Politics
Edo: PDP Blasts APC Over Emergency Rule
The Edo State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to declare a state of emergency in the state over what it called the “collapse of governance.”
The opposition party in the state said that the call became imperative given the fact that Governor Godwin Obaseki “has emasculated the judiciary, crippled the legislature and personalised the executive branch by acting as the sole administrator of Edo State,” where “his word is law; he is the lawmaker, the judge and the prison put together.”
The state Chairman of the party, Col. David Imuse (retd.), who made the call while addressing journalists at the party’s secretariat in Benin on Thursday added that Obaseki’s “flagrant abuse of power is not provided for anywhere in the 1999 Constitution as amended.”
Imuse stated that though elected democratically, the governor was actually functioning as the sole administrator of the state and lamenting that over a year into his second term, “Edo is the only state in Nigeria today without a functional legislature. What is happening with the 10 PDP jokers, who gather regularly at Governor Obaseki’s office, is comical.
“What Obaseki is practising in Edo today is a democratic taboo. And when a taboo is allowed to exist for too long, it becomes a tradition. If this taboo is allowed to be exported to other states, using Obaseki as a reference, it will endanger our democratic culture. Edo is in serious trouble.
“Mr Obaseki’s flagrant abuse of power is not provided for anywhere in the 1999 Constitution as amended. Meanwhile, this constitution, which our country, Nigeria, is still operating, remains the grundnorm. So, we wonder where Mr Obaseki is deriving his powers from, as there is no section in the constitution either for a maximum ruler or sole administrator as we presently have in Edo.
“For almost one year, local government administration in Edo State has been thrown into a coma, with the governor’s decision not to conduct elections for chairmen and councillors. For a governor, who daily interfered with the state’s local government councils’ statutory allocations, is it not self-indictment to say that unless he is able to clear the N60bn debt they owe, he cannot conduct LG elections?
However, the state Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Andrew Emwanta, said the call by the state chapter of the APC for the declaration of a state of emergency in the state should be directed to the Federal Government, under whose rule Nigerians were being slaughtered and maimed on a daily basis across the country.
Emwanta, in a statement, noted that the issues raised about governance and development by the party were not only a slap on the faces of the citizens of Edo State, but a sign of selective amnesia.
He stated, “Edo State, as of today, is perhaps the most peaceful place to live in the entire country with incidences of crime and criminality in the state over the last three months nearing almost zero, and the APC dares to call for a state of emergency in the state when it superintends over a Federal Government under which Nigerians are slaughtered and maimed on a daily basis all across Nigeria.
“Can the Edo APC not see that its call for a state of emergency should be more appropriately directed to a federal government, which it leads and that has reduced the value of Nigerian lives to near nothing?
“In Nigeria today, under the leadership of the APC, which their shameless and ragtag executive committee in Edo, who addressed the press conference represents, you cannot travel from Abuja to Kaduna; Abuja to Keffi; or from Abuja to Minna by road without a 70 per cent chance of being attacked, kidnapped or killed by bandits. Yet, these palace jesters gather in the safety of Benin City, provided by the excellent leadership of Governor Godwin Obaseki, and mouth non-existent chaos.
“The APC wants a state of emergency declared in a state that did not only pay salaries and pensions of state government workers by the 14th of December, but also released funds to the local governments to ensure that their employees are also paid salaries in time for the yuletide celebrations, while the APC-led Federal Government was struggling to meet their FAAC obligations for the end of the year.
The Tide source reports that Prof. Akinoso was elected alongside 38 other executive members of the party at the congress held on Saturday.
Other executive members are Dr Abiola Olaonipekun, who emerged as Secretary, Alhaja Latifah Latifu, Women Leader and Mr A. Adeleke, elected as Youth Leader.
It was learnt that the congress, which took place at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium, Oke Ado in Ibadan, was attended by representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Police, other security agencies and prominent members of the party.
The election was supervised by electoral committee members, among whom were Prince Diran Odeyemi, who served as Chairman, Hon. Awoniyi Tolulope, Mr Babatunde Gbadamosi, Queen Stepheine Oyechere, Alhaji Yusuf Abidakun, Mr Olumide Aguda and Dr Phillips Adeniyi, who served as Secretary.
Prof. Akinoso, in his inaugural address, urged members of the party to set aside intra-party differences.
He advised them to concentrate their resources on the promotion of the party, saying, “The primary responsibilities of party executive members are to coordinate party activities, ensure harmony among members, and ensure party victory during general elections.
“Our immediate assignments are to key into INEC released 2027 general election time-tables. As directed by the National Caretaker Committee of PDP, our party e-membership registration starts next week. We must be fully involved and do a membership drive.
“A political party is only relevant and benefits its members if it wins the election. This is our goal. We should set aside intra-party differences; concentrate our resources towards the promotion of the party. We will make necessary consultations and dialogue to actualise this”.
President Tinubu disclosed this during an interfaith breaking of fast with senior journalists and media executives at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Saturday.
He also disclosed that his administration had opened up on the principles of true federalism to the extent that local governments now get direct allocation from the Federal Government.
“There’s no morning that I ever leave my house without going through the newspapers. It’s an addiction. I read all of you.
“It might not be in full detail, but headline, the one that would hit me and the ones that won’t.
“At the beginning of this administration, I was just a little bit stubborn, looking at opportunities to correct things and make life more easier for the downtrodden.
“We’ve opened up the principle of federalism to the extent that local governments are now getting their money, but how they use it is in your hands. So, don’t bombard me alone,” President Tinubu said.
The ruling party said the ADC had turned criticism of the APC-led administration into its operating manifesto instead of presenting concrete solutions to Nigeria’s economic challenges.
In a statement issued on Saturday by the APC National Publicity Secretary, Mr Felix Morka, the party dismissed the ADC’s interpretation of a report presented at a policy dialogue organised by Agora Policy which suggested that the country’s poverty rate had risen from 49 per cent to 63 per cent.
Mr Morka said the opposition party’s reaction to the report as a “damning verdict” on the government’s economic policies reflected either ignorance of economic realities or deliberate political mischief.
“The African Democratic Congress’ attempt to spin a recent report presented at the Agora Policy dialogue indicating a rise of poverty rate of 63 per cent from 49 per cent as a damning verdict on this administration’s economic policies speaks either to its shocking ignorance of economic policy or its wilful blindness to the justification for, and transformative impacts of, ongoing economic reforms,” he said.
The APC spokesman noted that the report itself recognised the necessity of reforms aimed at correcting long-standing structural distortions in the economy.
According to him, the ADC had failed to present any credible alternative policy direction for Nigerians.
“Clearly, the ADC does not recognise itself as a political party. The ADC has not articulated a single alternative policy position or prescription of benefit to Nigerians. Condemning the APC and its policies has become its operating manifesto,” Mr Morka said.
He explained that major economic decisions taken by President Bola Tinubu, including the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of multiple foreign exchange windows, were necessary steps to rescue the country’s economy from collapse.
Mr Morka said the subsidy regime had for years placed a heavy burden on public finances, consuming trillions of naira annually while encouraging corruption, fuel smuggling and inefficiencies in the system.
He added that the reforms had helped redirect national resources to key sectors such as infrastructure, healthcare, education and social development.
The APC spokesman acknowledged that economic reforms often come with short-term hardship but stressed that the measures were essential to build a stronger and more resilient economy.
“Economic reform is never cost-free anywhere in the world. The transient hardship experienced by Nigerians was an inevitable cost of reforms meant to build and guarantee a better future for all Nigerians,” he said.
Mr Morka maintained that the country’s economic outlook was already improving, citing recent growth figures and stronger external reserves.
“Our economy has rebounded and is expanding steadily. The country’s Gross Domestic Product grew by 4.4 per cent last year and is projected to expand by 5.5 per cent this fiscal year, with foreign reserves now exceeding $50 billion,” he stated.
He also pointed to government initiatives designed to cushion the effects of economic adjustments on citizens, including cash transfer programmes, student loan schemes and the rollout of compressed natural gas (CNG) initiatives to reduce transportation costs.
Mr Morka reaffirmed that the APC-led administration would remain focused on rebuilding the economy and expanding social investments to support vulnerable Nigerians.
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