Former President Olusegun Obasanjo; Leader of Afenifere, Pa Ayo Adebanjo; and the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi have arrived in Enugu State for the birthday colloquium of former President General of Ohanaeze, John Nwodo. Dressed in a native Igbo tunic and red cap, Obasanjo was received at the airport alongside Adebanjo by Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi. The former president will serve as the Chairman of the event.

  The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has counselled Nigerians to be wary of promises made by his Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, counterpart, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, who he said is only desperate to capture power by any means possible. “We need to warn Nigerians to be wary of the sugar-coated promises of former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, and his Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as they embark on their inordinate and desperate campaign to gain power at all cost,” he stated. In a statement issued Sunday in Abuja by the Director, Media and Publicity of the Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council, PCC, the APC candidate said PDP should be eternally shameful about its appalling record in governance between 1999 and 2015. He lamented that the party is now busy rewriting history, embellishing the locust years as if it was a golden era in Nigeria’s history. “Of course, this is fake history at its worst. We are not fooled. “Nigerians should also not be fooled about the boldfaced lies, being articulated by the candidate and his party. “What is more shocking is Atiku’s audacity in standing up to ask for our votes despite what his boss, President Olusegun Obasanjo wrote about him in his book, ‘My Watch’. “Obasanjo wrote that it would have been an unpardonable mistake and sin against God to foist him on Nigeria. “Obasanjo still believes so till tomorrow,” he said. According to Tinubu, Obasanjo still rues till today making Atiku his vice president in 1999. Tinubu said he was, however, not totally surprised about Atiku’s latest desperation. “Aware that this is his last shot at the elusive presidency, Atiku, while on the hustings, has been spewing series of lies, making empty promises and presenting a false narrative about our present reality and the legacy of the 16-year ignoble era of the PDP administration, of which he was a principal actor. “He claimed at his rally in Abuja on Saturday that the country is not secure for trading and farming, a false narrative that he has been pushing around for some time, since he relocated to Nigeria from his base in Dubai, principally to contest the election. “We believe in his private moment that Atiku will concede that his view about insecurity is exaggerated. “Our country is certainly better secured than in 2015 when the PDP allowed insurgents to seize 17 local councils in Borno and some four councils in Atiku’s home state of Adamawa State, when Abuja was under constant bomb attacks and people slept with eyes wide open. “What further proof of progress made by the APC does Atiku need than the fact that he was able, recently, to carry his party men and women to Maiduguri to hold a rally, without any attacks by insurgents and bandits. “Atiku can also drive smoothly from Yola, his state capital to Jada, his home town on a reconstructed road by the Buhari-led APC administration. “The road was impassable for the eight years Atiku was Vice President and got progressively bad and totally cut off from civilisation until the Buhari government reconstructed it. “Atiku claimed that our country has the highest number of out-of school children in the world, without telling his audience that the problem, which was exacerbated by banditry in North West and insurgency in North East, took its root from the stewardship of his party when the population of out-of-school children phenomenally rose from 10.5 million in 2010 to 13.2 million in 2015. “The most grotesque of Atiku’s promise is that he will ensure that the ASUU stopped going on strike so that universities “reopen forever and ever”. Mr Atiku forgot to tell his audience that a PDP government in 2009 signed an agreement with ASUU, which it never implemented for six years, leaving the mess of the agreement for APC to deal with. “Meanwhile, as Nigerian universities were left to rot under the PDP’s watch, Atiku and his boss, President Olusegun Obasanjo opted to set up their own universities, ABTI-American University and Bell University, meant for the children of the rich. “A pointer that this former vice-president has not changed in his character as portrayed by Obasanjo was his promise to sell the newly commercialised NNPC Ltd and all its assets and subsidiaries for just $10 billion. “Even before inviting bids, he had already undervalued the oil conglomerate, the way he undervalued Nigerian companies he was asked to sell, under the abused privatisation programme of the Obasanjo administration. “Nigerians will remember that he made a similar promise in 2019, saying he would sell the NNPC to his friends and cronies. Surely, he retains the same mindset, though he has changed the terminology to ‘privatisation’. “In his campaign. Atiku’s refrain has been to tell the less-discerning Nigerians that he is on a recovery and restoration mission in presenting himself to be elected. “The question every Nigerian must ask him in pidgin is: Recover Wetin?”, Tinubu queried.

  The leadership of the Presidential Campaign Organisation of the Peoples Democratic Party has approved the appointment the Osun State Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, as a member of the campaign council. Adeleke was appointed as the Chairman of the South-West Coordinating Committee of the campaign council, according to a notice signed by the Director-General of the PDP PCO, Governor Aminu Tambuwal, on Saturday. Other key PDP members were also appointed to head strategic campaign offices to steer the Atiku Abubakar presidential bid. Senator Dino Melaye was appointed the Director of Public Affairs. “These appointments are with immediate effects,” Tambuwal said. See the zonal list below: Zonal Coordinating Committee: 1. South-East: Senator Theodore Orji (Chairman) 2. South-South: Senator Duoye Diri (Chairman) 3. South-West: Senator Ademola Adeleke (Chairman) 4. North-Central: Senator Gabriel Suswam (Chairman) 5. North-East: Darius Ishiaku (Chairman) 6. North-West: Adamu Aliero (Chairman) The campaign council also made appointments of Zonal Liaison Desk Officers. Adeleke’s appointment is one of the recent appointments made by the PDP campaign council. The PUNCH reported that on December 4, former Speaker of House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, was appointed as a member of the PDP Campaign Council. In a statement, Governor Tambuwal of Sokoto State announced Dogara’s appointment. Part of the statement read, “The leadership of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council wishes to formally announce that Rt. Hon. Yakubu Dogara, has been appointed as a member of the Presidential Campaign Council with immediate effect. “This is part of our continuous effect in joining hands with our presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, to recover our great country, Nigeria.” Dogara was a member of the All Progressives Congress, who had expressed opposition to the Muslim-Muslim ticket of the party. He has now been welcomed into the PDP at a Lagos presidential rally of the party. The development came after the Northern Leaders Consultative Forum comprising Christian and Muslim religious and political leaders in the North, including Dogara, endorsed Atiku.

  Abdullahi Ishaq, special adviser on security to Babagana Zulum, governor of Borno state, says Abubakar Shekau, ex-Boko Haram leader, had 83 concubines. Speaking on Saturday in Maiduguri, the state capital, Ishaq said some terrorists who surrendered to the military disclosed the information on Shekau. In 2021, TheCable reported that Shekau committed suicide when he realised that ISWAP fighters wanted to capture him alive. “We started this non-kinetic approach 16 months ago. The model started shortly after the death of Abubakar Shekau and the state government didn’t want the Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) to continue using Shekau’s fighters; we know it would be deadly,” Ishaq said.   “So, the first fighters that I received in Bama told me that Shekau had 83 concubines; just imagine that. “They said he is now in hell because he committed suicide during his clash with the other faction. He always told them to go out and fight, if they die in the process, several virgins are waiting for them. “Let me say this, many of his commanders were bitter after he committed suicide because that act contradicts what he preached. I can tell you that many of these fighters don’t know how to perform simple ablution not to talk of how to do prayers. We had to start teaching them after we brought them to Maiduguri.”   In 2018, Shekau said he was tired of the calamity that had befallen his sect, adding that it was better to die and rest in paradise.

  Founder of the American University of Nigeria Schools and presidential candidate of the People Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, says he has never made money from his investment in the AUN Schools system. He said, instead, he always requested that any surplus funds be reinvested in the expansion and improvement of the schools to maintain their world-class status. Atiku Abubakar stated this at weekend during a School Improvement Project presentation and Alumni fund dinner hosted by the American University of Nigeria Academy in Abuja as part of activities marking the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Schools. The AUN Schools presently comprise the Academy (Nigerian and British track), the Charter School (American track), and the Elementary and Early Learning Center (pre-school cadres). The Schools’ alumni, their parents, business elites and entrepreneurs, and Atiku’s political associates joined him and his wife, Dr. Mrs. Amina Titi Abubakar, at the dinner to raise funds for the Schools’ three-phase infrastructure and ICT upgrade. A plaque was also presented to Atiku Abubakar by the Schools’ administration and alumni to recognize his vision in establishing the AUN Schools 20 years ago and his unwavering commitment to developing education in Nigeria. The former Vice President of Nigeria and frontrunner for the presidency in 2023 explained that he founded the schools, which now include a university with undergraduate and graduate programs, to provide young people with access to quality education and to give back to society what it had given him. “I have always held the unwavering conviction that education is the key to success in life and must be accorded top priority at all levels.” He described the alumni, their parents, and the community as collaborators in making education accessible to all members of society. He congratulated them for their hard work in transforming themselves into successful role models in society and for their contributions to their institution’s growth and continued improvement. “We have reached a point in our lives where we feel obliged to contribute to the field of education. You can always count on me to make education accessible and available to every child in Nigeria. This is my promise,” he said. In her opening remarks, the Deputy Director of AUN Schools, Hajia Asma’u Atiku Abubakar, expressed gratitude to the Founder for his selflessness and generosity, which have made the prestigious institution’s 20 year journey possible. While noting that students have received from the Schools excellent foundation in knowledge, character, she said, the AUN Schools have produced and nurtured some of the country’s most brilliant and successful human resources. She urged the graduates to sustain the passion for education instilled in them by their alma mater and to continue contributing to national development. “Without education, none of us would be here, and none of us would be successful in today’s society. Our thoughts should always be with the more than 20 million out-of-school children in Nigeria, who represent a staggering 20 percent of the world’s children whose future is bleak because they lack access to education”. Meanwhile, Senate Minority Leader Senator Philip Tanimu Aduda, former Governor of Imo State, His Excellency Rt. Hon. Sir Emeka Ihedioha, Senators Ben Bruce-Murray, Dino Melaye, and former Registrar and Vice President for Administration of the American University of Nigeria, Dr. Andy Okolie, were among the dignitaries in attendance.

  President Muhammadu Buhari says the All Progressives Congress (APC) must unite for electoral victory. Garba Shehu, presidential spokesman, quoted Buhari as saying this when Dikko Radda, APC governorship candidate in Katsina, and Faruk Lawal Jobe, his running mate, visited him at his country home on Friday. Buhari said party leaders need “to sit together” and ensure unity in order to avoid defeat in the forthcoming elections. He said he received frequent reports on the ongoing campaigns in Katsina and felt happy that so much hard work was being put into the exercise. The president reiterated his resolve to ensure free, fair, and credible elections in the country. Buhari said the outcomes of the elections in Anambra, Ekiti and Osun states were testimonies of that resolution on his part. He said he was honoured by the visit and wished the party victory in the elections. On Wednesday, the president noted that the 2023 elections will be free of manipulation and difficult to rig. “We shall not allow anyone to use money and thugs to intimidate the people. Nigerians know better now, they are wiser and know that it is better to dialogue than to carry weapons. Elections are even more difficult to rig now,” Buhari said.

  Armed bandits have killed the district head of Yankuzo, Alhaji Hamza Abdullahi Kogo of Tsafe Emirate in Zamfara State. Channels Television gathered that, the district head was attacked by the bandits on his way back to his community from an official engagement last Friday around 8pm. Sources from the area said the monarch was shot and wounded in an attempt to abduct him. He was rushed to the Federal Medical Center in Gusau, the state capital where he later died on Saturday night. Yankuzo is the hometown of the notorious bandit kingpin, Ado Aleru who was conferred with Traditional title in Yandoton Daji Emirate in July this year. Many residents of Yankuzo community said the community has never witnessed bandits’ attack since the inception of banditry within the state. Police authorities in the state are yet to comment on the latest incident

  Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has urged the nine oil-producing states in Nigeria to provide and widely publish details of spending of the oil derivation refunds of N625 billion recently paid to them by the Federal Government, including details and locations of projects executed with the money. President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government recently paid N625.43 billion oil derivation refunds to the governors of Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Rivers, Ondo, Imo and Cross River states. The payments covered 13 per cent oil derivation, subsidy and SURE-P refunds from 1999 to 2021. In the open letter dated December 19, 2022 by SERAP Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation said: “It is in the public interest to publish the details of spending of the refunds. “Nigerians have the right to know how their states are spending the refunds. It is part of their legally enforceable human rights.” SERAP said, “Disclosing the information would enable Nigerians to scrutinise the spending of the refunds. Publishing the details of the oil derivation refunds would also promote transparency and accountability in the spending of public funds.” The letter, read in part: “Widely publishing details of the spending of the oil derivation refunds would ensure that persons with public responsibilities are answerable to the people for the performance of their duties in the management of public funds. “We would be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. “If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel you and your state to comply with our request in the public interest. “The public interest in obtaining the information about expenditures relating to the oil derivation refunds outweighs any privacy or other interests. “The oversight afforded by public access to such details would serve as an important check on the activities of your state and help to prevent abuses of the public trust. “SERAP also urges you to disclose details of spending of the refunds to local government councils through the state accounts, and to explain the role played by your government in the spending of public funds meant for the councils. “The constitutional principle of democracy also provides a foundation for Nigerians’ right to know details of spending of the oil derivation refunds. Citizens’ right to know promotes openness, transparency, and accountability that is in turn crucial for the country’s democratic order. “The Freedom of Information Act, Section 39 of the Nigerian Constitution, article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights guarantee to everyone the right to information, including about how the oil derivation refunds are spent. “Your state cannot hide under the excuse that the Freedom of Information Act is not applicable to your state to refuse to provide the details being sought, as your state also has clear legal obligations to provide the information as prescribed by the provisions of the Nigerian Constitution, and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and. Enforcement) Act. “SERAP urges you to invite the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to jointly track and monitor the spending of the oil derivation refunds by your state. “SERAP also urges you to provide details of the transparency and accountability mechanisms that have been put in place to ensure that the derivation refunds are not mismanaged, diverted or re-stolen.” SERAP said, according to information, under the 13 per cent derivation fund, Abia State received N4.8 billion; Akwa-Ibom received N128 billion; and Bayelsa got N92.2 billion. Cross River got a refund of N1.3 billion; Delta State received N110 billion; Edo State received N11.3billion; Imo State, N5.5 billion, Ondo State, N19.4 billion; and Rivers State received 103.6 billion. “The nine states also received N4.7 billion each, totalling N42.34 billion as refunds on withdrawals for subsidy and SURE-P from 2009 to 2015. The Federation Account also paid N3.52billion each as refund to local government councils on withdrawals for subsidy and SURE-P from 2009 to 2015,” it stated.

  Abia State Governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, has stated that he won’t hand over to a successor who will learn on the job as governor of the state. He insisted that those aspiring to lead after him should not be persons who want to use political power to learn on the job in order to avoid a disruption of the lives and livelihoods of the people of the state. Speaking at the 2022 Enugu State cultural event held in Aba, Ikpeazu explained that the leadership of the state and Nigeria at this critical period needs to be entrusted into the hands of experienced administrators who are prepared by learning, character, life experiences and knowledge of the local environment. The Governor noted that he prefers a leader who possesses proven capacity to continue where he will stop on May 29, 2023, follow the trajectory of progress and delivery of dividends of democracy to the people. Ikpeazu who was represented by the State Commissioner for Trade amd Investment, Chief John Okiyi Kalu, lauded the good relationship existing between Enugu indigenes residents in Abia State and the government and people of the state and described them as integral members of Abia community who have contributed immensely to the development of the state. He further said it was time to consolidate on his legacy projects in the state and urged Enugu indigenes resident in the state to support the PDP governorship candidate, Prof Uche Ikonne, who has a proven track record for excellence to emerge as the next governor of the state. He said; “The leadership of the state cannot be left for individuals whose desire is to learn on the job. Power at the level of a Governor is not for those who want to learn public sector leadership in order to avoid obvious consequences that will set the people back. Abia state and Nigeria at this critical period needs to be entrusted into the hands of experienced administrators who are prepared by learning, character, life experiences and knowledge of the local environment. Abia needs a leader who possesses proven capacity to continue where I will hand over the baton on May 29, 2023, follow the trajectory of progress and delivery of dividends of democracy to the people. “God has done well for us especially in the area of peace and security. Anyone who fails to compliment and acknowledge God’s benevolence through our administration in the state is being ungrateful and following a risky path for our people. Abia needs to build on the existing peace, security and infrastructure development witnessed across the state in the last seven years. That is why Prof Ikonne, I and other candidates of PDP should be supported to continue to work for our people. “Abia is home to all Igbo regardless of state of origin and all PDP administrations in the state will continue to treat every Igbo and non Igbo resident in our state as equal stakeholders. The only way we can sustain the existing relative peace and security in the state is to work together as one people under God.” The Governor reiterated his administration’s commitment to hand over the completed section of the remodelled A-line of Ariaria International market to the original shop owners by January 2023 and assured that the focus of his initial interventions in the senate will be to ensure speedy reconstruction of Aba – Port Harcourt segment of Enugu – Port Harcourt and Aba – Ikot Ikot Ekpene expressways and the Enyimba Economic city, by the federal government as well as sponsor legislations that will improve trade and enhance the welfare of young people. In his remarks at the event chaired by the former Minister of Power, Prof Barth Nnaji, the PDP Governorship candidate, Prof. Uche Ikonne, urged the Enugu community in Aba to vote massively for him and other PDP candidates to further cement the partnership between him and Enugu State. He assured that his administration will implement measures to further improve ease of doing business and enhance the existing security infrastructure in the state. Ikonne, who was represented by his running mate, Hon. Okey Igwe, assured that the PDP governorship candidate has developed initiatives which will create more wealth and eliminate impediments to rapid growth and prosperity of the state.

  Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, have intercepted parcels of cocaine concealed in different parts of a travel bag brought into Nigeria by a Brazil-returnee, Nwadinobi Charles Uchemadu, from Sao Paulo, Brazil, via Doha on a Qatar Airways flight. Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said, “Uchemadu was arrested on Monday, December 5 at the Lagos airport during inward clearance of passengers on the Qatar Airways flight, following the discovery of three parcels of cocaine weighing 2.70 kilograms factory-sealed in parts of his travel bag.” At the SAHCO export shed of the airport same day, NDLEA operatives equally intercepted cans of powdered milk, baby food and beverages used to conceal 3.4 kilograms of cannabis going to Dubai, UAE. At the SAHCO export shed of the airport same day, NDLEA operatives equally intercepted cans of powdered milk, baby food and beverages used to conceal 3.4 kilograms of cannabis going to Dubai, UAE. Read Also: My incantations in movies affected me in real life – Babalawo character, Alebiosu A freight agent, Ewelike Chibuike Cyril, who presented the consignment for export was subsequently arrested. In the same vein, parcels of cannabis weighing 6.30kgs concealed in sound systems (speakers) going to Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, through the SAHCO export shed of the airport, were also seized on Thursday 8th December by the operatives who initially arrested a freight agent, Joseph Obiji. Later the following day, Friday 9th Dec nabbed another agent, Mbanu Ifeanyi Andrew in a follow up operation at ASPAMDA market, Trade Fair complex, Ojo area of Lagos. … in Mushin, Idumota At the Akala notorious drug hub in Mushin area of Lagos, no fewer than 15 drug dealers, including two ladies, were arrested with 1,400kgs of cannabis sativa among other illicit substances. Heroin, methamphetamine, and 320 bottles of codeine syrup were recovered from them during a raid of the area on Friday 9th December. Another raid of the popular Idumota business district of Lagos Island on Saturday 10th December led to the seizure of 35,014 pills of tramadol, diazepam, rohypnol and 21.2 litres of codeine syrup, while a targeted notorious dealer is still on the run. This is even as officers of the Directorate of Seaports Operations of the Agency arrested a Malian, Dembele Ousmane, on Monday 5th December with 32,400 capsules of tramadol 225mg concealed in factory packed buckets of custard, while attempting to travel to Mali via boat at Ebute-Ero Jetty in Lagos. In Ondo state, operatives on Tuesday 6th December stormed sharp corner, Ipele forest in Owo area of the state, where they arrested Rotimi Oyekan and Precious Aluju with C/S weighing 903.3kgs, while another team of NDLEA officers arrested Babatunde Oluyara at Igbotako area of the state, with 168.5kgs of the same substance; 6kgs of monkey tail and various quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin. In Kebbi state, two suspects, Austine Julius and Sale Yakubu were arrested on Sunday 4th December along Yawuri-Kebbi road in a loaded Dyna Truck with 117 bags of Cannabis Sativa weighing 1,070 kilograms concealed under bags of oranges. The following day, Monday 5th December, another set of two suspects: Abdullahi Bala and Ibrahim Wade were intercepted along Koko- Kebbi road in a Dyna Truck loaded with 114 bags of the same substance weighing 1,140 kilograms concealed under crates of soft drinks. A raid operation in Abbi town, Ndokwa West LGA, Delta State, led to the arrest of a pregnant 30-year-old dealer, Aniekem Evelyn, with 1,161kgs of C/S recovered from her warehouse. While commending the officers and men of the MMIA, Seaports Operations, Ondo, Delta and Kebbi state commands for their hard work and diligence leading to the arrests and seizures of the past week, Chairman/Chief Executive of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd) urged them and their compatriots across other formations to intensify their efforts.