Digital Leonard Blog

THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has ordered Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo to “keep quiet” if he cannot mention names of those he claims looted the treasury while in power. Mr. Osinbajo, had said President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration will not stop talking about the corruption in former president Goodluck Jonathan administration. Giving his reason he said “because we must let our people know that we cannot afford to go this way again.” Osinbajo stated this at the 10th annual Bola Tinubu Colloquium, organised to commemorate the birthday of the former governor of Lagos State and national leader of the APC, Bola Tinubu. “Let me reiterate that from all I have seen in government in the past three years, the corruption of the previous five years is what destroyed the Nigerian economy,” he said at the event. “Every time we talk about corruption, our opponents say don’t talk about it just do your own. Don’t talk about it. The Yoruba have an adage: ‘when the matter become that of tails, ...

Unknown to many, the failed attempt to foist a Caretaker Committee on the All Progressives Congress (APC) was actually aimed at creating legal crisis for President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019 and edge him out of the presidential election. Those behind the plot were said to have set a booby trap on account of which Buhari’s nomination for re-election would be declared invalid in line with 1999 Constitution and the constitution of the party. It was learnt yesterday that 10 more governors had shelved support for the extension of the tenure of the National Chairman of APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun and members of his National Working Committee (NWC), based on Buhari’s opposition to the elongation of their tenure. There were strong indications yesterday that a former Governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, was on top of the pecking order in the search for the national chairman of APC. But three APC governors and some members of the National Assembly who have constituted themselves into...

President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday expressed appreciation to foreign and local investors that agreed to commit their investment into Nigeria, aimed at boosting the country’s economy. Buhari, who unveiled a plaque to commemorate his visit to the Eko Atlantic City project, expressed his appreciation to investors after being shown round the project by Gov. Akinwunmi Ambode of Lagos State. He said that their investment had helped to provide employment for Nigerians, reducing the rate of unemployment in the country. “I am extremely grateful to those that agreed to invest so much in our country. “I have just gone round to see the Eko Atlantic City. I am extremely impressed with the potentiality of this project and the amount of jobs and its effect on the economy and what it is capable of bringing,’’ Buhari said. The President, while expressing his satisfaction with the ocean reclamation embarked upon by the state government and its partners, said that the investment had impacted on the cou...

The Presidency on Friday advised Nigerians to be cautious of the “less-than-honest apology offered by the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) National Chairman, Mr. Uche Secondus. According to a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, apology was not enough. He urged the PDP to cough out what has been stolen. He said that the point made by the Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, is apt and on cue, that there are heavy moral duties that go with apologies if the culprits want to be taken seriously. He said “The PDP is desperate to recapture power because it no longer has unhindered access to national resources for private uses and its apology should be seen in this context. “The PDP has not even acknowledged the fact that it plundered the national economy, and for a party that dismissed the anti-corruption war as a political witch hunt, it is impossible to believe that its public apology comes from the bottom of the heart. “Even desperate thie...

… Boko Haram trying to set us against each other, Ahmadiyya The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), has praised the lone Dapchi girl Leah Sharibu, being held captive by Boko Haram for standing for her faith. CAN says that people saying that Leah should have denounced Christ and repented later do not understand the tenets of Christianity. Federal Capital Territory (FCT) CAN President, Rev. Dr. Jonah Samson explained that Christianity is all about conviction and not denial. Speaking at the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at Nigeria, Northern Region, 6th Northern Region Jalsa Tarbiya, 3rd national peace symposium that was held in Abuja. Samson who was represented by Rev. Dr. Samuel Kajeyale said, “In the aspect of people saying that Leah should have denounced her faith, it is not possible. If you know what Christian beliefs is all about, it is all about conviction and denial is not part of the tenets of Christianity, if you have given your life to Jesus and made him the lord of your life, peopl...

•Senators go on recess  SENATE President Bukola Saraki has hailed his colleagues in the 8th Senate for their support and hard work  that allowed the Upper Legislative Chamber to reach the milestone of passing 201st Bill yesterday. In a tweet on his personal handle (@Bukolasaraki), the Senate President said: “As of today, the Senate has passed 201 Bills. We still have 15 months to go, yet, we have reached this milestone. I would like to thank my distinguished colleagues for their hard work and cooperation over the last 33 months.” The 5th Senate (2003 to 2007) passed 129 Bills in all; the 6th Senate (2007 to 2011) passed 72 Bills and the 7th Senate (2011 to 2015) had a total of 129 Bills. The Senate yesterday gone on recess till April 10 because of Easter celebration. A motion for the holiday was moved by Leader Bala Na’Allah. Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu urged his colleagues not to relent in praying for the nation. “This is an opportunity for me to wish all of you an...

•’Declare herdsmen as terrorists’ The Yoruba Council of Elders (YCE) has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to sack service chiefs. It said this followed their alleged failure to curb killings. Rising from a National Executive Council (NEC) meeting in honour of its late president, Chief Idowu Sofola (SAN), YCE said Nigerians had lost confidence in the service chiefs. It singled out Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Ibrahim Idris for blame in security breaches and lack of action to curtail killings of Nigerians, especially the President’s acknowledgement that top officers disobeyed his order to tackle Benue killings. IYC said some of the service chiefs were overdue for retirement, adding that Nigerians should be guided by the federal character principle when considering candidates to replace them to balance ethnic composition. The senior citizens advised the President to declare herdsmen allegedly responsible for killing, defilement and other crimes terrorists. They urged him to reconside...

The Police in Ogun State have advised those who lost their vehicles/motorcycles to thieves or left abandoned to report at Lafenwa/Ibafo/Ogijo Division/SCIID headquarters for possible identification and claims within 14 days. The vehicles and motorcycles are: Lafenwa Division Vehicles: One Nissan Cabstar  reg. XE175EPE; one Mazda Bus reg. XA228WNN; one LT. Bus reg.XT495MUS; one Mazda 232 GGE 399 DM. Ibafo Division Vehicles: One Mazda 323 reg. 300LSR; one Danfo Yellow Bus reg. XM430LSD; one Danfo Yellow Bus reg. AGL931XK;; one Danfo Yellow Bus reg. XH167RSH; one Danfo Yellow Bus reg. XL178KSF; one Mercedez Benz A160 reg.XT603JJJ;  Man Diesel XT603JJJ Motorcycles(Ibafo) are: Four Bajaj unregistered ; one unregistered; one reg. JGB913QA; one TVS unregistered and one Honda Red reg. FST796QH Ogijo Division Vehicles: One white Ford bus reg.GGE62sn. Motorcycles are: one Bajaj reg. GBE114QA; one Bajaj reg. LSD395QC and 12 others. SCIID Vehicles: One Mazda 323 with reg. PT798KJA. Quick ...

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday hailed Lagos State Governor Akinwunmi Ambode for developing the state within three years. He spoke while inaugurating Ikeja Bus Terminal, shortly after arriving the state for a two-day official visit. The President, in his brief remarks during the ceremony, praised Ambode for his reform in public transportation. He said the Federal Government would adhere to its plan for the ports and other transport infrastructure. Buhari reiterated his administration’s commitment to tackling insecurity, stabilising the economy, creating an enabling environment for jobs and returning Nigeria to its pride of place in the comity of nations. Ambode thanked President Buhari for waiving the import duty on the 5,000 air-conditioned buses, which will be operated from the terminal. He said the state looked forward to having an assembly plant for the buses in the next 20 months. Ambode said his administration was committed to improving public transport infrastructure and ma...

FORMER President Goodluck Jonathan’s cousin, Robert Azibaola, has been ordered to defend himself in a fraud allegation of $40 million levelled against him and his company, One Plus Holding Ltd, by the Federal Government. According to a Federal High Court, Abuja, Azibaola must defend himself on two out of the nine-count charge preferred against him by the government. He was to defend himself on the two counts bordering on being in possession of and converting the sum of $40 million received from the office of the former National Security Adviser (NSA), Col. Sambo Dasuki (retd) to personal use. Justice Nnamdi Dimgba made the order yesterday while ruling on the no-case-submission filed by Azibaola and his wife, Stella. The court, however, discharged and acquitted Stella of all the nine-count charge levelled against her. Dimgba, in discharging Stella, held that being wife to Azibaola was not enough to charge her with the offence since criminal liability was personal and not vicarious. The ...

Fellow Compatriots, I am indeed delighted to join our Christian brothers and sisters to commemorate this year’s Easter celebration. We thank the Almighty God for granting us the opportunity to celebrate another Easter at a time of great promise and hope for our dear nation, despite the challenges we also have. Easter, the season in which Christians mark the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, represents the triumph of good over evil; and life over death. It is also a time to show love, forgiveness, compassion and renewed hope in the Grace of God. The Holy Scripture affirms that happiness and fulfilment in life do not flow from acquiring the best things in life, but in being richer in a relationship with God and fellow human beings. Let us use the opportunity of this special season to deeply reflect on how every one of us can imbibe the profound teachings of Jesus Christ with renewed vigour. In so doing and by placing the joy, comfort and happiness of others above ours, we will make...

President Buhari says the Federal Government is committed to uniting the people of the country such that every Nigerian can benefit from the other. The President said this on Thursday while giving a speech at a colloquium organised to mark the birthday of the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, in Lagos. He made the comments against the backdrop of the herdsmen-farmers’ crisis which has resulted in the death of several citizens and destruction of property in parts of the country. President Buhari, who noted that his administration is working tirelessly to address the issue, said, “Our goal is to bring together every section of the nation and every Nigerian of every creed, every region and ethnic group in mutually beneficial productive, social economic and political relationship.” More to follow…

Former governor of Lagos state, Bola Ahmed Tinubu has called on Nigerians not to accept the apology of the People’s Democratic Party, likening it to the case of a thief who is only begging because he was caught in the act. He made the call while speaking at the 10th Bola Tinubu Colloquium- an event organized to celebrate his 66th birthday. Recall that PDP through it’s National chairman, Uche Secondus had earlier in the week asked Nigerians to forgive his party’s misdeeds.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday commissioned the Ikeja Bus Terminal. The Ikeja Bus Terminal is among projects by the state government to be commissioned by the President in the course of his two-day visit to Lagos. Present at the commissioning were Governor of Lagos state, Akinwunmi Ambode, Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, presidential special assistant on diaspora affairs, Abike Dabiri-Erewa, amongst others. President Buhari after commissioning the terminal for few minutes departed to attend the 10th Bola Tinubu Colloquium. Meanwhile, some parts of Nigeria’s commercial hub, Lagos, have been shut down by the authorities due to the president’s visit.

The People Democratic Party through it official twitter handle has demanded for the arrest of presidential aides who conspired to procure international endorsement, ahead of the 2019 Elections for president Buhari. Read their  official statement below.

About 15 herdsmen have lost their lives after gunmen suspected to be cattle thieves opened fire on them. A herdsman with his cattle Gunmen believed to be cattle thieves killed 15 herders in the latest bout of violence in northern Nigeria’s herding communities, AFP has reported. According to the police spokesman for Zamfara state, Muhammad Shehu, the  “armed bandits attacked Bawon-Daji village yesterday and killed 15 people.” His account was corroborated by a senior local government official, Gado Anka. Speaking to AFP, Anka said motorcycle-riding gunmen stormed the remote village in Anka district around 1:00 pm (1200GMT), shooting dead 12 residents before fleeing to a hideout in the bush. “They returned two hours later and attacked mourners during the funeral of the victims in the cemetery, killing three more and injuring several others,”  he said. Rural communuties in the agrarian state are under siege from gangs who kill, loot and torching homes. This has prompted villages t...