POLITICS
For Struggling with Convention PDP says APC not a Party but Special Purpose Vehicle
By Jude Opara, Abuja
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has rubbished the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) for again postponing its National Convention earlier scheduled to take place on February 26.
In a statement issued by its spokesman Debo Ologunagba, the PDP explained that the continued inability of the APC to conduct a routine National Convention is an indication that the party is unable to manage itself, adding that such is the reason all sectors of the country’s national life have been in the shambolic state under what it called “the incompetent, corrupt, rudderless and overtly confused APC administration”.
The PDP added that the postponement of the APC National Convention has further justifed its conclusion that the APC is not a political party but a “Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)” of strange bedfellows, political buccaneers and ferocious power mongers on a mission to destroy the country.
It further argued that it is evident that the APC, which cannot conduct its own internal affairs, should not be expected to effectivelly manage the affairs of a big country like Nigeria.
The statement reads in parts; “The APC is a perfect example of failure both as a party and government, unable to conduct a simple National Convention in two years. It has become a Russian Roulette with the unending request for extension of time to undertake a routine statutory political activity.”
“It is not surprising that the APC, a party of backstabbers again postponed its National Convention already scheduled for February 26, 2022. It saying is rather saddening how a set of confused, greedy, deceitful, hard-heartened and self-centred individuals who cannot run a creditable organization foisted themselves in power and plunged our nation into the economic, security and social mess that the country faced today”.
It further described the APC as a vacuous political contraption without a soul, and peopled by “political warlords” without conscience and operating without rules, saying that the APC is a bunch of inchoate sailors clobbered together for remote personal gain; operating without a Board of Trustees (BoT) and a National Working Committee (NWC). It exists in violation of rules while constituting itself to a threat to the national unity and corporate existence as a nation.
According to the statement, APC’s postponement had always been fallout of the horrible infighting, backbiting and gang war by “political bandits” who are desperate for power and access to our national treasury, stressing that that explains why their congresses and other activities are always marred by violence, bloodletting and killings.
The main opposition party also said that the APC is not capable of holding a National Convention having become defunct since December 8, 2020, when it dissolved all its states, zonal and national party structures and set up an “illegal contrivance” called the Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) led by Governor Mai Mala Buni of Yobe State.
It added that the activities of the APC CECPC invalid and unconstitutional by virtue of Section 183 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) which bars a sitting governor from holding “any other executive office” in any capacity whatsoever while serving as a state governor.
It added that the failure of the APC to hold a National Convention is, therefore, a clear warning to those aspiring for various positions in the 2023 election on its platform to note that with the APC, stressing that they are on a journey to nowhere.
Ologunagba claimed that the only way the APC can legitimately participate in the 2023 general elections is to re-apply to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for fresh registration as a political party.
The PDP then urged Nigerians whom he said are yearning for the return of good governance to look its way, promising that they can again guarantee their security, economic prosperity, infrastructural development, employment, food security and national cohesion which it said they experienced in the 16 when they were in government.
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)
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)
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)
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