Agbaje Denies Dumping PDP | Nairalaw

The governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in
Lagos State, Mr Jimi Agbaje, on Wednesday denied dumping his party
after the just concluded elections.

Agbaje had emerged distant second in the March 2 governorship
election, trailing the candidate of the All Progressives Congress,
Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who was declared winner and governor-elect
by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

Speculations were rife on Wednesday that Agbaje might have
dumped the PDP and had yet to make known his next political
move.

But in a reaction, Agbaje’s spokesperson, Modupe Ogunbayo, in a
statement made available to newsmen, said his principal was still a
card-carrying member of the PDP and had not resigned his
membership.

He said Agbaje was committed to the PDP which he believes is the
best party that will address the yearnings of Nigerians.

The statement read, “In the past 24 hours, Mr. Olujimi Kolawole
Agbaje, the gubernatorial candidate of the People’s Democratic
Party in the recently-concluded 2019 election in Lagos state, has
received uncountable calls and messages from numerous friends,
teeming political associates within PDP and countless members of
his supporters, that he has resigned from the PDP.

“Mr. Olujimi Kolawole Agbaje is still a card-carrying member of
the PDP. He remains committed to the broad-based party, which he
remains absolutely certain, has the best antidote to the yearnings
and aspirations of the Nigerian peoples.

“It is another chunk from the ongoing propaganda and
disinformation machinery of his foes. Mr. Olujimi Kolawole Agbaje
urges all to treat the rumour with the disdain it wisely
deserves.”

FG Hinges on Importance of OGP for National
prosperity

The Honorable Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of
Justice (HAGF) Abubakar Malami (SAN) has said that the fight
against corruption using the Open Government Partnership (OGP)
platform is one of the efforts that the government is making to
enthrone accountability and national prosperity.
Malami made this statement at the 6th Open Government Partnership
(OGP) National Steering Committee Meeting in Abuja on Friday 15
March. 2019.
‘’It is a journey that will take them from transparency and
openness to the National prosperity. But the road may be bumpy and
rough, we may sometimes stumble and make mistakes but we will get
to our destination of shared prosperity if we do not relent’’.
Representing the HAGF, Director Budget and National Planning /
Incoming Co-chair OGP Nigeria Dr. Ann Nzegwu explained that their
membership of OGP continues to affirm government effort to deepen
institutional reform and strengthen the measures of corruption.
“Taking a look at the agenda of this meeting, every item is
important as Nigeria is about to end this first circle with the
government, the review of the second circle is in progress and
Nigeria will meet the stipulated time for the submission of the new
plan to the international OGP Secretariat”.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed in his
opening remarks notified the National Steering Committee(NSC)
members, of Government plan to refocus on the e- Government agenda
for Nigeria through a holistic and citizen-centric development of
ICT in Governance rather than the erstwhile individualistic
approach.
The Minister further stressed the need for a continuous
collaboration between the Ministry and the OGP National Secretary
in the actualization of the plan.
He urged members of the NSC to pay a visit to the e-Government
facility, adding that the OGP would be sustained even if there
would be change in Government by May 29, 2019.
He emphasized that the International body and more states have
keyed in and it has added to the sustainability of the OGP.
Executive Director, Media Rights Agenda and Co-Chair of the NSC
Edetaen Ojo in his remarks explained that the Secretariat of the
OGP Nigeria is undergoing a re-structuring to enable it respond
more effectively and efficiently to the current needs of OGP
Nigeria.
Ojo further explained that the initiative is growing and many
states are coming on board with a lot of activities being planned
to engage Governance at the sub-national level.
According to him, ‘’the OGP is the symbol of Governance reforms,
based on the principles of transparency, accountability and citizen
participation. The secretariat is the engine room of this
initiative and must itself embody and reflect these principles, it
certainly must be able to meet the information needs of its diverse
stakeholders and be responsive to their various interest’’.
He also explained that the Secretariat in its present state simply
cannot cope with the demands of this new reality. He stressed that
it lacks the staff capacity and many of its procedures and
mechanisms are still being developed, is an aspect of their
operations in urgent need of attention.
The Executive Director said that the National Steering Committee
would also be experiencing a transition in the course of the year;
certainly new co-chairs would take over the affairs of OGP Nigeria
sometime around June 2019.
He added that how the process is managed can also have an impact on
the fortunes of the OGP in Nigeria.
In her remarks, the representative of the State Actors Co-Chair,
Dr. Anne Nzegwu noted that Nigeria has experienced significant
challenges and laudable changes since the implementation of the
first circle on the National Action Plan (NAP).
Nzegwu urged everyone to continue in their efforts to uphold the
integrity of the Nation.

Ogochukwu Igboamalu
For; Deputy Director
Fed. Min. of Justice