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2023: Tambuwal steadily guides Atiku to victory

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2023: Tambuwal steadily guides Atiku to victory

Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, the governor of Sokoto State and the director general of the Atiku/Okowa Presidential Campaign Council, is doing everything in his power to ensure that Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the PDP candidate for president on February 25, 2023, will win.

The vivacious 57-year-old, 1991 law graduate of Usman Dan Fod, who started his political career in 1999 as the personal assistant on legislative affairs to Senator Abdullahi Wali, the then Senate Leader, and was elected to the House of Representatives on the platform of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP) in 2003 to represent Kebbe/Tambuwal Federal Constituency, won the hearts of admirers.

Tambuwal has been actively involved in national politics for almost 25 years, outside of his current role as the chief executive of Sokoto State. This distinguishes him from many more recent entrants to Nigeria’s political scene. He is notable for having held a number of positions in the House of Representatives.

He was appointed House Minority Leader in 2005 and served in that capacity until he joined the PDP. He became the Deputy Chief Whip in 2007 after being re-elected to the House. The House Committees on Rules and Business, Communications, Judiciary, Inter-Parliamentary, and Water Resources were among the committees he served on at various points in time. He also participated in the House Ad-hoc Constitution Review Committee. He served as the head of several committees, including the House Subcommittee on the Bill for an Act to Amend the Land Use Act, the Ad-hoc Committee that reviewed the report of the contentious power probe committee led by Ndudi Elumelu, and the House Committee on Power’s acting chairmanship.

At the ACP-EU Parliamentary Assembly, which was held in Prague, Czech Republic, in April 2009, Tambuwal led the Nigerian delegation and served as vice-chairman of the economic committee.

He ran for and won the Sokoto State governorship election on April 11, 2015, and he was re-elected in the March 9, 2019, and March 22, 2019, supplementary Sokoto State elections.

When Atiku emerged as the PDP’s presidential candidate in May, it was Tambuwal’s collective experience, hard work, and shrewd strategy that made him the PDP’s top recommendation for the challenging job of ensuring the Waziri Adamawa won Nigeria’s presidency in the election on February 25, 2023.

Tambuwal has taken the higher duties very seriously ever since he and other appointees into the body – Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State (Chairman), Senator Liyel Imoke (Deputy Director General), Governors Bala Mohammed (Bauchi) and Seyi Makinde (Oyo) as vice chairmen for the northern and southern regions, respectively; Prof. Adewale Oladipo, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi, Additionally, the atmosphere has been positive in the national headquarters and all PDP branches.

To start, Tambuwal promised issue-based campaigns as he got started, showing that he was ready for the challenging job. Atiku is very well prepared to provide the necessary leadership for this country at this time, according to the suave learned man, as lawyers are known, who said this at his first press conference last September. He said, “I believe none of the other candidates can match his experience in governance at the federal level.”

At the time, he added that “this is not the time for Nigerians to go for trial and error” and warned them against experimentation. It’s time for Nigerians to elect someone who has proven themselves and has the necessary experience to do a good job. This person should be able to get started right away, just as we did when the Campaign Council was established on September 28, the day INEC lifted the campaign ban.

Read Also: Tears as death toll in Katsina killings exceeds 100

More importantly, Tambuwal promised politics devoid of animosity. “Our campaign will be based on issues. We’re going to market our candidates in accordance with the program we launched, which is typically solution-based, the man said.

At Uyo, the capital of Akwa Ibom State, on Monday, October 10, Tambuwal got things started as the PDP launched its nationwide campaigns.

Tambuwal has been quietly and carefully guiding his team across every inch of this nation ever since the Atiku/Okowa campaigns got underway. He consults and networks constantly to emphasize that Atiku is the best candidate for the six geopolitical regions of this nation. Tambuwal has taken the presidential campaign team to 25 states, according to the most recent tally.

It was a historic welcome for the “Home Boy” on January 31, 2023, as Tambuwal flew the PDP presidential candidate and his entourage into Sokoto. The enormous crowd, previously unheard in the capital of the Caliphate since the presidential election campaigns got underway in 2023, was jubilant as the incumbent governor of the state and his team chanted the party’s slogans inside the Giginya Memorial Stadium, the rally’s location.

Tambuwal urged the people of the state to vote PDP in order to promote prosperity and economic recovery, as he had done everywhere he had led the party.

He said that in order to fix the situation in Nigeria, a man with experience and good mental and physical health is required. He added that because Nigerians have experienced both darkness and light, they are better equipped to make informed decisions.

Mallam Saidu Umar, the PDP candidate for governor in Sokoto State and also known as Mallam Ubandoman Sokoto, expressed his sincere gratitude to the state’s residents for attending the significant event in such large numbers.

“We owe Allah, the Almighty, a great deal of gratitude for this day. We cannot express our gratitude to the people of Sokoto State, the Caliphate’s capital, in enough words, he said.

He claimed that the massive turnout at the campaign was evidence of the unwavering solidarity and support that the people of the State had for him and that they were unhappy with the way the APC government was running the nation.

Ubandoma also made the observation that the large turnout at the campaign reflected the overwhelming satisfaction of the populace with the actions of the current PDP administration led by Governor Aminu Waziri Tambuwal.

Atiku Abubakar reeled out his “Recover Nigeria” program, emphasizing ending insecurity, youth and women empowerment, boosting agricultural production, economic development, education, and others, adding that these will bring back Nigeria to its former glory. Tambuwal seemed pleased with the campaign train’s success since October of last year. To increase international trade, he declared that he would open Nigeria’s border with the Niger Republic.

“I would like all of you here to come out en masse to vote for all PDP candidates in Sokoto State,” Atiku said, turning to face the agitated crowd. I don’t think Sokoto will get less than 1.5 million votes.

Read Also: Court restrains CBN from extending deadline for old naira notes

Also promising the Atiku/Okowa team that “PDP will win all the electoral contests in the state in the upcoming elections” was Tambuwal, a tenacious national political strategist of North West Nigerian descent.

Given these precedents, Tambuwal is seen as the man who will lead the Atiku/Okowa ticket to victory this month by both PDP politicians and opponents.

Tears as death toll in Katsina killings exceeds 100

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Tears as death toll in Katsina killings exceeds 100

Over 100 people have died as a result of the clash between vigilantes and bandits in four communities in the Bakori Local Government Area of Katsina State.
Residents of the affected communities told Channels Television that over one hundred people had died, and more bodies were still being found in the area.

Residents claimed that some people in the communities are still missing and that they are still hoping to bury more people.

Abubakar Hashimu, a resident of Guga village, claimed that 63 people were buried on Friday and that a canter vehicle was also brought on Saturday with more than 30 corpses.

Read Also: Atiku urges Buhari to avoid using Nigerians as scapegoats for the poorly executed naira policy

Hashimu claims that since the incident on Thursday—following the bandits’ rustling of several cows on Wednesday—more than 100 people have died.
In a related development, Governor Aminu Masari dispatched a delegation, led by Alhaji Muntari Lawal, Secretary to the State Government, to offer condolences to the victims’ families.

On Sunday, a delegation from the state paid condolence visits to the communities of Guga, Yargoje, and Gidan Gamji. They expressed their deep sadness for the victims and their families as well as for the government, calling the situation tragic.

Lawal urged the locals to develop self-defense skills, arguing that the government or security services cannot handle such a situation on their own.

“The actual number of those killed cannot be determined because they are still counting the dead; nobody can give you the precise number because some of the bodies are scattered in the bush, and they must go and collect them,” he said.

“The bandits are being counted just as we are. People need to develop the courage to face the devil before he finishes them.

Read Also: Supreme Court declares Senate President, Lawal APC candidate for Yobe North

“Don’t wait for the government to act; the damage has already been done. Instead, organize yourself to face them.”

He continued by stating that the state government had made plans to establish an inquiry commission to look into the immediate and long-term causes of the killings.

Supreme Court declares Senate President, Lawal APC candidate for Yobe North

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Supreme Court declares Senate President, Lawal APC candidate for Yobe North

The All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate for Yobe north, Ahmed Lawan, was upheld by the supreme court.

Bashir Machina’s nomination as the APC’s candidate for the Yobe North Senatorial District was contested in court by the party.

The party insisted that the legitimate senatorial candidate for Yobe North in the upcoming general election was Ahmad Lawan, the president of the Nigerian Senate.

At the most recent hearing of the appeal, the party’s attorney, Sepiribo Peters, argued that the primary election, which took place on May 28, 2018, and produced Machina, violated the Electoral Act 2022.

Read Also: Brain Capital: Investing in oneself, best investment in Nigeria – Andrew Nevin

Peters argued that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party did not nominate one Danjuma Manga to conduct the aforementioned primary election.

He testified before the court that the APC called off the primary election due to irregularities that were noticed during the process.

He claimed that the APC NWC conducted the other primary on June 9 and selected Lawan as the legitimate candidate for the party.

Sarafa Yusuf, Machina’s attorney, requested that the Supreme Court reject the appeal because it lacked merit on the grounds that the Senate President had not opposed the lawsuits in both the trial and lower courts.

Additionally, he noted that Manga, who oversaw the primary election in which Machina triumphed, was a member of the committee established by the NWC to oversee the process.

The APC had petitioned the Court of Appeal in Abuja to overturn the decision of the lower court designating Machina as the party’s candidate for Yobe North, but Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, the panel’s president, ruled that the appeal was an abuse of the legal system.

However, the Supreme Court accepted the APC’s appeal against Bashir Machina’s candidacy in a majority decision issued on Monday.

Read Also: Obi leads new poll, Tinubu favourite among silent voters

Lawan was recognized by the Supreme Court as the APC’s legitimate candidate for the Yobe North Senatorial District.

Obi leads new poll, Tinubu favourite among silent voters

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Obi leads new poll, Tinubu favourite among silent voters

Peter Obi, the Labour Party candidate, is currently in the lead with a 41% margin of victory, according to a recent Stears Nigeria poll.

Following closely at 31% and 20%, respectively, are Abubakar Atiku of the Peoples Democratic Party and Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

When questioned about who they would probably vote for, 36% of the respondents remained silent.

The largest telephone-based electoral poll in Nigeria, according to Stears, “covers 6,220 respondents across Nigeria’s 36 States” in a poll that was released on Tuesday.

Read Also: Court restrains CBN from extending deadline for old naira notes

Tinubu will win the election, though, according to Stears’ model, even if fewer people vote than usual.

In comparison to Obi and Atiku, who are expected to receive 32% and 22% of the votes, respectively, the former governor of Lagos State will receive 39% of the votes.

According to the polling firms, “Stears prediction model believes that Tinubu has the most silent voters, i.e. people who intend to vote for Tinubu but choose not to disclose this during an interview.”

 

Court restrains CBN from extending deadline for old naira notes

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Court restrains CBN from extending deadline for old naira notes

The Central Bank of Nigeria has been prohibited by the Federal Capital Territory High Court from continuing to use the previous naira note, as stated earlier.

On Monday, the High Court named the CBN, President Buhari, and several banks as defendants in a lawsuit with the filing number FCT/HC/CV/2234/2023.

The CBN was instructed not to extend the deadline while the lawsuit was being decided by the high court judge Eleojo Enenche.

Read Also: We are beating oil theft and militancy in the Niger Delta

“An order of interim injunction is hereby made prohibiting the defendants, whether by themselves, staff agents, officers, interfacing banks or whomever, from suspending, stopping, extending, varying or interfering with the existing termination date of use of the old N200, N500, and N1000 bank note, which is the 10th day of February 2023,” the court held. This order is in effect pending the hearing and decision of the motion on notice.

Atiku urges Buhari to avoid using Nigerians as scapegoats for the poorly executed naira policy

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Atiku urges Buhari to avoid using Nigerians as scapegoats for the poorly executed naira policy

President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration has been warned not to use Nigerians as scapegoats in the “ongoing battle of titans over the redesign of the naira,” according to Democratic Party presidential front-runner Atiku Abubakar.
In a statement released on Tuesday in Abuja by his media assistant, Mr. Abubakar made the appeal.

He claimed that Mr. Buhari’s administration had a responsibility to act quickly to ensure that banks did not become roadblocks to “the well-thought-out policy of naira redesign.”

According to the intelligence the federal government is believed to have received regarding suspicions that some presidential candidates may have stashed billions of naira as a war-chest for vote-buying, the statement said, “It is commendable that the federal government has rather preferred to work behind the scenes.

Read Also: We are beating oil theft and militancy in the Niger Delta

The former vice president bemoaned the widespread anxiety brought on by banks’ subpar implementation of the naira redesign policy.

“Businesses and smallholder enterprises that depend on cash are all currently in severe distress. In order to prevent the economy from collapsing, this needs to be addressed immediately, he insisted.

Mr. Abubakar claimed that on January 28, he had made a significant intervention regarding the redesign of the naira, urging the government and the CBN to take the challenges the general public was facing into consideration when adjusting the deadline.

He reiterated that there was poor management of the policy. According to him, the inadequate implementation of the policy has led to millions of Nigerians becoming hopeless and desperate.

The presidential candidate continued, “In recent weeks, social tension has increased throughout Nigeria as a result of the inadequate management of the redesign of the naira policy.

We are beating oil theft and militancy in the Niger Delta

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We are beating oil theft and militancy in the Niger Delta

HARCOURT, P/ The joint military force is winning the war against crude oil theft and militancy in the Niger Delta, according to Brig.-Gen. Sadisu Yakasai, Commander, 16 Brigade, Nigerian Army/Sector 2, Operation Delta Safe (OPDS).

Yakasai gave a speech on Sunday at the West African Social Activities (WASA) held at Camp Tukur Buratai Barracks in Yenagoa, the capital of Bayelsa State.

We at 16 Brigade in the Niger Delta had a successful and eventful year in 2022. The battle against crude oil militancy and theft is being won gradually and steadily. Our troops have been actively fighting militancy, sea piracy, sea robbery, and other forms of criminality in the state of Bayelsa through Operation Delta Safe, particularly in the waterways that enter and leave the state.

“The Brigade has also participated in a number of other drills and operations to accomplish the feat for the benefit of the state and the country. Exercise Still Waters 2022, which will eventually be known as “Operation Safe Conduct,” is one of them.

The Commander promised that throughout the general elections in 2023, the troops would conduct themselves professionally and politically neutrally.

He claims that the goal of “Operation Safe Conduct” is to create the conditions necessary for the peaceful and successful conduct of the general elections in 2023. He pledged that the elections would be successfully held in Bayelsa and throughout the nation given the preparations already made.

Read Also: Oil Fraud Worth $1.6 Billion: Omokore Knows His End As Judgement Is Delivered Today

The Brigade was able to coordinate with employees of other security agencies who assisted the Brigade in its operations and carry out some civil military cooperation activities during some of our activities over the course of the previous year, according to some of our activities.

Donating educational resources and relief supplies to residents of the Elebele community and other communities are two examples of the civil-military cooperation activities.

Others include a groundbreaking ceremony for the installation of boreholes in communities, sanitation drills, medical outreach, and donations of relief supplies to the Gloryland Orphanage Home, according to the speaker.

The Commander stated that WASA is a yearly gathering that is typically planned for officers, soldiers, and their families to socialize.

He recalled that the Nigeria West Africa Frontier Force had gone to different West African soldiers’ cultural interventions in 1901, which is when the history of the incident began.

Oil Fraud Worth $1.6 Billion: Omokore Knows His End As Judgement Is Delivered Today

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Oil Fraud Worth $1.6 Billion: Omokore Knows His End As Judgement Is Delivered Today

Barring unforeseen circumstances, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba of the Federal High Court in Abuja will rule on the trial of Jide Omokore, a friend of the late Diezani Alison-Madueke, the former petroleum minister, on Tuesday, February 7.

Omokere, Victor Briggs, Abiye Membere, and David Mbanefo were all charged with nine counts of theft for allegedly diverting $1.6 billion from the Federal Government’s proceeds from sales of petroleum products.

On July 4, 2016, Jide Omokere and his co-defendants were initially charged.
But on November 21, 2016, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission re-arrested the defendants before Judge Nnamdi Dimgba along with two of Omokore’s businesses, Atlantic Energy Brass Development Ltd and Atlantic Energy Drilling Concepts Ltd, as a result of additional findings.

The Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act’s section 1(1)(b) and section 1(3) punishments were alleged to apply to some of the offenses.

Read Also: Brain Capital: Investing in oneself, best investment in Nigeria – Andrew Nevin

It should be recalled that on April 26, 2018, Mr. Olutaye Ayeni, one of the witnesses called by the EFCC, testified in court that he sold Jide Omokore cars worth $8 million, who then purchased them for friends and associates.

“We sold to the defendant Mercedes Benz S550 at a cost of N26 million in the name of Mbanefo David/Chief Omokore and another Mercedes M350 at a cost of Nneka Bricks,” said Ayeni, chief executive officer of Skymit Motors and the seventh prosecution witness.

“Skymit was given a credit for $1.26 million. A document that was already admitted into evidence before the court stated that additional payments received from the defendant’s Skye Bank account included $1 million on November 6, 2013, two payments of $ 1 million each on July 8, $ 1.5 million on August 11, and $ 1 million on September 17, 2014.

Brain Capital: Investing in oneself, best investment in Nigeria – Andrew Nevin

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Brain Capital: Investing in oneself, best investment in Nigeria – Andrew Nevin

 

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket as a Nigerian investor, suggests Dr. Andrew Nevin, Advisory Partner & Chief Economist of PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) West Africa.

He promoted portfolio diversification due to the frequent policy changes in government that could quickly wipe out investors’ assets.

Nevin made this statement in response to a question about how Nigerian businesses can prevent themselves from going out of business during a recent panel discussion.

first Webinar session organized in 2023 by Nairametrics, themed: 2023 Economic Opportunities to Mitigate Impact of Headwinds.

Brain capital 

Dr. Nevin also said currently, brain capital is the best investment in Nigeria. He said investing in the broader economy is very risky because of inflation.

  • He stated that over the past eight years, Nigeria has had a very harsh business environment, with the local currency losing its store of value characteristic and living standards getting harsher.
  • He said he would not encourage individuals to take the risks prevalent in the Nigerian investment environment, stressing that the best form of investment in Nigeria right now is investing in self. 
  • “What I might say to people is, if you want to hedge against the harsh environment, the people that are doing well in this country are people that invest in themselves, invest in brain capital,” he said. 

Dead Assets 

At the macro level, Nevin had said Nigeria can grow its economy by putting its many dead assets to use. He said one of Nigeria’s major dead assets is its real estate assets that are not being put to optimal use.

  • He listed some of the federal government’s dead assets including the Ajaokuta Steel Plant and Nigeria’s refineries as some of its dead assets. He said Nigeria needs to unlock its dead assets to grow; if not, there will be a problem.
  • He noted that the government is becoming more predatory over the last couple of years towards businesses and individuals in extracting value, it becomes a very difficult situation. 
  • In January 2022, Nairametrics quoted Nevin as saying, “Nigeria needs to unlock dead assets that are not producing returns, and also focus on service export growth, as some of the themes that will shape Nigeria’s economy.” 

Portfolio Diversification

Alluding to currency policy, Nevin noted that sometime in the past, the British pound was almost at par with the Nigerian naira, but over the decades it has lost value to as low as it is today, stressing that the local currency is losing its store of value characteristic.

  • He thus stated that if an investor had a single portfolio of investment in naira denomination exclusively that person’s net worth would fall to zero over time. 
  • In July 2019, Nairametrics reported that portfolio diversification is a model which a lot of investors use in building their worlds.
  • This simply means avoiding putting all your eggs in one basket. You should put money into a portfolio of investments that include bonds, treasury bills, stocks, and other fixed-income securities. That way, you create a balance and hedge against risk. 

Portfolio of currencies 

Nevin said, for instance, if an investor had an investment in a corporation that was doing well, it would be wise for that investor to spread his investments into other portfolios, especially portfolios in international currencies, including cryptocurrencies, which is why many Nigerians are drawn to investing in Bitcoin and Ethereum. 

  • Speaking about investment and export opportunities, he said it’s not feasible in the medium term for Nigeria to be competitive in the export of physical goods because of a number of factors, including the port systems, the customs service, and excess charges.
  • He said no one is going to be interested in investing in physical goods in Nigeria, neither Nigerians nor outsiders.
  • He stated that the only feasible strategy for Nigeria to boost non-oil exports is in the services. 

Read Also: APC rejects Nexter poll, which placed Obi ahead of Tinubu

Services are the way 

Nevin noted that a lot of people have a misconception of the services sector, stressing that two-thirds of the world’s GDP is in services, while manufactured goods are at the tail end of the world’s GDP.

  • He stressed the need for Nigeria to export knowledge, music, software development services, business process outsourcing, fintech, and talents like football.
  • He cited Access Bank, UBA, and other banks on the march across Africa with banking services. He said the government needs to expand on that by training and providing opportunities for its people.
  • The services sector currently contributes about 52% of Nigeria’s GDP.

Compared to the two-thirds global average, it means Nigeria still has a wide room for growth in the services sector. Like in most thriving economies nowadays, the services sector is gaining momentum in Nigeria, because more and more people are moving from the countryside to the cities to find jobs. 

Moreover, in 2019, the employment level in services as a share of total employment in Nigeria was around 53.03 percent. 

  • In August 2021, Nairametrics reported that Nigeria’s service sector, which made up about 55.6% of the country’s GDP was the major reason for the growth post-COVID-19. 
  • The sector grew at a faster pace of 9.27%, one of the fastest in recent years. The other two major sectors, Agriculture and Industry recorded a 1.3% growth and -1.23% contraction respectively. 

Reasons to invest in services 

The PwC chief stated that there are obvious reasons to invest in services, citing that they don’t have to go through the ports system in Nigeria and face the kind of bottlenecks encountered when exporting physical goods. He also cited that they are value-added.  

  • He stated that there are Nigerians working from their homes offering services to American companies and earning thousands of dollars monthly.
  • He said Nigeria was already doing well in services export than goods export. He drew strength for his proposition from the Indian economy, which he said already exports services to the tune of $200 billion. 

APC rejects Nexter poll, which placed Obi ahead of Tinubu

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APC rejects Nexter poll, which placed Obi ahead of Tinubu

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has disregarded a Nextier poll that put Bola Tinubu, the APC’s presidential candidate, behind Labour Party nominee Peter Obi.

The APC responded in a statement released yesterday and signed by Bayo Onanuga, Director of Media and Publicity for the APC Presidential Campaign Council.

“We are forced as a matter of public record to react to another farcical Presidential Election Poll result released by an organization that calls itself Nextier, a public policy advisory firm that overnight transformed itself into a Nigerian Gallup Poll or Ipsos,” Onanuga began in the statement.

Read Also: Gov. Ugwuanyi promises to support creator of battery-operated cooking stove

“We are responding in order to protect innocent Nigerians from being duped by the Patrick Okigbo-led organization, which seems to be out to destabilize and destabilize our nation.

“Nigerians should first be aware that Nextier’s promoters are active campaigners for the Labour Party’s presidential candidate and members of Mr. Peter Obi’s Presidential Campaign Council.”

He advised taking any poll conducted by such a partisan group with a grain of salt.

He also criticized the poll’s sample size and methodology, claiming that neither would pass an integrity test.

The statement continued, “It is quite absurd that Nextier Poll, which predicts a complete victory for the APC Presidential candidate in the six SouthWest states, including Lagos, also places Peter Obi ahead of him with over 90% of registered voters in the South East Region.

We wonder why the pollsters at Nextier, if they have even a modicum of respect for the intelligence of Nigerians, thought the factors that will propel Obi’s landslide victory in the South East will not work for the APC candidate in his own South West base.

Read Also: Gov. Buni laments deaths of 3 persons, injuries of 6 more in Yobe car accident

The PDP’s vice presidential candidate lives in Delta, which the partisan pollsters predicted the LP would win with 65.9% of the vote. They also gave the Labour Party 62.9% of Bayelsa.

He referred to the poll as wishful thinking devoid of any basis in fact or reality and emphasized the need to inform Nigerians and the wider world that Nextier is allegedly a Labour Party agent and that their poll results are entirely fabricated and disconnected from reality.

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