The South-South and the South-East chapters of the All Progressives Congress have supported the criticism of the Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu by the APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
Managing Director of the NNPC, Mr. Emmanuel Kachikwu
The South-South APC advised the minister to resign if he was incapable of doing his job.
This was contained in a statement signed by the party’s National Vice-Chairman, South South, Hilliard Eta, a copy of which was made available to newsmen in Abuja on Sunday.
The statement entitled, “No split in APC: Tinubu right to critique Kachikwu,” the National Vice-Chairman said it was the opinion of the South-South chapter of the party that Kachikwu had yet to purge himself of his Peoples Democratic Party’s orientation.
Kachikwu, who hails from the South-South, had in an interview with journalists in Abuja on Wednesday, said fuel queues could not be eliminated with a magic wand.
He said that despite government’s efforts, fuel queues would remain in the country in the next two months, adding that he was not a magician.
Supporting Tinubu, Eta said, “The South-South Chapter of the All Progressives Congress feels that Kachikwu has not entirely cast off the orientation of the Peoples Democratic Party, where he was and this is manifest in his actions and utterances such as the recent one that attracted opprobrium from many Nigerians.
“Mr. Kachikwu must not be a cog in the wheel of progress and he should do the needful by resigning honourably if he is not capable of doing his part by effectively running the ministry assigned to him.”
The party chieftain noted that the minister, as a member of the President’s cabinet with a very important office, “it is incumbent on him to shed his haughtiness and climb down from his high horse to face his duties squarely.”
According to Eta, Tinubu’s observation about the utterances of the minister is in line with the core ideology of progressivism which the APC espouses as it is the very foundation on which the party rests.
Eta said, “This progressive ideology strongly emphasises government as a tool for service to the people who are the custodians of power in the first instance.
“In line with this, it is not wrong or out of place for Tinubu to caution the Minister of State for Petroleum, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, owing to the anti-progressive statements he made in the Presidential Villa on Wednesday, March 23, 2016, while fielding questions from journalists on the persisting scarcity of petrol.”
The South-South leader of the APC said Tinubu’s critique of the minister did not amount to a split in the APC.
He observed that if anything, it had further strengthened the commitment of the party and the government it had formed to be fully accountable to Nigerians.
It will be recalled that Tinubu had taken exceptions to comments made by the minister with regards to the lingering fuel crisis in the country.
Also speaking on the issue, the South-East Chapter of the party stated that Tinubu had voiced the frustrations of Nigerians.
The South-East Zonal spokesman for the party, Mr. Osita Okechukwu, said this in a telephone interview with The PUNCH, in Abuja on Sunday.
He explained that Tinubu’s democratic credentials and his commitment to the Nigerian project were not in doubt.
Okechukwu, however, said calls for Kachikwu’s resignation in some quarters were hasty in the light of the realities on the ground.
He said, “Our National Leader, Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu, re-echoed the anger of the Nigerian people about the current situation we have found ourselves with regards to the shortage of petrol.
“We have been privileged to have attended the recent meeting the President held with stakeholders in the oil and gas sector where he outlined his policies and programmes with regards to how he intends to deal with the problem.
“It was part of his commitment to resolving these issues that made him (the President) take up the responsibility of the Minister of Petroleum.
“He has visited Saudi Arabia and Qatar and he has made a personal commitment to supporting private sector investment in the sector. Having this as a background, we wish to state that calls for Kachikwu to resign are hasty at this point.”
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, on Saturday got a tongue-lashing from the national leader of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, over his recent comments on the lingering fuel scarcity in the country.
Bola Tinubu
The former Governor of Lagos State took a swipe at the minister, who is also the Group Managing Director of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, for saying he was not a magician who could end the scarcity of Premium Motor Spirit, also known as petrol.
The APC leader stated that the minister was answerable to Nigerians and not the other way round.
Tinubu stated this on Saturday in a statement titled, ‘Kachikwu Needs to Know That Respect and Good Performance Will Do What Magic Cannot.’
Referring to the minister, Tinubu said he believed a member of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led government “has strayed from the progressive calling required of this administration.”
Kachikwu had on Wednesday, while speaking with State House correspondents shortly after he led a joint delegation of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria and the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers to meet with Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, said since he was not a magician, the fuel queues could not be eliminated with a magic wand.
He added that despite the efforts being put in place by the Federal Government, fuel queues might not be completely eliminated until about two months (May).
The minister noted that with the reality on the ground, it was by sheer magic that the country had the amount of products it currently had at the filling stations.
However, Tinubu, on Saturday, stated that there might be no economic matter more difficult to unravel and more sensitive to the purse of the average person than the current fuel scarcity.
The APC leader said despite that, he was confident of progress because he knew the commitment of the President to resolving the issue.
“I make no attempt to hide it. I am an avid and partisan supporter of this government and of the progressive policies of the party, the APC, upon which this government is based,” the ex-governor stated.
Tinubu added, “With that, I do reserve the right and the duty as a Nigerian to voice my opinion when I believe a member of this government has strayed from the progressive calling required of this administration. I do this because my greater devotion and love are for this nation and its people. Party and politics fall secondary.
“Much public ire has been drawn to the statement made by the Minister of State (for Petroleum Resources) Ibe Kachikwu that he was not trained as a magician and that basically Nigerians should count themselves fortunate that the NNPC under his stewardship has been able to bring in the amount of petrol it is currently doing.
“Perhaps the statement by Kachikwu was made in a moment of unguarded frustration or was an awkward attempt at a joke. Whatever the motive, it was untimely and off-putting. The remark did not sit well with the Nigerian people; they were as right to feel insulted as the minister was wrong to have said such a thing.
“The fuel shortage is severely biting for the average person. They are forced to remain in lines far too long — for too much time — to pay too much money for too little fuel. This is no joking matter. Livelihoods and people’s welfare are at stake.
“With so much on the line, Kachikwu’s flippancy was out-of-line. He was basically telling Nigerians that they should be lucky that they are getting the inadequate supply they now suffer and that they should just be quiet and endure the shortage for several weeks more.”
Saying Kachikwu’s intervention was unhelpful, the APC leader said it rather panicked and disappointed the public as to the duration of the crisis.
“It insulted the people by its tonality. He spoke with the imperious nature of a member of the elitist government the people voted out last year and not the progressive one they voted in,” he added.
Tinubu also said Kachikwu must be reminded that he was not coerced to take the job, adding that the minster accepted the job and its responsibilities “knowingly.”
The ex-governor said the NNPC GMD must also remember that he does not own the corporation and that the NNPC was not a private company that owes nothing to the public except the duty of fair dealing.
Tinubu added, “He is a public servant. The seat he sits upon is owned by Nigerians, not by him. The company he runs is owned by Nigerians, not by him. They are his boss. He is not theirs. Power is vested in the people. He is a mere custodian or agent of their will.
“In talking to us in such a manner, he committed an act of insubordination. If he had talked so cavalierly to his boss in the private sector, he would have been reprimanded or worse. If wise, the man should refrain from such interjections in the future.
“As his ultimate bosses, the people have a right to demand the requisite performance and respect from him. He should apologise for treating them so lightly in this instance.”
The APC leader noted that as Kachikwu’s portfolio was a strategically important one, the minister needed to re-establish the correct relationship with the public.
He said Nigerians no longer felt Kachikwu was working for their optimal benefit as their servant. “Instead, he seems to be standing above them, telling them to take it or leave it,” Tinubu added.
The politician stated that for the minister’s policies and stint in office to be successful and of help to the government, he (Kachikwu) must have the support and belief of the people at this tough time.
Tinubu said the NNPC boss must talk to them in a way that they believe he seeks their best interest and understands the hardship weighing upon them.
“He must ask them to work with him and, perhaps, to endure a bit longer but with the knowledge that he is working to resolve this matter as fast as he can and as permanently as possible; that he is dedicated to the position that once these current lines are gone, never again shall they reappear, as long as he has any influence in the matter.
“To do this requires no magic or training in that strange craft. It requires empathy, compassion and the willpower to forge a better Nigeria. These must be the common trademarks of those serving in a progressive government, for these attributes are integral parts of the spirit and ideals upon which the APC was founded,” Tinubu added.
When contacted, the Director, Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Mr. Idang Alibi, told SUNDAY PUNCH that the ministry had yet to see the statement by Tinubu.
He stated that the ministry would wish to react to it when it gets the statement and promised to get across to Kachikwu and respond to our correspondent.
Alibi said, “We will need to find out what Tinubu actually said before getting across to the minister.”
When asked if he would get back to our correspondent after speaking with the minister, he replied, “Well, it depends on the response from the other side. If I get a response, I will get back to you.”
When probed further if he would get across to the minister on Saturday night, Alibi replied again, “I hope so.”
Also, calls to the mobile phone of the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the NNPC, Mr. Garba Deen, were not answered.
A detailed text message sent to him was also not replied.
Up till the time (8.53pm) of filing in this report, no response was received from the ministry and the NNPC.
The scarcity of petrol has lingered since January, as hundreds of motorists besiege few filling stations that dispense the product on a daily basis.
Kachikwu’s comment had drawn heavy criticisms from various stakeholders, including the organised labour, petroleum marketers, oil industry workers, manufacturers, experts in the oil sector and the latest from Tinubu.
The Trade Union Congress had specifically asked Kachikwu to resign instead of giving Nigerians excuses on why it would be impossible to get fuel easily in the country before June.
The TUC, through its President, Mr. Bala Kaigama, said the positions occupied by the minister were too demanding for him and urged Buhari to appoint a new GMD for the NNPC.
Kaigama stated, “If he is not a magician, he should resign now. What we are saying is that Nigerians are getting impatient with him.
“So, if he has no quick fix to it, he should just quit. We are getting impatient. He is moving from one unpopular policy to another, yet we cannot see any quick fix.’’
Similarly, the Nigeria Labour Congress had described Kachikwu’s statement as unfortunate.
The General Secretary of the NLC, Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson, said it was wrong of any agent of government to resign himself to a position that would subject Nigerians to months of long fuel queues.
He said, “As far as we are concerned, one day of queues is unacceptable to Nigerians and the hardship Nigerians have been subjected to, through the queues over a long period now, is actually something that should be condemned.
“Apart from the hardship to Nigerians, the cost of these protracted queues on an economy that is already in crisis is enormous, and actually makes the issue of the revival of the economy even more difficult.”
Also, workers in the oil and gas sector on Wednesday said they were at a loss as to what was really the cause of fuel scarcity in the country.
The workers, who spoke under the aegis of PENGASSAN and NUPENG, stated that the minister should be questioned on the development.
The Iyaloja General of Nigeria, Chief Folasade Tinubu-Ojo, on Thursday, led market women to protest the non-inclusion of market women in President Muhammadu Buhari-led All Progressives Congress administration.
Bola Tinubu
Tinubu-Ojo who is also the daughter of the National Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Ahmed Tinubu led several women who converged at the party’s National Secretariat in Abuja.
According to her, it was the opinion of market women of Nigeria that the present administration is not carrying them along even after they worked tirelessly to ensure the party emerged victorious during the 2015 election.
She lamented that “after the inauguration, most of us are not (being) carried along.”
Tinubu-Ojo said, “I am here this afternoon to represent market women and men of Nigeria. There has been agitations, not even agitation of allegation, the people believed that the government of the day is not carrying them along as it should be, that they worked round the clock for the party during the electioneering campaign, but after the inauguration most of us are not carried along.
“We only hear on the news that the First Lady is doing a programme this and that and we just see it on the news and they wouldn’t allow me be, all the complain come to my table morning and night and I say okay, enough is enough.
“We even heard that another FCT woman leader that is organising another market association and named it Association of Organised Market People in Abuja and most of these people are PDP, they were nowhere to be found when we are working for the party day and night, so now our people are not happy because they need to benefit from where they believe they have the right to and all we need, all we are crying for is for the government to give them sense of belonging and carrying them along properly.”
When asked whether her father, Asiwaju Tinubu in the know of her agitation, she said, “because I am the daughter of the National leader of APC doesn’t mean that I must not represent my people well, I have to represent my people’s opinion, I am a leader, and as a leader, my people are crying foul and I won’t fold my hands and keep quite because my father is a national leader, it is wrong, I am not mobilizing against the party, no, I am solidly behind the party, I have work for the party before and I will still work for the party tomorrow, but that does not stop me from saying the truth.”
Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the national leader of All Progressives Congress (APC), says the ruling political party in Nigeria cannot stop people from joining the party.
He told newsmen in Ibadan, Oyo state capital on Sunday that that there is the freedom principle which allow citizens to associate with any organisation or political party they want.
Tinubu said that the builders of APC must be tolerant and understand the need to check intrusion of corruption and injustice into the party.
“You can’t stop that. You cannot discriminate against that. There is nothing we can do about that.
“We cannot prevent people from coming in, the more the merrier, the better, the competitiveness,” he said.
The national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has declared as “fiction” and “fantasy” an online report in which he is quoted to have predicted that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will stop President Muhammadu Buhari’s re-election bid in 2019.
Bola Tinubu
The report was published by a little known online platform, “Post Nigeria online”, dated 14 January with the title, “I am afraid PDP will stop Buhari in 2019 – Tinubu”.
“ The writer, Amako Nneji, concocted the latest work of political deceit,” said a statement Friday night by Tinubu’s media office.
“No sane reporters would dare put their true names to this screed; it is pure libel. If the disciple of this libel truly believes in this account, we challenge him to visit Tinubu’s office or to announce where he can be found. Tinubu’s attorney will serve the writer with a complaint for libel. The writer will then have a chance to defend and explain himself in open court and before the public. If he is so sure of the fidelity of his tale, let him speak openly before us as to what he wants us to believe is the truth instead slinking about writing lies in the anonymous dark.
“The falsity of the article is patently clear in that it does not even comport with the minimal standards of journalism. The writer fails to divulge the date or the place the alleged statement was made. This omission is wilful. The writer does not state these basic facts because the meeting never happened; to give such information would make it even easier to prove his work is a lie. The writer has not seen Tinubu and has no idea where Tinubu was on any given day.
“Worse, the writer says Tinubu was speaking to newsmen. If so, why have no other newspapers carried this story? The answer is simple. There was no such meeting between Tinubu and several newsmen. Because the story is the figment of one awfully wounded.
“The story contains a long quote supposedly from Tinubu. There is no way a true journalist would have tried to transcribe this by hand. He would have taped it. We dare this journalist to produce the tape.
“The story falls in the genre of the hit-man tactics of the politically desperate. Clearly, the schemers behind this are minions of the collapsing PDP. Their party is falling apart before our eyes, with multiple defections by the day. They fabricated this story to discourage further defections and to sow discord in the APC. However, the discord will remain where it belongs: the PDP.
“Tinubu has never publicly commented on the defections of people from the PDP, much less making derogatory remarks about the phenomenon. In fact, if you check, he has welcomed many former PDP members into the APC. Tinubu is a democrat and a progressive. He believes that the APC is and shall always be opened to those who share its progressive beliefs and who are committed to a better Nigeria. The more people of like minds gather, the stronger the party and the more likely it is to achieve the objective of building Nigeria anew.
“The writer of this fable tries to bring discord between Tinubu and Buhari regarding 2019 election and the budget. The attempt will fail. President Buhari was elected less than a year ago. The challenges he inherited are many. We must all seek to help him do the great things he envisions. 2019 is such a long, far road away. Let 2019 take care of itself. Today presents enough challenges of its own. Those who want Nigeria to succeed should be more concerned with tackling the difficulties of today and not stirring up trouble based on what might happen tomorrow.
“For the record, Tinubu supports the government’s expansionary budget and has no qualms with its objectives and programmes. For the writer to say Tinubu complained about the figures is to pile lie upon lie.
“Whosoever wrote the story is serpentine. But their venom will not hurt Tinubu, Buhari or the APC. They are like the mad snake that mediated its own demise by biting itself.”
Nobel laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has distanced himself from a tribute he purportedly wrote in honour of the national leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
In a tribute which has gone viral on the social media, Soyinka was quoted as saying that he admired Tinubu because he saved Nigeria from becoming a one-party state.
Soyinka was also alleged to have said that he would continue to stand by Tinubu no matter what.
The alleged tribute read in part, “I do not admire Tinubu because he is a saint. I do not admire Tinubu because he is from the South. I do not admire Tinubu because he is a Yoruba. If I want saints, I will proceed to heaven, not on earth. Every human is fallible. I admire Tinubu because he saved Nigeria from the danger of falling into a one-party state.
“He has nurtured many renowned national successors. He listened to the voice of the masses to surrender his personal ambition at the most critical moment. He strategically terminated the PDP’s 60-year ambition in 16 years.
“Anybody, any cabal, any Viju milk activist, attempting to humiliate Asiwaju must have me to contend with. An average the PDP man is angry with Asiwaju because he brought them to their knees. If anyone thinks that bringing down Asiwaju is his project, that mission will not only crash but it will boomerang.
“He owns Lagos! I hear you! Ask your grandfather and parents how they acquired your so-called family land. Is it God that allocated it to them? Prof. Wole Soyinka.”
However, Soyinka, while reacting in a statement he signed on Thursday, wondered why people continued to use his name to spread falsehood.
He asked members of the public to be careful about the things they read on the Internet.
He said, “It is difficult to prescribe for the sort of mind that finds itself so inadequate that it must foist its opinions on others, and with such confident sense of impunity. Kindly assist me in letting the public know that I am not in any way connected with the publication.
“I can only yet again recommend my recent ‘occasional’ publication, ‘The Republic of Liars,’ to the public as a cautionary tract, while the growing population of victims await the routine descent of the full operational wrath of Internet policing on all impudent impersonators.”
The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Kogi State chapter, has reacted to the words of the former governor of Lagos state and National leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Ahmed Tinubu that governor Idris Wada of the PDP is a goner in Saturday poll.
Bola Tinubu
The PDP, through its State Publicity Secretary, Yomi Ogunmola, said that Tinubu is not God and cannot dictate for the people of the state.
“One emperor came to our state today to say Governor Idris Wada is a goner. He is not God; neither is our state where one man is more powerful than the state. No godfather rules Kogi State. Kogi State is bigger than any single individual or group of people,” he said in the statement.
He added that the political destiny of Wada on Saturday will be determined by the people of the state and not any godfather, stressing that Kogites will guard their votes.
“The only powerful people here are you Kogites. Kogites will determine the political destiny of Capt. Idris Wada on Saturday and not some power thirty godfathers or group of business men who see politics as an avenue of investment. No human being outside this state no matter how highly placed, powerful or rich can determine what will happen here on Saturday. Kogi people will guard their votes with their lives. Tell the godfather from Lagos that it is he who is a joker and that Kogites are not slaves”.
Senator representing Lagos State East senatorial district, Gbenga Ashafa, on Thursday lauded the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, over the confirmation of former Lagos State Governor, Babtunde Fashola; his counterpart in Ekiti State, Kayode Fayemi, and APC Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, as ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Bola Tinubu arriving yesterday
Ashafa, in a statement signed by him to felicitate with 18 ministers who were confirmed by the Senate, noted that it was an era to make APC as a party and Nigeria proud.
According to the statement, “I, Senator Gbenga Ashafa, representing the Lagos East senatorial zone hereby congratulate the 18 eminent Nigerians, who were today (yesterday) confirmed as ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“While I recognise that the task before them is both herculean and complex, I am confident in their ability to succeed and set Nigeria on the path of greatness. With our fearless and visionary leader, President Muhammadu Buhari, as the head of this team, supported by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, I am more than assured that this new government will deliver on its promises and make our economy competitive and productive.
“I am particularly proud of the intelligence, poise and grace with which our own former state governor, Fashola, conducted himself throughout his time, addressing the Senate. His thoughts and plans were illuminating as always. He represented the state very well on that podium and will do very well in the Federal Executive Council. Of course, I have no doubt.”
The statement expressed reverence for Tinubu, adding that he should be proud of himself on a day like this. “It was his farsightedness and uncanny judement of character and talent that brought the likes of Lai Mohammed, Fayemi and Fashola to limelight. These are graduates of the Bola Tinubu School of Leadership and today, they are ministerial appointees.”
This is indeed a lifting moment for us who have climbed on Tinubu’s broad shoulders to our current heights in political and leadership accomplishments.
“May the Almighty God bless our leader, Tinubu, and increase him in wisdom and good health. As for the confirmed ministerial appointees, may you be filled with all the strength and patriotism required to deliver on your commissions. Please, make our party and nation proud!”
The Presidency on Saturday said there is no iota of truth in a media report that a national leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, is under security watch over alleged plot against President Muhammadu Buhari.
Bola Tinubu
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, in a statement, described the report as a false and sensational story.
Shehu asked Nigerians to ignore the report, referring to it as baseless.
While saying that Tinubu was not of any interest to any of the nation’s security agencies, the presidential spokesman said the relationship between him (Tinubu) and the President could not be better than it was at the moment.
He stated, “According to the perverted logic of the newspaper, the respected leader of the APC is into a plot against the leader of the country. The Presidency is unaware of any such plot against the President.
“I got on the telephone a short while ago with Gen. Babagana Munguno (retd.), the National Security Adviser, and the Director General of the SSS, Lawal Daura, who both dismissed the published reports as acts of pure mischief. They are not aware of the Asiwaju being on any kind of watch.
“It would appear that a competition is on between two or three newspaper establishments on how best to breach the excellent relationship between the pillars of our party and government.
“So far, they have not made a headway and there is no indication that they will succeed in the future. It suffices to say that such reports, written without fairness and balance can only take away from whatever is left of the credibility of these newspapers. The general public is hereby advised to ignore them on these reports.”
The National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has barred the lawmaker representing Ondo-Central senatorial district, Senator Tayo Alasoadura, from attending South-West caucus meetings, our correspondent has learnt.
Bola Tinubu
It was learnt that the senator was ostracised for allegedly working against the interest of the party’s South-West leadership and for taking sides with Senate President Bukola Saraki.
Alasoadura was also among the senators that followed Saraki to the Code of Conduct Tribunal in solidarity on Tuesday.
A reliable source within the party told our correspondent that Alasoadura had been sidelined from all APC South-West meetings for his disloyalty to Tinubu.
The source said, “Alasoadura was a Commissioner for Finance under the late Dr. Olusegun Agagu for over five years. He later defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the Action Congress of Nigeria. Tinubu accepted him and appointed him the Director-General of the Rotimi Akeredolu governorship campaign organisation in 2013.
“Alasoadura was not even supposed to have emerged the senatorial candidate of the APC in the last election but the party favoured him. However, when he got to the Senate, he returned to his PDP family and started working against the party. He also supported Saraki against the interest of the party.
“When Tinubu convened a South-West meeting in Abuja during the height of the National Assembly crisis, Alasoadura came. However, Tinubu walked him out of the meeting and told his orderly to ensure that the senator was escorted off the premises.
“Tinubu also warned senators present to ensure that sensitive issues were not discussed in the presence of Alasoadura as he was an enemy within.”
Two days after the faceoff with Tinubu, however, the Ondo State senator issued a statement wherein he pledged his loyalty to the party and denied supporting Saraki.
Alasoadura said he was only working in the best interest of his constituents.
An APC leader, who spoke to our correspondent on the condition of anonymity, however, said that the fact that Alasoadura accompanied Saraki to the Code of Conduct Tribunal in solidarity on Tuesday, confirmed their suspicions.
He said the party would ensure that he remained irrelevant in the APC.
The Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged those it described as agent provocateur and fifth columnist to stop attacking the ruling party’s National Leader Senator Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The party described as reckless the back page article in national newspaper where some scathing remarks about Tinibu were made.
In the article, the author urged President Muhammadu Buhari to “Beware of Tinubu because his moral burden would be a dent on Buhari’s image”.
But in a statement by the Lagos spokesman, Joe Igbokwe, the APC described as illogical that a leader who backed Buhari to get the presidential ticket and weathered the nationwide campaign that ended the 16-year reign of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), could now turn to bring down the structure he played a pivotal role to build.
The party accused the author of not only doing a hatchet man’s job, but doing the bidding of his paymasters who never envisaged that the APC could end the rudderless administration of the PDP.
The statement read: “Lagos APC condemns in strongest terms this calculated attempt to bring Tinubu down to their miserable level and to judge the consummate leader of men by their horrible and dubious standards.
“Before the 2015 presidential elections our well-respected national leader and President Buhari were subjected to vicious attacks and debilitating assaults just to bring them down but they failed woefully. President Buhari and Tinubu ran away with resounding and unprecedented victory on March 28, 2015.”
According to Igbokwe, the author and his paymasters have been angry, frustrated, confused, humiliated, humbled, afraid and disgraced over the loss of the last general elections to the APC.
He said: “Politically they have been decimated and relegated to the background, economically their business of stealing government money in billions has been checkmated and blocked and socially they have been ostracized and rejected by Nigerians.
“These fraudsters and morally bankrupt nonentities know that it is impossible for them to get to Tinubu’s intimidating, illustrious and glorious personality, so they resort to blackmail and character assassination to bring the sage, the colossus and the leader of men to the miserable level.
“Having failed to stop the Buhari-Tinubu tag that rescued Nigeria from the forces of decay, corruption, and rot, having failed to distract and derail the recovery of Nigeria from the forces of decay, the desperadoes are now trying a sly tactics of instigating Buhari to go after Tinubu for the crimes of wrecking and looting Nigeria blind for 16 years when Tinubu’s only feel of power was eight glorious years he ruled Lagos.
“It is obvious that these dying forces of evil are on a futile effort to parry their 16 years of wreckage and who else to bear the brunt but a Tinubu who has come to personify a living nightmare to the dying PDP.
“ Tinubu remains a well-respected political figure in Nigeria, Africa and the world today and anybody who thinks in his wildest imagination that a strong and powerful image built for nearly 50 years can be destroyed by the antics of a foolish constituency and men without honour must be jokers.
“Every leader writes his own history through his own deeds and choices. Tinubu has become a working history in Nigeria by his actions and deeds for nearly 50 years and no power in the tongue of any man can vitiate this even in this age or the age to come.”
Health workers at the Bola Tinubu Health and Diagnostic Centre at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, have protested the non-payment of their salary for five months.
Bola Tinubu
The workers staged a peaceful protest at the head office of Deux Nigeria Limited in Ikoyi, Lagos on Wednesday.
According to the workers, who called on the state government to intervene in the matter, Deux Nigeria Limited is the consulting company handling the maintenance and payment of staff salaries at the diagnostic centre in LASUTH, owned in a public- private partnership with the Lagos State Government.
A worker at the Radiology department, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told our correspondent that all efforts to dialogue with managers of the BT centre had yielded no result.
He said, “We gave them a 21-day strike notice, they didn’t respond. We went on strike for three days, they did not call us back. As it is now, we don’t even know if we will be paid or not.”
When our correspondent contacted the officials of Deux Project Nigeria Ltd, the Head of Training, Dr. Jonathan Odia, said they were in a crucial meeting, requesting that our reporter call back.
Subsequent efforts made to reach him on the telephone proved abortive
The past elections were an epic confrontation between two opposing political camps. Those who believed in the progressive governance of the people gathered under the banner of the APC. Those who harkened to the conservative elitism that had cast this nation downward for so many years held to the PDP.
Bola Tinubu
The elections clearly showed the preference of the average Nigerian. They chose the APC and rejected the PDP nationally and in Lagos state. Since the commanding victory of the APC in Lagos and all over Nigeria, the enemies of progressive governance have cleverly been at work, trying to regain through intrigue and subterfuge what they so openly and fairly lost in the elections.
Our political opponents now try to steal victory when their only entitlement is resounding defeat.
Having fared woefully with the electorate, their game plan is to sow discord within the ranks of the party people had chosen to lead them. The PDP hopes to strike division in the APC, in that way weakening us and our ability to govern.
Apprised of their wiles, we in the progressive camp must be wiser still. We must not allow ourselves to be pawns in this cynical strategy. We cannot fall into their obvious snares for that would be embracing defeat when victory has already been won. It is our responsibility to govern as the people want. It would be to our detriment to fall victim to our opponent’s sly instigations by allowing ourselves to be utensils picking each other apart.
This brings me to recent developments in the Lagos political scene. Born of this motley stew is the recent gossip mongering that I have willfully instigated false and negative reports against former Governor Fashola to thwart him from being appointed to a major post in the Buhari administration. I want to declare clearly and categorically that these rancid attacks do not come from me nor do I endorse them. Neither my hand nor my heart are in these mean submissions. I deplore them. An attack against the performance of Governor Fashola is indirectly an attack against me and the edifice of achievement we have constructed in leading Lagos state out of a protracted time of stagnation and into an era of sustained progress and development.
Lagos is a much better place than when we came into governance in 1999. Each year, it has gotten better. With the APC at the helm, each subsequent year will be better yet. Babatunde Fashola has been an integral part of this improvement. He does not deserve the pillory. His record has been applauded and will continue to be when all this rumor mongering has died its natural and quick death.
I am proud to say that I played an instrumental role in bringing Governor Fashola into politics in the first instance. He served as my trusted chief of staff, performing excellently in that role. Due to his leadership qualities and diligent work ethic, I endorsed him for governor notwithstanding the stiff and vocal opposition of many. I am not ashamed of backing him. I believe the progress the state made under his administration has more than vindicated my endorsement.
Fashola, the present Governor Akin Ambode including myself are the products of a progressive political institution and its programmatic expressions. I laid the governance foundation and started the first lap, running as well as I could. I handed the baton to Fashola, knowing he would do the same. He did; he ran as well as he could. Now, he has handed to Ambode who is off and running as well as he can. We have achieved much in Lagos; but, we recognize as much as anyone that we have much more to do.
We also know that progress is fragile and easily undone while destruction is easily transacted but hard to undo. I for one am not the type to tear down my own house or to bring my enemy’s rubbish into it.
We must remember something. We have always governed Lagos state as an open forum where democracy and free expression were respected. Those who are against us were never placed in fear of the heavy hand of government descending on them even as they played funny tricks. We also must remember than in any democracy, a number of people will always oppose you no matter the quality of your performance. If an office holder has an approval rating of 70 percent, this means, in Lagos, roughly five million people dislike the person. Also remember the PDP is just recently out of office at the federal level and that it built a vast, unprecedented financial war chest to contest the elections. The residual of that war chest is still at work, buying media space to plant rumors in hopes of spreading discord through the APC. Thus, the enemy camp may be a minority but it is a large and well-funded one that knows its only chance lies in us attacking ourselves.
I for one will not bend to the artificial provocation of those seeking to tear at what we have painstakingly built over the years. In my mind, Governor Fashola and I are and shall always be political allies and fellow travelers on a vital journey; that alliance is unshakeable and our journey must not be interrupted. I would no more attack his character or his administration than I would attack myself.
I see this present moment as crucial to Nigeria’s future. The nation faces acute challenges of security, corruption and economic development. Our task is to create policies that bring prosperity, dignity and hope to all. Great change is in reach because we have progressive governments at the federal and state levels for the first time. With great change at hand, it would be a terrible abdication of our duty to allow agents provocateur to prompt us to suspect and toss dirt at each other at a time when we should be focused on building a better, more equitable nation and society.
I for one shall never allow myself to be a tool of a political enemy that has nothing good in mind for Nigeria. I for one will never engage in the intramural character attacks of which I am being accused. I stand for the unity of the APC and for the progressive purpose we serve. I will not be guilty of tearing down our progressive house, not a brick of it. That I vow to all.
Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is national leader the All Progressives Congress, APC.
A national leader of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, has denied accusations by a party member that he was using the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to hound Toyin Saraki, wife of the Senate president, Bukola Saraki.
Bola Tinubu arriving yesterday
In a statement by his media office Saturday, Mr. Tinubu said he is too busy working to get the APC back on track, not delving into EFCC matters.
“Tinubu does not run or dictate to the EFCC,” said the statement signed by Sunday Dare, Mr. Tinubu’s aide.
“And like countless others, Tinubu has also (been) investigated by the EFCC severely in the past. Tinubu has no hand in the travails of anyone because he is right now very busy working with others of like mind on how the APC political agenda can set sail as quickly as possible.
“That is the urgency of now and not the tantrums of the likes of Waku.”
Joseph Waku, a chieftain of the APC, had stated that Mr. Tinubu masterminded a “baseless petition” that led to the invitation of Toyin Saraki by the EFCC.
According to Mr. Waku, the former Lagos State governor is exploiting his personal relationship with Ibrahim Lamorde, the EFCC chairman, to go after perceived opponents.
“After days of painstaking enquiries, I discovered that both Tinubu and Lamorde maintain a mutually beneficial relationship since the days of Lamorde as the EFCC Director of Operations and based in Lagos between 2003 and 2007 when Tinubu was equally the governor of Lagos,” Mr. Waku, who served as senator between 1999 and 2003, said in a statement issued in Abuja.
“I also discovered from my findings in EFCC that the so-called petition against Mrs. Saraki was personally given to Lamorde by Tinubu under the guise that he was submitting the petition on behalf of the APC leadership to punish Saraki for working against the party’s leadership on the choice of National Assembly leaders.
“This was followed by a promise to help secure a second term for Lamorde as EFCC chairman.”
In the tersely worded response to Mr. Waku’s comments, Mr. Tinubu described the former Senator as “an individual with no shred of reputation and a political pariah in his home state”.
“No one should pay former Senator Waku any attention. We know when he is broke and needs a quick fix,” Mr. Tinubu said.
“What he has said is fit for the trash. Waku is Godwin Daboh resurrected. No one should dignify Waku’s tales by moonlight with any attention or ever take him serious. For any serious individual with a reputation to protect, Waku is a very poor hire.”
A former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Bode George, has berated the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, and a former interim National Chairman of the APC, Chief Bisi Akande, over the seeming marginalisation of the Yoruba in the President Muhammadu Buhari administration.
Chief Bode George
Buhari had since assuming office on May 29, appointed nine public officials, of which eight are from the North.
Also, Akande had alleged in an open letter that the National Assembly crisis was being sponsored by some northern elements, adding that there appeared to be a conspiracy by the North against the South-West.
Akande had said, “Most northern elite, the Nigerian oil subsidy barons and other business cartels, who never liked Buhari’s anti-corruption stance, are quickly backing the rebellion against the APC with strong support.
“While other position seekers are waiting in the wings until Buhari’s ministers are announced, a large section of the South-West sees the rebellion as a conspiracy of the North against the Yoruba.”
Reacting to the development, however, George predicted that the Yoruba would be grossly marginalised for the next four years because the Yoruba leaders within the APC did not plan properly before rushing into an alliance with the North.
He said Akande and Tinubu should have learnt from history and the politics of the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, who remained in the opposition all through his life because he put the Yoruba interest ahead of his personal ambition.
George, who spoke to our correspondent on the telephone, said the PDP was able to sustain democracy for 16 years because it understood Nigeria’s diversity and constantly zoned key positions among the six geopolitical zones.
He said the recent crisis in the APC started from Akande and Tinubu’s comment that the APC would not zone the positions of Senate President and Speaker of the House of Representatives.
George said the absence of zoning threw the contest for principal offices in the National Assembly wide open and led to crisis.
He said, “They (Tinubu and Akande) were not cautious when they were forming their alliance. They did not understand the dynamics of national politics. They were just driven by greed. I am not saying that they should not have formed an alliance with the North but it should have been on equal basis.
“They have now been given a political circumcision. Awolowo wanted Yoruba to be equal partners with the North and not a second force. I said it that we have returned to the 1960 political era and Tinubu and Akande have been slapped. I predicted all these.
“They were not thinking of the Yoruba but their selfish interests and I have no sympathy for them. Chief Akande said he did not believe in zoning and I knew that he did not know what he was talking about.
“Zoning gives everybody, including the minorities, a sense of belonging but Akande threw zoning of out the window and that move has backfired.”
When confronted with the fact that the South-West still holds the position of vice-president which is the number two citizen in the country, George said the position of vice-president was not an influential position.
“Go and read our constitution, there is no defined job for the vice-president. He only heads the Economic Council and is directed by the President. Let all Yoruba wake up now. You don’t enter into a coalition without deep thinking,” he said.
A former Special Adviser on Political Affairs to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Prof. Rufai Alkali, on Sunday said it was the All Progressives Congress leaders that would pose problem to the President Muhammadu Buhari’s adminstration.
President Buhari
Alkali, in a statement in Abuja, said the greatest obstacle to Buhari’s administration would be some people who he described as over-ambitious leaders of the ruling APC.
He said, “The greatest obstacle to the Muhammadu Buhari administration is not the Peoples Democratic Party and other political parties, but some of the over-ambitious leaders and members of his party, the APC, who believe they have invested so much in his election and cannot wait a day longer to collect returns from their investments.”
He reiterated that the APC was not properly prepared to govern a complex nation like Nigeria, recalling that he had shortly before the inauguration of the current government called on the leadership of the APC to plan more and talk less.
He said rather than heed his call, he was castigated by the APC spokesman, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
Alkali said, “I have observed with keen interest the scenario in the National Assembly that resulted in the election of Senator Bukola Saraki and Hon. Yakubu Dogara and other leaders of the National Assembly.
“What attracted my attention more, though not surprising, were the incoherent and contradictory responses from the leaders of the APC, especially the faction led by the former governor of Lagos State, Bola Tinubu, who rejected the outcome of the election and without decorum blamed President Muhammadu Buhari as being responsible for the debacle in the National Assembly.
“This is indeed a clear confirmation of my earlier warning to the APC to plan more and talk less.
“Undoubtedly, things have started falling apart in the APC.”
Alkali said that the National Assembly episode was just the beginning and that those who held the belief that the PDP was dead and buried were in for more surprises.
The Jonathan’s aide said, “Whoever said that the PDP is dead and buried should please show me the cemetery and the grave where the PDP was buried.
“Nigerians should not forget the fact that some of the members of the PDP who joined the APC went there as a result of some circumstances but the souls and minds of most of them are still in the PDP.
“Remember, most of those who left were founding fathers and senior leaders of the PDP in their respective states and zones. This is therefore just the beginning of the beginning.”
A former National Deputy Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Chief Bode George, has said that the political career of the National Leader, All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, is over.
George said this during a telephone interview with our correspondent while reacting to the emergence of Senator Bukola Saraki as the Senate President ahead of Senator Ahmed Lawan, who was the preferred candidate of Tinubu.
Specifically, George said Tinubu should start preparing to quit politics as his political influence has grossly diminished.
The PDP leader said Nigerians had become fed up with Tinubu and Chief Bisi Akande’s style of politics which he alleged involved imposition of candidates.
He said having nominated the APC National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun; and the Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, Tinubu should have “taken things easy” but “Tinubu continued to push his luck too far.”
He said, “You know I predicted weeks ago that the APC is just a congregation of strange bedfellows. The most beautiful thing about what has happened is that Bola Tinubu’s political influence in Nigeria is coming to a sunset and it is about five minutes to midnight for him.
“If he cannot see this now, then it will be foolish of him. He brought in the APC national chairman and the vice-president and he thinks Nigeria belongs to him. So, he thought what he did in Lagos was what he could replicate at the national level and they have shown him that he cannot continue to be the lord of the manor.
“So, if he is wise, he will slow down. President Muhammadu Buhari, as an army general, has fought more battles than him and has an understanding of things.”
George said the re-election of Senator Ike Ekweremadu as the Deputy Senate President was a victory for the PDP.
He said this was in line with his prediction that the PDP would bounce back. He praised the PDP senators for carrying out a successful ‘political manoeuvre’.
George said, “The PDP was never dead. We were only given a bloodied nose, not a technical knockout. So, this is an opportunity to start regrouping and getting ready for 2019. I want to salute the dexterity and perfect political manoeuvres for which the PDP is well known.
“People like Tinubu and Chief Bisi Akande in Osun have always been local champions. Now, they have come to the national level of politics and they are now learning the tricks that all that glitters is not gold.
“I congratulate Saraki and Ekweremadu. They understand what Nigeria is all about.”
George slammed the National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, for rejecting the outcome of the elections.
He said the APC had no powers to sanction Saraki.
“The APC would discipline Saraki? Is Saraki a child? They probably think they are playing local politics like the one they play in Lagos State. I welcome them to the real world,” he said.
The national leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, has said that Nigeria has been liberated from years of the Peoples Democratic Party’s misrule as Muhammadu Buhari was sworn in as the new President of the country.
Bola Tinubu
In a statement issued on Friday to mark Democracy Day titled, ‘A new Nigeria is possible beginning today,’ Tinubu urged Nigerians to continue to hold public office holders responsible to ensure that their struggle is not in vain.
He said, “Today, the old Nigeria is no longer in chains as we move into a new era and take hold of our new selves. From President (Muhammadu) Buhari to the state governors inaugurated this day, I wish them well and pray they govern in an open, democratic way that assures your optimal wellbeing.
“I ask that you, the people, maintain your diligence and help guide those you have just elected. The issues that confront us are deep and complex. They are not susceptible to facile solution or inattention. Wise and sound policy is within our capacity. But, we must have the will to accomplish it. If the governed and the government work in league, there is nothing our beloved nation cannot overcome.”
The APC chieftain noted that this year’s commemoration would be recorded in history as the moment when “democracy finally was allowed to participate in Democracy Day.”
According to Tinubu, this is so because millions of average Nigerians voted to make sure Muhammadu Buhari won the March 28 presidential poll.
An Ikeja High Court in Lagos on Wednesday adjourned a N150 billion libel suit filed by former Lagos State Governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, against the African Independent Communication (AIT) till June 30. Justice Iyabo Akinkugbe adjourned the suit to enable Tinubu’s counsel respond to the counter-claim filed by AIT.
APC vs AIT
Recall that Tinubu had instituted the suit against Daar Communications Plc, owners of AIT, for airing a documentary entitled, “Lion of Bourdilion”. In the suit, he alleged that the documentary, which started airing on March 1, was libelous and aimed at tarnishing his image.
At the resumption of proceedings on Wednesday, AIT’s counsel, Mr Jeffery Kadiri, informed the court that the defendant had filed a counter-claim which had been served on the claimant.
Responding, Tinubu’s counsel, Mr Ayodele Adedipe, said that the process was served on the claimant only two days ago, adding that he needed time to respond. Adedipe, therefore, asked the court for an adjournment and the judge acceded to his request. In the counter-claim, AIT listed its Chairman emeritus, Chief Raymond Dokpesi and seven others as witnesses to testify against Tinubu.
Others listed to testify are : Namure Edoimioya, Chief Medan Tenke, Ajibola Adewusi, Olumide Idowu, Chief Stanley Odidi, Nwabueze and Dr Stanley Bassey. The broadcast outfit also denied each and every allegation of facts as contained in the claimant’s amended statement of claim. Dokpesi, in his statement on oath, averred that Tinubu’s claim was founded on none existing ground, because the said documentary was not entitled “The Lion of Bourdilon,” but “Unmasking the Real Tinubu”.
He also averred that the documentary, in his honest opinion, was not false and was not aired out of malice to the person of the claimant. Dokpesi said that AIT, as a member of the fourth estate of the realm, was empowered by Section 22 of the Constitution to at all times, hold those in government accountable and responsible to the people of Nigeria.
He further averred that the contents of the documentary were facts which had been in the public domain for over two decades. According to him, these are published independently, prior to the broadcast and have remained unchallenged till date.
The Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Mr. Femi Gbajabiamila, denied on Wednesday that he was the candidate of National leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, for the speakership of the 8th Assembly.
Femi Gbajabiamila
Gbajabiamila, who is one of the leading contestants for the number four job, spoke in Abuja as he met with Peoples Democratic Party members-elect in continuation of his campaign for the position.
Other contenders include Chairman, Committee on House Services, Mr. Yakubu Dogara; Chairman, Committee on Agriculture, Mr. Mohammed Monguno; Chairman, Committee on Finance, Mr. Abdulmumini Jibrin; and Mr. Pally Iriase.
However, the race has lately narrowed down to Gbajabiamila and Dogara, seen as the front runners.
Speaking specifically on being Tinubu’s candidate, the Lagos lawmaker said he was often surprised when he heard or read about such insinuation.
He stated that, having led the opposition for eight years in the House, he wondered how people came about the idea that he did not have the capacity to lead the House unless he relied on Tinubu to make a case for him.
However, he admitted that prominent Nigerians, including the Emir of Kano, Lamido Sanusi, had pleaded with Tinubu to support him, but that he did not give them any answer until a few weeks back when the APC leader said “ maybe this man (Gbajabiamila) has some appeal.”
He spoke more, “I have led the opposition for the past eight years with the best of my ability. I have faced a lot of threats and intimidation to life right from the time of (Olusegun) Obasanjo up to about two weeks ago.
“The way I stick my neck for the opposition, I seek to do same for Nigeria as speaker. I want this campaign to be about issues and hoped it would be that way, but I heard a lot of many negative stories. I tried to maintain dignified silence, but I want to set the record straight now.
“I intend to be speaker not for anbody. Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu has not hand in it. Lamido Sanusi left his palace in Kano and pleadd with him to support me. He didn’t get a clear answer.
“Shortly after that, Senator Lawan Shuaibu went to Tinubu on the same issue. He still did not respond until when few weeks ago, Nasiru El-Rufai went to meet him, then he said maybe this man has some appeal.
“In 2011, some members from the North went to him to suggest that I should be Tambuwal’s deputy, but he said no to that.”
Gbajabiamila also spoke on how some lawmakers were demanding to be chairmen of particular committees as a condition for supporting him.
He alleged that such members were among the people going about town saying that he was Tinubu’s candidate.
He assured the PDP members that allocation of committees would be based on fairness, justice and quality.
The House Deputy Leader, Mr. Leo Ogor, who led the delegation, said the PDP members would go back and study his campaign promises to see how the caucus would key in into his agenda.
