22052019 - F U L A N I S AT I O N A G E N D A : Obasanjo seeks to divide Nigeria in his old age —FG

Vanguard, WEDNESDAY, MAY 22, 2019—15
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FOR WORLD HYPERTENSION DAY: From left— Second runner-up, Ayagwa Success;
winner, Akpojotor Stephen; Chairman, Heirs Holdings, Tony Elumelu; CEO, Avon Medical, Dr. Awele
Elumelu, and first runner-up, Okeh Paul, during the inaugural Avon Medical 5K Colour Run event to
mark World Hypertension Day.
N400m fraud case:
EFCC lied, I didn’t spend
a dime on PDP— Metuh
By Ikechukwu
Nnochiri
A BUJA—FORMER
National Publicity
Secretary of Peoples
Democratic Party, PDP,
Chief Olisa Metuh,
yesterday, told the Federal
High Court in Abuja that
he did not spend a dime
out of the N400 million that
was released to him before
the 2015 presidential
election.
Metuh, who continued
his testimony before trial
Justice Okon Abang,
insisted that he only used
the fund to execute a
“national assignment” that
was given to him by former
President, Dr. Goodluck
Jonathan.
He maintained that the
Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission,
APGA on sickbed, national
chairmanship aspirant declares
By Chinonso
Alozie
OWERRI—AN aspirant
to the national
chairmanship position of
All Progressive Grand
Alliance, APGA, from Imo
State, Edozie Njoku,
yesterday claimed that the
party was now in a sickbed.
Njoku said the only
remedy is to avoid forcing
a national chairman on the
people.
The chairmanship
aspirant revealed that there
is an arrangement to pull
out of APGA, either to
create a new Igbo party or
join another political party,
should the proposed
convention go contrary to
EFCC, lied when it alleged
that the fund was used to
sponsor political activities
of PDP, prior to the
presidential election.
Metuh is answering to a
seven-count money
laundering charge the
EFCC preferred against
him and his firm, Destra
Investment Ltd.
He was alleged to have
received N400m from the
Office of the National
Court strikes out suit on
Ihedioha’s swearing in
By Chinonso
Alozie
OWERRI—A Federal
High Court sitting in
Owerri, presided over
by Justice P. A. Rimgim
the will of the people.
Njoku said: “I remember
when I visited Victor Umeh
to pick the form for the
national chairmanship post,
he told me the party does
not have the energy to go
through having so many
contestants and that the
party has only one
chairmanship aspirant.
“But today, I am happy
that Victor Umeh is seeing
the need to have a
democracy. We sit down
and say things must be
democratic; it is not because
of any individual but
because we want it to be
good for all.
“An example is what
happened to AD in the
South-West. It had five
Security Adviser, ONSA,
before the 2015 presidential
election, without executing
any contract.
EFCC alleged that the
fund was electronically
wired from an account that
ONSA operated with the
Central Bank of Nigeria,
CBN, to Metuh.
It told the court that the
fund, which was released
to Metuh and his firm by
detained former NSA, Col.
yesterday, struck out the
suit attempting to stop the
swearing in of Imo State
governor-elect, Emeka
Ihedioha, just as the court
also awarded a N5 million
cost against the plaintiff,
governors but today they
can’t even boast of one
thousand votes. It came to
a point, Yoruba people said
enough is enough
“They chose another
party called ACN which
they later joined with
another party to be the party
of government today.
“We Igbo should watch
out and keep learning and
stop some rubbish that
have been destroying us
politically.
“There was ANPP that
looked out for northern
interests and AD for Yoruba
interests. We struggled to
form APGA in 2000. We are
now asking: do we not still
have that need for which we
created APGA?”
Sambo Dasuki(retd),was
part of about $2.1 billion
earmarked for the purchase
of arms to fight insurgency
in the North-East.
Besides, the prosecution
which had earlier closed its
case after it called eight
witnesses that testified
before the court, equally
alleged that Metuh was
involved in an illicit
transaction that involved
the exchange of $2million.
Clifford Eze, a
governorship candidate of
Democratic Alternative,
DA.
Rimgim struck out the
suit on the grounds that the
matter was supposed to be
at the tribunal level and not
a matter for the regular
court, pointing out that it is
a post-election matter.
Reacting, Chairman of
DA, Anyiam Israel told
Vanguard: “Let me get in
touch with the stakeholders
of the party, by the time we
get the details, we will react
properly on the matter. I
am not fully aware of it
now.”
Also reacting, the
Secretary to Imo State
Peoples Democratic Party,
PDP, Ray Emeana, said the
suit was an attempt to derail
democracy in Imo State.
The PDP scribe said:
“These are people who
have governed the state for
the past eight years and
they are trying to keep the
state down. The state is
gradually being untangled
for the commencement of
progress across the state.”
Umahi backs Gbajabiamila
for Reps speakership
By Peter Okutu
A BAKALIKI—
GOVERNOR
David Umahi of Ebonyi
State yesterday,
endorsed Femi
Gbajabiamila for the
speakership of the House
of Representatives.
Umahi gave the
endorsement in
Abakaliki when
Gbajabiamila led 103
members of the House of
Representatives to seek
the governor’s support
on his speakership
ambition.
Describing
Gbajabiamila as a very
intelligent lawmaker,
Governor Umahi
assured that he would
align himself with the
By Dennis Agbo
E NUGU—THE
Movement for
Actualisation of the
Sovereign State Of
Biafra, MASSOB, has
spoken out in support of
former President
Olusegun Obasanjo’s
allegation on
Islamisation and
Fulanisation of
Nigeria.
MASSOB in a
statement yesterday,
through its spokesman,
Samuel Edeson, said
Chief Obasanjo should
not be crucified or
condemned because he
exposed the intention
to unleash evil on the
people of southern and
middle-belt regions of
Nigeria.
Edeson said it was
unfortunate some aides
to the President have
mortgaged their
conscience for their
selfish desire,
presenting falsehoods
to the citizens because
they wanted to be
ambition of the lawmaker.
He however, demanded
that South-East, especially
members who hail from
Ebonyi be included in the
appointment of key floor
functionaries and
chairmen of committees if
elected.
Umahi pleaded that the
House leadership under
Gbajabiamila, if elected,
should not dwell so much
on party affairs but think
of how to build and
develop the nation.
Reacting, Gbajabiamila
said Ebonyi is the first
state he was visiting to
seek for support, adding
that his decision to visit
Umahi was because of
his uniqueness and
influence in the South-
East zone.
MASSOB backs Obasanjo
on Islamisation agenda
relevant in President’s
administration.
Edeson said:
“MASSOB commends
Obasanjo for being
courageous and
eloquent in revealing
this unwanted truth
which the present
government don’t want
to hear.
“It will be recalled that
MASSOB had earlier
exposed this
Islamisation agenda.
“MASSOB wishes to
make it clearer again that
there is no difference
between Boko Haram
and herdsmen. The
terrorist herdsmen were
sent to go and destroy
the South and Middle-
Belt while the Boko
Haram will carry their
acts of terrorism in the
North-East.
“That is why President
Buhari can never declare
killer-herdsmen a
terrorist movement or
condemn the killing of
the innocent citizens by
these foot soldiers of
Islam called herdsmen.”