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PDP Petitions May, Merkel over Buhari’s Abuse of Rule of Law

Published

7 years ago

September 5, 2018

Eric

The national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party has sent a petition to both the British Prime Minister, Theresa May, and German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, accusing President Muhammadu Buhari of disrespecting the judiciary.

It also accused the President and the Federal Government of engaging in what it described as impunity and other anti-democratic vices.

The National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, signed the party’s letters which were made available to journalists in Abuja on Tuesday.

In the letters, Secondus accused the Federal Government of using the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to intimidate the members of the opposition.

He also drew the attention of the two world leaders to President Buhari’s alleged brazen attack on the principle of rule of law.

The petition partly read, “Sadly, the unfettered freedom and respect for human dignity entrenched by our party has been eroded in the last three years of the current administration.

“An important institution like the EFCC, which was established by the PDP government under President Olusegun Obasanjo and graciously still supported by international friends of Nigeria, including the taxpayers of the European Union, to professionally deal with the scourge of corruption, has now lost its essence and original intentions of the founders to become the Buhari administration’s tool for persecution of opposition members and perceived political opponents.

“The EFCC, under this administration, has metamorphosed into a draconian agency, showing scant regard for the rule of law and respect for human rights.

“The commission has turned the process of investigation into a media event to embarrass and tarnish the image of key opposition figures and sub-national governments of the federation perceived to be averse to the whims and electoral interest of the ruling party.”

On the alleged steps taken by the Buhari administration against the judiciary and rule of law, the opposition party declared that “the recent outburst by President Buhari that he will jail more looters, created national outrage and concern about the role of the judiciary and respect of our institutions.”

He said, “Also, his recent declaration, at an event of the Nigerian Bar Association, that the rule of law will take second stage on issues involving alleged threat to national security, raises fresh concern about this administration’s attitude and respect for constitutional rule.

“These revealing statements from the President provide context for the treasonable attack, by armed operatives of the secret police, on the National Assembly, blocking members of the opposition from gaining access to their offices.

“It also explains the licence behind the continued unlawful detention of Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd.), a former National Security Adviser, against multiple court orders mandating his release as well as the documented cases of human right abuses, including arbitrary and extrajudicial executions, unlawful arrests and detentions, torture, impunity, restriction of free speech and press freedom as catalogued in the reports by the United States Department of States and other international agencies.”

He appealed to the two world leaders to prevail on President Buhari to move away from the path of what he called impunity and totalitarianism.

He said, “At this critical moment in Nigeria’s political development we cannot afford to revert to the impunity of governance that characterised our military past.

“We, therefore, enjoin you, Madam Prime Minister, to use your immense clout to impress on President Buhari and his administration to immediately retreat from the path of authoritarianism and embrace the ideals associated with a democracy.

“President Buhari’s antecedents and current flirtation with dictatorship should not be allowed to reverse the gains of liberal democracy to which the PDP and the UK are committed.

“Your intervention, at this time, will help Nigeria and indeed Africa to avert a looming crisis that will divide Nigeria along its emerging fault lines.”

Secondus also called on both leaders not to allow the President derail Nigeria’s democracy with his actions and utterances.

The Punch

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Tinubu Nominates Oyedele As Minister of State for Finance, Moves Anite-Uzoka to Budget Ministry

Published

16 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Eric

A statement signed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga, has announced that “President Bola Tinubu has nominated Taiwo Oyedele as the minister of state for finance, replacing Doris Anite-Uzoka.

“Mrs Anite-Uzoka will now move to the Ministry of Budget and National Planning, as the Minister of State, her third portfolio in the administration.

“President Tinubu has today conveyed the nomination of Mr Oyedele to the Senate for confirmation in a letter to the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

“Until President Tinubu nominated him as a minister, Mr Oyedele from Ikaram, Akoko, Ondo State, was the chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms, which overhauled Nigeria’s tax system.

“Mr Oyedele, 50, is an economist, accountant and public policy expert.

“He attended Yaba College of Technology, where he obtained a Higher National Diploma (HND) in accountancy and finance. He attended Oxford Brookes University and earned a BSc in applied accounting.

“He also completed executive education programmes at the London School of Economics, Yale University, the Gordon Institute of Business Science, and the Harvard Kennedy School.

“Mr Oyedele spent 22 years of his working career at PwC, joining in 2001 and rising to become the Fiscal Policy Partner and Africa Tax Leader.

“Mr Oyedele is also a professor at Babcock University in Ogun State and a visiting scholar at the Lagos Business School.”

Featured

Defection: Atiku’s Son, Adamu, Resigns As Adamawa Commissioner

Published

21 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Eric

Adamu Abubakar, the first son of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, has resigned as Adamawa State’s commissioner for works and energy development, days after Governor Ahmadu Fintiri defected from the Peoples Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress.

Abubakar’s resignation letter, dated 2 March 2026, was addressed to the governor through the Secretary to the State Government. He gave no reason for his departure.

The timing is pointed. Fintiri announced his defection to the APC in a statewide broadcast last Friday, saying his cabinet and the PDP’s state structure had moved with him. Within 24 hours, 22 commissioners and special advisers publicly announced they were following suit. Abubakar, whose father remains one of the PDP’s most prominent national figures, was not among them.

In a statement issued Monday night, Abubakar’s media aide Abdulaziz Jauro said the former commissioner thanked the governor for the opportunity to serve and pledged continued loyalty to the administration’s developmental agenda. He also expressed gratitude to his father “for granting him the moral support and blessing to serve the people of Adamawa State” — a line that, read in context, suggests Atiku was consulted on the decision.

Abubakar said his resignation was not a withdrawal from public life. “This does not mark the end of his commitment to public service,” the statement read, “but rather the beginning of new avenues for developmental collaboration.”

The resignation leaves unresolved the question of whether it reflects a political break with the governor over his defection or a personal decision unconnected to the broader party realignment now reshaping Adamawa’s political landscape.

Featured

DSS Nabs Man over Assassination Attempt on Peter Obi

Published

23 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Eric

Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS) has detained a man in connection with the recent attack and alleged assassination threats targeting Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi.

According to AIT, the shooting incident took place on February 24, 2026, in Benin City, Edo State, during a political gathering attended by Obi and several figures from the African Democratic Congress (ADC). The meeting was hosted by former APC National Chairman, John Oyegun. Gunmen reportedly opened fire at the venue, causing panic and forcing attendees to disperse for safety.

According to security sources, shortly after the attack, an individual identified as Udeme Monday Stephen allegedly took to social media claiming responsibility and issuing additional threats against Obi, warning of further violence.

Intelligence officials reportedly initiated swift investigations, employing digital tracing and forensic tools that led to the arrest of the 26-year-old suspect in Rivers State. He is said to be a teacher at a private secondary school in the Eliozu area of Obio-Akpor Local Government Area.

The suspect remains in DSS custody and is expected to face prosecution. The agency reiterated its commitment to responding to credible threats and safeguarding lives and national interests without bias.