2019: Buhari Shops For New VP; Pencils Fayemi, Kalu As Osinbajo's Replace,Replacement

The possibility of Yemi Osinbajo running on the same ticket with President Muhammadu in 2019 is slim because of the close ties the vice president has with Bola Tinubu, a source has disclosed.

The Daily Independent, citing a close source in the All Progressives Congress (APC) reports that the possibility of Osinbajo running on joint ticket with Buhari is very remote.

The source said: “It is very clear that Osinbajo is just bidding time with President Buhari. Everyone knows that he  (Osinbajo) is a right hand man of Asiwaju Bola Tinubu. Even when the presidency claimed that Tinubu opposed his selection as running mate to President Buhari, the man himself came out to counter the claim saying Tinubu nominated him for the post.

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation Issues 

That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for Details

“Given the current situation, we don’t see President Buhari running with Osinbajo in 2019 if he wants to contest again. The president from his body language is already looking beyond Osinbajo because he knows that if push comes to shove, he knows where the loyalty of the vice president lies.”

the source added that the Kayode Fayemi, a former governor of Ekiti state and now minister of solid minerals and a former governor of Abia state, Orji Uzor Kalu who recently decamped to the APC are likely replacements for Osinbajo.

Saraki, Ekweremadu'll Know No Peace Until They Vacate Seat - Senate-Colleague Reveals

The leadership of the Senate under Senator Bukola Saraki and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu will not enjoy peace until they are pushed out of office, Senator Robert Ajayi Boroffice said on Wednesday.

Boroffice who was at the national secretariat of the All Progressives Congress (APC), to collect his nomination and expression of interest form to contest the party’s ticket for the Ondo State governorship election insisted that his group, Unity Forum, would continue to challenge the Bukola Saraki, Senate President, and Ike Ekweremadu, his deputy, until integrity is restored.

Senator Boroffice added that the Unity Forum where he belongs was fighting the current Senate leadership based on principle and not because they hate anybody.

Speaking with newsmen on Wednesday at the APC national secretariat in Abuja after picking form to contest the governorship primary election of the party, Boroface said his group would continue to “fight to ensure that the image of the Senate is redeemed.”

“I am one of those people who went to court to challenge the election of the Senate principals and I maintain that we have done that on principle not because we hate anybody. We want to defend the integrity of the Senate and the sanity of the rule of law.

“So, it is not that we are all working in the same direction, some of us are speaking out and I hope that you press men will give expression to our voices when we speak out.

“So, I can assure you that we will not be intimidated, we will continue to fight to ensure that the image of the Senate is redeemed so that any senator in Nigeria can raise his head anywhere in the world and described himself as senator.”

When asked to comment on the agitation for restructuring of the country, the two-term senator said, “The Senate again this year we pray that we have enough time to send this amendment to Mr. President to be assented to. If you look at it, you will see we are already restructuring with that with those amendment. Some of the things that they are in the exclusive list of the Federal Government have been brought to the concurrent list of the state and we are actually committed to true federalism, fiscal federalism.

“Some of us are in support of the state police, even though we know is subject to misuse. We believe that certain items that are now in the exclusive list of the Federal Government should be transferred to the state.

“So we are doing something about it, we are not making noise about it and by the time we get this amendment thing, many Nigerians would know we have done a good job not only in terms of structure but in the area of revenue allocation these are very important issue we cannot deny.”

According to the governorship aspirant, Ondo should be one of the best in terms of economic vibrancy, it’s an oil producing state, has second largest deposits of bitumen in the world.

“It has natural resources like cocoa, palm oil, coal but all these remain untapped…We need someone knowledgeable, that can help to create jobs, ease our ailing economy.

”We have ceramic, rubber, wood industries that are all dead. If we revive them we will not need to depend on the government. We will plug all leakages and develop a very vibrant economy.

“We will run a knowledge-driven economy. We must make sure Nigerians pay their taxes. There are countries that have no natural resource and are doing very well,” he said.

Daily Independent

How I Increase My Blokos Size & Stopped Premature Ejaculation 

Issues That Scattered My Relationship For 2years.. Click HERE for Details

I Regret Ekweremadu's Emergence As My Deputy - Saraki Laments

Leadership - The president of the Senate, Abubakar Bukola Saraki has described the emergence of Senator Ike Ekweremadu as the deputy Senate president of the 8th Senate as painful and regrettable, saying no true party member would want to share his position with a member of other parties.

Blaming the absence of some All Progressives Congress (APC) senators at the inauguration session on that fateful day for the election of Ekweremadu, he added that all through the period when he and his team were strategising for his election to the Senate president’s seat, not even for once did they anticipate that a Senator from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will emerge as his deputy.

Speaking with some Senate correspondents yesterday, Saraki said it is not true that he entered into any pact with the PDP to sacrifice the deputy Senate slot for PDP’s support. “Never in our wildest imagination did we envisage that some senators would not be present on the day of the inauguration.

“In my own view, and in the view of some of those who worked closely with me, I worked hard for my election, I had direct contact with every single senator, one on one. Weeks leading to the election I did not rely on anybody. I worked hard; both in our party, the APC and out of it.

“I approached every senator, I talked to them…we built confidence, not only in the APC, but, also, in the PDP. I talked to them. That was why I laugh when people said I had a deal with Ekweremadu or I had a hand in the emergence of Ekweremadu.

“I didn’t need any deal to win. I had penetrated…There was no deal; I didn’t need any deal in the first place. I had worked hard such that every body who was a senator, I campaigned hard and canvassed for their votes and won their confidence.

“At one of the meetings held at Transcorp Hilton which Senator Godswill Akpabio co-chaired with Senator Ibrahim Gobir and a few others, which had both APC and PDP members, at that meeting, if you heard most of them there, the position they took was that ‘this is the Senate president they want.’

Across party lines, they believed in me that this is the Senate president that can lead us. There was no deal.

“Sometimes, I wonder how some of our colleagues found themselves at the ICC. If it had been a case that the CNA (clerk of the National Assembly) had made an announcement that the event had been postponed or it was no longer holding, plus, the invitation, it would have been different. I’m sure some are asking now,what really happened,” Saraki said.

Speaking further, he said “First of all, the PDP senators had announced to the public that they were supporting me without even meeting me because in their own meeting, the majority had decided to vote for me. In their own interest, strategically, they decided that, look, this is a fait accompli because 30 of their own senators were going to vote for this man anyway and the remaining felt it was better to join.

It wasn’t until 2:00am that they called us to tell us their decision. With regards to the deputy, when they told us that they had a candidate, we, too, told them we had a candidate for deputy Senate president in the person of Senator Ali Ndume. After our own meeting, it was our thinking that it was after the election of the Senate president that the two groups in APC would meet and we would agree on a candidate. We never in our imagination thought they would not turn up. By the time we got there, we were only 24 while the PDP was more than 40. In an election, there’s no way they would not have defeated us and that was what happened. And now, when people say it was a deal, I say that if the CNA had started the procedure in the House of Representatives first, and moved to the Senate thereafter, today, we, the APC, would have had a deputy Senate president.

“It is unfortunate that we have a PDP man as deputy Senate President. It is painful. It is painful for any APC member because when we went through the struggle, that was not what we signed for. But it has happened; but it is unfortunate and it is not fair to put the blame on one side because it is a combination of errors and miscalculations that led us to have, it that morning; some senators at another place instead of being here. So, to suggest that it was out of a desperate act to emerge is what I reject completely and those who followed the events would know that I didn’t have that deal to emerge, ” he said.

The Senate president also disclosed that he never shunned the invitation of the party to a meeting on the inauguration day, contrary to reports.

He explained that he got wind of plans to abduct him and keep him away from the National Assembly premises so that he will not be able to stand for election so he made plans to sneak into the complex early and was not with his phones till later that day.

“First of all, as regards the meeting (at ICC), on the morning of the inauguration, I didn’t finish meeting until 4:00 of that day and I had got information that efforts would likely be made to make sure that I didn’t get access into the chambers.

“So, as early as 4:00am and 5:00am, I had made contingency plans that I must get into the National Assembly because the plan before was that senators-elect should go to the Transcorp Hilton Hotel around 8:00 am and 9:00am to proceed to the National Assembly.

“But I was advised that it would not be safe or secure for me to do that because some people made sure…if I didn’t get into the chambers, it would t be possible for me too be nominated, for the nomination to be seconded and for me to accept the nomination.

“I can tell you today that I was in the National Assembly Complex as early as 6:00 in the morning and I stayed in a car in the car park, from 6:00 in the morning till quarter to 10:00am. This is the truth. I stayed there and I was there with no communication whatsoever.

“So, anybody who said they spoke to me to go to ICC was not true because I didn’t even know what was going on. All I was monitoring was how people were arriving the complex.

“It was at quarter to 10:00 that I got information that the clerk to the National Assembly had entered the chamber. So, I got out of the small car I was inside, stretched myself and put on my Babariga because I didn’t have it on before then.

“I walked from the car park into the chambers…That was why some of you would have seen that I looked very tired on that morning,” Saraki said.

Oyegun: The WORST Mistake I've Ever Made As APC Chairman

The national Chairman of the ruling All progressives Congress, APC has recounted among others the worst mistake he had ever made as the party's chairman.

Oyegun in an interview with the Daily Trust shared that his decision to call the meeting that took place on the the National Assembly was inaugurated.

"There are lots of decisions, not just one, some of which are private. If you want to limit it to the recent past, I would say the decision to call the meeting that took place on the day the National Assembly was inaugurated."
"That was a bad mistake. I was persuaded and I agreed to call that meeting. Had it been it did not take place, we probably won’t have a PDP person there today as the deputy Senate president."
"The anger within the leadership of the party may not have turned out as strong as it became," Oyegun said

It would be recalled the that APC summoned all it National Assembly members on June 8th 2015 in a bid to pass in a bid to pass instruction on who emerges what at the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Meeting which was boycotted by Senate President Bukola Saraki and few of his APC loyalist.

Saraki's group, while other APC lawmakers were holding meeting with the party leaders, conspired with the PDP Senators, conducted election with the forged Senate Standing rule that ushered him and Ike Ekweremadu as the Senate President and the deputy respectively.

The Untold, The Joker, The Big Secret Why Buhari Is Actually On Massive Crackdown On 'Corrupt Politicians'

The total dominance of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC by 2019 has been revealed as the untold reason why President Muhammadu Buhari government will continue and sustain its massive crack down on corrupt politicians, Ripples Nigeria reported

It was learnt according to Ripples Nigeria that the hunt for perceived enemies of the state is beyond the anti-graft war as has been widely speculated.

The last three months have witnessed a rash of arrests, mostly of top government officials who served in the Goodluck Jonathan administration and their ‘collaborators’ in the corporate world. The most recent were the dramatic invitation and arrest of Femi Fani-Kayode, Jonathan’s former Campaign Director, and Barrister Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, a known critic of Buhari’s seeming permissive disrespect for the rule of law.

Theirs were preceded by the detention and release of the Managing Directors of Fidelity Bank, Sterling Bank and Access Bank. There are speculations that a very top official of First Bank may also have been picked by operatives of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

While Adegboruwa has been accused of ‘419’ activities, the bank chiefs are alleged to have partaken in Dasukigate and the looting of $15 billion earmarked for arms purchase.

Very competent sources within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) have confided in Ripples Nigeria that the sustained battle against ‘corruption’ is deliberate and orchestrated, and aimed at clearing the way for total dominance of the party in the 2019 elections. But this is only the broad perspective. Our sources say that the minor details lay in the hidden struggle for the control of the party structure and soul of the APC.

“APC is stewed in opposition politics. We are veterans and understand what it means to put our opponents on the defensive all the time. PDP was a behemoth, and still remains largely so with a massive financial chest. We know that with a slim majority across the states and the National Assembly, our hold on the polity would be tenuous.

“The move to decimate PDP is strategic and deliberate. It’s the wisest and safest thing to do in the circumstance, if we hope to consolidate the reins of power in 2019. We don’t want to be a one-term government, the source stated.

He continued that “The PDP made themselves game by the reckless looting of the nation’s treasury. We knew they were desperate to retain power in 2015 and stole heavily to fund the campaigns. It was easy to track their sources of funding because of our network within the presidency. The revelations so far are a tip of the iceberg. By the time we are done, PDP would barely crawl,” our source said.

He admitted that rumblings within the party had become a major threat to its stability but was quick to add that APC was focused on the primary task of putting PDP in disarray.

“Yes, it’s true that powerful elements within the APC hierarchy are engaged in a fierce struggle for control of the party machinery. Not even the presidency is uninterested. Buhari is arguably one of the hungriest and smartest Nigeria politicians alive. He knows that he must work to keep the party structure with him. Don’t be deceived, the ‘anti-corruption war’ may swing either way and come in handy as a joker.”

The source also noted that discerning party chieftains are already wary of this and plotting safety valves, just in case Mr President decides to table his ace.

“In spite of all the rumblings, we are focused on the one goal of returning to power in 2019. This is paramount to all APC faithful”, our source said.

Ripples Nigeria

Fulani Herdsmen Killing: Buhari's Silence, Inaction Worrisome - Benue APC Lawmaker, Tarkighir Cries Out

Hon. Dickson Tarkighir, an All Progressives Congress, APC member of House of Representatives representing Makurdi/Guma Federal Constituency of Benue State, has expressed worry over President Muhammadu Buhari's continuous silence over the incessant and indiscriminate killings of innocent Nigerians by Fulani herdsmen all over the country.

Tarkighir, speaking with The Guardian in Abuja, the lawmaker, who is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) representing Makurdi/Guma Federal Constituency of Benue State, urged President Buhari to take stiff action on herdsmen responsible for the destruction of lives and property across the country.

The lawmaker, who is the sponsor of the Cattle Ranch Bill, which has passed the first reading stage on the floor of the House of Representatives, argued that rather than the much-touted grazing reserve routes, the establishment of cattle ranches remains the panacea to the incessant clashes between herdsmen and farmers in the country.

Said he: “I must say that the incessant attacks by herdsmen on communities across the country has brought a lot of anxiety. Government needs to act fast. I am surprised that the President has been silent over the killings in Benue in Taraba, Kogi, Nasarawa, especially the north central valley."

“The President has said nothing. People are beginning to think that his presidency has emboldened herdsmen to attack communities across the country because he is a Fulani man who also owns a cattle ranch. The President is supposed to lead by example.

“Let him show cattle rearers where his ranch is, show them that this is the best way to graze cattle. If the President can ranch his own cattle, that is the reason why he should preach the idea of having ranches and ensure that those who cannot afford this are given incentives to do this.

“The President has condemned the attacks in Brussels and Paris by terrorists, but he has not come out to condemn the attack on Benue farmers  and people are reading a whole lot of meanings to this. He has not proffered a solution since these crises started.”

'Saraki LIED', We Struck Deal With Him To Become The Senate President - PDP Reveals

Contrary to claim by the embattled Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki he struck no deal with the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP to become the President of the Senate, a national officer of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP has said that the PDP had been in alliance with the embattled President of the Senate, before, during and after his emergence as the head of the national Assembly.

Bukola Saraki has explained how he emerged the senate president of the 8th assembly dismissing talks that he struck a deal with Nigeria’s main opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party to emerge president.

Saraki in response to Dele Momodu’s position that he struck a deal to emerge, noted that, senators elected on the platform of his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) gave the PDP an opportunity produce the senate deputy president.

“I did not do any deal with the PDP. I did not have to because even before the PDP Senators as a group took the decision to support my candidature on the eve of the inauguration of the 8th Senate, 22 PDP Senators had already written a letter supporting me.”

HAVE YOU READ Saraki's Successor: 10 APC Senators Strike Deal To Support Ekweremadu, See Names of Senators Involved?

“What I did not envisage was a situation where some members of my party would not be in the chambers that day, especially when the clerk had already received a proclamation from the President authorizing the inauguration of the Senate.”

“Pray, if a team refuse to turn up for a scheduled match and is consequently walked over, would it be fair to blame the team that turned up and claimed victory?” he quizzed.

He then aded that: “I believe those that made it possible for PDP to claim the deputy senate president position were those who decided to hold a meeting with APC senators elsewhere at the time they ought to be in the chambers.

However, a national officer of the PDP, who asked not to be named, said the party was aware of the development and that the PDP would be happy to take over the Senate Presidency.

DON'T MISS CCT Trial: Tinubu Behind My Ordeal For Denying Him Presidency - Saraki Opens Up

“We have been in alliance for long because Saraki was a PDP member. When he was in the New PDP, which later merged with other parties to form the APC, we were still with him and him with us, even at the level of his Senate Presidency. So we will be happy to take over the Senate because the APC never wanted to recognise the New PDP in its fold,” he said.

But, a national officer of the PDP, who do not want his name mentioned has revealed that the PDP and Saraki had been in alliance for a long time. The officer who was quoted by Daily Trust newspaper, in reaction to the new deal struck with 10 All Progressives Congress, APC to back Senator Ike Ekweremadu to succeed Sakaki, should the current Code of Conduct Tribunal trial consume his office.

The PDP national officer was quoted by Daily Trust saying; “We have been in alliance for long because Saraki was a PDP member. When he was in the New PDP, which later merged with other parties to form the APC, we were still with him and him with us, even at the level of his Senate Presidency. So we will be happy to take over the Senate because the APC never wanted to recognise the New PDP in its fold,” he said.

My Deputy Contracted Witch-Doctor To Kill Me, Gov. Oshiomhole Raises Alarm; I Swear, I'm Innocent, Deputy

The relationship between Governor Adams Oshiomhole and his deputy,  Dr. Pius Odubu has broken down in the past seven months, creating factions in the Edo  APC ahead  of the governorship primary in the state, report according to Vanguard News revealed

As published by Vanguard News, the crisis blew open  after Odubu’s coordinator, Barr.Humphrey Uanseoje, signed a letter with other governorship aspirants of the party such as Ogienwonyi, Imasuagbon and Barr. Omo Irabor, which they sent to the national leadership of the APC where they alleged plans by the state Chairman of the party, Anslem Ojezua, to doctor the delegates list for the gubernatorial primary with the backing of Oshiomhole. The publication shocked many  watchers of the politics of the state since it would be the first time the deputy governor will be openly accusing his boss of alleged plot to manipulate the forthcoming primary of the APC. 

Odubu’s loyalists and those of the governor had been in the trenches following Oshiomhole’s apparent reluctance to back his deputy whom many perceived has been very loyal to his boss since they came into office. But worried by this development, Ogie, who is known as one of the generals in the Oshiomhole’s political family, took up the initiative to settle the rift between the governor and his deputy. Ogie, in collaboration with the member representing Etsako Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Philip Shuaibu, decided to make this move, given that Odubu has been part of Oshiomhole’s political machinery since 2007. The intention was to stop the  animosity which they believed will help to keep the governor’s camp intact, ahead of the primary of the party.

 What Ogie did was to put  persons also close to Odubu  in the reconciliation committee so that the deputy governor will not lose confidence  in the committee. As a result, a  former Edo State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Chief Lucky James, and Chief Gabriel Oibo, who are key supporters of Odubu, were drafted into the committee. This committee held their first meeting on Sunday, April 10,  2016, where they agreed to meet with Odubu first to preach the gospel of peace  to  him. 

When the committee met with Odubu, Ogie informed him of the need to restore peace between him and the governor, saying their visit was on a friendly note and had nothing to do with politics. Odubu was said to have expressed his grievances and informed them that he had nothing against the governor but that he was disappointed that some of his followers were being victimized due to their support for his governorship ambition. However, Odubu informed members of the committee that he was ready to hold the peace meeting with the governor whom he said he had enjoyed close relationship with until recently. 

On Monday April 11, 2016, Oshiomhole came back to Benin from his village, Iyamho, where he met the peace committee waiting for him. Apart from the members of the committee, led by Ogie, the state Chairman of the APC, Anslem Ojezue; state Secretary, Chief Osaro Idah; Oshiomhole’s in-law, Victor Eboigbe and Chief of Staff to the Governor, Patrick Obahiagbon, were also at the meeting. Ogie, who opened the meeting, narrated how the group, including the deputy governor, had worked closely in the past ten years with Oshiomhole, saying it would be bad to allow bickering between the governor and his deputy to continue. 

The Commissioner for Works offered the two leaders the opportunity to sort out their problem behind closed door while they excused them to do so. Philip, Oibo and James concurred with Ogie, stressing the need for the governor’s political family to be united in the run up to the party primary and the governorship election. Oshiomhole, Sunday Vanguard learnt, appreciated their concern but informed the meeting that he will prefer they were around so they could know the real issues and treat them. His deputy concurred and everybody stayed for the meeting. Firing the first salvo, Odubu lamented that his office had been starved of funds, his political allies victimized, the governor refused to attend  his  wife’s birthday and, above all, the governor directed his Attorney General, Mr Henry Idahagbon, and Washington Osifo to write a petition against him to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) with a view to impeaching him. 

The deputy governor further lamented how the governor had allegedly relegated him to the background, expressing shock that the cordial relationship, which had existed between him and the governor, broke down. But responding, Oshiomhole, who recalled how he had backed his deputy in his political battles and his several advice to him as a brother, explained that the parlous state of finance of Edo had even affected his own office and other government offices, and not only that of the deputy. He narrated how he had been travelling without his aides due to paucity of funds. Oshiomhole went further to berate his deputy for being part of those who signed a statement accusing him of backing the state Chairman of the APC, in the alleged plot to manipulate the delegates list ahead of the primary of the party, asserting that the deputy’s action was a clear indication of an attack against his person. 

But Odubu, who defended himself, denied being behind the statement, explaining that his coordinator put his signature with some other party members who needed it but never knew what they wanted to use it for. But the leaders of the party expressed their doubt in his defence, saying he should have debunked the publication if he was not behind it. Odubu, however, apologised to Oshiomhole, assuring that such mistake will not be repeated. Tension in the room heightened when Oshiomhole started responding to the allegations against him by Odubu that he did not attend his wife’s birthday and that the governor had treated him recently like a leper. 

Sunday Vanguard gathered that the governor declared to the leaders that he had deliberately avoided attending events at his deputy’s house after it was revealed to him that his deputy allegedly contracted native doctors to hurt him so that Odubu will take over as governor. Oshiomhole said he was informed of the alleged plan by a leader of the party and that he had met with the native doctors whom his deputy allegedly contracted to do the damage, adding that the native doctors admitted and gave him details of how the rituals were executed. Oshiomhole added that the party leader who leaked the information, who was out of the country, was ready to confront the deputy with the details of his alleged meeting with the witch doctors. He further stated that he could not have attended any ceremony at Odubu’s place, saying he would not want to be poisoned. 

The governor’s disclosure was said to have come  as a surprise to the APC leaders but it equally elicited strong rebuttal from his deputy who attributed what he described as the spurious allegation to the handiwork of his political enemies. To buttress his innocence, Odubu volunteered to contact a strong traditional doctor in Benin, so that those who accused him will come and take an oath before the gods. 

He vehemently denied the allegation and reiterated his loyalty to the governor. But some of the party leaders at the meeting were said to have countered Odubu with his suggestion, informing him that he should have suggested swearing with the Bible since he is a Catholic. But Odubu thundered that he was shocked with the allegation and would like to clear his name with whatever that will convince everyone. Some of the party leaders at the meeting admonished Odubu to end his governorship ambition. 

However Ogie calmed the situation and the parley ended on a  good note after both parties expressed satisfaction. As the governorship primary of the party, scheduled to hold sometime in June-July, draws closer  Oshiomhole’s foot soldiers, led by Ogie, are working round the clock to ensure a united house. Odubu is viewed as one of the most formidable aspirants in the APC and cannot be taken for granted. 

Sunday Vanguard was informed that the governor and his deputy exchanged banters after the meeting and a date for another peace meeting was fixed for this week.

Culled from Vanguard News

Saraki's Camp In Disarray As Ekweremadu In Secret 'Coup' To Oust The Senate President, You'll Be Shocked At This Revelations

Report according to Ripples Nigeria has it that what began as an innocuous award to Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, on Tuesday has created serious unease in the camp of Dr. Bukola Saraki, incumbent leader of the Senate, who is currently facing trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal for false declaration of assets.

The award, ‘Anti-corruption Ambassador,’ which is now mired in controversy was reportedly cooked for Mr. Ekweremadu by the Liaison Officer of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at the National Assembly, Mr. Sulaiman Bakari. The agency has since denied the said staff, leaving the Deputy Senate President thoroughly embarrassed and feeling that he may have been scammed.

Sources close to Senator Saraki say that the anti-corruption crusader award bestowed on his deputy took his camp by surprise, coming at a time the Senate President’s integrity was being questioned both at the tribunal and in the Panama Paper leaks. Saraki’s loyalists are now querying the original intentions behind the Ekweremadu misadventure, a source confided in Ripples Nigeria.

What has emerged is that the Saraki and Ekweremadu camps are heading for an apparent showdown as mutual distrust sets in. The Saraki camp is alleging underground moves to unmake their principal via a ‘timed coup’.

The unease among the Saraki elements heightened on Wednesday when the Deputy Senate President emerged from a closed-door session of the Senate to announce that the upper legislative chamber was reversing some of its earlier decisions which had drawn the ire of Nigerians and made Saraki even more unpopular.

Among others, Ekweremadu said the Senate was suspending further debate on amendments proposed for the Code of Conduct Act which many believe was instigated by Saraki to extricate himself from the CCT trial.

He also announced that the Senate was standing down the suspension clamped on Senator Kabir Marafa, a known Saraki critic who wanted the Senate President sacked soon after he was elected.

He added that the Senate had also resolved that all members who had cases instituted in the courts against their colleagues should have same withdrawn, emphasizing that the Senate was now more united than before.

Finally, he said that Senators will stand by their embattled President all through the course of the trial at the CCT. While many at the Senate closed-door session cheered, reports say that die-hard Saraki loyalists were not amused and have since drawn a battle line.

Our source said, “We are surprised at the Deputy Senate President. We believe that the award was an orchestrated move to rubbish Dr. Saraki and position himself as a saint. We see through this charade, and are not impressed.

“We smell a dirty plot, a timed coup to stampede Oga out of office.

“We think Ekweremadu is in a hurry to be Senate President. They should allow the law to run its course. Dr. Saraki has said he would not resign and is ready to face trial. This set back is only temporary. We are confident he will prevail in the end”, he said.

Last week, the Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Odigie John Oyegun, sent the clearest signal till date of the party’s resolve to sack the troubled Senate President. He had given indications that the APC would spare nothing to oust Saraki.

Analysts believe that Ekweremadu’s succession plots may have been bolstered by Oyegun’s pronouncements.

One commentator told Ripples Nigeria, “The man has a right to aspire. There is a gap to be filled, and this has been made manifest by APC chieftains who have come out to say that they do not want Saraki anymore.

“Politicians are the same everywhere. They are all opportunists and would seize the moment if an opportunity presents itself. Ekweremadu cannot be an exception. He has been lying in wait for long.

“I think he is being edged on by permutations that the opposition party, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) have a comfortable standing in the Red Chamber and only require a few disgruntled APC Senators to climb the throne”, he noted.

The apprehensions in Saraki camp, reports say, are the reason behind the latest plot by his legal team to cause further delays in his trial.

On Wednesday, the Agabi-led legal defence force got their principal to formally request that the CCT Chairman, Danladi Umar, quit the trial on grounds of alleged bias against Saraki. There are speculations that Saraki’s camp won’t take matters lying low and are preparing to unleash a media war against all perceived enemies, with Ekweremadu no exception.

Though no official words have come from either camp, the Deputy Senate President, it is gathered, has reached out to Saraki to reassure him that he means well. An inside source said, “Yes, he called to let him into all the goings-on in the Senate and all is well between the Senate President and his Deputy. He is privy to all that transpired.

“It is very clear that there is no love lost between the two. We will stand by our leader, no matter what,” he said.

Source: Ripples Nigeria

It's Too Early To Condemn Buhari - PDP Chieftain, Bode George

Chief Olabode George, a former southwest Vice-Chairman of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP has said it is too early to batch President Muhammadu Buhari-led government of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.

Chief George in an interview with the Daily Sun opined that the President grap­ples with the myriads of problems confronting the country urged Nigerians to be patient with Buhari. He said  he has refrained from joining is­sues with him because, “it is just a year and person­ally, I don’t believe this is the time to start kicking them”, described Nigeri­ans as “ very impatient.”

He, however, identified the con­gregation of different groups in the party which has defied proper fusion as the major cause of the many problems afflicting the government which has slowed down progress. Describing the President’s All Progressives Congress (APC) as a “congregation of strange bed fellows”, he averred that the instabil­ity in the party has frus­trated the expectations and hopes of Nigerians on the government, adding that, “if you don’t have a solid political foundation, for­get about any economic growth.”

George further advised the APC not to make the mistake of the PDP by al­lowing these crises and di­visions, which he blamed for the latter’s ouster from government in the 2015 presidential elections.

“For me, it is still too early. Understandably, they came from differ­ent groups that make up the party. They are still struggling…politics and political activities are the foundations for economic growth.

“If you don’t have a solid political foundation, forget about any econom­ic growth. It is sine qua non. There is CPC, ACN, APGA, nPDP. It is a con­gregation of strange bed­fellows. It will take time for them to melt together.

“We don’t want to go into that crises and the divi­sions, because we know what happened to our party that we got a bloody nose. Thank God it was not a technical knockout”

Excerpted From Daily Sun

David Mark REJECTS Offer To Replace Saraki, Declares Support For APC; 4 Names Shortlisted

Tense mood pervaded the Senate proceedings on Tuesday, following the departure of the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki, to attend the sitting of the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), in respect of his ongoing trial for false asset declaration.

The Nigerian senators were said to be unhappy at the development, especially with the symbol of the institution being kept in the dock during Senate sittings.

“We cannot shave someone’s head in his absence,” said a lawmaker, who added that the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has not debated the issue of who replaces Saraki if he is possibly swept aside through the ongoing trial,” sources said.

The lawmakers said the issue of who takes over at the helm of the Senate would only be taken within a few days when it became obvious.

The development was coming on the heels of the revelation that the immediate past Senate president, Senator David Mark, has rejected subtle offers that he takes over from Saraki, in case the Senate president is removed.

Sources close to the former Senate president told the Nigerian Tribune in Abuja that Mark was content with playing the role of an elder in the Senate, adding that he would continue to be a guide to the Senate at critical times.

“I can tell you that the former Senate president is content with his role as the conscience of the eighth senate. He is of the view that the PDP should allow the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) run the show, so that the former ruling party could play its role as opposition.

“We in the PDP have had our time and Senator Mark is of the view that the APC should be allowed to run its government, so that they don’t turn around and blame anyone for obstructing them,” the source said.

It, however, emerged that the pro and anti-Saraki forces have continued their strategy meetings despite the daily sittings at the CCT.

While some members of the SUF, who have clamoured for a united APC caucus in the Senate, had also canvassed the emergence of a unity candidate in case Saraki was removed, the Like Mind Senators, the group loyal to Saraki, had continued to bank on the support of the PDP to dictate the pace.

It was gathered that the groups had agreed to field a unity candidate if Saraki was removed.

“One of the issues said to have been agreed to at the different caucus meetings is the fact that a unity candidate should emerge and that could lead to the emergence of a compromise candidate,” a source said.

It was gathered that some names had been thrown up, but no conclusion had been reached so far.

Those being mentioned included Senator Shaba Lafiaji (Kwara), Barnabas Gemade (Benue), Abdullahi Adamu (Nasarawa) and the Deputy Senate President, Ekweremadu (Enugu).

In another development, the Senate announced on Tuesday that the National Security Adviser and service chiefs would appear before the lawmakers today.

Their appearance was in connection with the summon extended to them last week by the Senate over the  missing Chibok girls, kidnapped by Boko Haram elements in 2014.

Ekweremadu, who presided over the sitting, said the NSA and the service chiefs would be in the chamber by 10.00 a.m., while urging the senators to be punctual.

Ekweremadu said that the Senate was worried at the continuous disappearance of the abducted girls and apparent lack of information on what the security agencies were doing to secure their release.

In another motion passed on the floor of the Senate on Tuesday, the lawmakers approved the continued importation of used tyres, popularly called Tokunbo, into the country through land borders.

The motion followed the passage of the motion, entitled: “the use of substandard or used tyres on Nigerian roads,” sponsored by Senator Shehu Sani.

Sani, in his motion, expressed worry about the growing deaths from road traffic accidents.

He said from 2010 to date, statistics had shown that over 5,000 lives had been lost on Nigerian roads as a result of burst tyres.

He said the development was either due to low quality or over-use of the tyres.

But the Senate failed to empower the Federal Roads Safety Corps (FRSC) and Vehicle Inspection Officers (VIOs) to conduct a random checks on tyres in use across the country.

Nigerian Tribune

'To Hell With You', I'll Work With Whomever I Chose - Kogi Gov. Bello Dares APC

In a daring manner, the Kogi State Governor, Alhaji Yahaya Bello, has said it is his constitutional right to appoint his personal aides without any recourse to any group of people, provided the individuals meet up the requirement as stipulated by law of the land, Ripples Nigeria reported

The ‎governor speaking through his Special Adviser on Media and Strategy, Mallam Abdulkarim Abdulmalik, at the weekend was reacting to an alleged letter purportedly written by the State Executive of All Progressive Congress, APC, to the national leadership of the party.

The Governor said he was yet to be informed by the National Secretariat of the ‎APC about the petition, adding that he is running an all-inclusive government and the APC leadership are free to recommend any body for any appointment provided the person meets certain criteria for such positions.

He said his government is working towards unity and as such his doors are always open to accommodate everybody irrespective of religion, ethnic and political differences.

The governor accused the State Chairman of the APC, Alhaji Haddi Ametuo, of hiding under the party to play clannish games and PDP card against his government because his favoured choice, Honourable Jimoh Lawal, was removed as Speaker of the House of Assembly by the lawmakers.

Bello said his administration has demonstrated commitment towards rebuilding the state and unite the people for peaceful co-existence through people-oriented policies and programme.

This according to him attested to the warm reception accorded him at Okene when he was recently received by a large crowd that thronged the city square to rejoice with him over his victory at the polls.

“I will not behave like the past leaders, who now regret not doing the right thing while in office due to selfish pressure mounted on them by some people. Anybody with impeccable credentials and feels that he has something to offer the state can come forward,” Governor Bello stated.

The Governor further explained that his government will continue to accord respect to every citizen of the state adding that the day of ethnicity and inter-tribal crisis are over.

Source: Ripples Nigeria

Osun Speaker Faults Senate CCB/T, ACT Acts Amendment

Speaker, State of Osun House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Najeem Salaam has expressed his objection to the amendment of Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB) and Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) acts coupled with Administration of Criminal justice act being currently undertaken  by the Senate, saying the timing was wrong and the perception was negative.

In a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Goke Butika, Speaker Salaam stressed that the insensitivity displayed by the sponsor of the bills has further aggravated the misconception of the people about the disposition of the National Assembly towards the anti-corruption fight of President Muhamnadu Buhari led government.

He charged the lawmakers of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to as a matter of duty, address the world Press conference and disassociate themselves from the legislative rascality being championed by some Senators who enjoyed confrontation with the executive, in order to be seen and be believed to be working on the same page with the President, and to make a statement that they would support any action suggesting changing of the goal post in the middle of the game.

He said: "Our party promised to be fair and just to all Nigerians irrespective of party affiliation, and the potent way to do that is to allow the course of justice to run without fair or favour, but for some Senators to now come up with controversial bills that would be perceived to be designed for personal interest of an individual suggests that some people are enjoying the raging confrontation between the National Assembly and the Executive, and any progressive minded APC lawmaker must not be found in that mode."

Speaker Salaam then clarified that there was no crime in sponsoring bill, but the two bills slated for amendment were crucial to the trial of the Senate President Bukola Saraki, despite the fact that they would not have retrospective value to the case at the Code of Conduct Tribunal, but the timing of the amendment would push Nigerians to hold the National Assembly in contempt, and could have a trickle-down effect on the perception of the people at the state legislature.

He asserted that there could be a genuine friction between any of the two arms of government, but the disagreement must be on principles of national interest, saying that Nigerians were suffering, and would want the legislature and the executive to operate on the same wavelength in order to deliver palliative measures and good governance that would generate life abundance for citizenry; saying that was the credible way to assert independence of institutions, not a celebrated crisis in the media.

Signed:

Goke Butika

CPS to the Speaker

CCT Trial: Saraki Dumped In Pool Of Own Fate; Dino Melaye, Goje, Wammako, Others Back Down as Camp In Disarray

The Nation - Hours after the refusal of the fundamental rights application by Senate President Bukola Saraki to stop his trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) by a Federal High Court in Abuja, there were signs at the weekend that some of his prominent loyalists within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) may be retracing their steps.

There were strong indications that they may be opting to support an ongoing move by the leadership of the party to unite the party’s caucus in the national assembly.

Reliable national assembly sources told The Nation yesterday that prior to the judgment delivered by Justice Abdul Kafarati on Friday, some frontline supporters of the embattled Senate President have resolved to withdraw their support for Saraki in his bid to remain in office as Senate President while his trial at the CCT lasts.

In the meantime, the National Chairman of APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, has ruled out the possibility of the party losing the senate presidency to the opposition. In an interview with an online medium, The Premium Times, he said, “We don’t take anything for granted. As they are planning, we are also planning. The situation is under control.”

He insisted that the party is not likely to lose the position to the opposition, but noted that should this happen, it will have to be the ‘price’ for the desired ‘change’.

It was also learnt that some members of the Senate President’s camp in the national assembly are now of the view that the incessant face-off between the legislature and the presidency allegedly being generated by Saraki’s trial at the CCT, is needless and avoidable.

“Hence, some of them are ready to support a change in the leadership of the senate to save the ruling party from further crises and at the same time represent the yearnings of their constituents for good governance by ensuring strict adherence to the provisions of the laws of the country,” our source, a Senator from Lagos State, said.

“Mr. Senate President is currently facing charges that borders on false declaration of assets … The issue has gone beyond mere accusations as he has already gone down in history as the first serving Senate President in the country to be docked in a competent court.

“Sadly, one recalls that there is a way these things have been handled in the past to save the national assembly, and by extension, the government, from unnecessary embarrassment. All former presiding officers of the National Assembly, who were faced with similar charges, first resigned their positions in order to protect the integrity and sanctity of the country’s hallowed chambers.”

The senator regrets that what has been happening in the last few months “were blatant display of disregard for the sanctity of the senate by some misled and confused senators whose loyalty is not to the country, but to an individual or group.”

The senator added, “But one is happy today, to tell you that things are changing for better. For one, I can tell you the APC caucus in the senate is working towards uniting all. We are healing the divide imposed on us by self serving individuals. We are all returning our loyalty to the party and the government.”

The Nation gathered that attendance at the regular and emergency meetings  of the ‘Like Minds Senators’, the group of senators loyal to the President of Senate, has plummeted in recent times, giving credence to talks about serious cracks in the ranks of Saraki  loyalists.

Senate sources put the reduction in attendance to the activities of a committee instituted by the APC caucus in the national assembly to unite the legislators elected on the platform of the ruling party. According to reliable sources, the committee, that has core Saraki allies in the likes of Senators Aliyu Wammako, Danjuma Goje, Kabiru Gaya, Ahmed Yerima and Adamu Aliero, as members, is championing a united APC caucus that is loyal to the party and government as against the current arrangement of a divided caucus.

For instance, a meeting called yesterday at the residence of Saraki in continuation of the one held earlier in the week recorded abysmal attendance in spite of the fact that it was scheduled early enough and a text message was sent few hours before the kick off to remind senators.

Not only was the attendance low, the discussion, we learnt, was unimpressive. Those who attended, it was said, were downcast and disturbed. The meeting, unlike the one a few days earlier where the decision to review the laws establishing the CCT was taken, was devoid of the usual vibrancy, our source added.

The Nation also gathered that the text message reminding Like Minds Senators of the meeting was, unlike the previous ones, sent by an aide of the Senate President. A prominent Senator from Kogi State is known to have sent invites to such meeting before now.

“What we heard was that the Senator who used to do the invite tactically avoided doing same for the last meeting. To further cause anxiety in the Senate President’s camp, he was absent at the meeting where he was scheduled to brief the Senators on certain steps taken to advance the cause of the group. His action and absence formed the chunk of the discussion at the unimpressive meeting,” our source added.

It was also gathered that the APC caucus in the lower chamber recently met to discuss the crises in the national assembly and resolved that members of the caucus must desist from taking side in the Saraki saga.

“The House caucus took a decision that none of us should drag the lower chamber into the senate crisis by making inflammatory statements. Specifically, we are to henceforth toe the party’s line in all matters. The meeting also resolved that there should be no division within the caucus.”

Another member of the lower chamber from Kogi State told our correspondent that effort to unite the APC caucus in the national assembly is yielding fruit to the detriment of the camp of pro-Saraki hardliners. According to him, it is only a matter of time before a final position on the various bones of contention in the national assembly is announced.

The Nation also gathered that the dwindling fortunes of the Saraki camp is responsible for its inability to push through the suspension plot allegedly instituted against the Senator representing Zamfara Central, Kabir Marafa, an unrepentant critic of the Senate President.

Weeks after the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions, submitted its report on its investigation on Marafa, the Senate has failed to deliberate on the panel’s recommendations. Marafa was accused of granting a press interview to allegedly mislead the public about the senate.

Marafa, a second-timer at the upper chamber of the National Assembly, served as the mouthpiece of the Unity Forum, an umbrella of senators that worked for Senator Ahmed Lawan (Yobe North), the preferred candidate of the APC for the plum job.

Following the Supreme Court verdict on the appeal of Saraki on his CCT trial, Marafa demanded the resignation of Saraki. He had said, “What is happening in the CCT is personal to Saraki and has nothing to do with his position as the Senate President. It has now reached the time when Saraki should take a bow to enable him concentrate on his case at the CCT.  I don’t have anything against him as a person.”

Expectedly, pro-Saraki Senators made a huge show of the interview and demanded the immediate suspension of the Zamfara senator. But following an unexpected show of support for Marafa by other senators across party lines, Saraki referred the matter to the Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges and Public Petitions.  He asked the committee to report back a week later.

According to senate sources, the Senator Samuel Anyanwu (PDP, Imo East)-led committee has recommended Marafa’s suspension but the development has failed to receive the blessing of majority of the members of the senate as many feel Marafa has not done anything wrong that would warrant any punishment.

Our source also attributed the new thinking in the national assembly to both the effort of some party leaders in senate and the failure of Saraki to stop his trial at the CCT in spite of several efforts to get competent law courts to declare that he shouldn’t be docked.

Kafarati’s judgement on Friday put paid to earlier optimism that the Senate President will get a reprieve. The judge held that the reliefs prayed for by Saraki “are not cognisable under Chapter 4 of the 1999 Constitution”, which lists the fundamental rights of citizens.

Saraki had, for the umpteenth time through his counsel, Ajibola Oluyede, filed the application challenging the trial at the CCT for falling short of Article 3 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights and Section 36 of the 1999 Constitution. He argued that the prosecution wants to achieve the political objective of the All Progressives Congress (APC)

Saraki’s counsel, Oluyede has indicated intention to appeal the verdict of the court before the Court of Appeal.

The APC chairman, Chief John Odigie Oyegun has declared that a political solution may not be in sight for the ongoing Senate President’s trial at the CCT.

According to him, a purported political solution as is being bandied by a section of the political class will negate the change philosophy upon which the President Muhammadu Buhari-led APC government was voted into power last year.

He said “The President is certainly not the type who will interfere in a judicial matter,” as that would also negate his straight personality.

“Things must be done normally. And that is part of the change mantra that we must play by the rule so we don’t truncate the processes.”

Odigie-Oyegun explained that “People don’t seem to internalize what change is. If the President says “court, free that man”, the same president can say “court, imprison that man.” Is that the Nigeria you want? No! Change means allowing the law to take the proper course. I can tell you the President won’t interfere. The President is straight definite, straight and firm in all facets.”

On the possibility of the party losing the senate president position to opposition PDP, Oyegun said, “We don’t take anything for granted. As they are planning, we are also planning. The situation is under control.”

He said, “I don’t think we will lose that position. But sometimes, for change to take place there is price you have to pay. So losing the position may be sacrifice for change.”

On speculations of in-fighting in the party, Oyegun said this is normal as there are always different views. “Interests differ. Some feel they are not sufficiently rewarded or consulted. So, it happens. We are just barely one year in power.”

On complaints that Nigerians have yet to feel the much-touted change, the APC chairman said change is a ‘process’ and a ‘progressive’ phenomenon. “When the process fully completes, we will have a totally new Nigeria.”

FG Approves $25 Monthly Stipend For The Poor, Puts 500k Graduates On payroll

The Nigerian government plans to make cash payments to poor people of about $25 per month to try to ease poverty and stimulate the economy, the vice-president said on Thursday, a plan that would cost a total of about $300 million per annum.

President Muhammadu Buhari won election in March 2015 on a promise to fight poverty and corruption, which has held most of Nigeria’s 180 million people in poverty despite its oil wealth.

“One million poor and vulnerable Nigerians would receive 5,000 naira ($25) monthly,” Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo said in a statement outlining government priorities for the next 12 months.

Nigeria’s annual per capita income in 2014 was about $3,200 according to the World Bank.

The government will also employ 500,000 graduates as voluntary teachers while they seek jobs in their chosen careers, he said.

The initiatives were part of Buhari’s election campaign. The former military ruler has come under pressure in recent weeks due to fuel shortages. 

The economy, Africa’s largest, is also suffering from the global slump in oil prices.

Osinbajo did not say how these benefits would be funded, saying only there were part of a 6.06 trillion naira record budget for 2016 which parliament passed last month. Buhari still has to sign the bill.

The government has said it wants to borrow as much as $5 billion abroad but has not detailed how it wants to plug a budget deficit which officials have put in the range of between 2.2 trillion and 3 trillion naira.

Buhari has rejected a devaluation of the naira, which would hit poor people as Nigeria needs to import much of its food needs.

REUTERS

WANTED Tompolo Writes Buhari, Names 'Cabals' Behind Pipeline Vandalism

Government Ekpemupolo popularly known as Tompolo, the leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, has boldly alleged that the Governorship candidate of the All Progressive Congress, APC, in Bayelsa State, Chief Timipre Sylva along with some other party members in Delta State are the chief major sponsors of the attacks on oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta area.

The wanted fugitive, Tompolo in a statement addressed to the President, Muhammadu Buhari added that the recent attacks on the oil and gas facilities were only aimed at smearing his name.

He continued in the statement; “They are doing this in connivance with an EFCC lawyer, who is also a member of your party; he is at the forefront of prosecuting me because I refused to buy property from him.

“The crux of this letter is to let you know them, that they are dubious, mischievous, desperate, pretentious, manipulative and corrupt, therefore, do not share the same vision and mission with you, as well as do not believe in good governance. I will briefly tell you some of their antecedents in this letter.”

He further added; “I wish to inform you that it has come to my knowledge that the leader of your party and governorship candidate of the APC in Bayelsa State and a few young men from Warri South West LGA of Delta State, who joined the party from the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) after the 2015 presidential election, are hell-bent on linking me to the renewed vandalism of oil facilities in the Niger Delta region whereas they are the ones carrying out the acts to smear my name.

“The leader of your party in Bayelsa State approached me shortly after my meeting with you in Abuja, that I should accompany him to meet you and plead for him to be appointed as Special Adviser (SA) and Chairman of the Presidential Amnesty Programme Committee, which I refused to do because of his antecedents, as not being a reliable and trustworthy person.

“It was thereafter he forced his way into the governorship election of the state, which almost tore the state apart with violence, beginning with the party primaries in which he demonstrated a high level of desperation as was recounted by the chairman of the committee and governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole.

“Mr. President, as for the members of the party from my local government area, Warri South West, they have been involved in illegal bunkering and oil theft activities over the years, which I have been fighting against because of my love for the country. They know me as a no-nonsense person.

“There is this particular one from the same Gbaramatu Kingdom with me who has sworn to kill me because I refused to manipulate the ascension to our traditional stool in his favour when he was not even qualified for it. And so, he looks for any opportunity to deal with me,”

Herald NG