TheNewsGuru

Tag: Presidential Primary

  • Wike is not challenging outcome of PDP presidential primary – Gana

    Wike is not challenging outcome of PDP presidential primary – Gana

    A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prof. Jerry Gana, said Gov. Nyesom Wike of Rivers is not challenging the outcome of the party’s presidential primary.

    Gana, who is also a member of the Board of Trustees (BOT) of the party said this in a statement he issued to newsmen on Friday in Abuja.

    “Our attention has been drawn to some fake news, making it necessary to issue this firm statement.

    “News in the media that Wike has commenced legal proceedings challenging the outcome of the 2022 PDP Presidential Primary, is totally false.

    “We unequivocally state that Wike has not and will not challenge the outcome of the just concluded PDP Presidential Primaries in Court.

    ”He has long moved beyond such an action to focus on matters of how best to ensure victory for the PDP in the forthcoming elections. ”

    Gana also described as false reports alleging Wike had instructed the removal of the ceremonial PDP flags and insignia from the Government House and Governor’s Office.

    He said: “This again is totally false and misleading. The Rivers State Governor never gave such instructions.

    “It appears that some forces within and outside the party are expressly opposed to the reconciliation moves between Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Wike.

    “Such malicious efforts will surely fail by the grace of God.

    “Let me assure all party faithfuls and supporters that we are strongly determined to ensure the success of the current reconciliation process.

    “Building a stronger and more united Peoples Democratic Party is our priority as we move towards the 2023 General Elections.”

  • Wike sues PDP, Atiku, others, asks court to declare him PDP’s presidential candidate

    Wike sues PDP, Atiku, others, asks court to declare him PDP’s presidential candidate

    The Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike has dragged the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) to court over the May 28 and 29 presidential primary election that was held in Abuja, the federal capital territory (FCT).

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/782/2022 has Governor Wike and a PDP chieftain, Newgent Ekamon as the plaintiffs, while the PDP is listed as the first respondent in the originating summons.

    Also listed in the originating summons are the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as the 2nd respondent, the Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal and Atiku Abubakar as the 3rd and 4th respondents respectively.

    Recall that the presidential election of the PDP held in May returned Atiku as the presidential candidate of the PDP after polling 371 delegate votes. Wike emerged second with 237 votes and former Senate President Bukola Saraki emerged third with 70 votes.

    During the presidential primary, Governor Tambuwal had asked delegates to vote for him but later returned to the podium to announce his withdrawal from the race, asking delegates loyal to him to cast their votes for Atiku instead.

    After the convention, the National Chairman of the PDP, Iyorchia Ayu, described Tambuwal as the “hero of the convention.”

    After the primary, Atiku had been advised to pick Wike as his running mate. However, the former Vice-President decided to nominate Governor Ifeanyi Okowa as his running mate, a move that deepened the already brewing crisis in the party.

    In the originating summons, Wike and his co-applicant asked the court to determine eight issues including whether the purported transfer of Tambuwal’s votes to Atiku by the PDP was illegal and void. The plaintiffs asked the court to determine if Tambuwal lost his claim to votes the moment he stepped down for Atiku.

    They asked the court to determine whether Tambuwal “having stepped down during the primaries ought to lose his votes.” Wike and Ekamon argued that should these issues be determined in their favour, the court should grant nine reliefs including a declaration that the purported transfer of Tambuwal’s votes to Atiku be declared null and void.

    The plaintiffs are also seeking a declaration that the PDP acted negligently and in bad faith by assigning the Sokoto governor’s votes to Atiku at the primary. They prayed the court to “cancel the transfer of votes and a corresponding order restraining the 3rd respondent (Tambuwal’s) withdrawal in the primary was done after voting had commenced.”

    The applicants also prayed the court to declare that the PDP and Atiku took undue advantage of Tambuwal’s withdrawal when they allowed the Sokoto governor to persuade delegates to vote for the former Vice-President in the primary.

    Wike and Ekamon asked the court to order INEC to reject or remove Atiku from “its list of candidates in the 2023 presidential election.” They are also seeking an order commanding the PDP to recount the votes of the primary that was held on May 28 and May 29.

    Lastly, the applicants are seeking an order of the court “directing the 1st respondent (PDP) to declare the 2nd applicant (Wike), a presidential aspirant in the May 28 and May 29 primary as the winner of the aforesaid primary with a corresponding order directing the 1st respondent (PDP) to forward his name as the candidate to contest the presidential election in 2023.”

    In a supporting affidavit he deposed to, Ekamon noted that he was a member of the PDP and attested to the fact that Wike won the presidential election. He maintained that Tambuwal withdrew from the contest after voting had commenced and directed that his votes be assigned to Atiku.

    “The third respondent (Tambuwal) speaking twice before stepping down from the contest, persuaded all his delegates who were going to vote for him to vote for the 4th respondent (Atiku).

    “The 1st (PDP) and 4th (Atiku) respondents who also wanted the votes desperately agreed with the 3rd (Tambuwal) and assigned 3rd (Tambuwal) respodnent’s votes to the 4th (Atiku) respondent and increased his votes to win the 2nd applicant (Wike).

    “The 2nd applicant (Wike) won the primaries if the votes of the 3rd respondent (Tambuwal) had not been transferred or assigned to the 4th respondent (Atiku)”.

    According to PUNCH, the court processes had been served on the PDP at its Wadata Plaza headquarters located at Wuse Zone 5 while a copy had also been delivered to Atiku’s Campaign office in Maitama and the Sokoto State Government’s Liaison Office by the court bailiff.

  • 2023: APC confident of victory with Tinubu’s candidacy – Lawan

    2023: APC confident of victory with Tinubu’s candidacy – Lawan

    The President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, says the emergence of Bola Tinubu as Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has reassured the party of winning the 2023 presidential poll.

    In a letter of congratulations that he personally signed on Wednesday in Abuja, Lawan said that outcome of the election process had shown that Tinubu was the popular choice of his party.

    Ahmad Lawan was also an aspirant in the primary.

    The letter reads: “The Presidential Primary of our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), for the 2023 general election has come and gone.

    “I am elated and proud that the Presidential primary was manifestly free and fair, and conducted within our APC family under a most convivial atmosphere.

    “The success of the event demonstrates the capacity of our great party to run its internal affairs smoothly and devoid of rancour.

    “As Your Excellency is aware, I offered myself alongside your good self and other patriotic members of the party to fly its highly coveted flag in the 2023 presidential election,” he said.

    He said that he did so in the belief that he had the knowledge base, ideas, experience and desire to provide leadership for our dear country at these most trying times.

    “However, the outcome of the election process has shown that Your Excellency is the popular choice of our party for that assignment.

    “I do not have an iota of doubt in the wisdom of that decision by our party’s delegates from across the country.

    “I have no doubt that with your credentials, experience, antecedents and political sagacity, our great party will go into the 2023 contest confident of victory,” Lawan said.

  • TheNewsGuru Projection: Tinubu to win APC primaries, to face Atiku of PDP

    Lagos strongman and former Governor, Bola Ahmed Tinubu is projected to win the APC ticket and square up against Atiku Abubakar of the opposition PDP.

    TheNewsGuru.com projection shows that Tinunu has taken a huge lead in the votes sorted so far at Eagles Square, Abuja.

    Tinubu has been a frontline aspirant for the position and has had turbulent times trying to convince powers that be and the leadership of the ruling party to make him the candidate.

    He has had to travel across the country to sell his candidacy to the delegates with campaigns in some states leading to heated arguments on why he should be the right candidate.

    Vote counts so far:

    Bola Ahmed Tinubu 777
    Ahmed Lawan 52
    Yemi Osibanjo 112
    Rotimi Amaechi 162
    Yahaya Bello 21
    Dave Umahi 10
    Ben Ayade 9
    Ahmed Sani 2
    Void Votes 7

    The total breakdown of states and their respective accredited delegates are as follows:

    Abia state – 50
    Anambra- 63
    Bayelsa- 24
    Bauchi- 55
    Benue- 64
    Borno- 81
    Delta- 73
    Ekiti- 48
    Edo- 54
    Ebonyi- 38
    Gombe- 33
    Imo- 81
    Jigawa- 81
    Lagos- 60
    Plateau- 51
    Kebbi- 63
    Kwara- 48
    Kogi- 63
    Kaduna- 61
    Kano- 126
    Nasarawa- 39
    Niger- 75
    Ondo- 54
    Ogun- 60
    Oyo- 99
    Osun- 90
    Rivers- 69
    Sokoto- 69
    Taraba- 46
    Yobe- 51
    Zamfara- 42

  • Presidential primary: Tinubu comfortably leading, closely followed by Amaechi

    Presidential primary: Tinubu comfortably leading, closely followed by Amaechi

    As counting and sorting of votes continues at the ongoing special convention of All Progressives Congress APC to elect presidential flag bearer, Ahmed Tinubu is comfortably leading, closely followed by Rotimi Amaechi and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

    From all indications, Ahmed Tinubu is set to be declared the All Progressives Congress presidential candidate with majority of the votes going his way.

    Yahaya Bello, Dave Umahi also made the list of aspirants who has gotten votes.

    Other aspirants in the election have not gotten any vote so far

  • APC primary: Umahi, Okorocha, Onu, other South-East aspirants write Buhari for consensus

    APC primary: Umahi, Okorocha, Onu, other South-East aspirants write Buhari for consensus

    Presidential aspirants from the South-East partaking in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential primary election have written to President Muhammadu Buhari to pick one of them as a consensus candidate.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the presidential aspirants in the letter urged President Buhari to intervene for “proper guidance” during the APC special national convention currently underway in Abuja.

    The aspirants especially want Buhari to intervene to allow the South-East to produce the next presidential candidate of the party.

    The letter reads: “We the undersigned, who are aspirants to the Office of President on the platform of our party the APC. write to commend your fatherly leadership of our country and our party.

    “We also commend your unequivocal approval of the position of the 14 Progressive governors from Northern Nigeria, to ensure that your successor is elected from the southern part of Nigeria. We also commend the governors for this patriotic and unifying stand. United we stand – Our unity in diversity has been the rallying point of all patriots.

    “Your Excellency. we most humbly request that this position of our brothers from the North be deepened and made even more wholesome by further zoning this position to the South-East.

    “We are all aware that no President can emerge without the support of various geopolitical zones and without the express collaboration of our brothers and sisters from other zones of Nigeria.

    “With our Convention at hand, your kind directive for the deepening of unity in diversity, championed by our founding fathers solely on the basis of strengthening national unity and cohesion and for rousing victory at the 2023 elections are stated objectives in your speeches to the Progressive governors forum, the APC aspirants dinner and the meeting of APC stakeholders.

    “Furthermore. we are humbly requesting that you consider and pick your chosen candidate from the South-East aspirants in line with your stated objectives of handing over to trusted party loyalists.

    “We humbly seek your Excellency’s prompt and kind intervention to enable the party delegates to assume proper guidance.

    “Please accept as always. our continuing loyalty and assurances of our esteem regards and obedience to whichever candidate your Excellency deems fit and appropriate to adopt as the candidate of the party”.

    TNG reports the letter was signed by Ikeobasi Mokelu; former ministers of Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr Ogbonnaya Onu; Minister of State for Education, Chukwuemeka Nwajiuba; Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi, and Mrs. Ken Uju-Ohanenye.

    Although Senator Rochas Okorocha was listed among signatories, he did not append his signature to the letter.

  • APC CONVENTION: Adamu set up 18 subcommittees

    National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Abdullahi Adamu, has inaugurated 18 sub-committees, which kicked off the three-day special convention/presidential primary of the party.

     

    The committees were inaugurated on Sunday at the party’s Abuja national secretariat in Abuja.

     

    Twenty-three aspirants are in the race for the presidential ticket to fly the party’s flag next year.

     

    The primary slated for Eagle Square in Abuja will be attended by the 2,340 elected delegates from 774 local government areas. The delegates will elect the standard-bearer.

     

    Adamu urged members of the committees to put in their best to have a rancour-free convention.

     

    Stressing the uniqueness of the convention to the committee chairmen and their secretaries, the national chairman said: “The convention this year is a bit different from the other conventions. It is different because it is the first transition convention of our great party.

     

    “The forthcoming convention will be expected within our constitution to produce the flag bearer of our great party to contest the presidential slot.

     

    “We are very careful that we chose different persons to be part of the committees that have been enumerated by the national secretary.

     

    “We assigned the committees at the thoughts and discretion of the party. So, it is our prayers and hopes that every person who is allotted a committee will be satisfied to give his or her best to serve in the slot that is given to him or her.”

     

    Kebbi State Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu, who chairs the Election Management Committee, assured the APC leadership of the committees’ readiness to ensure a widely acceptable flag bearer.

     

    Speaking for others, Bagidu said members of the various committees will bring their experiences to bear.

     

    Calling for cooperation among all the committees: “At a time like this is for all of us to cooperate given what the chairman says clearly and what is known to us. As he said, it is a convention like no other which is intended by God’s grace to produce a presidential flag bearer.”

     

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) gathered that there was mild drama when Borno State Governor Prof. Babagana Zulum kicked against the nomination of Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma as the sole member of the Central Storing Committee for the convention by the National Secretary, Otunba Iyiola Omisore.

     

    The development forced the National Chairman and Secretary to name Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Mohammed Bello as co-chair.

     

    The Eagle Square looked set for today’s convention. The pavilion had been decorated and labelled for delegates according to their states. Armed policemen were seen yesterday night at strategic positions in the arena.

     

    Billboards, banners and posters of all the presidential aspirants adorn the arena.

  • All aspirants agreed on a consensus candidate except one-Oyegun

    Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) presidential screening committee, John Oyegun, has revealed that all the presidential aspirants agreed on a consensus candidate except one.

    Oyegun claimed that 99 percent of the aspirants gave their nod for a consensus candidacy in the APC except just one.

    However, Oyegun refused to mention the name of the only aspirant who objected to a consensus candidate.

    Oyegun disclosed this while presenting the committee’s report to the National Chairman of the party, Abdullahi Adamu, on Friday.

    “We engaged every aspirant on the issue of consensus. It is a pleasant surprise that 99 percent agreed that the party is supreme. And that whatever the party decides – with proper consultation – they will likely accept.

    “Only one exception, who said I will accept consensus only if it is for me. I think it is a point that needs to be made and emphasised.

    “So that gives you a lot of leeway in the hours ahead to trim down even more drastically.

    “But finally we think we should not be afraid of a contested primary if anybody insists on a contest,” Oyegun said.

  • APC presidential primary: VP Osinbajo successfully screened

    APC presidential primary: VP Osinbajo successfully screened

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has been successfully screened by the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Screening Panel.

    Osinbajo spoke with newsmen shortly after emerging from the screening held on Tuesday at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja.

    The vice president said the exercise was fruitful and expressed optimism on the party’s chances ahead of the 2023 presidential election.

    “We were able to discuss several issues; issues of national and party concerns; and it went very well indeed; we had a very good chat.

    “Of course, we are ahead of any party; way ahead, APC is ahead,’’ he said

    The Chief John Odigie-Oyegun-led panel, which commenced work on Monday, will drill no fewer than 25 APC presidential aspirants who are filing for the party’ ticket.

  • Presidential Primary: APC to screen 23 aspirants today in Abuja

    Preparations are in top gear for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC)  to begin the screening of its presidential aspirants ahead of the June 6th to 8th primary election.

    It was gathered that the ruling party has appointed the former National Chairman of the party, Chief John Oyegun, as the Chairman of the Presidential Screening Committee.

    TheNewsGuru.com reports that about  28 presidential aspirants obtained the nomination and expression of interest forms of the ruling party.

    However, five of the aspirants have pulled out, leaving 23 aspirants to slug it out for the party’s ticket.

    The screening exercise will last for two days, Monday 30th and Tuesday 31st.

     

    The list of the 23 -man aspirants are listed as follows Bola Tinubu, Vice President Yemi Osibanjo, former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi; former Minister of Niger Delta Development, Sen. Godswill Akpabio; former Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu; former Imo State Governor, Sen. Rochas Okorocha; and former Ogun State Governor, Sen. Ibikunle Amosu.

    Others are: Pastor Tunde Bakare, Cross River State Governor, Prof. Ben Ayade; Ebonyi State Governor, Gov. Dave Umahi; Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Kayode Fayemi; Minister of State for Education, Hon. Emeka Nwajiuba; former Senate President, Sen. Ken Nnamani; Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello; Jigawa governor, Mohammed Badaru Abubakar; and former Zamfara State governor, Sen. Ahmed Yerima.

    Also on the list are: Senator Ajayi Borroffice, the only female aspirant, Mrs. Uju Kennedy Ohanenye; Pastor Nicholas Felix Nwagbo, former Speaker of Representative, Hon. Dimeji Bankole; Senate President, Dr. Ahmed Lawan; former Minister of Information, Chief Ikeobasi Mokelu; and Mr. Tein Jack Rich.

    Uncomfirmed reports say  that former president Goodluck Jonathan would also be screened at the exercise billed to take place in Abuja.