All Progressives Congress (APC): Omisore's 'ninja' security: PDP candidate is afrai...

All Progressives Congress (APC): Omisore's 'ninja' security: PDP candidate is afrai...: The All Progressives Congress (APC) has slammed PDP Governorship candidate for Osun State election, Mr. Iyiola Omisore, over his ...

Omisore's 'ninja' security: PDP candidate is afraid of his shadows - APC

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has slammed PDP Governorship candidate for Osun State election, Mr. Iyiola Omisore, over his use of masked gunmen as security men during his ongoing electioneering campaign for the 9 Aug. election in the state.

In a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the only reason Mr. Omisore could have resorted to hiring 'ninjas' for protection is because he is afraid of his own shadows.

It wondered how a man who wants to rule a state will be afraid to move freely among the same people whose votes his is canvassing, saying the PDP candidate should emulate Gov. Rauf Aregbesola, who is barely distinguishable from the ordinary citizens of the state.

''Every month, Gov. Aregbesola leads the people of the state in a jogging exercise on the streets, during which he mixes freely with them. Not once has a 'ninja' been spotted behind him in the name of security. 

''During his ongoing electioneering campaign, Gov. Aregbesola has continued with his tradition of being with the people without any invasive security. Mr. Omisore has a lot to learn from Gov. Aregbesola, and should realize that being a people's Governor goes beyond a made-for-television eating of roasted corn or riding of Okada,'' APC said.

The party said if the PDP Governorship candidate had known the history of masked gun men or 'ninjas', he would not have resorted to the use of masked gun men for protection.

''The message which the use of masked gun men sends to the populace is that of intimidation, harassment, espionage, sabotage, assassination and terrorism. No one seeking to rule a state should want to be portrayed in that light. Therefore, we call on Mr. Omisore to immediately halt the use of masked gun men unless of course it is a deliberate ploy to intimidate and terrorize the same people he wants to govern,'' it said.

APC said it is bad judgement for anyone, least of all a public official, to resort to the use of 'ninjas' for security at a time the country is reeling from terrorist attacks that have left thousands of people dead or injured.

The party wondered why uniformed or plain-cloth policemen as well as State Security Service (SSS) personnel are suddenly not good enough for Mr. Omisore..

''Mr. Omisore and the PDP should please spare the peaceful people of Osun State any further harassment and intimidation. The PDP should prevail on its candidate to be civil. A man who wants to rule a state should not be afraid to mix freely with the same people. Osun people say no to 'ninjas'.

''If Mr. Omisore and the PDP think we are crying wolf, they should monitor the comments being made on the picture that has been posted in the Social Media showing a 'ninja' standing behind the PDP Governorship candidate. Perhaps then they will realize how much they have goofed,'' it said.

Alhaji Lai Mohammed

National Publicity Secretary

All Progressives Congress (APC)

Abuja, July 8th 2014

All Progressives Congress (APC): Osun Election: APC decries delay in release of Per...

All Progressives Congress (APC): Osun Election: APC decries delay in release of Per...: The All Progressives Congress (APC) has decried the delay in distributing the permanent voters cards to registered voters in the sta...

Osun Election: APC decries delay in release of Permanent Voters Cards, warns INEC against partisanship

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has decried the delay in distributing the permanent voters cards to registered voters in the state ahead of the Aug. 9th 2014 governorship election in Osun state, warning that it might be a ploy to disenfranchise voters.

''INEC has been painfully slow in processing the permanent voters cards, and one can only hope that the electoral body is not doing this deliberately to disenfranchise voters, especially in opposition strongholds,'' the party said in a statement issued in Lagos on Sunday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

''The slow processing of the permanent voters cards has in particular hit the Central Senatorial District of the State, and has affected those who had earlier registered as well as those who registered this year,'' it said.

APC said INEC has continued to tell those who throng its offices in the state to collect their permanent voters cards that the cards are not ready, without giving an indication of when they will be ready for collection.

''If INEC has no diabolical plan, then it should speed up the processing of the permanent voters cards. We say this based on 

the reported announcement by the REC in Osun State that whoever does not possess a permanent voters card will not be allowed to vote in the Aug. 9th election,'' the party said.

It urged INEC to maintain its neutrality during the forthcoming election, and to ensure it does not do anything that can affect the credibility of the commission or the integrity of the election.

APC recalled that a few days before the Ekiti governorship election on June 19th, INEC Chairman Attahiru Jega had told stakeholders that the commission would use colour-code ballot papers to ensure that ballots meant for one local government are not taken to another.

''However, not only did INEC not use colour-coded ballot papers in the Ekiti election, it never felt the need to explain its sudden volte-face. This is a blow to the integrity of INEC and we hope it won't be repeated,'' the party said.

Meanwhile, the APC has raised the alarm over a multi-pronged strategy by the federal authorities to skew the forthcoming gubernatorial election in Osun State favour of the PDP, just like they did in Ekiti State last month.

The party said the dubious strategy by the federal authorities involves using the military and other security agencies to lock down the state days ahead of voting as well as an ongoing starving of the state of funds so it cannot meet its obligations.

''Whereas Ekiti was locked down about three days to the election in the state, indications are that Osun will be locked down at least a week before the state's poll, while the security agencies will again be used to harass, intimidate and arrest opposition politicians just like they did with impunity in Ekiti.

''We are raising the alarm now so the world can see that any election can only be described as free and fair if the entire process is transparent and not skewed in favour of any of the parties. We insist that election is a process, and that whatever happens on election day is only but a part of the whole.

''Therefore, we demand a level playing field for all the candidates before, during and after the Osun election. We reject any plan to use of the military and other security agencies to lock down the state and to harass, intimidate and arrest opposition members. We call on local and international observers to take note of these and other anomalies ahead of the Osun poll,'' it said.

Alhaji Lai Mohammed

National Publicity Secretary

All Progressives Congress (APC)

Lagos, July 6th 2014

All Progressives Congress (APC): Jonathan's re-election campaign amid worsening ins...

All Progressives Congress (APC): Jonathan's re-election campaign amid worsening ins...: The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described as utterly callous and insensitive the ongoing campaign by the so-called GEJites, a ...

Jonathan's re-election campaign amid worsening insecurity callous, insensitive - APC

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has described as utterly callous and insensitive the ongoing campaign by the so-called GEJites, a pro-Jonathan group, for the President's re-election right at the same spot where the 'bring back our girls' campaigners have been staging daily protests demanding the safe return of the over 200 girls

In a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the message being conveyed to all Nigerians is that the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan takes priority over anything else, including the security and welfare of the citizens.

''Were this not to be so, no responsible group will choose this time, when over 200 school girls have been missing for over 80 days and the terror group Boko Haram is daily killing and maiming Nigerians, to launch a misguided re-election campaign for the President. If their daughters were among the missing school girls, will they be launching a political campaign for re-election rather than pushing for the girls' release?

''To show their contempt for decency and as if they were intent on inflicting more pain on the parents and guardians of the missing girls, they decided to position their campaign instrument, wheel-mounted electronic billboards, right at the Unity Fountain in Abuja where committed and patriotic Nigerians have been holding their own daily campaign for the safe return of the girls,'' it said.

APC said much as it may deny, it is clear that the Jonathan Administration, that has surpassed itself in sheer cluelessness in providing purposeful leadership to stop the daily carnage in the country and ensuring the return of the missing girls, has apparently been secretly funding different groups to campaign for it.

''First there is the Protectors of Nigerian Posterity, then the Goodluck Initiative for Transformation 2015 and now the GEJites. With the expensive newspaper, television and Social Media adverts that these nebulous groups are running, it is clear they are being financed from a bottomless war chest, to which taxpayers have been unwilling contributors.

''It is sad that a government that apparently cannot adequately fund the war on terror, a government that has lost the initiative to terrorists, a government that cannot provide jobs for its teeming army of unemployed, a government that is running Nigeria aground has suddenly found huge funds to engage in a re-election campaign that is going nowhere, touting tokenism as achievements,'' the party said.

It said if the Administration does not endorse the callousness and insensitivity of the groups, it should publicly dissociate itself from them and then call them to order.

Meanwhile, APC has raised the alarm that the Federal Government is losing the war on terror, which has progressively gotten worse since the abduction of the Chibok girls over 80 days ago.

''Almost on a daily basis now, these terrorists have been striking at places and times of their own choosing, even as they are becoming more emboldened to carry their terror campaign right into the heart of the nation's capital, Abuja. Innocent Nigerians are being killed and maimed in high numbers across several states

''Instead of cashing in on the global outcry that followed the abduction of the over 200 Chibok girls to galvanize national and international action, not just support, the Jonathan Administration has been chasing shadows, pointing accusing fingers at innocent groups and people; harassing the media and curtailing individual freedoms

''One misguided pro-Jonathan commentator even said the attacks are occurring in states under the control of the APC, as if Bauchi and Kaduna are APC states. We have said it before and we will repeat it here: Boko Haram is a clear and present danger to all Nigerians: Christians and Muslims; Men, women and children; The rich and the poor as well as People of all political leanings and of all ethnic groups.

''When they want to throw their bombs, they do not ask if supporters or opponents of Jonathan are there. They do not ask if supporters of PDP or APC are there. They just kill, maim and destroy indiscriminately,'' the party said.

It therefore reiterated its earlier call for a non-partisan approach to solving the Boko Haram crisis, an approach that will not factor in the 2015 political calculations, an approach that will not demonize a people of certain religion or ethnicity, an approach that will not divide Nigerians along primordial lines.

''This is why we have offered our hand of cooperation that has yet to be accepted by the Federal Government. This is why we have called for a National Security Summit of all stakeholders to proffer solutions to the Boko Haram crisis. This is why we have reminded the FG that Boko Haram is not just a security issue, but also a social, economic and political crisis that must be tackled holistically,'' APC said.

The party said the Jonathan Administration should have the humility to admit that whatever tactics it has been using against Boko Haram are not working and then reach out to all stakeholders to find a way out of the national quagmire.

''The state of emergency, which has been renewed twice, has not stemmed the tide of attacks. Chibok, where school girls were abducted, is not any more secured now as more attacks and abductions have taken place there. The terrorists, who used to strike on the outskirts of Abuja, have now taken their battle into the city. It is time for new thinking, new direction and new purpose in the fight against terror,'' it said.

Alhaji Lai Mohammed

National Publicity Secretary

All Progressives Congress (APC)

Abuja, July 3rd 2014

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