Politics
Reject FG’s Anti-People Policies, HURIWA Tells Nigerians
Prominent civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), has called on Nigerians to rise up and reject the evil policies of President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration or be enslaved forever.
The group premised the call on “the rash of anti-people actions of the current administration, exemplified in the hike in petrol and electricity tariff at a time Nigerians are battling with the economic hardship occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic, and the frightening insecurity with almost the entire North-East and North-West under continuous terror attacks by armed Fulani herdsmen and the so called armed bandits who are nothing but terrorists.”
A statement signed by the National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko; and the Director, National Media Affairs, Miss. Zainab Yusuf; yesterday, noted that, “It is unjustifiably distressing that the APC administration would increase the cost of essential commodities at a time the leadership of other countries are offering palliatives to their citizens to cushion the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
According to HURIWA, “It is instructive to add that our nation is doomed under the APC watch. This is because, while other nations, even capitalist nations such as France, US and UK are supporting businesses in the face of the prolonged lockdown caused by the global pandemic of Covid-19, in Nigeria the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management did nothing but to rob poor Nigerians of the billions of Naira budgeted as palliatives and as we write there are widespread discontent and mass anger against the ministry for lying that it undertook distribution of palliatives whereas Nigerians are aware that corruption and theft of public fund are the order of the day in the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management.
“We are by this statement demanding to know the rationale for these insensitive, irrational and inhumane economic wars against Nigerians who are already facing mass hunger, mass unemployment and mass killings?
“We also challenge the Federal Government to publish details of its oil subsidy regime, including the involvement and interest of political leaders close to the corridor of power. Has subsidy actually been removed? If so, do we still have it in budget? If we have deregulated, how come the situation and what is the Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) doing to control price? Is the government collecting tax from citizens on every litre of petrol sold? Nigerians need to know. Why are the refineries not working despite the colossal amount quoted as been used for turnaround maintenance?, the group stated.
The statement also said: “Furthermore, we demand to know what exactly President Muhammadu Buhari’s agenda in the face of the collapse of the economy and security is. Our fear is that the Buhari government is pushing Nigerians to the wall with its obnoxious and anti-people penchants and we caution that nobody should misinterpret the peaceful and law-abiding nature of Nigerians as a sign of weakness.
“Therefore, we call for the cancellation of the evil and inhumane hike in the rate of pump price of petrol and electricity as it is a travesty and would have a knock-on effect on millions of poor Nigerians who will struggle to meet the increased costs of transportation and basic goods. The development will eventually lead to increase in prices of goods produced by manufacturers, which will automatically result to increase in inflation. We join voices with other stakeholders to urge the National Assembly to save the nation by calling the Executives to order before the nation plunges into chaos.”
Politics
Reps Constitution Review Committee Holds Zonal Hearing For Rivers, C’River, Akwa Ibom In Calabar
A press statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the Cross River State Governor, Mr Linus Obogo, disclosed that the Calabar Centre — designated as Centre B — will host representatives and stakeholders from Cross River, Rivers, and Akwa Ibom States.
The public hearing is scheduled to take place on Saturday, July 19, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. at the Transcorp (Metropolitan) Hotel, Calabar.
The initiative, according to the statement, is designed to promote inclusive dialogue and capture the aspirations of Nigerians from all regions.
It aims to serve as a platform for citizens to contribute meaningfully to the ongoing national efforts to refine and strengthen the country’s legal and institutional frameworks.
“Citizens, civil society groups, professional bodies, traditional rulers, and other interest blocs are invited to participate in this landmark engagement aimed at advancing a more just, equitable, and responsive Nigerian Constitution,” the statement read.
The hearing forms part of the broader review process of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), and is seen as a strategic move toward fostering national unity and addressing structural legal issues within the federation.
For the first time since 2022, when then-presidential aspirant Alhaji Bola Tinubu declared he made former President Buhari Nigeria’s President in 2015, Mr Mustapha dismissed the claims, stressing that the merger only contributed about three million votes in addition to Buhari’s existing 12 million votes in the North.
He insisted that former President Buhari’s integrity, national stature, and disciplined messaging were central to the breakthrough, not the three million votes from the merging parties, which he described as insignificant.
Speaking on the role of the merging parties, particularly President Tinubu, the leader of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Mr Mustapha, who was the keynote speaker at the launch of the book ‘According to the President: Lessons from a Presidential Spokesman’s Experience’ authored by Mallam Garba Shehu, described the impact of the votes from other merging parties as very insignificant.
In attendance were former Head of State Yakubu Gowon, chair of the event; immediate past Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; SGF George Akume, who represented President Tinubu; PDP’s 2023 presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar; former Chief of Staff to Buhari Ibrahim Gambari; elder statesman Babagana Kingibe; former governors Nasir El-Rufai (Kaduna), Kayode Fayemi (Ekiti), Chris Ngige (Anambra), Rauf Aregbesola (Osun), Raji Babatunde Fashola (Lagos); former ministers Solomon Dalung and Sunday Dare; former Army Chief Tukur Buratai, and Bayo Onanuga, President Tinubu’s spokesman, among others.
According to Mr Mustapha, “I do not intend to stir up any controversy. The merger in 2013 was midwifed to create a Buhari presidency. Let us look at the statistics. In the 2003 election, it was the Obasanjo-Buhari presidential contest where Buhari recorded 12.7 million votes. In 2007, it came to 6.6 million, and it went back to 12.2 million in 2011.
“When we were conceptualising the merger, what would give us a headstart? Obviously, it was at the back of our consciousness that the merger with the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), though it had only one state, the ACN had six states, ANPP three states, and when you sum up the total votes that we had as the presidency in 2015, the aggregate of the total votes was 15.4 million.
“So, basically, what we brought to the table after the merger outside the Buhari 12.5 million votes was three million. Before turning to that presidency, it is important to recognise the former President’s role in reshaping Nigeria’s political trajectory.
“In early 2013, as the leader of the CPC, Buhari formally requested and supported the creation of a CPC merger committee, part of a broader coalition-building process that brought together the ACN, ANPP, APGA faction, and elements of the ruling party through the breakaway ‘new PDP’ group. His endorsement and participation, along with other party leaders such as President Tinubu and Senator Ali Modu Sheriff, lent credibility and direction to the merger, helping to unify disparate party factions under the banner of the APC. That coalition-building paved the way for the first democratic defeat of an incumbent ruling party in Nigeria’s history.
“President Buhari’s integrity, national stature, and disciplined messaging were central to that breakthrough. No account of President Buhari’s tenure would be complete without acknowledging the extended periods he spent on medical leave. These moments, while politically delicate, were also telling of his leadership philosophy and personality,” he said.
In his remarks, President Tinubu promised to build on the legacies of former President Buhari, stressing that “nation-building is a relay. The efforts of one administration lay the foundation for the next.
“In this regard, I acknowledge the efforts of my predecessor, President Buhari, and assure all Nigerians that the reform-oriented path he initiated will be consolidated and strengthened under this administration. Our Renewed Hope Agenda is inspired by the desire to build a resilient, just, and inclusive Nigeria—a nation that delivers dividends of democracy to all its citizens”.
Speaking during an appearance on live television on Wednesday, Mr Omokri alleged that Mr Obi’s statements were misleading and damaging to the country’s economic prospects.
Mr Omokri said some investors currently operating in Nigeria were considering exiting the market due to Mr Obi’s remarks.
“That is not true. He doesn’t rile me up. I rile him up. The reason why I came here is because I’m a patriot. Peter Obi lied. You know, foreign direct investors are watching your programme, who are making investment decisions not to come to Nigeria. There are foreign investors in Nigeria that are making investment decisions to leave Nigeria because of the lie he told.
“One of the lies he told is that President Tinubu has borrowed more than the administrations of Yar’Adua, Jonathan, Buhari. That is a blatant lie”, Mr Omokri said.
To buttress his claims, Mr Omokri referenced figures from the Debt Management Office (DMO), maintaining that President Tinubu had actually reduced Nigeria’s external debt burden since assuming office.
“I have here with me data from the Debt Management Office, and Nigerians who are watching can go to DMO.com and search Debt Management Office, Nigeria State of Indebtedness 2015.
“As of 2015, Nigeria was owing a total of $63 billion. When Buhari was leaving office, Nigeria was owing $113 billion. Today, from the DMO, our debt has gone from $113 billion to $97 billion, meaning that Tinubu has reduced our debt by over $14 billion.
“We should be appreciating this man. Yet Peter Obi came here and lied to the Nigerian people. He took the debts and translated them into naira to make it look like the debts have increased”, he said.