APC’ll overcome NASS leadership challenge – Rep

A member of the House of Representatives, Amuda Garba (APC-Ilorin East, Ilorin South, Kwara), has expressed optimism that the party would move beyond its present challenge.

APC data Centre

Garba, who expressed the opinion during an interview with News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja, added that APC had sailed beyond more precarious situations.

Garba added that the problems in the Senate and House of Representatives would be surmounted and the party would remain stronger and united.

He said in view of recent fisticuffs in the House, “all will go back and get our acts right within the party.

“Right from the beginning, the leadership of the party was challenging, the presidential primaries came with its own challenges, even the choice of the vice presidential candidate came with its own challenges.

“So, it is not a new thing. The legislature is always a very vibrant stage. That is why we are saying what we are saying.

“But as loyal members of the party, as people who believe in the party and what the party stands for, we will go back to mend our fences and will come with a harmonized position.

“I can assure you that when the House reconvenes, we will be coming with a unified position,” he said.

On complaints that fighting was not part of the promised change, he said change does not come in any particular prototype.

“Sometimes, the change you promised is for events like this to happen and for the right positions to be upheld.”

He said the recent fisticuffs resulted from the party’s recommendation that some candidates should occupy principal positions and the caucuses in the House having a different view.

According to him, the caucuses, made up of members of the House, should have decided who occupied the positions.

APC’ll overcome NASS leadership challenge – Rep

Police impound arms-laden vehicle in Kwara

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The Police Command in Kwara State on Friday night arrested a truck conveying ammunition at Kosubosu, a border town in Baruten Local Government Area of the state.

The vehicle, with number plate Lagos XU 110 BDG, was believed to be coming from Burkina-Faso and on its way to Ibadan.

Police operatives of the Kosubosu Divisional Police Headquarters arrested the driver with another occupant of the vehicle.

A police source told NAN on Saturday that the ammunition, which comprised several cartons of cartridges, were hidden in the truck.

Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr. Salihu Garba, confirmed the incident.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Ajayi Okansanmi, said the police were carrying out further investigation into the matter.

“It is true, but investigation is still ongoing. That is the only thing I can say for now until the case is later transferred to the command headquarters for further investigation,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the council, Malam Mohammed Omar-Bio, described the incident as sad, especially at a time that elections were approaching.

The chairman, who was also at the police station, lauded personnel of the Nigeria Police Force in the area for their gallantry and doggedness.

The council boss warned people against engaging in any acts that would threaten the peace.

Omar-Bio assured security agencies in the area of the council’s help to enable them to perform their duties.

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Police impound arms-laden vehicle in Kwara

Tension in Kwara ahead of Jonathan’s visit

Tension is building up in Kwara State ahead of tomorrow’s visit to the state by President Goodluck Jonathan with the All Progressives Congress (APC) accusing the police of arresting seven of its members on trumped up charges.

The Police have denied the allegation.

APC vs PDP

The APC sees the planned visit of the President as insensitive, ill-timed and utterly inhumane, coming so soon after the Boko Haram attacks in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States.

The party’s Interim Publicity Secretary in the state, Alhaji Sulyman Buhari, said the PDP should allow Jonathan enough time to mourn those tragedies first before coming to Kwara.

He said:”May we remind these insensitive politicians in the state and all those irrelevant politicians that he seeks to rehabilitate in the state that the saner thing to do by all patriotic Nigerians is to feel and act sober, draw the grief-stricken people together, share in their pains and attempt to restore hope in the almost hopeless situation that parts of the country have been thrown into.

“We therefore call on our peace- loving President to turn the request of these desperate politicians to further justify his well known position that no individual ambition worth the blood of a single Nigerian.”

But the Publicity Secretary, Caretaker Committee of the PDP in the state, Mohammed Alhassan, said the APC is shocked by the success of PDP’s outing in the state last week.

The PDP said: “Without doubt, the shock of unexpected large crowd of people witnessed on Sunday, 23rd February, 2014 at the PDP reception would for a long time continue to cause blood-ripples and nightmares in the camp of the APC in the state.

Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed called on politicians and their supporters to conduct themselves lawfully as well as avoid any action capable of disrupting the peace in Kwara.

In a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media, Dr. Muideen Akorede, Ahmed said: “Although the president is not on a state visit, we welcome him to our state of harmony.

“We will accord him all the courtesies and arrangements benefitting of his office.

“As a peace- loving administration, we urge all to keep the peace, be lawful and avoid any actions or utterances capable of rupturing our reputation for harmony.”

He added: “Regardless of political affiliation, our people must remain mindful of the rule of law and shun all actions that contravene the law, especially the maintenance of public order.”

The APC also accused the state police command of becoming agent of the PDP after allegedly arresting seven of its members being in possession of APC posters in Ilorin, the state capital.

The Interim Chairman of the APC in the state, Alhaji Ishola Balogun-Fulani asked the Inspector General of Police, Muhammed Abubakar to call the state Police Commissioner, Ambrose Aisabo to order.

Balogun-Fulani added that the police also invaded the premises of printer engaged by the party to produce street signposts and destroyed his equipment, carting away over 300 signposts of APC produced by the printer.

Said he: “As if that was not enough, the people engaged by party to erect these signposts after being manhandled they were arrested and detained in the police cell for doing their lawful job.

“The police command had gone to stop the APC members while erecting billboards; it also tampered with the street signposts of the party in all roads in the state leaving those of the PDP intact.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the party met all the required guidelines laid down by the Kwara State Signage and Advertisement Agency (KWASSA) regarding erection of billboards in any part of the state as that is the only agency that is empowered by the law to remove or stop erection in any part of the state.

“This police command in Kwara State has confirmed our initial position that the commissioner was posted here to intimidate our members, by his open partisanship apparently to satisfy his paymasters in Abuja and their cronies in the state.

When contacted the commissioner Mr. Ambrose Aisabo denied the allegations, claiming that the command only arrested the APC members because it had intelligence report that the party was planning to use its posters to deface those of the PDP, whose national leaders, including President Goodluck Jonathan, are on a visit to the state on Monday.

His words: “We had information that APC was planning to print several posters and use it to deface that of Mr .President and we went there and indeed we saw several thousands of posters that they had printed. We impounded them but the people explained to us they had no plan of defacing the posters of Mr. President and I now warned them and allowed them to go with their posters. I am not against anyone pasting posters but I am against when people use it to deface those of others because there is enough space for everybody; politics is a game of choice. I am not here for any party. And I even called the APC chairman to tell him what I have done, so it is not true that anyone has been detained because we have released all of them.” (0)

Tension in Kwara ahead of Jonathan’s visit