Politics

Kwara Is Light Years Away From Failures Of PDP days- APC To Saraki

Published

10 months ago

February 23, 2023

H B. Ray

The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Kwara State has said the state is now more progressive, prosperous and solid in various sectors of human living than it ever was under the vice-grip of Senator Bukola Saraki, recalling how the APC government continues to clean the mess Saraki and his boys left in Kwara.

Fidel Info reports that in a statement reacting to the interview that Saraki granted on Monday night, the APC said Saraki in his habitual self-conceit has continued to deny the many evils perpetrated under his watch, such as wanton sale of public properties to cronies, non-payment of salaries, conversion of public assets to private use, and complete breakdown of basic amenities, including education and health care sectors under his watch.

“The interview was just a rehash of his annoying claims that Kwarans were foolish to have rejected him and his party in 2019. He is an unrepentant egoist. To Saraki, it was normal for the Colleges of Education to be shut down for over a year, it was great for the waterworks to collapse despite claims of having spent billions of naira. To Saraki, there was nothing wrong about owing salaries to workers; there was nothing wrong about keeping workers on the same grade level for many years, or paying them percentage salaries, even when he and his appendages were enjoying with public patrimony. Or is it not the same Saraki who awarded himself a humongous pension package and was earning it while workers suffered until he saw signals that the long arm of the law was going to catch up with him because he was also earning salaries from the Senate? What a man!” the party said.

“It is important to state that nothing was working again under his dynasty. Water was not running. His men had stolen UBEC money to the extent of the UBEC banning the state from accessing money again. All of those have been corrected today. Saraki and his boys left a collapsed primary healthcare sector, which has now been revived to the benefits of millions of Kwara.

“Saraki is the least qualified person to lecture any government about management of public finances. He was the first Governor in Kwara State to raise public debt by over 300%. What did the state gain from it? How have Kwarans benefitted from his Shonga scam? He spent 100% of Kwara money on Shoprite with nothing for the state to benefit. He met a debt profile of below N5bn in 2003 and left a debt profile of more than N25bn. It was under his dynasty that Kwara State was ever declared unbankable and insolvent in 2012 owing to their recklessness. Today, Kwara is the number 8th in fiscal health ratings in the country.

“Contrary to the Saraki era when civil servants had to be begging friends and relatives to give them food because of lack of payment of salaries, Kwara is now among the states that are not just up to date in 100% salary payments but have judiciously implemented the minimum wage with consequential adjustment.

“We also noted some of the habitual lies of Saraki in the said radio programme. He said, among other things, that nothing has been done on the campuses of KWASU. Saraki was talking to Kwara audience, who know the truth or otherwise of his claims. People of Ekiti Local Government and Baruten Local Government know how much of the work the present government has done to complete the Osi and Ilesha Baruba campuses of KWASU, among other projects. This administration is not like the Saraki administration that wickedly abandoned all the projects of his predecessor on account of petty and vindictive politics. This is why the people of the state do not ever trust Saraki, whose agenda is to recapture Kwara State and rule it like a fiefdom as we saw under his predecessor Abdulfatai Ahmed. Saraki should stop dreaming and face reality.”

News

Edo 2024: Obaseki’s ‘Anointed’ Aspirant, Asue Ighodalo Resigns

Published

2 days ago

December 9, 2023

Olayiwola Quadril

The governorship aspirant in the 2024 Edo State gubernatorial election, Asue Ighodalo, has resigned as the chairman of the board of directors of the Nigerian Breweries Plc.

FIDELINFO reports that the Nigerian Breweries made this known in a corporate filing on the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) on Friday.

The company secretary, Uaboi Agbebaku, also said there were changes in its board of directors after the board meeting on December 7, 2023.

Agbebaku said the resignation of Ighodalo, who hopes to clinch the governorship ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), will take effect at the end of the year. He added that Sijbe Hiemstra will become the interim chairman.

Agbebaku said: “The chairman informed the board today of his decision to offer himself for public service. “As a result, he will be resigning from the Board and as the chairman of the board on the 31st of December 2023 to enable him devote his full attention to the new cause.

“To give the board enough time to appoint a substantive chairman, the longest serving director, Mr. Sijbe “Siep” Hiemstra, was appointed to act as the chairman in the interim effective the 1″ of January 2024.”

Nigerian Breweries said during the transition period, Hiemstra will steer the affairs of the board and oversee the process of appointing a substantive chairman.

Before his appointment, Hiemstra was a member of Nigerian Breweries’ governance committee and also served on the company’s statutory audit committee. “He joined the board on the 1 of August 2011 and is a past Heineken Regional President for Africa and Middle East,” the company said.

News

Appeal Court Judgement: APC legal team accuses NNPP’s lawyers of unethical conduct

Published

5 days ago

December 6, 2023

Olayiwola Quadril

The All Progressives Congress, APC, Legal Team, has accused the 200 NNPP lawyers who convened a press conference in Kaduna, of unethical acts aimed at creating violence in the polity.

Recall that some lawyers who identified themselves as Counsels to the New Nigeria People’s Party NNPP had met in Kaduna last week, accusing the Court of Appeal of a miscarriage of justice in its judgement against the Kano State Governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf.

However, responding to that meeting, the APC Legal Team, told Newsmen, Wednesday in Kano, that the action of the NNPP lawyers was against the rules of law and the Principle of Justice.

The Secretary of the APC Legal Team, Hadiza Nasir Ahmad alongside the Chairman Mustapha Idiris, warned that any attempt to tarnish the Court’s image or resort to blackmail is unequivocally unacceptable.

They said, “The 200 Lawyers entangled in this controversy we implore you to rise above political machinations and permit the court to execute its duties without external interference”.

Barrister Hadiza Nasir Ahmad hinted that Lawyers as guardians of Justice must preserve the integrity of the noble profession even when faced with unfavourable judgement, “we should collectively champion the rules of law and uphold the dignified essence of the legal system”.

However, the APC legal team is worried that the NNPP, its lawyers and supporters are allegedly actively campaigning for a demonstration to protest the Court decisions.

“We recognize that these actions may be aimed at creating chaos in the state, with the primary goal of intimidating the Court and the Judiciary into granting judgement in their favour”.

She added, “Nevertheless, we have full confidence in the court’s unwavering commitments to conducting the case solely on its merit, undeterred by such tactics”.

The APC Legal Team, commended the Kano people for refusing to be cajoled into unnecessary protests on the streets, saying, the people of the state are renowned for their law-abiding nature

News

PDP NWC orders withdrawal of intra-party litigations

Published

5 days ago

December 6, 2023

Olayiwola Quadril

The National Working Committee, NWC, of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP,, has ordered all party members with pending intra-party litigations to immediately withdraw such cases.

The directive was issued shortly after the NWC’s 578th meeting held at the party’s Nattional Secretariat, in Abuja, yesterday.

National Publicity Secretary of the party, Debo Ologunagba, after the meeting, explained that the directive was sequel to a thorough review of the state of the party.

Ologunagba said after the review, the NWC “Directed that all pending Intra-Party litigations across the country should be withdrawn forthwith.

“This decision of the NWC is pursuant to the provision of Section 58 (1)(l) of the Constitution of the PDP as amended in 2017 and in line with the spirit of unity and reconciliation in the party.

“The NWC urges all party leaders, critical stakeholders and members across the country to remain united and continue to promote the values for which the PDP is known as a truly democratic party.

“Also, the NWC considered and approved the report of the Establishment Committee for the appointment of a substantive Director General of the Peoples Democratic Institute, PDI