Ambode Swears In Five Permanent Secretaries

Lagos State Governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode on Monday swore-in five new Permanent Secretaries into the State Civil Service, with a charge on them to place high premium on efficient service delivery and work to make the machinery of governance to roll faster in the overall interest of the people.

Speaking after the oath of office was administered on the appointees at Lagos House in Alausa, Ikeja, Governor Ambode said the Permanent Secretaries must bring their wealth of experience and knowledge to bear in their respective Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), and go all-out to meet the high expectations of not only government but the teeming population of the State. 

“With this appointment, you have all effectively become the Accounting Officer of your MDAs. You have been entrusted with a bigger and more sensitive responsibility which will put to test your leadership and managerial skills.

“Let me remind you of the very high expectations that will be placed on you, not only from the government but more importantly, from the over 22 million Lagosians who desire efficient and service delivery. Your ability to meet these expectations will depend on the amount of creativity and innovation you can bring to bear in the discharge of your responsibilities.

“Nobody expects you to reinvent the wheel. What is expected of you is to bring to bear your knowledge and experience so that the machinery of governance can roll faster and deliver more quality results to the teeming population of our State,” the Governor counseled the appointees.

While congratulating the new Permanent Secretaries, the Governor said it was on record that the elevation was strictly based on merit as evidenced by their outstanding performance, commitment and dedication to duty over the years, saying they must work to justify their appointments.

The appointees are Dr. Olabisi Taiwo (Ministry of Health), Mr. Olusegun Ajibade (Public Service Office), Mrs. Abiayo Akinsiku (Primary Healthcare Board), Dr. Yusuf Jimoh (Ministry of Special Duties and Intergovernmental Relations), and Mr. Ganiyu Rufai (Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Cooperatives).

Responding on behalf of the new Permanent Secretaries, Taiwo expressed gratitude to God and Governor Ambode for the opportunity to serve the State at the highest level in the civil service, just as she assured that they would not betray the confidence reposed in them but rather uphold the principles of public servi

As Long As Buhari Is President, My Son-in-law Will Also Be Governor—Rochas Okorocha

Rochas Okorocha, outgoing governor of Imo State, has said if President Muhammadu Buhari can be the Nigerian leader today then his Son-in-law, Uche Nwosu, should be allowed to be the next governor of Imo State.
Mr Okorocha stated this on Thursday after meeting with Mr Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
The governor whose tenure winds down next year has been leading a front-line battle to ensure Mr Nwosu succeeds him in office.
The move has thrown the state chapter of the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC) into chaos with the national leadership of the party.
It has also led to several governorship primaries of the APC being conducted in the state, pitching Mr Okorocha against Adams Oshiomhole, the national chairman of the party.
The governor said two gubernatorial primaries conducted in the state was won by Nwosu and other candidates of the party but the national leadership have shortchanged the winners with their preferred candidates.
“The truth is that APC holds it as a point of duty and honour to declare winners of election and anything short of that will not go down well with the people and the history of APC in Nigeria and I beg to disagree with those who try to change the issue from what it is,” Okorocha said.
“So people are trying to change the truth but that is not going to work.
“APC must remain APC and our party’s NWC holds it as a point of duty to defend the integrity for which APC is known.
“Anything short of that will amount to self-destruction of the party.
“So when people try to change the narrative and to say Governors are bad losers, the governors want to impose people, excuse me, democracy is about the people.
“If the people have spoken, who are you to change what the people have said?
“Buhari is a President today because the people spoke and if Buhari can be a President because people spoke, then the party must respect that and allow the voice of the people to prevail in whatever election and avoid sentiments.
“The campaign they try to put forward is that Uche Nwosu can’t go because he is Okorocha’s son-in-law and I say to them, has Uche Nwosu gone contrary to any section of the Nigerian constitution?
“Nobody has been able to give an answer to that.
“Nobody has come forward to say that the young man is a criminal or that he is corrupt or does not have capacity.
“It is not just enough to sit back in Abuja and be talking.
“They should come to the state to understand the feelings of the people down home.
“That’s the point am making so my advice to our party is that our party should sit up and do the right thing and not allow the people get misled,” he said.
Advising Oshiomhole to maintain the self-acclaimed integrity for which he was voted for, Okorocha said failure to do so will means there is no difference between the APC and other opposition parties in the country.
“So I want to advice those behind this to stop forthwith and it is a directive that they should stop forthwith so that this party can enjoy that name that it is known for as a party of justice, equity and fairness.
“If not, there is no difference between this party and any other party in Nigeria.
“Ninety per cent of those who have joined APC in the last two months are doing so not because they love APC.
Dismissing reports making round that he was warning up to leave the party as rumor, the governor exonerated Buhari of claims that he was backing what was going on in APC.
“The option of leaving the party has not come to my mind.
“APC is my party.
“In 2011 when this party was called Boko Haram and Islamisation party, where were these people?
“Nobody gave us a chance that APC was going to win the 2015 election.
“So what makes you think that we are going to leave the party for those that came through the back door and are being given a voice by the National Chairman of our party?
“All you hear is rumour everywhere that they are backed by the Presidency, that Rochas should take one position and leave the other one as if we are sharing groundnut, but I tell them I have met the President and he told me he never said to anybody to impose a wrong candidate or to remove the name of anybody and change it with another in whatever guise.”

2019: You’re Going Nowhere, Tinubu Tells Atiku

The National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Wednesday said he did not care whether former Vice President and presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar met in Dubai or jungle to strategise on how to capture power in 2019, but that he knew his candidacy will not fly.
Tinubu, who spoke in Abuja with journalists after meeting President Muhammadu Buhari, also insisted that the All Progressives Congress, APC, National Chairman, Adams Oshoimhole remained as chairman despite mounting pressure for him to resign.
The former governor, who reacted to the news of Atiku’s meeting in Dubai, said the former vice president could meet anywhere to strategize but that Nigerians would not vote for him.
“We don’t fear, whether it is in the jungle, or is in Dubai or is in Abu Dhabi, people are free to meet and strategize in any way they form but we are not going back to the illusion of the PDP.
“It is not possible, Nigerians will not do that. They say slow and steady wins the race; we inherited that from our forefathers and knowledgeable people.
“We can’t go back to the pit that we inherited for 16 years. They can strategies from anywhere but a leopard cannot change it skin,” he said.
On Oshiomhole’s removal, Tinubu said “No. We all have to respect the party supremacy. You were all here when we had the Congress, we elected the new executives, the convention we had it, the NEC was formed and we surrendered to avoid conflict, to avoid domination, to avoid abuses of power, we surrendered our rights, all rights to the National Working Committee headed by Adams Oshiomohole.
“That the National Working Committee should set up electoral bodies to supervise various state congresses and elections. ’We signed off for it’. So, if it is not in our individual favour, so be it.
“We gave three options, consensus, where there is no consensus because if you are more than two or three and you cannot agree to one candidate, you go to the next level.
“The next level is the stakeholders delegate and you have to be supervised by the National Working Committee of the party, national election committee of the party. That shows party supremacy or the freest option, the less cumbersome is to open direct primary, line up and count the number, 1, 2, 3. If you win, you win and if you fail, go home.
“Then appeal committee was set up to listen to all appeals, internal mechanism for conflict resolution. It was there, you cannot turn round against that, you cannot turn against all of that.
“No. Party is supreme, party must be respected, abuses will not do it and anger will not do it. It is party politics, somebody will win and somebody will lose, too bad.” he stated
When asked on the purpose of his visit to the Presidential Villa, he said, “The meeting is about the nation, the country, our people, peace, stability and economic progress.”

 

2019: PDP Plans Aggressive Ward-to-ward Campaign Against APC

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) plans to adopt an “aggressive” ward-to-ward campaign against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), it was learnt yesterday.
The party agreed that taking the battle to the grassroots is the “best political weapon to defeat the APC”.
Presidential campaigns begin on November 18.
There are indications that Atiku and his team have finalised the list of members of the Presidential Campaign Council (PCC).
Atiku, who is expected back from Dubai at the weekend, may release the list immediately after.
He has been meeting with his running mate, Peter Obi, PDP National Chairman Uche Secondus, Director-General of PCC Dr. Bukola Saraki, former Director-General of Atiku Campaign Organisation, ex-Governor Gbenga Daniel and some zonal coordinators.
It was learnt that the meeting centred only on the strategy to defeat President Muhammadu Buhari.
A source, who spoke in confidence with our correspondent on the phone, said: “The essence of the Dubai meeting is how to take the battle to APC’s doorsteps and win the 2019 poll.
“One of the options agreed upon is the aggressive campaign from ward to ward to carry the masses along. They chose this option because Buhari has ‘mob’ appeal at the grassroots especially in the North.
“So, this ward-to-ward PDP campaign will involve all members of the party instead of recourse to jamboree.
“The battle will be fought in the print media, television and radio stations, and on the internet, based on facts and figures. The PDP is prepared to go for broke, devoid of violence.”
The source added: “In the next few days, the PDP candidate or the party will unveil members of the Presidential Campaign Council. The list has been finalised.
“Barring, last-minute change of mind, Atiku is expected back this weekend.
“The PDP will soon release #LetsGetNigeriaWorkingAgain document which will be a bombshell. All the members of the strategy team have been working round the clock to come up with a blueprint which is different from what APC has offered in the last three and half years.”
A source in the APC said: “Whether the PDP candidate and chieftains have gone to Dubai is not an issue. What we want to do is to give feedback to Nigerians on the mandate given to us three years ago.
“We need to go back to the electorates for the renewal of the mandate. So, we are not really contesting with PDP; we have business with Nigerians.”

 

I Never Said Buhari Will Lose In North East’ – Bukar Abba

Senator Bukar Abba has denied media reports that he said President Muhammadu Buhari will not win in the North East, saying the president would win conveniently in the forthcoming 2019 presidential poll.
Bukar Abba stressed that there is no way the ruling party; the All Progressive Congress (APC) will lose the election.
His conviction, according to a statement signed by his media aide, Mr. Yusuf Ali was based on the great work the president has done in the last three and half years.
Yusuf quoted the senator as saying that: “As far as I am alive, there is nothing that will make Buhari fail in the North East. Not in Bauchi, Borno, Yobe, Adamawa, or Taraba. There is no way he will lose the election. By the grace of God, Buhari will win the election and serve his second term.
“I Bukar Abba, I am in APC now, tomorrow I will be in APC by the grace of God. I will forever be in APC, if they don’t change the party. Nothing will separate me with my party the APC”.
The senator, Yusuf added has vowed to forever be a member of the All Progressives Congress, a party he fought hard to build. He said it was him and Dr Ogbonnaya Onu the then Chairman of the ANPP that first initiated the merger for the mega party of the opposition to form APC and save the country from the PDP.
Describing the Senator as “an Elder Statesman in his own right who does not He deserve to be called unprintable names”, Yusuf said it was obvious the three time lawmaker was quoted out of context, noting that “he has pledged his support for the APC and Buhari in the 2019 general elections.”