POLITICS
Senator Musa Support Group Looks up to God for APC Chairmanship Victory
From Dan Amasingha, Minna.
As the National Convention of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC draws nearer, a support group of Senator Sani Musa for the national Chairmanship of the party has commenced a special prayer session for divine intervention on his side.
The group, “APC Progressive Vanguard,” DAILY ASSET gathered has directed that prayers should be held in churches and mosques for God to give victory to Senator Musa.
Confirming the development, Alhaji Abdullahi Bawa, leader of the group said they while they are busy campaigning in all nooks and crannies of the country, there was the need to commit the project to the hand of God.
Alhaji Bawa disclosed this when he led some members of the organization drawn from the 25 local governments of the state to pay a solidarity visit to the Sani Musa Advisory Council Chairman Alhaji Babasule Bissala in Minna.
“We have also commenced prayers in mosques and churches across the 25 LGAs of Niger State to seek spiritual blessing for the Sani Musa chairmanship project, the prayers will be held regularly till we achieve success, ” Bawa said.
He said though the group was sure of Senator Musa’s victory it has to resort to God to seal the aspiration with the lid of success.
According to him, they have pledged their support for Senator Musa’s aspiration to become the national chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress because “among those aspiring for the national chairmanship of the party Senator Sani Musa towers above them all because of his ability to carry everyone along and his level-headedness
“He (Musa) has been able to build bridges of friendship across the length and breadth of this country, he is one person that is accessible and communicates with everyone easily” Bawa declared.
The prayer coordinator observed that Senator Musa “is the only person that can further unite all the groups in our party and lead our party to victory in the 2023 general elections” before soliciting for the support of all stakeholders to ensure the realization of the objective
Bawa therefore said the group will be in the vanguard of the campaign for the election of Senator Musa as chairman promising to mobilize support by going to all the states of the federation to woo delegates
Responding the chairman of the Advisory Council Alhaji Bissala appreciated the support of the group and assured them that no stone will be left unturned to ensure victory in the national convention.
“We have been reaching out to all the stakeholders, they have assured us of their support, we are sure the support will translate to victory in the convention” Bissala said.
He said that the Advisory Council was satisfied with the support so far given Senator Musa by members of the APC and the people of Niger State in his bid to become the national chairman of our great party saying ” (Musa’s ) success will be victory for the entire people of Niger state”.
The Advisory Council applauds the steps taken so far by the Convention Planning Committee in the march towards the February 26 Convention advising that Alhaji Mai Mala Buni and his team should continue to be transparent to justify the confidence of all stakeholders.
POLITICS
INEC Staff Welfare Association Warns Members Against Manipulating Election Results
The Abia Chapter of the INEC Staff Welfare Association (ISWA) has warned its members to uphold the integrity of the commission and guard against the culture of manipulating election results.
The Abia Chairman of the association, Mr Collins Eze, gave the advice at the group’s general meeting and end-of-year party in Umuahia.
Speaking in an interview with newsmen on the sideline of the ceremony, Eze said that the staff members were adequately aware of their enormous responsibility and should ensure free, fair and credible elections.
He said: “We have also told our colleagues that anywhere they find themselves they should make sure that they do the needful by ensuring transparency in the conduct of elections.
“We have always told them not to allow anybody to induce them with money to manipulate election results.
“I’m happy that they have been building the capacity of our colleagues on election processes.
“So, in the coming years, we won’t have any problem in ensuring free, fair and peaceful elections.”
He said that the end-of-year party was special as it afforded them the opportunity “to wine and dine together as well as thank God for sustaining them in 2024”.
Eze said that his leadership had introduced various means of assisting members in dire financial needs by providing platforms to solicit suppory for them.
He expressed gratitude to members for their support and cooperation, describing them as the “secret behind the success of this administration”.
He said that 34 of at least 350 staff members of the commission in the state retired from service in 2024.
According to him, the development has placed a huge financial burden on the association, in terms of their welfare and entitlement as members.
Report says that each member received a carton of tomato paste as Christmas gift from the association. (NAN)
POLITICS
Be Thankful APC Didn’t Probe Your Administrations, Okechukwu Tells PDP
A chieftain of All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Osita Okechukwu, has told the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to be thankful to God that its 16-year administration was not probed by the successive APC-led governments.Okechukwu stated this on Tuesday in Abuja, while reacting to a statement by PDP congratulating Ghanaians for the conduct of free, fair and transparent general elections.
Report says that PDP had, in a statement, said that the verdict of the people of Ghana in the presidential election was a signal to the APC that its days were numbered. The party’s National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, had said in the statement that the power of the people in Nigeria, just like in Ghana, would ‘surely prevail and end the APC’s oppressive rule’.This, he said, would “return Nigeria to the path of good governance, security, political stability and economic prosperity on the platform of the PDP in 2027.”However, in his reactions to Ologunagba’s statement, Okechukwu said that the PDP clan should thank God that former President Muhammadu Buhari and President Bola Tinubu, out of sheer statesmanship, had refused to probe ‘the 16 locus years of PDP administrations’.Okechukwu, a former Director-General of Voice of Nigeria (VON), described the 16 years of PDP administrations as ones full of squandering and lack of plan.He said that Nigeria had yet to recover from the humongous culture of impunity and trust deficit planted by PDP on the Nigerian soil.Okechukwu said corruption was among the culture of impunity, saying it governed the privatisation of Nigeria’s electricity value chain, a key element in the country’s industrialisation drive.“Another is the blatant rigging of the 2007 general elections which the foremost beneficiary, President Umaru Yar’Adua, out of good conscience and noble magnanimity, publicly acknowledged the malfeasance which characterised his victory,” he said.Okechukwu also mentioned what he called conscienceless sale of the legislative and ministerial quarters, the annual rentage of which, he said, was bleeding the country’s treasury.“Another one is the neglect of $23 billion Greenfield Refinery, which could have saved over $70 billion expended on importation of refined petroleum products and which simulated the economic hardship of today,” he said.On why, for nine years, the APC administration could not fix those challenges, he recalled the efforts made by the Buhari administration to reopen talks on the Greenfield Refinery which, according to him, the Chinese regrettably rebuffed.The former VON director-general said that Nigerians were not in a hurry to forget the deliberate breach of the rotational convention of president from the north to the south.He said that the country could not also forget the utter disregard for Section 7 of the PDP’s constitution which expressly mandated zoning.Okechukwu advised the PDP not to insult the sensibilities of Nigerians by assuming that citizens would easily forget how they were put in the harms way.He said that PDP should thank God that Buhari and Tinubu did not want to probe them, adding “that’s why Nigerians cannot decipher the difference between the two political parties.” (NAN)POLITICS
LG Administration Central to Democracy in Nigeria -Nwoko
Sen. Ned Nwoko (PDP-Delta) says that Local Government Administration is central to democracy in Nigeria as it ensures grassroots governance and service delivery at the local level.This is contained in a statement signed by Dr Michael Nwoko, the Chief of Staff to the lawmaker in Abuja on Monday.Nwoko said this on the occasion of the presentation of an award “Icon of Hope” to him by the Association of Local Government Vice Chairmen of Nigeria (ALGOVC).
He was represented by his Chief of Staff. He said that the importance of local government administration in the country could not be overemphasised, as it was the bedrock of democracy.According to him, local governments in Nigeria play key roles in the country’s democracy by promoting participatory democracy, providing services, and representing citizens.“Local Governments help determine local needs and how to meet them. They also act as a link between the centre, state, and local people.“They are created to decentralise power and bring the government closer to the people. They perform both mandatory and concurrent functions.“It is in view of this that I took it upon myself to enhance the viability of local governments through the Paris and London club loan refunds,”he said.Dr Folashade Olabanji-Oba, ALGOVC National Chairman, while presenting the award at its 7th Annual National Conference, said the award was in recognition of the lawmaker’s significant contributions to strengthening local government administration.She highlighted Nwoko’s critical role in ensuring the Paris and London Club loan refunds, a financial breakthrough she said enhanced the capacity of local governments nationwide.(NAN)