Television Nigerian

The social media video claiming that the Labour Party’s leadership was working with President Bola Tinubu in advance of the general elections in 2027 has been rejected by the party.

This was said in a statement released in Abuja on Friday by Obiora Ifoh, the National Publicity Secretary for LP.

Mr. Ifoh claims that the party has often refuted claims that it had a deal with the ruling All Progressives Congress, or APC, to work together in the general election of 2027.
In actuality, the Labour Party is currently the most well-known opposition party, and Barrister Abure, our National Chairman, is the main opposition figure who has been the most critical of the current administration.

‘”After the 2023 general election, it continued to interrogate the system’s failure and has been very visible playing the role of the opposition, continuously critiquing the policies, proffering solutions and advising the government.

“Recently, the party under the able leadership of Mr Julius Abure came up with series of programmes, including the creation of the Electoral Reform Committee.

“With it we hope to enthrone a credible, fair and transparent processes, leading to the selection of leadership in the country, Labour Party being a major victim in the 2023 general election,” he stated.

Mr Ifoh said the party had created a Political Education Committee for reorienting citizens on the need to have a positive behavioral changes towards politics in Nigeria.

He also saidthe party had become the first party in Nigeria attempting to deepen participatory democracy by the introduction of e-membership registration with thousands of people already subscribing.

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”All these efforts to reposition the party, for someone to be demarketing such a party in such an unguarded and callous manner, is most ridiculous and unfortunate.

“We are, therefore. challenging Deji Adeyanju and any other person to come up with facts and proofs that either the party leadership or Mr. Abure intends to work for President Bola Tinubu or his party, the APC in the 2027.
The Labour Party has suffered greatly as a result of Adeyanju’s statement, which is currently trending worldwide, and we are requesting that he stop hurting the party any more.

Our political party considers Deji Adeyanju’s now-viral remarks to be criminal defamation and a blatant attempt to disparage our well-earned reputation.

Therefore, we are urging Mr. Adeyanju to promptly present facts and proof demonstrating that President Tinubu has “bought” the Labour Party.

“He also has the option to take back his false claims and express regret to the leadership and millions of Labour Party members for the significant damage he has caused to the party,” he said.

According to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, corruption, not infrastructure or development needs, is the driving force behind the loans that the President Bola Tinubu administration has obtained.
In a letter to the National Assembly on Tuesday, Tinubu requested their approval of a new external borrowing plan in the 2024 Budget (Appropriation Act) worth N1.767 trillion ($2.209 billion).

Nevertheless, the National Assembly granted Tinubu’s request less than 48 hours later, in spite of the objections expressed by experts and civil society.

The loan will be used to partially pay the N9.7 trillion budget shortfall for the 2024 budget if it is authorized.

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Former PDP presidential candidate Atiku, however, stated that this loan proposal is more worrisome because it is benchmarked at the exchange rate of 1 USD to N800, but the Central Bank of Nigeria’s current exchange rate is more than N1,600 to 1 USD.

In a statement, Atiku said that the National Assembly has once again turned into an accomplice as Nigeria’s debt continues to grow, presumably alluding to its approval of loan requests during the most recent Muhammadu Buhari administration.

Nigeria’s public debt stock, which includes both domestic and foreign debt, increased by 75.27% on a quarter-over-quarter basis from N49.85 trillion (US$108.30 billion) in Q1 2023 to N87.38 trillion (US$113.42 billion) in Q2, according to the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

“Total domestic debt was N54.13 trillion (US$70.26 billion) in Q2 2023, while total external debt was N33.25 trillion (US$43.16 billion),” the NBS added.

However, Atiku said, “It is extremely alarming that the World Bank recently released a report indicating that Nigeria is the third most indebted nation to the International Development Association (IDA).”

This report comes right after the administration issued a proposal to the National Assembly indicating that it intends to use Euro Bonds to borrow an additional N1.7 trillion to cover the 2024 budget shortfall.

The benchmark for this specific loan request is 1 USD to N800, which is even more worrisome given that the Central Bank of Nigeria’s current exchange rate is more than N1,600 to 1 USD.

“The National Assembly has once again turned into an accomplice as Nigeria’s debt continues to grow. In July of this year, Tinubu boasted that the Customs and FIRS under his control had brought in record-breaking amounts of money to fund the budget. So why do they continue to borrow? Even if their lending rackets and failed trial-and-error strategies are crushing Nigerians, there is something they are not telling them.

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“These Tinubu loans are crushing Nigerians’ bones and putting unbearable strain on the economy, particularly when they are not properly utilized and negotiated.”

It is alarming that corruption, rather than infrastructure and development needs, is driving the avaricious thirst for these enormous loans. The amount of pork in the 2024 budget has made it a shambles, according to a report by budget watchdog Budgit.

“Seeing that we are back at the top of the same dilemma just a few years after President Obasanjo’s administration pulled our nation out of foreign debt causes me personal anguish.”

He declared, “It’s time we exercise greater prudence and apply math to the loan frenzy.”

The chairman’s remark about the 2027 presidency has been rejected by the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF).

Mamman In 2027, the North will support a Northern presidential candidate, according to ACF head Mike Osuman.

The ACF called Osuman’s remark a “unauthorised statement” and announced his suspension.

In a statement, the ACF’s Secretary General and Chairman of the ACF Board of Trustees, Alhaji Murtala Aliyu and Alhaji Bashir Muhammad Dalhatu, respectively, stated,

The widely circulated remarks attributed to Mr. Mamman Mike Osuman, SAN, Chairman of the ACF National Executive Committee (NEC), made during the NEC meeting on Wednesday, November 2024, at ACF Headquarters, Kaduna, have caught the attention of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF).

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Specifically, Mr. Osuman was cited as stating that, come 2027, the North will support a Northern candidate for the presidency.

“The remarks simply represented Mr. Osuman’s personal opinion because the NEC chairman made them without seeking input from other ACF leaders or members.

“The complete set of statements made by Mr. Mamman Mike Osuman is rejected by ACF.

Because of this, the ACF’s Board of Trustees (BOT) and NEC leadership have chosen to suspend Mr. Mamman Mike Osuman effective immediately.

“A committee has been established to conduct additional research.”