Crime Facts

2023 Presidency: APC Victory Will Threaten Nigeria’s Existence – Pastor Giwa

  The Senior Pastor of Awaiting The Second Coming Of Christ Ministry, Adewale Giwa has disclosed that if the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, should emerge winner of the 2023 presidential election, the existence of the country might be threatened. Giwa stated that Nigerians should be vigilant in preventing the APC from regaining power in order to save the country from collapsing. The pastor, who stated this on Wednesday, emphasised that an event that will recreate Nigeria for better would soon happen. He said, “This is the time reasonable Nigerians should put their heads together to resist the policies of some politicians who always think of themselves. Nigeria is above the interest of any individual. “An unexpected event will happen that will recreate and change the name of Nigeria. Until the event happens, there is nobody elected that can proffer solutions to the problems plaguing Nigeria. “I don’t care for Atiku, I don’t care for Obi, I don’t care for Tinubu. They are all birds of a feather. “More importantly, all hands must be on deck to prevent the current ruling party from manipulating its way to power again. “We should forget Nigeria if APC wins the coming presidential election. The country will be forgotten totally if APC should find its way to power again.”

PDP crisis: Atiku arrives London in last minute move to reconcile with WIke, Ayu says party will win 25 states

•Lamido has lost his Political value– Wike •Ayu says victory certain in 25 states •Wike: Rivers PDP opposition mobilises 10million-man-march for Atiku/Okowa ATIKU ABUBAKAR, presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has headed to the UK in an attempt to resolve his rift with Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers state, TheCable reports. Sources close to the former vice-president said Abubakar is billed to meet with the Rivers governor on Thursday. “The PDP presidential candidate headed for London today after arriving Paris yesterday. He is billed to meet with Wike tomorrow in an attempt to resolve the issues between them,” a source said. Also, associates close to the PDP presidential candidate are not happy with the way in which Sule Lamido, former governor of Jigawa, and Babangida Aliyu, former governor of Niger, have criticised Wike and they want Abubakar to call them to order, another insider said. In an interview with Channels Television on Tuesday, Lamido said: “We should forget about Wike.” “Wike is an individual, I don’t think because he is a governor there he has control and monopoly over the peoples of Rivers,” the former Jigawa governor had said. Abubakar’s desperate move to resolve the issues between him and Wike came a day after Bola Tinubu, presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), met with the Rivers governor in Paris, France. Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue; Seyi Makinde of Oyo, Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia, and other PDP stalwarts loyal to the Rivers governor also attended the meeting. The PDP has been in turmoil since it held its presidential primary election in May. Atiku clinched the party’s ticket after the dramatic withdrawal of Tambuwal from the race. Tambuwal had asked his supporters to support the former vice-president. The crisis in the party escalated after Atiku chose Ifeanyi Okowa, governor of Delta, as his running mate Party stakeholders had expressed concerns that Atiku ignored Wike — who was said to have been preferred by a majority of the PDP’s national working committee (NWC) members as the candidate for the position. Both men met weeks ago but they were not able to broker a truce. Lamido has lost his Political value– Wike Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has taken a swipe at the former Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, saying the latter has lost relevance politically. Lamido had while speaking on Channel’s Television ‘Politics Today’ on Tuesday night said there was no need for any reconciliation between Wike and the Peoples Democratic Party presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, saying nobody wronged the Rivers governor. But Wike in a statement through his media aide, Kelvin Ebiri, on Wednesday, described the comments credited to Lamido as disgusting and disdainful. The statement reads,” We have observed with disgust the disdainful remarks made by the former governor of Jigawa State, Alhaji Sule Lamido about Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, during his recent interview on Channels television. “While, we cannot deny that Alhaji Lamido has an inalienable right to his personal opinion, we wish to declare that he, however, lacks the right to malign governor Wike, whose immense contributions to the sustenance of the Peoples Democratic Party are not in dispute. “It is rather appalling that at a time when concerted efforts are being made by lovers of true democracy and the unity of the party, to resolve some inherent contradictions plaguing the PDP, Alhaji Lamido and his cohorts, who have since lost their relevance in the polity, are busy creating friction and schism.” He said Wike has never claimed to be the custodian of the over three million votes in Rivers state. “But as the leader of the PDP and good people of Rivers State, anyone who underrates the governor’s political pedigree or dares to ignore his influence in the state and beyond will be doing so at his own peril. “We wish to remind Alhaji Lamido that governor Wike has never left anyone in doubt about his capacity to sway the voters in Rivers state in a direction that benefits the people and the state, in overall. political pedigree or dares to ignore his influence in the state and beyond will be doing so at his own peril. “We wish to remind Alhaji Lamido that governor Wike has never left anyone in doubt about his capacity to sway the voters in Rivers state in a direction that benefits the people and the state, in overall. “When he speaks, Rivers people will listen, no doubt. Perhaps, Alhaji Lamido thinks Nigerians are suffering from selective amnesia to have forgotten in a hurry, the ignoble role he and his cohorts played between 2014 and 2015, that culminated in the defeat of the PDP in the 2015 general election. “We hope that he is not up in such scheme again to cause a repeat of that history. Otherwise, if Alhaji Lamido has any modicum of conscience, he won’t be making disparaging comments about governor Wike, whom many have described as the pillar of the PDP since 2015,” he added. Continuing, he said, “We wish to state without equivocation that no well-meaning member of the PDP will describe governor Wike as ‘insignificant’ in the affairs of the PDP. With all modesty, only persons plagued by schizophrenia psychosis will ascribe any form of relevance to Alhaji Lamido, under whose leadership the PDP has woefully lost two governorship elections in Jigawa State in quick succession. “Under Lamido’s watch, as a governor of Jigawa State in 2015, the APC governorship candidate, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar, scored a total 648,045 votes to defeat his PDP opponent, Malam Aminu Ringim, who scored a total 479, 447 votes. Worst still, in 2019, governor Abubakar polled 810,933, while the PDP candidate scored 288,356. “Such records depict that Alhaji Lamido cannot and does not have such political following that will benefit the PDP. Those who want electoral victory for the PDP are not dampening the morale required for a political offensive at APC, but Alhaji Lamido is cracking the wall of unity badly. “Let it be

Why Can’t We Channel Abacha Loot To Settle ASUU? Lawmaker Asks

  A member of the House of Representatives Dachung Musa Bagos has suggested that part of the recently returned $23m Abacha loot should be used to settle the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU). Members of the union have been on strike since February 14 over improved welfare, revitalisation of public universities among others. But one bone of contention for academics is the non-payment of university revitalisation funds, amounting to about N1.1 trillion. While the Federal Government says it does not have enough funds to settle the lecturers, Bagos who represents Jos South/Jos East is wondering why the recent Abacha should not be used to settle ASUU. “We have pressing needs. Like now, ASUU has been on strike and the government is trying to settle those issues,” he said during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday. “As a representative of the people, if I have to argue where those funds should be channeled to on the floor, I will say, ‘Why can’t you channel this fund to ASUU so that most of the youths that are at home would go back to school?’ But some of the areas we feel that the executive is channeling those funds are not the immediate needs of Nigerians.” The lawmaker also accused the Federal Government of not carrying the National Assembly along in the disbursement of recovered loots. “This is my third year in the National Assembly, we have never discussed any of the recovered loots. We just sit down and we hear that the executive recovered loots and allot the same to projects that they so desire,” Bagos explained. He said it appears the Federal Government is not alloting these recovered funds to the right areas, saying if there are agreements entered before such monies are repatriated, the National Assembly should ratify such. “We believe that when we discuss these issues at the National Assembly, we appropriate those funds according to the needs of Nigeria, it is going to go a long way; not just the executive looking at it and alloting it (the fund) to what they feel it should be,” he added. “The constitution has given us that right.”

EXTRA: I Was Blind When I Criticised PDP, But Now I Can See – Melaye

  Senator Dino Melaye has claimed that he was blind when he criticsed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Melaye said this when he appeared on Trust TV’s Daily Politics on Wednesday. In the buildup to the 2015 election, Melaye, who is currently spokesman of Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign, had joined forces with the then opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) to demarket the PDP, leading to its 16-year dominance of power at the centre. The former senator anchored some of the campaign rallies of the APC, where he attacked PDP and former President Goodluck Jonathan. One of his campaign slogans back then was, “When I say Jonathan, you say Otuoke; when I say Otuoke, you say by road.” Otuoke in Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State is the hometown of Jonathan. In his Trust TV interview, Melaye said, “Once I was blind, now I can see. As at the time I criticized the PDP, I was a member of the PDP at the time and I criticized the PDP. When I also became a member of the APC, and APC was going haywire, I also criticized the APC.” He added that his criticism was not about the party but the wrongs that were being carried out as of then. “So it is not about political party, at a time I criticized those things that were wrong with the PDP. The PDP campaign Spokesperson also said comparing PDP to the APC could only be likened to drawing an analogy between light and darkness. “No political party is 100 percent clean but to compare the PDP and the APC is like comparing light and darkness. Where PDP is the light, PDP at that time committed what I call miscellaneous offences, they committed minor offences but what the APC is doing today is completely destroying the fabric of our country and the problem I had with the PDP then has nothing to do with threats to the unity of this country or even to the existence of this country but what the APC has done today has not only created disunity but is also threatening the very existence of Nigeria.” Melaye also dismissed insinuations that the PDP has been unable to call Governor Nyesom Wike’s bluff because the party needs his financial contribution in the 2023 elections. The Rivers State governor has been in crisis with the PDP and its presidential standard bearer, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar sisine Wike lost the party’s vice-presidential slot to governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State. Melaye denied the existence of any “serious crisis” in the PDP, noting that Atiku and Wike were not at loggerheads. He said it is an internal party disagreement that would be domestically resolved. He said, “It is absolutely not true that the PDP is in serious crisis. There’s no serious crisis at all. And it’s not also true that Wike and my principal (Alhaji Atiku Abubakar) are at loggerheads. It’s not correct, because it takes two people to be in crisis. “And I want to tell you this, there are disagreements within the PDP. Democracy is noisy, democracy is about agreement and disagreements. There’s nothing peculiar with what’s happening in the PDP. It’s a normal disagreement within a family. It’s a domestic issue that will be domestically tackled. The PDP is bigger than any individual.” Regarding the insinuations that Atiku is threading carefully with Wike because he needs his financial assistance for the elections, Malaye laughed and said those making those claims are on “cheap drugs.” Melaye said, “You must have been listening to some individuals who are on cheap drugs. To say that Atiku Abubakar who’s a serial contestant, who has contested for the presidency for this country perfectly well, who has funded his elections through him and his friends and cronies, and you tell me that he’s not prepared? Did he not go through a primary? Did he rely on a governor in the last two elections? “We just finished Osun election. Governor Wike was not present at the campaigns. And neither did he fund that election. And we won that election. So we don’t want you to begin to attribute a whole political party to an individual. You don’t even say that about a conglomerate like Atiku Abubakar. “This is a very successful businessman who has his contacts in every part of this country. Even if Atiku Abubakar doesn’t have the money, talakwas (the poor) will raise the money, because they want Atiku Abubakar to be the president of this country. But I’m even telling you, that by the grace of the almighty God, the PDP will execute our elections successfully.”

2023: ‘Don’t allow APC fool you again’ — PDP advises Nigerians

  Indigenes and residents of Ogun State have been advised not to allow the ruling All Progressives Congress, (APC) deceive them again, as its period of adminstration has brought untold hardship and many regrets to the people. The Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, Alhaji Sikirulai Ogundele stated this, during the handing over and commissioning of a borehole project donated to Lantoro community by Chief Toyin Amuzu, the candidate of the party vying to represent Abeokuta South Federal Constituency in the forthcoming general elections. Ogundele said the PDP as a party is so proud of Amuzu and other candidates whom he described as selfless individuals with the interest of the people and the betterment of their communities at heart. He advised, people of Abeokuta South local government not to miss such sincere and honest leadership exemplified by Amuzu. Ogundele said the APC got to power with concocted lies, vile propaganda and deceit but could not sustain all these, as their level of insincerity and incompetence are now very glaring to every Nigerian. He said, it wasn’t as if the PDP did not face challenges, but the party was able to match the challenges and reduce the pains of the people. The donor, Chief Toyin Amuzu who expressed shock and disappointment at the level of deprivation the people are going through especially as it concerns the availability of potable water, said he would not relent in his efforts to see a better Federal Constituency. He said, any responsible government would not play politics with the needs of the people but work assiduously for their betterment. According to him “it is not the amount of wealth that one has that would determine doing such projects or seeing others happy, but the heart willing to alleviate the sufferings of the people. Residents of Lantoro community unanimously expressed their appreciation to the donor, Chief Toyin Amuzu for his magnanimity, saying they have been neglected for too long. They promised that the water project would be well managed, stressing that such project from a private individual not holding any political position at present was a great surprise and relief to the Lantoro community.

2023: APC candidates’ll enjoy my support – Buhari

  President Muhammadu Buhari says he remains a “disciplined soldier” of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and will, in all the coming elections, support only those candidates fielded by the party and no other. The president made his position known in a statement by his media aide, Malam Garba Shehu, on Wednesday in Abuja. The Nigerian leader also warned decamped party members and some others who are still in court against official candidates of the APC that they are on their own and nobody outside the party should link what they are doing to him The statement read in part: “The Presidency wishes to put it on record, and at the same time, reassure faithful party members that President Muhammadu Buhari remains a ‘disciplined soldier’ of the All Progressives Congress (APC). “And will, in all the coming elections, support only those candidates fielded by the party and no other. “This is a warning to decamped party members and some others who are still in court against official candidates of the APC that they are on their own and nobody outside the party tent should link what they are doing to President Buhari. “The President wishes to be quoted as saying that he is the `occupant of the high office of the President by the Grace of God who used the instrumentality of the APC to bring him to power with a historic verdict in 2015.’ “In 2019, he was returned with a bigger majority. For the first time, a non-PDP government came to power with a huge majority after 16 years of the Fourth Republic. “His constant refrain is: `I will not betray or undermine my party by supporting candidates other than those of the APC.’ According to the presidential aide, this statement is not against any particular candidate. “However, our stand is clear that only those candidates fielded by the APC will enjoy the support of the President and they are the ones he will campaign for. “However, we welcome support for our candidates at all levels by other parties. “The President says he will continue to support the party at all levels to enforce discipline, synchronisation and coordination.’’ Shehu quoted the president as directing officials in and around the Presidential Villa and all those engaging in loose talk to resist making controversial statements. He said such statements may eventually end up hurting the party and the government, thereby providing a weapon for the opposition to use against the administration, the party or its candidates in the coming elections.

2023: Atiku Will Beat Tinubu In Lagos – Melaye

  Spokesman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential candidate, Senator Dino Melaye, has said his principal will floor Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State. Tinubu has been in control of Lagos State since 1999 when he was elected governor. Although he left in 2007, he still wields a large influence in the state, determining who gets what as far as politics is concerned. Speaking in an interview on Trust TV, Melaye said though Osun is the “ancestral home” of Tinubu, he was defeated by the PDP which removed his first cousin as governor. “If election is conducted in Lagos today PDP will win the election, Atiku will defeat Tinubu, Atiku was in Lagos two days ago, and he was received everywhere he goes. The people want him and he is going to win the election,” he said. Melaye also said the crisis between his principal and Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State cannot derail the victory of the PDP in 2023. Melaye described the current situation in PDP as a misunderstanding that takes place in any political party after a major primary, adding that the issue would be resolved. Dino said: “There is no crisis in the PDP, the PDP is one strong political party and I am telling you that as I speak with you today there is no shaking and no cause for alarm. “Campaign starts end of September, we have one month before campaign starts, so we are not too early or too late to constitute a campaign council, I am telling you that in matter of weeks or so, the council will be announced. “I did not say there are no issues in the PDP, but there are just disagreements and I am telling you that those problems do not have the capacity to derail the success of the PDP. “The PDP is stronger than any individual, Wike is a PDP man, we respect him, and he is a man of honour. At the convention he made a commitment that he will not leave the PDP and anybody that wins the election that he would support that person and that is what we are holding on to.” Asked whether he (Wike) might remain in the PDP to work against the interest of the PDP, Melaye said the Rivers Governor is a man of honour. He said at the convention ground, Wike promised that he would not leave the party and would work with the PDP flagbearer.

Miyetti Allah warns against profiling, killing of Fulani in Southern, Middle belt states

  The local branch Chairman of Miyetti Allah cattle breeders association of Nigeria(MCBAN), Alhaji Attahiru Abubakar ( Tukuran Bargu) has warned against ethnic profiling and killing of Fulani pastoralists in some southern and middle belt states in Nigeria. He gave the warning in Birnin Kebbi at the association’s secretariat, according to him, Fulani tribes are not unaware of the labelling of Fulani as bandits and terrorist, when many tribes are part and parcel of banditry, in some cases indigenes are the ones disguising as Fulani to unleash terror on their people, kill Fulani and steal their cows. He cited Benue state where it was confirmed that, the actual bandits are their people, in southeast too, killings and stealing of cows belonging to Fulani were done by the state indigenes tagged as “unknown gunmen” but unfortunately the federal government always look the other way ” let me state here, that in the wake of unprovoked killings by armed bandits, the real Fulani are the worst hit, in Kebbi alone Fulani lost over 3000 cows to armed bandits disguising as Fulani”. Also speaking, the State secretary TPL Alhaji Abubakar Bello Bandam, warned Southern states who banned open grazing in their states, to have a rethink on their decision as the ban will have negative impact on the economy of the country, saying meat supply chain comes from the cattle rearing and is also the business of Fulani who are known as migrants, seeing them as none indigenes is wrong and cannot be an excuse to kill them and steal their cows in the name of ban on open grazing. He noted that they are Nigerians and have the right to co-exist in any state provided that, their business is not unlawful “we are opposed to the ban because no alternative has been provided by the states who banned open grazing unless if they are calling for chaos, Fulani for decades are known as peaceful people with sticks and water bottle, not gun carrying persons, we appeal to the authorities concern to as a matter of urgency put a stop to killings, profiling and labelling of Fulani as armed bandits and kidnappers”. In Kebbi state, Bandam said that, no fewer than 100 Fulani were killed and had their cows rustled by unknown gunmen disguising as Fulani ” on the killings and cows rustling we have written to the government for action, while we await them we urge our members to remain peaceful and law abiding.

Insecurity: FG Should Recruit More People Into Military, Says Kachikwu

  The Federal Government should recruit more people into the military as part of measures to tackle insecurity in Nigeria, the African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Dumebi Kachikwu has said. Kachikwu gave the advice during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today. The ADC presidential flagbearer argued that the country is battling security challenges on multiple fronts. “The whole country is at war. We have large areas of Nigeria that we now call ungoverned spaces. So, this military is severely challenged and they don’t have enough at this point,” he said on Wednesday. “So, we have the Civil Defence and the police who are trained in the art of bearing arms but they are not trained the way soldiers are trained. So, we need to give them strategic training for a month or two for them to get to the point where they can react like the soldiers and join that effort. “If we have 200,000 people join this war, on multi-war fronts, we would chase these people out. But we must understand that this war has been sustained for over a decade now. This is short-term. So, in the medium term, we must start recruiting massively. It takes about seven months to get a civilian to be a soldier, and another two to three years in the art of warfare – bearing different arms and what have you. So, we must start recruiting to get to the point of readiness but we are not doing this.” The ADC candidate accused the Federal Government of not doing enough to support the military, saying “those who are at the war front, who expect that the country will be solidly behind them” do not get such backing. “Last year we spent a lot of money buying armament – serious equipment – but you must understand that equipment needs to be operated,” he added. “It needs professional expenses.” “So, the military is seriously challenged,” Kachikwu maintained.

NNPP: We are discussing with Shekarau over his defection plans

  Rufa’i Alkali, national chairman of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), says the party is in talks with Ibrahim Shekarau over his recent outburst against the party leadership. Alkali said this on Wednesday during an interview with NAN in Lagos. On Monday, Shekarau, a former governor of Kano and serving senator, accused Rabiu Kwankwaso, the party’s presidential candidate, and his group of betraying the trust reposed in them since he joined the party in March. Shekarau said since his defection to the NNPP, apart from the senatorial slot given to him, none of his supporters have been accommodated in the party. In response, the NNPP chairman said the party will not be dragged into unnecessary controversies over Shekarau’s planned defection. “On Shekarau, we respect his judgment but will not allow the NNPP to be dragged into an unnecessary controversy. We have great respect for him and he is also a person who believes in a better country. We respect his decision, whatever he has decided for himself,” Alkali said. “What is important again in politics is that if you lose, you will gain. it doesn’t mean a total loss, whatever happened, it doesn’t mean a total loss, it may be a setback.   “But for now, the situation is that we are discussing with him (Shekarau). We are sure that case is not over until it is over. “The party is working in every state of the federation to ensure that wherever there are problems, we handle those problems.”