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  • Buhari, APC planning to arrest, detain Saraki, Ekweremadu – PDP raises fresh alarm

    Nigeria’s main opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Sunday raised fresh alarm that the President Muhammadu Buhari led All Progressives Congress (APC) government is plotting to arrest Senate President, Bukola Saraki and his Deputy Ike Ekweremadu.

    The party also alleged that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) submitted its budget for the 2019 general elections to the presidency since February 2018.

    The party made this allegation via a statement signed on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr Kola Ologbondiyan.

    After the 2018 budget of N9.1 trillion was passed by the National Assembly in June 2018 and signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari, he sent a supplementary budget to the parliament for the next year’s polls for approval.

    However, the National Assembly went into recess last month to resume next month without attending to the supplementary budget.

    The presidency had begged the parliament to reconvene to pass the budget to allow INEC prepare for the elections but there are fears that the presidency is planning to use the opportunity to effect a change in leadership of the Senate because of the defection of the Senate President, Mr Bukola Saraki, from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the PDP.

    In the statement released today by the PDP, it has unraveled fresh facts confirming that the pressure by the Presidency for the reconvening of the Senate is out of a sinister motive and not for any emergency in the approval of the budget of INEC for the 2019 election.

    The party also said it has again uncovered a plot by the APC and the cabal in the Mr Buhari Presidency to use “compromised security agencies and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to invite, arrest and detain Senate President Bukola Saraki and Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu.”

    It alleged that the fresh plot to detain the two presiding officers is part of renewed design to keep them out of circulation, ahead of Senate resumption, so as to enable the heavily induced APC senators, who are now in the minority, to throw up two of their members as Senate President and Deputy Senate President respectively on the excuse that Saraki and Ekweremadu failed to show up for proceedings in the Senate.

    “The PDP notes that the new plot to cage Saraki and Ekweremadu, in devilish rehash of the Tuesday July 24, 2018 hostage-taking and invasion of their official residences by security agencies is coming after the August 7, 2018 failed attempt to use security forces to take control of the leadership of the Senate.

    “Apart from plots to arrest and detain Saraki and Ekweremadu, the PDP has also been made aware of plans to use the EFCC and security forces to clamp down on their family members, including their wives and siblings as well as close associate, all in the effort to weaken their resolve.

    “Moreover, investigations by the PDP further confirm that the insistence of the APC-led Federal Government on the emergency reconvening of the National Assembly, ostensibly to consider INEC’s budget for the 2019 election, is part of APC’s thicker plot to execute their premeditated ‘coup’ on the leadership of the Senate.

    “PDP was further informed that contrary to claims by the APC and the Presidency, INEC actually submitted the budget to the presidency since February 2018, only for the Presidency to submit it to the National Assembly in July when the legislature was already going on recess; with a view to enmesh it in a needless controversy.

    “Furthermore, the PDP counsels Acting President Yemi Osinbajo to stop acting saint, as Nigerians are aware that he is part and parcel of the actors behind the sordid developments playing out in the National Assembly.

    “The PDP invites Nigerians and the international community to note the activities of the APC and the Buhari Presidency, which have continued to put the unity and stability of our nation as well as our hard-earned democracy under serious stress.

    “In all, the PDP cautions the APC and power mongers at the Presidency to know that Nigerians have seen through their evil intentions and will continue to firmly resist them by standing for democracy and the unity of our nation at all times,” the statement said.

     

  • Defections: APC lacks legislative votes to impeach Saraki, Eweremadu – PDP

    The Peoples Democratic Party says the All Progressives Congress (APC) lacks the legislative number and constitutional facilities to remove Senate President, Bukola Saraki and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu.

    In a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, on Friday in Abuja, the party advised the Presidency and the APC to “accept the reality.’’

    It said that Presidency and the APC, having realised that there was no way they could muster the constitutionally required two-thirds votes of the 109 senators, representing 73 senators, was now engaged in “under-hand tactics.”

    This, according to it, include the invasion of the National Assembly.

    “Even before then, Nigerians were already aware of moves to use humongous funds to induce lawmakers to trigger crisis in the National Assembly and pave the way for the removal of presiding officers.

    “Now that they have discovered that there is no way they can achieve their intentions, they have commenced a war of blackmail, distortions of fact and media trial against the Senate leadership.”

    It said that the attempts would end up as another wasteful venture, as Nigerians were aware of “the long-drawn desperation to annex the legislature.”

    The PDP added that even among the ranks of APC senators and members of House of Representatives, there is huge aversion to the tactics being deployed to force out duly elected presiding officers of the Assembly.

    It said that such lawmakers were fully aligned with Nigerians, the PDP and the National Assembly leadership in the protection of the independence, sanctity and integrity of the parliament and all democratic institutions in the country.

    “It is therefore instructive for both the Presidency and the APC to know that there is no way they can remove the leadership of the National Assembly, particularly the Senate.”

    It cautioned against overheating the polity and attempts to circumvent rules and the Constitution, saying that such would not change the resolve of Nigerians to vote out APC in 2019.

  • NASS Siege: Presidency planning to ‘doctor’ IGP’s report to implicate us – Saraki, Ekweremadu

    NASS Siege: Presidency planning to ‘doctor’ IGP’s report to implicate us – Saraki, Ekweremadu

    Senate President, Bukola Saraki, and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu, have accused the presidency of planning to influence the Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Idris, to manipulate the just released report on Tuesday’s siege at the National Assembly by masked operatives of the Department of State Security Service (DSS) to implicate them.

    This was released in a joint statement signed and released by their media aides, Yusuph Olaniyonu and Uche Anichukwu on Friday.

    They said the Presidency has constituted a closet panel to review the interim report submitted by the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris, and submit a final recommendation that implicate them and their colleagues.

    Recall that the IGP had in a preliminary report to the Acting President, Yemi Osinbajo, accused the former DG, DSS, Lawal Daura of gross violation of Nigerian Constitution in Tuesday’s barricade of the National Assembly by DSS operatives.

    Idris said Daura was working for some politicians for selfish interest, but did not name the accomplices, and that he (Daura) did not consult with other security agencies before ordering the siege.

    The interim report questioned the validity of a security report that allegedly anticipated violence at the parliament.

    Daura was sacked by Mr Osinbajo on Tuesday afternoon. He was immediately handed over to the police for further interrogation over unathorised deployment of DSS officers.

    However, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) defended Daura’s action, saying its findings indicated that the disgraced spy chief was trying to prevent violence which PDP lawmakers allegedly planned at the National Assembly.

    But IGP rejected this claim, saying Daura sent DSS personnel who “acted like mercenaries, hired to carry out executions.”

    Saraki pushed back against the allegations at a press briefing Wednesday afternoon, describing it as an ‘insult’ on the collective intelligence of Nigerians.

    He said it was baffling that he leaders of the parliament could be accused of being in bed with someone like Mr Daura, even when the parliament was also at the receiving end of the former spy chief’s unchecked recklessness

    In their statement on Friday, Messrs Saraki and Ekweremadu alleged that the mandate of the closet panel being formed by the Federal Government is to turn facts on their head and blame the invasion of the National Assembly on the two leaders of the Red Chamber, “who will then be presented as having worked in tandem with the sacked Director-General of the DSS, Mallam Lawal Daura to stage the parliamentary security breach.”

    “We have been reliably informed that instead of the Presidency to set up a public inquiry or judicial commission to probe last Tuesday’s early morning Invasion of the National Assembly as being demanded by the general public, they have commenced a process of manipulation and fabrication.

    “The Presidency has set up a closet panel, which would work to a predetermined conclusion in which they will now claim that the Senate President and the Deputy Senate President worked in collusion with ex-DG of DSS, Lawal Daura to stage the invasion.

    “They want to shield the fact that the previous night before the invasion and up till the early hours of Tuesday, there was a meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC) senators and that the plan was for them to be moved in a coaster bus into the National Assembly complex later that morning for them to purportedly remove us and select a new Senate President and Deputy Senate President.

    The duo said the plot of APC senators only failed because the media, particularly social media, Nigerians and international community responded very swiftly as some legislators who came into the complex were refused entry by gun-wielding, hooded security operatives.

    “Now, they want to turn the facts on its head and blame us for their botched plot against democracy. We are hereby alerting all Nigerians and members of the international community that the present Nigerian government will stop at nothing to destroy, suppress and incapacitate the opposition. This is their new tactic and plot as we approach the period of the 2019 polls.

    “We hereby reiterate our earlier position that the coup against democracy as represented by last week’s invasion must be probed through an independent judicial commission of inquiry which will produce a comprehensive report. We reject any manipulated and fabricated investigation,” they said.

    The presiding officers added that they have also uncovered a sinister plot in which the government plans to use the anti-graft and security agencies to incarcerate them and some members of their families from next week, all in a bid to break their will and effect their removal.

  • EFCC: Ekweremadu refutes ‘ high blood pressure’ tales

    Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, on Friday, faulted the report that he developed high blood pressure while being interrogated by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    Ekweremadu also said that contrary to reports there were no “fresh facts” presented to him.

    The Deputy Senate President who insisted that there was not iota of truth in the “propaganda” to smear his image, urged Nigerians to disregard the reports.

    Ekweremadu who spoke through his media aide said:

    “My attention has been drawn to false reports in some national dailies that the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, developed High Blood Pressure in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC) upon alleged presentation to him of a fresh set of purported “hidden properties” supposedly acquired by him. There is no truth to this propaganda.

    “It would be recalled that operatives of the EFCC and men of the Nigeria Police laid siege to his residence at about 6 am on Tuesday, July 24, 2018, requesting him to report at its headquarters at 10 am the same Tuesday. However, no letter of invitation was delivered to him until around 9 am of that day.

    “Since the siege would not allow him to honour the belated “invitation” the same day, he, as a law-abiding citizen, wrote to the EFCC to request for another date, hence the rescheduled appointment of Tuesday, July 31, 2018.

    “Senator Ekweremadu honoured the 10 am appointment on the fixed date and left in the evening of the same day when he was granted bail on self-recognizance with an understanding that he would report at the EFCC office at 10 am the next day for a continuation of the interview.

    “He reported at the EFCC on Wednesday, August 1, 2018, at 10 am as scheduled, but informed them that he was not feeling well, a fact the EFCC doctor confirmed. He was then allowed to leave to see his doctor and it was agreed that a new date would be fixed for continuation of the interview.

    “So, there was no interrogation whatsoever on Wednesday, let alone presentation of so-called additional “facts” that purportedly triggered his blood pressure. Likewise, there were no new “facts” presented to him the previous day, Tuesday, July 31, beside those concocted by the dismissed Chief Judge of Enugu State, Innocent Umezulike and his cohorts in their petition.

    “The Office feels compelled by the mischief and orchestrated media trial to put the “facts” straight on this particular issue.

    “We thank our supporters for their genuine concern and prayers. We equally urge them to remain calm.”

  • How Buhari intends using vacation façade to invade NASS; impeach Saraki, Ekweremadu – PDP

    The Peoples Democratic Party has alleged that President Muhammadu Buhari’s scheduled 10-day vacation in London was an alibi to exonerate him from alleged “planned political illegalities,” “forceful invasion” and “mayhem” which it said were about to be visited on the National Assembly.

    The party said it was aware of plots which it alleged had been perfected in a meeting, on Wednesday night, between the Presidency and some All Progressives Congress senators, to forcefully reconvene the Senate, with protection from security agencies, with a view to impeach Senate President Bukola Saraki and his Deputy, Ike Ekweremadu.

    National Publicity Secretary of the PDP, Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan, in a statement in Abuja on Thursday, also alleged that the PDP was aware of the desperation to illegally take control of the National Assembly.

    He said this was part of the design to undermine the nation’s democratic institutions and completely foist a dictatorial regime on the nation.

    He said, “The planned invasion is also a bid to cover the atrocious and humongous corruption of the Buhari administration, which the National Assembly is set to expose.

    “The PDP has been reliably informed about how these APC senators, especially members of the Buhari Parliamentary Support Group, have been provided with huge sums of money, illegally lifted from repatriated funds, to carry out this nefarious act under the guise of urgent need to approve funds for the 2019 general elections.

    “Having been demeaned by the widespread condemnation of the recent siege on the residences of the Senate President and Deputy Senate President, in addition to the invasion of the Benue State House of Assembly in a failed attempt to impeach Governor Samuel Ortom and forcefully take over the state, President Buhari is now jetting out of the country so as to appear innocent and oblivious of the political terrors about to be unleashed on the National Assembly.”

    He reminded President Buhari and the APC that the PDP has taken over the Senate and that the party “is ready and able to protect our democracy with all instruments available in the constitution and parliamentary rule books.”

     

  • Tension as Ekweremadu falls sick during EFCC grilling

    Tension as Ekweremadu falls sick during EFCC grilling

    Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu on Tuesday fell ill during interrogation by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), it was learnt Wednesday.

    Recall that the Deputy Senate President had been in the EFCC custody Since Tuesday.

    He was being grilled over his numerous assets in Nigeria, United Kingdom, United States and United Arab Emirates (UAE).

    Specifically, Ekweremadu was asked to account for how he came about over 60 assets.

    When it appeared that he was getting weak, the Deputy Senate President was permitted by the EFCC to seek medical attention in the hospital.

    The resumption of the investigation on Ekweremadu’s assets will now be determined by his fitness and the medical report from the hospital, it was learnt.

    A top EFCC source said: “We were able to highlight additional 38 assets, added to the initial 22 on which he ought to give explanation.

    “The grilling started smoothly until he complained of discomfort and he was unable to continue to answer our questions. His sudden illness might have arise from high blood pressure.

    “Since he needed urgent medical attention, we allowed him to go to the hospital of his choice for treatment.”

    The Federal Government, through the Special Presidential Investigation Panel for the Recovery of Public Property, had traced 22 assets to Ekweremadu.

    The said assets were suspected to have been acquired through illicit funds.

    The properties are at No. 11, Evans Enwerem Street, Apo Legislative Quarters, Apo, Abuja; Plot 2633 Kyami, Abuja; Housing Estate (Plot 1106 CRD, Cadastral Zone 07-07, Lugbe, Abuja; Plot 2782 Asokoro Extension, Abuja, and Houses at Citi Park Estate, Gwagwalada, Abuja.

    Others are at Plot 1474 Cadastral Zone BD6, Mabushi, Abuja; Congress Court, Abuja; Flat 1, Block D25, Athletics Street (24th Street) Games Village, Abuja; and Plot 66, 64 Crescent, Gwarimpa Estate, Abuja.

    Traceable assets of Ekweremadu in the United State, include 4507 Stella Street, Bellavida Estate Kissime, Florida, USA; 2747 Club Cortile Circle, Kissime, Florida, USA and 2763 Club Cortile Circle, Kissime, Florida, USA.

    The properties abroad in London include Flat 4 Varsity Court, Harmer Street, WIH 4NW, London; and 52 Ayleston Avenue, NW6 7AB, London.

    Those in Dubai are Room 1903, The Address Hotel, Downtown Dubai; The Address Boulevard, 3901, Dubai; 2 Flats of Burij Side Boulevard (the signature), Dubai; Emirate Gardens Apartment No. EGG1/1/114, Dubai; Emirate Gardens Apartment No. EGG1/115, Dubai; Apartment No. DFB/12/B 1204, Park Towers, Dubai; Flat 3604, MAG214, Dubai; and Villa No 148, Maeen 1, The Lakes Emirates Hills, Dubai.

     

  • Ekweremadu: Ohaneze speaks tough, says Buhari, APC gone mad with power

    Igbo socio-cultural group, Ohaneze Ndigbo, has condemned the detention of Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, by the EFCC.

    Recall that Ekweremadu was on Tuesday detained by EFCC on allegations of corruption.

    In a statement by it’s publicity secretary, Uche Achi-Okpaga, Ohaneze said the presidency has “gone mad with power and turned the anti-graft agency and security agencies into milliant wings of the All Progressive Congress”.

    “It has become imperative to state without equivocation that Nigeria’s democracy has been put under the custody of the APC and the Nigeria Police Force, the EFCC and other security agencies have been turned to militant wings of the APC.

    “We are not oblivious that there is a grand design to intimidate and cow every assumed adversary of the Government but we encourage Nigerians not to be undaunted in speaking against the totalitarian and fascist embellishments of the government.”

    Achi-Okpaga said, the “the arrest, intimidation and harassment of Senator Ike Ekweremadu lends credence to the fact that democracy is collapsing irretrievably”.

    “It is obvious that this action is a continuation of the ugly and uncivil events of last week where the once gallant Nigeria Police and the EFCC became lords unto themselves and moved to barricade the residences of the Senate President and his Deputy respectively.

    “Having failed in that orchestrated attempt to prevent the Senate presiding officers from accessing the National Assembly the fateful day they decided to go for Ekweremadu’s jugular.

    “The events of this week including the Police brigandage in the Benue State House of Assembly only depict that the Presidency has gone mad with presidential powers and l see it consuming them,” the statement added.

    The spokesman said that President Muhammadu Buhari has shown that he has no answer to the socio-political quagmires facing the country.

    The statement condemned “the current ploy to coerce all and sundry into one political party” describing it as the height of political naivety.

    “Democracy has been deadly raped in Nigeria and this is part of reasons that we have insisted on restructuring the system. With the way things are turning upside down and inside out we are only been vindicated on our stand on restructuring.

    “This Government has gotten it wrong virtually in all fores. The social media is awash with criticisms of the recent idea of building a refinery in the President’s northern State of Katsina while the oil is in the South but it is in the South that you want to build cattle ranches when the cattle and the owners are in the North. This is so paradoxical as it is antithetic,” Achi-Okpaga added.

  • PDP decries harassment of Ekweremadu by security operatives

    Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has decried what it called the harassment of Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu, opposition leaders, and voices of dissent by the All Progressives Congress (APC) led-Federal Government.

    The party, in a statement issued by its National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, on Tuesday in Abuja, accused the government of misusing the anti-graft and security agencies close to the 2019 general election.

    Ologbondiyan said that the current development posed a grave threat to the nation’s democracy and urged the international community to stop the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration before it becomes too late.

    He party was reacting to what it described as a witch-hunt against Ekweremadu by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    “Just a few days after the EFCC and over 200 policemen practically held Ekweremadu hostage to prevent the defection of the APC Senators to the PDP, the EFCC has continued to harass Ekweremadu to cover its shame.

    “We wish to remind Nigerians and the international community that this is only the newest in the series of attempts to destroy the senator
    politically in the run up to the 2019 general elections.

    “It is of grave concern to us that while corruption and corrupt persons abound in the APC, the EFCC prefers to chase after innocent members of
    the opposition.”

    He said while scores of APC members with corruption and fraud-related charges walk free, the anti-graft agencies had continued to harass and dent leaders of the opposition in the name of anti-corruption war.

    It warned the APC administration to desist from “highhandedness and witch-hunt of the opposition” in order not truncate the country’s democracy.

    “The APC government cannot be allowed to tarnish and destroy opposition leaders just a few months to the general election in the name of fighting corruption,” Ologbondiyan said.

  • JUST IN: EFCC detains Ekweremadu

    Information reaching TheNewsGuru.com has it that operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) are currently questioning the Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu.

    The Deputy Senate President has reportedly been held by the EFCC since9 a.mm, Tuesday morning.

    He was reportedly called in for questioning as further information haven’t been made available as at press time.

    Recall that Ekweremadu’s house was invaded by officials of the anti-graft agency last week Tuesday, allegedly in a bid to prevent the defection of 16 APC members to the PDP and other parties.

    Ekweremadu had also while addressing his supporters in Enugu on Monday said his travails with the EFCC was politically motivated.

     

    Details later…

  • FG using EFCC’s invitations as cover up to impeach me – Ekweremadu

    Deputy President of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu on Monday raised alarm over alleged plans by the ruling All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government to impeach him from office.

    The Deputy Senate President however assured his supporters that he had absolute faith in God as he had done nothing wrong to warrant the continued harassment by the security agencies and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

    “So, my hands are clean. But if the EFCC wants me to come and answer that, I am prepared to answer any call from anybody as a responsible citizen. Even at that, I will continue to advocate justice, rule of law, and equity,” he said.

    The lawmaker said several attempts had been made to remove him as Deputy Senate President but failed.

    Ekweremadu said these when the Archbishop of Enugu Province, Anglican Communion, Most Rev. Emmanuel Chukwuma, led a delegation of clergies of Enugu Diocese of the Church on a solidarity visit to his Enugu residence on Sunday evening.

    This was made known in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media, Uche Anichukwu, in Abuja on Monday.

    The Deputy Senate President said: “When people say they are not sure there is God, I say, ‘Come, let me tell you my story; when I finish my story, you will know whether there is God or not’ My story is one of those that establish actually that there is God. So, what you see now will also pass because there is no battle that God cannot fight for me.

    “There have been several attempts to remove me as the Deputy President of the Senate, but, I am not worried because it is God that gives power and it is only Him that can take it.”

    Ekweremadu pointed out that he had never been in a position to manage public finances or award contracts all through his political career.