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Amosun Kicks off Campaign, Says APM’s Child of Necessity

Published

5 years ago

December 28, 2018

Eric

The Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, on Thursday started his campaign ahead of the senatorial election.

The governor, who is the All Progressives Congress senatorial candidate for Ogun Central, described the Allied People’s Movement as a child of necessity.

The governor stated this while speaking with journalists at the palace of the Alake of Egbaland, Oba Adedotun Gbadebo, when he paid homage to the monarch to formally inform him of his ambition, shortly before the rally held at Panseke Park in Abeokuta, the state capital.

Most of Amosun’s loyalists who participated in the APC primary elections in the state have defected from the party to APM due to the controversies that trailed the results which did not favour the governor’s preferred candidates.

But Amosun said the defection was done in the interest of the APC.

He added that the aggrieved members of APC would not have been managed if they had been allowed to go elsewhere apart from the APM.

He said, “For me, this is not about what we prayed for. If anybody had told me that it is going to be like this, I will say no. But, clearly as human, God will show his way at anytime, we are ordinary mortals.

“When it happens, we would not say people that have been sidelined should not ventilate their anger. In the final analysis, this is for the good of APC.

“I can say this anywhere that if we did nothing and allow them to do that, they would have voted anywhere and we would not be in charge or in control.

“But now, we know that they are children of necessity, they are APC and I am happy that they have adopted President Muhammadu Buhari.

“We are APC, even those that are in APM are APC, it is frustration; and we don’t want them to go and vote for a candidate that would be against what APC and President Muhammadu Buhari stand for.

“As it is, it is a one-way scenario, now we would ensure that President Muhammadu Buhari will still win and APC will still win maybe directly or indirectly.”

Gbadebo, in his remarks, endorsed Amosun for the senatorial seat and urged the people of the district to support him.

The traditional ruler said the governor had done well for Egba people, adding that one good turn deserves another.

He said, “We should thank the governor for what he did as a governor. We did not know that a governor has the power to reform Ogun State like this.

“He would do better as a senator than what he had done as a governor. What he gave us is too much compared to what he is requesting from us.”

At the rally, the governor however refused to campaign for the APC governorship candidate, Dapo Abiodun, and others apart from Buhari and the party’s candidate for Abeokuta South Federal constituency, Lanre Edun.

Apart from Amosun, other speakers at the rally, including his wife, Funsho, refused to campaign for Abiodun, rather they made veiled references to the APM’s governorship candidate, Abdulkabir Akinlade, who is the governor’s preferred candidate.

The rally was attended by members of the dissolved state executive council led by Chief Derin Adebiyi, and leaders of transport unions among others.

The Punch

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Stay Away from CBT Centres, JAMB Warns Parents, Threatens Arrest

Published

18 hours ago

April 18, 2024

Eric

As this year’s Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) begins on Friday, the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has vowed to arrest parents found near any Computer-Based Test (CBT) centre during the 2024 UTME exercise.

The directive was issued at the final briefing of the CBT centre owners, which was held virtually on Wednesday, 17th April, 2024.

The spokesman for JAMB, Fabian Benjamin, said this directive became necessary following the intrusive disposition of some parents during the Board’s previous exercises.

Benjamin, who quoted JAMB Registrar Prof. Is-haq Oloyede, said any parent, who disobeys the order would not only be arrested but his ward would also be disqualified from sitting for the examination.

Oloyede explained that this measure became necessary as it has been discovered over time that many of these intruding parents are facilitators of examination infractions while others have, by their actions, disrupted the Board’s examinations in the past.

He added that some miscreants also disguise as parents to infiltrate the centres to perpetrate all forms of infractions.

“The Board’s helmsman noted that going by the extant national policy on education, a candidate for the examination must have attained the age of 17 years.

“Therefore, it is evident that these parents had not allowed their wards to pass through the classes as defined in the document, hence the desperation to follow their wards to the examination venue with the aim of compromising examination officials.

“At any rate, it is clear to any discerning observer that these parents deserve to be sanctioned as they had obviously ‘smuggled’ underage children into the ranks of those scheduled to sit the examination,” the Board note through a statement.

Furthermore, the Registrar said all arrangements have been concluded for the conduct of the 2024 UTME, which will be held in over 700 CBT centres across the nation.

He disclosed that the Board expects a seamless exercise but it has nevertheless made adequate provision to tackle any technical glitch that might occur in the course of the examination.

He, however, warned that if a session experienced any technical challenge, candidates in subsequent sessions would be allowed to sit their examination as scheduled while the candidates in the challenged session would be rescheduled for the last session for the day or the following day or even further depending on the centre schedules.

Featured

Oyo Govt Demolishes Operational Base of Yoruba Nation Agitators

Published

18 hours ago

April 18, 2024

Eric

The Oyo State government, on Wednesday, demolished a building serving as the operational base of the Yoruba Nation agitators led by Modupe Onitiri-Abiola, in Ibadan.

Onitiri-Abiola, one of the widows of late Bashorun M.KO Abiola, had declared the creation of the so-called Yoruba Nation in a video posted online, which has been widely condemned.

Last Saturday, some armed men in military uniforms invaded the Oyo State Secretariat, with the motive to forcefully take over the State House of Assembly, before they were dislodged by the combined efforts of police and troops for the Nigeria Army 2 Division..

Mr. Fatai Owoseni, Special Adviser on Security Matters to Governor Seyi Makinde, confirmed the demolition of the house located at Toye Oyesola Street in Ibadan South West Local Government Area.

Already, no fewer than 29 suspects – including a lecturer – arrested in connection with the foiled armed invasion were on Wednesday arraigned by the police before a Chief Magistrates’ Court in Ibadan.

In a case with charge number Mi/520c/2024 between the Commissioner of Police and the 29 suspects, they were accused of a seven-count charge of treasonable felony, unlawful society, illegal possession of firearms, and conduct likely to cause breach of peace.

Inspector Bakare Rasaq, the Investigative Police Officer (IPO) at the State Criminal Investigation Department, Iyaganku, Ibadan, said the offence contravenes, and is punishable under Section 516 of the Criminal Code, Cap 38, Vol. II, Laws of Oyo State of Nigeria, 2000.

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PDP BoT Queries Damagum, Anyanwu’s Continued Stay in Office

Published

19 hours ago

April 18, 2024

Eric

The Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party has queried the continued stay in office of the party’s acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum, and National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu.

Recently, many party members have raised concerns about the ongoing tenure of Damagum and Anywanwu in their respective positions.

Previously serving as the PDP National Deputy Chairman (North), Damagum assumed the role of acting National Chairman following the court’s suspension of the party’s National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, in March of the preceding year.

With the National Secretary being selected as the PDP candidate for the Imo State 2023 governorship election, the South zone has been grappling with nominating a replacement. Despite this, he, along with other party leaders, contested and retained the position of party secretary after losing to Governor Hope Uzodinnma.

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