Nasarawa APC Primaries: Security Operatives Take Over Lafia Square

AS Nasarawa state join the rest of the 36 states in Nigeria for
gubernatorial primaries, heavy security personnel took over the
Lafia square, venue of the All Progressive Congress (APC)
governorship primary election in the state.

Observing the area as at about 6:30 pm, security personnel were
seen in and around the vicinity of the venue blocking all access
road to the Lafia square by mounting numerous roads block well
armed for any eventuality that may arise.

Accreditation is ongoing at the time of filing in this report,
as the official names of from the national secretariat of the party
of Nasarawa state read out.

Meanwhile, an initial list of delegates were rejected as nobody
could account for the certainty of the names contained in it.

Governor Tanko Umaru Al-makura has denounced the names written,
saying ” if your name is in that, you would not be allowed to
partake in the election”

However, all the said delegates were sent out immediately,
including men of the pen profession, as the Governor also went out
of the venue furiously.

Ambode’s Bombshell: Says Sanwo-Olu Not Fit And Proper
Person
…Insists Recently Registered Members Must Not Be Disenfranchise
…Warns Political Jobbers Against Disrupting Peace In The State

Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode on Sunday tasked the
National Working Committee (NWC) of the All Progressives Congress
(APC) to ensure that the Governorship Primaries scheduled to hold
on Monday, October 1 in the State is free, fair and credible.

Governor Ambode, who gave the charge while addressing a world
press conference at the Lagos House in Alausa, Ikeja, said that
since the party had agreed to adopt direct primaries for the
governorship candidate to emerge, it behooves on them to follow due
process to ensure that every aspirant gets a fair chance to contest
for the ticket in a credible democratic process.

“The party constitution allows us to do direct and indirect
primaries. The Lagos State APC has agreed to go with direct
primaries and in that wise it is open to all contestants and so it
is very clear that during direct primaries, I am also eligible to
participate in the primaries. What we want is a very clean board to
allow everybody to partake in it.

“We believe that it is in the greater interest of the party to
allow reason to prevail and allow every contestant to come out and
show their strength. I believe strongly that it is in the interest
of the country that our party should activate as much as possible
all the democratic values that our party has always been known for
and that is what I stand for,” he said.

Governor Ambode said he was concerned that with less than 24
hours to the primaries, membership cards was yet to be distributed,
while even as an aspirant, he was yet to be given guidelines for
the election, adding that it would be injustice to deny newly
registered members of the party the opportunity to exercise their
franchise.

“I believe strongly also that the preparations are still ongoing
but there are some few things that we still need to iron out and I
believe strongly that the chairman of our great party, Comrade
Oshiomhole will be able to correct some of these things that we
have noticed.

“We are committed progressives; we are committed to the outcome
of the primaries; we are committed to the tenets and principles of
our great party but what we would not want to accept is to
disenfranchise all the millions of people that we have been able to
bring into the APC fold just by our performance and so what we
heard is that there is a register that is being brought into the
State which only includes those who have registered since 2014.
What about all the millions of members of APC that we have gotten
in from 2015 till date?

“I carry my own membership slip anywhere I go and now they say
this is the membership slip that I have, I don’t have a membership
card and so the question is are they saying me as a Governor I
would not be entitled to vote tomorrow? So, the national
headquarters and the electoral committee need to make immediate
adjustment to this.

“All the people that have registered as members of APC should be
entitled to vote in the direct primaries; that is how we entrench
the democratic values that we are all preaching. So, if someone
like me can be disenfranchised because I don’t have a card, what
happens to ordinary members of APC? We believe strongly that this
can be corrected and we allow everybody to come out and exercise
their civic duty and civic right to choose who will represent them
as the gubernatorial candidate for APC. So, I plead with the NWC, I
plead with our party chairman and even all the people that are
interested in this whole process that we should do the right thing;
we should make the process credible and I believe with God on our
side, we would come out triumphant,” Governor Ambode said.

Reaffirming that he was a bonafide member of the APC who
believes in the tenets and democratic values of the party, the
Governor said his administration’s strides in the last three and
half years has won more members into the fold.

While welcoming the challenge from other aspirants, Governor
Ambode said he was confident that his administration has set a pace
since inception and any course to alter the process could have dire
consequences on the party’s chances in the 2019 general
elections.

“As to the other aspirant, of course, we welcome competition and
yes it is an open space but we will not take something that is of
good assurance to allow us to fretter away the opportunity that our
party has to win the 2019 governorship. Beyond this, we would be
jeopardizing the Buhari/Osinbajo ticket of which I am hundred per
cent standing for by promoting another aspirant who would not be
able to sell the Buhari/Osinbajo ticket.

But the Governor stated emphatically that he remains the best
man for the job, noting that his closest challenger, Babajide
Sanwo-Olu does not possess the requisite experience and
psychological know how to govern the State.

“Now the truth is this, in the last two of three weeks, they
have been putting a lot of campaign of calumny in the social media
and also disparaging our personalities and character but we have
been extremely humble; we have never responded; we have never
abused anybody because we believe that there is always a reason for
us to come together as a family. We are one family in APC but now
the truth is this, the aspirant they are putting up to compete
against us is not a fit and proper person to take this position and
they know the fact; this is the truth!

“Party leaders and even party members have been misled to
understand that this is a better candidate than myself. I have done
everything in the last three and half years to serve the people
selflessly and to serve the poor and that is why you see that most
of the projects you have seen is to alleviate the sufferings of the
poor and the only way out for us is to continue to do that in the
next four years.

“This particular aspirant as we all know, you can go and check
it, the records are there. This is somebody that has been arrested
for spending fake American dollars in a night club and he has been
detained for months. He is also known that he does not have the
competence to do what he is being propelled to do, the records are
there in Gbagada General Hospital, the records are there; this is
somebody that has gone for rehabilitation before.

“We don’t want to go too far; we don’t want to talk about all
the things that we know but what we want is for our leadership to
have a rethink because the truth is this, I will not stand here on
the mandate of Lagosians and then allow our great party APC to
fretter away that opportunity to put in somebody that the
opposition will easily take out because of lack of credibility.

“We plead with all our leaders. They should have a rethink; this
is not about me but about the greater opportunities that APC stands
to better the progress of Lagos and Nigeria,” he said.

Governor Ambode also seized the occasion to express concern on
the heated political situation in the State, saying that the
Government would not fold its arms and watch political thugs
disrupt the peace the State has enjoyed in the last three and half
years.

He disclosed that security reports available to the State
Government indicate that there was an ongoing recruitment and
arming of political thugs to disrupt the tranquil atmosphere of
Lagos State, in the guise of holding Primary Elections.

“It has become imperative to put every stakeholder on notice,
especially the Federal Government and Security Agencies, to take
more than a passing interest in the development in this State that
has hitherto been adjudged as the safest city in Africa.

“Consequently, the State Government will do all within its
powers in collaboration with relevant security agencies to protect
our citizens and insulate them from any condition that may breed
insecurity or the breakdown of law and order in the State
throughout the Primaries campaign and election periods,” Governor
Ambode said.

While assuring Lagosians to be calm and go about their normal
businesses, Governor Ambode warned criminal elements planning to
cause trouble in the name of politics or under any guise that those
caught in the act would be made to face the full wrath of the
law.

“Without being immodest, after three and half years of
remarkable performance in bringing growth and development to our
dear State, I have humbly expressed my intention to seek
re-election in order to consolidate on the giant strides that we
have recorded for our dear State and our great party, APC. This is
why I once again seek the support of every party member in
tomorrow’s primary election. We shall overcome,” he said.

SIGNED
HABIB ARUNA
CHIEF PRESS SECRETARY