Sen. Aisha Alhassan, who resigned her appointment as women affairs minister and also dumped the APC on Saturday, has picked the United Democratic Party (UDP), nomination form to contest for the Taraba governorship seat.
Alhassan, at a press conference shortly after joining UDP and picking its nomination form, claimed that the APC had become “the weakest political party in Taraba” with her defection.
The former minister claimed that she left the APC with thousands of her supporters, adding that many aspirants seeking the APC ticket to contest various offices in 2019 would soon pick UDP nominations forms.
Alhassan, who was disqualified from seeking the APC ticket, alleged that she was dropped by the National Chairman of the APC, Mr Adams Oshiomhole.
“It was not the screening committee that disqualified me; the chairman of the party personally did it.
“But, I have put that behind me. I have moved to the UDP and will seek its ticket to contest the governorship election.
“Oshiomhole has used his powers to deal with me, but it is God that gives power,” she said.
The former minister, who contested the seat in 2015 and lost to PDP’s Darius Ishaku, advised President Muhammadu Buhari to pay more attention to the activities of APC leaders so that their actions would not affect the party’s popularity.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the governorship screening committee of the APC on Thursday disqualified Alhassan from joining 10 other aspirants to fight for the ticket in the primary election slated for Sunday, Sept. 30.
The Governor’s Advisory Council(GAC) of the Lagos chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has endorsed Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu to pick the party’s governorship ticket for the 2019 election in the state.
Sen. Anthony Adefuye, a member the council, announced the endorsement to party members on Saturday, at a stakeholders’ meeting at the ACME Road state party secretariat.
He said the GAC, the highest decision-making body of the chapter, arrived at the endorsement after a meeting which lasted for several hours.
Adefuye said the meeting was chaired by national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and was attended by other prominent members of the party.
Adefuye listed Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, the Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila and Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Mr Mudashiru Obasa as some of those also at the meeting.
He said that the decision to back Sanwo-Olu, a former Commissioner for Training and Establishment, against the incumbent, Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode, was in the interest of the state and the party.
Adefuye also announced that the governorship primary had been postponed from Sunday to Monday but gave no reason for the shift.
He told the crowd that another aspirant, a former Commissioner for Works, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, had withdrawn from the race and had endorsed Sanwo-Olu.
“There was a GAC meeting held this morning which was attended by the Vice President, YemiOsinbajo, Majority Leader of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, Speaker, House of Assembly, Mudashiru Obasa, and others.
“This meeting was chaired by our national leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. This is a meeting that we started at 10am. and we couldn’t finish early.
“After the meeting, I have been mandated by the GAC to announce this to you.
“The gubernatorial primary earlier scheduled for tomorrow, September 30th, has been shifted to Monday, October 1.
“Also, the GAC was informed by Dr Obafemi Hamzat of his decision to graciously step down and endorse Jide Sanwoolu.
“GAC has endorsed Babajide Sanwoolu as its preferred candidate ahead of the primary,” he added.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the announcement threw the crowd of Sanwo-Olu supporters at the meeting into wild jubilation.
Chants of Sanwo-Olu! Sanwo-Olu ! took over the atmosphere as supporters of Ambode exited the party secretariat in disappointment.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has postponed its governorship primary elections for Imo and Lagos states to Monday, Oct.1.
Mr Adams Oshiomhole, the party’s National Chairman announced this on Saturday in Abuja,while inaugurating the party’s Governorship Primary Election Committee and the Presidential National Convention Committee.
Oshiomhole, who attributed logistics for postponing the primary election in the two states, said it would hold on Sunday (tomorrow) in other states of the federation as earlier scheduled.
“We have decided to postpone the governorship primary election in Imo and Lagos states to Monday Oct.1, even though it is public holiday.
“There is nothing in the law that says we cannot conduct our party affairs on the day of public holidays.
“We are sure that we will be able to rectify logistic challenges between now and the end of tomorrow,“ Oshiomhole said.
He added that the party`s secretariat would get to the committees through its chairmen to hand over documents and all materials including ballot papers and result sheets they would use for the primary election.
He further added that no fewer than 177 governorship aspirants were currently jostling to get the party’s tickets to contest governorship election in 29 states.
He thanked the committee members for honouring the party’s invitation at short notice and for accepting to serve it and the nation generally.
The APC national chairman stressed that members of the committee had a duty to ensure that the core values of the party was adhered to, adding that they should remain neutral while carrying out their assignments.
He added that the party’s leadership was doing everything possible to ensure proper security in states of the federation where the governorship primaries would be held.
Oshiomhole said the presidential national convention committee must reflect the ray of the future with gender balance.
“We want to organise a convention that is different. We want a convention that goes beyond electioneering, “ he said.
He added that the national convention should discuss the Nigeria agenda, issues of governance, development and economic issues as well as social choices.
“Let us disagree and agree within that convention in addition to confirming the presidential candidate and maybe amend any section of the Constitution that we might want to.
Gov. Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo state, who is the chairman of the 21-member presidential national convention committee, thanked the party`s leadership for the opportunity to serve.
“I thank you for giving us the opportunity to participate in laying the foundation for our 2019 electoral victory, because if you see the quality of the foundation, you will know how the building will be.
“The foundation you have laid today is so solid that I have no doubt that we will succeed in 2019 election, “ he said.
He stressed that the committee would not let the party down and assured that it would do its best to ensure that the party`s victory in 2019, was secured.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that while Kashim Shettima would serve as the committee Vice Chairman, Hadiza Bala Usman would serve as its Secretary.
Other members of the committee are Babatunde Fashola, Audu Ogbeh, Nasiru El-Rufai, Rochas Okorocha, Sen. Godswill Akpabio, Kayode Fayemi, Abubakar Bagudu and Mohammed Abubakar.
Godwin Obaseki, Simon Lalong, Sen. Emma Anosike, Hajiya Hauwa Sule, Timipre Sylva, Mr Sharon Ikeazor, Dr Ramatu Tijani, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Stella Okotete and Paulen Tallen are all members of the committee.
The presidential national convention had been fixed for Oct. 6 to ratify President Muhammadu Buhari as the party’s presidential candidate for the 2019 election.
The list of members of the governorship primary election across the states of the federation is attached below:
Full List of APC Governorship Primaries Committee for September 30:
Car of missing retired Maj. Gen. Idris Alkali pulled out of a pond in Jos
Car of missing retired Maj. Gen. Idris Alkali pulled out of a pond in Jos
After eight days of intense search that involved evacuating water, the Nigeria Army on Saturday found the car of missing retired Maj. Gen. Idris Alkali in a pond located at Dura, Du District in Jos.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the car, with registration number MUN-670-AA Kwara State, was pulled out of the pond at about 7 p.m.
The Army was assisted in the search and rescue operation by men of the Fire Service, local divers and experts from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).
NAN reports that Alkali, former Chief of Administration at the Nigeria Army Headquarters, Abuja, had been missing since Sept. 3, with efforts to trace his whereabouts yielding no fruits.
The Army, acting on intelligence checks, later narrowed the search to the pond, and insisted on evacuating the water from it.
Speaking with newsmen after the car was pulled out, Maj. Gen. Augustine Agundu, Commander, Special Task Force in charge of security on the Plateau, said that the evacuation of the water started on Sept. 22, after intelligence reports indicated the possible location of the vehicle.
Agundu explained that Alkali was caught up in a fracas at Dura, when irate youths blocked roads and attacked travellers following an invasion of the community on Sept. 2, during which 13 persons were killed.
“We started this search on Sept. 22, when we were ordered by the Chief of Army Staff to find the missing officer.
“The officer, who retired in June 2018, after 35 years of service, was travelling to Bauchi when he ran into the mob.
“Immediately we got information about his movement, we swung into action to find him. The intelligence report convinced us that this pond was where he was dumped.
“There are about 32 abandoned mining sites in this community; for us to single this one out shows that a lot of intelligence gathering was done.
“On the first day of the operation, some women tried to stop us, claiming that the pond was their source of drinking water. They also said that the pond was their ancestral water, but we ignored them.
“This pond contains a lot of hidden secrets. There are four more cars that we have discovered inside. We are determined to unravel all the secrets in it,” he said.
The GOC, 53 Army Division, Maj. Gen. Benson Akinroluyo, while reacting to the discovery, confirmed that the car belongs to the missing Army General.
He,however, said that the body had yet to be found.
“The search for the body will continue immediately,” he said, and advised members of the community to go about their lawful duties.
“The Army will not intimidate anyone on these findings. The vehicle is indeed that of missing Alkali. We have not seen the body, but the registration number on the car is his own.
“The Army T-Shirt we found in the car has his name tag on it, so I can confidently confirm that all the things we have found here belong to him.
“The army is a professional body which carries out its operation according to best global practices and human rights. We will not arrest anyone not involved.
“Our intelligence pointed to where his vehicle was pushed to, so you should know that we have credible intelligence on who was involved and we will get them arrested,” he said.
North Korea’s foreign minister told the United Nations on Saturday continued sanctions were deepening its mistrust in the United States.
The country says there was no way the country would give up its nuclear weapons unilaterally under such circumstances.
Ri Yong Ho told the world body’s annual General Assembly that North Korea had taken “significant goodwill measures” in the past year.
Such measures were, stopping nuclear and missiles tests, dismantling the nuclear test site, and pledging not to proliferate nuclear weapons and nuclear technology.
“However, we do not see any corresponding response from the U.S.,” he said.
“Without any trust in the U.S. there will be no confidence in our national security and under such circumstances there is no way we will unilaterally disarm ourselves first.”
While Ri reprised familiar North Korean complaints about Washington’s resistance to a “phased” approach to denuclearisation under which North Korea would be rewarded as it took gradual steps.
His statement appeared significant in that it did not reject unilateral denuclearisation out of hand as Pyongyang has done in the past.
Ri referred to a joint statement issued by Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump at a first ever summit between a serving U.S. president and a North Korean leader in Singapore on June 12.
At that time, Kim pledged to work toward “denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula” while Trump promised guarantees of North Korea’s security.
North Korea has been seeking a formal end to the 1950-53 Korea War, but the United States has said Pyongyang must give up its nuclear weapons first.
Washington has also resisted calls to relax tough international sanctions on North Korea.
“The U.S. insists on the ‘denuclearisation-first’ and increases the level of pressure by sanctions to achieve their purpose in a coercive manner, and even objecting to the ‘declaration of the end of war,’” Ri said.
“The perception that sanctions can bring us on our knees is a pipe dream of the people who are ignorant about us.
”But the problem is that the continued sanctions are deepening our mistrust.”
Ri made no mention of plans for a second summit between Kim and Trump that the U.S. leader highlighted at the United Nations earlier in the week.
The minister instead highlighted three meetings between Kim and South Korean leader Moon Jae-in in the past five months.
He added: “If the party to this issue of denuclearisation were South Korea and not the U.S., the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula would not have come to such a deadlock.”
This year at the United Nations, Trump, who last year threatened to “totally destroy” North Korea, heaped praise on Kim for his courage in taking steps to disarm.
However, he said much work still had to be done and sanctions must remain in place until North Korea denuclearises.
On Wednesday, Trump said he did not have a time frame for this, saying “If it takes two years, three years or five months – doesn’t matter.”
China and Russia argue that the U.N. Security Council should reward Pyongyang for steps taken.
However, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told the U.N. Security Council on Thursday that: “Enforcement of Security Council sanctions must continue vigorously.
The Security Council has unanimously boosted sanctions on North Korea since 2006 in a bid to choke off funding for Pyongyang’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.
Pompeo met Ri on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly and said afterwards that he would visit Pyongyang again next month to prepare for a second summit.
Pompeo has visited North Korea three times already this year.
Moon told an event in New York on the sidelines of the U.N. meeting that declaring a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War would encourage North Korea to move further with denuclearise.
He said Kim had told him the “corresponding measures” he was seeking were security guarantees Trump pledged in Singapore and moves toward normalisation of relations with Washington.
Some members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abia have raised concern over the omission of the names of prominent stakeholders, including Chief Orji Uzor Kalu, from the approved party register for Sunday’s governorship primaries in the state.
The Chairman of the party, Chief Donatus Nwankpa, said at a meeting for aspirants in Umuahia on Saturday that the register of members in Ohafia Local Government Area was not in the list approved by the national secretariat of the party.
Nwankpa also said that some wards in Umunneochi and Bende state constituencies were also omitted.
However, he said that the national secretariat screened and cleared all the aspirants to stand for the primaries, adding that the State Working Committee (SWC) would abide by the decision.
He also said that the SWC would liaise with the committee from the national secretariat to give waivers to the affected members to enable them to take part in the exercise.
The information, however, jolted some of the aspirants, who feared that the development would affect their fortunes at the exercise.
In his reaction, a frontline governorship aspirant, Mr Uche Ogah, called for urgent steps to remedy the situation in order to ensure that thousands of his supporters, who defected with him from the Peoples Democratic Party to APC, were not disenfranchised.
A House of Representatives aspirant, Mr Ben Kalu, said that the names of some prominent members of the party, including that of Kalu, were not in the approved register.
Kalu said that the party constitution was explicit in Article 1: Sub 3 on waiver, saying that most of the affected aspirants did not apply to the national secretariat of the party for waiver as provided by the constitution.
He said that the omission, if not properly addressed, would open the window of opportunity for a series of litigations in the aftermath of the exercise.
The members later moved into a closed door meeting, where they resolved that the issue should be handled by the national committee, in conjunction with the SWC, ahead of the exercise.
Meanwhile, Nwankpa has assured the meeting that the party would provide a level playing field for all the aspirants for the primaries.
He urged them to be of good conduct during and after the exercise, saying that the ultimate objective of the party was to move to the Government House in 2019.
The party chairman further warned against any acts, including the use of arms and thugs to disrupt the peaceful conduct of the exercise.
“I have been informed that some aspirants have been stockpiling arms and recruiting thugs for the primaries,” he said.
He warned the aspirants not to do anything untoward or shed the blood of innocent people for the sake of party’s ticket.
Nwankpa said that party chieftains “with impeccable character and integrity” would be deployed in all the wards to collate the results at the end of the exercise.
In his brief remark, Sen. Chris Adighije, appealed to all the aspirants to ensure that the party remained united at the end of the exercise in order for them to work harmoniously for success during the general elections.
Reacting to the omission of his name in a telephone interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Kalu said that his name was in the manual register at the ward.
Kalu, who is aspiring for Abia North Senatorial seat, said that it was imperative that the party resorted to the register at the ward, subject to the authentication of the state secretariat.
“The party should use the manual register, which is at the ward. It should be authenticated by the Secretary of the party for use at the primaries,” he said.
NAN reports that the meeting was attended by four governorship aspirants, including former Speaker of the House of Assembly, Chief Martins Azubuike, Friday Nwosu, Ogah and Paul Ikonne.
However, three other governorship aspirants, former Deputy Gov. Chris Akomas, Chief Ikechi Emenike and Amb. Okey Emuche did not attend.
A Presidential hopeful of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), and currently Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, has said that government would develop the solid mineral sector in Nasarawa state and other parts of the country.
Speaking when he met with delegates and leaders of the PDP in Akwanga, Nasarawa state Friday night, Tambuwal described the state as a “strategic state with the best human and mineral resources” and promised to implement policies that will help achieve her potentials, if elected president of Nigeria.
A statement by Tambuwal Campaign Media Office, Saturday, signed by Spokesman, Dr. Okey Ikechukwu, said the aspirant promised not to pay lip service to the development of the solid minerals sector.
“The time has come to convert the proximity of Nasarawa state to the seat of the Federal Government, Abuja, into real economic and developmental gains for the people of the state.
“I am here today to tell you that the privilege of proximity to the seat of power will give you the reward of deserved gains under my leadership”, Tambuwal assured.
The presidential contender, who is the immediate past Speaker House of Representatives told the PDP delegates that his administration will bring comprehensive and lasting solutions to the menace of farmers/herdsmen violence in the Nasarawa/Benue axis if given the opportunity to serve as president.
This, he explained, is by adopting a specific framework for the area that will identify the root of the challenges and deal with them comprehensively.
He noted that the framework that would work in Nasarawa may not work in Zamfara or any other state, adding that his government will not adopt a “one solution approach of the current government, “which he said, has failed to bring lasting peace.
Tambuwal said if elected President, “Nigeria will have a leader that will make the her proud among the comity of nations, “a leader that has the credential of togetherness, visionary leadership, bridge-building and a leader that will not take decisions shrouded in ethnic and religious biases.
“From my experience and exposure and broad world view, and having visited and interacted with people in all the 360 federal constituencies, as Speaker, I have full understanding of the complexity of Nigeria’s unique diversity, and I know that our strength is in our diversity. But we need a leader that has the ability, understanding and willingness to unify this great nation and bring her to the path of peace and progress because Nigeria has never been this polarised along ethnic and religious lines. We must say no to clannishness. Nigeria belongs to all and everyone has the right to live and prosper in any part of the country without fear,” Tambuwal said.
Responding on behalf of the delegates, one of Tambuwal’s former colleagues in the House of Representatives, who hails from Nasarawa, Mohammed Onawo Ogoshi, extolled Tambuwal’s leadership credentials, describing him as a credible leader.
For his part, the Nasarawa state PDP chairman, Francis Ino Kila, also disclosed that Nasarawa State hosts 90 percent of the federal workers in Abuja, said “your antecedents recommend you for national leadership. Your former colleague here has confirmed that you are one dependable Nigerian who always seeks the common good and our collective national interest”.
Gov. Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, south-south Nigeria
Gov. Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, south-south Nigeria
By Our Reporter
Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, has promised to immediately commence the rebuilding of the popular Fruit Garden Market gutted by fire, Thursday night. The market is located at Kaduna Street, in the D-Line area of Port Harcourt.
He spoke when he visited the burnt market with some members of the State Executive Council (SEC) yesterday night to inspect the burnt market. Properties worth millions of Naira were lost to the fire.
There were reports that personnel from the state fire service did not respond to emergency calls on time which caused the fire to spread throughout the market, burning all shops and wares.
The governor expressed dismay that some youths in the area attacked personnel of the Rivers State Fire Service who had come to put out the fire.
The youths who were angry that the Fire Service officers came late pelted them with stones and in the process damaged the windscreen of the fire fighting vehicle. The state’s fire service personnel were said to have fled from the scene for fear of viciously attacked.
Governor Wike admonished: “Nobody is happy. I am not happy. You people should not have pursued those who came to see what they can remedy. As if to say: “You people didn’t do your work. It is not proper. Now, you see what you action have caused. You don’t use anger to solve problems.”
“Traders who have not done anything wrong have lost their businesses. It is a lost to the state. We will look at the immediate and remote causes to ascertain what happened. And see how we can support the traders who have lost their shops and wares and rebuild the market immediately.”
Director of the Rivers State Fire Service, John Chukumachi, denied insinuations that his men didn’t respond on time after they received distress calls from the affected traders because they had all gone home in compliance with the seven days warning strike embarked upon by the organised labour to press home it’s demand for a new enhanced national minimum wage.
He stated that they responded as soon as they were contacted, but regretted that an angry mob pelted them with stones when they arrived at the market and damaged the windscreen of their truck.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Special Duties, Emeka Onowu, has condemned the attack on the personnel of the fire service who had arrived at the Fruit Garden Market to put off the fire.
“We apologise to the traders. We sympathise with them. We all know that there is strike called by the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC. It’s a nationwide strike. The fire fighters are under the civil service union.”
He stated: “Although, they are not supposed to go on strike because they are involved in essential services, I think some of them took advantage of the strike and were not around. But 15 minutes later, they arrived the venue of the fire incident.”
Onowu lamented: “They should have allowed them to salvage whatever they could. The damage would not have been this much. But they were lynched when they arrived. They damaged the truck; smashed the windscreen; and they had to escape from the scene to save their lives.”
Soalabo West, a lawyer and former Governorship aspirant of the PDP sympathised with the traders: “My heart goes out to all who have lost properties and livelihoods in the recent fire that mysteriously engulfed the Fruit Garden Market over the night.”
“It’s a shame that in a modern city like Port Harcourt, we still have markets in ramshackle shanties without public utilities and emergency response systems. There is really nothing like the Rivers State Fire Service as referred to by the Governor and his Commissioner for Special Duties. What we have is a ragtag army of untrained starving men who have neither the skill nor the equipment to fight any serious fires. The people know this and that’s very likely the reason they chased them away when they arrived when the fury of the fire was nearly spent.”
This is a wake-up call for the local government State Government authorities to stand up to their responsibilities to our people. Ordinarily, a forward thinking responsible government should not wait until lives are lost and properties destroyed from easily foreseeable incidents like this before building new markets. But that is what we are saddled with in Rivers State. We definitely can do these things better and differently.
