Category: Politics

Groups of Yoruba separatist agitators and men of the Ogun State Police Command clashed on Saturday after 11 of the agitators were arrested for defying the police ban on the mass rally in Abeokuta. The rally held jointly by two groups – Ilana Omo Oduduwa and Omo Kootu Ojire Omo Oduduwa Atata – took their procession around Abeokuta in defiance to the police order, barring the demonstration. Out correspondent gathered that the rally which started around 9am was disrupted by security operatives who took over the streets of Abeokuta in…

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Matthew Kukah, the bishop of Sokoto diocese of the Catholic Church, has advised advocates of secessionist struggle to sheath their swords saying the cost of staying together as a nation is cheaper than the cost of dividing Nigeria. He, however, blamed the All Progressives Congress government led by Muhammadu Buhari for making people feel alienated from governance through inequality in power distribution at the highest levels. Kukah spoke virtually at the 2021 edition of The Platform, an annual conference organised by Pastor Poju Oyemade of the Covenant Christian Centre, Lagos. The programme…

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The Chairman, Senate Public Accounts Committee, on Wednesday gave the Ministry of Finance, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and the Office of the National Security Adviser till Tuesday next week to explain an alleged ‘secret withdrawal of N7.5bn from the two per cent National Automotive Council Design and Development Council Levy Account. The account is domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria. The Committee had two weeks ago while scrutinising the 2015 Auditor General for the Federation’s report summoned the affected agencies to appear before it. The…

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The Independent National Electoral Commission has fixed Saturday, February 18 for the 2023 general elections in the country. INEC Chairman, Prof Mahmood Yakubu made this known on Wednesday during a one-day public hearing on the National Electoral Offences Commission (Establishment) Bill 2021, organised by the Senate Committee on INEC. He said, “By the principle established by the Commission, the 2023 General Election will hold on Saturday 18th February 2023 which is exactly one year, nine months, two weeks and six days or 660 days from today. “We hope to release…

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Chad’s President Idriss Deby Itno has died on the battlefield after three decades in power, the army announced on state television on Tuesday. The shock announcement came only the day after the 68-year-old was proclaimed the winner of a presidential election that had given him a sixth term in office. The army said Deby had been commanding his army at the weekend as it battled against rebels who had launched a major incursion into the north of the country on election day. Deby “has just breathed his last breath defending…

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Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has said that operatives of Lagos Neighborhood Safety Corps are currently doing the work of Amotekun in the state. He spoke during an interview on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics at the Lagos House. According to him, apart from community policing, operatives of the LNSC also engage in border patrol. Sanwo-Olu said, “It’s just a name change in the case of Lagos. I appreciate what my colleague governors are doing, and they also appreciate the peculiar nature of Lagos. “I have got over 7,000 neighbourhood watch personnel in…

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Ambassador Taofeek Arapaja, the candidate backed by the camp of Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, got 343 votes to emerge as new South-West Zonal Vice Chairman of Peoples Democratic Party on Monday. Dr. Eddy Olafeso backed by ex-governor Ayo Fayose got a total of 330 votes.

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Yinka Odumakin, the late activist and Afenifere spokesman, will be buried on April 24, 2021.. According to a statement by his widow, Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, on Monday, the rites would span three days – starting from Thursday, April 22 through Friday 23 and Saturday 24, 2021. She said, “Thursday, April 22: Day of Tributes and Service of Songs at the Police College, Ikeja Lagos between 11 am and 4 pm while his body lies in state.

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Main opposition party, the Peoples Democratic Party has released the list of candidates cleared by its screening committee for the April 12 South-West Zonal Congress expected to produce the party’s executive in the region. The list is coming just as two former friends; Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State and a former governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, intensify efforts as to who gains the upper hand in the control of the 756 delegates that will elect officials of the Peoples Democratic Party in the South-West on Monday. While Makinde…

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Following a two-day Northern Summit, Arewa elders have thrown their weight behind calls for the restructuring of the country, saying that is the only way Nigeria could realise its potentials for economic and political development. The Summit, which ended yesterday, was organised by the Northern Elders Forum (NEF) and other leaders of the region to address the socio-economic and political malice that have plagued the north and Nigeria in general. In a communiqué issued after the Summit, the Arewa leaders said, “the North believes that restructuring the country is now…

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Yoruba socio-political group, Afenifere, has issued a statement denying an earlier statement by a political group that the body has thrown its weight behind the presidential bid of the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu for the 2023 presidential election. This is coming on the heels of a viral statement by the leader of South West Agenda, Prince Dayo Adeyeye, purporting that his group secured the support of Afenifere for its candidate during a visit to Pa Reuben Fasoranti, erstwhile Afenifere leader, on Tuesday. However, Afenifere denied…

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Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the National Leader of All Progressives Congress paid a condolence visit to Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, widow of the late spokesperson of the Yoruba socio-cultural group, Afenifere. Tinubu had issued a statement earlier on Saturday describing the late political activist as a doughty fighter and that the story of Nigeria’s democracy will not be complete without mentioning Odumakin. He had recalled the contribution of Odumakin to the June 12 struggle after the annulment of the election won by MKO Abiola. The former governor in the statement titled,…

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An Easter Message by Matthew Hassan Kukah, Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese If a religious leader is afraid to say what is right, what else can his silence mean but that he has taken flight? Hiding behind a wall of silence is like taking flight at the approach of the wolf. Pope St. Gregory the Great (540–604 AD) 1: Easter Sunday is here again. But first, let us step back to Friday. Good Friday was a Kairos moment for the beleaguered followers of Jesus, a defining moment that separated truth…

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Yinka Odumakin, National Publicity Secretary of the pan-Yoruba group, Afenifere, is dead. He died on Saturday at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital after a brief illness. In her reaction, his wife, Joe Okhei-Odumakin “A part of me is gone. A part of me is gone. He fought hard at the intensive care unit. Pray for me to survive this. My love is gone. “He was OK before. Even on March 10 he was still attending meetings. He was recovering yesterday but he died this morning. I am at the…

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By Babafemi Ojudu I joined The Guardian newspapers in 1985 and was made to report for The Guardian Express, the staple’s afternoon paper. My daily chore took me to every nook and corner of Lagos and its environ. One of the most troubling assignment I was saddled with at this early period of my career as a journalist was to report on the refugee camp in Oru Ijebu, Ogun State. There camped, were those who escaped the war in Liberia. I mingled with the refugees, listened to their stories and…

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Oba Lamidi Adeyemi, the Alaafin of Oyo has lamented over the way the Nigerian Police treated some cases involving some suspected criminals who are Fulani. The monarch said some Fulani persons who were arrested for kidnapping and handed over to the police were released in controversial circumstances. It will be recalled that one Wakili, an alleged notorious Fulani in Ibarapa area of Oyo State who was arrested and handed over to the police was released in controversial circumstances while members of the Odua Peoples’ Congress who arrested him were detained…

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Nyesom Wike, a chieftain of the Peoples’ Democratic Party and Rivers State Governor, has given reasons why he will part ways with his erstwhile political benefactor and former President, Goodluck Jonathan. Wike insisted he will work against ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, if the latter gets the presidential ticket of the All Progressives Congress in the 2023 general elections. Speaking during an interview with BBC Pidgin over the weekend in Port Harcourt, Wike says, party interest was his priority and not ethnic interest. Wike said, “I am from Southern part of Nigeria. I will…

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There are strong indications that former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Oladimeji Bankole, is set to dump the Action Democratic Party, to join the All Progressives Congress. This was a sequel to a meeting between the former Speaker, the Chairman of the APC Caretaker/Extra-Ordinary National Convention Planning Committee who is also the Governor of Yobe State, Mai Mala Buni, and his Jigawa State counterpart, Abubakar Badaru, in Abuja, on Friday. It was gathered that the three leaders met at the private residence of the Yobe State governor for a little over…

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Former Governor of Edo State, Adams Oshiomhole, on Saturday, described the incumbent governor of the state, Godwin Obaseki, as his brother and friend. The governor and the former chairman of the All Progressives Congress met in Auchi, Edo State, at the Centenary Birthday Thanksgiving of Msgr. Thomas Oleghe and 18th Canonical Erection Anniversary of the Diocese of Auchi held at Immaculate Conception Cathedral in Auchi. Obaseki, who exchanged greetings with an elbow-bump in compliance with COVID-19 preventive protocols, with his predecessor, said they are both sons of Edo with interest…

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Alhaji Lateef Kayode Jakande, aka Baba Kekere, the man who brought a lot of development to Lagos as governor between October 1, 1979 and December 31, 1983, in line with the five cardinal programmes of the Unity Party of Nigeria founded by a former Premier of the Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, has passed on. Jakande, aged 91, was the last man standing among the progressive politics gladiators of the second republic featuring Obafemi Awolowo; leader and founder of the Unity Party Party of Nigeria, Bola Ige, Adekunle Ajasin, Ambrose…

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There are indications that four governors of the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party may decamp to the ruling All Progressives Congress just as a former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, held a secret meeting with the Caretaker Chairman of the APC, Mai Mala Buni; and Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State. A very top member of the APC was quote by The PUNCH that while it was true that the party leadership has reached out to Fani-Kayode, the former minister had not yet made any commitment. The source, however, described the meeting…

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Engr. Segun Oni, a former governor of Ekiti State, on Monday, declared his intention to contest the 2022 gubernatorial election in the state. He was governor from 2007 to 2010 before he was removed from office through an appeal court judgement that voided his election in October 2010. Oni, while opening his campaign office christened “PDP Family Edifice”, in Ado Ekiti, promised to work with party leaders in the state including former Governor Ayodele Fayose, Senator Biodun Olujimi and others to reposition the PDP and make it formidable to achieve…

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Governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress have expressed grief over the death of one of the founding fathers of the APC, Tony Momoh, who died on Monday at the age of 81. This was contained in a statement titled, “Condolence Message on the Death of Prince Tony Momoh,” signed by the Chairman of the Progressives Governors Forum, Abubakar Bagudu, in Abuja, on Wednesday. Bagudu who is also the governor of Kebbi State said in the statement that he and his colleagues received the news of the…

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A video of Chief Sunday Adeyemo, porpularly known as Sunday Igboho responding to issues raised by Ekiti State former Senator, Babafemi Ojudu, has gone viral. In the video, the popular Yoruba rights activist made a mess of Senator Ojudu and some claims he made in the said write-up.

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Sunday Adeyemo, well known as Sunday Igboho, has hit back at Sen. Babafemi Ojudu, saying the Presidential Adviser lied in a published piece about him a day earlier. Ojudu, who is the Special Adviser on Political Matters to President Muhammadu Buhari, had published on his Facebook page on Monday, had alleged that opposition politicians contracted Igboho to disrupt the 2009 Rerun Governorship Election in Ekiti State. Ojudu had claimed he and a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu, met with Igboho to shelve the plan and the latter…

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Senator Jubril Martins-Kuye, a former Minister of State for Finance and later Commerce and Industry, is dead. According to family sources, the late 80 years old frontline politician from Ogun state “passed on about 10:05 this morning. It was a painful loss to us, but, we give glory to God for the impactful life that he lived while he was alive because he touched the lives of many people. Martins-Kuye who was a governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Ogun State during the 1999 general elections died in…

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A one time Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs and Nigeria’s former ambassador to the United States, Israel, and Cyprus, Prof. George Obiozor, has emerged President-General of the Igbo socio-cultural group, Ohanaeze Ndigbo. Obiozor emerged in an election held at Dan Anyim stadium in Owerri, the Imo state capital, on Sunday. This is as other candidates for the position of the President General boycotted the election. Meanwhile, one of the leading contestants for the post of Secretary-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Chuks Ibegbu, has announced his withdrawal from…

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A Federal High Court in Abuja on Saturday dismissed the alleged certificate forgery case filed against Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State by the All Progressives Congress and one of its members, Edobor Williams. Delivering his judgment, Justice Ahmed Mohammed, held that the plaintiffs failed to prove their claim that Obaseki forged his academic certificates that he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission before the September 19 2019 governorship election in the state. The judge found as lazy, the attitude of the plaintiffs, who did no make any efforts…

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President Donald Trump on Wednesday told a rally of his supporters outside the White House that he would never concede that he lost the election, as Congress readied to certify Joe Biden’s victory. “I will never give up. We will never concede,” Trump told the cheering crowd. “We will stop the steal.” Wearing “Make America Great Again” caps and sharing biscuits and beers, hundreds of Donald Trump supporters also insisted they would never accept Joe Biden as president as they traveled by bus from near Boston to Washington to protest…

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Washington, DC, will be under a 6:00 p.m. curfew tonight, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced in a tweeted statement. It will remain in effect until 6:00 a.m. Thursday. The Electoral College certification vote has been paused after protesters incited by Trump breached the Capitol building. “During the hours of the curfew, no person, other than persons designated by the Mayor, shall walk, bike, run, loiter, stand, or motor by car or other mode of transport” within the district, the statement said. The US House and Senate were forced into emergency recess…

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The Edo State High Court sitting in Benin on Wednesday voided Audu Ganiyu, the All Progressives Congress deputy governorship candidate in the September 19, 2020 governorship election. A member of the Peoples Democratic Party, Kadiri Oshoakhemhe, had in a suit No: B/358/20 filed a case against the APC deputy governorship candidate and two others. Delivering judgment in Benin City, the presiding judge, Justice H.A Courage-Ogbebor, said that Ganiyu presented false information to the Independent National Electoral Commission in his Form EC9. Ganiyu was the running mate of Osagie Ize-Iyamu, the…

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Prof. Babagana Umara Zulum, the executive governor of Nigeria’s Bornu State has been  announced as winners of National Infinity Magazine’s Nigerian of the Year 2020. According to a release signed by Olajide Ige, Editor-In-Chief of the magazine, Prof. Babagana Zulum, who took oath of office in 2019 as Governor of Boko Haram infested Bornu State, in North East of Nigeria, stood out, by plunging himself into the service of a people already dejected and overwhelmed by the insurgency that has ravaged the ancient people for years, and has become a true…

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Ayodele Fayose, an ex-governor of Ekiti State, has again lashed out at Oyo State governor, Seyi Makinde, describing him as a baby governor and not his leader, but his follower in South-West PDP. The enraged stalwart of the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party insisted Gov. Makinde can not be the leader of the Peoples Democratic Party in the South-west. He noted that leadership should be earned and not for anyone as a title. Fayose added that an ex-Ondo State Information Commissioner, Dr Eddy Olafeso, should be the next PDP National Vice…

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President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday, hinted of the possibility of re-opening Nigeria’s land borders very soon. Buhari gave the hint after a closed doors meeting with the nation’s 36 state governors on the security challenges across the country. He explained that the closure of the nation’s land borders was partly an attempt to control the smuggling of weapons and drugs. At the end of the meeting held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the Presidency issued a statement quoting Buhari as asking the state governors to work more with traditional rulers…

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The senator-elect for Lagos-East senatorial district and candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Tokunbo Abiru, has promised to translate his campaign promises into tangible outcomes for his constituents and Lagos as a whole. Abiru, who spoke in a ‘Victory Speech’ shortly after the Independent National Electoral Commission declared him winner of the Lagos-East bye-election on Sunday, polled 89,204 votes, while his closest rival and candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Mr Babatunde Gbadamosi, scored 11,251 votes. He said, “Now is the time to translate all the promises we made into…

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Ex-Minister of Transport, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, has appealed to all members of the Peoples Democratic Party in the South-West to cooperate with the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, as he leads the effort to reposition the party in the zone. He urged former Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, and other aggrieved members of the party to sheath their swords and give peace a chance. Babatope, who is a member of the PDP Board of Trustees said in an interview with our correspondent, in Ibadan on Tuesday. He said, “As far…

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Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said he bore no grudges against the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams hence no need for any reconciliation. Chief Obasanjo was reacting to media reports that he was in the house of Afenifere chieftain, Ayo Adebanjo for a reconciliation meeting with Gani Adams. Obasanjo said his meeting with Adams at the residence of a chieftain of Afenifere , Chief Ayo Adebanjo, in Le­kki was not on a reconciliatory mission. Obasanjo in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Akinyemi, on Wednesday, said…

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President-Elect Joe Biden to name Nigerian-American Adewale Adeyemo as Deputy Treasury Secretary (Deputy Minister of Finance of the United States of America) Adewale “Wally” Adeyemo, a Nigerian-born attorney and former senior international economic adviser during the Obama administration, will serve as deputy Treasury secretary under former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, who Biden plans to appoint to lead the Treasury Department. Adewale Adeyemo is currently the President of the Obama Foundation. He previously served as the first Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics from 2015-2016, and Deputy Director of…

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