Nigerian Newspapers
Anenih plots Tukur’s removal
• Seeks support for replacement, set to hijack party structure
•BOT chairman woos IBB
Another major crisis is set to hit the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as the Chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees, Chief Anthony Anenih, begins move to unseat and take over the structure of the party from its Chairman, Alhaji Bamanga Tukur.
The BoT chairman is also accused of planning to install his loyalist as Tukur’s replacement. This move, Sunday Mirror gathered, has pitched Anenih against some party members who said his (Anenih) activities are capable of bringing division within the ranks of the party as he has been employing divide and rule tactics in his dealings with certain party members to the detriment of others. Sunday Mirror gathered that the the BoT chairman was making moves to woo former Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida (IBB), to his side in his plan.
It was gathered that he would soon pay a visit to the Hilltop residence of Babangida in Minna, Niger State. He had paid a similar visit to former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, a few weeks ago during his reconciliation tour. A source informed Sunday Mirror that the BoT chairman had already exchanged communication with Babangida on the visit though no date had been agreed upon yet.
The meeting will also afford Chief Anenih the opportunity to reconcile the Niger State Governor, Mu’azu Babangida Aliyu, and other party faithful who have since fallen out with the party leadership at the centre.
The governor’s open criticism of the party and presidential declaration have ruffled some feathers at the party’s headquarters and in the presidency. It would be recalled that after he stepped down on his presidential ambition for the former Vice-President, Atiku Abubarkar, in the follow up to the 2011 general election, IBB had refused to attend every other function of the party both at the state and national levels. He is also known to have never supported the leadership of President Goodluck Jonathan after the bitter contest which cost the North the presidency.
Our source said, “You know, the Hilltop mansion of the former president has remained a power cave where numerous political decisions concerning the North are taken.
The North is still not through with its quest to retrieve the presidency which was forcefully taken away from them and I am aware that other political interests have been besieging Minna of late, so the decision of the PDP to also visit Minna, like others are doing is in line.”
But the recent applause of the emergence of the All Progressives Congress (APC) by the former military president is said to be causing ripples in PDP as findings revealed that the national leadership of the PDP is not comfortable with the comments credited to Babangida.
According to media reports, the former military president expressed joy over the emergence of the APC, saying that it was good for the political development of the country. It was reported that when asked whether the development would not pose a problem for his party (PDP), Babangida retorted: “PDP or my party? Which one is my party? PDP was my party,” and was said to have declined further comment on the statement His comments, it was gathered, are being viewed as a confirmation of earlier speculations that Babangida was one of the brains behind the formation of APC since he had failed to get the PDP’s nod over his presidential ambition which dates back to 2003.
“We are worried as a party if IBB actually made those comments on the emergence of APC. I think the national secretariat of our party needs to get in touch with the Niger State chapter to confirm his membership status so as to know what to do with him. The constitution of the party is very clear.
To me, this is anti-party,” a PDP senator had told Sunday Mirror. Eldest son of the former Military President, Mohammed, is also nursing the ambition to run for the governorship seat in 2015 after the expiration of the tenure of Governor Babangida Aliyu under the platform of the PDP.
It is believed that Anenih will use the opportunity to let IBB know the implication of working against the party in the next general election. Still on Anenih, party members pointed out that he had been moving around with Babayo Shehu, a party member from Bauchi who contested and lost against Bamanga Tukur as PDP chairman, and he is now planning to install him in Tukur’s stead.
A top member of the party based in Abuja who spoke with Sunday Mirror over the issue said Babayo was not a member of BOT and hence was not qualified to be in Anehih’s entourage when he visited Cross River Governor and Chairman of the South- South Governors Forum, Liyel Imoke, in Calabar recently.
He revealed that top members of the party are of the opinion that Anenih had started selling the candidature of Babayo Shehu secretly amid a plot to remove Tukur. Another member based in a South-South state said, “PDP has never known peace since Anenih became BOT chairman and that has unsettled the camp of Tukur when he set up a parallel team on reconciliation and toured all the zones already visited by Tukur, giving an impression that Tukur’s initial tour was a flop.
In any case, Anenih was accused of not consulting with the PDP national headquarters before embarking on the tour. Members also feel that despite the much-trumpeted trips around the country, the parallel reconciliation tour by Anenih has not brought any significant change in PDP.
Some party elders are beginning to express worries that Anenih has been nursing a personal agenda of taking over the PDP with a view to installing a stooge who would be subservient to him. Lending credence to that, they said, was his refusal to make open details of discussions he held with all the governors he met during his tour.
They also pointed out that his refusal to again intimate the PDP chairman of his tour, even when PDP demanded for such has added to the worries by party chieftains on what he has been up to as they said he continued to keep the PDP in the dark about his activities since he came into the office of BOT.
“Obasanjo was BOT chairman before Anenih. He was never in the habit of genuflecting before governors. OBJ was rather relating directly with the President on the basis that the position of BOT chairmanship as specified by the PDP constitution is only advisory.
Even when Anenih was BOT chairman under Obasanjo, he was rather more supportive of the party and never engaged in any frivolous trip to see governors under any guise,” a top elder reflected.
Certain party members are rather angry that Anenih only made the state governors his prime targets and not party chairmen and key members in the states he visited. Some state chairmen are said to be so infuriated by this that they are poised to undermine his authority in their states, a situation some concerned members said may bring confusion into the party.
“A colleague of mine said that if Anenih try to visit his state again and his office is not part of his itinerary, he would call for the boycott of his tour,’’ a state chairman in one of the South-South states told Sunday Mirror
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Posted in Nigerian Newspapers. A DisNaija.Com network.
Source: National Mirror Newspaper
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Tribune Online
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has recorded 62 new cases of COVID-19, bringing the total number of infections in the country to 165,110. The NCDC disclosed this on its official Twitter handle on Friday. “55 new cases of #COVID19Nigeria; Lagos-21, Yobe-19, Ogun-6, Akwa Ibom-3, Kaduna-2, Plateau-2, FCT-1, Rivers-1.” YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE COVID-19: Nigeria Recorded […]
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
Tribune Online
Sourced From: Tribune Online
•Deploy more personnel as army chief vows to wipe out terror group
•Security beefed up at N’Assembly
Deji Elumoye and Kingsley Nwezeh in Abuja
Abuja, Nigeria’s seat of power, is under a massive security cordon following threats of attacks by insurgents and the increasing wave of banditry in the contiguous states of Kaduna, Kogi, Nasarawa and Niger States, THISDAY’s investigation has revealed.
There has been a wave of kidnappings in the outskirts of the federal capital, notably Pegi, Tuganmaje and Kuje among others, which the police have battled in recent times.
The security situation in and around the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was heightened by the pronouncement of the Niger State Governor, Mr. Sani Bello, that Boko Haram fighters who he said sacked 50 villages in the state and hoisted the terror group’s flag, were about two hours drive away from the FCT.
Security has also been beefed up at the National Assembly as operatives, yesterday, thoroughly screened every vehicle approaching the National Assembly complex in Abuja.
The deteriorating security situation nationwide prompted the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Uche Secondus, to warn that the 2023 general election may not hold, demanding the declaration of a state of emergency as well as the convocation of a national conference.
However, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, yesterday restated the Nigerian Army’s determination to annihilate Boko Haram.
But the Governor of Katsina State, Hon. Bello Masari, cautioned against declaring a state of emergency, saying doing so isn’t the solution to combat the security challenges facing the country.
The security of the nation’s airports was also in focus yesterday as the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) said there was no threat to them.
THISDAY’s investigations showed increased presence of troops, police, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) personnel and intelligence operatives at the three strategic entrances to the city notably, Keffi, Zuba and Gwagwalada.
More checkpoints were also mounted around Gwagwalada and Keffi.
THISDAY also observed increased intelligence deployment at the entrance and the borders of FCT with contiguous states.
Beyond the borders, there were more deployments and police patrols inside the city and increased intelligence deployments as well.
Security sources told THISDAY: “There are deployments here and there but they are routine. Alertness is key to a secure environment.”
It was also learnt that security agencies were involved in frenzied meetings throughout yesterday.
The meetings, coordinated by the office of the Chief of Defence Staff under the new joint operational strategy of the armed forces, were aimed at coordinating a joint response to possible threats of attack to the FCT.
“I understand the security teams have been meeting for some days now and if you look around you, you will notice that there are increasing patrols and numbers of security personnel. The threats are not been taken lightly,” a source said.
National Assembly workers, lawmakers and visitors also had a harrowing experience accessing the legislative complex due to heightened security in the area.
Security operatives thoroughly screened every vehicle approaching the National Assembly complex in Abuja, impeding both human and vehicular traffic.
The Sergeant-at-arm of the National Assembly and other security agencies supervised the operations, leading to huge traffic build-up inside the complex.
Legislative staff, visitors and lawmakers were seen patiently waiting for their cars to be searched so that they could go ahead with the business of the day.
Some staff and visitors at some point got tired of waiting and were seen alighting from their cars to trek from the gate to the complex.
Meanwhile, the ONSA has said there is no threat to the nation’s airports.
A statement by the Head of Strategic Communication, Mr. Zachari Usman, said the reports of threats to the airports were an internal correspondence of security threat assessment misconstrued as security threat to the airports.
PDP Demands State of Emergency
In a related development, the PDP National Chairman, Prince Uche Secondus, yesterday demanded the declaration of a state of emergency, warning that the 2023 general election might not hold if the federal government failed to tackle insecurity.
He called on the federal government to summon a national conference to address the spike in insecurity.
Secondus added that the national caucus of the party will meet today to discuss the state of the nation.
Addressing members of the National Executive Committee (NEC) in Abuja, Secondus said: “We are worried Abuja is not even safe. It is no longer politics. We got alert of plots to bomb and burn down our airports.
“We urge the federal government to declare a national state of emergency in security. There is the need to call a national conference to discuss the insecurity in the country.
“There may not be any election in 2023 in Nigeria due to insecurity. This government must listen to the people. The Buhari government should call a national confab to discuss security and state of the nation. It is no longer politics. This time we are not playing politics. Let’s keep politics aside and move the nation forward.”
He said the country had been grounded, regretting that there had been no matching response from the federal government.
Secondus said in the past, terrorism in the North was confined to the North-east, but with the report of Boko Haram occupying villages in Niger State, terrorism had spread to the North-central
“Herdsmen are also menacing in the West; gunmen causing havoc in the East; and the militants in the South; all killing, looting, raping, maiming and burning down homes. The situation is bad; Nigerians all over are living in fear,” he said.
The Senate Minority Leader, Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, said the problem of Nigeria was outside of the PDP headquarters, while pledging the support of the Senate to the declaration of state of emergency in security.
Abaribe said he deliberately decided not to speak on the floor of the Senate but to allow the APC senators to speak so as to avoid being accused of giving a partisan colouration to the issue of insecurity.
He stated that only electoral reforms would give victory to the opposition party in the 2023 general election and ensure a democratic defeat of the APC-led federal government.
Also, the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu, commended the NEC and the PDP leadership for their collective efforts at resolving the House leadership crisis.
The NEC meeting adopted the position of Secondus, calling on the federal government to convoke a national conference to discuss the state of insecurity in the country, according to a communiqué read by the National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan.
Army Chief Vows to Wipe Out Boko Haram
The army yesterday reiterated its commitment to wipe out Boko Haram.
Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, told reporters in Maiduguri, Borno State that Boko Haram had been defeated in many encounters and would continue to be defeated until it’s annihilated from Nigeria.
“We will take on Boko Haram decisively, and we are committed to the focus of the operations, which is the total annihilation of Boko Haram from Nigeria,” he said.
The COAS, who was visiting the headquarters of Operation Lafiya Dole in Maiduguri for the fifth time since his appointment four months ago, said the visit was to boost the morale of the troops, reassure them and listen to any issues affecting them.
Earlier, the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj. Gen. Farouq Yahaya, lauded the visit, which he said had continued to boost the morale of the troops.
“We are honoured, we are grateful, we are encouraged by those visits. You provided us guidance, logistics and other things we required. We are most grateful for those visits,” Yahaya said.
State of Emergency Won’t Solve Security Challenges, Says Masari
Katsina State Governor, Hon. Aminu Masari, has, however, said declaration of a state of emergency won’t solve the security challenges facing the nation.
Masari, who spoke yesterday with journalists after meeting with the Chief of Staff to the President, Prof. Ibrahim Gambari at the State House, Abuja stated that he was against the recent call by the House of Representatives for the declaration of a state of emergency in the security sector as it would not solve the problem.
According to him, declaring a state of emergency will not achieve the desired effect as the security structure and personnel to be used to execute the emergency are already overstretched in a bid to safeguard lives and property.
Sourced From: THISDAYLIVE
By Olasunkanmi Akoni
The people of the South East region have been urged to explore the power of negotiation and mutual settlement in the face of ongoing killings and security challenges in the zone because the east can not afford another war at present.
Stakeholders from the South-East geo-political zone made the remark on Thursday, at the unveiling of the book, “Igbo, 50 years after Biafra,” written by Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Drainage Services, Joe Igbokwe, held at Ikeja G.R.A.
Speaking at the unveiling of the book, the chairman of the occasion, Mr. Cutis Adigba,
urged the people of the South-East to learn to build bridges across the country, so that they can realise their ambition of producing the next president of Nigeria.
Adigba urged leaders from the zone to discourage the move and agitation by some youths in the South East to go to war and secede out of Nigeria.
Also read: Banditry: Disregard viral video, Niger State gov’t urges residents
He said that Igbo have always found it difficult to rule Nigeria because they refused to build bridges across the six geo-political zones that made up Nigeria.
While describing the agitation as uncalled for, Adigba noted that after two decades that Nigeria returned to civil rule, the Igbo has predominantly identified with only one political party.
He maintained that remaining in one party can not advance the cause of the people of South East and cannot make them realise their objective of producing an Igbo man as president.
He maintained that the publisher of the book, Igbokwe played politics outside his state, so that the Igbo race can be integrated with one another race.
Adigba said the failure of the Igbo to reintegrate with other ethnic nationalities politically was responsible for the retrogression of the race in Nigerian politics.
Igbokwe, also addressing guests on the occasion, maintained that the Igbo are not advancing politically because they refused to be integrated into National politics, lamenting that, despite their success in business, they are not successful in playing politics at the national level.
Corroborating Dimgba, Igbokwe noted that there was the need for the Igbo people to stand up and build bridges so that their objective of producing the next president of Nigeria could be realised.
According to him: “I have decided to raise my voice, I hope my people will hear me while trying to quell the effect of the war, our people are spoiling for another war, mayhem is being unleashed in Igbo land, and there is palpable fear.
“Those who could speak have lost their voice, mindful of the consequences of their actions, I am calling on all Igbo leaders to speak up because all actions carry consequences, consequences of the silence will be too dastardly to sustain.
“Those silently supporting the wild wind should be careful or else they hand over to their children,” he said.
Igbokwe urged those spoiling for war to jettison their plan and embrace dialogue, urging them to learn from the South West region that despite the challenges faced after the annulment of the June 12, 1993, election, they did not go to war, and the region had the opportunity of producing two of her sons for presidential position in 1999.
“You have to build bridges to become president of Nigeria, but it is unfortunate the Igbo are burning bridges.”
Speaking at the event, Chief Uche Dimgba who is the coordinator of Igbo in All Progressives Congress, APC in Lagos, described Igbokwe as “a Frank, fearless and reliable leader, who based his views on issues and stand by his opinions, and we the Igbo have confidence in him and believe he can lead us aright.”
“He is a leader we Igbo believe in and we will follow him. If he can serve all the governors produced in Lagos State since 1999, he is a better man to follow because he possesses all the experience that can be of benefit to Igbo both at home and in the diaspora.”
The post Attacks on S’East: We must explore all options of negotiation — Stakeholders urge Igbo appeared first on Vanguard News.
Sourced From: Vanguard News
The government said that no worker should stay back beyond 6:00 p.m. within premises of buildings undergoing construction.
The post Insecurity: Lagos bans occupation of abandoned buildings appeared first on Premium Times Nigeria.
Sourced From: Premium Times Nigeria
Nigeria records 55 new COVID-19 infections, total now 165,110
Military, Police Ring Abuja to Forestall Boko Haram Attack
UFC: Usman gets N584m after beating Masvidal
Insecurity: Lagos bans occupation of abandoned buildings
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