There are strong indications that the
plot to remove the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress,
Mr Adams Oshiomhole, has failed as he is enjoying the backing of a
majority of the state chairmen of the party and other officers.
Investigations by
on Saturday showed that except for states, such as Ogun and Imo, where
the governors were not satisfied with the outcomes of the primaries
conducted by the Oshiomhole-led National Working Committee, most state
chairmen of the party had vowed to resist any plot to remove the
national chairman.
There were reports a few weeks ago that
there was a plot to remove Oshiomhole because of the manner he handled
the party’s primaries, which some governors, including Ibikunle Amosun
(Ogun); Rochas Okorochas (Imo) and Abdulaziz Yari (Zamfara), had
faulted.
A member of the APC NWC, who confided in
one of our correspondents, said the former Edo State governor had not
reached out to state chairmen of the party to stop the plot.
The party chieftain stated, “There is no
reason for him to do that because only two or three states are against
him. Any plan to remove Oshiomhole will fail because he is enjoying the
support of many states. Anybody that is bent on removing him now that
elections are approaching will plunge the party into another crisis that
may affect its chances at the polls.”
The National Leader of the All
Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, said the Oshiomhole’s
position as national chairman is not under any threat despite
allegations that he (Oshiomhole) reportedly collected huge bribes from
some governorship candidates.
The former Lagos State governor said
based on this, he was not lobbying to save Oshiomhole’s job because
there was no basis for it.
Speaking in an interview with our
correspondent on Saturday through his Media Adviser, Mr Tunde Rahman, he
stated that allegations such as the one against the APC chairman were
bound to trail party primaries as those who suffered electoral defeat
would always want to blame somebody for their failure.
“I really don’t understand what you mean
by lobbying. One, His Excellency, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, is at present
out of town. Two, and more importantly is the job of the APC Chairman,
Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, threatened in any way? I don’t think so.
“I’m aware that Chairman Oshiomhole has
met with President Muhammadu Buhari at least twice since these
allegations were made and the President has never indicated he has lost
confidence in his chairman. All that has been said against the chairman
remains mere allegations and he has challenged those who made such
allegations to come forward with evidence.
“Allegations like that will normally
come and this is understandable when you are confronted with primaries
where some lost and some others won.”
Party marching away from impunity – Oyo chapter
The Oyo State chapter of the APC said
the party had stopped impunity. The party’s spokesman in the state, Dr
AbdulAzeez Olatunde, said Oshiomhole had yet to reach out to the party
executives in Oyo to starve off his removal.
Olatunde, who is the Director of Media,
Research and Strategies and Publicity Secretary of the party, stated,
“Don’t forget that we are in the thick of intense politicking where all
manners of decorated lies are being thrown at the national chairman
because of his intimidating character as a former labour leader with
lots of accomplishments.”
“The APC is unshakable. We are marching Nigeria away from the era of impunity,” he added.
No problem with national chair –Ekiti APC chairman
In the same vein, the APC Chairman in
Ekiti State, Paul Omotoso, on his part, said the party in state had no
issue arising from the primaries.
Omotoso said the party did not have any
axe to grind with Oshiomhole over the primaries as “elections in Ekiti
State were conducted and candidates who won were returned and presented
intact to the Independent National Electoral Commission.”
The APC state chairman told Sunday PUNCH
in Ado Ekiti on Saturday that the issues arising from the primaries,
which led to Oshiomhole alleging that some individuals in the party had
ganged up to remove him from office, would be resolved by the party.
He said, “ The national chairman did not
reach out to us to help save his job. It is an internal matter which
the party can handle. Everything will be resolved. Our leaders are
capable.”
In Rivers State, the Publicity Secretary
of the APC, Mr Chris Finebone, said the party at the state level was
not expecting Oshiomhole to reach out to it.
Finebone explained that the position of
the APC national chairman was not threatened and as such did not need to
begin to meet with any state chapter of the party.
“His (Oshiomhole) job is never
threatened at all. It is only those who lost out in the power tussle
that are trying to be heard,” he said.
Akeredolu, Ondo chair disagree
In Ondo State, it was reliably gathered
that the Chairman of the party, Mr Ade Adetimehin, and the state
governor, Mr. Rotimi Akeredolu, were not on the same page on the issue
of the removal of the national chairman.
A source in the party said while
Akeredolu was in support of Oshiomhole’s removal, the state party
chairman was supporting the national chairman.
The source said, “The way things are
going on in Ondo APC, it seems the governor and the chairman do not
agree on the issue. The governor wants Oshiomhole out as the chairman
but Adetimehin opposes this.
“As I am talking to you today,
Adetimehin is confused on the matter because he doesn’t want to go
against the wish of the governor, who is the leader of the party in the
state, but he ( Adetimehin) couldn’t come out to give his support to
Oshiomhole. That is why we are neutral on the matter in Ondo State and
that is why the party is being silent on the issue.”
Attempts to get the APC state chairman did not succeed as he did not return calls to his mobile on Saturday.
We’re not happy with Oshiomhole –Imo
But the Imo State chapter of the party
said it remained aggrieved with the decisions Oshiomhole took during the
party’s protracted primaries in the state.
The state Publicity Secretary, Jones
Onwuasoanya, said the party’s constitution was very clear on how an
“errant officer” should be disciplined.
Onwuasoanya said, “The national chairman
has not reached out to us to save his job. Let me state it that it is
not within the purview of the state chapters of the party to decide the
fate of any errant national officer.
“But the truth is that we are not happy
with him on some of the steps he took regarding the outcome of the
primary elections in Imo state.”
In like manner, in Ogun State, the
crisis between the state chapter of the APC Oshiomhole had worsened
following the refusal of the chairman to grant the request of the state
governor, Ibikunle Amosun.
Niyi Odebode, Chukwudi Akasike, Femi Makinde, Ademola Babalola,Bola Bamigbola, Olaide Oyelude, Tunji Bosun, Armstrong Bakam, Abiodun Nejo, Peter Dada, and Chidiebube Okeoma
Troops of the 24 Support Engineer Regiment Abakaliki have rescued a
child locked up in a house in Ebonyi State. According to the Nigerian
Army, the child was discovered during a search-and-rescue operation for a
soldier, L/Cpl Oluwabukunmi Fadoju, who has been missing since
September 17, 2018. When the soldiers got to Onunwakpu in Izzi Local
Government Area of Ebonyi State on November 16, 2018, they were said to
have discovered the malnourished child locked up in a house. The child
was seated on what appeared to be charms and was picking leaves from the
ground to eat. The charms were burnt and the child was given some food
before he was, thereafter, taken to the Medical Reception Station for
treatment. The child has been handed over to the Ebonyi State
Government. 
The post Soldiers rescuean abandoned and malnourished child locked up in a house in Ebonyi State (Photos)
The Kogi State office of the Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC), mourn as four staff members, a youth corps member and a
three-year-old girl died in an accident on Ajaokuta-Lokoja road on
Saturday. According to reports, the National Youth Service Corps member
was performing his primary assignment with the INEC office in Lokoja and
that the child belonged to one of the INEC staff members. The victims
were returning in the evening from Ayingba, Kogi, where they attended
the wedding ceremony of another INEC worker when the sad incident
occured. The Director of Voter Education and Publicity at Kogi Office of
INEC, Ahmed Biambo, confirmed the incident saying that the victims were
from the Information and Communication Technology and Accounts
departments of INEC. He said that the corpses have been deposited at
the morgue of the Federal Medical Centre, Lokoja.The post 
The beef in the Okoye family clearly seems far from over. Yesterday,
Paul and Peter Okoye (Psqaure) turned 39 and a barrage of birthday
messages flooded social media to wish them well. However, Paul and Jude
Okoye's posts a few hours after Lola Omotayo's (Peter's wife) birthday
message seems too shady to be ignored. In Lola's message she wrote, 'I
pray that our father in heaven speaks to you individually and softens
your hearts'. Paul in his post said, 'may God soften their
wickedness'. See all the screenshots below... 
The post 
Actress, Adesua has taken to her Instagram page to celebrate her
husband, Banky W on the occassion of their first traditional wedding
anniversary on Monday, November 19. Posting this lovely photo on her
page, Adesua wrote''On this day, the quiet moments were the best.
Moments when I felt like it was just you and I. I thought back on the
tough months we had before this day (surgery And healing) and how God
brought us through. He's still keeping us and he has given us the most
beautiful life.A year ago, I was sure that I loved you as much as I
thought was humanly possible. A year later and I realise that I was so
wrong. I love you so much more. Thank you for stretching my heart
muscles and being such an amazing human being and husband. My husband.
Still in awe of the man that you are. There's nothing more amazing than
waking up and seeing you right next to me. I love you more than I can
put into words. My purpose partner, my guy, my lover (slurp), my
bubba.You were worth the wait.LOVE YOU PIECES.Happy tradiversary honey
@bankywellington#BAADFOREVERThe post 
Ditan Okupe, the son of former spokesperson of former President Goodluck
Jonathan, Doyin Okupe, has asked Nigerians to call him a bastard if
Nigeria does not experience economic boom after President Buhari is
re-elected in 2019. Ditan who joined the Buhari Campaign Organization
this month against his father's wishes, wrote on his twitter this
morning ''If 2 years into PMBs next administration,Nigeria does not
begin to experience an economic boom the likes of which no African
nation has experienced ever before, then call me a bastard. Lol PMB
& PYO in 4yrs have laid a perfect foundation. Our success, as a
nation, is inevitable ''
The post 
English singer and actress, Rita Ora commanded attention as she arrived
for the Evening Standard Theatre Awards 2018 on Sunday evening in a
glamorous dress. The 27-year-old singer stunned in a pink satin gown
emblazoned with feathers running down the bodice and her hips.Continue
to see more photos below. 
The post 
Banky W and his stunning wife, Adesua, are celebrating their first
traditional wedding anniversary today November 19th.In a post shared on
his Instagram page, Banky said the best decision he has made so far in
his adult life was waiting to find the right person as a wife.In his
post, he advised that people should endeavour not to give in to
pressures when on the journey to finding a life partner. Happy
anniversary to them. Read what he wrote belowBy far the best decision I
have made in my adult life, was to wait until I found my wife. People
will pressure you and try to make you feel inadequate or incomplete..
all because you're not living according to their own mental timetable.
Ignore them.Focus on your journey, your happiness, and on making
yourself a better person. My prayer is that you will discover, like I
did, that the right person is worth waiting for.Mrs W... I'm still
amazed that I get to call you mine. Thank you for loving me. Thank you
for building with me. Thank you for believing in me and for inspiring me
to be a better man. My purpose partner, my rock, my destiny, my Shug,
my wife, my life... Happy tradiversary Skuu. Love you SCATTER.
#BAAD2017 #BAAD2018The post 
Star actress, producer and director Stephanie Linus has been named the
ambassador for Nollycasting - the number 1 casting site in Africa for
Film/TV, Music Videos, Commercials, Comedy and more! This much needed
online platform was created to connect both new and seasoned talents
with the right people seeking to hire them. According to an official
statement from the creators of Nollycasting, the website is currently
accepting registrations from individuals with interest in acting, music
videos, commercials, voice overs, modeling, comedy and much more. This
is a sure way to put your skills and profile in front of several casting
directors and producers who may be interested in hiring you. The
website is very simple to use. Simply visit www.nollycasting.com and
sign up. Within a few minutes, users can create a profile, upload their
headshots, reels, resume and put their name in front of thousands of
casting directors. Profiles can be created for aspiring and seasoned
actors, actresses, movie set extras, music video vixens, back-up
singers, models, voice-over artists and much more. 
With
a pool of thousands of jobs available in the movie and music industry,
content creators often have the problem of finding the right people to
hire for certain jobs. This challenge also applies to talented people
who find it difficult in finding the kind of jobs that helps them
utilize and develop their creative talents. Nollycasting is here to make
that process easier. Nollycasting brand ambassador, Stephanie Linus,
noted that it was a timely initiative which would eliminate the huge
costs and difficulties associated with finding the right people to fill
certain roles. “People often ask me questions about how to get roles in
acting and other jobs in the entertainment industry,” she said. “I’m
glad I can now tell them about Nollycasting where they can connect with
the right people who need their skills. It also saves time and money for
producers and casting directors as they can now get all the talents
they need in one place.” This platform has been endorsed by several
veterans in the film and music industry who are eagerly looking for the
best talent to cast in their next projects. Find endless opportunities
for roles in: Acting, Commercials, Music videos, Modelling, Voice-overs,
Reality TV and more! Make that move towards achieving your dreams now
by signing up today! Nollycasting is now live on www.nollycasting.com
You can also connect with us on our social media
platforms: http://www.facebook.com/nollycasting www.twitter.com/nollycasting www.instagram.com/nollycasting The
post 
The ancient city of Ile-Ife is bustling with numerous activities, as the
annual Olojo festival takes on a life of its own. Each year, people
gather to celebrate the rich and dynamic Yoruba culture of Ile-Ife and
its origins. MTN Nigeria has joined a host of organizations to sponsor
the popular Yoruba festival. This is one of the many festivals that the
ICT company is supporting - to help promote the vibrant and intriguing
Nigerian culture. Friday, 28th September 2018, was the ‘Aare’ day as the
king wore the ancient Aare crown to all the major areas in Ile-Ife.
This crown which the Ooni wears once a year, is the oldest in the Yoruba
land. All present are to pray fervently before the king moves in with
his traditional soldiers (lokoloko). These soldiers waved soaked canes
to scare the crowd and pave way for the king.
As
custom demands, Yoruba history was richly represented. One of the most
compelling sights was seeing one of the performers swallow razor blades
and spew them out with no injuries! After that it was spectacle after
spectacle all laced with thought provoking culture. The “Olosun” placed a
white branded pot in the middle of the stage on which 3 people sat and
yet it did not break. We watched water being poured into a basket, yet,
not a single drop spilled or dropped out of the basket. There were
rainmakers too, who seemed to control the rain! These men were chanting
inaudibly and all of a sudden, the dark skies began clearing up. What a
day to be in Ile Ife?! 
The post 
The photo was captured this morning as President Buhari launched APC's
Road Map for 2019 Campaign titled "Next Level" at the State House.The
post 
A chieftain of the ruling party, All Progressives Congress APC in the
Federal Capital Territory Abuja, Pastor Benjamin Imeogu, has been
murdered by unknown gunmen.According to reports, Imeogu who was the
Chairman of the APC panel on the conduct of the National Assembly
primaries in the FCT, was attacked along the Nnamdi Azikiwe airport road
in Abuja last Thursday November 16th. He was reportedly shot five times
on the chest at close range.The deceased, his wife and three children
were reportedly returning back from church, The Transforming Church,
Galadimawa, when they were attacked. His wife and one of his sons are
currently battling for their lives as bullets passed through their
stomach while the remaining two children escaped with minor wounds,It is
yet to be ascertained if the attack was connected to the Abuja
Municipal Area Council elections in which the deceased actively
participated as the Chairman of the electoral committee.His remains has
since been deposited at the National Hospital’s morgue, while his wife
and son are battling for their lives at an undisclosed hospital.May his
soul rest in peace, Amen.The post 
Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of a Federal High Court in Abuja, has dismissed a
suit challenging non-registration of a same sex group by the Corporate
Affairs Commission (CAC), for lacking in merit. The plaintiff, Pamela
Adie, in the court papers, said that sometime in October 2017, she
founded the “Lesbian Equality and Empowerment Initiatives” whose
objective was primarily to advocate for the rights of same sex sexual
orientation people but that her quest to register the association at the
CAC, through her counsel, Fajenyo Kayode, was declined. She then filed a
motion challenging the decision of the commission to decline the
registration of the association. In his judgment which was delivered
last Friday November 16th, Justice Dimgba held that the decision of CAC
refusing to register the group was in compliance with 30 (1) (c) of the
Companies And Allied Matters Act (CAMA) Cap C20 Laws of Federation of
Nigeria 2004.“It is my view that where either the proposed name of the
company or its aims and objectives are caught by the provisions of
Section 30 (1) (c) of CAMA, the respondent is duly empowered to reject
such an application for reservation of name or registration as it has
done in this case. “Section 30 (1) (c) of CAMA reads: “No company shall
be registered under this Act by a name which- (c) in the opinion of the
Commission is capable of being misleading as to the nature or extent of
its activities or is undesirable, offensive or otherwise contrary to
public policy.” the judge saidRecall that in January 2014, the Anti-Gay
law which proffers 14-year jail term for anyone caught in any act of
same sex, was assented to by former president Goodluck Jonathan.The post
John Abayomi Aruleba, owner of Instablog9ja In an article on Linda
Ikeji’s Blog titled “LIB exclusive: Meet the owner of Instablog9ja -
John Abayomi” published on November 15, 2018 John Abayomi was mistakenly
identified by his picture as the owner of Instablog9ja. This mistake
was as a result of the exact similarities in the names of John Abayomi
who is an Online Editor with Punch and another John Abayomi Aruleba who
is the actual owner of Instablog9ja. The picture identification mistake
from our staff was sadly as a result of the uncanny yet not uncommon
similarities in the names of these two individuals. LIB is happy to set
the record straight, take full responsibility for the mix-up as we
tender our unreserved apology to John Abayomi of Punch Newspapers for
any inconvenience this mistake has caused. Our publication was meant to
reveal the identity of John Abayomi Aruleba (pictured above), the owner
of instablog9ja who shares the same business address as his father, Dr
Aruleba owner of Aruking herbal herbs with business address in Sabo,
Yaba. The fact however still remains that John Abayomi Aruleba runs
Instablog9ja with his partner, Tosin Dotun Adeyemi EditorLinda Ikeji
BlogThe post 
Just when you think you've seen it all from Bobrisky! He shared this
video showing how to give 'blow job' and he's seen here experimenting
with a dildo. See the video below.... View this post on
Instagram #Bobrisky #BlowjobA post shared by The One
(@dignoromeristrum) on Nov 18, 2018 at 10:23am PSTThe post 
Titi Atiku Abubakar, wife of the Presidential Candidate of the PDP,
Atiku Abubakar has said that her husband is a man of integrity,
stressing that she married him for his honesty and patriotism. She
spoke this weekend while receiving a campaign group, Women for Atiku,
that no one knew Atiku better than she does, having been married to him
for 47 years. She explained that contrary to unverified and vague
allegation of corruption by political detractors, Atiku was actually a
man whose integrity, honesty and sincerity earned him her love. In her
words, “I usually got confuse Whenever i read the false allegations of
corruption being spread by mischief makers against my husband in the
media. Most times i ask myself if they were referring to my husband whom
I have been married to for 47 years or a different person. Their
descriptions only befits the opposite of Atiku Abubakar, because he is
not corrupt as alleged”. According to her, since she married Atiku 47
years ago, she had never found him wanting in honesty, sincerity,
integrity and patriotism to his fatherland. She narrated how they were
brought together by divine destiny. “I was on my way back to Nigeria
from Benin Republic wher I went to visit my aunt at the idioroko boarder
and was accosted by ofifcers of the Customs Service. They had demanded
that I pay duty for a pair of brocade material which was a gift from
my aunt, an argument ensued between us and i told them to have the
brocade material for a keep because i couldn’t comprehend why i should
pay duty for a pair of brocade.Suddenly an officer by name Atiku
Abubakar who heard our argument summoned the officers to come along with
me to his office. He was the head of the command at the time.After
listening to both sides, Atiku demanded for the duty charge, dipped his
hand into his pocket and paid the duty and handed me the receipt smiling
and saying that ‘I will pay him back’.As the head of the command he
could have simply commanded them to let me go if he chose to, but his
patriotism to fatherland would never allow him do so, and that singular
act swept me off my feet and i eventually fell in love,” she said.The
post 
As the campaign season for the 2019 elections officially kicks off
today, President Buhari and the All Progressives Congress (APC) has
released its roadmap. The roadmap themed Next Level is geared toward
seeking re-election across all thirty-six state of the federation and
the Federal Capital Territory. See below full text of the APC Roadmap
below:Four years ago, we promised Nigerians real change – in what we do
and how we do it. Nigerians sent a clear message in the last election,
and our platform offered a new, ambitious plan for a secure, prosperous
and corruption-free country. We have worked hard to fulfil our promises –
and while the road may have been difficult, over the last three and a
half years, we have laid the foundations for a strong, stable and
prosperous country for the majority of our people.Foundational work is
not often visible, neither is it glamorous – but it is vital to
achieving the kind of country we desire. Judging by the prior depth of
decay, deterioration and disrepair that Nigeria had sunken into, we are
certain that these past few years have put us in good stead to trudge on
the Next Level of building an even stronger nation for our
people. First things had to come first. We were a nation at war – but we
delivered on our commitment to secure the territorial integrity of our
nation in the face of a raging insurgency that devastated many parts of
the North East. We liberated 17 Local Government Areas from the grip of
insurgency. Brokering and sustaining peace in the Niger Delta has also
been crucial to stabilising the polity. Despite the difficult
circumstances presented by weak oil prices and reduced oil production,
we delivered on our commitment to make public investments to spur
economic growth, job creation, and broad-based prosperity.Agriculture
continues to expand our economic base, as do our investments in
deficient infrastructure across the length and breadth of this nation.
We implemented a responsible and transparent fiscal plan for the
challenging economic times that saw us doing more even with lesser oil
revenues. Grand scale corruption perpetrated at the highest level of
government is now a thing of the past, just as the Treasury Single
Account (TSA) has made it more difficult for ministries, departments and
agencies to exercise the unrestrained liberties that helped foster a
climate conducive to corruption.The nation’s wealth is now being
invested in capital projects to expand infrastructure and connect
people, goods and opportunities by rail, road and air. Also, the Federal
Government supported state governments with bailouts that enabled them
to pay workers on their payroll. We took an unprecedented step towards
creating a fairer and more equitable society by implementing Africa’s
biggest social investment programme. Through the National Social
Investment Programme, we are providing direct support to over 13 million
Nigerians who need it by giving relief and assistance to unemployed
youth, our children, the weak and vulnerable as well as small and medium
businesses. But even as we lay the foundation for a stable and
prosperous nation, we acknowledge there is still much to do.The Next
Levelof effort focuses on job creation across various sectors. From an
enlargement of the N-Power programme to investing in technology and
creative sector jobs to agriculture and revolutionising access to credit
for entrepreneurs and artisans, there is scope for over 15 million new
jobs.The march away from a mono-economy must continue with our
industrialisation plan coming to fore. With specific plans underway to
exploit the comparative advantage of the geopolitical zones and
different states by developing 6 Industrial Parks and 109 Special
Production and Processing Centres (SPPCs) across each senatorial
district, our incremental move away from oil dependence is assured.In
addition, our development of the Special Economic Zones will quickly
concretise our Made in Nigeria for Export (MINE) plan. To sustain food
production and value addition, our mechanisation policy for agriculture
will make tractors and processors easily accessible and available for
farmers across Nigeria. We will continue a wide scale training policy,
prioritising technology to reach the demography of young people within
the productive sector on a massive scale even as we create jobs and
growth within our economy. We believe that our people who are still in
poverty have a direct way out and up through our expanded National
Social Investment Programme. We believe we can implement the painstaking
and comprehensive policy and work we have done to bring an end to the
perennial conflict between farmers and herders – a conflict which is
heightened by a struggle for land, water and pasture and the effects of
climate change and every now and then, opportunistic and cynical
manipulation by political actors. We are implementing a blend of
measures that ensures that justice, order, modernisation and new
economic paradigms emerge. Perhaps our biggest ambition yet is the
overhaul of our education sector. Every child counts – and simply,
whatever it takes to prepare our teachers, curriculum and classrooms to
attain the right educational goals that grow our country, will be done.
We will remodel 10,000 schools every year and retrain our teachers to
impart science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics using
coding, animation, robotics to re-interpret our curriculum.We know that
to succeed, moral integrity and conscience must continue to form the
dominant character of our nation and its leadership. Corruption is an
existential threat to Nigeria. Despite the gains we have made in closing
the gates, we know that there is still much ground to cover to stop
systemic corruption. We are committed to deepening the work we started
this first term such that the nation’s assets and resources continue to
be organised and utilised to do good for the common man.The next four
years will be quite significant for our country. Nigeria is faced with a
choice to keep building a new Nigeria- making a break from its tainted
past which favoured an opportunistic few. Our choices will shape us –
our economic security and our future prosperity. Nigeria, more than ever
before, needs a stable and people-focused government to move the agenda
for our country forward. Join us on this journey to the Next Level of a
prosperous, strong and stable Nigeria! Nigerians, we are all going
higher!The post 
