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PDP’s claim about Obi’s victory in Anambra ridiculous – Ogene
Afam Victor Ogene, Labour Party (LP) House of Representatives Caucus Leader, has faulted the testimony of a witness of Atiku Abubakar, the People’s Democratic Party, PDP presidential candidate in the February 25, 2023 presidential election, Ndubuisi Nwobu, at the presidential election petition tribunal, describing it as watery, contradictory and admission of failure by the leadership of the PDP in Anambra state.
During proceedings on Wednesday, Nwobu who is Anambra PDP chairman and also the state collation agent of the party, alleged that “magic” happened to the votes of the PDP candidate at different collation centres.
The results of the election in Anambra, as announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission, indicate that Peter Obi, the Labour Party candidate scored 584,621 votes, Atiku polled 9,036 votes in the state, while Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress scored 5,111 votes.
Ogene, who is the House of Reps Member-elect for Ogbaru Federal Constituency, Anambra state, in a statement in Abuja on Thursday, said the integrity of the result in Anambra is cast in the fortress of the uncompromising will of the people of Anambra state to vote for their son, who is not only popular in the state, but has also been overwhelmingly accepted across the nation as the face of the new leadership that Nigeria deserve.
He said: “The allusion to ‘magic’ by Ndubuisi Nwobu in his testimony is laughable, because the only obvious attempted magic in Anambra, was the failed plot by Nwobu and his co-conspirators, to conjure electoral success, where they had abysmally failed to win the trust of the people, as a result of their less than transparent and transactional political philosophy that do not put to account the interest of the people.”
Ogene, said further that it was contradictory and self-indicting, for Nwobu to confirm that election results were signed at the polling unit and ward levels by all party agents, including those of the PDP, but inexplicably alleged that the same results which was announced by INEC, were products of ‘magic’.
He added: “Nwobu should be decent enough to admit that he failed woefully as the PDP chairman in Anambra state to mobilise support for his principal, Atiku, and also show integrity and good character by transparently giving the PDP national leadership and their candidate the true account of why he failed to achieve good result, despite the huge resources made available to them in Anambra state for the project, rather than playing the dishonourable role of a court jester.
“If I may ask, what was PDP expecting to achieve in Anambra state, given the manner the party and it’s principalities in the state muscled our revered leader, Peter Obi, out of the party, by plotting to disgrace him in his homestead, Anambra? Besides, what was Nwobu’s mission in the over 30 pulling units he visited on election day, as he admitted to the tribunal?
“As a party collation agent, was he supposed to be roaming round polling units where he was not registered as a voter? Nwobu should take his drama to the appropriate stage for such, as the tribunal is not the right arena for such ignoble performance of poorly scripted absurdity. If Labour Party and Peter Obi could win convincingly in a state like Lagos, a fiefdom of the APC candidate, Tinubu, querying Obi’s victory in his home state of Anambra, is absolutely hilarious and bewildering.”
Qowiy Oloyede, a resident of Oriya Sokoto road, Atan Ota, is currently telling operatives of the Ogun State Colice command, the reasons that pushed him into making a video suggesting that a part of the state was under attack of terrorists, knowing same to be fake.
Oloyede, reports say, dragged to the police on May 23 by one Ayinla Sodiq, who accused him of creating and sharing a misleading TikTok video falsely claiming that bandits had invaded the Atan Ota community..
Zagazola Makama, a counterinsurgency publication, which broke the news, said on immediately being questioning by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Oloyed, allegedly confessed to fabricating the video to gain followers on social media.
Apart from admitting that that he created the fake bandit attack content to gain followers and trend online, said in a video currently on social media the herder featured in the clip was a cattle rearer who usually grazed cows behind his shop and had initially refused to participate before eventually agreeing.
Oloyede, who also claimed he could neither read nor write, adding that his apprentice wrote the caption accompanying the video posted online, maintained that he had only produced and posted two similar videos, one on Monday and another on Wednesday.
The command, said to have recovered photographs and video evidence linked to the fake publication during preliminary investigation, added that the suspect would be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID), Abeokuta, for further investigation, warning residents against spreading false information capable of causing panic and public disorder, and for the public to verify information before sharing content on social media.
For the umpteenth time, President Bola Tinubu has once again, urged Nigerians to be patient with his government, saying the reforms he embarked upon in the last three years, which had begun to yield result would come to its full manifestation soon.
The President, also expressed gratitude to those who had remained supportive of his government during the period, praising them for their resilience and promising that he would not disappoint in the end.
Tinubu, who spoke on Sunday while accepting the fresh nomination of the All Progressives Congress (APC) after being announced as the winner of last Saturday’s presidential primaries across the country, was particularly grateful to the members for their support and renewed his commitment to national development.
With a total of 10,999,162 votes against Stanley Osifo, his only opponent during the exercise who polled 16,503 votes, the President told his audience: “In accepting this nomination, I renew my commitment to serve our nation with even greater determination.
“With another four years of discipline, focus and national cooperation, we will firmly place Nigeria on an irreversible path of economic expansion, industrialisation, energy security, infrastructural development, food sovereignty and democratic consolidation.”
Anyim Pius Anyim, former Senate President, Chairman of the Presidential Primaries Committee of the party, had announced the result of the exercise, subsequent upon which the President received the party flag for the 2027 presidential polls from Nentawe Yilwatda, the APC National Chairman.
Tinubu, while acknowledging the economic hardship experienced by Nigerians since the introduction of key reforms under his administration, including the removal of fuel subsidy and foreign exchange reforms introduced in 2023, told the party faithful: “You have given me the encouragement. Sometimes it is difficult, and I share the pain with you.
“I know what it is to reform an economy that was in tatters. If you lost sleep, I lost some too. If you have lost weight, I think I have lost some too. But I have always remembered one thing: in 2022, I asked for this job, you all supported me, and I got it, so I must do it.”
Highlighting several reforms implemented by his administration, including the student loan scheme, tax reforms, and infrastructure projects, he said more than ₦282 billion had been disbursed to about 1.5 million beneficiaries under the student loan programme, pledging to strengthen electricity supply and create more opportunities for young Nigerians and businesses across the country ahead of the 2027 election.
The president reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to security, promising intensified efforts against banditry and other criminal activities across the country.
Tinubu also urged Nigerians not to become “complacent” or allow politicians without “clear alternative visions” to derail the country’s progress, noting that the forthcoming election must be “a reaffirmation of Nigeria’s democratic maturity.”
“We feel that if the situation is not immediately checked, the citizens may rise against the owners of gas filling stations,” were the words with which gas marketers raised alarm on Sunday about the consequences of the continued scarcity of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), otherwise known as cooking gas across the country.
At the current prices, of ₦1,500 per kg, the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM) warned stakeholders of an impending public anger against their operations, regardless of their innocence in the rising prices of the commodity.
They particularly drew the attention of the Federal Government, government agencies, industry regulators, importers, LPG producers, depot owners, LPG consumers, and the general public to the situation, exculpating members of blame, as they were now forced to pay between N25,200,000 and N26,200,000 for 20MT of cooking gas in parts of the country.
Part of the statement, read: “It is sad and rather very pathetic to inform the general public that the citizens of Nigeria have woken up to buy cooking gas, which should be a social item at a prohibitive cost of over N1,500per kg, while the Marketers are made to pay as much as N25,200,000, or, depending on location, N26,200,000 for 20MT of cooking gas.
“This sad situation has brought untold hardship to millions of Nigerian households, small businesses, food vendors, and low-income families who rely on LPG for daily cooking and livelihood.
“It is rather worrisome to state that this situation is seriously eroding the substantial progress made by the Government on the usage of Clean Energy in the country.
“We observe that where product is available, it is sold at rates far beyond the reach of average Nigerians. NALPGAM hereby observes that the current crisis is undermining years of progress achieved through Federal Government policies, public-private investments, and awareness campaigns aimed at deepening LPG penetration and promoting clean cooking energy as a safer alternative to kerosene, charcoal, and firewood in Nigeria.
“While millions of Nigerians have embraced cooking gas as a result of the national clean energy transition agenda, it is sad to state that those gains are at risk as households are struggling to refill cylinders, small businesses are folding under rising energy costs, while many families are reverting to firewood and charcoal despite the serious implications for public health, environmental degradation, and deforestation.”
On the wider socio-economic implications, the Association warned that if urgent and coordinated actions are not taken immediately, the current crisis could trigger broader consequences, including accelerated food inflation, the collapse of small-scale LPG retail businesses, job losses, reduced investor confidence, and a significant setback to Nigeria’s clean energy and climate commitments.
The Association is calling on the Federal Government, the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd, domestic producers, terminal operators, international suppliers, and all critical stakeholders in the LPG value chain to take urgent, coordinated steps to stabilise the market before it degenerates further.
It called for immediate measures to improve the availability and accessibility of LPG nationwide, increased domestic LPG allocation to the Nigerian market, ensuring transparent and equitable distribution of available supply across regions, reduction of bottlenecks in product importation, storage, and distribution, implementation of strategic interventions to stabilise retail prices, and protection of consumers.
The marketers also called for other measures, such as investment in critical infrastructure, including storage and distribution facilities, and adoption of policies that support affordability, sustainability, and long-term growth of the sector.
NALPGAM reaffirmed its commitment to constructive engagement and collaboration with government agencies, regulators, producers, and other stakeholders to develop sustainable solutions that will guarantee an affordable, stable supply and continued growth of the LPG sector.
“In conclusion, it is apposite to state that “We cannot stand by and watch millions of Nigerian families suffer in silence while access to clean cooking energy becomes increasingly difficult and unaffordable. For years, Government and industry operators have worked to move Nigerians away from unsafe fuels. Those gains are now under serious threat”, the statement added.
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