TOP 10 NEWS MAKING THE ROUNDS IN NIGERIA TODAY,  MONDAY 

TOP 10 NEWS MAKING THE ROUNDS IN NIGERIA TODAY,  MONDAY 

1. I’ll Stay Away From Politics And Retire In Daura After Leaving Aso Rock – Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has said he will stay away from politics and retire to his hometown in Daura, Katsina State when he leaves office on May 29, 2023.

Buhari said this on Sunday when he hosted a large delegation of the Abuja community led by the FCT minister, Mohammed Bello, at the State House, Abuja.

The Nigerian leader said after leaving office, he will retire to his hometown of Daura to rest and be far away as possible from the 2023 political activities.

Buhari said he has not built another house in Daura and does not intend to build another one soon.

He further expressed appreciation to Nigerians for trusting, supporting, and giving him the opportunity to serve as their leader.

Buhari, however, reassured Nigerians that he will not stay in office a day longer than the stipulated time.

2. G5: Our Demands Are Beyond 2023, Ayu’s Resignation – Ikpeazu Gives Update On PDP Crisis

Abia State Governor, Okezie Ikpeazu has given more insight into why the aggrieved Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors popularly known as the G5 Governors are not supporting the party’s 2023 presidential ambition.

The Governor stated that their demand is not purely about the resignation of the PDP National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, neither is it restricted to the 2023 election.

The G5 Governors, made up of Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Samuel Ortom (Benue), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu), Seyi Makinde (Oyo), and Ikpeazu have demanded the resignation of Ayu as a condition to support the 2023 presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar.

They insisted that Ayu promised to step down from his position should a northerner emerge as the party’s 2023 presidential candidate.

Ayu on his part has refused to step down and the matter has resulted in a protracted internal crisis within the PDP, threatening the party’s ambition to take over power from the All Progressives Congress (APC) during next year’s election.

However, speaking on the matter during an interview at the Government House Lodge in Aba, Ikpeazu declared that their (G5) demand is not just about Ayu and 2023 but about entrenching fairness, justice, and inclusiveness in the PDP and Nigeria as a whole.

According to him, there is a need to ensure political harmony which will lead to national growth and development.

The Abia Governor emphasized that their demand is beyond the 2023 election as they seek to put a system in place which projects mutual respect among all persons and regions in the country.

3. ‘How Did Okupe Pay 13 Million Naira, I Don’t Know He Has A Job’

The Presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, has slammed the sanction placed on the embattled former Director-General of Peter Obi Campaign Organization, Dr. Doyin Okupe.

The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court, in a judgement that was delivered by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu found Okupe guilty of breaching the Money Laundering Act and convicted him to two years in prison with an option of a 13 million naira fine.

Okupe, who decided to pay the fine to avoid imprisonment, resigned his position, in a letter to his principal, the Presidential Candidate of the party, Peter Obi.

Reacting in an interview with Vanguard, Sowore said Nigerians have yet to get the right justice with the treatment of the case of Doyin Okupe.

The presidential candidate, who is also the publisher of Sahara Reporters, claimed that he was the first person to accuse Okupe openly of money laundering when the latter was the Special Adviser to former President Goodluck Jonathan of Public Affairs.

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4. Times Are Hard, APC Has Run Nigeria Into A Malfunction – Atiku

The 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of damaging Nigeria’s economy.

The former Vice President said the ruling APC has plunged many citizens of the country into multi-dimensional poverty.

He added that the only way out of the situation is to ensure the APC does not return to power in 2023 as the forthcoming election is recovering Nigeria.

According to him, the APC would not want to relinquish power easily but Nigerians must take a stand for what is right and vote for a better alternative.

Atiku made the submission in a statement on Sunday in which he also called for generous acts of giving in the spirit of Christmas, urging Nigerians to emulate the teachings of Jesus Christ.

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5. Top Boko Haram Commanders, Tukur, Maimusari, Bakura, 75 Others Killed In Borno

A joint military operation involving air and ground components have killed three notorious Boko Haram terrorists, Khaids Abbah Tukur, Maimusari, and Bakura Jega, alongside their colleague-terrorists, numbering over 75, at Mantari in Gezuwa area of Bama local government area of Borno State.

A defence intelligence source said the operation which resulted in the killing of the three wanted insurgents alongside other Boko Haram terrorists was conducted last Tuesday.

This is just as the Chief of Army Staff, COAS, Lt. Gen. Faruq Yahaya, and his counterpart, the Chief of Air Staff, CAS, Air Marshal Oladayo Amao, arrived Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, on Sunday morning, to celebrate the Yuletide with frontline troops.

The military intelligence source, while speaking further, disclosed that after the first wave of their airstrikes, some surviving terrorists found their way back to the same location to evacuate the bodies of terrorists neutralized.

6. Border Closure: You’re Responsible For Nigeria’s Economic Woes – Melaye Fires Buhari

The Director of Public Affairs of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Organisation, Dino Melaye, has said President Muhammadu Buhari is responsible for the economic woes facing the country.

In a statement on Sunday, Melaye said the closure of the country’s land borders in 2019 by President Buhari worsened the country’s economic woes.

The PDP chieftain also stated that the closure of the land borders cost Nigeria its place as the leading power in West Africa and in Africa in general.

Melaye was reacting to a statement by the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, that Atiku would reverse the efforts made by the Buhari administration to attain self-sufficiency in rice production.

The former Kogi lawmaker described the closure of the borders as a scam and a failed policy, adding that the price of rice skyrocketed during the period and insecurity also worsened.

7. ‘You Must Pay N5m Fine’ – Umahi Punishes APC For Flouting Order On Campaign Venue

Governor Dave Umahi of Ebonyi State has fined the All Progressives Congress (APC) N5 million for contravening the provisions of the state’s Executive Order 3 of 2022.

Executive Order 3 prohibits political parties from using public places such as schools, parks, and markets among others for political activities without obtaining due clearance from the state government.

The order also prohibits political parties from using critical infrastructures for pasting posters without obtaining the state government’s clearance.

In a statement on Sunday, the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Uchenna Orji, said the ruling party was sanctioned and should pay the N5 million fine into the state’s Internally Generated Revenue account.

He stated that Umahi was saddened by the various political parties’ continuous pasting of posters on electric poles, meridians, concrete roads, and on flyover bridges.

8. FG To Levy Imported Goods To Finance AfDB, W’Bank Obligations

The Federal Government is set to introduce 0.5 percent levy on imported goods to raise funds to meet its obligations to the African Development Bank (AfDB), the World Bank, and other multilateral organizations.

This is contained in a document titled ‘Invitation to a One Day Public Hearing and Submission of Memoranda on the 2022 Finance Bill,’ released by the House of Representatives Committee on Finance.

The new levy was introduced into the 2022 Finance Bill under Sector 13 for Customs, Excise, Tariff, etc. (Consolidation) Act.

According to the document, the planned imported levy is part of the government’s efforts to checkmate the country’s rising debt profile.

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9. You Have Failed To Reply Me With Facts, Kukah Fires Presidency

The Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, Matthew Kukah, has slammed the Presidency over its constant attack against his personality.

Kukah said Presidential spokesmen have failed to reply to him with facts for speaking on the failures of their principal or speaking for the attacks on Christians in the North.

The fiery cleric stated these in his 2022 Christmas Message released on Sunday and titled, ‘Nigeria: Let Us Turn A New Page.’

Kukah also cautioned politicians against fanning the embers of hatred and divisions and asked them to promote unity among Nigerians.

The cleric also cautioned Nigerian leaders to manage Nigeria’s diversity, adding that nepotism is a cancer that has consumed the country in the last few years.

Kukah said Nigeria has become a tale of two cities with wars between the rich and the poor and fixing our country and getting it back requires courage, honesty, truth, humility, trust, and firm commitment”.

He appealed to all Nigerians who have been given custody of public trust and commonwealth to rise up to the duties for which they have been so handsomely rewarded.

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10. Why I Shut Down Atiku’s Campaign Office In Port Harcourt – Wike

Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike has explained why he shut down the campaign office of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, in Port Harcourt.

Reports had emerged earlier that Wike ordered the closure of the Atiku/Okowa presidential campaign office in his state capital.

The office which is located in GRA Port Harcourt was sealed off in the early hours of Friday based on the order of the Rivers State Government.

Explaining the reason for his action, Wike said the campaign office was sealed-off because those concerned did not get approval from the government.

The Governor said he evoked Executive Orders 21 and 22 to give legal support to the sealing-off of the campaign office. Wike disclosed this at the inauguration of the 17.2 kilometres-long Bori-Kono Road in the Baen community of Khana Local Government Area of the State.

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