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Court Rejects Application To Stop INEC's Card Readers

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDADGs-3RDGyYWqGBoDuq10Zk0XYC6X4_PHrge-UxvlRt1uGgzIjJUZvtp1nXSkCbzLLqD0Dx0RjvP0rlYjsBwOZobq-tTFk5LSCGldHp49aeTeiXhTRO6d70HPchz5W1CEP0wpkxAmAaF/s1600/INEC-Card-Reader2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="430" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDADGs-3RDGyYWqGBoDuq10Zk0XYC6X4_PHrge-UxvlRt1uGgzIjJUZvtp1nXSkCbzLLqD0Dx0RjvP0rlYjsBwOZobq-tTFk5LSCGldHp49aeTeiXhTRO6d70HPchz5W1CEP0wpkxAmAaF/s1600/INEC-Card-Reader2.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>A Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday rejected an application for an order stopping the Independent National Electoral Commission from using the electronic card readers in the forthcoming general elections.</b></div>
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The application filed as ex parte was filed by four political parties – the United Democratic Party, Action Alliance, Allied Congress Party of Nigeria and Alliance for Democracy.</div>
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A similar suit challenging the exclusive use of the Permanent Voter Card and the card reader is pending before Justice Abdulkadir Abdul-Kafarati of the Federal High Court in Abuja.</div>
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Justice Adeniyi Ademola, in his ruling on Monday on the application filed on behalf of the political parties by four Senior Advocates of Nigeria, held that INEC deserved to be heard before making a pronouncement on their prayers.</div>
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He noted that the political parties had shown that they had legal rights to institute the action and that the case was one that could be litigated on, but he insisted that he could not grant the interim orders sought by the applicants without first hearing INEC.</div>
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‎But the court ordered INEC to file its defence within four days of receiving the court papers.</div>
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It fixed hearing of the substantive suit for March 10.</div>
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The application was argued on behalf of the plaintiffs on Monday by Dr. Alex Izinyon (SAN), who led two other SANs – Bolaji Ayorinde, Ikechukwu Ezechukwu and Adekunle Oyesanya – in filing the main suit.</div>
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The plaintiffs had argued on Monday that the use of the electronic card reader was contrary to the provisions of the Constitution as well as the Electoral Act 2010 as amended.</div>
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The plaintiffs are challenging the powers of the electoral body to introduce a process not specifically provided for in the statutes ahead of preparations for the the rescheduled polls.</div>
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He maintained that the proposed use of the electronic card readers is in breach of the provisions of section 52(1) of the Electoral Act which he argued prohibits electronic voting.</div>
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He said, “My lord, this is what brought us to this court. INEC wants Nigerian voters to subject themselves to electronic voters card reader, an electronic component which is expressly prohibited.</div>
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“Any thing to do with electronic magnetic capturing properties cannot be allowed in the conduct of the election.”</div>
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He urged the court to temporarily restrain the electoral body from “implementing, commencing or directing the use of the card reader machine for the forthcoming election, pending the determination of the suit.”</div>
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He further urged the court to bridge the time within which the electoral body would be allowed to file a response in view of the nature of the case which, according to him has a robust electoral jurisprudence.</div>
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He cited a decision of a Federal High Court in Ebonyi Division in 2003, when open secret ballot system was adopted by the state Independent Election Commission in the conduct of local government elections contrary to the provisions of the Electoral Act which prescribed an open ballot system.</div>
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He pointed out that the court went ahead to nullify that election and that “the heavens did not fall.”</div>
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He insisted that the the card reader could not be allowed to take the place of accreditation as prescribed by the Electoral Act, reports the <b><a href="http://www.punchng.com/news/court-dismisses-suit-to-stop-inecs-card-readers/">PUNCH</a></b>.</div>
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The parties are among the 16 parties that supported the Peoples Democratic Party in objecting to the conduct of the elections as earlier scheduled. They also have adopted President Jonathan (the presidential candidate of the PDP as their candidate.</div>

Court Rejects Application To Stop INEC's Card Readers

A Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday rejected an application for an order stopping the Independent National Electoral Commission from using the electronic card readers in the forthcoming general e…

02 Mar 2015

World’s Poorest President Bows Out Gracefully

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<b>Can you imagine a Nigerian president riding in 28-year-old VW Beetle? Or living in his own house, forgoing the heaven-like Aso Rock? Or giving 90% of his salary to charity? Or, the most difficult one, having to leave office quietly when he could have manipulated state institutions to give him another term in office, given his popularity?</b></div>
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It may never be replicated in Nigeria, but it has happened in Uruguay, where the outgoing president, Jose “Pepe” Mujica, has broken all records in presidential modesty.</div>
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A former guerrilla who spent 13 years in jail, Mujica was elected president in 2010 for a five-year term. The Uruguayan constitution forbids an incumbent from seeking re-election, so he had to leave office on March 1, 2015 despite his street popularity. Of course, he made no attempts to change the constitution.</div>
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The 79-year-old socialist has handed over to his predecessor and successor - Tabaré Vázquez, who is now on his second term because of Uruguay’s peculiar law.</div>
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In an interview with BBC, Mujica recalled the years he spent in detention, two of them lying at the bottom of an old horse trough.</div>
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“I was imprisoned in solitary [confinement] so the day they put me on a sofa I felt comfortable!” Mujica joked about his status as president.</div>
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“I’ve no doubt that had I not lived through that I would not be who I am today. Prison, solitary confinement had a huge influence on me. I had to find an inner strength. I couldn’t even read a book for seven, eight years - imagine that!”</div>
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But you are not likely to say that of any Nigerian politician who had been to jail before coming to power - they seem to be overwhelmed by the flow of cash as soon as they assume office.</div>
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Yet, Mujica cannot understand the global fascination with his modest lifestyle, <b><a href="http://www.thecable.ng/worlds-poorest-president-bows-gracefully">TheCable</a></b> reports.</div>
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“This world is crazy, crazy! People are amazed by normal things and that obsession worries me!” he said.</div>
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“All I do is live like the majority of my people, not the minority. I’m living a normal life and Italian, Spanish leaders should also live as their people do. They shouldn’t be aspiring to or copying a rich minority.”</div>
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He will also be remembered for stabilising the country’s economy and promoting equity and social justice.</div>
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Neither will he be forgotten for legalising abortion and marijuana in a country with Catholic majority.</div>
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He said: “Marijuana is another plague, another addiction. Some say it’s good but no, that’s rubbish. Not marijuana, tobacco or alcohol – the only good addiction is love!.</div>
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“But 150,000 people smoke [marijuana] here and I couldn’t leave them at the mercy of drugs traffickers. It’s easier to control something if it’s legal and that’s why we’ve done this.”</div>
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On his retirement plans, he is not going to be typical.</div>
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“I have no intention of being an old pensioner, sitting in a corner writing my memoirs - no way!” he said.</div>
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Don’t expect him to write <i>“My Watch”</i> in a hurry then.</div>

World’s Poorest President Bows Out Gracefully

Can you imagine a Nigerian president riding in 28-year-old VW Beetle? Or living in his own house, forgoing the heaven-like Aso Rock? Or giving 90% of his salary to charity? Or, the most difficult one…

02 Mar 2015

Fani-Kayode To Tinubu: I’m Not Funsho Williams, I Cannot Be Killed Like A Chicken

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<b>The verbal assaults between Femi Fani-Kayode, Director of Media and Publicity for the PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation, and members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) took a new turn on Monday.</b></div>
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Reacting to the criticisms directed at him for insinuating that <b><a href="http://nigerianewsroom.blogspot.com/2015/02/tinubu-scheming-to-be-president-pdp.html">Yemi Osibanjo, the running mate to APC’s presidential candidate, was planning to step down for Bola Tinubu</a></b>, Fani-Kayode pointed accusing fingers at Tinubu over the death of Funsho Williams, <b>TheCable</b> reports.</div>
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Williams, a gubernatorial candidate in Lagos, was murdered under controversial circumstances on July 27, 2006.</div>
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“I do not believe in violence and I do not threaten people neither do any of my boys or any of those behind me,” Fani-Kayode said.</div>
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“Tinubu should not start this. I am not Funso Williams. I cannot be killed like a chicken. I cannot be destroyed. I cannot be taken before my time. My name is Femi Fani-Kayode, and nobody can kill me before my time. Nobody can cut me short.</div>
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“I harbor no fear of violence but I do not take threats lightly. Neither do I fear for my life; because I have never shed innocent blood and because I do not believe in violence or worship the devil, the angel of the Lord will strike dead any person or any group of persons that seek to take my life or the life of any of my loved ones."</div>
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Earlier, <b><a href="http://nigerianewsroom.blogspot.com/2015/03/your-game-is-up-tinubu-tells-fani-kayode.html">Tinubu accused the PDP campaign spokesman of being deranged</a></b> and Lai Mohammed, APC’s publicity secretary, also said: “<b><a href="http://nigerianewsroom.blogspot.com/2015/03/fani-kayode-suffering-from-substance.html">Fani-Kayode may have unhinged</a></b>, perhaps as a result of a relapse into an unhealthy lifestyle of substance abuse.”</div>
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But he would have none of that so he hit back at the APC stalwarts.</div>
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“It is not Femi Fani-Kayode but rather Bola Tinubu that slurs when he speaks,” he said.</div>
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“It is not Femi Fani-Kayode but rather Bola Tinubu that has to take 20 pills before he can go out. It is not Femi Fani-Kayode but Bola Tinubu that his hands shake when he tries to lift his fork and knife and eat.</div>
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“It is not Femi Fani-Kayode but rather the spokesman of the APC, Lai Mohammed, that is rotting from inside and that has the chronically bad breath of a rabid poll cat.</div>
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"Lai's breath is so bad that it is enough to knock out a polar bear from across the street. It is not Femi Fani-Kayode but rather Lai Mohammed who is suffering from loose bowel movements and who defecates every other minute to the point that he often has to wear pampers when he goes on long journeys. So, if anybody wants to talk about ill-health, they should talk about themselves and not about me."</div>

Fani-Kayode To Tinubu: I’m Not Funsho Williams, I Cannot Be Killed Like A Chicken

The verbal assaults between Femi Fani-Kayode, Director of Media and Publicity for the PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation, and members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) took a new turn on Mon…

02 Mar 2015

Hold APC Responsible For Fuel Scarcity, PDP Campaign Says

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<b>The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation on Monday attributed the sudden fuel scarcity in many parts of the country to alleged sabotage by the opposition All Progressives Congress, which it said had infiltrated the ranks of the fuel marketers.</b></div>
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Director of Media and Publicity of the PDPPCO, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, said in a statement in Abuja that the fuel marketers had taken what he described as a sub-contract from the opposition to frustrate supplies of petrol to fuel stations as part of a grand plan to create tension in the polity.</div>
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But the National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said it was an admission of failure for a sitting government to blame the opposition for its shortcomings, the <b><a href="http://www.punchng.com/news/apc-behind-fuel-scarcity-jonathan-campaigners-alleges/">PUNCH</a></b> reports.</div>
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Fani-Kayode said, “We know who the fuel marketers are. We know the relationship that exists between one of the biggest fuel marketers and a national leader of the APC.</div>
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“These unconscionable opposition elements infiltrated the ranks of the fuel marketers, whom they have contracted, in a calculated attempt to frustrate the good efforts of government.</div>
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“Why have they taken this time when all hands are on deck for the March 28 election to cause this artificial fuel scarcity?  The situation is so bad that they are not importing the product.</div>
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“They are even threatening tank farmers not to release any fuel in their depot in order to sustain the shortage. We are aware that the tank farmers have reported the threat to the Police and other security agencies.”</div>
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He said the move showed how desperate and wicked the opposition could be in its quest for presidential power, asking if it must make Nigerians suffer simply because it wants to rule.</div>
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In an email sent to our correspondent on Monday, Mohammed said, “It is totally unconscionable, and indeed an admission of failure, for a sitting government and ruling party to blame the opposition for their failings.</div>
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“These guys have simply abdicated their responsibility to the people. ‎They can as well throw in the towel and head home.</div>
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“The questions to ask are: who runs the NNPC? Who pays subsidy to fuel marketers? Who has used federal resources to bribe individuals and groups to such a level that there is no money to run the government, not to talk of paying subsidies?</div>
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“The moment a ruling party starts transferring its responsibilities to the opposition, it is clear that the market is over.”</div>

Hold APC Responsible For Fuel Scarcity, PDP Campaign Says

The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation on Monday attributed the sudden fuel scarcity in many parts of the country to alleged sabotage by the opposition All Progressives Congr…

02 Mar 2015

"Your Game Is Up", Tinubu Tells Fani-Kayode

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<b>A National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, has described Femi Fani-Kayode, a former Aviation Minister, as a peddler of falsehood hired for a smear campaign against the party, its leader, and presidential candidate.</b></div>
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“Fani-Kayode is not as smart as he thinks. If you read between the lines of his hysteria you see another extreme sentiment: that of surging desperation,” Mr. Tinubu said in a statement issued on Sunday by his Special Adviser on Media, Sunday Dare.</div>
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“His statement indicates that even he now realizes that his pay master has lost to Buhari/Osinbajo. The game is over. The whistle has blown. What the fantasy man seeks to do is change the game. He seeks to run against Tinubu in hopes the outcome will be better. Fani now grasps at straw in the night wind.”</div>
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Last Friday, Mr. Fani-Kayode, the Director of Media and Publicity of the PDP Presidential Campaign Organization, alleged that Yemi Osinbajo, the APC vice presidential candidate, had sworn an oath to vacate his seat should the party win the forthcoming election.</div>
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According to Mr. Fani-Kayode, Mr. Tinubu nominated the vice presidential candidate as part of “plans to come to power through the back door”.</div>
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“Tinubu, according to our information, has compelled Osinbajo to swear to an oath that after six months in office, he would resign as the vice president, in the unlikely event that their party wins,” said Mr. Fani-Kayode.</div>
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“The wicked plot, as laid out by them, is to force Osinbajo to resign for Tinubu to be nominated by Buhari as his replacement.”</div>
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Mr. Tinubu said that the former minister “is on a futile journey to shield the populace from seeing the failures of his paymasters”.</div>
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“His statement taken in context indicates that his paymasters will lose the election. They are now worried about what will happen thereafter,” he said.</div>
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“The majority of Nigerians have concluded that they have done enough damage to our politics, economy and security; and cannot be tolerated any longer. Rather, they should be voted out by the people. Their journey of lies and deception is at its terminal point.</div>
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“It lied to Nigerians and the international community that elections had to be shifted first because of the PVC issue and later it became a security ambush to change the date thus aborting Nigeria’s date with destiny at the polls.</div>
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“That FFK (Femi Fani-Kayode) is the best a ruling party can do as a spokesman speaks volumes about the PDP. They are bereft of talent and character. They are filled with lies and chicanery. FFK is simply the worst and most outspoken of a bad lot.”</div>
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Mr. Tinubu, however, said that he welcomed Mr. Fani-Kayode’s interventions because they are of such low quality and base character and his utterances frighten people.</div>
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“Instead of scaring the people away from the APC, his work scares people that someone so unfit is so close to the seat of power, someone so unhinged is given free rein to spit bile and call that public discourse. One must wonder who is unbalanced, the misfit or he who hires him. Keep at it FFK. Continue,” Mr. Tinubu said.</div>
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“Most Nigerians are fed up with this government and desire change. They await eagerly that opportunity at the polls. They cannot tolerate four more years of a Fani-Kayode, of his paymasters and his utterances. That is your agony Fani-Kayode and of course that of the PDP and its gang of destroyers. You will not be able to persuade majority of Nigerians who are prepared to use their vote for a positive change. And if only to shield the populace from your peculiar brand of abuse of power both you and your boss must go.”</div>
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The APC leader said that the ruling party’s smear campaign failed to make a headway against the APC’s presidential and vice presidential candidates, and is now resorting to run against him.</div>
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“This plot will not work. Tinubu is not scheming to become president through the back door. He, just like any qualified Nigerian has the right to walk in through the front door if he so desires. But he is not on the ticket,” he said.</div>
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“For the job he is hired to do, it is expected that a Fani-Kayode will be blinded to the positive nature of the Buhari/Osinbajo ticket. If he has failed to read and do some research on the character of an Osinbajo, let me help him.</div>
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“Yemi Osinbajo is fiercely independent. A brilliant mind of great character and a consummate reformer and legal crusader. You will not dare speak of him in this manner. The APC ticket is of people of great resolve. But because among your own crowd you have people who will willingly destroy not only our institutions and country you think so of others.</div>
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“APC is a party with people of impeccable character. Courageous and patriotic leaders who are out to rescue our nation. And you, Fani-Kayode, are on record to have said so in several interviews.”</div>
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Mr. Tinubu said that he would not dignify Mr. Fani-Kayode’s “outrageous lies” with any reply, adding that Nigerians know him as a peddler of falsehood.</div>
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“Femi Fani Kayode cannot just leave Tinubu alone because they see him as their political nemesis. But Tinubu will not be their dart board. If they want to see the culprit behind their flagging misfortune, they do not need to glare at Tinubu. They should go home and peer into the nearest mirror. Therein their trouble lies.</div>
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“Now that FFK has revealed why his party, the PDP has consistently persecuted Bola Tinubu through phony Code of Conduct Tribunal, massive unjustified attacks against his character and integrity, intimidation and harassment.</div>
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“They all have failed. In what is a classic case of abuse of power, the government you now work for have accused Tinubu in the past of baseless and unproven allegations whereas in your party, including yourself, there are wolves feasting on the commonwealth of the people.</div>
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“For a leadership that cannot define corruption and theft, we are left with a gang of plunderers. You have openly and secretly stolen and plundered the wealth of the nation without the slightest concern about morality and the suffering masses.”</div>

"Your Game Is Up", Tinubu Tells Fani-Kayode

A National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, has described Femi Fani-Kayode, a former Aviation Minister, as a peddler of falsehood hired for a smear campaign against the part…

02 Mar 2015

Fani-Kayode Suffering From "Substance Abuse" - APC

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<b>The All Progressives Congress, APC, has said contrary to the information being peddled by the spokesman of the Jonathan Campaign Organization, Femi Fani-Kayode, the party does not wish him any ill health, even though it is seriously concerned about his mental state.</b></div>
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“No, we have never and will never wish anyone any ill health. However, we are seriously concerned that Mr. Fani-Kayode may have unhinged, perhaps as a result of a relapse into an unhealthy lifestyle of substance abuse,” the party said in a statement issued in Dubai on Monday by its National Publicity Secretary, Lai Mohammed.</div>
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“Our concern stems from the series of incoherent statements, outlandish claims and inconsistent behaviours exhibited by Mr. Fani-Kayode in recent times, which call into question his state of mental health.</div>
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“We wish Mr. Fani-Kayode well and call on him to tell Nigerians that he remains clean, despite the massive pressure of work, and that he will not do anything that will see him needing a prolonged reformation in a foreign land,” it said.</div>
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APC said it is only an unstable mind and someone who is teetering on the brink that will conjure up the kind of improbable scenarios that have been put out there in quick succession by Mr. Fani-Kayode, and still believe strongly that he is doing the right thing.</div>
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The party said the APC does not harbour the kind of disturbed personalities who abound in the PDP, and who will not hesitate to publicly wish fellow Nigerians ill or dead, as long as they believe such ill-will would endear them to their masters and guarantee their political survival, <b><a href="http://www.premiumtimesng.com/news/top-news/177775-fani-kayode-suffering-from-substance-abuse-apc.html">PREMIUM TIMES</a></b> reports.</div>

Fani-Kayode Suffering From "Substance Abuse" - APC

The All Progressives Congress, APC, has said contrary to the information being peddled by the spokesman of the Jonathan Campaign Organization, Femi Fani-Kayode, the party does not wish him any ill he…

02 Mar 2015

Tinubu To Sue AIT For Defamation, Demands ₦20 Billion Damages

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<b>All Progressives Congress [APC] National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu</b><b> is set to sue the management of Daar Communications Limited, owners of Africa Independent Television [AIT] for the defamatory content of a documentary aired on Sunday, March 1.</b></div>
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Counsel to Asiwaju Tinubu, Mr. Tunji Abayomi, said a letter delivered this afternoon asking Daar Communications to apologise for the content and stop further airing. A part of the letter to AIT reads ". … You aired an hour long documentary focusing on our client (Bola Tinubu). Clearly pre-occupied with political resentment and hatred neither warranted, necessary, proper, or justified, you published several false allegations against our client…More disturbing is your misrepresentation that the said documentary was 'sponsored' without disclosing the 'sponsors'. You cannot under law, hide under media freedom to maliciously injure a citizen’s reputation".</div>
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The letter also demanded for ₦20 billion (Twenty Billion Naira) as cost of damage done to the reputation of its client failing which the client will sue the company.</div>
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Another part of the letter reads: "…to affirm the right of our client against your defamatory publication, we demand that you confirm to us within 24 hours of receipt of this letter, an apology and retraction of the said publication/documentary.</div>
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Tinubu To Sue AIT For Defamation, Demands ₦20 Billion Damages

All Progressives Congress [APC] National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is set to sue the management of Daar Communications Limited, owners of Africa Independent Television [AIT] for the defamator…

02 Mar 2015

Buhari Pledges To Halt Multiple Taxation

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<b>The APC Presidential Campaign Organisation (APCPCO) has said the party’s presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), will not impose any harsh tax regime on Nigerians in order to fund a social welfare scheme.</b></div>
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The campaign group also  condemned the emergence of fuel scarcity and fuel queues in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja and some parts of the country, as well as the recent gross reduction in the hours of electricity supply across the country by electricity provider, describing it as a sad reminder of the failure of the PDP federal government.</div>
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In a statement by the Director of Media and Publicity of the APC Presidential Campaign Organisation, Malam Garba Shehu, the party said under the present administration of President Jonathan, the Nigerian people and the business community are being subjected to multiple, discriminatory and harsh tax regimes.</div>
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Buhari, who spoke in a statement issued by the campaign team said the party will rather employ existing tax policies of government to fund its people-oriented programmes.</div>
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According to him, the prevailing harsh tax regime under the present PDP government has caused untold hardship on the population, while manufacturing industries in the country are threatening to shut down their operations because of the high electricity tariff imposed on them.</div>
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“An APC administration will make life more bearable and manageable for both the citizens and the business sector by entrenching discipline in Public Administration across all sectors of governance. Second, the party will plug all loopholes through which public funds are being lost. When these loopholes and accompanying wastages are plugged and corruption reduced to a minimum or totally stamped out as promised by our presidential candidate, Buhari, the government will have reasonable quantum of funds to social investments programmes in education, health, and safety nets such as free school meals for children, emergency public works for unemployed youth and pensions for the elderly. Third, an APC government will seek to ensure that all existing laws and policies on taxation will be implemented judiciously while tax authorities and administrators will be encouraged to do their work with the utmost transparency.</div>
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“The PDP is obviously scared of the credible alternative which the APC represents and will go to any length to lie to Nigerians on any issue including those on which the APC has not expressed a position. The majority of Nigerians are looking forward eagerly to the advent of an APC administration as a panacea to the deceit and fraud that has characterised the administration of the PDP in the last 16 years.</div>
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“In view of the mood of the nation and the glaring cases of stealing, corruption, fraud and looting that is the character of the present administration, we advise the PDP spokesperson to save his breath and make the burden of change and power transfer lighter by advising his party and their government functionaries to start preparing hand-over notes!</div>
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In another statement issued  by the Directorate of Media and Publicity of APCPCO, the campaign explained that the recent fuel price reductions announced by the federal government was borne out of political expediency, rather than compassion, because the ruling party is desperate to cling to power at all costs.</div>
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In the statement signed by Shehu, the APC campaign  said all the emergency projects and palliatives being bandied about by the Jonathan government are intended to pull wool over the eyes of Nigerians.</div>
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According to  Shehu, a PDP administration that greeted Nigerians with an unprecedented fuel price increase of ₦140 per liter in January 2012 has lost the basis to be trusted any further by Nigerians.</div>
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He explained that the APC Presidential Campaign was not surprised by the sudden return of fuel queues at filling stations in Abuja and other major cities.</div>
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He said the return of fuel queues, which are causing undue hardships for passengers, motorists and other Nigerians, has made nonsense of the recent federal government announced reductions in fuel prices.</div>
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Shehu added that the PDP’s artificial show of compassion towards Nigerians in the face of imminent electoral debacle should not fool anyone.</div>
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The APC Presidential Campaign  described the  return of fuel queues at filling stations as a confirmation that the policies of the Jonathan administration are founded on deceit and insincerity.</div>
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It condemned the emergence of fuel scarcity and fuel queues in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja and some parts of the country, as well as the recent gross reduction in the hours of electricity supply across the country by electricity providers describing it as sad reminders of the failure of the PDP Federal Government.</div>
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The party wondered how a political party which has been in power for 16 years and which is unable to ensure that its citizens enjoy regular fuel supply being an oil producing and endowed country and electricity having privatized the power sector and given generous financial assistance to operators of the power sector can still feel confident to seek another term in office.</div>
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“To add insult to injury, the Jonathan government has also given billions of naira to these operators under the guise of assisting them to improve power supply, without result. And this happened after the sector had been sold and the facilities handed over to these private operators.</div>
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“We of the APC demand that the Jonathan government and his party explain to Nigerians the reason why fuel scarcity and blackout should persist making life a hell for Nigerians, despite huge investments and policies put in place to eradicate these problems.</div>

Buhari Pledges To Halt Multiple Taxation

The APC Presidential Campaign Organisation (APCPCO) has said the party’s presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), will not impose any harsh tax regime on Nigerians in order to fund a s…

02 Mar 2015

PDP Already Dreaming Defeat - Alake

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<b>A former Lagos State Commissioner, Mr. Dele Alake, says the allegations emanating from the Peoples Democratic Party that the All Progressives Congress Vice-Presidential candidate, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, will hand over power to former Governor Bola Tinubu within six months after he is inaugurated, shows that the PDP is already dreaming of defeat.</b></div>
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Alake, who is the Director of Strategic Communications, All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Organisation, said this in a statement on Sunday.</div>
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Alake urged Nigerians not to take the Director of Media, PDP Presidential Campaign Organisation, Mr. Femi Fani-Kayode, seriously as he was known for always making allegations.</div>
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He said the time frame of six months for the action to take place meant that the APC presidential candidate, Maj.-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) and Osinbajo would have been sworn in as President and Vice-President respectively on May 29, 2015.</div>
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Alake said, “Any psychoanalyst can read the mind of the purveyors of this concoction of falsehood. Their assumption gives away the fact that they themselves accept the certainty of victory of the APC in the presidential election.”</div>
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He said the massive support for the APC presidential ticket locally and internationally has inflicted a devastating damage on the psychology of the PDP campaign managers “leading to an acute case of schizophrenia.”</div>
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Alake said Fani-Kayode shot himself in the foot in his desperation to spin a conspiracy theory that is childish and merits the condemnation of all right thinking persons.</div>
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He said, “Fani-Kayode alleges that Asiwaju Tinubu would become President by asking the Vice- President, Professor Osinbajo, to resign after six months in office in the belief that the President Muhammadu Buhari may have terminal health challenges.</div>
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“That the message came through Fani-Kayode who, just a few days ago, was brought to answer corruption charges, makes the message incredulous. The whole world knows the other reasons for the incredulity of any message delivered through him.</div>
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“Indeed, the fact that the PDP campaign machinery can construct a post-presidential election scenario in which APC would be in power is a significant testimony of their admission that they have lost this election. We note this mental and psychological concession of victory to our party’s presidential candidate but reject the odious scenario.</div>
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“Nigerians should please ignore this latest antic because it is untrue, ridiculous, ludicrous, mundane and jejune.”</div>

PDP Already Dreaming Defeat - Alake

A former Lagos State Commissioner, Mr. Dele Alake, says the allegations emanating from the Peoples Democratic Party that the All Progressives Congress Vice-Presidential candidate, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo…

02 Mar 2015

Impeachment Plot: 9 Ebonyi MPs Oppose Elechi's Removal

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<b>Nine members of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly on Sunday said the resolution passed by 15 of their colleagues to serve a notice of impeachment on Governor Martins Elechi was unconstitutional.</b></div>
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The nine legislators, who are believed to be loyal to Elechi, said that the 15 pro-impeachment lawmakers did not constitute two-third majority as required by the 1999 Constitution to impeach the governor.</div>
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According to them, only 16 out of the 24 members can constitute two-third majority of the House and not 15.</div>
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The pro-Elechi lawmakers, who addressed journalists in Abakiliki, stressed that the “illegal” impeachment process would fail.</div>
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The spokesman for the nine lawmakers, Chima Eni, said, “Our attention has been drawn to the business of the ‘House’ of Friday, 27th day of February 2015, wherein a motion for a resolution that a notice of allegations of gross misconduct purportedly made against the governor by 15 members of the 24-member House was passed.</div>
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“The said resolution was purportedly passed in clear contravention of Section 188 (4) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) which provides that ‘a motion of the House of Assembly that the allegation be investigated shall not be declared as having been passed unless it is supported by the votes of not less than two-third majority of all the members of the House of Assembly.’</div>
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“Fifteen members cannot be the ‘two-third majority of all the members’ of a 24- member House.”</div>
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Eni alleged that “desperate attempts and overtures are being made to induce and intimidate the nine lawmakers into yielding against the demand of justice and good conscience, to the plot for the impeachment of the governor.”</div>
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He explained that the nine lawmakers had resolved that none of them would attempt to go to the House of Assembly complex to forestall a breakdown of law and order, and to ensure the security of their lives.</div>
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He also alleged that “the Speaker, Chukwuma Nwazunku, and his “cohorts” have taken the attendance register of the House of Assembly to their principals in Abuja for the purpose of cloning the signatures of members of their faction.</div>
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“We cannot, in this life and forever, sign or attempt to sign any document seeking to remove the governor from office.</div>
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“We shall not even attend any sitting of the House for now, to avoid being forced at gunpoint to sign anything.</div>
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“We know, as a matter of indestructible fact, that ‘nearly does not kill a bird’ even though the hunter may claim that it makes him happy,” Eni added.</div>
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He also described as unconstitutional, the vacation of the seats of six members of the House by the Speaker.</div>
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According to Eni, the matter was already pending before the Federal High Court in Abakaliki.</div>
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In the suit, which was filed by 10 pro-Elechi lawmakers who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the Labour Party, the plaintiffs are asking the court for an injunction restraining the Speaker from declaring their seats vacant.</div>
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Eni said, “The Speaker, Chukwuma Nwanzuku, Ebonyi State House of Assembly and the Independent National Electoral Commission being parties to the suit, were duly served with the originating processes and are represented in the matter.</div>
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“Instead of waiting on the court, Mr. Nwazuku and his cohorts preferred to vacate seats of honourable members and sought to justify the purported vacation through paid radio and newspaper commentaries.”</div>
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The pro-Elechi lawmakers called on civil society organisations, religious groups, democratic institutions, law enforcement agencies and professional bodies, especially the Nigerian Bar Association, to make conscious efforts to ensure that the constitution and the country’s laws were upheld at all times.</div>
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Meanwhile, the Deputy Governor of Ebonyi State and the governorship candidate of the PDP in the state, Dave Umahi, has blamed the political crisis in the state on the refusal of his boss, Elechi, to fulfil his promise to hand over to him (Umahi) at the end of his tenure, the <b><a href="http://www.punchng.com/news/nine-lawmakers-oppose-ebonyi-govs-removal/">PUNCH</a></b> reports.</div>
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The deputy governor spoke while reacting to Elechi’s claims that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Anyim Pius Anyim; the ministerial nominee from the state, Fidelis Nwankwo; and a former Minister of Culture and Tourism, Ambassador Frank Ogbuewu, were behind the crisis in the state.</div>
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But addressing journalists in Abakiliki on Sunday, Umahi, who emerged the PDP governorship candidate despite opposition from Elechi, who favoured former Health minister, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, accused the governor of not saying the truth about the crisis in the state.</div>

Impeachment Plot: 9 Ebonyi MPs Oppose Elechi's Removal

Nine members of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly on Sunday said the resolution passed by 15 of their colleagues to serve a notice of impeachment on Governor Martins Elechi was unconstitutional. The…

02 Mar 2015

APC, CNPP Warn Against Renewed Push To Remove Jega, Shift Polls

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilg70shSLiZmoLMJFvoUDwAESNGiADF_tne2WmYMzQv5hhA9C_IjNIq8d0qaXCN9GCCqEIyEQnt6w2f5gzFdfqCnrccb4JS22vLC7Zu0t6VCo57iTOh_eyJF37cVTsNrCOm2Y7BDrVdniV/s1600/APC-logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="576" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilg70shSLiZmoLMJFvoUDwAESNGiADF_tne2WmYMzQv5hhA9C_IjNIq8d0qaXCN9GCCqEIyEQnt6w2f5gzFdfqCnrccb4JS22vLC7Zu0t6VCo57iTOh_eyJF37cVTsNrCOm2Y7BDrVdniV/s1600/APC-logo.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>The All Progressives Congress (APC) and Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) have expressed concern over an alleged bid to oust the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega.</b></div>
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APC has also warned of the relentless scheming by the Jonathan administration and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) “to push for another postponement of the 2015 general election, unless they can perfect a rigging plan, and called for the imposition of global sanctions on whoever scuttles the polls”.</div>
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In a statement issued on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the multi-pronged effort to prevent the elections from holding as rescheduled included the use of some 23 portfolio political parties to seek a further shift in the election dates and the destabilisation of INEC's election plan through the orchestrated removal of its chairman, <b>ThisDay</b> reports.</div>
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It said the same 23 satellite parties of the PDP that were used to push for the six-week postponement of the elections have again started testing the waters by pushing for a further shift in the elections in the six states of the North-east, ostensibly to allow the conclusion of the counter-insurgency battle and also to allow those displaced to return home.</div>
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“The plan is to use the same bogey of insecurity in the North-east to push for another postponement in the elections. The signs are ominous indeed. The body language of the president and his party does not support the holding of elections.</div>
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“They are mortally afraid of losing because the use of PVCs and card readers have thwarted their rigging plans,” APC said.</div>
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The party said while the 23 parties are pushing for the elections to be further postponed, the Jonathan administration and the PDP are simultaneously forging ahead with their plan to remove Jega and replace him with a malleable acting chairman whom they believe would do their bidding.</div>
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“Once they remove Jega, his replacement will either seek more time to organise the polls or simply jettison the plan to use card readers, thereby opening the door for those who have been buying up PVCs to use them.</div>
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“Is it not interesting that the same administration that has been flaunting free and fair elections as a key achievement has now gone for the jugular of the same man who organised those polls? Is the man they don't want not the same person who organised the 2011 polls which the administration has described as free, fair and credible? What has now gone wrong between them and their poster boy for successful elections?” it queried.</div>
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APC warned that the consequences of another postponement of the elections would be dire, especially because it would create a constitutional crisis that is capable of endangering the country's democracy and destabilising the country in its entirety.</div>
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The party called on Nigerians, especially the civil society, to be very vigilant in the days ahead, “as the cloud of uncertainty becomes thicker and the vultures begin to circle”.</div>
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It also called on the international community to consider imposing stiff sanctions on key members of the Jonathan administration if they force another postponement or scuttle the polls.</div>
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“We believe that Nigerians themselves bear the utmost responsibility for the success of their nation’s democracy and the survival of their country, and we commend those who have stood up to be counted in the ongoing battle to have free and fair elections.</div>
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“However, we also believe that the international community has a role to play in helping to check the desperadoes who are using the Laurent Gbagbo rule book as if it was made for them, and who will not hesitate to bring the whole system crashing down on all if that is what it will take for them to perpetuate themselves in power.</div>
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“Nigeria is too important to be toyed with or allowed to go under. For example, Nigerians make up more than 56% of the estimated ECOWAS population of 300 million. A destabilised Nigeria therefore is a destabilised West Africa and, indeed, a hobbled Africa!</div>
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“That is why we believe a travel ban and tough economic sanctions from the international community against these agents of destabilisation will be in order. This is a patriotic call,” APC said.</div>
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On its part, CNPP has expressed outrage over the rumours gaining currency of the intendment of the presidency to remove Jega, and consequently cautioned President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, to beware of the “Ides of March”.</div>
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In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Osita Okechukwu, CNPP said a careful perusal of the statement made by the Minister of Culture and Tourism and the supervising Minister of Information, Chief Edem Duke, to the effect that “Jega wants to try a new system of accreditation without briefing the president over the issue” is vital.</div>
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CNPP quoted the minister as saying that no freedom is absolute and that Section 125 of the constitution forbids electronic voting, adding that although the card reader could not be used for voting, it is for checking votes, it signals danger.</div>
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“We are heartily cautioning Mr. President to beware of the Ides of March, not only because the month of March is the new date for the presidential election, but because a similar goading of former military president, General Ibrahim Badamosi Babaginda (rtd) to mangle and manipulate the presidential election happened in 1993 and the unintended were consequences uncountable.</div>
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“Granted that General Babaginda survived the annulment of the June 12 (1993) presidential elections, it tainted irretrievably his regime and cost our dear countrymen blood, sweat and tears. This is avoidable as it definitely will be more disastrous, and may lead to bloodshed.</div>
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“Unfortunately, like in 1993, the ‘Jonathan Must Stay Campaigners’ typical of the defunct Association of Better Nigeria (ABN) led by self-serving Senator Arthur Nzeribe are mutating and intensifying their campaigns for the elongation of Jonathan’s regime for less than altruistic motives.</div>
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“If history is to be revisited, we recall that in 2010 during the hey days of late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua's  incapacity, the CNPP in coalition with other patriots, civil society organisations and the clergy led by Pastor Tunde Bakare formed the Save Nigeria Group (SNG) and on the Abuja Streets and other major cities of the country canvassed for confirmation of the then Vice-President Jonathan as acting president and eventually full president.</div>
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“For the avoidance of doubt, Jega as chairman of INEC is neither a civil servant nor has he been indicted and therefore terms applicable to civil servants are not applicable to his appointment as chairman of INEC.</div>
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“The chairman of INEC's removal is explicitly stated in Section 157 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria thus: ‘A person holding any of the offices to which this section applies may only be removed from that office by the president acting on an address supported by a two-third majority of the Senate praying that he be so removed for inability to discharge the functions of the office’.</div>
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“In sum, the Ides of March is a notorious date in the Roman Calender as the date Julius Ceaser was assassinated in 44 BC. Mr. President therefore should Beware of the Ides of March, go ahead and allow Jega to conclude the elections, unless he wants to fan the embers of some doomsayers that had predicted the disintegration of Nigeria,” it cautioned.</div>

APC, CNPP Warn Against Renewed Push To Remove Jega, Shift Polls

The All Progressives Congress (APC) and Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP) have expressed concern over an alleged bid to oust the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commissio…

02 Mar 2015

PVCs: Court Fixes March 16 For Lawyers' Suit Against INEC

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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDrEb7x9_4LA0B29-kBupIouL22MFZz7YR12PxqhNw9mEPqsv7qgVxXkQCKHOBD-VJhlLQ_KL-4xBMOrWQcPBzJ1b7lIx98FfVQr7RT6ycou7Sfv4X7v-2IX0_rPd3T5K3Wr-KMo0K6j0H/s1600/PVCs1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="430" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDrEb7x9_4LA0B29-kBupIouL22MFZz7YR12PxqhNw9mEPqsv7qgVxXkQCKHOBD-VJhlLQ_KL-4xBMOrWQcPBzJ1b7lIx98FfVQr7RT6ycou7Sfv4X7v-2IX0_rPd3T5K3Wr-KMo0K6j0H/s1600/PVCs1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>Justice Ibrahim Buba of the Federal High Court in Lagos will on March 16 hear a suit filed by three lawyers against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over their inability to obtain their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs).</b></div>
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The lawyers are asking the judge to declare that their civil and legal rights would be breached if INEC does not issue them their PVCs or provide them an alternative means of exercising their franchise.</div>
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The lawyers, Chijioke Emeka, Kalu Uduma and Emeka Odikpo, are also seeking an order directing INEC to issue them their PVCs or make other alternative arrangements to enable them vote.</div>
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The plaintiffs want the court to hold that should they be excluded from the March 28 and April 11 elections due to no fault of theirs, they are entitled to legal damages, <b><a href="http://leadership.ng/news/414877/pvcs-court-fixes-march-16-to-hear-lawyers-suit-against-inec">LEADERSHIP</a></b> reports.</div>

PVCs: Court Fixes March 16 For Lawyers' Suit Against INEC

Justice Ibrahim Buba of the Federal High Court in Lagos will on March 16 hear a suit filed by three lawyers against the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) over their inability to obtain…

02 Mar 2015

No Bloated Salaries For Public Officers, Says Osinbajo

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<b>The Vice-Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has said that an APC-led Federal Government will check bloated salaries being illegally received by public officers.</b></div>
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He also said an APC-led Federal Government would cut the cost of governance and generate more revenue in face of the reduction in global oil prices.</div>
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The Senior Advocate of Nigeria said this during a youth-based programme titled “Conversations for Change,” in Lagos, on Saturday.</div>
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While responding to a question on how the APC plans to reduce the cost of governance, Osinbajo said the Federal Government was not adhering to the guidelines of the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, which is tasked with the job of fixing salaries and allowances of public office holders.</div>
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He said, “Just to give an example, in 2013, what the National Assembly got was about ₦150bn. Ebonyi State which has close to three million people, also had about ₦151bn in that same year. So, 469 legislators get ₦150bn while a whole state gets ₦151bn. So, that will give you an idea of the absurdity of the kind of expenditure and the way this money was allocated.</div>
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“The commission fixes the salaries of public officers including legislators. The commission also issues regular memos determining what people should earn and that is what the law provides for. Unfortunately, what happens in some cases, especially, in the years gone by is that many of the recommendations of the commission were not followed, especially with respect to allowances.</div>
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“So we find a situation where legislators earn far in excess of what was recommended by the commission and there were several allowances and several kinds of income that they were earning which gave the impression that too much was being spent.</div>
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“The real issue is that we must follow the law and that is what exactly the APC will do. We will insist that the law is to be followed to the letter. That means the recommendations of the commission will be followed and once we follow the law, there will be no issue of bloated salaries for any public office holders.”</div>
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Osinbajo said an APC-led Federal Government would create jobs by offering tax incentives to employers of labour.</div>
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He said every policy in the APC manifesto had already been tied to job creation, the <b><a href="http://www.punchng.com/politics/no-bloated-salaries-for-public-officers-osinbajo/">PUNCH</a></b> reports.</div>
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He said the money Nigeria was losing to oil theft constituted the GDP of some countries. He, therefore, maintained that curbing corruption would also serve as a source of revenue creation.</div>
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He said, “The major problem this country has is corruption. A current minister spent $10bn to maintain a private jet and questions are not being asked. Every single day, 400,000 barrel of oil is stolen but Ghana produces 120,000 barrels of oil. So, about three or four times of what Ghana generates is what we lose.</div>
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“Our naira is on a free fall because our foreign reserve is steadily falling. Every aspect of our lives is affected by corruption. I’m not surprised that they cannot find money for social welfare programmes."</div>

No Bloated Salaries For Public Officers, Says Osinbajo

The Vice-Presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has said that an APC-led Federal Government will check bloated salaries being illegally received by public offic…

02 Mar 2015

Security Agents Supervised Destruction Of My Billboards - El-Rufai

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<b>Security agents on Friday night in Zaria and Sabon Gari local government areas of Kaduna State supervised and protected PDP hoodlums to destroy billboards and posters of my campaign, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mallam Nasir el-Rufai has alleged.</b></div>
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In a press release issued in Kaduna, el-Rufai wondered why the police would supervise the destruction of his campaign billboard after the peace pact him and the incumbent governor signed.</div>
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According to the statement signed by his spokesman, Mr. Samuel Aruwan, el-Rufai said, “The PDP hoodlums destroyed all visible campaign materials and replaced them with those of Mukhtar Ramalan Yero, the incumbent governor.”</div>
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The statement said Zaria axis is an APC stronghold as demonstrated by the massive rallies the party held in Sabon-Gari and Zaria local governments.</div>
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“Conscious of their unpopularity, the PDP is now displaying posters of Yero that feature pictures of the APC presidential candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari. It is seen as an admission that the PDP’s own presidential candidate is not sellable to the electorate, but also a demonstration of the PDP’s affinity for deception.”</div>
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“In the said posters, Yero is paired with Buhari while Malam el-Rufai is axed with a red ink.</div>
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“In the course of Yero’s rally on Saturday that brought hired thugs from all parts of the state and beyond, dangerous weapons were freely flaunted and showcased with impunity in presence of security agents.</div>
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“Since the campaign for the 2015 elections started, Yero has been preaching intolerance and indulging in violence. At the launch of his campaign on 12 January, 2015, he announced that he had powers to stop el-Rufai from entering Kaduna or leaving his house, which he also threatened to demolish. The audio recording of that statement has gone viral,” the statement further read.</div>
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The governorship candidate also alleged that the PDP government in Kaduna State and their commissioned campaigners are presently inciting citizens of Kaduna State on religious and ethnic lines against the candidature of both Buhari and el-Rufai, adding, “They are also engaging in series of mudslinging aimed at branding APC and its candidates as violence oriented personalities. They are presently circulating leaflets branding Buhari as a hater of Christians along with el-Rufai.”</div>
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“We will continue to play issue-based politics despite all deliberate attempts and mischief to taint our image and popularity before the good people of Kaduna State. Neither the tons of illicit money they are spending to bribe voters nor the violent actions designed to intimidate and frighten citizens can save the PDP in Kaduna State from the coming electoral humiliation,” the statement concluded.</div>

Security Agents Supervised Destruction Of My Billboards - El-Rufai

Security agents on Friday night in Zaria and Sabon Gari local government areas of Kaduna State supervised and protected PDP hoodlums to destroy billboards and posters of my campaign, the governorship…

02 Mar 2015

How Nemtsov's Murder Has Changed Russia Forever

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<b>Russia has been changed forever by the murder of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov a day after thousands marched through central Moscow in his memory. </b></div>
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“The reaction to the murder of Boris Nemtsov turned out to be as extraordinary as the politician himself,” wrote the <i>Kommersant Business</i> daily in a front page article that ran alongside a photo of Nemtsov carried at Sunday’s memorial march.</div>
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<b>NemstovOrganisers</b> said that 70,000 people marched through central Moscow, crossing the bridge where Nemtsov was shot, a turnout that Kommersant said had not been reached since the mass opposition rallies of 2011 against President Vladimir Putin’s return to the Kremlin.</div>
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Nemtsov’s murder within sight of the Kremlin walls “crossed a psychological boundary, after which Russia will inevitably be different,” wrote the business daily <i>Vedomosti</i> in a front-page editorial.</div>
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“After Nemtsov’s shocking murder, a lot of people have said that we woke up in a different country,” wrote <i>Gazeta.ru</i> website, calling the march in memory of Nemtsov “a march against fear.” </div>
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“In fact we have for at least a year lived in a country where thinking differently was equated with treachery, and some were ready to kill for this. It’s just that yesterday they were killing with words, and today they have started with bullets,” Gazeta.ru wrote.</div>
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Opposition newspaper <i>Novaya Gazeta</i> wrote that Nemtsov regularly received death threats but did not take them seriously. “In recent years I have seen a huge number of provocations, threats and acts of meanness. And I’ve developed a certain immunity to this,” it quoted Nemtsov as saying last April. </div>
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Commenting on pressure from Russia’s authorities, Nemtsov said: “Well maybe they could kill me, I don’t know, but it’s more likely they would put me in prison.”</div>
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Popular pro-Kremlin tabloid <i>Komsomolskaya Pravada</i>, however, dismissed the possibility that Nemtsov was killed for his political beliefs. </div>
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“Who has ever been killed in our country for purely political reasons?” it asked in an editorial.  “This isn’t Ukraine after all… Here a lot of people are killed for money but you don’t find people killed for politics.”</div>
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<i>Novaya Gazeta</i> however described Nemtsov’s murder as a “point of no return, of radical destabilisation of Russia’s domestic politics, whose consequences cannot yet be predicted.” </div>
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<i>Kommersant</i> pointed out that the repercussions of Nemtsov’s murder will affect Russia’s image globally and if it is not adequately investigated, “could be a serious argument for supporters of a hard approach towards Moscow.”</div>
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<b>Source: <a href="http://omojuwa.com/2015/03/russia-changed-forever-by-nemtsovs-murder/">Omojuwa</a></b></div>

How Nemtsov's Murder Has Changed Russia Forever

Russia has been changed forever by the murder of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov a day after thousands marched through central Moscow in his memory. “The reaction to the murder of Boris Nemtsov …

02 Mar 2015

Some History Lessons For Fayose - By Mahmud Jega

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<b>Daily Trust’s Mahmud Jega questions the rationale behind the Ekiti state governor, Ayodele Fayose’s, vituperation against the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd).</b></div>
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Read below:</div>
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When was the last time that any Nigerian state had a civilian governor as reckless as Peter Ayodele Fayose?</div>
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Between January and now Fayose has broken several decorum rules of Nigerian politics and it is time to give him a short lesson in History. Many ardent Buhari supporters have long written me off as a PDP mole so I am in a position to play the referee here.</div>
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In his self-appointed role as Premier Attack Dog Fayose has made many allegations against APC and its presidential candidate General Muhammadu Buhari. I will condense the six most sensational to be:</div>
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1] at 73 Buhari is too old to be the President of Nigeria</div>
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2] Buhari is in poor health</div>
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3] Buhari is likely to die in office if he is elected president</div>
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4] Presidents of Nigeria from the North West zone tend to die in office such as Murtala Mohamed, Sani Abacha and Umaru Yarádua</div>
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5] Buhari’s recent trip to London was a secret medical trip and</div>
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6] North should wait until 2019 to produce a president.</div>
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There were many other smaller allegations but let us concentrate on the main ones that have political and historical import. Each of these six condensed charges that Fayose made is problematic when viewed in the context of Nigeria’s political history.</div>
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Let’s consider the first charge that at 72 Buhari is too old to be president of Nigeria. This is not the first time that this kind of allegation is being made in Nigerian politics. At the time elections were held to usher in the Second Republic in mid-1979, three of the five presidential candidates were advanced in age. PRP’s Malam Aminu Kano was 59, UPN’s Chief Obafemi Awolowo was 70 and NPP’s Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe was 74. The man who eventually won the election, NPN’s Alhaji Shehu Shagari was 54 but it is doubtful if he won because of his age. Only one third of Nigerian voters voted for him in that election. I do not know where Ayo Fayose was in 1979 but if he voted at all, he was likely to have voted for Chief Awolowo because the UPN candidate secured more than 90% of the votes in the old Ondo State, which includes present day Ekiti State. When Awo stood again in 1983 he was already 74 years old, yet he secured a reduced but overwhelming majority in the old Ondo State. Hence, the people of Ekiti State and Western Nigeria generally cannot possibly say that a septuagenarian is too old to be president. Not surprisingly Fayose seems to be the only Yoruba man who is saying so.</div>
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I suspect the Igbos will remain silent on this issue as well because when Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe contested for president in 1979 he was 74 years old. I remember that during a presidential media interview on NTA the interviewer asked Zik whether he was not too old for the presidency. Zik reminded the interviewer that the live television interview had already been on for an hour, <i>“I have no idea what questions you are going to ask”</i> and yet, he was extremely alert and coherent in his answers. Despite his age Zik swept most votes in the East and did so again in 1983 when he was 78 years old.</div>
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In fact, there was this famous letter that Zik wrote in late 1978 addressed to all the people who said that he was too old to be president. He had a special line for leader of the unregistered Nigeria Advance Party [NAP] Mr Tunji Braithwaite. Zik recalled that in 1937 when they formed the Nigeria Youth Movement, he was a very young man but NYM’s leader was the elderly Reverend Braithwaite, Tunji’s uncle. If they had asked him to step aside on account of his age, Zik said the old Braithwaite would have quoted the biblical verse that said, “O ye generation of vipers…!”</div>
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Secondly, Fayose charged that Buhari is in poor health on account of his age. Now, now. I think it is true that younger people are generally speaking healthier and more vigorous than older people but that is only at the level of generalities. Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, who is older than Buhari, maintains a schedule of local and international travel that I cannot do a fraction of. These days after every trip from Kaduna to Abuja I must lie down and rest but I attended a State House dinner in 2005 where Obasanjo appeared at the dinner only 30 minutes after he arrived from Japan. So, we cannot assume that an older man in sick unless he shows signs of it, which so far Buhari has not shown. He went through the punishing schedule of holding campaign rallies in two different states a day for three weeks. Right now, I don’t think I can shop in Utako and Wuse markets on the same day.</div>
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Fayose’s charge number three was that Buhari is likely to die in office if he is elected. We generally assume that anyone who is older in age is more likely to die than a younger person. Again that is true only at the general level. Many children have died and left their parents. I recently saw an advert placed by a woman mourning the death of her grandson.</div>
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Now, if it is because several Nigerian rulers of North West origin died in office which is Fayose’s charge number four, former President Alhaji Shehu Shagari marked his 90th birthday only last week. So, only God can say if Buhari will be like Yarádua or like Shagari. Besides, leaders from other parts of Nigeria have also died in office including Major General J.T.U. Aguiyi-Ironsi, Chief Akintola and Colonel Adekunle Fajuyi. So in any matter that God has the say, we should better leave it to Him.</div>
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Fayose’s charge number five was that Buhari went to London last week essentially for medical reasons but pretended that it was a working visit. On this count I fault APC leaders and the spokesmen. Look, I have read tracts where doctors said a man who is over 50 should go for a medical check at least once a year. Whatever it was that Buhari went to do in London, I would regard it as carelessness if he did not seize the chance to seek a medical check as most Nigerian elite do. How can anybody tour 36 states in one month and not ask a doctor to check him up? The problem here was that APC never said Buhari visited a hospital, thus allowing Fayose to score a cheap point.</div>
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Fayose also said [charge number six] that the North should wait until 2019 to produce a president. There are problems with this charge too. Buhari belongs to APC and as far as I know, the party has not publicly adopted a rotational policy for the presidency. The party that did so publicly was Fayose’s PDP and it went ahead and observed it in the breach. In this election cycle no one is talking about Northern or Southern presidential candidate, at least not publicly which I think is an indication that Nigerian politics is maturing.</div>
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The question many people are asking is why has Governor Ayo Fayose cast himself in this controversial role, making one incredible charge after another when 23 other PDP governors are not saying anything of the sort? Some people have said it is because an APC-controlled Federal Government could reverse his election victory of last May. Well, it can’t because his election was upheld by both the election tribunal and the election appeal tribunal. Even the Capt Sagir Koli tape can at best attract punishment for the Army Brigadier who collaborated with PDP chieftains.</div>
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The problem as I see it is that from Day 1 as governor, Fayose reinforced his legal mandate with a patent illegality by using the Federal police to drive away the Speaker and most members of the Ekiti State Assembly. He is forcefully maintaining a rump Assembly of seven PDP members only. The day APC takes control of Federal power this impunity will end and the majority legislators can with justification accuse Fayose of gross misconduct and impeach him.</div>
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<b>Credit: <a href="http://www.naij.com/394250-fayose-needs-a-history-lesson-jega.html">Naij </a></b></div>

Some History Lessons For Fayose - By Mahmud Jega

Daily Trust’s Mahmud Jega questions the rationale behind the Ekiti state governor, Ayodele Fayose’s, vituperation against the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential candidate, Gen. Muhammadu Bu…

02 Mar 2015

Nigeria Leaked Our Rescue Plans On Chibok Girls To Boko Haram - US

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<b>Recent reports from US intelligence sources have revealed that Nigerian military commanders leaked plans to rescue the abducted Chibok girls to Boko Haram terrorists which ended up botching the operation. </b>  </div>
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On April 14, over 200 pupils were abducted from Government Girls Secondary School Chibok in Borno State, sparking an international outrage. In response to the global outcry, the US sent spy planes to Nigeria to help locate the girls and a plan was agreed with the military to mount a daring rescue operation.   </div>
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However, according to two US Army generals, details of the rescue mission was leaked to Boko Haram before it could be put into operation, enabling the terrorists to take preventative action. Accusing the Nigerian Army of treason, the generals revealed that the war against Boko Haram was purposefully sabotaged by the Nigerian government, as if it would not, defeating the terrorists would not have taken longer than a month.   </div>
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US sources pulled out from helping Nigeria rescue the missing Chibok girls after Washington discovered that Boko Haram had been fed the details of a covert rescue mission that would involve using gas.  </div>
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Source said that as soon as the Americans arrived and flew surveillance flights over Nigeria, they located the girls and proposed gassing the areas in the Sambisa Forest and then sending in a raid mission to rescue the girls while their terrorist captors were paralysed asleep.   </div>
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However, shortly after Nigeria’s security chiefs were given this plan in high confidence, its details were leaked to Boko Haram who promptly acted to foil the plot. On its next surveillance flight over the area, the US team saw the Boko Haram terrorists all wearing gas masks.   </div>
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US agents were very disappointed with this and immediately afterwards, Washington announced that it will no longer share information with Nigeria. This was one of the major reasons why the US gave up on a mission of working with the Jonathan government and eventually pulled out of the fight against Boko Haram.   </div>
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According to military sources, it was this betrayal that led to Washington sanctioning Nigeria and preventing her from purchasing security equipment because the US is not convinced of the sincerity of the Jonathan government. Since the episode, the US has refused to sell Nigeria military hardware amid fears that it may end up in the hands of Boko Haram, although the official reason given was the human rights record of the Nigerian Army.   </div>
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Since it began its operations in 2009, Boko Haram has always managed to infiltrate the Nigerian security forces where it has as lot of supporters and sympathisers. Terrorist cells are regularly tipped off about military missions and have subsequently been able to lie in ambush for Nigerian soldiers.</div>
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Of late, however, Boko Haram has been on the back foot since the establishment of the regional Multi National Joint Task Force. </div>
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Because the task force is made up of regional neighbours Cameroon, Chad and Niger Republic, Boko Haram has been unable to infiltrate it, as their troops have not been compromised.</div>
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<b>Credit: <a href="http://www.nigerianwatch.com/news/6488-us-report-reveals-nigerian-military-tipped-off-boko-haram-about-chibok-girls-rescue-plan">Nigerian Watch</a></b></div>

Nigeria Leaked Our Rescue Plans On Chibok Girls To Boko Haram - US

Recent reports from US intelligence sources have revealed that Nigerian military commanders leaked plans to rescue the abducted Chibok girls to Boko Haram terrorists which ended up botching the opera…

02 Mar 2015

Lawyers Agree Jega Cannot Be Forced To Go On Leave

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<b>Pressure mounted, weekend, on the presidency not to compel Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega to proceed on pre-retirement leave as reportedly being canvassed by some concerned stakeholders in the polity.</b></div>
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The anti-Jega forces had been pushing the presidency to remove the chairman from office, a move that was last night described as dangerous by notable lawyers. The pressure came in the face of heightened tension in the commission over the alleged moves. The chairman’s five-year term comes to an end on June 30 and though he is qualified for re-appointment, the chances of such have become remote given recent allegations of bias against the chairman by campaign officials of President Goodluck Jonathan.</div>
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The mood at the headquarters of INEC, weekend, was that of resignation to fate, as most of the officials, adopted a ‘wait-and-see’ disposition over Jega’s fate following claims of surreptitious moves to force the chairman out of office ahead of the first of the national elections on March 28.</div>
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A top official of the commission told Vanguard, yesterday that they were still working with the hope that the elections would hold as rescheduled and that the chairman would be allowed to conduct it before going in June.</div>
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The tension followed claims by the All Progressives Congress, APC, Senate caucus of the discovery of a plot by the presidency to send Jega on pre-retirement leave as a way of clearing the way for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to emerge victorious in the forthcoming national elections.</div>
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PDP officials had in recent times kicked against the insistence of the commission to use the card reader and the Permanent Voter Cards, PVCs.</div>
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Among those who spoke against the alleged move to send Jega on pre-retirement leave were Prof. Itse Sagay, SAN; Mr Femi Falana, SAN; Chief Olisa Agbokoba, SAN; Chief Mike Ozekhome, SAN and Prince Orji Nwafor-Orizu. Chief Fredrick Fasheun, who is also a supporter of the second term aspiration of the president, also opposed any premature exit of Jega.</div>
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Constitutional lawyer, Professor Itse Sagay said that any attempt to remove Jega from office through what he called “political retirement” would set the country on fire.</div>
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In a telephone interview with <b>VANGUARD</b>, Sagay said the INEC chairman cannot be removed from office at this time under the pretence of retirement on two grounds.</div>
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He said: “The appointment of Jega as INEC boss was ratified by the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and his removal under the law must be ratified by two-third majority of the Senate.”</div>
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Besides, he opined that the appointment is political and that he is as such “not a typical civil servant who is expected to proceed on leave after spending 35 years in service or attained the mandatory retirement age. So any attempt to force him out of office through political means is an attempt to set the country on fire.”</div>
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Falana, on his part, said: “Prof. Jega is on leave of absence from the Bayero University. He won’t be due to retire until the age of 70. That is when he would go on terminal leave. He is on a five-year renewable tenure. His first term ends on June 30, 2015 and the appointment enjoys constitutional flavour.</div>
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“It is not at the pleasure of the president to remove him or send him on a compulsory leave. The president has to seek and obtain the approval of two-thirds majority of the Senators pursuant to Sections 157 of the Constitution. Assuming but not conceding that he has to proceed on terminal leave, that cannot happen before April 2015.”</div>
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Ozekhome said: “The chairman is not a career civil servant. However, only the President can sack him with the consent of the Senate. A similar thing was done in the case of Lamido Sanusi, who was suspended. I do not believe that he should proceed on terminal leave like a core civil servant. If he were to be dismissed, the National Assembly needs to be consented the same way his appointment was done.</div>
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“The Senate also has the right to reject the removal. The constitution involved the Senate in that kind of issue to prevent any arm of government from being too powerful. It is a constitutional stipulation that ensures balance of power. In contemplating sending him on terminal leave, the moral and ethical angle should also be considered. The elections are around the corner. So any attempt at removing him will not augur well for our democracy.”</div>
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In his reaction, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Chief Olisa Agbakoba (SAN) said removing the chairman of INEC will not be good for nation’s polity.</div>
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Speaking with <i>Vanguard</i>, yesterday, Agbakoba said: “I know that it will be a big mistake to remove Jega unless he decides to resign. If you remove, there is a perception that there is something wrong. Jega’s tenure is almost ending, wisdom suggests to me that the best thing is to let him conduct the elections. We have to have confidence in the way the electorate will vote. The perception of removing him (Jega) will not be good for our polity.”</div>
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Asserting that Jega cannot be disciplined except under extant laws, Nwafor-Orizu, an Abuja based constitutional lawyer said: “No, the INEC chairman is not a civil servant, and the Constitution by Section 158 is specific that INEC should not be subject to the direction of any other authority or person.</div>
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“To understand the constitutional meaning, one needs to examine the opening sentence of section 158 which is clear that disciplinary control of INEC cannot be directed by the civil service rules or even the president of Nigeria.”</div>
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Nwafor-Orizu further contended that compelling Jega to go on leave and he refusing could cause a constitutional jam as the INEC chairman under the constitution does not have a supervisor to discipline him.</div>
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On his part, founder of the Oodua Peoples Congress, OPC, Dr Fredrick Fasheun said the INEC chairman should be allowed to conduct the general elections.</div>
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Fasheun said: “Why does anyone want to remove him? It is not acceptable. He should be allowed to conduct the elections.”</div>
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The gloom in the commission heightened at the weekend following suspicions that the Presidency had concluded moves to remove the Chairman of the electoral body, Prof Attahiru Jega, and replace him with a ‘more friendly and amenable’ hand to do its bidding to prevent the opposition from coasting home with victory.</div>
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Although President Jonathan had initially denied the claim that he was shopping for Jega’s successor, hordes of his foot soldiers have insisted that the professor of political science must be replaced for insisting on using card readers and permanent voter cards for the polls, a development, they claim, would likely disenfranchise their supporters.</div>
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To prove their opposition to Jega’s stance on the use of PVCs and card readers for the polls, many pro-Jonathan groups and friends have filed suits asking the courts to disallow the use of the facilities.</div>
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The groups had waited patiently for the postponement of the elections last month, to challenge Jega and INEC.</div>
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While Nigerians had taken Jonathan by his words that he was not planning to force Jega to proceed on pre-retirement leave, opposition Senators raised the alarm last week, alleging that they had credible information that the Presidency had concluded plans to remove the INEC boss to pave the way for the enthronement of a crony to its bidding.</div>
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According to the Senators, the pre-terminal leave letter would come from either the office of the Head of Service of the Federation, OHSoF or that of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, OSGF.</div>
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But findings by <i>Vanguard</i> revealed that the OHSoF was not in possession of the said letter as at the close of work last Friday.</div>
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When <i>Vanguard</i> inquired about the said letter, senior officers in the OHSoF denied knowledge of the said document, claiming that it was news to them, as the INEC boss was not reporting to that office.</div>
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One of the sources in the OHSoF described the link between Jega’s alleged pre-terminal leave letter to the OHSoF as shocking since according to them, “the distinguished senators are supposed to know that the office does not deal with political appointees like Jega but with core civil servants”.</div>
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Meanwhile, the mood at the Headquarters of the INEC, was that of resignation to fate, as most of the officials, adopted a ‘wait-and-see’ disposition over Jega’s fate following the APC Senators’ allegation and mounting attacks on him by supporters of the President.</div>

Lawyers Agree Jega Cannot Be Forced To Go On Leave

Pressure mounted, weekend, on the presidency not to compel Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega to proceed on pre-retirement leave as reportedly being …

02 Mar 2015

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