Politics
I Am Not Makarfi’s Candidate – Secondus
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chairmanship aspirant, Prince Uche Secondus, yesterday said he is not the candidate of the party’s chairman of the national caretaker committee, Sen Ahmed Makarfi.
This comes as former Minister of Women Affairs, and a contender for deputy national chairman, Hajia Inna Ciroma warned that the party cannot afford to get it wrong at the forthcoming national convention.
She added that the North rejected PDP in 2015 because it abandoned zoning principle, noting however that the party has learnt its lesion ahead of 2019.
Secondus who stated this at the party national secretariat in Abuja, after submitting his nomination form, also stressed that at no time was the national chairmanship position zoned to South West geo-political zone by stakeholders from the zone.
He noted that the position was zoned to the 17 states in South, same way presidential ticket of the PDP for 2019 polls was zoned to the 19 states in the North, including the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). He further clarified that he didn’t bother to contest for national chairman at the botched national convention last year in Port Harcourt, because party leaders from the South micro-zoned it to the South-west.
Reacting to claims that he enjoys Makarfi’s support, Secondus, who was a former deputy national chairman of the party, said
“Makarfi is not paving way for my emergence. There is no truth to that statement. I have been going round quietly and canvassing for votes. I have not held any meeting with Makarfi and he has not endorsed me.”
There was not time in this time that the office (national chairmanship) was micro zoned.
“The office of national chairman zoned to 17 southern states of the federation. President zoned to 19 states. Let’s not dwell on misinterpretation: aspirants know this unless they want to be mischievous”.
The party chieftain said he decided to join the race for chairman because the party needs experience going into the 2019 general elections.
Former minister of Women Affair, Hajia Inna Ciroma urged delegates to vote for the right persons and disregard sentiments.
Ciroma, who spoke after submitting her nomination form at the party secretariat, said “If we get the national convention right PDP will come back. Delegates must vote the right people not based on sentiments. We need men and women of integrity to lead it to the next general election.”
The former said :”The whole Nigerians believe PDP will come back to power. I want delegates to think critically before they vote. We want people who will deliver this party. We should not vote based on sentiments. We should look at antecedents. We must ensure that imposition does not continue in the party.”
On how she can play leadership role in the north where women are relegated culturally she answered, “political leadership is not religious leadership. It is politics not religion. It is a cultural mindset and it is changing very very fast. Why should our parents send us to school if we cannot occupy leadership positions.
“Women are taking over leadership positions in other areas and politics should not be an exception.
She debunked the insinuations that her relationship with a particular candidate could affect her emergence.
“The tact that I am working for a particular candidate does not mean that I am not supporting the others. I am a party member and all of them are qualifies and they are all my friends.
“We know where we went wrong in 2015. One of the things that went wrong was when we jettisoned the zoning arrangement.
“All Nigerian believe that PDP must come back to power, so we are strategisingk.
“My message is that I want the delegates to think critically before they vote. They should look at people who are able to deliver this party. It is the responsibilities of delegate to vote according to their conscience and ensure that they move the party forward” she emphasized.
The Senate yesterday received the 2026-2028 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper from President Bola Tinubu, marking the formal launch of the 2026 federal budget cycle.
In a letter addressed to the upper chamber, Tinubu said the submission complies with statutory requirements and sets out the fiscal parameters that will guide the preparation of the 2026 Appropriation Bill.
He explained that the MTEF/FSP outlines the macroeconomic assumptions, revenue projections, and spending priorities that will shape Nigeria’s fiscal direction over the next three years.
The letter was read during plenary by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin (APC, Kano North), who urged lawmakers to expedite consideration of the document.
“It is with pleasure that I forward the 2026 to 2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper for the kind consideration and approval of the Senate.
“The 2026 to 2028 MTEF and FSP were approved during the Federal Executive Council meeting of December 3, 2025, and the 2026 budget of the Federal Government will be prepared based on the parameters and fiscal assumptions therein,” the President stated.
Last week, the Federal Executive Council approved the fiscal projections, pegging the oil benchmark price at $64.85 per barrel and adopting a budget exchange rate of ?1,512/$1 for 2026—figures expected to significantly shape revenue forecasts and expenditure planning.
After reading the President’s letter, Jibrin referred the document to the Senate Committee on Finance, chaired by Senator Sani Musa (APC, Niger East), with a directive to submit its report by Wednesday, December 17.
The Senate adjourned shortly after to allow committees to commence scrutiny of the fiscal framework and continue the ongoing screening of ambassadorial nominees.
Tinubu’s communication to the Senate came less than 24 hours after he transmitted the same MTEF/FSP documents to the leadership of the House of Representatives.
The letter was read on the House floor by the Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, who also urged timely legislative action as required by law.
The MTEF and FSP are statutory instruments mandated by the Fiscal Responsibility Act and serve as the blueprint for Nigeria’s annual budgets.
They outline the government’s fiscal stance, macroeconomic assumptions, revenue frameworks, projected deficits, and sectoral priorities over a three-year period.
The Tide reports that approval by the National Assembly is a prerequisite for the executive to present the Appropriation Bill for the next fiscal year.
In a statement on Saturday, the former Senate Leader stated that the allocation of nominees across states and geopolitical zones falls short of the constitutional requirement for fair representation in the composition of the Federal Government.
The ex-Senate Whip warned that allowing the list to pass could deepen ethnic suspicion at a time when the administration should be consolidating national unity.
He highlighted disparities in the spread of nominees, noting that while some states have three or four slots, others have none. He also cited the inclusion of Senator Adamu Garba Talba from Yobe, who reportedly died in July.
“The entire North-East states have seven nominees in the list. Further checks revealed that the South-West geo-political zone has 15 nominees, while North-West and South-East have 13 and 9, respectively.
“North-Central region has 10 nominees in the list of career and non-career ambassadorial nominee while South-South parades 12 nominees,” Senator Ndume said.
According to him, such imbalances could heighten tensions and undermine Section 14(3) of the Constitution.
“My sincere appeal to President Tinubu is to withdraw this list. At this critical juncture in his administration, he should avoid missteps that could undermine national unity and foster ethnic distrust.
“I know him to be a cosmopolitan leader who is at home with every segment and stakeholder in the country. He should withdraw that list and present a fresh set of nominees that will align with the spirit of the Constitution on the Federal Character Principle,” Senator Ndume added.
He accused the legislators of undermining the sanctity of the legislature and acting as instruments of destabilization.
“The members of the Rivers State House of Assembly have, by their actions since they assumed office, shown that they are political puppets and a clog in the wheels of democratic progress,” Comrade Ememobong stated, adding that “They will go down in history as enemies of democracy and those who made mockery of the legislature.”
“So the easiest way to describe their action is a defection from APC to APC,” he said.
Comrade Ememobong announced that the party would deploy constitutional provisions to reclaim its mandate from those who have “ignobly and surreptitiously” abandoned the platform on which they were elected.
“Consequently, the PDP will take legal steps to activate the provision of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999 as amended) to recover the mandate gained under the banner of our party which these people have now switched to another platform,” he said.
He urged party members in Rivers State to remain calm and steadfast.
“We urge all party members in Rivers State to remain faithful and resolute, as efforts are underway to rebuild the party along the path of inclusiveness, fairness and equity,” Comrade Ememobong assured.
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