GAC, APC NOT CONSULTED BEFORE OBASA’S REMOVAL
GAC, APC NOT CONSULTED BEFORE OBASA’S REMOVAL — CHAIRMAN The Chairman of Governance Advisory Council in Lagos State, Tajudeen Olusi, says the council was not consulted before Mr Mudashiru Obasa was impeached as the Speaker of the state House of Assembly. Olusi, speaking with newsmen in an interview at his residence in Lagos, on Friday, said that lawmakers neither consulted the All Progressives Congress nor the council. He said that the council should not be dragged into the leadership crisis that saw the removal of Obasa and his replacement by the Deputy Speaker, Mrs Mojisola Meranda. He said, “Members of the GAC are not members of the Lagos State House of Assembly to allegedly be behind the removal of Obasa. It can’t be true. “We read it also that morning. The lawmakers carried it out without consulting the party and those of us in the GAC. That is our position. “We invited all of them and insisted that all of them are products of the party. They lodged their complaints and we listened to them. “I blamed them for one thing and that is for not lodging the complaints earlier before the party. “It is for the party to decide, they (lawmakers) have no absolute power to remove and install their leaders. “Nobody can become a member of the House of Assembly unless sponsors by a political party and the sponsors are the inspectors.: The APC apex leader said that the speakership crisis in the House remained a problem between Obasa and his colleagues in the House. “The problem is the speaker (Obasa) and his colleagues which had led to his removal. It is a disputer among them,” he added. He said no organ of government was totally independent of the other, adding that the party, GAC and another high-powered committee set up was working tirelessly to resolve the dispute. “Currently, there is a high-powered committee of the party led by Chief Bisi Akande and members, including Aremo Olusegun Osoba, former APC National Vice Chairman, South-west, Chief Pius Akinyelure and others. “They are working and making efforts to resolve the matter. I know they are in consultation with the House of Assembly, Obasa and the other Speaker, Mrs Mojisola Lasbat Meranda. “Those of us in the GAC and the Chairman of the Party, Pastor Cornelius Ojelabi are doing all within our power to assist the committee,” he added. Speaking on dissenting views expressed by some members of the GAC, Olusi said that those who spoke expressed their individual views, which they were entitled to, not the GAC’s. “One day, and very soon the matter will be settled. Disputes and differences are facts of life and dispute resolution and party mechanisms are also there. “You leave us alone, as a party we are conscious of our responsibility and that of the House of Assembly; we are going to do all within our powers to resolve the dispute, “The overall responsibility is on the party,” he added. The News Agency of Nigeria recalls that the leadership crisis took a new dimension on Thursday when the impeached speaker stormed the Assembly and insisted that he was never removed Obasa, who spoke with reporters shortly after he arrived at the assembly complex with some security personnel, said that he had returned to the assembly to take charge. The visit was Obasa’s first appearance at the complex after he was impeached by his colleagues in January over alleged misconduct and financial impropriety. The impeached speaker returned on a day the security details of Meranda were withdrawn. (
“A BLACK SHEEP CAUSING PDP CRISIS, WORKING FOR APC” – BAUCHI GOVERNOR REVEALS
“A BLACK SHEEP CAUSING PDP CRISIS, WORKING FOR APC” – BAUCHI GOVERNOR REVEALS Bauchi State Governor, Senator Bala Mohammed, has disclosed that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is grappling with internal turmoil allegedly caused by a “black sheep” within its leadership ranks, secretly working in favour of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Speaking during an interview with BBC Hausa on Saturday, Governor Mohammed expressed concern over the growing dissatisfaction among founding members and key stakeholders of the PDP. He said many of them are contemplating leaving the party due to prolonged leadership instability. He alleged that the APC had strategically infiltrated the PDP, planting individuals to sow discord and undermine the party’s unity. “There is a black sheep in our midst, working for the APC to destabilize us,” he stated. The governor warned that the impending defections of prominent PDP members could severely weaken the party and jeopardize its chances in future elections. “You mentioned former Sokoto governor Attahiru Bafarawa leaving the party; I can tell you that more influential figures are on the verge of doing the same,” he said. Mohammed revealed that some aggrieved members are even considering forming a new political platform ahead of the 2027 general elections. Despite this, he called for patience and unity, while expressing optimism that the crisis would be resolved. “We need to come together and strengthen the PDP. Once we do, we can develop a strategy for victory in the next elections and form a government that serves Nigerians better,” he said. Governor Mohammed also criticized the judiciary, accusing it of issuing contradictory rulings that have exacerbated the leadership crisis within the PDP. “The judiciary is not helping us. Their conflicting pronouncements have caused confusion and eroded public confidence in the system,” he noted. Reaffirming his commitment to saving the PDP from collapse, he appealed to aggrieved members to stay and contribute to the ongoing reconciliation process. “The PDP is the main opposition party in Nigeria. We cannot afford to let it die, as this would silence the opposition and threaten democracy,” he concluded.
TINUBU SPENT 180 OF HIS 580 DAYS IN OFFICE ABROAD – OBI
TINUBU SPENT 180 OF HIS 580 DAYS IN OFFICE ABROAD – OBI The presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 general elections Peter Obi, says out of the approximately 580 days President Bola Tinubu has been in office as of December 29, 2024, the President spent over 30% or about 180 days abroad, covering over 30 publicly recorded overseas trips. Obi said this at a media chat on Thursday in Abuja on the state of the nation, adding that Nigeria needed selfless and exemplary leadership in 2025. President Tinubu was sworn in on May 29, 2023 and has spent 584 days in office as at January 2, 2025. Our correspondent also reports that while President Tinubu has not travelled out of the country this year as he is currently on holiday in Lagos State, the president in 2023 and 2024 visited not less than 16 countries, including some he visited more than once. The President visited Malabo, Equatorial Guinea; London, the United Kingdom (four times); Bissau, Guinea-Bissau (twice); Nairobi, Kenya; Porto Norvo, Benin Republic; The Hague, Netherlands; Pretoria, South Africa; Accra, Ghana; New Delhi, India; Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the United Arab Emirates; New York, the United States of America; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (twice); Berlin, Germany; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Dakar, Senegal and Doha, Qatar. Power fund will stabilise liquidity issues in electricity sector – ExpertChebet smashes own women’s 5km world record Among the trips that generated interests was on August 29 to Beijing, China, where President Tinubu held bilateral talks with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, and subsequently attended the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, before departing China for the UK, where he spent seven days, and returned on September 14. The following month on October 2, a day after attending the 64th Independence Day anniversary, Tinubu departed Abuja for the UK again for a two-week working leave. He spent nine days there and proceeded to Paris, France, for an ‘important engagement’, according to his Senior Special Assistant on Political and Other Matters, Ibrahim Masari. President Tinubu’s government also spent N2.3bn on foreign trips and related expenses within six months in 2024, according to data from GovSpend, a portal documenting the Presidential Villa expenditure. The highlights covered the costs associated with presidential travels between February 21 and July 19, this year. Speaking on the development at the media briefing, Obi said that President Tinubu would spend roughly 72 days to visit each of Nigeria’s 36 states for two days each. “Mr. President, out of the approximately 580 days (as at December 29, 2024) you have been in office, it is reported that you have spent over 30%, or around 180 days, on more than 30 publicly recorded overseas trips. My appeal is that you dedicate at least 20% of 2025, roughly 72 days, to visit each of Nigeria’s 36 states for two days each. “As President, such visits would give you the opportunity to better understand the dire economic and security situations across the country. Furthermore, it is time for you to visit our national hospitals. Consider, for example, that your next medical examination be conducted at one of our National Hospitals or Regional Federal Medical Centres, such as the FMC in Sokoto or Birnin Kebbi or Calabar or Umuahia or Akure, among others,” Obi said. The former Anambra State Governor, said that this would allow the President to assess the state of healthcare facilities available to Nigerians and would also help him understand the condition of the nation’s hospitals and clinics, enabling him to make informed decisions on how to upgrade and make them efficient. He said, “Endeavour to travel by road to observe the condition of most highways. You can take short trips, for example, from Calabar in…
Dons Eze
- Foreign Affairs
- December 28, 2024
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BORDER COMMUNITIES SAY NO FOREIGN BASE IN SOKOTO, COUNTER NIGER’S MILITARY LEADER
BORDER COMMUNITIES SAY NO FOREIGN BASE IN SOKOTO COUNTER NIGER’S MILITARY LEADER Some border communities have refuted claims by the Nigerien Junta leader, Abdurrahman Tchani, that there was a forest called ‘Gaba’, where foreign military established their base in Sokoto state. Our reporter who visited some of the border communities discovered that such forest didn’t exist anywhere in the state. Leaders and some of the residents who spoke also denied presence of any foreign military base in their communities. Sokoto shares border with the Niger Republic through five local government areas which includes Illela, Gada, Tangaza, Gudu and Sabon Birni. Historically, some major communities in the country formed part of the defunct Sokoto Caliphate. The Sarkin Arewan Araba, Alhaji Abubakar Yusufu, a border community in Illela LGA which is less than two meters away from Konni in Niger Republic said there was no a village or forest called Gaba in his domain. He also debunked the allegation of foreign base establsihed in the area, likening the allegation to a tea joint discussion tantamount of severing the existing relationship between them and their immediate neighbours in Niger Republic. “There is no such forest in Araba district or Illela local government and we don’t see any foreigner in our villages, it is a tea joint discussion. Instead, it is the Nigerien military operatives that have been coming into our area every night. “They come and work with our vigilantes in maintaining peace in our surrounding communities,” he said The district head, however, cautioned the Nigerian leader against making baseless allegation capable of severing both countries’ historic ties. Another resident of Araba, Malam Muhammadu Danladi, opined that the allegation was meant to smear the image of our country. “It is a lie, there is not presence of foreigners in our community. It is just a mere allegation which is unfounded,” he said He, however, decried what he called a targeted harassment on Nigerians by the Nigerien security operatives in the last six months. “Their security operatives at the border areas have been harassing our people, seizing their goods for just no cause. But their people are enjoying free access into our country. They have been coming to buy goods and leave and nobody is harassing them. We want our government to do something about this,” he said Corroborating this, Muhammad, a commercial motorcyclist who take passengers and goods to Konni, also denied noticing presence of foreigners in their communities, just as he lamented the inhuman treatment allegedly being meted on them by the Nigerien security operatives. It was similar denial at Tabanni Siddi in Gada LGA as residents said neither Gaba forest nor foreign base was established in the community and even its environs.
PETER OBI SLAMS TINUBU’S GOVT OVER INHUMAN HANDLING OF CHILD PROTESTERS
PETER OBI SLAMS TINUBU’S GOVT OVER INHUMAN HANDLING OF CHILD PROTESTERS Peter Obi, former presidential candidate, has expressed deep concern over the inhumane treatment of 124 protesters, including minors, who appeared in court on Friday. The young Nigerians were arrested by the federal government for participating in the hunger protests few weeks ago. In a statement shared on social media, Obi decried the disturbing scenes captured in a video that has sparked widespread outrage. “These children appeared visibly malnourished and starved—a condition that should alarm the conscience of every citizen in our nation,” Obi said. Obi criticized the federal government for failing to uphold the dignity and welfare of the minors held in custody. He pointed out that the alleged offence of the detainees was protesting against bad governance, a right guaranteed under Nigeria’s democratic constitution. “Curiously,” he noted, “most of the people in government today leveraged this aspect of the Constitution, standing as champions of good governance while in opposition.” The former governor of Anambra State emphasized that every suspect, regardless of the circumstances, deserves to be treated with dignity. He stressed the importance of human rights and dignity, highlighting Nigeria’s obligations as part of the global community. Obi also praised the presiding judge for halting the trial, thereby averting what he called a further embarrassment for the nation. He urged key authorities, including the Minister of Justice, the Attorney General of the Federation, the Police, the Department of State Services (DSS), and the National Human Rights Commission, to conduct a thorough investigation into the mistreatment of the detained minors. “The reason why we should all be concerned about a situation like this is because we are part of a global community where human dignity should be respected,” Obi concluded.
WIKE, ATIKU TRADE WORDS: NIGERIANS HAVE REJECTED YOU, GO HOME – WIKE; YOUR COMMENTS STRING OF INANITIES, BASELESS RANTS – ATIKU
WIKE, ATIKU TRADE WORDS: NIGERIANS HAVE REJECTED YOU, GO BACK HOME – WIKE; YOUR COMMENTS STRING OF INANITIES, BASELESS RANTS – ATIKU Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Barrister Nyesom Wike, has mocked former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over his failure to be president of the country. Wike took a dig at Atiku at a luncheon honouring loyal members of the Rivers State Assembly in Port Harcourt. The development comes after Atiku ridiculed him over the recent local government elections in Rivers State, where the Action Peoples Party (APP) secured 22 out of 23 local government chairmanship posts. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State, which is backed by Wike, backed out of the election. In retaliation, Wike said on Saturday, “We never contested local government elections. Did we contest? Did we pick form? I hear Atiku Abubakar say, ‘Oh they have rejected me in Rivers State. Okay, assuming though not conceding, he had lost so many times, Nigerians have also rejected him.” “If you say for an election we did not contest; never participated that shows Nigerians have rejected us, it is okay. You that contested and failed woefully, Nigerians have rejected you, therefore pack and go home.” Reacting through his media adviser, Paul Ibe, Atiku described Wike’s comments as “theatrical outbursts” and “baseless rants” driven by personal grievances. He said that Wike’s actions were a lingering symptom of bitterness from his defeat at the 2022 party presidential primaries. “Mr. Wike’s comments are nothing more than a string of inanities, lacking substance,” the statement said. “If he truly believes Nigerians are content with the current state of affairs under the government he serves, it reveals a deeper truth: his priorities lie not with the people but with himself.” The statement reads in full: Wike and his T-Pain Collaborators playing politics with the suffering of Nigerians*Atiku preoccupied with genuine issues affecting Nigerians Our attention has been drawn to the recent remarks made by Mr. Nyesom Wike, which can only be described as another of his theatrical outbursts. Ordinarily, we would not respond, but we recognize that silence might be misinterpreted. However, we remain calm, knowing that Nigerians are well acquainted with his antics, a lingering symptom of the bitterness he harbours from his defeat to the Wazirin Adamawa at the 2022 party presidential primaries. Mr. Wike’s comments are nothing more than a string of inanities, lacking substance and driven by personal grievances. If he truly believes Nigerians are content with the current state of affairs under the government he serves, it reveals a deeper truth: his priorities lie not with the people but with himself. This self-absorption is evident in his preoccupation with domestic affairs in Rivers rather than his ministerial responsibilities. While he may seek to divert attention with his baseless rants, we remain focused on the genuine issues affecting Nigerians. It is clear that Mr. Wike is more concerned with self-interest than addressing the real challenges faced by the nation. In contrast, our commitment remains unwavering, centred on the welfare and progress of the people. Mr. Wike appears to delight in conjuring fantasies, indulging in his imagination, and paying for live TV coverage to launch tirades against whomever he pleases. However, we shall not descend into the gutters where he feels at home. Instead, we prefer to rise above, maintaining our dignity while others revel in the mud. Wike’s comments came at a luncheon in honour of loyal members of the Rivers State Assembly in Port Harcourt, where he took a dig at Atiku’s failed presidential attempts. This was in response to Atiku’s ridicule of Wike over the recent local government elections in Rivers State, where the Action Peoples Party (APP) secured 22 out of 23 local government chairmanship posts.…