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PDP’ll Inflict Fire, Fury On APC In 2019 – Fani-Kayode …Okowa Concurs,Says Power’ll Change Hands
A former Minister of Aviation, Mr Femi Fani-Kayode, says the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will inflict ‘fire and fury’ on the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) when Nigerians go to polls in 2019.
Fani-Kayode said this, when he appeared on Channels Television’s Politics Today, a day after United States President Donald Trump threatened to unleash ‘fire and fury’ on North Korea.
He explained that with the Supreme Court judgement which ended the leadership tussle in the PDP, the party will go on to reclaim power from the APC.
“Thank God for the rule of law, thank God for the Supreme Court. We are back on course, we have our party back, it’s now left to us to manage the success and ensure that we inflict what I would call ‘fire and fury’ like Donald Trump on the APC in 2019, and I am sure that we will actually do that,” he said.
The former minister, who said the PDP is becoming stable and is determined to regain the trust of the people, accused the APC of being responsible for its crisis.
Stressing that the leadership of the party would ensure its members remain united, Fani-Kayode said Nigerians were dissatisfied with the APC.
He said, “I think it’s fairly obvious that the Nigerian people are no longer happy with the APC; the honeymoon is over and now reality has set in and clearly, people want to change the change.”
Fani-Kayode also accused the APC of immorality and condemned what he described as ‘lies’ that the PDP did not develop the country.
“If you see what is happening in the last two years, I think the question of morality or decency should be put to the existing APC government rather than those of us that were in power before. We did a lot in 16 years regardless of the lies they are telling. PDP achieved a lot of things, we have nothing to be ashamed of; we have everything to look forward to,” he said.
On the PDP’s plans to convince Nigerians to vote it back into power in 2019, Fani-Kayode said it would assure citizens that it would be “changing the change” and ending “the rubbish”, which, according to him, has left many Nigerians – majorly from the southern region, disappointed in the last two years.
“The First song they (PDP) will sing is ‘get rid of the rubbish and get rid of the rot’; the second thing will be ‘changing the change’. Let’s get down to specifics, when we ran the 2015 elections, President Goodluck Jonathan lost by only two million votes, according to their INEC, not our INEC.
“I believe that probably up to 50% – 60% of the people that voted for the APC in 2015, particularly those in Yorubaland and throughout the South and Middle Belt were completely and actually shocked by what has happened in the last two years, and really wished they had voted the other way.”
Also, he expressed confidence that the PDP’s non-elective convention would be a success.
He said, “Our convention will come on August 12, and I’m sure we’ll do very well and from there, we’ll begin the process of pushing the APC out of power.
“If we could have survived one and a half years of ‘ruthless and relentless’ onslaught from the APC Federal Government and their agents who try to come into our party and hijack the party and come out united and stronger, speaking with one voice and one chairman, I really don’t think that we will be unable to manage great success that we’ve just had.”
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the 2017 PDP Special Non-Elective National Convention and Governor of Delta State, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, has said that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was set to take over power at the national level in 2019.
Okowa stated this, last Wednesday, at the meeting of the Convention Planning Committee at the party’s National Secretariat, Abuja.
The committee chairman noted that the party has realised areas they didn’t meet up with the expectations of Nigerians and has vowed to make corrections and provide Nigerians with good governance, anchored on accountability, rule of law and improved welfare of the citizenry.
“Yesterday, we were inaugurated with the task of organising a successful National Convention for our great party, it is our hope that the various committees will set out to work immediately as we have barley few days to go.
“As an organised party, I have confidence in our leaders of the various sub-committees that we will be able to deliver a successful National Convention that we can all be proud of.
“I trust in your abilities because I have seen a good number of committed party members who are dedicated to the cause of ensuring we return back to power in 2019”.
“Our party is back alive and with the National Convention, PDP will send a very strong message that will make Nigerians to realise that we are very much ready to take over power come 2019,” he said.
Members of the planning committee include, Barrister Kelechi Igwe, John Jonah, deputy governors of Ebonyi and Bayelsa states, and chairmen, deputy chairmen, secretaries and deputy secretaries of all the sub-committees attended the meeting.
In a related development,ahead of Saturday’s non-elective convention of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP), immediate past President of the Senate, David Mark, has called for a hitch free convention that would further strengthen the party.
According to a statement signed by the Media Assistant to Senator David Mark, Paul Mumeh, in a goodwill message to delegates to the convention, the senator called for a peaceful outing.
Mark, who expressed optimism about the future of the party after the convention, however, warned that the party could not afford to make another mistake.
The PDP just survived a protracted leadership tussle which lasted about two years and was only settled by the Supreme Court barely two months ago.
The former president of the Senate is one of the PDP members who promised no stand with the party and remained steadfast throughout the period of the trial.
The said that having just survived the phase, he was impressed by the renewed enthusiasm and commitment of members towards rebuilding the party after the protracted leadership tussle.
Mark, therefore, tasked the Governor Ifeanyi Okowa-led special convention committee not to leave any stone unturned to guarantee a hitch free exercise.
“We have come this far through a tortuous journey. We cannot afford to make another mistake that could affect the fortunes of the party in the days ahead,” he said.
Mark recalled his earlier pledge never to dump the party after the PDP lost to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2015 election.
He restated: “Even if I will be the last man standing in the PDP, I will remain in PDP. I have no reasons whatsoever to leave the party.
“I have risen to where I am on the platform of the party. The PDP has a manifesto and I believe in it.
“Those who are decamping from PDP to APC are fair weather friends of the party.
“So, the point I want to make is that I remain in PDP, and I will work hard with other faithful members to bring it back.
“This is democracy; there will always be a winner and a loser in every election. Both parties must accept the outcome in a free and fair contest and move on,” he said.
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
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RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.