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Lagos APC members cry foul over Dep.Gov. Hamzat’s appointment as Council Election Chairman as his insincerity and inconsistency in question!

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If what is going round in the political terrain of Lagos state, especially Ifako/Ijaiye Local Government concerning the appointment of the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat as APC Local Government Screening and Council Election Committee Chairman and Primary Elections Committee, then extra care must be taken to a biased imposition of some candidates on the electorate during the primaries in the forthcoming local government election. Stake holders and party members in the above local government are crying foul over Hamzat’s shoddy appointment for very obvious reasons which the top hierarchy of the party at the local, state and national levels must take into full consideration to ensure a hitch free conduct of the primaries. Party members in many local governments, especially in Mushin, Ifalko/Ijaiye and Epe are complaining bitterly of the undue and unfair appointment of Hamzat, given the fact that he is a party leader in Mushin and Epe LGs, and now wants to hijack Ifako/Ijaiye, where his younger brother is purported to be contesting the LG chairmanship seat; they therefore believe that the Deputy Governor will be partial. We refer to the averments of a chieftain of the party in the state, Chief Fouad Oki, where he condemned in very critical terms and asked Hamzat to as a matter of fairness and probity to step down as the council committee chairman
In Oki’s statement, ‘Hamzat is facing a lot of criticism already from many members of the party. Oki said many APC members considered Hamzat and other members of the committee “as a glorified surrogate and a hand of Esau and voice of Jacob in their selection. I demand on behalf of so many party patriots that the Deputy Governor recuse himself from the committee forthwith. The moral implication of his continued membership of the committee will come as a testimony that truly, Governor Babajide Sanwoolu will be denied the conventional right of first refusal next year. The insinuation out there is that Dr. Femi Hamzat was appointed to superintend the nomination of those who will guard and ensure his nomination as the party’s flag bearer next year, a classical case of people wanting to come to equity with very stained and blooded hands. Oki also called on the APC national leadership, the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission, political parties, security agencies, non -governmental organizations as well as the media to rise up and make sure that the forthcoming council election was free and fair. According to him, democracy and popular participation in elections in Lagos State in the last two decades have been facing a crisis of legitimacy and declining confidence. This lack of confidence in the state’s electoral process, he said, had necessitated the need for democratic renewal through increasing citizen participation and transparency. He stated that from the history of local government elections in Lagos State since 2003 till press time, there had been challenges of free, fair and credible elections and citizens were losing the right to vote or the vote counting towards the final electoral outcome. This has caused a fait accompli hence citizen’s lack of interest to participate at elections, because their voices have been strangled and Lagos cannot breathe again, because its jugular has been locked down like it was done to George Floyd by officer Dereck Chauvin in Minnesota, USA recently. .He said in many instances, party candidates especially in APC were declared winners without voting. In other cases, people who did not stand for elections were declared winners. In the particular case of the 2017 local government elections in Lagos State, the loss of franchise by citizens was very widespread leading to what was termed ‘Direct capture of the peoples mandate’ at the Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere.. He therefore called on the national leadership to rise up and intervene on the side of probity, free, fair, transparent and credible nomination process. I invite and urge all people of good conscience to rise up and keep a vigil on the election primary, which the party will organize to choose its flag bearers in Lagos State. After all, Lagos is Nigeria and Nigeria is Lagos, political development and democratic ethos are measured in Nigeria by the political tempo of Lagos. We will not achieve any democratic progress in this country if Lagos continues to be held by its jugular; no meaningful electoral reforms or review will be attained if collectively we do not stand up to demand for a transparent and credible internal democracy in Lagos, particularly, from the leading political party that have created a hegemonic environment over the state.’’ It is therefore expedient of the party’s hierarchy to wade in positively and do the needful to avert an ugly development during the coming LG primaries. In another palpable development that called on the Deputy Governor to prove his Integrity by Ifako Ijaiye residents, APC stakeholders, the good people of Ifako Ijaiye Local Area and political stakeholders within the local government urged the Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat and bonafide indigenes of Ifako Ijaiye to test run his integrity and write his name with golden pen. Hamzat has been alleged of plotting to do everything possible and as well use his power to install his younger brother, the present vice chairman of the council, Hon. Usman Hamzat as the APC candidate for the forthcoming election
According to a resident who confided in our reporter allegedly said, strong members of Usman Camp are saying openly and boasting that the Deputy Governor has assured them during their interactions meeting with him that his younger brother must be the candidate and that shows there must a foul play in the selection of the candidate by the committee. The committee, inaugurated by the party’s Chairman, Chief Tunde Balogun following the release of the statutory election notices published by the Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC.) Balogun reiterated that the announcement of the elections scheduled for July 24 has ignited political activities in the party, with various aspirants canvassing for support. Hamzat had assured the party of living up to expectations and ensure that credible guidelines would be put in place to justify the confidence the party leadership reposed in him. He said the party would present the best candidates that would complement the efforts of the state government in providing the dividends of democracy. Other members of the committee are former deputy governor, Dr. Idiat Oluranti Adebule; Mr. Ademola Sadiq- the state legal adviser; Hon. Adewale Oshun; Hon. Daramola Abayomi; Alh. Ganiyu Sadiq; Mr. Ademola Olisa; Mr. Fatai Lasisi; Mr. Adebiyi Kehinde; Mr. Olabode Olaniyan; Mr. S. A. Sekoni; Mr. Tunde Lawal and Mr. Gani Bello. It is therefore incumbent on leaders of the party in Ifako/Ijaiye to come out and speak with one voice on issues like this by not allowing people with ulterior motive through imposition of candidates for elective offices in the local government, especially by allowing the right peg inside the right hole and by extension infusing transparency and probity in all decision-making processes.

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2027 Elections: Controversy Rocks Coalition as Bode George Slams Atiku, Obi — “You Can’t Serve Two Masters”

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Formet Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Senate President David Mark and other promoters of the coalition under African Democratic Congress (ADC) yesterday came under further attacks for what a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Olabode George, called seeking to serve two masters.

George, a former Deputy National Chairman of PDP, accused Atiku and other party members of moving into ADC without resigning from the party.

He said it was bad enough that Atiku and Mark in particular had to abandon the PDP to its fate after precipitating the crisis that has turned the party into a shadow of its former self.

Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu described the anti-Tinubu coalition as a political distraction which is bound to fail.

Chief George, speaking on Channels Television, said: “You can’t serve two masters, as stated in the Holy Book. You either serve A or you serve B. But to say you are in A and B is a fallacy.”

 

He alleged that Mark and Atiku were some of the architects of the crisis rocking the PDP.

 

Continuing, he said: “It is nothing but existential imbecility. Or sometimes what is called existential docility. What is it that they are all going there?

“This is your father’s house. The house made you, brought you into the limelight. You gain every laurel and recognition from this same house. And because there is a little crisis, is leaving the cultural thing to do? No, you sit in there.

 

“If you have a house that is leaking, do you run out? No, you are the landlord.

 

“Do they have a concept? What is the strategy they have? That is a classless strategy.

“When we had the last convention, General Buhari had just finished eight years. Then Atiku Abubakar wanted to compete (but) we said no; a northerner had just finished eight years. We had (Peter) Obi in the South. This was the beginning of the crisis.

 

“David Mark was the chairman of that convention and Iyorchia Ayu was the chairman of the party. Of course, you cannot do things like that and get away with it. I warned against it at that point.”

 

Leave LP now, join Obi in ADC, Abure tells Gov Otti

Abure in a statement yesterday asked Otti to stop deceiving the public that he has not joined the other faction’s Caretaker Committee in the coalition party.

The leadership of the LP, according to him, is in a hurry to recalibrate the party ahead of 2027.

Abure said the LP would not fall for Otti’s deception again.

“How can he be in the Labour Party when recently he conducted the local government election in Abia State with Zenith Labour Party as his party?” he wondered.

He added: “He should not think that every Nigerian is bereft of knowledge. He formed and is funding the illegal caretaker committee that has formally joined the ADC.

 

“The icing on the cake was the Wednesday unveiling of the coalition where every member of the caretaker committee formally joined the ADC.

 

“We are shocked that Otti is paradoxically trying to mislead members of the Labour Party to say that he is still a member of the Labour Party. In any event, we had earlier suspended him indefinitely from the party because of his anti-party activities.

“Labour Party is on the move again. We have the best brand in Nigeria, and we are eager to engage young Nigerians who have the interest of the nation at heart.

 

“We are therefore willing to let go of everyone, no matter how high, whose interest in Nigeria is self-driven, opportunistic politicians who are not principled.

 

“Labour Party is not and cannot be in any coalition because coalitions of political parties are ideologically bereft. It is a marriage of political strange fellows whose only agenda is power-grabbing.

“It is selfish in nature, and no true democrat will agree to such an amalgam. Labour Party is therefore in a hurry to sanitise itself of people without character.”

 

Sanwo-Olu: Anti-Tinubu coalition will fail

 

Governor Sanwo-Olu told a group of journalists and politicians in Lagos Nigerians would support President Bola Tinubu to ensure that the gains of his bold reforms are fully realised.

He described the ADC as nothing but a mere distraction which President Tinubu should ignore.

“Nigerians will never go back to Egypt,” Sanwo-Olu said.

 

“The target is to distract the Commander-in-Chief and derail the social and economic gains that we can see and feel. But President Tinubu knows the game and will never fall for their bait.”

 

In Sanwo-Olu’s view, President Tinubu’s track record, achievements and reform agenda are strong enough to stand above any narrative being crafted to derail his administration or his prospects for re-election.

He cited the stability in the foreign exchange market, students loan scheme, massive infrastructural projects, more revenue for states  after the removal of fuel subsidy, tax reforms, increased oil production and the national minimum wage, among others.

 

“President Tinubu is not only a builder of men but a visionary leader whose impact is evident across the nation,” Sanwo-Olu said.

 

Asked if the President and his All Progressives Congress (APC) were bothered about ADC and its promoters, Sanwo-Olu said: “No one should be concerned or distracted by what ADC or any other group is attempting to orchestrate. The truth is clear, the people can see the difference, and history is on his side.

“They have nothing but bitterness to offer; they are bound together by their illogical resentment against President Tinubu, not by any edifying ideology. They will run out of steam.

Asked what advice he had for the President, the governor said:”Simple. The President should stay the course. Millions of well-meaning Nigerians across party lines and compatriots who understand what it takes to govern the most populous black nation on earth and revive a troubled economy are behind him and trust his leadership.”

“We know how far we’ve come under President Tinubu’s leadership. The focus should remain on delivering results, deepening reforms and building a stronger Nigeria. Any attempt to shake that foundation will be futile.”

Coalition proof Tinubu’s policies ended business as usual, says Lloyd

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dr. Chidi Lloyd, said that the ongoing coalition against President Bola Tinubu is a proof that the President’s policies are working, effective and no longer business as usual.

 

Lloyd, former Emohua Local Government Chairman in Rivers State, said the coalition would only compel many Nigerians to believe in the administration of Tinubu because his policies had displaced established politicians.

 

He said the fact that most individuals, who had held various offices in the country without making significant positive impact, were forced out of their comfort zone for a coalition, was an indication that the country was getting it right.

Describing the coalition as dead on arrival, Lloyd said all members of the group were not foreigners but known old politicians who have been in the corridors of power since 1999.

 

He said Nigerians were wiser now and would not allow same people that foisted a system that never worked on them to return to power.

 

He took a swipe at some individual members of the coalition, saying they lacked moral rectitude to preach to Nigerians about a better country.

Lloyd said: “The coalition is dead on arrival. We didn’t see any foreigner. If the coalition were formed by citizens of America or Britain, we would have been worried. The coalition still has the same faces, the same old faces since 1999.

 

“I agree that what we have is a gathering of displaced politicians. We have a former vice-president; we have someone that was a Senate President for eight years. He was in a position to change Nigeria. His daughter won an election under an opposition party. It means his own political party is not popular in his federal constituency. “

 

 ADA Registration: Northern groups tackle El-Rufai, Amaechi over comments on INEC

The Arewa Youth Consultative Forum (AYCF) and the Northern Awareness Network (NAN), yesterday faulted former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, and former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, for accusing the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of frustrating the registration of the All Democratic Alliance (ADA).

The AYCF in a statement by its President-General, Yerima Shettima, said Nigeria’s electoral process is governed by clear rules and procedures meant to uphold transparency, fairness and accountability, insisting that Amaechi’s claims of deliberate obstruction by INEC were not only baseless but also reflected a poor understanding of the registration framework.

 

“INEC’s requirements, such as submission of office addresses and proper identification of party officers, are standard protocols that all parties must meet to be duly registered,” Shettima noted.

 

“It is critical that all political entities, including the ADA, comply with these guidelines to preserve the integrity of our democracy.”

The AYCF leader described as “disheartening” the resort by Amaechi and El-Rufai to what he termed sensational claims, instead of focusing on addressing the substantive compliance issues facing their new party.

 

“The ADA’s struggles to meet INEC’s clear requirements should not be twisted into tales of bias or conspiracy by the commission,” Shettima stressed.

 

“What we see here is a need for diligent preparation on the part of political actors.”

On his part, Chairman of NAN, Salihu Suleiman, warned that expecting INEC to compromise its standards for ADA would be unrealistic and a dangerous subversion of democratic principles.

 

Suleiman said El-Rufai’s skepticism over INEC’s willingness to register the ADA typified a growing habit among some political leaders to question electoral institutions instead of engaging them constructively. He cautioned that such rhetoric could undermine trust in the electoral process and disenfranchise voters.

 

Both groups urged Amaechi, El-Rufai and other political actors to exercise restraint in their public statements, build trust in democratic institutions and approach their political ambitions within the framework of established laws. They reiterated their commitment to supporting a fair, transparent and credible electoral process in Nigeria

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Breaking : APC National Chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, Resigns

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Ganduje, a former Governor of Kano State, cited health reasons for his resignation, stating that he needs to “focus on his well-being.”

Mr. Ganduje’s time as APC chairman has been fraught with controversy and internal challenges.

While his resignation letter attributes his decision to health-related concerns, sources close to the situation suggest that mounting political tensions within the party may have influenced his move to step aside.

There have also been allegations of financial misconduct tied to his leadership, with some party members reportedly protesting against what they described as “excessive financial demands” from his office

 

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BREAKING: At last, Fubara meets with Amaewhule, Rivers lawmakers, as they shared jokes and laughter

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Suspended Rivers Governor Siminalayi Fubarahas met with the suspended Speaker of the House of Assembly, Martins Amaewhule and other aggrieved state lawmakers.

Multiple sources confirmed on Thursday evening the meeting held and ended with Fubara holding the hands of Amaewhule as they shared jokes and laughter.

It was gathered that the meeting, which was held in Abuja, was the first reconciliatory move between the governor and the state lawmakers.

A source, who spoke in confidence, said Fubara’s engagement with the lawmakers was fruitful but added that an enlarged peace meeting would hold to discuss peace terms.

“The suspended Governor is determined to make peace. He has started the real engagement,” the source said.Fubara was suspended from office on March 19 following a state of emergency declared by President Bola Tinubu and ratified by the National Assembly to stop the escalating political crisis in the state.

 

The President appointed former Naval Chief, Vice-Admiral lbok Ete-Ibas for the first six months as an administrator for Rivers to allow the warring politicians to reconcile their differences.

 

Though Fubara had met with his estranged benefactor, Nyesom Wike and President Tinubu on the Rivers situation, the Thursday meeting he held with the lawmakers was said to be the most important step towards genuine reconciliation.

Wike had said on different occasions that to actualise genuine reconciliation Fubara must meet with the various stakeholders he offended especially members of the House of Assembly, whom he withheld their salaries and allowances for over two years.

 

It was learnt the Thursday elicited applauses from various stakeholders in the state including the simplified family of Fubara with many of them describing it as a step in the right direction.

 

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