fever but it will not kill the parasites.

“So, we want a real cure to the problem. That is why I think that what I have been advocating is relevant to some extent but there are some changes.

You know conflicts are dynamic, they can start with a word but by the time they end, they have completely taken a new dimension because there are interest groups, so many interest groups in Nigeria.

“They are taking sides. So, it’s going to be a big conflict if the interests are sustained more than what we have now.”

“I wouldn’t like the federal government to declare the bandits as terrorists because it will take a completely different dimension. What we are saying is that these people are hearing whatever we are saying in the bush.

They have everything, they listen. Usually, whatever we say in the papers is translated. We have this Muryar Arewa (Hausa newspaper), they listen to the Hausa radio because they understand Hausa; most of them understand Hausa. They listen to what is said by the government and this is one of the reasons I think we had problems in negotiating with them.”

Politics

#ENDSARS: IPOB demands probe of Obigbo massacre

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The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) warned on Sunday any report on the #EndSARS protest is incomplete without the mention of the genocide in Obigbo local government area of Rivers State.

In a statement issued by its spokesman, Emma Powerful, IPOB demanded an investigation into the killing of residents of the area by the military between October 21 and November 4 last year.

The group alleged that Governor Nyesom Wike invited security agents to massacre the people of the area during the #EndSARS protests.

IPOB was reacting to the release of the Lagos State judicial panel of inquiry which probed allegations of police brutality and shooting of protesters at the Lekki toll gate on October 20 last year.

The statement read: “The global family of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) under the command and leadership of great leader Mazi Nnamdi KANU is watching keenly the Lekki toll gate massacre report, and the reactions trailing it.

But we are utterly shocked that nobody is mentioning the Obigbo massacre which happened about the same period and time last year.

“We wonder why there is no report on the Obigbo genocide and ethnic cleansing which was sponsored by Governor Nyesom Wike but executed by the Nigerian Army, police, and other security agencies.

“Our people must remember Obigbo genocide/ethnic cleansing committed by Nyesom Wike and his cronies including the Nigerian Army, Police, DSS, Navy and Air Force against the hated tribe in Nigeria.”

Politics

APC Govs give Buni lifeline, back him to continue as Caretaker Chairman

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Governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have given a vote of confidence to the embattled National Chairman, Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) of the party, Gov. Mai Mala Buni, of Yobe State.

The subtle vote of confidence on Buni came on Saturday in a statement by the Chairman of the APC Governors’ Forum and Governor of Kebbi State, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, while felicitating with Buni on the occasion of his 54th birthday, saying he had led the party in the right direction and the governors were solidly behind him as he continues to provide an all-inclusive leadership for the APC.

Buni had been in the eye of the storm in the past for a few weeks following a renewed series of attacks by aggrieved members of the party who insisted that he resigned from his position.

One of such aggrieved party stakeholder was Zamfara Senator and a chieftain of the party, Kabiru Marafa, who had engaged in a serious battle with Buni, describing the CECPC as an illegal contraption and continued to call for Buni’s resignation or sack.

However, the APC governors felt otherwise.

We wish to acknowledge and commend your leadership, vision and commitment to a united and prosperous Nigeria. As the Chairman, APC Caretaker and Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee, we celebrate your inclusiveness leadership in this period of the life of our Party, APC,” Bagudu stated in the statement.

He added that the APC governors have thrown their weight behind Buni because he has been “a consistent and selfless contributor to progressive initiatives towards developing our states and Nigeria.”

“We also recognize your insightful and resolute inputs to the processes of managing governance in Yobe State.

“As Governor of Yobe State, through all the development initiatives being implemented by your APC-led government, you are a shining light of our politics!

“As we rejoice with HE Mai Mala Buni, we also reaffirmed our collective commitment to implement programmes that would strengthen the capacities of our progressive states to create jobs, stimulate economic activity, reduce inequality and diminish poverty in Nigeria,” the statement added.

Politics

All governors in Nigeria are helpless on insecurity – Gov Ishaku

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The Taraba State Governor, Darius Ishaku, said on Friday all the governors in Nigeria are helpless on the protection of lives and property in the country.

The governor was responding to the killing of 11 people in a community in the state by a Cameroonian separatist group called the Ambazonia soldiers.

Ishaku, who stated this in an interview on Channels Television on Thursday, said there was nothing his administration could have done to prevent the attack since he does not control the security agencies.

Ishaku said before the incident, he had complained to the Federal Government and the military about the threat posed by the group.

He said: “We are under the federal government when it comes to the military and police. There is nothing a state government can do. We rely on them.

What else can a governor do, if I had complained? What else can I do? I wish I knew if this thing was going to happen yesterday. It is not only me that is helpless. All the governors in Nigeria are helpless. I have said it, times without number.

All the governors in Nigeria are helpless that is why we are saying give us state police. If we have state police, I will have ordered the police. All the governors — not only Darius Ishaku — are helpless; not only the Taraba state government that is helpless, all of us.

“The governors are helpless. Go and ask other governors and tell me who has a solution to give. We have to depend on the federal might when it comes to security.

“We have vigilantes but what will a vigilante do when he does not have an AK-47? And people are charging at him with AK-47.

“I just told you that even the immigration tried their best. I don’t know which gun the immigration was using. Apparently, may be the type of normal old gun of cork and fire.

To be frank with you, even the military needs to be equipped, even the police need to be equipped. All these para-military (agencies) need to be equipped. The federal government must decide to equip them and equip them properly”

Politics

Enugu holds local council election February next year

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The Enugu State Independent Electoral Commission (ENSIEC) has fixed February 23, 2022, for election in the 17 local government areas of the state.

The commission disclosed this in an election timetable released on Friday and signed by its Chairman, Dr. Mike Ajogwu.

ENSIEC also fixed December 10 for the party primaries.

The tenure of the current local council chairmen in the state will expire on December 5.

Politics

Why good people shun politics – Masari

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The Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari, said on Friday that political violence prevents good people from aspiring for leadership positions in the country.

Masari stated this during a visit to his Gombe State counterpart, Inuwa Yahaya, over the recent political clash in the state.

He was accompanied on the trip by the Jigawa State Governor, Badaru Abubakar.

At least 15 persons were killed about three weeks ago when supporters of rival politicians clashed in the state.

A few days later hoodlums also attacked the former governor of the state, Danjuma Goje, in the state capital.

Goje in a statement issued by his media aide claimed that the thugs were loyalists of Governor Yahaya.

The duo are fighting for control of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in the state.

The Katsina governor said politics was about leadership and service to the people and must be played without violence to attract the right leaders.

He stressed that good people would always shun violence.

Masari said: “Politicians have the responsibility of promoting democracy and we cannot promote democracy through violence; if we do, it will scare the good people away.

Leaders have a responsibility to protect lives and property. As leaders, we should not, under any circumstances, be seen to be promoting or supporting violence.

“Violence will ultimately lead to death, cause injuries, loss of property, and create charged atmosphere among the populace.

“We believe we are peacemakers and politics can be played without violence. Violence does not help anybody and it does not promote peace.”

He urged politicians to conduct politics in a harmonious manner in the interest of peace and development.

The governor added: “We appeal to all political leaders and all political parties to conduct themselves and the affairs of politicking in a calmer, mature, and responsible manner.”

Politics

Nigerian govt recruiting unwanted elements to blackmail me —Akintoye

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Historian and leader of the umbrella body of Yoruba Self-Determination Groups, Ilana Omo Oodua (IOO), Professor Banji Akintoye, has accused the Federal Government of recruiting some ‘unwanted’ people within the fold of Yoruba nation agitators to blackmail him and sabotage the struggle.

Akintoye, in a statement issued on Thursday by the Communications Secretary of IOO, Maxwell Adeleye, added that a press conference by the FG was being sponsored to that effect.

“These reactionaries celebrated the invasion of one of my lieutenants, Sunday Adeyemo’s house. They never wanted the young man to come out of the prison where the Nigerian Government is currently holding him in the Republic of Benin,” the statement recounts.

“The offence of Sunday Adeyemo is that he has become the face of the struggle, even more, prominent than me.

They would grumble that they have been in the struggle for years, and someone who just joined the struggle is now a celebrated hero. I appealed to them to see this as a sacrifice and a battle for our children but they refused to listen.

The last straw that broke their camel’s back was when they refused to release the organization’s fund in their possession to be used to add to the funds we wanted to use to pay Ighoho’s lawyers in the Republic of Benin.

“We were held to ransom. I had to impose some disciplinary measures in the overall interest of our people which got them angry and ever since, these reactionaries have been threatening to scatter the struggle.

“They have started blackmailing me and one of my trusted aides for refusing to compromise. When their faceless campaign of calumny failed to materialise, they are now coming out openly to blackmail me to please their paymasters in Abuja and Lagos.

“But I am sure the Yoruba People will fight these locusts. We won’t be intimidated. Soon, they will know they are a tiny minority. The whole agenda is to demoralise me,” the statement reads.

Politics

DSS confines Kanu to tiny cell 23 hours daily – Lawyers

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Ifeanyi Ejiofor, and Aloy Ejimakor, lawyers to the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, said on Thursday their client is being subjected to inhuman treatment in the Department of States Security (DSS) custody.

In a joint statement, the lawyers said the IPOB leader is usually confined to a very tiny cell for 23 hours everyday without access to sunlight or interaction with people.

They added that the secret police has not allowed Kanu to change clothes since he was re-arrested on June 27.

The duo claimed DSS refused to replace his corrective lenses smashed by security agents in Kenya.

Ejiofor and Ejimakor added that they were not allowed to have a private discussion with their client since his arrest and subsequent detention by the DSS.

The statement read: “He is solitarily confined to a very tiny cell twenty-three (23) hours of the day without access to sunlight and any social interactions whatsoever. He believes that this is aimed at inflicting extreme emotional and mental distress on him and breaking him psychologically.

“Any detainee who encounters and greets him during the single hour he is allowed outside his cell is promptly put in solitary confinement or transferred to maximum security as a punishment for exchanging mere greetings with him. Because of this, detainees have resorted to avoiding him and exchanging salutations with him, not to talk of any other form of social interactions.

Since the Nigerian government extraordinarily renditioned him, he has not been allowed a change of clothing; and his Jewish prayer shawls and other religious materials brought to him by his counsel were rejected and returned.

“The DSS has refused to replace his corrective glasses (lenses) which were smashed to smithereens by agents of the Nigerian government during the violence they unleashed on him while abducting him in Kenya. This has led to a rapid deterioration of his sight.

“He is restricted to meeting with his counsel in an atmosphere devoid of private discussions with his counsel, and he is oftentimes denied perusal of legal documentation his counsel brings to him to review.

He is not allowed to sleep with a pillow and this has led him developing acid reflux which comes with acute burning sensations in his chest, chest pains and extreme difficulty in swallowing.

“The DSS has denied his repeated requests for an independent medical examination to determine the extent of damage done to his body by a suspected substance he may have been injected with during this abduction and extraordinary rendition.

“ He has reason to believe that the said injected substance is depleting the potassium content of his body, thus causing him constipation, a feeling of skipped heartbeats, palpitations, fatigue, muscle weakness/spasms, and numbness.”

Politics

Why FG hasn’t implemented recommendations of EndSARS Judicial Panel reports – Buhari

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President Muhammadu Buhari has revealed why the federal government is yet to implement recommendations by the Lagos state judicial panel report on the Lekki tollgate incident and other states’ EndSARS panel reports.

Speaking at a meeting with United States secretary of state, Antony Blinken, in Abuja, on Thursday, Buhari said he will await the steps taken by governors before the federal government takes action on the reports of the judicial panels of inquiry set up by states to investigate incidents of police brutality.

Rivers, Delta, Ogun states, among others, had earlier submitted their reports, but the Lagos panel presented its report to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Monday. In its findings, the Lagos panel said security operatives “killed unarmed protesters” who had gathered at the Lekki tollgate.

A statement released by Special Assistant to the President on Media and Pubicity, Femi Adesina, quoted Buhari as saying that state governments will have to take steps on the reports of their panels, before the federal government acts on the recommendations.

“So many state governments are involved, and have given different terms of reference to the probe panels.

“We at the federal have to wait for the steps taken by the states, and we have to allow the system to work. We can’t impose ideas on them. Federal government has to wait for the reaction of the states,” he said.

On his part, the US secretary of state described the report of the #EndSARS probe panel as “democracy in action”, and said he looks forward to necessary reforms within security agencies.

Politics

Rivers state is running Jesus economy – Wike

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Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has said that his administration will not relent in its support for the Church to promote and expand the gospel of Jesus Christ.

This is also he said the state is running a ‘Jesus economy’ which is the reason it is one of the wealthiest in the South East.

The governor stated this at the special fundraising service for the purchase of landed property by the Church of Christ in Nations, Port Harcourt on Sunday.

A statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Kelvin Ebiri, said Wike, who donated Thirty Million Naira (N30M) to support the Church of Christ in Nations, assured that whenever his administration is called upon to contribute to the propagation and evangelism of the gospel, it will not relent to support the Church.

He said; “Even in governance, we won’t have been able to achieve anything without God. Look at the economy of the country today, but everyday, we are either commissioning or flagging off projects. People ask how do you do this?

His Excellency will always say, this State is a Christian State, and this State is running a Jesus economy. In the Jesus economy, you give a little to the work of God and God multiples that little you have given in a million fold. It is with that we are able to execute our projects.”

Wike added that his support for the Church is an altruistic service, rendered in appreciation of God’s benevolence towards his administration and the good people of Rivers State.

Politics

There’ll be more trouble if Nnamdi Kanu dies in custody – Father Mbaka warns FG

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Spiritual Director of Adoration Ministry Enugu, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka, has warned that there will be more trouble if leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, dies in custody of the Department of State Services (DSS).

Mbaka stated this in his Church on Sunday, November 14 while urging members to pray for the release of the secessionist.

The cleric, who commended IPOB for calling off its Monday sit-at-home exercise, said the danger of the order was becoming a problem instead of a solution.

He further stated that he was pleased that the intervention of stakeholders has yielded results with the cancelation of the lockdown of the entire South-East region.

The leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, the hero, Nnamdi Kanu, is expressing his empathy with the people of the Southeast over what they are passing through. He came to know that Igbos are suffering because of him. And he would not wish that suffering to continue. Therefore, nobody should stop anybody from going to his or her business any Monday.

“All of us should keep praying for his (Kanu) release, and work towards his freedom because if he dies inside that place, it will cause more trouble. If he comes out, he will come out as a hero.

”We don’t want him to die, because it is not Nnamdi Kanu’s issue, it is the issue that concerns the people that are suffering. Nnamdi is not asking the government to do anything for him; he is speaking for the Igbo people.

“And we that are affected and he is speaking on their behalf should do everything possible to see that it is well with him.

Many were saying they saw me at Abuja some days ago, yes. My own is if I am with you, I am with you. I will not sit here to tell you why I am in Abuja but whatever will make my people to be emancipated I will do it. There are people working to see that Nnamdi Kanu is released and it’s not by sitting. at home that he will be released.

”Canceling sit-at-home does not mean that it is over, the poor masses are suffering. Most of the rich people don’t have business over here, we are punishing our self. We thank the leader of IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu, may God bless him,” Mbaka said.

Politics

I have no idea of what happened to #EndSARS camera retrieved at Lekki toll gate – Fashola

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The Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, said on Sunday he has no idea of what happened to the video camera he retrieved at the Lekki Toll Gate in Lagos after the #EndSARS protests last year.

Fashola stated this in an interview with AriseTV monitored by Ripples Nigeria.

The former Lagos State governor visited the site in October last year to assess the damage caused by hoodlums and spotted a camcorder at the toll plaza which he handed over to a government official.

On the contents in the camera, Fashola said: “You should not be asking me. You have the tapes showing that I handed it over to the government of Lagos so you have all the recordings. I think your people were there. So don’t ask me what happened to the camera. I don’t know.”

He noted that the youths had ruled Nigeria more than the older generation especially during the 1960s and 1980s where public officers were in their 30s and 40s.

Politics

APC chieftain, Joe Igbokwe, appeals for truce between Tinubu and Bode George

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A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has called for an end to the rancour between the party’s National Leader, Bola Ahmed Tinubu and former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bode George.

Igbokwe made the call in a Facebook post titled: “Let us reconcile Asiwaju and Bode George,” on Sunday.

He urged George to put an end to the incessant attacks on the ex-Lagos State governor.

The APC chieftain also urged prominent personalities in the state to broker peace between the duo.

Igbokwe wrote: “On this day of Sunday, November 14 2021, I want to appeal to well-meaning, eminent and prominent Lagosians to put heads together and work out a solution to address the political divisions between Asiwaju BAT and Lagos big boy, former Military Governor of Ondo State, Chief Bode George since 1999.

“In our own very eyes since 1999 till date, all the PDP political heavyweights in Lagos PDP have crossed over to AD, AC, ACN, and APC except Chief Bode George. To all intents and purposes, Bode George has tried. He has shown that he is a man who can take a stand and hold on to it.

No doubt, Oga Bode George has proved that he is a man but he cannot continue to waste his precious gift of time on acrimony and division. Oga Bode George should weigh all options now and do the needful.

“To continue to attack a man like Asiwaju who has built bridges across Nigeria, East, West, North or South will remain an exercise in futility. We should be bold enough to admit when someone does better us. All fingers are not equal Oga mi. Ka agba fun leader.

“Asiwaju BAT needs everybody including Bode George to forge ahead. Let the real men and women stand out in Lagos out to broker peace between Chief Bode George and Asiwaju BAT. The time to do this is now.”

Politics

Anyone that plots downfall of my govt cannot survive -Wike

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Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State has intimated that some cabal within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) schemed unsuccessfully over his downfall.

Wike made this disclosure on Sunday during Thanksgiving at St. Philip’s Anglican Church, Elibrada, Emohua Local Government Area, to mark the appointment of Justice Simeon Chibuzor Amadi as Chief Judge of Rivers.

He also expressed the divine confidence that anyone determined to pull down his administration would always fail.

According to the Governor, this plot to cause his ruination was a sequel to the series of crises that bedevilled the major opposition party recently.

“Recently, there was some crises in the PDP. Everybody involved, that plotted everything for my downfall, all are out. Everyone, that slept, went to a meeting, planning how to bring me down, not one survived,” he said

Wike also stated that such a scheme was unsuccessfully contrived against the former Chief Judge of the State, Justice Adama Iyayi-Lamikanra during his appointment.

In his statement to the current Chief Judge, Wike said, “When your predecessor, Justice Iyayi-Lamikanra was appointed, you have said people came to you to say she’s not from Rivers. Such people are enemies of the State. That is why this country cannot move forward.

“Somebody has put his or her life serving the State all through her career, making sure the State moves forward, and at the time of benefits, you say the person is not from your State. But all the services rendered was for the interest of your State.

“When your predecessor was appointed, people started to conspire, started to plot against my government.

“Your colleagues, some of them started conspiring. I said, well, what will be will be. I know the God that made me governor. Nobody will survive plotting downfall of my government. Nobody will survive it.”

Politics

Saraki declares support for direct primaries

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Former Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has thrown his weight behind the National Assembly’s adoption of direct primary election, saying it was the best for political parties in the country.

Saraki, who addressed journalists during the ninth memorial prayer organised in honour of his late father, Dr. Olusola Saraki, on Sunday in Ilorin, Kwara State, said politicians should not allow the debate generated by the approval of direct primary by the National Assembly to affect the euphoria of having a new electoral law for the country.

Saraki also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to sign the bill in the interest of Nigerians.

He said: “Direct primary is best for political parties if properly done. But I am sure Nigerians are not prepared for it because there is still a lot of work to be done.

“But now that the National Assembly has passed it, we should make the best out of the situation rather than allowing the controversy, which is one item, to throw away the other good parts of the bill.

“What is important is for the President to sign it and allow Nigerians to benefit from the other parts.”

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