Members of the Progressives Consolidation Group on Monday took their campaign for Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo to contest the 2023 presidential election to Nasarawa State Governor, Abdullahi Sule.

The group members said they were in Nasarawa to solicit the governor’s support for the vice-president even though he had not declared interest in the topmost office.

The governor told the group that Osinbajo would have the support of the All Progressives Congress (APC) if he showed interest in contesting the 2023 presidential election.

Sule said the APC governors would support Osinbajo because he remained a “sellable” candidate.

The governor said, “Our concern is how we will sustain the party beyond President Buhari. So, if you come up with the idea, you know you will not only get my attention but the attention of every progressive governor in the country.

“So, if you are going about to sell this man, I want you to know that not every product is sellable but Osinbajo is sellable. I pray that all the work you are doing now will not be in vain. It will be good for our party and the progress of this country.”

Chairman of the group, Aliyu Kurfi, said should Osinbajo be given the opportunity to become president, he would make Nigeria a “better place for all of us”.

“We are here sir on a very serious business, the serious business of political succession. We are on our mission but engineered by the vision of one of our elder statesmen, Vice-President of Nigeria, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo,” Kurfi said.

He also said, “We have gone through the various records of activities, life histories and of course the trends of events in politics and we have agreed as an association to work towards the promotion of his candidature.

“We made this decision because we believe with all honesty that we have a professional gentleman, if given the opportunity will not only continue the good work of Mr President, but with gentlemen like you to support, make Nigeria a better place for all of us,” he said.

“His foresight in so many areas will be useful for Nigeria. He is detribalised and a man who is detached from the shallow thinking of many of us who are tribal bigots.

“We believe we have a gentleman whose thinking is simply that of Nigeria and Nigeria alone.

“We believe he is a gentleman whose political competence knows no bounds. So we have every reason to sell him for the benefit of Nigeria.”

Bauchi worst hit as NCDC reports 1,182 suspected cholera cases in one week

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), in its latest report, says 1,182 suspected cases were recorded in 13 states within one week.

The agency, in its epidemiological report for week 36 — September 6 to 12 — released on Monday, said 23 deaths were recorded within the one-week period in nine states.

According to the NCDC, there was a 58 percent decrease in the number of suspected cases in week 36, compared to week 35.

In the latest report, Bauchi recorded the highest figure of suspected cases with 472 infections, followed by Katsina with 194, while Borno recorded 106.

Other states with new cases are “Jigawa (95), Yobe (80), Kaduna (68), Adamawa (63), Sokoto (38), Gombe (34), Abia (13), Taraba (10), Ogun (8) and Niger (1)”.

Kaduna recorded the highest number of deaths in the reporting week with six fatalities, followed by Adamawa with five, while Katsina recorded four.

Other states that recorded deaths within the one-week period are “Gombe (2), Jigawa (2), Bauchi (1), Borno (1), Ogun (1) and Taraba (1)”.

As of September 12, 2021, a total of 72,910 suspected cholera cases, including 2,404 deaths, have been recorded in 27 states and the federal capital territory (FCT) since January 2021.

According to the NCDC, two new states — Abia and Ogun — reported cases in week 36.

“Twenty-seven states and FCT have reported suspected cholera cases in 2021. These are Abia, Adamawa, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ekiti, Enugu, FCT, Gombe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Osun, Plateau, Sokoto, Taraba, Yobe, and Zamfara,” the report reads.

“There was a 58% decrease in the number of new suspected cases in week 36 (1,182) compared with week 35 (1,677).

“Bauchi (472), Katsina (194) and Borno (106) account for 65.3% of 1,182 suspected cases reported in week 36.”