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The immediate-past National Vice Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress APC, Salihu Moh. Lukman has written President Bola Tinubu, threatening a lawsuit against the leadership of the party for serial violations of its constitution.
In the letter dated May 21, 2024 and titled ‘APC and Subversion of Nigerian Democracy’, Lukman said he was compelled to write the letter since the party is operating almost blindly without recourse to provisions of the APC Constitution.
According to him, it was deeply concerning to note that the APC since inception in 2013 has operated without a Board of Trustees BoT.
He said, “Meetings of organs as specified by relevant provisions of the APC Constitution are not taking place. Decisions, which established organs of the party are expected to take, are being taken by individual leaders outside those organs.
“One of the critical organs, the Board of Trustees, which is renamed National Advisory Council has not been inaugurated since the formation of the APC in July 2013. With such reality the National Working Committee NWC of the party has appropriated the powers of all organs and in its name the National Chairman is taking discretionary decisions.
“With such reality, many of the decisions taken not only violate sections of the APC Constitution but also undermine Sections 221 — 229 of Part Il of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution as amended as well as the Electoral Act 2022.
“As things are, we have been regressing democratically as a nation. Due to inability to comply with statutory provisions regulating the conduct of political parties, we are embarrassingly running governments that don’t value principles of consultations and respecting valid agreements contracted through diligent political negotiations.
“Consequently, all the serial decisions taken without references to organs of the APC and complying with subsisting internal agreements have resulted in outright violation of relevant provisions of the 1999 Nigerian Constitution as amended, which imposes the requirement to ensure the establishment of an inclusive governments at all levels.
“As a committed member of APC and as someone who has worked hard and made so many sacrifices for the growth and development of the party, I find our current reality highly unacceptable. I have made several requests to meet with you for more than a year now since your election as President of the Federal Republic, which, perhaps understandably, you have been unable to grant.
Seventeen members of the Cross River State House of Assembly on Wednesday removed the Speaker of the House, Hon Alvert Ayambem over allegations of mismanagement, Misconduct, financial misappropriation and indifference to welfare of members.
Hon Ayambem’s removal was made public in an impeachment notice signed by 17 out of the 25 members of the State House of Assembly which they later later affirmed in a Press Briefing held at the metropolitan Hotel in Calabar.
Vanguard also learned that consultations, delivration are ongoing as the house was yet to elect another Speaker to succeed the embattled Ayambem at the time of his report.
The 17 members described Ayambem as a tyrant who according to them undermines their interest and has been allegedly involved in various forms of financial misappropriation.
The speaker was impeached via a motion under maters of urgent public importance inline with order 24 of the Cross River State Assembly rules.
His removal according to them was based on the grounds of gross financial misconduct, incompetence and wrong conduct of plenary proceedings, non compliance and total failure to convene leadership meetings.
The impeachment notice reads: “Having met the Constitutional requirements of two-third majority( 17 members)we the under-listed members of the Cross River State House of Assembly hereby pass a vote- of-no- confidence on Rt. Hon. Elvert Ayambem, Speaker of the House of Assembly and he is hereby removed.”
Hon. Ayambem is also accused of “misappropriation of the sum of N48,000,000.00 (Forty-Eight MillionNaira) meant to pay electricity bills for the House of Assembly complex and the House of Assembly Quarters, Misappropriation of 2% of all revenue collected by the Internal Revenue Service (|RS) monthly for oversight functions of the House of Assembly in line
with Section 18(a)(i) of the Cross River State Revenue Administration Law 2011 as amended to the tune of N404,683,855.1 0 (Four Hundred and Four Million, Six Hundred and Eighty-ThreeThousand, Eight Hundred and Fifty-Five Naira, Ten Kobo).”
Other allegations include; “Misappropriation of the sum of N19,437, 844.00 (Nineteen Million, Four Hundred and Thirty-Seven Thousand, Eight Hundred and forty-five Naira) from Local Government deduction and 11 months deductions which he allegedly failed to disclose to members.”
The motion for his impeachment was moved by Honorable Effiong EKarika, representing Calabar-South-1 and was Seconded by Honorable Charles Omang Omang representing Bekwarra state constituency in the Assembly.
Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of Labour Party in the 2023 election has revealed why he visited the party's secretariat on Tuesday.
Speaking through the Chief Spokesperson of Obi-Datti Campaign Organisation, Yunusa Tanko, Obi said he visited Labour Party headquarters on Tuesday as part of his move to reconcile different interests within the party and not to endorse anybody.
Obi’s visit to the party was followed by a statement by the party saying that its former presidential candidate in the 2023 election endorsed Julius Abure-led national working committee.
But in a statement on Wednesday, Tanko said that Obi’s visit was occasioned by his quest to resolve the misunderstanding between the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the party leadership.
“Obi’s visit to Labour Party yesterday was not to endorse anybody, but occassioned by his reconcilliatory move. Julius Abure in his speech stated clearly how Obi came to the office, and Obi in his speech clarified same, while preaching peace, and his mantra *Pursuit of better Nigeria for the poor*
“Leadership of NLC/TUC Political Arm Commorades Titus Amba and Chris Uyot who were informed of Obi travelling out today, hence will honour thier invitation, also met with him, and extensively discussed same peace move with them.
“Obi had repeatedly maintained that his interest was to carry everybody along into one strong family, and not to support one against the other.
“In all his meetings with all stakeholders, he has always maintained peace, and urge not to lose purpose which is to free Nigeria suffering and pain.
“The LP standards bearer plans to continue meeting with critical stakeholders, and groups to achieve all-inclusive political family with a common dream of rescuing Nigeria,” the statement read.
The Speaker of the Cross River State House of Assembly has been impeached.
Rt. Hon. Elvert Ekom Ayambem was impeached on Wednesday by 17 members of the house over allegations of misappropriation of funds.
The impeachment motion was moved by Hon. Effiom Ekarika representing Calabar South 1 Constituency and seconded by Hon. Omang Charles Omang representing Bekwarra State Constituency.
Rt Hon Elvert Ayambem was elected Speaker of the 10th Cross River State House of Assembly in June 2023.
Ayambem represents Ikom 2 State Constituency in the Houses of Assembly.
The Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Olayemi Cardoso has said the current inflation and hike in food items cannot be resolved immediately.
According to him, it will take time and patience to tackle it.
Cardoso disclosed this while briefing journalists at the end of the Monetary Policy Committee, MPC, meeting in Abuja.
The CBN governor mentioned that there was no magic needed to solve inflation in Nigeria but rather patience.
Also, Cardoso noted that despite pressure from food inflation, the general inflation rate was “moderating”, pointing out that “the tools the Central Bank is using are working”.
He stated, “I have several times and I will say again, there is no magic wand. These are things that need to take their time.
“I am pleased and confident that we are beginning to get some relief and in another couple of months we will see the more positive outcomes from the Central Bank have been doing."
He added, “The committee thus reiterated several challenges confronting the effective moderation of food inflation to include rising costs of transportation of farm produce, infrastructure- related constraints along the line of distribution network, security challenges in some food producing areas, and exchange rate pass-through to domestic prices for imported food items.
“The MPC urged that more be done to address the security of farming communities to guarantee improved food production in these areas.
“Members further observed the recent volatility in the foreign exchange market, attributing this to seasonal demand, a reflection of the interplay between demand and supply in a freely functioning market system.”
The Central Bank of Nigeria has also blamed the recent volatility of the country’s foreign exchange market on seasonal demand for dollars.
“Members further observed the recent volatility in the foreign exchange market, attributing this to seasonal demand, a reflection of the interplay between demand and supply in a freely functioning market system,” a communique issued by the committee on Tuesday stated.
Attack on soldiers means attack on State — Ex-Defence Chief Irabor backs closure of Abuja plaza
AFOLABI
The former Chief of Defense Staff, General Lucky Irabor has backed the closure of the Banex plaza in Abuja, saying an attack on soldiers constitutes an attack on the State.
Irabor stated this in an interview with Arise Television on Wednesday.
ll that the incident that took place in the plaza in the Wuse 2 area of Abuja after a clash happened on Saturday where traders engaged two soldiers in a fight.
According to eyewitnesses, the soldiers visited the plaza to complain about a phone, which resulted in a heated argument and fight with the traders.
After the incident, many shop owners and traders quickly closed for the day to avoid being caught up in a reprisal attack and on Monday, military personnel arrived in about five Hilux vehicles and reportedly shut down the plaza.
Reacting to the development, Irabor described the Banex Plaza incident as a very sad one, adding that on no account will it be right to raise a finger on a uniformed man.
He said, “This applies to any uniformed person for as long as he is an agent of the state. An attack on him is an attack on the state, so any Nigerian of goodwill must condemn such an act.
“For me, I join to support the closure of Banex Plaza for as long as it takes to have anyone responsible for that dastardly act brought to justice. This is because if we fail to do so, we will be calling for anarchy.
“The only men who are sacrificing their lives to ensure our collective good are members of the armed forces, the police, and other security agencies,” he said.
Irabor noted that if not for the policemen and some other private individuals who rescued the soldiers, the situation would have been worse and would have reflected poorly on the nation.
He appreciated the media’s role in the whole incident but emphasised the need to “put context when setting the agenda for discussion”.
“The media has created an awareness that in our civics, there are people you must respect. You have to put the context in setting the agenda for this discussion.
“The populace needs to be re-educated to understand the place of national security and the responsibility of each and every one of us in preserving the sanctity of our various establishments that seek to make us live in a very good environment.”
Speaking on claims that the army has refused to comment on the situation, he said it is the responsibility of the state to speak on their behalf.
“Whatever job members of the armed forces do, it is not on their behalf but on behalf of the state, so they are only an agent of the state. They ought not to speak for themselves; the state should speak for them.”
“It was a mild view, and it would have been harder, not necessarily from the army but from the appropriate agency of government, to be able to speak against such a dastardly act.”
Irabor called for cooperation from Banex Plaza’s leadership in the ongoing investigation so as to bring out the perpetrators of the crime to book.
He said, “I believe Banex Plaza has leadership because they need to cooperate appropriately so that whatever investigation is ongoing can be concluded, and they must also cooperate by bringing out those who committed that act.”
The bill seeking to raise the retirement age of members of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) on Tuesday, passed second reading in the House of Representatives.
Tajudeen Abbas, speaker of the house, and Abubakar Yalleman from Jigawa, sponsored the bill which proposes to raise the retirement age of members of the NPF from 60 to 65, and from 35 to 40 years in service.
The bill proposes to amend section 18 of the Nigeria Police Act 2020.
It also seeks to review the service years of police personnel in order to “improve the experience and expertise of the police workforce to retain experienced personnel, and reduce the cost of training and recruiting new officers, improve the morale performance and job satisfaction, and to address the shortage of experienced police personnel”.
In his lead debate during plenary on Tuesday, May 21, Yalleman, who chairs the house committee on police, said the amendment is needed to retain the experience of officers “who have been trained and have served for considerable years”.
“This experience is needed especially in this time of insecurity when experienced police officers are needed to help tackle insecurity in the country,” he said.
Biafra Anniversary: We won’t take it lightly with anybody that flouts sit-at-home order – MASSOB
AFOLABI
The Movement for the Actualization of Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, Wednesday said that is not going to take it lightly with anybody or group that will flout the sit-at-home declared on May 30th 2024, for the celebration of its Biafra Anniversary Day, saying nothing even Nigerian security agents will stop them.
The pro-Biafra group through a statement by its leader Comrade Uchenna Madu, entitled “Biafra Anniversary Day Celebration Is Sacrosanct”, said that the day and all that will be done for the celebration is sacrosanct, adding that it will use the occasion to commemorate 57 years’ anniversary of Biafra declaration by General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, now deceased.
MASSOB Statement read, “The leadership of the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, have insisted and vowed that May 30th Biafra Day Anniversary celebration must hold irrespective of the threats by Nigeria security agents.
“In commemoration of 57 years anniversary of Biafra declaration by General Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, there will be a sit at home exercise in Biafra land. All schools, banks, markets, public offices, motor/ Keke parks, air/seaports and other corporate bodies shall stay at home as a mark of respect and patriotism to Biafra land.
“We know that the overzealousness, partiality and brutality of Nigeria security agents will be displayed in couple of days in Biafra land towards May 30th. No amount of their intimidating patrols and show of force will ever deter MASSOB and other pro-Biafra groups from honouring our past heroes and friends of Biafra on May 2024.
“MASSOB also wishes to assure the people of Biafra that there will be no public processions, rally or forceful enforcement on the citizens to adhere or obey our directives involuntarily.
“MASSOB is appealing to Ndigbo to continue in their indomitable spirit of the movement for the restoration of Biafra as the political independent of Biafra is the only hope for an Igbo man in Nigeria.
“As we march into 30th May 2024, we advise all Biafrans and Ndigbo to join in the celebration, in remembering the day which His Excellence Dim Chukwuemeka Odimegwu Ojukwu, made a historic declaration of Biafra. Every household shall light up a candle in their homes in the spirit of Biafranism.
“Stay in your house and pray while you light your candle. We will not take it lightly with anybody that will flout the sit-at-home order on 30th May. As we preach nonviolence, we shall maintain the principal of nonviolence in all our approach towards Biafra actualization and restoration.
“As May 30th anniversary celebration is sacrosanct, MASSOB acknowledged the conscious awareness and synergies among the pro-Biafra groups and other organizations in Biafra land towards the preparations and enthusiastic spirit in readiness for the celebration of Biafra declaration anniversary”.
The president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has given a breakdown of their new minimum wage demand.
Recall that the federal government had upped its offer from its earlier proposed ₦48,000 to ₦54,000.
However organised labour rejected the new ₦54,000 minimum wage and insisted on ₦615,000 living wage demand.
Speaking on the Congress demands during an interview with Daily Trust, Ajaero explained that they had to critically watch the impact of the removal of subsidy before deciding on a befitting wage Nigerian workers could survive on.
He explained that cost of feeding, housing, gas, education, medicals were added together before an amount was presented to the government.
The president, however, stated that expenses such as communication, tithes and offering were exempted.
According to him, “When the subsidy was removed, the government told us to go and negotiate a wage. Negotiating a wage is not something that is done immediately.
“We’ve now watched the impact of the removal of subsidy, and it has dawned on every one of us. And it wasn’t only the removal of the subsidy, they also went into price fixing, the price of fuel went up to over N700 per litre.
“With that, we can tell you clearly how much it costs a worker to go to work. We know how much a bag of rice is being sold? So, the cost of all this has dawned on us and we have prepared what it takes for a worker to go to work and survive with a family of four.
“We also came up with this analysis and based it on some of the global experiences. The UN position is that nobody can survive on less than $2 per day.
“And if you take it from that angle for a family of six, giving them two dollars per meal, in a day, you’ll have $12 and about $360 in a month. I’ll leave the calculation for us to do. Let us come to the issue of the cost-of-living index which we normally use.
“We gave the government a breakdown; for feeding, we gave everybody in that family N500 per meal. If you give everybody in a family of six N500 naira per meal, one person will get N1,500 per meal in a day. And for the six people, they are going to have about N270,000 for feeding in a month.
“We looked at about N40,000 for accommodation, for education for 4 children, we put N50,000 assuming that your children should not go to private schools because you can’t do that with that amount of money.
“For Medicare, assuming there’s no surgery or serious medical issue, we put N50,000. For electricity, we put N20,000. That was even before this electricity tariff increase.
“And you discover that if today, you buy a token of N20,000, it no longer lasts as much as before. For Gas/kerosene, considering that people refill every two weeks, at the cost of about N15,000 – N17,000 for 12.5kg cylinder, we estimated about N30,000 a month.
“All these are how we arrived at the sum of N615,000. Note that we didn’t add expenses like communication, tithes/offerings in church or any other social obligation.
“Now we brought it out for negotiation. However, in doing this, we said that if the government can check all these other issues like the inflationary rate and the value of our currency, then we can adjust our demands.
“The labour movement wouldn’t have asked for more than N200,000 before the removal of subsidy. Apart from transportation and house rent, you know the cost of living. A bag of rice now costs over N70,000, bread and other food items are very expensive too.”
[NaijaNews]
Unilever Nigeria Plc. appoints Bolaji Balogun as independent non-executive director and chairman of the board
Admin
Unilever Nigeria Plc. has announced the appointments of Mr. Bolaji Balogun as Independent Non-Executive Director and Chairman of the Board, and Ms. Ngozi Edozien as Independent Non-Executive Director.
The appointments took effect from May 16, 2024.
Mr. Balogun is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Chapel Hill Denham. He has over thirty-five years of experience in investment banking, investing, and mobile telecommunications. Chapel Hill Denham, which he founded in April 2005, is Nigeria’s leading investment bank.
Ms. Edozien is a business professional with over 35 years of global leadership experience spanning Management Consulting, General Management, Private Equity/Venture Capital, Finance, Sustainability, and Strategic Planning/Business Development in multi-national companies in Europe, the USA, and Africa.
Speaking on the appointments, the Managing Director, Unilever Nigeria, Tim Kleinebenne said,
“As a centenary old business and the longest-serving manufacturing company in Nigeria, we are pleased to strengthen our board with these seasoned professionals.
We are confident they will add immense value to accelerate our growth following our outstanding results in 2023. I am also happy to report that our Board represents a diverse group of Independent Non-Executive Directors, in line with our unique values at Unilever.”
Commenting on his appointment, Mr. Balogun said, “Unilever is part of the fabric of Nigeria’s history and has contributed to Nigeria’s development, over the years. I am honoured to join the Board and look forward to working with my Board colleagues, Management and Staff of Unilever to continue to build its heritage and delivering greater value to all of our stakeholders.”
The Board of Directors and Management Team congratulate Mr Balogun and Ms Edozien on their appointments and wish them success as they assume their new positions.
[Nairametrics]
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Palpable fear has gripped communities in Plateau State after unmen suspected to be bandits attacked Zurak and Bankalala villages in Bashar District of Wase local government area of Plateau State, killing more than 50 residents, including vigilantes, and injuring others in the process.
A LEADERSHIP investigation revealed that several houses were razed by the rampaging gunmen.
The residents of the community said the incident occurred at about 7pm on Monday when people in the community were going about their normal activities, but that they could not report the incident due to the poor communication network in the area.
Earlier, the death toll was put at 40, but last night, it increased to 50.
A traditional ruler in Wase, Alhaji Ahmed Lawal, said the death toll had risen to 50 persons, adding that the victims had since been buried in the area according to Muslim rites.
Sahpi’i Sambo, a youth leader in the area, who also confirmed the incident to our correspondent, said the bandits arrived at the community on motorcycles – two to a bike – armed with sophisticated weapons and started shooting sporadically at everyone on sight.
He said, “More than 40 people were killed while many others were injured. Residents of the village have fled to neighbouring communities. As of yesterday, security personnel had not yet arrived at the community. It was a deadly attack,” Sambo said.
Similarly confirming the killing to LEADERSHIP, the information officer of Wase local government area, Daniel Manwan, said from the information made available to im, over 30 people were killed in Bankalala village while operatives of the Directorate of State Services (DSS) pursued and killed three of the bandits at Zurak village.
“As I speak to you the entire villages are deserted for fear of the unknown,” he said.
Meanwhile, the spokesperson of the state police command, DSP Alabo Alfred, was yet to respond to the inquiry by our correspondent as of the time of filing this report. Also, the state government had yet speak on the incident as of the time of filing the report.
Deadly attacks on Plateau communities have been frequent in the last decade. One such attack in January left nearly 300 residents dead in more than 20 communities, showing the attack was well-coordinated.
[Leadership]
Governor Similanayi Fubara of Rivers State has said he started taking decision as a governor in February, 2024.
Fubara, who spoke on Tuesday at Egbeda Community Secondary School field, venue of the inauguration of some internal roads project in Emohua Local Government Area, inaugurated by Delta State governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, reiterated that the projects people were seeing were accomplishments of four months.
He said good governance, service and projects were being delivered at a cost-effective rate.
He said, “We are just starting but I assure you of more attention. If in four months, we can do this, and we are getting this level of applause, you can imagine what will happen when we do one year of our record time, two years of our own record time, Rivers State would have experienced something different from the regular governance.
“I know why I said four months. We started full governance in February, 2024. That was when we started taking decisions, when we started confronting governance. And I am proud to say that our people are happy with what we have done.
“What we want to do is to bring governance to our people, service delivery at record time, and in a cost effective way.
“Everything that we are doing is in my white paper. I carry it along, so, there is no issue of any manipulation. Call me any day, anytime, it is there. Even the ones I did before this time, I still have all the records.
“If you call me any day, I will bring the records of all my activities in government, because I know that as a civil servant, what is most important is record keeping; so that if you are not there, and something happens, it is just for somebody to pick up the file and he will see the history.
“That is how I am trained, and I have that in my mind before I do anything. So, I am not scared of anything. Anybody who calls me any day, anytime, I have my records to show. I have all the approvals to show that I acted based on approval and not personal decision.”
The governor assured that his administration would continue to deliver projects that impact positively on the people directly while also empowering them to live better lives.
He stated that the Egbeda Internal Roads Project had been accomplished to both satisfy the needs of the people by making them happy and solving the perennial flooding problems experienced in the area.
The Governor acknowledged the support of the people before, during and after the elections, saying what his administration owes them is the dividends of democracy that included projects and social service delivery.
Performing the inauguration of the project,Oborevwori said he drove with Fubara on the road while accessing the venue of the event, and can testify of the commitment of his brother governor to sustain infrastructure development in the State.
He said, “This road project at Egbeda bears true testimony of the commitment of the Rivers State Government towards fulfilling its promise of sustainable infrastructure development of the State.
“It is reassuring that these all-season roads will economically empower, not only the people of Egbeda, but the entire Emohua Local Government Area of Rivers State.”
[https://newsdirect.ng]
A former Director-General of the Labour Party Presidential Campaign Council, Akin Osuntokun, has said the only condition that can make the party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections, Peter Obi, consider returning to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is if he will be given the presidential ticket.
The PDP’s 2023 presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, had recently said that if in 2027, the party decided that it is the South-East’s turn and picked Obi as its candidate, he would readily offer his support.
“I have said repeatedly and I even said it before the 2023 general elections that if the PDP decides to zone the presidential ticket to the South or South-East specifically, I won’t contest it. As long as it’s the decision of the party, I will abide by it. But I contested the 2023 presidential ticket because it was thrown open to all members of the party.
“If the party decides that it’s the turn of the South-East and Peter Obi is chosen, I won’t hesitate to support him,” Atiku declared in a recent interview with BBC Hausa Service.
He also said that a merger between the PDP and Labour Party is possible.
Responding to the development, Osuntokun said that with Obi’s large support base in the last general elections, the only chance of him accepting to join the PDP is if he would be offered the party’s presidential ticket.
He said, “Peter Obi going back to the PDP would have to depend on the circumstances and the assurances from the political godfathers of the PDP. The thing is that it’s unrealistic to expect someone who has run for the president to now accept to be a running mate for whoever assumes the superior position.
“That’s because Obi has a unique political appeal among Nigerians. If it’s possible to do it like the way they do in the United States by analyzing the demographic groups that support each candidate, we would find a situation in which Obi carried about 90 per cent of the youth population. And if he chooses to be a running mate, those people are going to be disappointed and offended.
“The only way that Peter Obi could consider returning to the PDP is if he would be given the party’s presidential ticket. Otherwise, he would not embark on a futile exercise. Because if he becomes a running mate in PDP, he will lose a lot of his support. He would be demonized as a sellout.
“So I can’t see the point of his going back to the PDP other than being its presidential candidate.”
[DailyTrust]
The governorship candidate of the Labour Party in the 2023 elections in Enugu State, Barr Chijioke Edeoga has described as scary and unconstitutional, the gale of demolitions recently carried out by the Enugu State Government in some parts of the state.
Edeoga, who accused the state government under the administration of Governor Peter Mbah of disobeying court orders and usurping the constitutional powers of local government areas, said demolishing people’s places of business without plans for alternative places will increase the suffering of the people.
Recall that the Enugu State Government recently demolished many parts of Enugu.
The demolitions, which have affected the Holy Ghost transport hub in the state capital and the Ogige Market in Nsukka, among other places, are being embarked upon to build standard motor parks in the affected areas.
But in a statement he issued on Thursday morning, the Labour Party governorship candidate also lamented the destruction of a private polytechnic belonging to a charismatic preacher and founder of Madonna University, Rev. F. Emmanuel Ede, expressing dismay that the government went to demolish the institution of higher learning in defiance of an order of the court.
“If there have been suspicions that the administration in Enugu State is insensitive to public sentiment and disdainful of the rule of law, the demolition of OSISATECH tended to validate it.
“It is scary that a government that swore to uphold the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is routinely disobeying court orders,” Edeoga said in the statement
He also lamented the demolition of a foremost hotel in Nsukka belonging to a nationalist and pre-independent politician, the late Chief Charles Abangwu, saying such actions were indicative of the insensitivity of the government to the plights of the people.
“The demolition of shops, a section of the Ogige Market, and Premier Hotel are also quite troubling.
“This is because of the dislocation of hundreds of businesses on which the livelihoods of ordinary people and their families are dependent.
“Interestingly, these businesses were forced, only a few months ago, to pay huge taxes and levies on those shops. It is curious that the Enugu State Government waited until it had collected these levies and taxes before destroying the sources of those funds,” the statement continued.
Continuing the LP governorship candidate said: “While it is understood that some of those areas demolished have constituted challenges of congestion and are due for some form of urban renewal, it must be recognized that no urban renewal activity has ever happened in one fell swoop.
“Development, especially as it affects urban renewal is an incremental activity that takes cognizance of impacts on persons and businesses.
“A government that is genuinely focused on renewal approaches such changes with the well-being of the people as its priority.
“This is why it raises serious concerns that the government of Enugu State began these activities without any form of consultation with the people and communities affected.
“More serious is the fact that there was no plan for relocation of those businesses to other locations before the demolition.”
While admitting that many parts of the state needed renewal, he wondered why the government failed to make a relocation and compensation plan before demolishing the properties.
“The essence of government everywhere in the world is the aggregation of the needs of the people into a pool where common solutions are incubated; it is the building of consensus on what constitutes the common good bearing in mind the social, economic, and even personal sensitivities.
“Democratic legitimacy ultimately belongs to the people, and that is why everything governments do must factor in the sensitivity of all concerned.
“But it appears that in Enugu State, under the current administration, the government considered its needs to be higher and more important than those of the people.
“There is no clearer sign that the needs of the people were not considered unimportant by the government than the lack of consultation that preceded these actions.
“The disobedience by the government, of a court order against the demolition, is also viewed by every right-thinking member of society as inherently tyrannical,” Edeoga continued.
He called on the government to take urgent steps to compensate all the people affected by the demolitions, build new markets and accommodate them without cost, and demonstrate respect for the laws and orders of the courts.
“The Enugu State Government must take immediate steps to respect court orders as is the practice in every civilized democratic country.
“A culture of disrespect to the judiciary is tantamount to disloyalty to the Constitution which provides for three independent arms of government that act as checks on one another,” Edeoga concluded.
[DailyPost]