National News
APC chieftain urges party to adopt consensus to avoid dollar rain,
APC chieftain urges party to adopt consensus to avoid dollar rain,
A founding member of the All Progressives Congress and Director-General of the Voice of Nigeria, Osita Okechukwu, on Sunday, urged the governing APC to adopt the consensus route in electing its presidential candidate in its forthcoming primary election.
This, he said, would prevent what he described as the “dollar rain” allegedly witnessed at Saturday’s presidential primary of the Peoples Democratic Party and save the naira from further depreciation.
“…if that could happen in a party with about 731 (767) delegates, imagine what will happen if the APC with about 2,322 delegates is allowed to indulge in Dollar Rain,” he stated.
According to him, Atiku Abubakar’s “opportunistic victory” will have little or no impact on the APC’s election of a presidential candidate from the South-East.
Okechukwu made these known in a statement he signed on Sunday titled ‘Mr President, save Naira from obscene Dollar-monetised presidential primaries, Okechukwu pleads.’
The reports gathered that, ahead of the primaries of the governing party and the main opposition, aspirants engaged in a frantic dollar buy-out nationwide, leading to the further depreciation of the naira.
Citing the withdrawal speech of one of the PDP presidential aspirants, Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, who said the primaries have been “obscenely monetised,” Okechukwu said the consensus route would ensure that the forthcoming APC presidential primary does not follow the PDP’s highest-bidder dollar rain.
In his speech before withdrawing from the PDP primary, the former banker, Hayatu-Deen, said, “it is, therefore, based on personal principles and with great humility that I have decided to withdraw from this contest, which has been obscenely monetised.”
According to Okechukwu: “Albeit, our sister opposition political party has every constitutional right to elect whoever they want as their flagbearer; the dollar rain is worrisome as noted by Mohammed Hayatu-Deen, who dubbed it obscenely monetised presidential primary.
“If the naira is already bleeding because of dollar rain on 731 (767) delegates; please, better imagine the degree of depreciation of the naira if another blitz of dollar rain is allowed to be splashed on 2,322 delegates.
He, therefore, called on the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to consider the consensus option in the APC presidential primary.
He explained, “All the three (modes of primary) are democratic and are in our law books. Please, is it not paradoxical that the governors and ex-governors who oppose consensus had adopted the same consensus and even outright imposition to select their successors?
“To me, they have lost the moral high ground to oppose Mr President from adopting such a legal mode of primary election. One’s appeal is that a politically correct aspirant should be consensually presented.”
The party chieftain, who congratulated the newly elected PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, dismissed insinuations that with Atiku at the helm, the APC would not adhere to the rotation convention of electing a presidential candidate of the Igbo extraction or a southerner.
“Methinks His Excellency Atiku Abubakar’s opportunistic victory will have little or no impact on (the) APC’s election of a presidential candidate from among Ndigbo aspirants or by extension the southern belt aspirants. I don’t think Mr President I know even going by consensus will deny the south their turn.
“Most importantly, one, northern voters are sophisticated, having voted for Chiefs MKO Abiola and Olusegun Obasanjo, with all indicators they will vote southerner this time around so as to shame the PDP for breaching the rotation convention in their constitution.
“Second, there are a number of northern voters who are patriots, who believe sincerely in the ancient doctrine of equity, natural justice and the imperative of unity of our dear country. Going south is the best solution to smoothen the polarisation in the land.
“Thirdly, the dormant Igbo voters in Kano, Lagos and other towns plus core non-Igbo APC voters will be woken up to trounce Waziri Adamawa at the polls,” he said.
Eid-el-Fitr: IPCR Urges Nigerians to Embrace Unity, Peaceful Coexistence
By: Michael Mike
The Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) has called on Nigerians to strengthen unity, tolerance and peaceful coexistence as Muslims across the country celebrate Eid-el-Fitr, marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
In a statement issued on Thursday in Abuja, the Director-General of the institute, Dr. Joseph Ochogwu, congratulated the Muslim Ummah in Nigeria and around the world on the successful completion of the Ramadan fast.
He said the occasion, which signifies the end of a period of fasting, reflection and spiritual devotion, provides an opportunity for citizens to renew their commitment to the values of peace, compassion and national unity.
Ochogwu urged Muslims to sustain the virtues cultivated during Ramadan—such as self-discipline, patience, charity and piety—beyond the festive period, stressing that such values are essential for building harmonious communities and strengthening the nation.
According to him, Nigerians must also rise above religious, ethnic and political differences and embrace mutual respect and peaceful coexistence as vital ingredients for national development.
“At a time when the country is confronted with complex challenges, unity of purpose and collective responsibility are crucial to overcoming divisions and building a more secure and prosperous nation,” he said.
The institute also expressed concern over recent security incidents in parts of the country, including the tragic bomb blast in Maiduguri, Borno State, which claimed several lives.
Ochogwu extended condolences to families of the victims, praying for the repose of the deceased and speedy recovery for those injured in the attack.
He reaffirmed the institute’s commitment to its mandate of promoting peacebuilding, conflict prevention and resolution across Nigeria, noting that IPCR would continue to work with government institutions, communities and other stakeholders to address the root causes of conflict.
The IPCR boss further urged citizens to remain vigilant, cooperate with security agencies and actively support peacebuilding initiatives in their communities.
“Peace is a shared responsibility, and every Nigerian has a role to play in safeguarding it,” he added.
Ochogwu also prayed that the Eid-el-Fitr celebration would usher in renewed hope, healing and unity for Nigeria while advancing peace, stability and national progress.
Eid-el-Fitr: IPCR Urges Nigerians to Embrace Unity, Peaceful Coexistence
National News
VP Shettima Visits Victims Of Multiple Explosions In Maiduguri, Assures Of FG’s Tough Response To Terrorism
VP Shettima Visits Victims Of Multiple Explosions In Maiduguri, Assures Of FG’s Tough Response To Terrorism
By: Our Reporter
The Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, has restated the Federal Government’s resolve to defeat terrorism, declaring that those behind recent attacks in the country will be decisively confronted.
He noted that beyond the presidential directive to security chiefs, the Federal Government was investing more in equipment and other logistics to boost the fight against terrorism across the country.
Senator Shettima spoke on Wednesday in Maiduguri when he visited victims of the bomb blast who are receiving treatment at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.
Condemning the gory multiple explosions in Maiduguri on Monday in which more than 100 people were affected by the incident, with over 20 confirmed dead, he described the perpetrators as barbaric, stressing that no cause justifies the killing of innocent people.
The Vice President said his visit was to sympathise with the injured and families affected by the tragedy, assuring of government’s support through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the North East Development Commission, and the Borno State Government.
The Vice President was accompanied by Borno State Deputy Governor Usman Kadafur; NEMA Director-General, Zubaida Umar; Chief Medical Director of the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, Professor Ahmed Ahijo, and other top government officials.
VP Shettima Visits Victims Of Multiple Explosions In Maiduguri, Assures Of FG’s Tough Response To Terrorism
FG Declares Two-Day Public Holiday for Eid-ul-Fitr
By: Michael Mike
The Federal Government has declared Thursday, March 19 and Friday, March 20, 2026, as public holidays to mark this year’s Eid-ul-Fitr celebration.
The announcement was made by the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, who congratulated Muslim faithful across the country on the successful completion of the holy month of Ramadan.
In a statement issued on Tuesday by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Interior, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, on behalf of the Federal Government, the minister urged Muslims to uphold the core values of love, generosity, peace, tolerance, and sacrifice, which define the Ramadan period. He emphasized the need for Nigerians to reflect on these virtues beyond the fasting season as part of efforts to build a more harmonious society.
Tunji-Ojo also called on citizens, regardless of religious affiliation, to use the festive period to pray for national peace, unity, and sustained progress, noting that collective responsibility remains key to the country’s stability.
He further encouraged Nigerians to celebrate responsibly and extend kindness to the less privileged, in line with the spirit of the season.
The declaration underscores the government’s continued commitment to promoting unity and peaceful coexistence in the country, as millions of Muslims prepare to celebrate one of the most significant festivals in the Islamic calendar.
FG Declares Two-Day Public Holiday for Eid-ul-Fitr
ASHLEE MOMOH FOUNDATION HONOURS WIDOWS OF FALLEN HEROES
Environmental Activist Warns Against ‘Junk Food Culture’, Calls for Decolonisation of Africa’s Food Systems
Eid-el-Fitr: IPCR Urges Nigerians to Embrace Unity, Peaceful Coexistence
Roger Federer’s Shock as DNA Results Reveal Myla and Charlene Are Not His Biological Children
THE PLIGHT OF FARIDA
FAILED COUP IN BURKINA FASO: HOW TRAORÉ NARROWLY ESCAPED ASSASSINATION PLOT AMID FOREIGN INTERFERENCE CLAIMS
-
News2 years agoRoger Federer’s Shock as DNA Results Reveal Myla and Charlene Are Not His Biological Children
-
Opinions4 years ago
THE PLIGHT OF FARIDA
-
News11 months agoFAILED COUP IN BURKINA FASO: HOW TRAORÉ NARROWLY ESCAPED ASSASSINATION PLOT AMID FOREIGN INTERFERENCE CLAIMS
-
News2 years agoEYN: Rev. Billi, Distortion of History, and The Living Tamarind Tree
-
Opinions4 years agoPOLICE CHARGE ROOMS, A MINTING PRESS
-
ACADEMICS2 years agoA History of Biu” (2015) and The Lingering Bura-Pabir Question (1)
-
Columns2 years agoArmy University Biu: There is certain interest, but certainly not from Borno.
-
Opinions2 years agoTinubu,Shettima: The epidemic of economic, insecurity in Nigeria
