Politics
2023: Atiku, Saraki, Wike, Others To Lock Horns As PDP Throws Presidential Ticket Open
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has thrown its presidential ticket for the 2023 election open, abandoning zoning, which has generated heated controversy in recent times.
Stakeholders of the party had taken different positions on zoning, with Iyioricha Ayu, National Chairman of the party, said had come to stay.
Last week, a meeting of the PDP zoning committee headed by Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State ended without a definite outcome.
However, on Tuesday, the 37-member committee met for over three hours, after which they said recommendations had been sent to the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party.
But sources told Daily Trust that the committee affirmed that even though zoning is part of the party’s constitution, it decided to throw open the presidential contest due to exigency of time and the fact that they are in the opposition.
The source said “Our Party was encouraged to always make the issue of zoning very clear at least six months before sales of forms. So that aspirants can know their fate.”
The committee was also said to have commended the contestants who have chosen to unite themselves and work for a consensus candidate.
Already, 13 presidential aspirants have purchased the presidential forms.
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Daily Trust had earlier reported that the opposition party would not adopt zoning for the election.
A member of the committee from the North had said more than half of the committee members have keyed into the zero zoning arrangement to enable all aspirants to participate in the primary exercise during which a presidential candidate will emerge.
“It is too late to stop aspirants from contesting and because our ultimate goal is to win, the majority of us have agreed that the race be thrown open to all. We are going for a zero-zoning arrangement.”
“The polity of today requires a national leader that is going to reinvigorate the cohesion and unity of the country. What Nigeria needs is not a zonal president, what we need is a Nigerian president. And, therefore, we are throwing it (contest) open,” he had said.
The source said Ortom apologised when his neutrality was questioned over his endorsement of the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, and zoning of the presidency to the South.
“He apologised saying that he was misquoted. It was at this point that it was resolved that henceforth, members of the committee should not speak to the press,” he said.
While hosting Wike in Makurdi, Benue State capital, recently, Ortom had said “On southern presidency I stand.”
The claim of the founding member was corroborated by another member of the committee, who said the work of the committee was almost concluded.
“We have reached a resolution but we decided to make further consultations. We have reached a midcourse that all aspirants should ‘market’ themselves,” he said.
DAILY TRUST
Politics
Power tussle as Kano APC nullifies Ganduje’s suspension by his ward
Power tussle as Kano APC nullifies Ganduje’s suspension by his ward
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano State has nullified the suspension of Abdullahi Ganduje, national chairman of the party, by the ward leadership of the party.
The APC executives in the Dawakin Ward under the Tofa Local Government Area of Kano earlier on Monday suspended Ganduje over allegations of corruption levelled against him.
Halliru Gwanzo, legal adviser of the ward, said the suspension would subsist until Ganduje, a former Kano governor, is cleared of the allegations.
But some hours later, the state working committee of the party upturned the suspension order.
Abdullahi Abbas, chairman of the APC in Kano, claimed the ward executives who suspended Ganduje were working with the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP).
Abbas also announced the suspension of the ward executives for six months.
“We have evidence of meetings between the state government officials and those that suspended the national chairman, and the state working committee has agreed to sanction them for six months and they stand suspended,” the chairman told journalists.
Last week, a Kano High Court ruled that Ganduje should appear before it on April 17 on charges of bribery, diversion and misappropriation of public funds.
He will be arraigned alongside his wife and son.
In 2018, Daily Nigerian, an online newspaper, published a video of Ganduje allegedly receiving bundles of dollars from contractors, which he stuffed into his “babanriga”, a traditional outfit.
The newspaper said Ganduje demanded $5 million as bribe from the contractors who recorded the video.
Politics
BREAKING: Kano ward exco suspends APC national chairman, Ganduje
BREAKING: Kano ward exco suspends APC national chairman, Ganduje
The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Abdullahi Ganduje, has been suspended by members of his ward, the Ganduje Ward in the Dawakin Tofa Local Government Area of Kano State.
The Executive Council of Ganduje Ward led by Haruna Gwanjo disclosed this during a press briefing in Kano on Monday.
Gwanjo said that the former governor has to clear his name of corruption allegations regarding his long-standing dollar case.
A viral video had captured Ganduje allegedly receiving bundles of dollar notes as a bribe from a man said to be a contractor and stuffing them in the pockets of his flowing gown.
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The video, which garnered widespread attention in 2017, has been the subject of intense scrutiny.
Ganduje had denied the content of the video when it first surfaced and maintained his innocence but years after, the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP)’s administration of Governor Abba Yusuf revisited the case, vowing the prosecute the ex-governor.
The Kano High Court would arraign Ganduje on Wednesday, April 17, 2024 on charges bordering on allegations of bribery, diversion, and misappropriation of funds, including the purported acceptance of $413,000 and N1.38bn in bribes.
The Kano State Attorney General and Commissioner of Justice, Haruna Dederi, had said Ganduje would be arraigned alongside his wife and six others.
The Yusuf administration, which initiated the criminal suit against the eight respondents, had declared its readiness to present 15 witnesses to testify before Justice Usman Na’aba of State High Court.
BREAKING: Kano ward exco suspends APC national chairman, Ganduje
Politics
Soldiers could have fired at Yoruba Nation agitators – Bode George
Soldiers could have fired at Yoruba Nation agitators – Bode George
A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, Bode George, has said the invasion of the Oyo State House of Assembly complex by the Yoruba Nation agitators is an act of treason.
Indeed, he said if soldiers were the first set of security operatives invited to quel thé situation, they could fire at them for taking up arms against the government.
George stated this on Monday during an interview on Arise Television.
He said what the agitators did amounted to taking up arms against the government.
He said, “You don’t just go and take up arms against your government, it’s treason. That they called Amotekun and the police is something; if it were people from my old profession, they would have seen them as enemies and fired at them.
“I was completely very angry because that is not the way you talk to your government. What could have driven them into that? My conclusion is that they might not be educated. You don’t take up arms against your nation.
“It’s unimaginable; you brought guns and charms. Were they dreaming? It’s unacceptable, it’s the highest breaking of the law of the land. You have your freedom of speech which is the most sensible way to approach this problem. The problem is that this thing never leaked to the intelligence of this nation.
“Agitators carried their weapons in military uniforms, and nobody stopped them on the road.
“You now see the urgent need for state police because they could not have been meeting somewhere if we are well organized like the state police.”
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