Politics
Buhari gives security chiefs marching orders on Anambra poll
President Muhammadu Buhari has asked the military and other security agencies in Nigeria to stop at nothing to ensure that the November 6 Anambra State governorship election holds peacefully.
This came as the National Security Adviser, General Babagana Monguno (retd), has said that the new leader of the Islamic State of West African Province, ISWAP, Mallam Bako was two days ago killed by the military.
Buhari spoke during a meeting with the security chiefs in Abuja. Those at the meeting are Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (SAN); Attorney-General of the Federation, AGF, and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami; Minister of Defense, Major General Bashir Magashi (retd); Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama; the Chief of Staff to the President, Professor Ibrahim Gambari; and the National Security Adviser, Major General Babagana Monguno (retd).
Others are the Chief of Defense Staff, General Lucky Irabor; Chief of Army Staff, Lt. General Farouk Yahaya; Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo; Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Isiaka Oladayo Amao; Director-General of the Department of State Service (DSS), Yusuf Bichi; and the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ahmed Rufai Abubakar.
Briefing journalists after the meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the NSA said President Buhari gave the armed forces the marching order in response to the heightened security challenges in Anambra state.
Monguno said, “The President has directed that under no circumstances will anything be allowed to stop the elections from taking place successfully. The people have a right to vote and select their leader. No group or individual will be allowed to stimulate anarchy and chaos, leading to murderous activities.
“The President has made it very clear that the Armed Forces and all law enforcement agencies must make sure that the elections take place even if it means overwhelming the entire environment with the presence of security agencies.
“There are so many implications for elections to be sabotaged by non-state actors; in the first place, we are in a democracy, secondly it is important to note that if these non-state actors should succeed in destroying the potentials for orderly elections, then it is natural that other parts of the country would also want to copy this same situation.”
He further said that in the last two months, the military has recorded a lot of successes in the fight against insurgency in the North-East zone of the country which put pressure on the ISWAP and the Boko Haram Islamic terrorists.
“The fact again is that the armed forces, the land forces have done an excellent job because in the span of one month we have been able to take out the leadership of the Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) – that is Abu Musab Al-barnawi.
“Two days ago, the man who succeeded him, one Malam Bako, one of the prominent leaders of the Shura Council of the Islamic State of West African Province, was also taken out.
“They are also contending with leadership crisis. You know these things are also accompanied with inherent issues of trust, conflicts, mutual suspicion and other things.
“So, the operations being conducted by the armed forces in the Northern parts of the country put a lot of pressure on the Islamic State of West African Province, Boko Haram and also the tangential group known as Islamic State in the Greatest Sahara.”
The Minister of Police Affairs, Maigari Dingyadi, who also attended the meeting, said the police are ready to ensure there is peace in Anambra and all other parts of the country.
He said, “In particular, we talked about the Anambra governorship election coming on 6th of November and we want to assure the people of Anambra State and all Nigerians that the government is committed to conducting that election.
“The election has to be free and fair, we are going to put every machinery in place to ensure that people are well secured. That is the only way to ensure that we promote democracy and good governance in this country.”
Politics
Wike: My fallout with Secondus was his opposition to Fubara
Wike: My fallout with Secondus was his opposition to Fubara
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has shed light on his role in the removal of Uche Secondus as the National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Speaking at a PDP gathering in Rivers State, Wike explained that his decision was fueled by Secondus’ opposition to Siminalayi Fubara’s governorship ambition in 2023.
According to Wike, Secondus had pushed for his cousin, Tele Ikuru, to secure the PDP ticket for the governorship position, a move Wike said he could not support. This, he revealed, was the primary reason he championed Secondus’ ouster from the party’s leadership.
Reflecting on the ongoing tensions between himself and Rivers State Governor Siminalayi Fubara, Wike accused Secondus and former Rivers Governor Celestine Omehia of hypocrisy. He alleged that the duo only began backing Fubara after benefiting personally from the relationship.
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Wike, who was once a close ally of Fubara, claimed that Secondus and Omehia were the true enemies of the governor, not him. He criticized their actions, arguing that their newfound loyalty to Fubara was insincere.
“I heard Secondus recently in Bori, saying I awarded the Bori Internal Road as governor. I paid 50% with the hope that we had a governor we all supported to continue the projects,” Wike said.
He continued, “Secondus claimed his enemies are the governor’s enemies. But who are the enemies of the governor? Secondus, who initially opposed him becoming governor and wanted his cousin, Tele Ikuru, to get the position?
“I orchestrated Secondus’ removal as PDP National Chairman when he tried to impose his cousin as governor. Now he calls himself the governor’s friend while labeling me the enemy. To God be the glory,” Wike declared.
Wike: My fallout with Secondus was his opposition to Fubara
Politics
APC reacts to Kwankwaso’s statement to reduce party’s votes in 2027
APC reacts to Kwankwaso’s statement to reduce party’s votes in 2027
The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kano state has dismissed claims by former Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso that the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) will significantly reduce APC’s votes in Kano State during the 2027 elections.
Reacting in a statement on Thursday, Abdullahi Abass, chairman of the state chapter of the party said Kwankwaso’s assertion is laughable and nothing but a mere daydream. Abass called on Kwankwaso to focus on reclaiming his membership in the NNPP rather than making unfounded claims.
The APC described Kwankwaso as a political refugee clinging to Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf in a futile attempt to regain relevance. They warned Kwankwaso that the APC would not allow a repeat of the alleged vote manipulation and allocation that created the impression of NNPP’s influence in Kano State during the 2023 general election.
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“Our teeming supporters in the APC have no cause to worry about Kwankwaso, who has been booted out of the NNPP due to his cluelessness and self-centredness. We expect Kwankwaso to keep wondering why he has become a wanderer in the political terrain,” the party chair said.
“He ran away from APC because he couldn’t fit into our progressive ideals. His overbloated ego and domineering posture forced him to abandon the PDP, and he has now become a political refugee because the NNPP refused to accommodate him.”
Kwankwaso had on Wednesday received some political decampees at his residence. During the event, he claimed that the NNPP was now formidable enough to diminish APC’s influence in the state.
“If the PDP could struggle to receive 15, 000 votes in the 2023 Presidential elections in Kano, APC would not only receive below expectations but would receive the most embarrassing votes in the 2027 elections in Kano,” he stated
“NNPP achieved tremendous success in the presidential and governorship elections despite being a new political platform with a late start to its campaign. APC will be diminished in Kano in 2027,” he added.
APC reacts to Kwankwaso’s statement to reduce party’s votes in 2027
Politics
Kwankwaso: APC will struggle to get 15,000 votes in Kano
Kwankwaso: APC will struggle to get 15,000 votes in Kano
Ahead of the 2027 general election, the 2023 Presidential candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party, NNPP, Senator Rabiu Kwankwaso said his party would work tirelessly to ensure that the ruling party, All Progressive Congress, APC, struggle to secure less than 15,000 votes in Kano State.
The APC, has, meanwhile, asked Kwankwaso to channel his energies towards reclaiming his membership in the NNPP not day dreaming over claims to relegate the APC in the state.
Kwankwaso while receiving delegates of the NNPP from the Kano North senatorial district at his Miller Road Mansion in Kano, acknowledged the hard work of the party during the 2023 elections, which resulted in the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, struggling to secure only 15,000 votes in Kano.
He said: “Now, it’s turn to diminish APC’s influence. We will work tirelessly to ensure their votes are reduced to less than 15,000 in Kano by 2027.”
He encouraged his supporters to remain focused on delivering results that would secure the party’s success in future elections.
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The leader of the delegates, Abdul Bichi, told journalists that the visit was to renew their loyalty to the national leader of the NNPP, Kwankwaso and to distance themselves from former Secretary to the State Government, SSG, Dr. Abdullahi Bichi.
Abdul said they had parted ways with Bichi since his removal from office.
“It is true we are supporters of the former SSG, and we are from the same constituency as Dr. Bichi, but we have decided to distance ourselves from him since he is no longer with the government.
“We have come here to see our national leader and founder of Kwankwaso in solidarity and to renew our total loyalty to him. We have come to say we are not leaving our party. We are not going with the SSG,” Abdul said.
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