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Oyo PDP Leaders Distance Selves from Makinde over Atiku

Published

1 year ago

November 3, 2022

Eric

Some leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party in Oyo State have opposed Governor Seyi Makinde following his declaration not to support the presidential candidate of the party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

They spoke in Ibadan on Wednesday at the emergency meeting of the leaders of the party from the 33 local government areas of the state.

They declared their support for Atiku, who Makinde and four other PDP governors are working against.

Makinde had on Saturday during a live radio programme said he and other aggrieved PDP governors would not work for the presidential candidate of the party for some reasons.

The five governors have not hidden their position and they had vowed not to work for Atiku except the National Chairman of the PDP, Dr Iyorchia Ayu resigned from office for a southerner to occupy the office.

One of the PDP leaders, a former Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Wole Oyelese, said Makinde was not speaking for the party in the state but speaking for himself.

He said PDP leaders would work and deliver the state for the presidential candidate of the party, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in 2023.

Oyelese said, “A good politician will not speak like that. It doesn’t mean anything if Makinde says he will not work for Atiku. He is on his own! It is an empty threat! If he said we should not vote for Atiku, who are we voting for? We are too sophisticated for that in Oyo state. Makinde is a newcomer in Oyo State politics but we shall continue to work for our party.

“However, we are working for Atiku in a special way. My advice for any politician who wants to win in Oyo State is to come to the mainstream. Mainstream is the leadership of the party in the state.

“What is the position of Yoruba on this matter that Makinde is talking about? We don’t have a position. Pa Fasoranti is saying something and Baba Adebanjo is saying another thing. We are not having a position in Yorubaland. Our members remain steadfast and committed. This is our party and we cannot allow it to break down.”

Another PDP leader, Femi Babalola said the governor is also guilty of the points he raised against the presidential candidate of the PDP.

“He that comes to equity must come with clean hands. As an Engineer, I analyse issues. The first question I asked myself was is it good for a northerner to take over from a northerner?

“Another question is, is it good for an Ibadan man to take over from Ibadan man that spent eight years? So, for Makinde that benefited from such, why is he now antagonising another person? He didn’t see anything that is wrong in that but when it is Atiku, it is wrong,” he added.

Responding to an inquiry by our correspondent, the Chief Press Secretary to Oyo State Governor, Taiwo Adisa, said Makinde and the other aggrieved governors had never said they would campaign for any other presidential candidate.

He said, “Governor Makinde, and his colleagues including Governors Nyesom Wike, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Samuel Ortom, and Okezie Ikpeazu have consistently said they will concentrate their campaigns on the PDP candidates in their states if the PDP system will not do the needful on the issue concerning the national Chairman.

“They have not said they will campaign for any other candidate at the Presidential level.”

Also, the PDP Publicity Secretary in Oyo State, Mr Akeem Olatunji, said in a separate interview with our correspondent that Makinde had never started campaigning for the candidate of another party.

He said, “Governor Seyi Makinde has said it at different fora that all PDP candidates would win in Oyo State. What else does anybody wants again?

“Do we have any other presidential candidate party from Alhaji Atiku Abubakar? There is no ambiguity in that except some people are just trying to seek attention. Probably, they are trying to be mischievous.

“All we know is that all hands are on deck that all our candidates win in Oyo State. Governor Seyi Makinde has never endorsed any other person as his own presidential candidate.”

The Punch

Featured

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

Published

1 day 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

1 day 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

1 day 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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