Today’s Headlines:LP Ready To Negotiate With Wike—Ozigbo, Dokubo Fumes Over N4.5bn Pipeline Contract

LP Ready To Negotiate With Wike—Chieftain

A chieftain of the Labour Party, Mr Valentine Ozigbo, has said the party’s leadership is making plans to woo the Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, and other aggrieved members of the Peoples Democratic Party and All Progressives Congress leaders to support the party’s presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, ahead of the 2023 general election.

Ozigbo, who was the governorship candidate of the PDP in the Anambra State governorship election, stressed that the LP would be ready to enter into an alliance with Wike, and some other willing state governors to gain their support for Obi’s presidential bid in their respective states.

He spoke on the sidelines of the Labour Party’s stakeholders’ meeting, in Awka, on Friday and urged the electorate to shun vote trading and vote for Obi because he could solve the humanitarian problems facing the country, such as youth unemployment, poverty, ethnic restiveness and insecurity.

He said, “It has become clear that Peter Obi is the choice of every segment of the Nigerian populace for the presidency of this country in the coming election. It is now incumbent on us to let those who don’t have the influence of the social media, who are influenced by money, learn that the little money they get that will not last for two weeks is not enough to sacrifice the whole of the next four years; that if they are in a position to resist the money, they should resist it, but, if they can’t resist it, they should take the money and vote wisely.

“Now, let me say this. We are open to discussing with other parties. Naturally, we will like to see the Labour Party in the entirety of the Senate, House of Reps and state assemblies. That should be our first option.”

Dokubo Fumes Over N4.5bn Pipeline Contract

Fresh crisis is brewing in the Niger Delta region following the decision of notorious militants’ leader and founder of the Niger Delta Volunteer Force (NDVF), Asari Dokubo, to oppose the N4.5billion monthly pipeline surveillance contract awarded another former warlord, Government Ekpemupolo, aka, Tompolo.

The aggrieved Dokubo, in a video, said it smacked of greed for Tompolo to be in charge of pipeline protection for all the ethnic groups in the Niger Delta, Nation reports.

Dokubo wondered why Tompolo would be in charge of Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers States querying whether he was the only one that knew how to eat.

He vowed to stop Tompolo from being in charge of the surveillance contract for the 83km pipeline criss-crossing his Kalabari area in Rivers State.

Dokubo said he would not allow Tompolo’s armed boys escorted by soldiers to enter the Kalabari area.

The creek warlord accused the Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva, of deliberately giving everything to Tompolo to spite him (Dokubo) and destabilise the Niger Delta.

Dokubo said, “You will take pipeline contract in Delta State your place and then you come to Kalabari to take another one saying you are an Ijaw man because you are the only one that knows how to eat.

“You took the ones that belong to Gbaramatu, Itsekiri, Isoko, Urhobo, Kwale, you took all because you are the only one that knows how to eat. You went to Bayelsa and took everything then you came to take the one in Kalabari.

“If Timipre Sylva gave you because he said he wanted to clip my wings as if he were a god. When Sylva was a member of the House of Assembly, did I clip his wings? I am older than Sylva.

“When he was a Governor, did I clip his wings? He is now a Minister, did I clip his wings? Sylva said I was becoming too powerful and connived to give pipeline contracts to only Tompolo so that he would destroy what we are doing for the government he serves.

“We are making the government to be stable, but he is destabilising the same government he serves. So he brought Tompolo gathered people saying he would buy guns for them. Let them come. I am not boasting, let soldiers bring the Tompolo boys here.

“I am not talking about Rivers. I am saying they cannot take Kalabari. They can take every other place but I won’t allow them take Kalabari. You are collecting over N4.5bn a month for doing nothing. And people are supporting you. You must leave the 82km pipeline for Kalabari. You can’t take it.

“Take all other place but this one in Kalabari, you can’t take it. Have you heard that since we started fighting, army had entered my camp before? But his own within three days Iroko was destroyed and Camp five was destroyed. Till today, army is still occupying Camp five. Army has never entered any of my camps before. I live inside camp close to army people.”

Kaduna 2023: NNPP drags INEC to court, wants APC guber candidate, Sani disqualified

The Kaduna State chapter of New Nigeria Peoples Party, (NNPP) has dragged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to court.

It is seeking the disqualification of Senator Uba Sani, the gubernatorial candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) over alleged electoral irregularities in the primary election held on May 27, 2022.

When the case came up for mention before Justice Hadiza R. Shagari of the Federal High Court, Kaduna, on Friday, all the parties asked for extension of time to enable them prepare and respond to the motion on notice.

The NNPP legal team was led by Mr. Wole Agunbiade (SAN). The APC had Barrister Sule Shuaibu, while INEC counsel was Barrister Halima Gachi.

Justice Shagari, therefore, adjourned the case to 15th September, 2022, for hearing.

While speaking to newsmen through a member of his legal team shortly after the court sitting, Wole Agunbiade explained that they want to ensure that the INEC did the right thing.

He said that the INEC shouldn’t have published the name of the candidate because the APC did not conduct valid primary election.

He emphasized, “NNPP is challenging the conduct of APC primary election for governorship held on May 27, 2022.”

Senator Uba Sani was declared winner of the Governorship primary election of the APC.

He polled 1,149 votes to emerge winner, while a former Assistant Comptroller-General (ACG) of Customs, Bashir Abubakar scored 37 votes. Alhaji Mahmood Sani Shaaban polled 10 votes.

Ex-military chiefs under investigation for stealing security funds: ICPC chair

Some former military chiefs are being investigated for fraud, says Bolaji Owasanoye, chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).

Mr Owasanoye was discussing how grand theft of security funds by military chiefs was festering insecurity around the country when he made the disclosure.

“At face value, insecurity is seen to be, and is sometimes treated as a matter requiring only a military response or reaction, but an in-depth look into its possible root cause(s) shows that corruption is a major contributory factor to the continued existence and propagation of insecurity in the country,” Mr Owasanoye said at a “Policy Dialogue on Corruption and Insecurity in Nigeria” in Abuja on Friday.

Citing cases of massive looting of funds by military top brass, Mr Owasanoye said “some former military and security personnel are being investigated by ICPC and our sister agency for embezzlement of funds allocated to security.”

“There are also ongoing investigations into military contract spending. Recently, ICPC arrested a military contractor that received over a period of less than 10 years, a cumulative sum of about N6 billion from the Nigerian Army in suspicious circumstances and in violation of extant legislation.

“The Commission’s recovery of huge cash sums in local and foreign currencies, luxury cars, customised mobile phones, designer watches, including three Rolexes, as well as property documents from the premises of the contractor underscores the corruption that often attends military procurement,” Mr Owasanoye added.

In June, Peoples Gazette reported how ICPC operatives raided an Abuja property linked to former Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai. The anti-graft agency, while confirming the recovery of exotic materials from the raid, said the raid was targeted at a military contractor Kabiru Sallam.

Last year, the National Security Adviser, Babagana Munguno, alleged that funds meant for the purchase of weapons have been mismanaged by service chiefs.

Speaking further Mr Owasanoye said “a former head of one of the arms of the military in the twilight of his tenure deposited the sum of N4 billion from the military budget into the accounts of two companies where he is the beneficial owner and sole signatory.

“The proceeds were used to purchase properties in Abuja in the names of cronies and proxies. Some of the properties paid for by his service were also fraudulently converted to his use.

According to the ICPC Chairman, ICPC’s prosecution of this high-ranking officer to recover all the implicated assets was strangely and perversely frustrated by a recently retired High Court judge who decided to forfeit some of the assets to FGN and the rest left to the suspect.

While the Commission has filed notice of appeal, this strange development aggravates an already bad situation and escalates insecurity and impunity, the anti-graft chief said.

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