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APC Crisis: Governors, Ministers Plotting More Surprises For Buhari – Galadima

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Two days after some aggrieved chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC) launched the Reformed All Progressives Congress (R-APC), its chairman, Buba Galadima, has declared that the mother of all shocks is underway for the ruling party.

This is as he accused some people around President Muhammadu Buhari of reeking in corruption. He claimed that more surprises will follow in the coming days. In an exclusive chat with Saturday Sun, the Yobe-born politician, who is an old ally of President Buhari, said, governors and some serving ministers who are members of APC, will soon join its fold.

He said that the renouncing of the party by some chieftains in Kwara State will be replicated in several states soon. He however did not state the specific day such will take place.

On Wednesday, at a well-attended press conference in Abuja, leaders of the new breakaway party, said they had the support of all the legacy parties that formed APC even as they refused to rule out that Senate President, Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, as well as other aggrieved members will soon join them. At the press conference, Galadima, said some chieftains of the party were compelled to take the new step because the APC has derailed from its original plans and vision.

Speaking with Saturday Sun, he said: “I can tell you that we have more surprises coming. The shocker is such that it will take APC and its leaders by surprise. This is something I can confirm to you. You remember what the leaders of APC in Kwara State told Saraki to lead them out of the party? That will happen in more states. More states will follow suit and it will be like that going forward.

“Some governors and other top government officials in this government are going to be with us at the right time, they will openly align with us. Just wait and see how things will unfold in the coming days and weeks.”

Also speaking on a morning show on African Independent Television (AIT) yesterday, Galadima said he will disprove those who have dismissed his influence.

He said: “I want to make an observation because people on the other side of the divide said that some of us are inconsequential hired machineries who he will not loose sleep over our actions. I want to state unequivocally for the world to know that there is no man with integrity, character and impeccable honesty from the other side more than me.”

Emphasising his incorruptibility, he said, “For those that know me from 1959 when I started school to date, I have never been found with anything even those that tried to destroy me could not destroy my character and integrity.

“I also want to say that we know all those opportunists who live in opulence and who cannot account for some of the palatial palaces they have built through the wealth of the people. May I also add that those who hired them for a particular purpose will live to regret because they have brought in the scenario of Pharaoh and Moses.”

Back to the crisis rocking APC, he declared that the problem within the “APC did not start from the election tussle of the National Assembly because for me that was democracy in action and once legislators are appointed, they put aside their political differences and work as one unit to produce laws for the good governance of the country and also as an arm of government to provide checks and balances to the excess of the government from whatever party the president comes from.

“The real problem of the APC started because those of us who are founding members of this party, those who made life sacrifice, those of us Nigerians with impeccable patriotism that came together because of the slide then and decided to submerge and subsume our interest to form the APC.

“I should boldly say that I was one of the nine signatories that formed the APC and nobody can delete that history. We never see the faces of all these opportunists I am talking about. They never appended their signatures then yet they are reaping from where they did not sow. “Because they have no history of why the APC was formed, what we suffered and what we did to protect entrenched interest, they started doing things that were not envisaged by the founding fathers of the APC.”

He maintained, “The crisis has been on but it took different dimensions when the tenure of the immediate national officers was expiring. Different interests started resurfacing and through to it, all the ideals for which we formed the APC were thrown to the dustbin. Those of us who are patriotic, who have made sacrifices to bring about the formation of this party cannot sit idly and watch them destroy our sweat. “ He argued that the current crisis is the worst the party has experienced . He said “this is the beginning of what you call crisis. I should say that I am glad that Nigerians of all walks of life have shown solidarity with us.

“And for those who could not lose sleep, I wonder why they went cap in hand, kneeling down before the members of National Assembly. I want to say that as at today, if I give directive to the National Assembly to impeach anybody for constitutional infraction, it could be done because I have that majority in the National Assembly.”

On his problem with President Buhari, he explained “I don’t have any problem with Mr President but I assisted him since 2002. I have made more contributions than even himself in becoming the President of Nigeria. Maybe I should tell the world that because of him, I have suffered intimidation, arrests, questioning about 38 times.

“Not only that, I was detained in an underground prison, chained hands and legs and tried for treason because of him. All these people around now were the people fighting us then. Some of these people were receiving money from the government of the time during elections in conducting fake research and using their positions as members of the trade union to say that the election was conducted fairly but today they are Buhari people. I am shocked.

“There is nothing happening except that I just saw him during a world press conference, an elder statesman and former president said that he does not need my vote, my supporters, my families and those that interact with me. He never mentioned any reason and I dare say that I have more integrity and more honest than any person in this country.”

Politics

Enugu LGA chairman appoints aides on garden egg, pepper, yam

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Eric Odo, chairman of Igbo Etiti LGA of Enugu state, has appointed Ezeugwu Ogbonna as senior special assistant on agriculture (yam and pepper).

The appointment is contained in a letter dated November 1 and addressed to Ogbonna.

“I am pleased to inform you that the executive chairman Igbo Etiti LGA has approved your appointment as senior special assistant to the local government chairman on agriculture (yam and pepper),” the letter reads.

“You should report to the executive chairman Igbo Etiti LGA, Ogbede, for briefing and deployment.

“It is pertinent to note that this is not a career civil service appointment but a temporary appointment which you hold at the pleasure of the executive chairman of Igbo Etiti LGA.”

Odo also appointed Nwodo Ugonna as special adviser on garden egg and pepper.

The council chairman did not outline the specific duties of the appointees.

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Politics

Ondo guber: Obi, NLC ruined my chances of winning, says LP candidate

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Ayodele Olorunfemi, candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the Ondo governorship election, says Peter Obi and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) ruined his chances of winning.

On Sunday, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Lucky Aiyedatiwa, candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), as winner of the poll.

The governor secured 366,781 votes in all 18 LGAs to defeat his closest rival Agboola Ajayi, candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 117,845 votes.

The LP candidate secured 1,162 votes, finishing fifth from bottom in the 17-candidate off-cycle election.

On the eve of the election, INEC substituted Olusola Ebiseni with Olorunfemi.

On September 27, the federal high court in Abuja directed INEC to recognise Ebiseni as the LP candidate.

The party appealed the ruling, and the appellate court struck out the earlier judgment for lack of jurisdiction.

The umpire said it had restored Olorunfemi’s name as the LP candidate in line with the court judgment.

“The commission was yesterday 14th November 2024 served with the certified true copy (CTC) of the judgment of the court of appeal which set aside the judgment of the federal high court (FHC), Abuja division,” the statement reads.

“In obedience to the court order, the commission has restored Olorunfemi Ayodele Festus, whose name was first published as the Labour Party candidate for the 2024 Ondo state governorship election, and uploaded the same to our website for public information.”

In the buildup to the election, Obi endorsed Ebiseni and described him as “someone who believes in a Nigeria rooted in fairness, equity, and justice”.

“It is this conviction that propelled me to travel by road to Ondo state yesterday to campaign alongside our Labour Party Governorship Candidate, Hon. Sola Ebiseni — a candidate I believe possesses the competence and capacity to govern the State effectively,” Obi said.

‘THEY SCUTTLED MY ASPIRATION’

Speaking with PUNCH, Olorunfemi alleged that Obi and NLC sabotaged his governorship bid.

He admitted that his last-minute campaign was poorly organised and ineffectual.

“My campaign for the election was neither here nor there. I have Peter Obi and the NLC to thank for that. They have scuttled my aspirations and chances to win this Ondo election,” Olorunfemi said.

“These people spoilt things for us with that PDP reject they wanted to force on the party. Their insistence on having Ebiseni on the ballot ruined everything for me.

“They just capitalised on the crisis between the Labour Party and the Nigeria Labour Congress to create problems.

“Can you imagine that Ebiseni wrote a letter to the court in my name without my knowledge, saying I have withdrawn from the race? They cannot exclude me from such a position.”

Olorunfemi admitted that he knew his chances of winning were slim after his reinstatement, adding that he is determined to “get his pound of flesh”.

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Politics

‘He wanted me to succeed him’ — Aiyedatiwa dedicates victory to Akeredolu

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Lucky Aiyedatiwa, Ondo state governor-elect, says he wishes Rotimi Akeredolu, his late principal, was alive to witness his victory.

Aiyedatiwa, the incumbent governor of Ondo, secured victory in all 18 LGAs, garnering 366,781 votes to defeat his closest rival, Agboola Ajayi of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who polled 117,845 votes.

Aiyedatiwa took over the leadership of the state after Akeredolu died from protracted prostate cancer in 2023.

Speaking in an interview on Channels Television after his victory, Aiyedatiwa said Akeredolu wanted him as his successor.

“How I wish he was present in that banquet hall when I was declared in the company of other brother governors. That would have been really good, but God knows better,” he said.

“It is so sad and painful that he didn’t live to see the manifestation of what he himself spoke about. I do refer to him sometimes as the man who saw tomorrow.

“He knew that I was going to succeed him as governor. He knew because he wanted me to and was ready to give me the full backing.”

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Bodex F. Hungbo, SPMIIM is a multiple award-winning Nigerian Digital Media Practitioner, Digital Strategist, PR consultant, Brand and Event Expert, Tv Presenter, Tier-A Blogger/Influencer, and a top cobbler in Nigeria.

She has widespread experiences across different professions and skills, which includes experiences in; Marketing, Media, Broadcasting, Brand and Event Management, Administration and Management with prior stints at MTN, NAPIMS-NNPC, GLOBAL FLEET OIL AND GAS, LTV, Silverbird and a host of others

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