Headlines
Obi Better Than Other Candidates, Obasanjo Insists
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that only an “unpatriotic and bad Nigerian” would vote for a candidate with bad character.
Obasanjo spoke on Thursday in Abeokuta, the capital of Ogun State, while featuring in an interactive session of the Experiential Leadership in Africa with the theme “Executive Decisions, Indecisions, and Leadership Development in Africa.”
While defending his choice of Labour Party’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, the former president said Obi was his preferred candidate for the presidency.
The former president, in his New Year message to Nigerians, entitled “My appeal to all Nigerians, particularly young Nigerians,” expressed his support for Obi.
While reacting to a statement that he endorsed Obi, Obasanjo insisted that he did not use the word “endorse,” but he only gave his opinion on the candidates.
Obasanjo said, “Whether the letter is open or not, what I believe is that I will be punished by God if I know what is right and I do not put it where it should be.
“The word I used is that one particular candidate has an edge. Taking everything together, I take the character, track record, vision, and what you see in this man as a child of God.
“I said they all claimed to be my mentees, and of course, I won’t deny that, but if you are my mentee, they must also admit that I know them a little bit, and if I then know them a little bit, I must be right to say…
“I have done this before. I said President Buhari does not understand the economy, and that is true, and you have seen it. I wasn’t running him down; that is what he is, and he will admit that.
“I said his (Buhari’s) understanding of foreign affairs is also very limited because, when he was military head of state, he said his frontline does not go beyond the borders of Nigeria; that is a pity.
“But what then do you have? I wrote a letter that was almost six and a half pages long and then only had one sentence – ‘why should you, as a Nigerian, vote for someone whose character, reputation, and life you would not want for your children?’”
He continued, “You are either wicked, unpatriotic, or a truly awful citizen of this country, and if this is who you are, what do you want God to do with you?
“For the last three days, I have had about 35 youths who I have been talking to, and they have all told me that education, security, and corruption are what they are concerned about; the question is, who then can do it?”
Obasanjo, in his response on whether or not multiparty systems have been the bane of development in Nigeria, blamed leadership and not the multiparty system for the underdevelopment of the country.
The Punch
The National Working Committee of the Peoples Democratic Party (NWC) has suspended the National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade; National Secretary, Samuel Anyanwu; Deputy Legal Adviser, Okechukwu Osuoha; and National Organizing Secretary, Umaru Bature for one month.
The suspension comes on the heels of the judgement of the Federal High Court On Friday, which stopped the party’s planned national convention.
The National Publicity Secretary of the party, Debo Ologunagba, told journalists in Abuja on Saturday, that the decision followed an emergency meeting of the national working committee, which was held in Abuja.
President Donald Trump of the United States on Friday designated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC), in response to allegations of widespread persecution and genocide against Christians.
Writing on his Truth Social account, Trump stated that Christianity faces a serious threat in Nigeria.
The US leader also added Nigeria to a State Department watch list.
“Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter,” Trump wrote.
According to the US president, he was placing Nigeria, Africa’s top oil producer and most populous nation, on a “Countries of Particular Concern” list of nations the US deems to have engaged in religious freedom violations.
According to the State Department’s website, the list includes China, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, and Pakistan, among others.
Trump said he had asked US Representatives Riley Moore and Tom Cole, as well as the House of Representatives Appropriations Committee, to look into the matter and report back to him.
A Federal High Court in Abuja has removed Hon. Abubakar Gummi from the House of Representatives after he left the Peoples Democratic Party for the All Progressives Congress.
The lawmaker represented the Gummi/Bukkuyum Federal Constituency in Zamfara State.
Justice Obiora Egwuatu delivered the ruling, holding that Gummi’s defection breached the Constitution.
The court said the seat does not belong to any politician but to the political party that sponsored the election.
According to the judgment, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, is barred from recognising Gummi “as a member representing Gummi/Bukkuyum Federal Constituency.”
The judge also instructed the Independent National Electoral Commission to “conduct a fresh election” for the vacant seat within 30 days.
The case was instituted by the PDP and its Zamfara chairman, who insisted that Gummi’s move to the APC had no legal justification. They argued that there was no division in the PDP to support his defection, as required by Section 68(1)(g) of the Constitution.
Gummi, through his counsel, claimed he left the PDP due to internal crises which he said made it “impossible” to serve his constituents effectively. The judge, however, dismissed his arguments and granted all the reliefs requested by the plaintiffs.
Justice Egwuatu, in a firm comment, warned politicians against what he described as reckless party hopping.
“Political prostitution must not be rewarded,” he declared, adding that lawmakers must not transfer votes won on one party’s platform to another party.
The court also ordered Gummi to refund all salaries and allowances received from October 30, 2024, until the date of judgment. He is also barred from earning any further benefits as a member of the House.
Additionally, the judge imposed a N500,000 cost against the defendants in favour of the PDP.
