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Buhari, APC’s Greatest Enemy -Iwuanyanwu
A member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Board of Trustees (BoT), Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu has insisted that President Muhammadu Buhari is the “greatest enemy” of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Iwuanyamu, who stated this in an interview with newsmen, said Buhari had his agenda and rode on the platform of the APC to where he is today.
He also accused the current Buhari’s administration of high level corruption.
Iwuanyamu also accused the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), of failing to deliver on its electoral promises to Nigerians.
He said, “My interest is the re-engineering going on in PDP. If we get it right, it is goodbye to APC, and that is why I am praying, singing and begging, let us do it right.
“This is the party that has been in government for 16 years and a coup happened called amalgamation of parties, that is the biggest fraud in Nigeria because up till today, CPC and Buhari have their own agenda.
“As for the other parties, you can see the fragmentation inside that place and that is why there is fragmentation, agitation, crisis in Nigeria.
“The National Assembly and the president are not in good terms. We do not have one party called APC. Now, PDP is one party. Check the origin of the party, a group of prominent Nigerians from across various political divides came together and formed it. It was not a party formed on anger of let us remove Jonathan or that party must go to the North.
“We have greater opportunity, having learnt a lesson to be able to rise again. Now, if APC has provided a credible alternative, it would have been goodbye to PDP, but unfortunately, my people say if a woman marries two husbands, you will know the one that is better, not when you marry one you start saying this man is a very dangerous man, leave and go and marry another one, then you know the one that is dangerous.
“Nigerians have married two wives, what we are seeing today is not an APC government, Buhari had his own agenda and rode on the platform of APC and got to where he is. So, the greatest enemy of APC is the President and his agenda.
“You cannot have a political party unleashing pythons and gorillas and hyenas in a whole zone of five states when the election is coming a day after tomorrow, a good political party thinks of winning an election and they don’t say to hell with people,” he added.
Meanwhile, as 2019 approaches, the crisis in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) appears to have taken a dramatic dimension as the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, last Wednesday declared that the party would follow the normal democratic process in choosing its flagbearer in the 2019 Presidential election.
Tinubu said the leadership of the party had not endorsed President Muhammadu Buhari as its sole candidate for the forthcoming presidential election.
His statement was against the recent endorsement of President Muhammadu as the sole candidate of the APC for the 2019 election by the APC governors.
Tinubu held a closed door meeting with the leaders of the pan-Yoruba socio-cultural organisation, the Afenifere, at the residence of the leader of the organisation, Pa. Reuben Fasoranti in Akure, the Ondo State capital.
Tinubu, who was at the meeting with the Governor of Ondo State, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu, his deputy, Mr. Agboola Ajayi and the Acting Chairman of the APC in the state, Mr. Ade Ademehin, said Buhari was a man who believed in normal democratic process and the rule of law.
Speaking with journalists after the meeting, he said, “No governors can appropriate the power of endorsement to themselves. Buhari is a believer in the process. The Buhari, I know, believes in the rule of law. We wanted him even before the last convention and primary of the party and Akeredolu is here standing with me, he was not the governor then. He was one of the leading delegates that voted properly and Buhari was a clear winner.
He added, “We followed all the constitutional provision and an individual or group’s opinion does not really matter at this stage, Buhari will want a normal process. Buhari that I know, who says he will lose at any convention? But if the national body, the NEC (National Executive Committee) and all of us as members endorsed him as our single candidate, we will not be violating INEC regulations, we will not be violating our party constitution”.
“What you are hearing is just a campaign by other people who might like to do so. Buhari has not excluded anybody, and he has not infringed on anybody’s ambition if there is. We cannot be sycophantic about it.”
Yesterday, Political leaders and governors from the north central have unanimously agreed that President Muhammadu Buhari should run for presidency in 2019.
The governors gave this resolution at the North Central meeting of the National Committee of Buhari Support Groups held in Abuja
Prominent persons who made this call were Governors Samuel Ortom (Benue), Simon Lalong (Plateau), Tanko Al-Makura (Nasarawa) and Senator George Akume
The motion was moved by Akume and was seconded by Governor Lalong.
They vowed to compel President Buhari to contest insisting there was no one else that could sustain the growth being recorded.
The senator noted that the constitution was aware that four years was too short to make significant achievement which was why there was provision for a second term.
Boss Mustapha who is the Secretary to the Government of the Federation represented Buhari at the meeting. He said: “
When you elected us into office, you did so with the conviction that our dear nation needed to be put on a new pedestal for the dreams conceived by our founding fathers, dreams that we have adopted to be realized.
Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu insists that the All Progressives Congress (APC) will follow due democratic process in selecting its presidential candidate for the 2019 elections.
Representative of the Rivers State Governor and Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt, Engr Emeka Woke (2nd right),with the General Overseer of the Fire Brand Apostolic Ministry Worldwide, Pastor Olufemi Odeyale (right), member representing Emohua State Constituency in the House of Assembly, Hon Sam Ogeh (2nd left) and others, during the 4thAnniversary celebration of the church in Ibadan, recently.
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.