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Ortom Promises Acceptable Formula as Politics of Zoning Rage in PDP

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The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Zoning Committee for the 2023 general elections has promised to come up with recommendations that would be acceptable to the party.

The Chairman of the Committee and Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom, stated this while speaking with newsmen after the committee meeting held on Tuesday in Abuja.

Ortom said that the meeting had been rescheduled for next week where the 37-member committee is expected to come up with a position to be presented to the party.

“The meeting is on-going, we just adjourned till Tuesday next week at the same time and venue. And until we conclude the proceedings, there is nothing much to say.

“So far, all the members are quite understanding.

There wasn’t any form of tension. We understand ourselves that zoning is very key and we are looking at it that at the end of it all, we will do something that everybody will accept and we will go ahead as one big family and win the 2023 elections.”

The committee inaugurated by the National Chairman of the party, Dr Iyorchia Ayu, consisted of 37 members from the 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

Meanwhile, a PDP support group under the aegis of “Justice and Equity Group”, has urged the party zoning committee to throw the presidential ticket open for all the zones.

The group, in a memo signed by Messrs Ahmed Muhktar, Yemi Arokodare and Chima Ndugbu on behalf of the concerned members, said that PDP stood a better chance in the 2023 presidential election, if the ticket was made open.

In the memo titled: “Our case against zoning”, the group advised the party not to take regional or sectional decision where the party would find it difficult to win the election.

“Our position is that the presidency should not be zoned to either the South or North of the country.

“Rather it should be an open race where members of the party from both the North and South of the country are free to aspire to the office of the President of Nigeria.

“We hold this position with utmost sense of responsibility.

“It is our firm belief that the interest of the party will be better served when there is no polarity in the contest especially that arising from regional or zonal sentiments.

“We equally recognise the fact that the PDP as an opposition party is constrained in some ways. It cannot afford the luxury of boxing itself into a regional or sectional corner.

“Zoning the office of the President to any section of the country will drive it into this costly error.

“What the party needs at this time is an open and inclusive race in which no member or section of the country will be excluded.

“As a matter of fact, the PDP as an opposition party must shun the luxury of taking certain liberties. It should, instead, be guided by pragmatism and practical realities.

“And the reality here is that the party will stand stronger in the forthcoming presidential election if it forges a common bond that emphasises neither North nor South.

“With a pan-Nigerian disposition, the PDP will be in a better shape and state to win the 2023 presidential election.”

POLITICS

Assembly Passes Edo N675bn 2025 Budget for Assent 

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The Edo House of Assembly on Monday passed the state 2025 budget of N675 billion for assent.

The passage followed the adoption of the report of the House Committee on Budget and Project Monitoring at plenary in Benin.

Presenting the report, the chairman of the committee, Sunday Fada, (PDP Esan Central) said the budget was made up of N225 billion recurrent expenditure and N451 billion capital expenditure.

Fada noted that the committee came up with the increase in the budgetary allocation to enable the governor carry out his five points agenda in the state.

The House at the committee of Supply, considered the budget clause by clause and subsequently, approved the increase from N605.

7 billion to N675 billion.

The Speaker, Blessing Agbebaku, thereafter directed Mr Yahaya Omogbai, the clerk of the house to forward clean copies of the budget to the governor for his assent. (NAN)

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POLITICS

Poverty, Behind Deadly Stampedes Across Nigeria, says Falana

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Missing N500bn: Probe CBN, Falana, Others Tell PMB
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By Mike Odiakose, Abuja

Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, on Sunday attributed the deadly stampede that claimedmore than 105 lives in stampedes during food and cash distribution events to “poverty-induced neoliberal economic policies” and “criminal negligence.

In a statement released on Sunday, Falana, who chairs the Alliance on Surviving COVID-19 and Beyond ASCAB, demanded justice for victims of the tragic events, saying, “These tragic events are a national shame, the victims were not just statistics but human beings driven to desperation by systemic poverty and the gross incompetence of those entrusted with their safety.

On December 21, 12 people died and 32 others were injured in Okija, Anambra State, during a scramble for rice distributed by a philanthropist.

On the same day, a stampede at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Maitama, Abuja, resulted in the deaths of 10 individuals, including children, as over 3,000 people jostled for palliatives.

Just two days prior, on December 19, 35 children lost their lives in a stampede at a Christmas funfair at an Islamic High School, Basorun. in Ibadan, Oyo State.

“The loss of these innocent lives is heart-wrenching,” Falana lamented.

“It underscores the indignity that poverty imposes on our people.”

Falana also criticized the elite for their treatment of the poor during such events, stating, “No member of the elite invites others to lunch by throwing the food,” and condemned what he termed “class prejudice” in the distribution of humanitarian aid.

He also announced plans to mobilize lawyers to pursue civil suits against the organizers of these events.

“We will ensure survivors and families of the deceased are adequately compensated,” Falana affirmed. “Those responsible for these avoidable tragedies must be held accountable.”

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2025 budget: LP Chieftain Lauds Tinubu for Diving Priority to Security, Others

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Dr Ayo Olorunfemi, National Deputy Chairman of the Labour Party (LP) ,has commended  President Bola Tinubu for giving  priority to security and other key sectors in the 2025 Appropriation Bill .

Olorunfemi gave the commendation while speaking with newsmeon Thursday in Lagos.

NAN reports that the President had on Wednesday  presented  the N47.

9 trillion 2025 Appropriation Bill , christened “Budget of Restoration, Securing Peace and Rebuilding Prosperity” , to a joint session of the National Assembly .

The President listed highlights of the 2025 budget allocations to include: defense and security: N4.91 trillion; infrastructure: N4.06 trillion; Health: N2.

48 trillion and Education: N3.52 trillion.

Reacting , Olorunfemi  described security as an enabler of development.

He called on the President to ensure proper implementation ,saying budgets had always been well-crafted but usually lacked monitoring and implementation.

“There is nothing that can happen if there is no security. This is good if the budget is properly utilised for the purpose.

“Our problem is not about policies and budgets, it is about monitoring and implementation.

“There is nothing wrong in bringing a budget proposal forward in terms of expectation, what we want to do, how we want to do it, and how much we want to spend.

“Now, the most important thing is the implementation,, budgets in Nigeria have always been properly crafted,” the LP boss said.

Olorunfemi called on the President to build strong institutions to prevent sabotaging of his policies.

“If this government wants to do anything, it must wake up to the responsibility of monitoring policies and ensure  severe penalty for anyone who attempts to sabotage such policies.

“We need institutions that no one will be able to interfere with. We must allow these institutions to work, that is what we expect.

“Once we have strong institutions, most of our problems are solved,” he said.

He  also called on the President to take steps to address  the problems experienced by Nigerians in the banking sector.

Olorunfemi  decried the inability of many Nigerians to get cash at  bank’s Automated Teller Machines and the high charges paid  to get cash from Point of Sales (POS) operators.

The LP boss also urged the President to devise ways of  ending multiple taxations and high fuel price, describing them as major causes  of  hardship .

Recalled that the President said that the budget was a demonstration of government’s commitment to stabilising the economy, improving lives and repositioning the country for greater performance.

He also said the budget sought to consolidate the key policies instituted to restructure the economy, boost human capital development, increase the volume of trade and investments and bolster oil and gas production. (NAN)

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