Politics
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) elders like Chief Bode George, should be blamed for the party’s failure to pay Ground Rent for 28 years, which is the reason for the revocation of the PDP’s national secretariat in Abuja, and not the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike.
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) elders like Chief Bode George, should be blamed for the party’s failure to pay Ground Rent for 28 years, which is the reason for the revocation of the PDP’s national secretariat in Abuja, and not the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike.
Senior Special Assistant to the FCT Minister on Public Communication and New Media, Lere Olayinka, said in a statement in Abuja on Saturday, that it was funny that Chief Bode George, who was in the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) that failed to conclude purchase of the Wadata Plaza National Secretariat of the PDP, could come to national television to say “Wike has crossed the red line by revoking the PDP’s national secretariat in Abuja.”
Bode George, had said during an interview on a television station on Friday, that Wike’s action was an open declaration of war against the PDP.
Responding, Olayinka said it was painful that elders like Chief Bode George, could chose to play the ostrich on a matter so glaring as the revocation of 4,794 land titles for not paying Ground Rent for as much as 43 years.
He asked; “Why didn’t the PDP pay Ground Rent for 20 years on its Plot No. 243 national secretariat (under construction), which is the only property belonging to the party among the 4,794 revoked titles? How’s government’s enforcement of the consequences of land title owners’ refusal to pay Ground Rent declaration of war? Should the FCTA under Wike have treated PDP differently from the 4,794 owners of land titles that were revoked over failure to pay Ground Rent?”
While clarifying that the Wadata Plaza property being used as Secretariat by the PDP was not owned by the party, Olayinka said the property belonged to Senator Samaila Mamman Kurfi, who bought it from Wadata Enterprises Nigeria Limited.
“The PDP offered to buy the Wadata Plaza property in 2005, and when the Minister’s Consent was sought, the party was asked to pay N26.9 million. The money was never paid.
“The party wrote a letter to Malam Nasir El-Rufai, the FCT Minister then, to waive the payment, claiming that it lacked the financial capacity to pay, but he (El-Rufai) insisted the party must pay.
“El-Rufai, who insisted PDP must do the right thing by paying the necessary fees to the government was a member of the party then, and Chief Bode George, who was in the PDP NWC, did not go to national television to accuse him (El-Rufai) of declaring war against the party. And if the owner of did not pay ordinary N2.8 million as 28 years Ground Rent, who is to blame?
On the PDP national secretariat at Central Area, is it the fault of Wike that a mere N7.6 million, was owed as 20 years Ground Rent despite that over N21 billion was raised in 2014 for the completion of the building?”
While counseling Chief Bode George, to start functioning like an objective elder that he should be, the FCT Minister’s Spokesperson said “what should have been done was to seek information, rather than going on television to advertise hatred against a Minister who is simply doing his jobs without looking at people’s faces
.If Chief Bode George had sought necessary information and refrained himself from acting out of hatred for Wike, it would have been known to him that also affected by the revocation were government owned institutions like Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), Borno State Government, Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), National Universities Commission (NUC), Kaduna State Government, Nigerian Port Authority (NPA), News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Federal Ministry of Environment, Nigerian Security Printing and Minting Company, University of Calabar and Nigerian Postal Service and Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN).
“And like I asked earlier, if Chief Bode George were to be the FCT Minister, would he have treated PDP differently from the other 4,793 land title owners?”
On loyalty and commitment to the PDP, Olayinka said the results in Wike’s Rivers State and Chief Bode George’s Lagos State from 1998 till date are clear for everyone to see and used as yardstick.
Politics
PDP to screen Goodluck Jonathan on Tuesday as its sole Presidential aspirant For 2027 race
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), led by Tanimu Turaki, SAN, has scheduled to screen former president Goodluck Jonathan tomorrow, Tuesday, aMay 19, as the lone presidential candidate of party.
According to a statement from the PDP faction backed by the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, Former Vice-President Namadi Sambo, former governor of Plateau State, Jona Jang and a former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tom Ikimi have been listed among a committee of 14 members to screen Jonathan described as a lone candidate by the party.
Other members of the committee were Chief Olabode George, Babangida Aliyu, Maryam ciroma, Zainab Maina, Josephine Anenin, Dr. Abdul Bulama, Dr. Esther Uduehi, Edo State PDP chairman, Tony Aziegbemi, Dr. Sunday Solarium and Chief Anicho Okoro, who would serve as administrative secretary of the committee.
Last week, the national Publicity Secretary of the faction, Ini Ememobong, disclosed that former president Jonathan has successfully registered as a member of the party in the fresh digital registration exercise directed by INEC.
The PDP faction also announced that it was set to screen 748 house of representatives aspirants, 198 senatorial aspirants, and 112 governorship aspirants.
The screening committee would screen 2122 states houses of assembly aspirants. The exercise will commence tomorrow, Tuesday in different states.
According to the statement, the screening exercise would take place nationwide on Tuesday, May 19, 2026, at 10:00 a.m.
The statement said the Interim National Working Committee (iNWC) has also released the names of members to serve on the Screening Committees and Screening Appeal Panels.
It added that the publication of the screening details “is in accordance with the party’s guidelines and timetable for the conduct of the 2027 general elections.”
Politics
Oshiomhole wins Edo APC senatorial primaries unopposed
A former governor and incumbent Senator, Adams Oshiomhole, along with his counterpart Senator Joe Ikpea, sailed through the All Progressives Congress senatorial primary in Edo unopposed, and securing their tickets without a single vote cast against them.
Also Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama emerged the winner in the APC primary for the Edo South senatorial district.
Ogbeide-Ihama won in the seven local government areas of Edo South in the results announced by the Chairman of APC National Assembly Primary Election, Muhammed Ajana at the Urokpota Hall, Benin.
He polled 27,154 votes while his opponents, Senator Neda Imasuen, got 13,580, and Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu got 6785.
The elections were hitch-free in Edo North and Edo Central, where there was no contest against the incumbents, Senators Oshiomhole of Edo North and Ikpea of Edo Central, respectively.
Ajana at the Urokpota Hall said the collation arose from votes cast in the seven local government areas made up of 77 wards where elections were conducted by members of the committee.
He said, “There are seven local governments that make up the Edo South Senatorial District. We have heard from the Returning officers from the seven local government areas. From the collation, the cumulative result we have for Edo South Senatorial District is this; Ogbeide-Ihama with 27,154 votes, Imasuen with 13,580 votes and Ize-Iyamu with 6, 785.
“This is the total reflection of what has transpired from the ward level to the local government and the Edo South senatorial district collation centre. With this we await further directives from the National Secretariat, we have done our best by collating the results which is our mandate, to collate the results and send them to the National Secretariat.”
However, it was gathered that Ize-Iyamu emerged as the APC candidate for Edo South Senatorial race. He claimed to have clinched the party’s ticket after defeating Ogbeide-Ihama and Imasuen.
It was claimed that the Chief Returning Officer, Abubakar Muhammad Kabiru, officially declared Ize-Iyamu the winner after securing the highest number of votes cast.
On his part, the senator representing the district condemned the exercise describing it as a sham allegedly designed to favour a preferred aspirant.
Imasuen spoke while reacting to events at his polling unit in Umagbae North Ward 5, Urhokuosa where he said he was denied the opportunity to vote following what he described as a chaotic and manipulated process.
The lawmaker accused leaders of the party of openly adopting a preferred candidate ahead of the exercise and intimidating members into supporting that aspirant.
He said, “There is nothing satisfactory about this sham of election they did today and it is very unfortunate because as a loyal party member, I expected something better than this.”
He said the warning signs emerged days before the primary when some ward chairmen allegedly informed him that they had been directed not to receive him during consultations.
Imasuen claimed that some ward leaders openly told him the party had already adopted a preferred aspirant, identified as Hon. Omoregie Ogbeide-Ihama, making further consultations unnecessary.
Politics
Ajuloopin Suffers Setback as Home Ward Rejects Third Term Return Bid in Kwara APC Primary
The re-election bid of the member representing Ekiti/Isin/Irepodun/Oke-Ero Federal Constituency, Hon. Raheem Tunji Olawuyi, popularly known as Ajuloopin, suffered a major setback on Friday after party members in his home ward, Omu-Aran Ward 1, boycotted the All Progressives Congress APC House of Representatives primary.
According to party stakeholders and observers present at the exercise, no valid election took place in the ward after members refused to participate in protest against what they described as the lawmaker’s poor performance after three consecutive terms in the House of Representatives.
Sources in the ward said efforts by some political figures and loyalists to persuade members to back Ajuloopin’s ambition failed, with party faithful insisting they would not endorse what they termed an attempt to impose his candidacy again.
The boycott led to a breakdown of the electoral process in Omu-Aran Ward 1, with many members staying away from the polls entirely. Stakeholders have called on the APC Electoral Committee to disregard any result purportedly presented from the ward, arguing that no credible primary was conducted there.
Political observers in the constituency described the development as a significant blow to Ajuloopin, noting that the rejection came from his own ward and among constituents most familiar with his record.
Preliminary reports from other parts of Irepodun, Isin and Oke-Ero local government areas, where voting proceeded, also indicated weak support for the incumbent. Many party members were said to have voted for alternative aspirants.
APC stakeholders have urged the party leadership to review reports from affected wards and accept only authentic and verifiable results to preserve the credibility of the primaries. They stressed that internal democracy was critical to the party’s prospects in the constituency and warned against imposing unpopular candidates ahead of the 2027 elections.
With tension rising across the federal constituency, party faithful said the leadership must listen to grassroots members and allow delegates and supporters to determine the outcome of the primaries.
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