Pro-Tinubu senators plot Ndume suspension, northern stakeholders fume – Newstrends
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Pro-Tinubu senators plot Ndume suspension, northern stakeholders fume

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Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume

Pro-Tinubu senators plot Ndume suspension, northern stakeholders fume

Senators loyal to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu are reportedly planning to impose sanctions on Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume (APC, Borno South) following his recent critical comments about the President. Sources within the National Assembly revealed on Tuesday that the pro-Tinubu senators aim to remove Ndume from his position as the Chief Whip of the Senate and suspend him, similar to the recent suspension of Senator Abdul Ningi (PDP, Bauchi Central).

In March, Ningi, a ranking senator from the North, was suspended for three months for alleging in a BBC Hausa interview that N3.7 trillion in the 2024 national budget was not allocated to any specific projects or locations.

Ndume recently expressed concerns about President Tinubu’s awareness of the country’s issues, stating, “Mr. President is not in the picture of what is happening outside the Villa. He has been fenced off and caged. So many of us won’t go through the backdoor to engage him. Now, they have stopped him from talking, and he doesn’t have public affairs managers, except his spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, who writes press statements. Nigerians are getting very angry. The government is not doing anything about the food scarcity, and it needs to do something urgently. We don’t have food reserves. There is an unavailability of food. The food crisis is the worst crisis that any nation can encounter. If we add that to the security crisis, it will be severe.”

These remarks sparked a backlash from the pro-Tinubu camp, with Senator Sunday Karimi (Kogi West) and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) condemning Ndume’s statement as derogatory.

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According to sources, three of the four senators leading the charge to suspend Ndume and remove him as Chief Whip are from the South West (Ekiti, Ogun, and Lagos), with another senator from Kogi also involved. Senate President Godswill Akpabio is reportedly in a difficult position, given that Ndume was the Director-General of the Stability Group that helped secure Akpabio’s position as Senate President in June 2023.

Some Northern senators are reportedly waiting for the issue to be formally raised in plenary before taking a stance. A source noted, “But of course, you know the Northern Senators will rise against another plan to destabilize their caucus, barely a few months after Ningi was suspended.”

Meanwhile, the Concerned Northern Forum (CNF), represented by Mallam Abdulkadir Kura, released a statement on Tuesday supporting Ndume. The statement read, “It is on record that Ndume is a critical stakeholder of the ruling APC and a close ally of President Tinubu. Therefore, if he can take such a bold step in telling the truth about the economic and social reality, then the Southern Borno Senator must be celebrated by all and sundry. So we stand by him.”

The CNF praised Ndume for voicing the concerns of average Nigerians facing severe economic hardship due to the removal of fuel subsidies and other unpopular policies. They highlighted that Ndume has a history of challenging federal government policies, which has previously led to positive changes.

“This is not the first time Senator Ndume has criticized or challenged federal government policies. He consistently did so during the past administrations of Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari. Such criticisms led to positive changes by the listening governments at that time,” the statement added.

Pro-Tinubu senators plot Ndume suspension, northern stakeholders fume

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Tinubu extremely wealthy, can’t loot Nigeria’s treasury, says minister

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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu

Tinubu extremely wealthy, can’t loot Nigeria’s treasury, says minister

The Minister of State for Youth Development, Ayodele Olawande, has described President Bola Tinubu as an epitome of wealth with no interest to loot Nigeria’s resources.

Olawande stated this while speaking at the Joint Union Negotiating Council’s week of the Federal Ministry of Youth Development branch in Abuja.

The minister also appealed to Nigerians to be patient with the president, noting that in no distant time there will be positive changes.

He said, “I urge you to be patient with this administration. In no distant time, the country will take good shape and the lives of the citizens will be transformed.

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“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is not a pauper; he is an acknowledged epitome of wealth and so it cannot be said of him that he desires to loot the treasury of Nigeria.”

Olawande continued, “He has seen money and as a result of this, he is not interested in looting the nation’s treasury.”

He emphasized that the administration is putting in efforts to transform the lives of Nigerians through various policies of the federal government.

Olawande thanked the staff of the ministry for being supportive of the government policies and assured them that their welfare will not be compromised.

Tinubu extremely wealthy, can’t loot Nigeria’s treasury, says minister

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BREAKING: Nigeria’s inflation rate slows for second consecutive month to 32.15% – NBS

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BREAKING: Nigeria’s inflation rate slows for second consecutive month to 32.15% – NBS

Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased to 32.15% in August 2024 down from the 33.40% recorded in July 2024, reflecting a decrease of 1.25 percentage points.

This represents the second consecutive monthly slowdown in inflation after easing in the previous month.

This is according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) report published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

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However, on a year-on-year basis, the August 2024 inflation rate was 6.35 percentage points higher than the 25.80% rate recorded in August 2023, indicating a significant increase over the past year.

On a month-on-month basis, the inflation rate in August 2024 stood at 2.22%, slightly lower than July’s rate of 2.28%, signaling a slower pace in the increase of the average price level compared to the previous month.

BREAKING: Nigeria’s inflation rate slows for second consecutive month to 32.15% – NBS

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Edo poll: Six persons arrested in Benin hotel with fake PDP letterheads, forged signatures

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Edo poll: Six persons arrested in Benin hotel with fake PDP letterheads, forged signatures

Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force have arrested six young men in a hotel located in the Government Reserved Area (GRA) of Benin City with fake letterheads, stamps, and forged signatures belonging to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its chieftains.

The young men, who were apprehended with incriminating materials such as printers, mobile phones, power banks, laptops, and a photocopy machine, are believed to have been involved in drafting and circulating fake PDP letters and statements.

Their objective was to paint the PDP as instigators of unrest ahead of the forthcoming Edo governorship election, scheduled for Saturday, September 21, 2024.

The arrest, which was made following a tip-off, uncovered an elaborate scheme allegedly designed to discredit the PDP and its leaders by sending fabricated documents to unsuspecting journalists.

These fake letters and statements, according to police sources, were intended to portray the party as warmongers and troublemakers in the run-up to the critical election.

A police officer involved in the operation, who asked to remain anonymous, revealed that the suspects had been using the hotel as their base of operations for weeks.

“We found that these individuals were using forged PDP letterheads, stamps, and signatures to create fake documents.

“Their goal was to send out these documents to journalists in an attempt to misrepresent the PDP and create an atmosphere of tension ahead of the elections,” the officer said.

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In addition to the counterfeit materials, the police discovered that the young men had several technological devices, including laptops and printers, which they used to produce and disseminate the fraudulent documents.

“Their setup was sophisticated. They had everything they needed to make the documents appear legitimate, from forged letterheads to printers.

“We also found power banks, mobile phones, and a photocopy machine, which they used to mass-produce the fake letters,” the officer added.

Further investigation has revealed that the six young men were funded by a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state.

Meanwhile, another police source disclosed that the Nigeria Police Force, Edo State Command, has come under intense pressure from senior APC figures, who are reportedly pushing for the release of the arrested men.

“Since the arrest, there has been immense pressure on us from certain chieftains within the APC, urging the command to release these individuals.

“We believe that their involvement with these young men is being covered up, and they are worried about the potential fallout from this arrest,” the source noted.

A journalist with one of the prominent national newspapers, who had been unknowingly receiving fake statements from the group, expressed shock upon hearing about the arrests.

“It’s alarming to think that we’ve been receiving statements from people who were impersonating the PDP. This shows how low some people will go to try and sabotage the other party. The integrity of this election is now under serious question,” the journalist stated.

The Edo State Police Command has yet to issue an official statement on the matter, but sources within the command say investigations are ongoing, and the suspects remain in custody.

Edo poll: Six persons arrested in Benin hotel with fake PDP letterheads, forged signatures

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