INSECURITY: Buhari Should Be Voted Out - Dogara

DOGARA TO BUHARI: SOLVE INSECURITY CHALLENGES NOW OR LEAVE
…accuses Northern elders, elites of conspiracy of silence
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to vacate the office if he can not fix the insecurity challenges facing the country.

Dogara also accused northern Nigerian elders over their ‘silence’ on insecurity in the region in contrast to what they did during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Dogara spoke in Lafia, Nasarawa state at the campaign of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Thursday where he also accused the President of being indifferent to the plight of University teachers and their demands for better working environment.

He said President Buhari is not sincere in the resolution of the crisis.

In a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Turaki Hassan on Thursday, Dogara noted that the silence of the northern elders on insecurity in the region could be taken as enabling the poor management of security in the country, especially in the north, a situation that continues to threaten the nation’s democracy and its very foundations.

Dogara was quoted as saying, “Just like my last speech to Nigerians that were gathered in a rally like this in Gombe, I said that the 2019 general elections is not about President Muhammadu Buhari, it’s not about Atiku Abubakar, but I said it is about you who are gathered here and it will be a referendum on insecurity and hunger in this land.

“On the issue of insecurity, all of us know what is happening in Borno and, unfortunately too, between Abuja and Kaduna, as well as in Zamfara, Katsina, Nassarawa, Benue, Plateau and even Sokoto States.

“Now, I cannot even mention all because it is a general problem in the county, but I was highlighting the states where the problem is more endemic as of now. The issue is this, when this thing was going on under Jonathan, we had Borno elders always speaking.

“Where are the Borno elders now? Where are the leaders of Northern Nigeria now that this problem has become endemic? What are they saying now? Are we not guilty of what we allow? Are we not responsible for the killings to say that enough is enough and demand as a matter of right that President Buhari puts an end to this or leave if he can’t?

“The truth is that if we don’t rise up to the endemic challenges now, sooner than later, if things continue this way, we are not going to have a country. So it is our responsibility to rescue Nigeria from the clutches of insecurity.

“Without security; we would not have a meaningful democracy.

“The sad reality in Nigeria is that by our silence we have condoned those who have been unable to effectively tackle the insecurity in the nation. We have have wittingly become enablers of evil. You know what enablers do? Enablers don’t build a country only courageous people do.

“What enablers do is that they instigate the worship of individuals and the office they occupy, they will confuse such an individual with accolades. You know none of us was built to receive worship, anyone who attempts to receive worship will meet destruction in his wake.
“So that is why we are witnessing destruction in Nigeria, because we have elevated some human beings to the status of God. We now need to rise up and rescue our country from the clutches of insecurity.”
Dogara also said that the 2019 election would be a referendum on many issues, including education.
According to him, President Buhari has failed to give enough attention it deserves considering the lackluster way he (Buhari) is handling the ongoing strike by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU).

“It’s been said that if you want to destroy a community, state or nation, don’t even fire shots or bring the crisis that is being perpetrated by Boko Haram, don’t even bring nuclear bomb, all you need to do is to lower the standard of education in that Community state, or nation. Once you succeed in doing that, you’ve killed the nation.

“So many of us may not understand what I’m implying, but right now in Nigeria, the university lecturers are on strike. If it was a decent government that is committed to the future of this country, it wouldn’t take one week to resolve this problem, but unfortunately, through ineptitude, the strike is allowed to fester.

“If we shut down education, we shut down progress, we shut down the future of our teeming youth who have gathered here, we shut down the advancement of this great country called Nigeria.

“So the 2019 election will be a referendum on education also,” the Speaker was quoted as saying.
The Nation

Tinubu's Participation in Buhari's Campaign for Selfish Reasons - PDP

January 9, 2019

Press Statement

PDP Challenges Tinubu To Explain Role In Presidency Cabal

The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organization (PPCO) challenges the Co-Chairman of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to explain his role in the Buhari Presidency cabal, through which President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration crippled our nation’s economy.

It also dares Tinubu to respond to allegations that he succumbed to leading the Buhari ill-fated re-election bid following purported threats by agents of the Buhari Presidency to expose and prosecute him for corruption allegations and not because he believes in the propriety of President Buhari's re-election.

It is very unfortunate that at the time Nigerians, across the board, are boldly jettisoning their personal interests and joining in the quest to rescue our nation from President Buhari’s incompetent, corrupt, divisive and anti-people regime, a leader of Asiwaju’s status is chasing personal interests and self-preservation.

Nigerians can recall how Asiwaju in January 2018, at the 15th Annual Daily Trust Dialogue rejected the Buhari administration’s nepotism, incompetence, corrupt oil subsidy regime; blamed it for the high-level of poverty in our country and urged Nigerians to be guided by their conscience in electing leaders in the 2019 general elections.

Berating the Buhari administration, Asiwaju held that “too much political and economic power resides in the hands of too few. This result in a society described by too much unemployment, inadequate infrastructure, too little food, yet too much poverty”.

Asiwaju had also rightly posited that, under President Buhari, “rather than becoming a joyous nation, Nigeria has become a cruel playground where the fears and concerns of the average person get exploited but their interests never get promoted.”

He then concluded by urging Nigerians to follow their conscience in the 2019 elections by resisting “unthinking passions and old prejudices”, which is the hallmark of President Buhari’s re-election campaign.

The question Nigerians are asking now is, what has suddenly changed in  President Buhari's leadership style to warrant Asiwaju's full circle turn.

Nigerians have seen  that Asiwaju’s involvement in Buhari 2019 campaign is not motivated by any national or even regional interests but by personal reasons far from the general good.

While we understand the frustration being faced by Asiwaju in this unfortunate task of marketing a rejected product, we caution him to be careful not to allow the ill-fated Buhari Presidency to destroy whatever is left of the respect he has earned among Nigerians, who have already made up their minds to rally behind the PDP Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, as the next President of Nigeria.

Asiwaju, by now, would have noted how Nigerians berate him whenever he lends himself as a tool in the hands of the Buhari Presidency to cast aspersions on Atiku Abubakar.

We therefore counsel Asiwaju to be mindful of his status in the pantheon of leaders and note that he is not with Nigerians in his new enterprise, for which he now needs to clear his name over alleged involvement in the anti-people cabal at the Buhari Presidency.

We also want to caution Tinubu on his penchant for making unsubstantiated allegations against our candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

The PPCO insists that Asiwaju has no moral rectitude upon which he can stand to make allegations against Atiku.

He should control his emotions and ensure that he desists from making frivolous allegations against Atiku Abubakar, whom Nigerians have resolved to elect as President, come 2019.

Signed:

Kola Ologbondiyan
Director, Media & Publicity
PDP Presidential Campaign Organization

Tinubu's Participation in Buhari's Campaign for Selfish Reasons - PDP

January 9, 2019

Press Statement

PDP Challenges Tinubu To Explain Role In Presidency Cabal

The Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organization (PPCO) challenges the Co-Chairman of the APC Presidential Campaign Council, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, to explain his role in the Buhari Presidency cabal, through which President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration crippled our nation’s economy.

It also dares Tinubu to respond to allegations that he succumbed to leading the Buhari ill-fated re-election bid following purported threats by agents of the Buhari Presidency to expose and prosecute him for corruption allegations and not because he believes in the propriety of President Buhari's re-election.

It is very unfortunate that at the time Nigerians, across the board, are boldly jettisoning their personal interests and joining in the quest to rescue our nation from President Buhari’s incompetent, corrupt, divisive and anti-people regime, a leader of Asiwaju’s status is chasing personal interests and self-preservation.

Nigerians can recall how Asiwaju in January 2018, at the 15th Annual Daily Trust Dialogue rejected the Buhari administration’s nepotism, incompetence, corrupt oil subsidy regime; blamed it for the high-level of poverty in our country and urged Nigerians to be guided by their conscience in electing leaders in the 2019 general elections.

Berating the Buhari administration, Asiwaju held that “too much political and economic power resides in the hands of too few. This result in a society described by too much unemployment, inadequate infrastructure, too little food, yet too much poverty”.

Asiwaju had also rightly posited that, under President Buhari, “rather than becoming a joyous nation, Nigeria has become a cruel playground where the fears and concerns of the average person get exploited but their interests never get promoted.”

He then concluded by urging Nigerians to follow their conscience in the 2019 elections by resisting “unthinking passions and old prejudices”, which is the hallmark of President Buhari’s re-election campaign.

The question Nigerians are asking now is, what has suddenly changed in  President Buhari's leadership style to warrant Asiwaju's full circle turn.

Nigerians have seen  that Asiwaju’s involvement in Buhari 2019 campaign is not motivated by any national or even regional interests but by personal reasons far from the general good.

While we understand the frustration being faced by Asiwaju in this unfortunate task of marketing a rejected product, we caution him to be careful not to allow the ill-fated Buhari Presidency to destroy whatever is left of the respect he has earned among Nigerians, who have already made up their minds to rally behind the PDP Presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, as the next President of Nigeria.

Asiwaju, by now, would have noted how Nigerians berate him whenever he lends himself as a tool in the hands of the Buhari Presidency to cast aspersions on Atiku Abubakar.

We therefore counsel Asiwaju to be mindful of his status in the pantheon of leaders and note that he is not with Nigerians in his new enterprise, for which he now needs to clear his name over alleged involvement in the anti-people cabal at the Buhari Presidency.

We also want to caution Tinubu on his penchant for making unsubstantiated allegations against our candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

The PPCO insists that Asiwaju has no moral rectitude upon which he can stand to make allegations against Atiku.

He should control his emotions and ensure that he desists from making frivolous allegations against Atiku Abubakar, whom Nigerians have resolved to elect as President, come 2019.

Signed:

Kola Ologbondiyan
Director, Media & Publicity
PDP Presidential Campaign Organization

PDP Cautions Tinubu Over Atiku

January 8, 2019

Press Statement

Stop Resorting to The Gutters, PDP Replies Tinubu Over Comments on Atiku

...Says Fairy Tales of Buhari Integrity Now Obsolete

The attention of the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organization (PPCO) has been drawn to derogatory remarks against the person, integrity and proven competence of our Presidential Candidate, Atiku Abubakar, by the Co-Chairman of APC Presidential Campaign Council, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

The PPCO wants, Tinubu, as the Asuwaju of Yoruba land, to know that he has the responsibility of tutoring the younger generation on the culture of the Yorubas, which holds that when a child is given the errand of a slave, he delivers it like a freeborn.

At Tinubu’s stature, he ought to be found in the class of respected senior citizens who are decorous, speak statesmanly and not resorting to the gutters whenever he speaks in public.

In politics, family ties and bonds as well as relationships are greater and stronger than political interests and it is the expectation of our campaign organization that Tinubu should understand this.

Our candidate, Atiku Abubakar, is a focused Nigerian who has contributed immensly to the economic and political development of our nation.

He has also displayed huge stability in character through the bridges of human and economic relationships he has built across our nation.

At this critical time, when majority of Nigerians expect true democrats, which Tinubu has always claimed allegiance, to come together and rescue our nation from the absurdity of a governance that the APC and the Buhari Presidency represent, it is unfortunate that Asiwaju chose being tied to the aprons of anti-democratic interests.

It is therefore strange, if not ridiculous, that the Asiwaju of Yorubaland can be dancing around an anti-people government at this time.

Our advice to Tinubu is that he should be watchful ahead of his 2023 wishful presidency interests because those he is dining with today, has demonstrated in time past, that they can always use and dump him.

Tinubu should know that among the ranks of presidential candidates, Atiku Abubakar stands out as that candidate Nigerians trust and belief in as their next President, come May 29, 2019.

It is also imperative to know that the fairy tales of integrity which he weaved around President Buhari in 2015 have waned and become obsolete.

Nigerians have moved beyond APC and President Buhari!

Signed:

Kola Ologbondiyan
Director, Media & Publicity
PDP Presidential Campaign Organization

El-Rufai Nominated Amina Zakari for INEC Job - Odumakin

I helped el-Rufai submit Amina Zakari’s CV to Presidency – Odumakin

Afenifere Spokesman and activist, Mr. Yinka Odumakin, says contrary to reports, it was Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State and not President Muhammadu Buhari that recommended Amina Zakari as a nominee for an appointment at the Independent National Electoral Commission.

Odumakin, who was a guest on Channels TV programme, Sunrise Daily, on Tuesday, said the then President, Goodluck Jonathan, as part of reforms at INEC, had called on Civil Society Organisations to recommend someone who could take a position as a national commissioner at INEC.

Odumakin said el-Rufai told him of Zakari, who had worked under him as a Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.

He said he collected Zakari’s curriculum vitae from el-Rufai and handed it over to the late Oronto Douglas, who was the Special Adviser to President Jonathan on Research, Documentation, and Strategy.

Odumakin and el-Rufai were among prominent figures who fought against the cabal which controlled the late President Umaru Yar’Adua’s government when he was incapacitated.

Both Odumakin and el-Rufai later became members of the Buhari/Tunde Bakare campaign team when Buhari was running for President on the platform of the CPC in 2011.

The activist said, “I have read of accounts where it was stated that President Buhari nominated her. It was not the President. It was the Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai, who nominated her. When Jonathan came in 2010, his aide, the late Oronto Douglas, who was my brother and friend, approached the CSOs who were in the forefront of the fight to remove the cabal and he said his boss (Jonathan) had taken a decision to guarantee free and fair elections.

“He said he (Jonathan) does not want to know those who will be in INEC and therefore, he wants recommendations of credible Nigerians who could be in INEC. So, when Jonathan says he never knew Jega before his becoming INEC chairman, he was right.

“So, they were headhunting for credible people and that is why you have people like Prof. Jega, Lai Olurode, and the rest of them coming as independent people nominated. But in the case of Amina Zakari, when that committee was working, we did not even know (anyone from) North-West and then Nasir el-Rufai also came to be part of the anti-Yar’adua cabal movement and was part of the process and he said there was this woman that worked with him as health secretary when he was the FCT minister.

“He said she was very savvy and he spoke very well of her. He said she was abroad so it took about two or three days to get her CV which I collected from him and gave to Oronto Douglas. So, beyond seeing her name on paper, Jonathan did not know who she was.”

Odumakin said the very fact that Zakari was nominated by el-Rufai had created a conflict of interest and it was only proper for her to step down.

“Check the records where she has been alleged to have played some roles, you always see el-Rufai being somewhere in a corner. So, we cannot have this woman. In fact, if there is honour, the best thing is for her to resign. She was nominated by el-Rufai,” Odumakin said.

The Afenifere spokesman said contrary to claims by the Presidency, Zakari was also a niece to Buhari.

He said Zakari’s father was married to Buhari’s sister thereby making her father Buhari’s brother-in-law.

Odumakin added, “It is unfortunate that even our Presidency is lexically challenged to the point that they don’t know the definition of a niece. A niece, according to the Oxford dictionary, you don’t even need to go to the advanced level, is your brother or sister’s daughter or your brother-in-law or sister-in-law’s daughter. So how can you say she is not his niece?”
Daily Post

TERRORISM: FG Is Running Out of Excuses - Daily Trust Editorial

FG IS RUNNING OUT OF EXCUSES
Daily Trust Editorial
Reports last week that Boko Haram’s Islamic State in West Africa Province [ISWAP] faction had seized six towns in Kukawa Local Government of far northern Borno State, on the shores of Lake Chad, was the biggest setback suffered in the war against insurgents in recent years. Even though military authorities say the reports “do not reflect the reality on the ground,” Daily Trust’s report quoting authoritative military and political sources said the terrorists had seized Baga, Doron-Baga, Kross Kawwa, Bunduran, Kekeno and Kukawa towns of Borno State after three days of fierce battles from Wednesday to Friday the previous week, i.e. from December 26 to 28, last year.
Interviews with people from the affected areas, thousands of whom streamed into Monguno and on to Maiduguri, confirmed that indeed their towns had been taken over. They provided detailed stories of how the insurgents one by one overrun military and naval bases in and around Baga, including the headquarters of the Multinational Joint Task Force, which is located in the town. They however said in a surprising departure from its past practice, Boko Haram gave residents the option of either staying put in the towns or of leaving, which tens of thousands of them did.
The situation was so dire that Borno State Emergency Management Agency [SEMA] sent trucks and other vehicles to deliver succor to the new wave of refugees and to evacuate them to safer places. SEMA officials could however help only the IDPs that find their way to safe areas, while thousands of others trudged along in the bushes. The IDPs said only elderly and infirm people were left behind in Baga. This was the second time that the all-important fishing town of Baga was occupied by insurgents. On the first occasion in 2015, a deadly massacre reportedly ensued.
That Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State summoned an emergency meeting of security agencies and all the state’s elders, MPs and other leaders to discuss the situation was proof enough of its gravity. The community leaders even expressed fears that insurgents could push on from Baga, overrun Monguno and on to Maiduguri. The military however repelled three attacks on Monguno, and Air Force raids reportedly halted the insurgents in their tracks and killed scores of them. Other reports yesterday spoke of the military massing heavy forces in various locations in preparation for launching a major offensive to retake the lost towns and bases. We are confident that the military will liberate the towns soon and make them safe enough for their inhabitants to return.
Some hard questions must however be asked at this point. From all indications there is no multinational force in the Lake Chad region, and we must ask why it is that Chadians, Nigeriens and Cameroonians do not seem to be around anymore. We however commend the Niger Republic forces that last week killed 200 Boko Haram terrorists in their south eastern Diffa Region.
Despite fortunes reportedly spent on armaments, it is clear also that our military lacks enough force and firepower to eliminate Boko Haram once and for all. This is very unfortunate. The country is at war and has been so for nearly 10 years now. Even though many successes were recorded, we expect the Federal Government to drop everything else and go for the best weapons, equipment and munitions wherever it can find them. Armoured helicopter gunships, mine-resistant APCs, drones, the latest machine guns and abundant munitions are some of the weapons needed to finish this war, and we believe that this country has the resources to acquire them from any available sources provided government rearranges its priorities.
We must also do whatever it takes to bring our neighbours back into the war. Boko Haram is a threat to all of us but they need our material support to be able to fully mobilise for this war. We should provide it. Honestly, the Presidency is running out of excuses.

2019 Poll: CAN Declares 10 January As A Day Of Prayers For Nigeria

2019 POLL:  CAN DECLARES 10 JANUARY AS A NATIONAL DAY OF PRAYERS

The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) under the leadership of His Eminence, Rev. Dr. Samson Olasupo A. Ayokunle has declared  10 January, 2019 as a National Day of Prayers for peaceful, free, fair and credible election and freedom for Leah Sharibu and others in the captivity of the Boko Haram terrorists.
The prayer meeting is to be organized in Abuja and all the State capitals nationwide between 11:00am and 2:00pm prompt with a view to asking God to prevent violence, manipulation, intimidation of voters and other electoral crimes with a view to having credible election.
Christian politicians especially those contesting for any of the elections, all Christian groups or organisations and all stakeholders are invited to participate in the programme. CAN urges all Christian Groups, denominational, church and block leaders of CAN or their representatives to assemble at the National Christian Centre, Abuja on 10th January for this all important prayer meeting. All Christian candidates for all the elective offices or their representatives are also invited as they will be prayed for to be good Ambassadors of Christ before, during and after the election.
CAN asks all State Chairmen and all denominational leaders to organize similar programme and Christian candidates who could not make it to  Abuja, especially those who are contesting for State Assembly or positions of Governor to attend the one being organised at the State level.
We are to pray for all Christians contesting for one post or the other for the will of God to be done concerning their ambition. That the powerful in our nation will not be able to manipulate the election and edge them out.

We will also pray for the following:
1. That all captives in the den of the terrorists like Leah Sharibu, the Chibok girls should be set free immediately.
2. That the general election should be free, fair and credible.
3. That it should be violence - free and without any bloodshed.
4. That God should use the process to give the country good and godly leaders at all levels.
5. That every evil plan against Nigeria be frustrated.
6. That 2019 should be a New Dawn for Nigeria
7. That God should stop all groups behind the killings in Nigeria and their financiers.
All churches and all Christians in the country are urged to participate in the programme to usher in the country into a new era of peace, unity, safety and all round prosperity. We urge you to please attach utmost importance to this prayer program for 2019 elections.

Thank You,
Signed
Joseph Daramola, Esq.
Acting General Secretary

Kindly help us to give this statement a good publicity in your popular and credible medium. God bless you beyond measures. HAPPY NEW YEAR.

Thank You
Signed
Pastor Adebayo Oladeji, Special Assistant (Media &Publicity) to the CAN President, His Eminence Rev Dr Samson Ayokunle.
5 January, 2019