The youths of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Zamfara State have reacted to the rumoured defection of Governor Dauda Lawal from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

The youths under the aegis of Zamfara APC Integrity Network (ZAIN) said it rejects in its entirety the planned defection of the governor.

In a statement issued on Monday, June 9, by Sani Gummi, its President, ZAIN said Lawal is a political liability to any party.

According to Gummi, the governor has failed to deliver on his electoral promises to the people of Zamfara and has no relevance to the political permutations of the APC.

Gummi also warned that such a move by the governor would backfire on the party.

He said the APC “cannot afford to inherit a non-performing politician whose leadership has worsened the socio-economic conditions of Zamfara people”.

“We want to make it categorically clear that Governor Dauda Lawal is not welcome in the APC. He is a huge liability, and any attempt to accept him into the party will damage our chances in 2027. Zamfara has suffered under his administration. The streets are not safe, civil servants are groaning, and there’s no tangible infrastructure to speak of,” Gummi stated.

He also described the planned defection by Governor Lawal as a political move aimed at masking his failures and thinning popularity.

Gummi also stated that the governor hopes to use President Bola Tinubu as a ladder to securing a second-term position.

“What Zamfara needs is visionary leadership — not recycled politicians jumping from party to party for personal survival. APC is rebuilding its structures, and we cannot afford to dilute that progress with someone whose record in office has been marked by blame games and inertia,” he said

Former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Olu Falae, has said that Nigeria must adopt state policing to ensure improved security across the federation.

Falae, now a traditional ruler in Akure North, Ondo State, told Vanguard in a recent interview that Nigeria operated native authority police in major towns before the 1967 civil war and he did not see the reason why policing should not be decentralised in 2025. 

His words, “I feel very passionate about this state police matter. Now, any organisation that is called a government, whether it’s local government, or state government, or Federal Government, has the power to make laws and regulations. That’s why it’s called government, governed by law. 

“They also have the intrinsic power to enforce their own enactments with their own authority through a police force. A government, local, or state, should not make laws that will be enforced by the police created by another level of government…

“Even in colonial times, the British who colonised Nigeria, they knew what I was talking about. They also had native authority police. Every town, not state, every town had its own native authority police.

“Every major town in Nigeria had its police. Why? There are politicians there. Why did they not hijack the police?

“And it’s now clear that we’ll say where is federation. A federation is not a unitary state. Power is decentralised. Why should the enforcement of law not be decentralised? What’s the logic? In any case, law and order are broken down in many places. That should tell us that state police is an absolute necessity.

“Before the civil war broke out in 1967, before then, you had native authority police in the major towns. For some time, Western Nigerian police were headed by Omitowoju.

“But when the civil war came, the army was anxious to beef up the size of the Nigerian army to meet the challenge. And so they took all these various levels of police and integrated them into the army, gave them additional training, because it is easier to convert a policeman to a soldier than to take a raw bushman and make him a soldier. So they trained them and absorbed them to the Nigerian army.

“Now, when the war ended, they forgot to desegregate the army and let the policemen go back as policemen. That’s how we lost the advantage of local authority. In the north, they were called Dandoka.

“Every local government had its police force. If Adeleke was in charge of the constabulary for many years, and if somebody stole a goat in Okearo, they went and arrested him. But if somebody was counterfeiting money somewhere, Nigerian police were going to arrest him, or if he committed murder.

“The boundaries were well defined. There was no clash. We said, if they had two players, there’d be a clash.

“There was no clash. What clash? Are we idiots? So, if what is happening now has not convinced people that state police is necessary, then I don’t know what can convince them.”

Recently appointed Chairman of the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the Pan-Yoruba socio-political organisation, Afenifere, Falae said the police force of the Indian Railway Corporation, a parastatal, is bigger than the size of the Nigeria Police Force.

“When I was in America, I was in Yale University. There was Yale police. My university had its police force, that could arrest and detain. And in colonial times, provincial governments, regional governments exercised police powers,” he said.

“There are three elements in police power. The power to arrest, to detain, and prosecute. Those three powers were given to forest guards in the forestry law in colonial times.

“So, when Ondo State Government wanted to introduce Amotekun, you know, there was a lot of hullabaloo, some Attorney-Generals in Abuja were saying they had no power to do something. I said, ‘Tell him he’s an idiot. He should shut up.’

“Where was he when the 19 states in the north created Hisbah? They passed state law to create Hisbah. What is Hisbah? Sharia police exercising the power to arrest, detain, and prosecute. What was Ondo State going to do that was different from that? None.

“I said, don’t listen to him. And in any case, you can just take your forestry law, Ondo State, and amend the mandate. The mandate is that forest guards should protect trees.

“And anybody who breaches any of the provisions regarding the trees should be arrested and detained. Expand the mandate to say forest guards will now protect not only trees, but also crops planted by people and the people themselves.

“They’ve always had the power to arrest, detain, and prosecute.

“It’s not a new thing. So, states, local governments have always had the power of the police.

“So, therefore, if I were a governor, I would start my state police and wait to be arrested.

“Yes, I would win in the court because I would demonstrate that I already have police powers in my forestry law. That other states in the north have police force.

“The purpose is to manage a particular area of their lives. I want police to manage an area that is important to us. But police is police. I don’t know why people are still talking about the need for police force.

“It is clear that state police is necessary. It is clear that the states already have the power to create police forces at the state level, to exercise the police power inherent in every government, which they have used in the case of forest guards.

“The same powers forest guards are exercising, I will give the same powers to state police. Power to arrest, detain and prosecute.”

Peter Obi, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, has said that none of the politicians aspiring to become Nigeria’s president shares the same background with him. 

The former Governor of Anambra State said he’s committed to a better Nigeria and has what it takes to lead the country. 

Obi said this in an interview with Arise Television on Monday.

With his background in business and politics, the ex-governor said he has the experience of every presidential aspirant in the country.

“Let me assure you, I’m committed to personal Nigeria, and I have what it takes. I have the experience of all those who want to be president today. Nobody have my background. I built a business from this country. I’ve operated in the corporate world, and I’ve been a governor…I transformed the smallest bank into a N25 billion bank.” he said.

Obi also said he saved money for the Government of Anambra State, adding that since he left office, he has not been receiving pensions or gratuity from the state government.

“I’ve been here governor, where I told you the day I left I was not owing anybody, and I think I’m the one who saved most money, and in all this Anambra State, nobody, since I left office, no pension, no gratuity, nothing. I’ve not been not giving a bottle of water.”

To strengthen his claim, Obi said any piece of land purportedly allocated to him by the Government of Anambra State should be confiscated.

The Lagos State PDP Spokesman, Alhaji Hakeem Amode, has dumped the main opposition party in the state for the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Amode, along with other PDP chieftains, announced his defection at a news conference on Monday in Ikeja.

Speaking, Amode said he and other defectors were motivated and inspired by the visionary leadership of the 2023 State PDP Governorship Candidate, Dr Abdul-Azeez Adediran (Jandor), who had earlier moved to the APC. 

“It is with great honour and a profound sense of responsibility that we stand before you today to announce a pivotal decision; one that marks a significant turning point not just for us as individuals, but for many committed political stakeholders who have journeyed with us over the years.

“Today, we have decided to collapse the entire PDP structure in Lagos State, from ward to the state level , to align with His Excellency Jandor to decamp en masse to the APC.

“The PDP, both at the national and state level, has lost its way. The party has deviated from the founding ideals that once made it the largest and most respected political platform in Africa.

“Today, its future is riddled with tension and uncertainty.The PDP is in a coma and may not survive unless urgent measures are taken,” Amode said.

According to him, the tenure of the defectors within the PDP had been lengthy and eventful, characterised by both achievements and setbacks.

He said that majority of the defectors  had the privilege of serving PDP in various capacities, worked for  change and did their best  for their former party

He said: “However, after thorough introspection and extensive consultation, we believe it is time to chart a new course.

“This decision has not been made lightly. It  reflects our commitment to taking control of our political destinies in order to better serve our people and the loyal supporters who continue to stand by us.”

Amode said that PDP in Lagos, under the leadership of Mr Philip Aivoji, had been fractured and disunited.

“Poor leadership and a lack of cohesion have cost us dearly

“Today, we, alongside several former PDP candidates at various levels, national, local government executives, ward leaders, and key stakeholders across Lagos, formally resign from the PDP and align ourselves with the APC.

“We have submitted our letters of resignation to our respective ward chairmen, local government chairmen, and the state leadership of the PDP.”

Amode ,who noted that the decision to leave PDP was no  driven by personal ambition,said  defecting to APC was to serve the society better.

“We are determined to work with our new partners in the APC to deliver the true dividends of democracy to every corner of our great state.

Speaking , Alhaja Safurat Abdulkareem, a two-time State PDP Deputy Governorship Candidate, said that the defectors  were determined to follow the progressives to make the state better.

Also speaking, a former  State PDP Deputy Chairman, Chief Ola Apena, said PDP had no relevance in the state anymore.

“PDP is dead. There is no more PDP. The party is in complete limbo and we don’t know whether it will  be  up,”he said.

Speaking on behalf of  2023 PDP  State House of Assembly Candidates, Mr Ibrahim Balogun, who flew the party’s flag in Kosofe, said he wasted time by staying in PDP for 18 years.

“We will work for Tinubu in 2027. We are going en masse into APC. Jandor is a visionary leader to follow because he is a man of the people,” Balogun said.

Speaking , Adediran, who congratulated the defectors, said, ” We have successfully collapsed the entire structure of the PDP into APC now.

“There is no point in belonging into a political party that has no determination and purpose of winning elections. PDP is a social club, not interested in winning.

“Lagos State PDP leadership is ensure that the party does not win and the party had been doing this for over two decades now, wasting people’s destiny.

“I congratulate these PDP leaders for joining me in APC. PDP is a sinking ship. In Nigeria of today, there is no other viable platform apart from APC,” Adediran said.

Other PDP leaders, who dumped the party for APC included Prince Rufus Adeniyi, a former PDP Assistant State Organising Secretary (Lagos West) and Mr Jerry Afemikhe (Olori Odo), a former PDP House of Representatives Candidate in Surulere Constituency I.

Some 2023 PDP Lagos State House of Assembly candidates who dumped the party included Messrs Keshinro Abiodun (Epe 1);Akeem Jinadu, (Eti-Osa 1); Ibrahim Balogun (Kosofe 2).

Messrs Taofeek Obanikoro (Lagos Island 1); Tunde Pratt (Lagos Mainland 2); Saheed Aregbesola (Oshodi-Isolo State 2), Sulaimon Thompson (Surulere 1)and  Taofeek Kuye ( Ajeromi-Ifelodun State 1) also dumped PDP for APC.

Mr Adeyemi Kazeem:former PDP Chairman, Ojo Local Government;Pastor Gbenga Ogunleye,media aide to  the 2023 Lagos PDP Governorship Candidate were also among those who defected.

Minister of Works, Sen. David Umahi, has declared that after God, his loyalty lies with President Bola Tinubu, saying that he takes instructions only from the duo.

Umahi made the declaration in Abakaliki while speaking with newsmen on the president’s recent commendation of him over some infrastructural feats.

The minister said the commendation was worth more than one trillion dollars to him, as it shows he was on the right track and that God answers prayers.

“I have told the president even publicly that my loyalty is to God first and then, him.

“When a man gives you the type of trust Tinubu has given me, you will.be of the devil to betray him,” he said.

He said that anyone who betrayed Tinubu after receiving such a level of trust and support would incur the wrath of God.

“Have you seen where a man presided over the procurement of a project worth N1.6 trillion, and his boss did not call him to ask how he went about it?

“I am talking about one section of the project, depending on the length.

“I pray every day that if I place myself, family, and friends over God, Tinubu, and Nigerians, let Him not answer me,” he said.

Umahi vowed to continue praying for Tinubu and all those who love him and appreciate what his doing.

“I also dedicate the president’s commendation to all those who pray for me to succeed in serving the people.

“This means that contractors would be on their toes to complete about 30 mega projects which the president will inaugurate by Dec.20.

“I am involved in the construction and inspection of the projects scattered across the six geo-political zones of the country,” he said.

(NAN)

Maryam Abacha, widow of former military Head of State, General Sani Abacha, has rejected long-standing allegations that her late husband looted billions of dollars during his time in office, insisting there is no credible evidence to support the claims.

Speaking in an interview with TVC on Sunday, Mrs. Abacha challenged the narrative surrounding her husband’s legacy and questioned the basis of the accusations.

“Who is the witness of the monies that were being stashed? Did you see the signature or the evidence of any monies stashed abroad?” she asked.

She also claimed that funds her husband allegedly secured for Nigeria disappeared shortly after his death.

“And the monies that my husband kept for Nigeria, in a few months, the monies vanished. People are not talking about that,” she said.

Mrs. Abacha criticised the continued focus on her husband nearly three decades after his death, questioning the motivations behind the scrutiny.

“Why are you blaming somebody? Is that tribalism or a religious problem or what is the problem with Nigerians?” she asked. “Why are we so bad towards each other? Because somebody is a northerner or a southerner, somebody is a Muslim or a Christian… It’s not fair.” 

She also directed criticism at the media, urging journalists to play a more constructive role.

“People are not that bad. Twenty-seven years ago, and you are still talking about Abacha. He must be very powerful and loved by Nigerians. We thank God for that,” she said.

Responding to comments about Nigeria’s relatively stable economy during her husband’s rule, marked by increased foreign reserves and reduced external debt, Mrs. Abacha reiterated her position that there was no wrongdoing.

“So, where did he steal the money from? So where would he have stolen the money from?” she asked. “And because Nigerians are fools, they listen to everything.”

She concluded by calling for unity and mutual respect among Nigerians, saying, “Babangida doesn’t make Nigeria alone. Abacha does not make Nigeria alone. Abiola and everybody, nobody is big enough for Nigeria. Even the single man on the street is very important. We are all human beings, for goodness sake. All these wahala should stop.”

The Managing Director, Cross River State Water Board Limited, Godwin Nyiam, has dragged the state’s Security Adviser, Major General Okoi Obono(retd), to court over alleged assault.

Nyiam’s lawyer, E. E. Osim disclosed this on Sunday in Calabar, saying his client, demands the sum of N500m compensation from Obono for slapping him in public.

The incident reportedly occurred at the Fogg Petrol Station in Calabar in April.

The legal practitioner stated that his client decided to drag the security adviser  to court to put an end to any further unruly behaviour, stressing that a singular act caused his client pain, intimidation, harassment, and emotional distress because of the way he was publicly humiliated.

The petition averred that the slap by the state security adviser demoralised his client and made him embarrassed after Obono allegedly ordered uniform men under his command to assault, intimidate, and harass him at Fogg  Petrol station at Federal Housing Estate, Calabar on  May 24, 2025.

A petition from The Advocates Chambers addressed to The Brigade Commander, 13 Amphibious Brigade Headquarters Calabar, demanded N500m compensation from Obono, and an apology letter to be published in two national newspapers for infringement on his fundamental human rights.

The petition signed by  E.E. Osim & Co and two other lawyers from the Lord Advocate, with Our Ref: TAC/ADM/001/Vol. 1/2024 dated April 24, 2025,  warned that failure to tender an apology to their client would risk litigation. 

The petition asked the brigade commander to use his good office to fish out the officers allegedly ordered by Obono to harass the MD of Cross River State Waterboard Limited.

“Heretofore, write to you to use your good offices to fish out those attached to the said General under reference on the aforementioned date to treat our client and offer due apology in two national dailies for compensation.” The petition stated.

But in a swift reaction to the issue, in a text message sent to the security adviser by our correspondent, in reply to the text message, the security adviser denied ordering his men to beat Nyam.

“On what grounds will I do that, please?” Obono questioned.

Effort to speak with the Army’s  Public Relations Officer, Capt. Jimoh Jamila failed as text messages and calls put across to her were never returned or replied.

Kingsley Utulu, a Nigerian, has been sentenced to prison for five years and three months for his involvement in a significant hacking and identity theft operation that defrauded United States tax authorities and private citizens of more than $2.5 million.

Utulu’s sentencing was announced by Jay Clayton, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, alongside Christopher Raia, the Assistant Director in charge of the FBI’s New York Field Office, at the weekend.

They charged the 38-year-old Nigerian of aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Clayton said, “Kingsley Uchelue Utulu took part in a scheme to hack into the U.S. tax preparation businesses, trade in the stolen personal identifying information, and defraud the IRS and other governmental bodies.

“Offshore scammers like Utulu and his co-conspirators may think they can target hard-working Americans with their hacking and fraud schemes and avoid prosecution.

“The FBI will never exempt any individual who seeks to unlawfully profit through deceitful practices, regardless of where they are located.”

Utulu was apprehended in the United Kingdom, UK, and was subsequently extradited to the United States to stand trial.

Alongside his prison term, Utulu was mandated to pay restitution of $3,683,029.39 and to forfeit $290,250.

DAILY POST reports that this latest development follows the recent convictions of two other Nigerians, Abel Daramola and Olutayo Ogunlaja, who were found guilty of running a $560,000 international romance scam.

They are now facing potential sentences of up to 20 years in a United States federal prison.

Mr Peter Obi has accused President Bola Tinubu’s government of being responsible for the lingering crisis in the Labour Party.

Obi was the erstwhile presidential candidate of the Labour Party in 2023 general election.

The former Anambra state governor made the accusation on Monday while fielding questions on Arise Television’s Morning Show programme.

Obi specifically stated that the leadership crisis in the Labor Party was instigated and sustained by the government of today.

He said: “This is what you get, always, right? This is what you get always in Nigeria, because we now live in a country of propaganda and lies – and they manufacture it.

“The problem we have in Labor Party is problem instigated and sustained by the government of today.

“I don’t need to tell you when you have a party chairman who calls a state governor a dwarf and dwarf thinking. Forget about me, so it’s not weak.

“Okay, I’m weak, but it’s not weak. Is every other person there weak? So we’re not sincere with ourselves.

“You speak the truth and they call you names. And we now live in a country of propaganda and lies. They are trying to put problems everywhere, they want to even put problems in families.”