National Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, on Monday, told the opposition parties that there will be no vacancy in Aso Rock in 2027, when another general election is due.
Ganduje said the administration of President Bola Tinubu has been contending with accumulation of many years of neglect, policy somersaults and other disjointed decisions by previous administrations.
The APC national chairman made the assertions while addressing supporters and some support groups at the national secretariat of the party in Abuja,
In another development, the Ondo State governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, received the Certificate of Return on Monday as the governorship candidate of APC for the November 16 election in the state.
Meanwhile, a Kano High Court fixed May 16 to rule on whether criminal charges could be served on Ganduje, his wife, Hafsat Ganduje, and six others, through alternative means, in the ongoing corruption trial against them.
Ganduje urged the APC supporters and groups to be committed to the party so that it could continue to forge ahead.
He stated that the leadership of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) and its chieftains were afraid, having been defeated in the last general election and already foreseeing another defeat.
Ganduje said the NNPP elements were now engaged in a propaganda campaign against the leadership of APC.
He said, “They are so afraid because we are consolidating. They are so afraid all over the country because we are receiving new entrants into our party. That is creating fear in their minds.
“They are already eyeing 2027, but at that time, there is no vacancy. Only our president, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, will, Insha Allah, continue as the president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
Ganduje taunted the leadership of NNPP and its chieftains in Kano State, accusing them of sponsoring protests and campaigning for his removal as APC national chairman.
Describing NNPP as a party of failed and arrogant politicians, Ganduje added, “What they are doing is African magic drama in order to convey a failed programme and projects by failed politicians. We will not allow them to continue with that.
“They are also sponsoring pockets of diffident protest from all over the country. They are spending a huge amount of money in order for people to demonstrate against the leadership of our party. It is a complete failure from what we have seen all over the country.
“The whole drama, political rascality, started from Kano with the government. Instead of responding to the yearnings, needs, and demands of the people of Kano State, they decided to divert attention.
“Our eyes are on those who are diverting our attention to political propaganda against the APC. Can we allow them to continue like that? We understand what they are doing. It is a political drama.”
Ganduje described NNPP as too insignificant to cause any upset politically. He stated, “Now, you should know that they are sponsored by the Kano State government. And they are a small party. They are a micro party. They are a party that is terribly defeated all over the country. It is a party that is breaking down. It is a party that is a mixture of failed politicians.
“If you follow what is happening in that party, you will find out that it is a party that is sharply divided between those who are authentic members of the party and those who are fake members of the party, individualistic and so arrogant in the management of the political party.”
Earlier, convener of the solidarity walk, Professor Salihu Alizaga, said loyal party men and women converged to show solidarity with Tinubu and the national chairman of APC.
In Ondo State, Aiyedatiwa received the Certificate of Return as governorship candidate of APC for the November 16 election.
Addressing journalists after the presentation, the governor said he had been in consultation with other aspirants after the primary and their meeting with the APC National Working Committee (NWC).
Aiyedatiwa said, “Today, the exercise has been completed with the presentation of certificate of return to me. Today, I have become the candidate of our great party.
“I thank President Bola Tinubu for the leadership he has provided, Vice President Kashim Shettima for supporting the leadership, the national chairman, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, for ensuring that we have a successful primary.
“I thank the other aspirants for showing sportsmanship. My arms are wide open for us to go into the election as one.”
Presenting the certificate to Aiyedatiwa, Ganduje said Ondo State would witness unprecedented development under the APC administration because of the sequence of continuity he had passed through.
Ganduje: Tinubu Battling with Policy Somersaults By Previous Administrations
Ganduje said the Tinubu administration was battling an accumulation of many years of maladministration by previous federal administrations. Ganduje disclosed this on Monday in Abuja when leaders of Persons with Disabilities (PwDs) in the states paid him a courtesy visit.
The PwD leaders passed a vote of confidence on Tinubu.
Ganduje stated, “The president, from his extensive policies, is taking Nigeria to the next level, but we need to bear with him because what we are seeing is an accumulation of so many years of neglect, policy somersaults and other disjointed decisions by previous administrations.”
He told the PwD leaders, “We have to commend you for being here with us to pass a vote of confidence on our leadership. It shows your commitment and your love for the party.
“What we need to change the living standard of your members is skill acquisition in relation to the type of challenge that you have. It will not be a universal skill acquisition. It will be a specific skill acquisition prescribed for the type of challenge for your members.
“Some (PWDs) can use their voice and some can use their legs, and some can even use signals. So we are fully aware of the challenges and we are here to solve the challenges.”
APC National Leader, Tolu Bankole, declared the support of PWDs for the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) led by Ganduje.
He said the cornerstone of this cooperation must be the active participation of persons with disabilities in their full diversity, and their full inclusion in all decision-making processes.
Kano High Court Fixes May 16 to Decide on Charge Service Through Substituted Means
A Kano High Court fixed May 16, 2024 to rule on whether criminal charges could be served on the national chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, his wife, Hafsat Ganduje, and six others through alternative means.
After listening to arguments and counter arguments on whether the respondents could be served using alternative means, Justice Usman Na’abba, who presided over the case, fixed May 16 for his ruling on the applications.
Prosecution counsel, Adeola Adedigbe (SAN), prayed the court to allow him serve the charges through substituted means on the respondents in the case.
The counsel representing the sixth respondent, Lamash Properties Limited, Nuraini Jimoh (SAN), argued that respondents in a criminal case could not be served through substituted means.
But counsel representing the state government, Adedigbe, made reference to a Kano State law 378/5 that allowed service in criminal case to be made using substitute means.
In his counter argument, Jimoh described the Kano State law allowing such service as “ultra vires” and alien to the Nigerian constitution that restricted such action.
Na’Abba, however, said he could not take immediate decision on the matter as he had to look at the several arguments raised, and, therefore, fixed May 16 for ruling on the matter.
Adedayo Akinwale and Ahmad Sorondinki
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