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Pendulum: There Was a Party: Who Has Jazzed APC

Published

8 years ago

November 10, 2018

Eric

By Dele Momodu

Fellow Nigerians, let me state once again that I have never been a member of Nigeria’s ruling party, APC, but I was almost a fanatical supporter of its Presidential flagbearer, Major General Muhammadu Buhari, in the 2015 Presidential election. The reason was simple. We were mostly tired of PDP after wasting loads of opportunities in 16 years. Even hardened members of that Party would readily admit to their myriads of gaffes, faux pas, misfortune and misadventure which seemed uncontrollable over those unfortunate years, particularly in the last days of the Jonathan administration. Despite our strident pleas for sanity to prevail, the party pressed on with its crass arrogance that it can rule with impunity for eternity. For that reason, we desperately craved a change and the amalgamation, or cocktail, of political parties called APC was forged in that season of the rape of Nigerian people. With PDP’s unrelenting assault on the people despite the emergence of the mega political party called APC, that party became too attractive to ignore or resist and Nigerians openly welcomed the Party and its charismatic leader, General Muhammadu Buhari, as their saviour.

The choice of Buhari was both divine and coincidental. Many of those who had opposed and rejected him as an untouchable entity for various reasons which are now well known were forced to embrace him on his fourth attempt at seeking the Holy Grail of the Nigerian Presidency. Our theory was rather simple or too over-simplistic: the enemy of your enemy is your friend. At any rate, Buhari won and the rest is history.

The meat of the story is that the APC that took over from PDP under four years ago and what was envisaged by most Nigerians to be the beginning of unity of progressive forces has suddenly become the nightmare prospect of a party in disarray and almost in tatters. It is unbelievable that a party that came into power with so much promise and uncommon goodwill has virtually frittered away its humongous equity. It has become very tempting to see APC as a victim of hypnotism and jazz, a truly Nigerian phenomenon that besets some good ventures and deeds. In case you are not familiar with those terms in the Nigerian context, let me explain what I mean in a jiffy. I don’t know how much of superstitions still exist in our world today, but I think it is still big enough to affect the way we live, in Africa in general, and Nigeria in particular. Everything bad is attributed to evil machinations of the enemies and the devil. It’s so bad that if you have headache, your wicked enemies are said to be squarely responsible. To put it bluntly, someone must have used juju on you. Juju is supposed to be a kind of talismanic weapon capable of having devastating effect on the victim. Almost everyone believes in the efficacy of juju, including those who pretend to be holier than the Pope. That is why we hear of a lot of Islamic and Christian leaders paying nocturnal visits to the haunts inhabited by alleged practitioners of the dark and arcane art of Juju. Many tend to hate the concept of juju or traditional medicine, but deep down, they still feel it works wonders.

In our days as pioneer JAMBITES at the then University of Ife, from 1978, we decided to funkify the concept of juju or “oogun abenugongo.” As a student of Yoruba language and literature, we studied the cultural aspect of Yoruba in-depth and came to the conclusion that there were esoteric powers that exist with or without our knowledge. In order not to sound crude, we came up with the term jazz. It is difficult to know where it originated from. “You have been jazzed” was a popular cliché on campus. It was a way of telling you things were not normal with you or there is more than meets the eye in your matter. Some powerful enemies are on your case!

The matter of APC thus looks extraordinary. It is difficult not to imagine that APC has been jazzed, hypnotised, mesmerised or spellbound by some powerful, possibly extra-terrestrial forces and influences, walahi. They have apparently learnt no lessons whatsoever from our very recent history and the crisis that rocked PDP and brought it catastrophically to its knees and paved the way for Buhari to become President and the party to gain ascendancy at the centre. The current situation of APC appears abysmally worse than that of PDP pre-2015, when some influential leaders of PDP left the party and teamed up with others to form APC and then proceeded to work assiduously to change government. I can’t remember PDP breaking up to as many warring groups as there are in APC today. It is unthinkable that a ruling party facing major elections in barely three months from now would engage in this stultifying war of attrition. This is why many have come to the conclusion that some juju men and fetish women are working hard on bringing the APC government down at the polls next year.

Whenever the APC hardliners get some sober moment for reflection, they should please consider the following. It is doubtful if the APC has gained new members substantially since it came to power in 2015. As a matter of fact, it seems the party has lost control in many States of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. I have never seen members of a political party descend so viciously and violently against its party Chairman like they have done, and doing, to my former Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, who was only recently overwhelmingly supported, by the Governors of APC, as Party Chairman. No sooner than he took power than the bubbles began to burst. At the point Comrade came on board, it was as if the former Chairman, Chief John Odigie Oyegun was the arch-enemy of the party he had helped nurture from infancy. Oshiomhole was the much needed angel of mercy and life-saver.

Uncle Adams settled in quickly, but not before he had fired darts at those he considered internal saboteurs. He embarked on a reconciliation process of party chieftains, an exercise at which the national leader of the party, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, had only just recently appeared to have failed woefully. Even Comrade Adams was unable to bring any camaraderie to the process and his undoubted efforts were not enough to stop party chieftains in the Senate, House of Representatives and Governors of some states from making a wholesale departure from the party that had suddenly become afflicted with the plague of carpet-crossing and defection. Whilst we thought that the party would quickly heal its near mortal wounds and come together in a show of unity we were to have our hopes dashed as very quickly the messianic party seemed to unravel like a ball of wool.

The crux of the matter was the party primaries which has led almost to a fatal implosion in the party. No zone appears to have been spared in this folly apart from the North Central zone of the country.

Perhaps the State that best demonstrates the massive problems facing the party in terms of a total lack of cohesion is Adamawa State, in the North East of the country, where the Wife of the President, Mrs Aisha Buhari sought to install her younger brother, Mahmood Halidu, as the Governorship candidate of the Party for the State. She lamented the lack of transparency and deceny in the conduct of the party primaries which had been manipulated to give automatic tickets to anointed candidates despite the fact that other candidates had been encouraged to purchase nomination forms at exorbitant prices. She declared that this was not in consonance with the party’s change mantra or the perception of the new national chairman of the party, comrade Adams, who should have stood for the common man and fairness. She ended her homily to the party faithful by urging them to “vote wisely”, an apparent indictment of her husband’s party. It is a sad state of affairs when the President cannot hold the home front and the “other room” just months before the election and the condemnation of the party by the Wife of the President speaks volumes about the unity and preparation of the party for these pivotal elections.

Another calamity arose from the party primaries in Zamfara State in the North West Zone of the country. The situation got so bad that INEC declared that no primaries had been held in accordance with its guidelines and that no candidate of the APC would be eligible to contest the forthcoming elections for that reason. This position remains complicated and it is distressing that a party in power could not get its act together in such a crucial state and that by virtue of the intransigence of its party members in Zamfara State the PDP as the other leading party would clearly waltz its way into all the elective pisitions including that of governor, in that State. What a crying shame!

Also, in the North Western State of Kaduna, there is intra party feuding between the incumbent Governor, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, and Senator Shehu Sani. The Senator had been in a running battle with theGovernor for a long time, but matters came to a boil with the conduct of the party primaries which naturally was skewed in favour of the Governor. The Senator who had stuck by the party when the gale of defections decimated the party’s ranks decided that enough was enough! He asserted that honour, integrity and internal democracy which he had believed would be the ethos and norm of the parry had been jettisoned and for this reason he resigned and has now joined the People’s Redemption Party to contest the election as the gubernatorial candidate of that party.

The misfortune that has befallen the APC arising form the party primaries is not limited to the Northern part of the country alone. The same situation has been replicated in equally pronounced form in Imo State in the South East Zone, Rivers State in the South South Zone and Ogun State in the South West Zone.

In Imo State, the incumbent Governor, Rochas Okorocha, who is completing his second term in office decided that he would only hand over the mantle of Governor of the State to his son-in-law, Ugwumba Uche Nwosu rather than Senator Hope Uzodinma who is the preferred choice of the National Executive and the acclaimed winner of the party primaries. The National Secretariat kicked against this contending that Rochas himself had already been handed an automatic ticket as a Senatorial candidate of the party. There was no justification for imposing his son-in-law on the people of Imo State and the party has stuck to its guns. Naturally, Rochas has been insistent, pouring acidic vituperation and invective on the party executive and particularly the national chairman, Adams Oshiomole. However, it is noteworthy that the impasse has continued with the submission of the party’s candidates for elections into State offices and no candidate has been presented to INEC as APC Governorship candidate for Imo State.

Perhaps nowhere has the battle line between the party executive and an incumbent Governor been more starkly drawn than in Ogun State, in the South West of Nigeria. There Senator Ibikunle Amosun who is, like Okorocha, serving out his second term embroiled in a royal titanic battle with Prince Dapo Abiodun, billionaire business magnate and chairman of the Corporate Affiars Commission as to who will succeed Amosun as Governor of the State. Whist Abiodun has the full backing of Oshiomole and the party executive and ostensibly won the party primaries conducted by the National executive and observed by INEC, Amosun is standing staunchly in support of Hon. Abdulkadir Adekunle Akinlade, a federal legislator representing Ogun State in the House of Representatives. Akinlade, who had initially been declared as the APC consensus gubernatorial candidate by Amosun, subsequently won a direct primary election organised by the State Executive of the Party with the Secretary to the State Government, Taiwo Adeoluwa, as the Chief Returning Officer. The insults, slurs and vitriol emanating from both camps are simply too venomous and considering these are members of the same party, the damage to the party is best left to the imagination. Abiodun and Oshiomole seem to have prevailed as it is Abiodun’s name that has been announced by INEC.

The debacle has reached comical proportions with some APC governors accusing Oshiomhole of fraud and corruption and the DSS which is in the control of the party arresting, detaining and questioning him over these allegations. Oshiomhole upon release travelled to the UK although his return to the country is said to be imminent.

Again, we pray that APC finds its mojo and resolves these intractable differences otherwise its fortunes will be non-existent at the polls next year.

Headline

GbajaGate: I’ve Done No Wrong, Govt Playing to Shut Me Up – Adeyemi Matthew Speaks from Hiding

Published

1 day ago

July 2, 2026

Eric

Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, the man alleged to have forged government appointment letters and falsely paraded himself as the Director-General of the alleged Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC) and Presidential Economic Advisory Council, has denied the allegations against him, claiming the Presidency is attempting to silence him.

Speaking with PREMIUM TIMES from an undisclosed location on Thursday, Adeyemi insisted he had done nothing wrong and described the government’s actions as a “defence mechanism.”

“You know the government we have. They are just playing a defence mechanism to shut me up. My organisation was set up in 2024,” he said.

Adeyemi declined to disclose his whereabouts, saying he had gone into hiding because his life was under threat.

“They are now after my life. I have gone into hiding. I’m underground,” he said.

When asked whether he had fled the country, he declined to respond directly.

“I will not be able to disclose any information now. I don’t consider myself safe,” he added.

The embattled suspect also declined to provide his alleged appointment letter or any document to support his claim that he was legitimately appointed, saying his lawyers had advised him not to discuss the matter publicly.

“I just decided to speak to you out of respect. My lawyers are working on something. Whatever they say, I will let you know,” he said.

The Presidency has accused Adeyemi of forging appointment letters and other official documents while falsely presenting himself as Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council, agencies it insists do not exist.

Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, said Adeyemi and two others have been charged before the Federal High Court on an eight-count charge bordering on forgery, impersonation and related offences.

According to the Presidency, concerns first emerged after the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission reported that another body appeared to be performing functions similar to its statutory responsibilities.

The Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, subsequently petitioned the Department of State Services and the Nigeria Police Force, alleging that forged appointment letters bearing fake signatures, official seals and reference numbers had been used to create the impression that the suspects were presidential appointees.

The Presidency said investigations revealed that Adeyemi and his associates allegedly operated from an office within the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja, held meetings with Nigerian and foreign officials and sought diplomatic support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for visa applications.

According to the Presidency, police arrested Adeyemi on October 27, 2025, after which searches conducted at his office and residence allegedly yielded forged government documents.

Investigators also alleged that financial intelligence uncovered 34 bank accounts linked to Adeyemi, including accounts allegedly opened in the names of purported government agencies.

The Presidency further claimed that Adeyemi used forged documents to open an account with the Central Bank of Nigeria in the name of the alleged agency, although investigators found that no public funds were paid into the account.

Onanuga also dismissed allegations that Gbajabiamila demanded money from Adeyemi, saying the accusations surfaced only after the suspect was granted police bail.

The case is scheduled to come up before the Federal High Court on July 27.

Headline

Court Dismisses Abejide’s Suit, Upholds Mark-led Leadership of ADC

Published

1 day ago

July 2, 2026

Eric

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday affirmed Sen. David Mark’s leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC).

Justice Musa Liman, in a judgment, also dismissed the suit filed by Rep Leke Abejide challenging Mark and Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola as national chairman and national secretary of the party for lacking merit.

Justice Liman upheld the preliminary objections filed by ADC, Chief Ralph Nwosu, Mark and Aregbesola which challenged Abejide’s suit.

The judge held that the court lacked the jurisdiction to dabble in the internal affairs of ADC, as the suit was non-justiciable.

He also held that Abejide lacked the legal right to have instituted the suit, having failed to show to the court that his rights had been violated in any way as a result of the emergence of Mark-led leadership.

He equally held that Abejide, who is a member of the House of Representatives, failed to explore the party’s internal mechanism for dispute resolution.

Justice Liman also resolved the three issues in the substantive suit in favour of the defendants.

On whether Mark, the former Senate president and Aregbesola, who was the former Governor of Osun, emerged as leaders of the party in compliance with the enabling laws, the judge resolved this against Abejide, the plaintiff in the suit.

He held that the handing over of the leadership of the party by Nwosu to Mark did not violate the provisions of the party’s constitution.

The judge agreed that the disputed July 2, 2025, meeting of the party was a stakeholder meeting which preceded the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) meeting held on July 29, 2025, which produced Mark and Aregbesola as the party’s leaders and was monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Justice Liman, therefore, declared that the emergence of Mark and Aregbesola as leaders of ADC was valid and in accordance with the constitution, the Electoral Act, 2026 and the party’s law.

The judge consequently awarded a fine of N2 million each in favour of all the defendants which shall be paid by Abejide.

He also awarded a N10 million fine against Abejide’s lawyer in compliance with the Electoral Act, 2026.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Abejide had instituted the suit to stop the Mark-led leadership of ADC.

In the originating summons, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1637/2025, filed on Feb. 15 by Idris, the lawmaker sued ADC, Ralph Nwosu, Mark, Aregbesola and INEC as 1st to 5th defendants respectively.

NAN reports that Nwosu was the former national chairman of ADC who stepped down for Mark, the ex-Senate president.

Abejide, among the eight reliefs, sought an order nullifying Nwosu’s handover or transfer of ADC’s leadership to Mark and Aregbesola as interim national chairman and interim national secretary respectively on July 2, 2025, at Shehu Musa Yar’adua Centre, Abuja, for being illegal, unlawful, null and void.

He sought an order of perpetual injunction restraining Mark and Aregbesola from parading themselves as leaders of the party “as their purported appointment, selection or election was unlawful, illegal, null and void.”

He also sought perpetual injunction restraining INEC from recognising Mark and Aregbesola as ADC’s interim national chairman and interim national secretary.

He alleged that their appointment, selection or election did not meet the requirements of Section 82 of the Electoral Act, 2022, among other prayers.

NAN

Headline

Alleged N27.4bn Scandal: Presidency Exonerates Gbajabiamila, Says Adeyemi Matthew is a ‘Con Artist’

Published

2 days ago

July 2, 2026

Eric

The Presidency has volunteered details on how a certain Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew, allegedly built an elaborate web of forged documents, fake government appointments and fictitious agencies to deceive public officials and present himself as a senior presidential appointee under the administration of President Bola Tinubu.

The Presidency, in a statement issued on Wednesday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, described Adeyemi as “a con artist” who allegedly used forged appointment letters bearing the name of the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, to create and operate a non-existent Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, later referred to as the Presidential Economic Advisory Council.

According to the statement, the alleged scam was uncovered after officials of the Nigerian Investment Promotion Council raised concerns that another purported government agency appeared to be operating alongside it.

The Office of the Chief of Staff subsequently alerted security agencies, accusing unnamed individuals of forging official appointment letters purportedly issued from his office.

“The attention of this office has been drawn to the activities of certain individuals and groups engaged in the forgery of official appointment letters purportedly issued from my office,” Gbajabiamila said in a petition dated October 17.

“The fake documents, bearing falsified signatures, reference/folio numbers, and seals, have been used to claim leadership appointments to non-existent entities, with particular reference to the Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council.”

The Chief of Staff disclosed that Adeyemi had allegedly established an office at the Federal Secretariat Complex in Abuja, where he reportedly hosted meetings with Nigerians and foreign nationals while presenting himself as the Director-General of the fictitious agency.

According to the petition, the group even sought diplomatic support from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to facilitate United States visas for its purported staff.

“The above development not only constitutes a serious criminal act but also undermines the integrity of the Presidency and the credibility of official government communication,” Gbajabiamila wrote.

“I therefore urge you to initiate a thorough investigation to identify and apprehend those involved and also to uncover the network facilitating the forgery.”

Foreign Affairs Ministry raises red flag

The statement revealed that concerns over Adeyemi’s activities had also reached the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs after he reportedly convened a meeting with ambassadors at the Wells Carlton Hotel and Apartments in Abuja on October 10, 2025, without the ministry’s knowledge.

In a letter dated October 15, 2025, signed by Ambassador Anderson Madubuike and addressed to the Office of the National Security Adviser and the Office of the Chief of Staff, the ministry sought clarification regarding the status of the purported agency.

“This act contravenes extant rules and regulations guiding diplomatic practices globally,” the ministry stated.

The enquiries triggered correspondence among the Office of the National Security Adviser, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Office of the Chief of Staff.

Responding to the enquiries, Gbajabiamila categorically denied appointing Adeyemi or recognising the agency.

“Prince Adeniyi Matthew, Director-General of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, is unknown to any office, nor do we have any dealings with the said council,” he wrote.

“My attention was drawn to a letter of this purported application, which is fake, and my office has instructed the police and other relevant security agencies to carry out investigations on the person and the entity he claims to represent.”

The Presidency stressed that the Chief of Staff could not have issued any appointment letter because appointments into government offices are the exclusive responsibility of the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.

Police uncover alleged forgery network

Following the petition, the Police launched an investigation and arrested Adeyemi on October 27, 2025, at the Abuja office from where he allegedly operated the scheme.

Searches conducted at both his office and residence in Suleja reportedly yielded several documents and exhibits believed to be connected with the operation.

Investigators said Adeyemi claimed that one Dolapo Babatunde Tanimola assisted him in procuring the forged appointment letter.

However, police investigations established that Tanimola had died in a fire incident at Kachi Hotel in Abuja on October 22, 2025, five days before Adeyemi’s arrest.

According to the State House, investigators established that the agency Adeyemi claimed to head never existed, while the appointment letters and several official documents recovered during the investigation were allegedly forged.

Police also accused him of falsely presenting himself as a presidential appointee and fraudulently requesting a diplomatic note verbale from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to facilitate visa applications for himself and members of his organisation.

Investigators further alleged that Adeyemi operated no fewer than 34 bank accounts, including nine accounts opened in the names of fictitious organisations, including the FCT Investment Promotion Agency and Public Private Partnership (FIPA-APP).

The investigation also found that he allegedly succeeded in opening a Central Bank of Nigeria account by misleading the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation using forged documents.

The Presidency, however, noted that investigators confirmed no government funds were ever paid into the account.

“The act of the suspect constitutes criminal forgery, impersonation and obtaining by false pretence, thereby bringing the office of the Chief of Staff to the President and the Presidency to disrepute before the public and international community,” the police report stated.

Eight-count charge filed

Based on the outcome of the investigation, police filed an eight-count charge before the Federal High Court in Abuja against Adeyemi and two alleged accomplices on November 27, 2025.

The matter is scheduled for hearing on July 27.

According to the Presidency, Adeyemi, while on police bail, recently resurfaced with fresh claims that the Chief of Staff had genuinely appointed him as Director-General of the agency.

The statement noted that the claim directly contradicted the statement he voluntarily made to investigators during the police probe.

It said the renewed allegation prompted Gbajabiamila to issue another public disclaimer on June 8, reaffirming that Adeyemi was an impostor.

Presidency urges caution

The Presidency said Adeyemi had a history of alleged fraudulent misrepresentation, recalling that in 2016 he allegedly presented himself as President-General of the World Youth Organisation, claiming it was affiliated with the United Nations before the UN reportedly disowned the organisation.

Describing the case as that of “a con artist who appears to have built a web of false claims to deceive unsuspecting government officials and the public,” the Presidency urged politicians and members of the public to avoid drawing conclusions before the ongoing criminal trial is concluded.

It further advised that, since the matter is before the court, interested parties should allow the judicial process to determine the allegations against Adeyemi and his co-defendants.