PDP Will Emerge Victorious In Kogi – Dept Gov

Tokunbo Awoniyi, the deputy governor of Kogi state has expressed confidence that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will emerge victorious in the gubernatorial election which took place today, November 21, in the state if the election is free and fair. The All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate at today’s gubernatorial election in Kogi state, Abubakar Audu Speaking to Vanguard shortly after casting his vote along with his wife, at the Ileteju Ward 002, in Mopa, Mopamuro local government, he said judging by the projection of the PDP, the party was sure of scoring about 55% of votes cast. The deputy governor however raised fears that the electoral exercise might fall short of being free and fair. He said: “Before now, we had reliable information that a political party would jammed the card readers to justify the use of manual accreditation so that they can thumprint the ballot papers. We petitioned INEC on this and it seems our prediction is right.” He alleged that there were indications that 10 buses carrying ‘foreign’ body were seeing entering the state. He raised the possibility that the All Progressives Congress (APC) might rig the election. Meanwhile the Kogi state governorship election has been adjudged as peaceful in all the 21 Local government area of the state aside some little upheaval in Anyigba, Dekina LG where hoodlums attack some polling units. The main contenders in the Kogi gubernatorial election are incumbent governor, Idris Wada of the PDP and former governor Abubakar Audu of the APC. While official results from the Independent National Election Commission (INEC) has not yet being announced but in poll conducted by Naij,com, Audu (APC) scored 53%, while his rival, Wada (PDP) scored 47%

Wike’s retirement of 14 perm secs, agency closure needless, wicked – APC

The Rivers State chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC) has said that the compulsory retirement of 14 Permanent Secretaries in the state civil service by Gov. Nyesom Wike as an act conceived and executed in bad faith. In a statement issued by its Publicity Secretary, Chris Finebone, the party alleged that the action was aimed at punishing people, relations or spouses of those perceived to have worked for the Chibuike Amaechi administration or sympathetic to the APC. “The APC considers the sudden retirement of these exemplary senior civil servants as a vindictive act by Governor Nyesom Wike. Whereas these individuals toiled to keep the civil service of the state, which is the engine room of government working for the good of the people, Nyesom Wike decided to punish them for doing their legitimate duties as civil servants. Instead of acknowledging and rewarding them with recognition, the governor decided to summarily send them away on compulsory retirement just to exact needless pound of flesh”, the party said. The APC also noted that Gov. Wike has formally shut down the Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency (RSSDA). “Instead of the governor tasking his intellect for once to find an acceptable solution to the matter or doing the very basic thing of paying the seven months salaries owed the RSSDA workers from the numerous bank loans he has collected, he rather chose the primitive option of closing down the agency and had the audacity to formally announce the mean decision yesterday”, it said. The APC condemned the actions by Wike and urged those directly affected to remain strong and prayerful as “God will ultimately see off the Wike rogue regime. There is no doubt at all that God will complete what he has started by getting the so-called election of Governor Nyesom Wike finally dumped into the abyss of history very soon”.

Kogi guber: Card reader fails to read Wada’s finger print, wife’s name missing

The Governor of Kogi State, Captain Idris Wada, and his wife had issues with their accreditation in the ongoing governorship election in the state. While the card reader could not read Wada’s finger print, the name of his wife was missing from the voters register. From Ajetachi, a town in Dekina Local Government Area, comes a report that hoodlums are wreaking havoc and attacking voters. Soldiers have been drafted in to contain the situation.

Buhari’s corruption figures staggering, untrue – Jonathan

Former President Goodluck Jonathan on Thursday in Washington, United States faulted claims made by President Muhammadu Buhari during his recent visit to the United States that $150 billion was lost to corruption in Nigeria under previous administrations. He also said that some of the corruption allegations against his administration were grossly exaggerated. Jonathan, who spoke in the United States on Thursday at an event titled: “Presidential Elections and Democratic Consolidation in Africa: Case Studies on Nigeria and Tanzania” and co-hosted by National Democratic Institute (NDI) and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said in as much as he would not join issues with the new government, the figures made public were staggering and untrue. “Corruption is now used for political campaign. During the first visit of President Buhari to the United States, he said that about $150 billion was lost to corruption, though he didn’t mention me, he said by previous administration. The figures are staggering and untrue, another governor said someone stole a million barrel of oil per day”. Jonathan stated that like most governments around the world, there might have been issues of corruption during his time as President. However, he maintained that the story was being unnecessarily embellished, adding that there are ongoing investigations and court processes that would establish the truth. For instance, he frowned at the allegation that some officials in his administration were stealing one million barrels of crude oil a day at a time when Nigeria’s production peaked at 2.25 million barrels. “To claim that half of that was being stolen on a daily basis doesn’t add up; otherwise the government wouldn’t have functioned at all to even be able to pay salaries,” Jonathan said. The former President also faulted the $6 billion which one of the officials that travelled with President Buhari to the United States (Adams Oshiomhole) claimed was stolen by one minister under him. “We all know that US has denied being the source of this information”, he said. On the alleged misappropriation of the sum of $49.8 billion within a 12-month period while he was in office, Jonathan dismissed it as being outrageous. He said: “In Nigeria, if you lose $59.8 billion in a year, federal and state governments will not pay salaries,” he said, adding that there is no way Nigerian budget could accommodate such a loss without the country grounding to a halt. “Of course, we brought international audit teams, forensic auditors and they didn’t see that. It is good that that issue has now been laid to rest as those who first raised it had admitted that they were in error.” Jonathan also spoke on the issue of security contracts for which his former security adviser, Sambo Dasuki, is currently facing charges and the believe that his administration spent a sizable amount of money equipping all the security and intelligence outfits in the country over his five-year period in the presidency. But Jonathan at the NDI forum stated that his administration never awarded a single contract that was worth $2 billion, stressing that the economy couldn’t have supported such huge amount of money to be awarded at once. “At no time did I award a single contract of $2 billion for procurement of weapons,” he emphasized. While addressing the issue of weak African institutions, Jonathan observed that African democracies were becoming stronger, adding the situation would have greatly improved in the next decade. He further noted that although some leaders in Africa were still able to manipulate their way to elongate their tenure, the people are increasingly raising their awareness and African parliaments are becoming stronger to be able to resist such tendencies in future. He made reference to Burkina Faso, where he noted that although the parliament approved an extra term for the former president, the people resisted that, forcing the President and speaker of the parliament to go on exile. Read more here https://www.today.ng/news/national/41346/buharis-corruption-figures-staggering-untrue-jonathan

CCT TRIAL: Saraki Gets Triple Attack From Top Govt Officials

The Senate President, Bukola Saraki, on Friday, November 20, reportedly received a triple attack from government officials following his trial at the code of conduct tribunal. The Nation reports that the inspector general of police, Solomon Arase, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the attorney general of the federation, Abubakar Malami, have warned the Senate president not to politicise his trial at the tribunal. The trio criticised the Senate president’s claim that his trial was politically motivated and advised him to channel his strength towards defending the charge levelled against him instead of alleging political witch-hunting. Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami In a counter affidavit which the attorney general, the EFCC and Arase filed at the Federal High Court, Abuja in response to a new suit by Saraki, they denied being motivated by any political consideration to initiate the 13-count false asset declaration charge against Saraki at the CCT. They and the director of public prosecution of the federation, Mohammed Diri, and Muslim Hassan, the deputy director in the federal Ministry of Justice, said that the Senate president’s trial was propelled by the outcome of a joint investigation carried out by the EFCC, the Department of State Services (DSS), the Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) between 2003 and 2015. According to them, the investigation showed that Saraki had lied in the information he gave on the CCB forms he completed between 2003 and 2011 in Ikoyi and Ikeja, Lagos state, as he used third party companies which he had interests in with the intention of hiding his assets. They listed the companies as Tiny Tee Limited, Vitti Oil Limited, Skyview Properties Limited and Carlisle properties. The AGF, EFCC, IGP, Diri and Hassan further stated that Saraki also lied in his claim that an official of the federal Ministry of Justice, Bulus Micheal, disclosed to him that his trial was politically motivated. They said there is no official of the ministry that answers to such a name. IGP Solomon Arase “The charges preferred against him before the CCT were based on the conviction that a prima facie case was disclosed after investigation and not on any political consideration. The 1st, 2nd, 4th, 10th and 11th respondents (AGF, EFCC, IGP, Diri and Hassan) are not politicians and they have no interest in who becomes the Senate President. “The 1st, 2nd, 4th, 10th and 11th respondents do not take instructions from any politician, but are public officers and public offices, who are only interested in the performance of their statutory and constitutional duties. “No one has made or is making any effort to trump up allegations against the applicant, but the charges that were preferred against him were preferred upon being satisfied that a prima facie case was disclosed against him,”they said. The AGF, the EFCC and the IGP denied the Senate president’s claim that his rights were being violated with his trial at the CCT, pointing out that the charges were validly proffered against him. On October 30, the Court of Appeal in its judgement upheld the CCT’s position that it has the jurisdiction to try the Senate president following the charges levelled against him. In its notice of objection, the trio challenged the court’s jurisdiction to hear the Senate president’s new suit, saying the reliefs he was requesting in the fresh suit are already in a similar suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/775/2015, which he earlier filed before the court, and was recently assigned to Justice Evoh Chukwu of Court 8 for hearing. It was reported that the Senate president in the fresh suit is asking the court to stop all the respondents, comprising the CCT and CCB from continuing his trial on the grounds that they are violating his rights. Meanwhile, Sahara Reporters reported that the supreme court judge, Justice John Fabiyi, who headed four other judges in ordering the stoppage of Saraki’s trial, is expected to retire in two weeks’ time.

#KogiDecides: Voters Resort To Desperate Measures Due To Fuel Scarcity

The recent fuel scarcity looming across the country has forced electorates in Kogi state to opted for water transportation in order to enable them participate in today’s gubernatorial election taking place in the state. The fuel scarcity bedeviling the nation has taken its tow on the people of the state who have had to bother about how they will cast their votes in the much anticipated poll. Owing to the high cost of road transportation occasioned by the scarcity, voters in the state now see the water ways as a convenient and cheaper way of moving around to be part of the process of choosing the next governor of the state. A businessman, Mallam Saliu Mohammed, told NAN that it would take between 40 and 45 minutes to get to Dekina from Shintakun, adding that the boat ride across the river enabled him to tidy things up at his shop in Lokoja before living to perform his civic right in Dekina. In the same vein, Chairman of Private Boat Owners Association, Ganaja branch, Mr Siaka Musa, attested to the business boom his memmbers have experienced due to today’s voting, noting that If not for the election, people would not have resorted to the water ways in this manner. “This is our own way of contributing to the success of the election. People moved through this place well, well, today, even more than December period and we are also making a lot of money. We thank God for this,he said. Meanwhile, the main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party has accused the All Progressives Congress-led federal government of trying to use the military to rig the gubernatorial election in the state. However, the deputy inspector general of police deployed to oversee security in the state, Leroy Wamaka has vowed to deal with anyone who foments trouble during the exercise. Speaking at a media chat, the DIG who is also in charge of operations at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, said there will be restriction of movement on Saturday, November 21, from 6:30am till the election exercise is concluded.

#KogiDecides: Voting To Commence By 1pm Across All LG

Naij can authoritatively inform that voting will kick off across all local government areas of Kogi state by 1pm. Our correspondent on ground reports that accreditation is still going on at all polling units across the state, but it is expected to end by 12.00noon for voting to commence after one hour. In Lokoja, the state capital, the turn out is slightly above average, while there has been calm and peaceful discharge of duties by the law enforcement agencies. Naij can also report that military men have been withdrawn from the roads within the state capital and have been replaced by mobile police men, civil defence officers, road safety officials and the Navy. So far, the accreditation remains peaceful in the state with no record of violence. There are also claims that ‎money is being given out at some polling units before the real voting starts, however, Naij.com cannot independently verify this claim as at the time of filling in this report. CREDIT: NAIJ.COM

I needed boats to transport plantain, fish, snail given to me by Bayelsa people – Dickson

•Dickson goes emotional about his campaigns •Says Yenagoa Airport will soon be operational After enjoying rapturous receptions from his supporters during his recent campaign tour, Gov Henry Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State, and the PDP flagbearer in the December 5 gubernatorial election, took a break to speak to reporters. Excerpts: Having gone round the state in which areas would you your government has benefited the people? It was touching to see school children wearing uniforms that my government supplied, carrying banners in appreciation of their Governor and praying for me for the investments I am making for their future. That is a lasting dividend of democracy: the investment in the future of the state, in the hearts and minds, not of a few Yenagoa-based critics and Abuja-based politicians. I saw hope and appreciation on the faces of our people; we got gifts from every community and political leaders. Our people do not know any other political party contesting for this election other than me as the candidate of the PDP. I saw the massive outpouring of genuine love and support from the chiefs, elders, youths, women groups. Part of what I am doing and have been doing is to quietly in my own way change the way politics is played in this state. The level of maturity and tolerance I have brought to bear on the politics is such that you see the opposition campaigning against me as vigorously as I am also campaigning. That is happening for the first time. I do not see anybody seriously contesting against me, not even my good friend and brother Sylva and his APC. They are only holding meetings in Abuja and threatening their own fathers and mothers and brothers that they will use federal forces to come and overrun their own people for their own purpose not for the development of our state. It is not in every area that you satisfied your people. Which areas would you attend to if re-elected? By the grace of God and by the support of the people, we have started a lot of mega life-changing projects. I came in here to make maximum impact with the available resources and time. Unfortunately our finances dropped precipitously. Last month, we got N4.2b and after paying Sylva’s bond which we will keep paying every month till 2017, we managed to pay salaries, pensions. We cannot even pay allowances of people working with us, and we are not alone, as all the states and even the Federal Government are affected. Therefore, the second term is to be dedicated to completion of most of these life-changing projects that are almost at completion stage because every project has a gestation period. People like to see magic because of the energy we started with and because we had resources we were putting everything in and now people think I am distracted. I am not; it is a question of finances. Look at the airport, and ask Sylva why he did not do the airport. He played politics with everything; he cleared a site and put a signboard before the first block was laid. Since I took over, I have not fought Sylva; I just drew a line and did things differently. I know what happened to the airport, not to talk of the Nembe/Brass Road that so much money went into. If you drive to Amassoma Road now, you will see the airport. I have awarded the contract for the installation of the navigational instrument. FAAN (Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria) has come to do the certification. In the next couple of months, we will be landing there. Read More At Vanguard

PDP lost last election because of Lack of internal democracy - Gulak

Former political adviser to former President Goodluck Jonathan, Barrister Ahmed Gulak, yesterday revealed that lack of internal democracy and impunity within the party led to the loss. Speaking to journalists in Abuja on vacancy in the position of the National Chairman of PDP, Gulak lamented that the current rebranding efforts by the leadership of the party ahead of the 2019 elections may be futile if its National Working Committee (NWC) was not properly constituted. Gulak, who also said that the Northeast zone which is supposed to produce the National Chairman of the party following the resignation of Adamu Muazu as the party chairman on May 29, 2015 has been marginalised by the Chief Uche Secondus-led leadership of the party, stressed that PDP may not make any impact in the next general elections if the right things were not done in time. He said that despite the constitutional provision of the party which zones the position of National Chairman to the Northeast, the acting chairman of the party has deliberately kept the post vacant six months after the exit of Muazu. Gulak alleged that Secondus and his committee members were working to extend their ýstay to next year against the party’s constitution, warning that such impunity which led to the colossal loss that the party experienced in the last election still reigns in the party. He said: “You are aware that on the 29th of May, 2015 the former chairman of the party, Alhaji Adamu Muazu resigned his position as the party chairman and a vacancy was created by his resignation. By the constitution of the party, somebody from Northeast is supposed to replace Muazu. “I have individually and collectively with the people of Northeast ýgone to the NWC under the acting chairmanship of Uche Secondus to present the demand of the Northeast geo-political zone and all our demands and claims fell on deaf ears. “You can also remember that Senator Ken Nnamani led a group to NWC to tell them that the party organ, especially the NWC and BOT, must be properly constituted since there are vacancies created by the resignation of their former chairman. That also fell on deaf ears. “I have to use all the internal mechanisms of the party to address the issue because as it is today by the constitution of the party, the NWC is not properly constituted because there’s no national chairman and the resignation of Muazu created a vacancy in that organ and replacement from the constitution of our party must come from the Northeast. “I’m from the Northeast. Having exhausted all internal mechanism to ensure that the constitutional provisions are adhered to and complied with and having also neglected, failed and refused to comply with the provision of the constitution, I decided to file an action in court. This is challenging the continued existence of ý NWC without being properly constituted. That is my case in court and it is on behalf of me and the entire Northeast zone consisting of six states that have been excluded and ignored by the Uche Secondus-led committee. “We as a zone will not accept that we are not part of PDP, we as a zone cannot be ignored by Uche Secondus and his members. We as a zone, like all other zones, must be part of mechanism and operations of the PDP. The Northeast zone after the elections has two PDP states, Southwest has two PDP states, South-South all PDP, the Southeast all PDP except Imo State, Northwest has no PDP and it is part and parcel of PDP because it has the National Treasurer and National Organising Secretary. “The entire Northeast zone has nobody in the NWC and as such the constitution does not envisage that. We should not be shortchanged, we should not be excluded.”

Kachikwu not romancing Delta PDP – Group

An oil monitoring group, Niger Delta Indigenous Movement for Radical Change (NDIMRC), has dismissed allegation that the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, was romancing the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Delta State. The group said that it was foolhardy for anyone to allege that Kachikwu was romancing the PDP in Delta State at a time the Minister was settling down to tackle issues bordering on the nation’s oil and gas industry. A group, Buhari Movement for Change (BMC), had recently written an open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari, entitled “Urgent Appeal To President Muhammadu Buhari to Save Delta State Chapter of All Progressives Congress, APC from Extinction over Ibe Kachikwu’s Romance With The Leadership of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Delta State Chapter.” But reacting to this in a statement on Friday signed by its President, Nelly Emma; Secretary, John Sailor and Public Relations Officer, Stanley Mukoro and made available to THEWILL, the group, which gave Kachikwu a clean bill of health, said it was too early in the day to call for the head of the Minister and therefore urged BMC to allow the Minister to settle down for his national assignment rather than distracting him at this early stage and crucial period NDIMRC however implored President Buhari to ignore the group, saying its members were out to give the Minister a bad name while at the same time seeking self-recognition. The group said it was not true that the Minister was romancing the Delta State Chapter of the PDP, imploring President Buhari not to take the allegation against the Minister seriously. “We want to draw your attention to the recent publication by the group going by the name Buhari Movement for Change (BMC) in which they faulted you for the choice of Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu as the Minister of State for Petroleum and also accusing him of romancing the leadership of the Delta State Chapter of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). “Mr. President, ordinarily, we would not have joined issues with the Buhari Movement for Change (BMC). But we are constrained to react to the unwarranted accusation of Dr. Ibe Kachikwu in order to put the record straight. “Your Excellency, you made a good choice in the recent appointment of Dr. Ibe Kachikwu as Minister of State for Petroleum, a highly respected technocrat. Your choice of him was a good one and we want to give you a pat on the back for making the wise choice. Thank you Mr. President. “We want to let you know Mr. President that Dr. Ibe Kachikwu who is from Delta North Senatorial District with the State Governor, Senator Ifeanyi Arthur Okowa, is not romancing the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Delta State. He is a clean man and should be spared of the accusation by the so-called group seeking recognition,” the group said. It therefore urged President Buhari to disregard what it called the lies raised in the publication against the Minister, saying “This is the time to allow the respected Minister to settle down for national assignment and not time for unnecessary distraction that will not do us any good.”