Epunchng - Most read newspaper in Nigeria Nov 26 2017 | Page 3

News
Implement 2014
confab report
– Southern senators
pOlItY
The Southern Senators’
Forum has urged President
muhammadu buhari to convene
a meeting of the leadership of the
National Assembly, state houses
of assembly and governors.
The forum, according to the
News Agency of Nigeria, said
the proposed meeting should be
given the mandate to brainstorm
and start the process of
implementing the 2014 National
Conference report.
The Chairman of the forum,
Senator
Hope
Uzodinma,
read the communiqué which
contained the group’s position
at the end of its retreat held in
Calabar, the Cross river State
capital, on Saturday.
The communiqué noted
that the forum also resolved that
its members would liaise with
their northern colleagues in the
National Assembly to start a
legislative process that would
ensure the implementation of the
report.
It also said the group urged
the leadership of the National
Assembly to bring up the report
for consideration.
It read in part, “After
the presentation of papers,
contributions and general
brainstorming, it was resolved
that Nigeria and Nigerians have
come a long way.
“As such, it has become
imperative and in the interest of
all, to live together as one united
family under one indivisible and
indissoluble country with justice,
equity and fairness.
“While the unity of Nigeria
should not and cannot be
compromised
under
any
circumstance, it has become
apparent that the foundation
upon which Nigeria was built at
independence in 1960 has been
eroded.
“There is a need to return
to the original dream of true
federalism which was a product
of negotiation, compromise and
accommodation,’’ he said.
The
retreat
witnessed
presentation of papers from
prominent Nigerians on various
subject matters, including
“Sustaining National Unity in a
restructured Nigeria’’.
TODAY IN HISTORY
November 26, 1607
- This day is believed to be the
birth date of London-born
clergyman John Harvard, the
principal benefactor of the
original Harvard College in
Cambridge.
November 26, 1789
– A national Thanksgiving
Day is observed in the
United States as proclaimed
by
President
George
Washington at the request of
Congress.
November 26, 1827
-
ellen
Gould
White,
founder of the Seventh Day
Adventists, was born.
November 26, 1867
- A refrigerated railroad
car was patented by Jb
Sutherland of Detroit.
November 26, 1922
– Howard Carter and Lord
Carnarvon become the first
people to enter the tomb of
Pharaoh Tutankhamun in
over 3000 years.
November 26, 2017
3
Our position on automatic ticket hasn’t changed – APC
JOHN AlEcHENU
T
He All Progressives
Congress has once again,
maintained that there
will be no automatic ticket for
pOlItIcs
anyone contesting the 2019
presidential election on the
party’s platform.
The National Publicity
Secretary of the APC, who is
also a member of the party’s
National Working Committee,
bolaji Abdullahi, stated this
on Friday while responding to
enquiries by SUNDAY PUNCH
over a statement credited to a
national leader of the party,
Asiwaju bola Tinubu, on the
issue.
Tinubu had, in an interview
with reporters in Akure, the
•L-R: Edo State Deputy Governor, Mr. Philip Shuaibu; a former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar; Ondo State
Governor, Oluwarotimi Akeredolu; and Chancellor, Igbinedion University, Chief Gabriel Igbinedion, during the conferment
of a honorary degree of Doctor of Law on Akeredolu by the authorities of the university in Okada, Edo State... on Saturday.
Photo: Ondo State Government House
…Buhari not interested in automatic ticket, says Kalu
MAUREEN IHUA-MADUENYI
A
former Governor of
Abia State, Dr. orji
Kalu, has said President
muhammadu buhari is not
interested in an automatic
ticket to contest in the 2019
presidential election.
Kalu, who spoke with
journalists at the murtala
muhammed
International
Airport, Lagos, on Saturday,
said the President wanted
the APC to explore necessary
democratic process by allowing
other candidates to contest the
party’s presidential primary
election.
Kalu said, “President buhari
as a democrat wants every
interested aspirant to be given
a chance to test their popularity
and exercise their democratic
right.
“buhari is not even looking
for an automatic ticket. He is
a man that is very fair in what
he does. His feeling is that if
anyone wants to contest against
him, such a person should come
out at the eagle Square.
“Some schools of thought
are saying that if in the United
States’ obama was given an
automatic ticket, buhari should
be given that too. but he feels
that an automatic ticket for him
is not right. He said they should
open the floor for other people
who also want to contest.”
Kalu believed the contest
should be thrown open.
He added, “The re will be no
rancour in the party. We are
in a democracy and I will vote
for the President; we are not
afraid of anybody who wants to
contest against him. I’ve said it
times without number that the
pOlItIcs
President needs to consolidate
on his achievements and most
of his tenure has been besieged
by illness.”
The former Abia State
governor also stated that
following his support for the
last governorship election
in Anambra State, buhari’s
popularity was growing in the
South-east.
He added, “I’m just coming
in from the South-east where
President buhari is making
a lot of inroads. The role he
played during the Anambra
election
was
significant;
other presidents would have
written the results. They have
done it before. If it were other
presidents, APC would be
jubilating.
“He warned the police,
INeC and the party. So why
don’t Nigerians embrace this
man who is saying, ‘I might be
slow but do things through due
process’. I’ve spoken to some
Catholic bishops, priests and
some Anglican bishops and
some priests in the Presbyterian
Church who used to criticise
the President and they are
beginning to think differently.”
He said the Governor of
ebonyi State, Dave Umahi, had
endorsed buhari, adding that
his Anambra State counterpart,
Willie obiano, might also do the
same.
Commenting on Atiku
Abubakar’s recent resignation
from the APC, Kalu said he
would have advised him to stay
back if he had the opportunity.
“I would say, ‘Don’t leave;
let us build a large team
together’. It is not every election
year we would go and form a
new political party. It doesn’t
entrench
our
democratic
process,” he said.
Kalu also stated that the
Peoples Democratic Party
would not bounce back because
of the massive looting of the
nation’s treasury during the last
administration.
ondo State capital, last week,
insisted that the party would
not give an automatic ticket for
President muhammadu buhari
to contest the 2019 presidential
election.
The APC leader was
reacting to claims by the
Chairman of the Progressives
Governors’ Forum, rochas
okorocha, that 34 state
governors had endorsed the
President for the 2019 race.
Tinubu, in his interaction
with the media on the issue,
had said it was inappropriate
for any group of individuals to
usurp the power of the people.
He had noted that the APC
was a party built on the rule
of law and that the APC would
carry out due process when
the time came to select its
candidate
The former Lagos State
governor also said President
buhari would not subscribe to
any arrangement that would
scuttle due process.
Abdullahi agreed with
Tinubu’s position on the
issue, stressing that the views
expressed by the party leader
were not different from the
party’s position too.
The spokesperson said,
“What he (Tinubu) said is not
different from what the party
has been saying. I have been
speaking and sending out press
statements on the issue and
our position has not changed.
“As a party, we are currently
focused on delivering on our
current mandate and that to
me is what we should focus
on.”
In a separate interview on
the issue, the party’s National
vice-Chairman (South South),
Hilliard eta, said the party
respected its rules just as
it respected the rights of
individuals to freely hold and
express opinions.
He said, “The endorsement
of a candidate is part of the
democratic culture which
is normal. Personally, my
candidate for the 2019
Presidential
election
is
President
muhammadu
buhari.”
AGF lied I bought property seized by Maina – Falana
ENIOlA AKINKUOtU
H
UmAN
rights
lawyer, mr. Femi
Falana (SAN), has
lambasted the Attorney
General of the Federation,
Abubakar malami (SAN),
for linking him to a N1bn
property located at 43 Gana
Street, maitama, Abuja.
The embattled former
chairman of the defunct
Pension reform Task Team,
Abdulrasheed maina, had
accused Falana of buying
the building which was one
of the properties he helped
to seize from pension
thieves and handed over to
the economic and Financial
Crimes Commission.
malami
had
while
testifying
before
the
National Assembly last
week, echoed the allegation,
pROBE
saying the property was
sold to a ‘Lagos lawyer’.
However, Falana said, “I
have decided to take issue
with mr. malami over his
false claim that the eFCC
had sold the property in
question to me. Contrary to
mr. malami’s claim, I never
bought any property from
the eFCC.
“If mr. malami had
conducted a search on the
property in question, he
would have found that it
was one of the assets used to
‘collaterise’ a loan obtained
from bank PHb by A Group
Properties over 10 years
ago.
“He would also have
found that the property is
a subject matter of a suit
which is currently pending
before the Federal High
Court sitting at Abuja. (See
Suit No /2015 between
Assets
management
Corporation of Nigeria v A
Group Properties Limited).”
The human rights lawyer
added that the suit was
instituted by AmCoN due to
the failure of the company
to liquidate the loan.
Falana said in granting
the ex parte application,
filed by AMCON in the
matter, the court ordered
an interim forfeiture of the
assets of A Group Properties
Limited
including
No.
42 Gana Street, maitama
District, Abuja.
He added, “The said
order was granted on
November
11,
2015.
However, in a bid to pay the
loan, A Group Properties
Limited decided to sell some
of the properties. The sale of
the property in question to
me was made subject to the
setting aside of the order of
interim forfeiture which had
been obtained by AmCoN.
“Up till now, the case
has not been concluded as
the parties have asked for
time to resolve the dispute
amicably and file terms of
settlement. To that extent,
the transaction on the
property remains inchoate.
“Although
the
said
order of interim forfeiture
was granted in favour of
AmCoN over two years
ago, mr. malami has not
deemed it fit to disclose to
the Federal High Court that
the property at 42 Gana
Street, maitama District,
Abuja, was recovered by the
Presidential Task Force on
Pension reform.”