Politics

Tinubu Gives Fani Kayode, Others New Appointments (See Full List)

Published

6 days ago

April 6, 2025

ADMIN

The President Bola Tinubu is vetting potential candidates to fill diplomatic roles in its 109 missions, 76 embassies, 22 high commissions, and 11 global consulates.

Impeccable sources familiar with the developments revealed that a former Minister of Aviation under the Obasanjo administration, Mr Femi Fani-Kayode, and a former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Femi Pedro, are among the nominees.

It was also gathered that the vetting is not conducted centrally, as nominees are being asked to report to the DSS offices nearest to them.

Presidency officials confirmed to our correspondent that several candidates had been contacted to provide personal education and work history.

“They’re already doing security checks with DSS. When they have cleared security checks, we will release the list.
“Only those who have been cleared are announced. The process is ongoing. I know that we should have a list before the end of this month (April),” one official revealed, preferring to remain anonymous as he was not authorised to speak to the press.

A second source said, “The vetting is not done centrally. It is based on the location of the nominees. Nominees have been reached to provide personal history and information such as where they attended school, what appointments they have held, and the like. So, it is by location.”

That month, he concluded a sector-wide reassessment of Nigeria’s foreign policy, which saw over 83 career and non-career ambassadors recalled from their stations.

Last December, reliable sources close to the President confirmed that Tinubu spent part of his holiday reviewing the names of nominees with plans to transmit a consolidated list to the National Assembly before the end of the month.

However, updates in January revealed that the President changed his mind.

It was gathered that the process suffered delays due to the paucity of funds—to the tune of $1bn —required to pay arrears of foreign service officials, settle a backlog of overheads, replace ageing vehicles and renovate embassy buildings.

One official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said, “You see, the major issue is money. Not money to pay them [ambassadors], because how much is their salaries and benefits? The main money is CAPEX [Capital Expenditure]. By the time they put the cost together to fix the issues, it is running to almost $1bn.

“Most of those embassies, almost 90 per cent, are rundown. Either the residence is not good, the embassy does not have a functional office, or their rent has expired. The embassies that are buoyant may not be up to 10 as we speak.

“I understand that some of them don’t have serviceable vehicles. The last vehicles they bought were from 10 years ago. Some of them are broken down, and ambassadors cannot use such vehicles because they carry the image of the country. Some of them don’t even have power and running water. So, if you post ambassadors there today, you’re sending them to trouble.”

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, also attributed the delay to financial constraints.
“It is a money problem,” Tuggar said during a ministerial briefing in Abuja last May.

He argued that appointing ambassadors without the financial resources to support their travel and the effective running of missions abroad was pointless.

“We met a situation where foreign affairs was not being funded like it should be. Some loopholes are exploited by the likes of Binance. It is a money problem.

“There is no point sending out ambassadors if you do not have the funds for them to even travel to their designated countries and to run the missions effectively, one needs funding. Mr President is working on it, and it will be done in due course,” Tuggar said.

A foreign service official explained that though provisions had been made in the 2025 budget to cover some of that cost, the funds were hardly enough.

Nominees on the list
Senior Presidency and foreign service officers say although the complete list of nominees is highly classified, some prominent and controversial figures are being screened.

One official said, “They’re going to announce the appointments soon. They are being screened as we speak. The names of the nominees are highly classified for now because not every one of the names listed will eventually make it through.

“FFK [Femi Fani-Kayode] is on the list. These are some of the controversial names that have been put forward as well. Then there is Fola Adeola [founder of Guaranty Trust Bank Plc] and Femi Pedro too. They’re moving on with the process more quickly this time.”

Giving reasons for the slow process, another official explained that the vetting was necessary to avoid complications that might hurt the country’s standing on the global scene.

“The nominees are being vetted, and background checks are being conducted on them. It is usually done so that the nominees will not have any security issues and their deployment will not have a negative impact on the country,” the official said.

There was also a claim that Reno Omokri, a former aide of former President Goodluck Jonathan, was on the list.

But a credible source in the Presidency denied it.

“Reno is not on the list. But FFK is there,” the source said.

The President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, who earlier spoke about the delays, said nominations for ambassadorial roles must be thorough before a final list is transmitted to the National Assembly.

“Don’t forget that the ambassadorial list has two components. There are career ambassadors and political ambassadors. The foreign affairs list and the consolidated list will still go through certain processes before they are released,” he explained.

Two of the nominees, when contacted declined comment.

They also did not confirm or deny the report.

Politics

2027 Beautiful bride: After Atiku visits Buhari, Ganduje leads APC delegation to Kaduna

Published

3 hours ago

April 12, 2025

ADMIN

2027 loading former president Muhammadu Buhari becomes beautiful bride as barely hours after VP, Atiku Abubakar visited ex-president, National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje, on Friday, led members of the party’s National Working Committee on a visit t to Kaduna State.

The visit took place hours after former vice president Atiku Abubakar led the People’s Democratic Party delegation on a courtesy call to the former president.

The delegation included former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el-Rufai; former governor of Sokoto, Aminu Tambuwal, former governor of Imo State, Achike Udenwa; former governor of Benue, Gabriel Suswam; former governor of Adamawa, Jibrilla Bindow; former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, and former Minister of Communications, Isa Pantami.

Speaking with reporters after the meeting, El-Rufai said the visit to the former president was not political and asked “adversaries” not to lose sleep.

The former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory added that the visit was for “unity and brotherhood”.

The outcome of the APC NWC’s visit remains unknown; there have been speculations of disunity in the party, as some members of its members recently defected to the Social Democratic Party.

Atiku also cleared the air on Friday, saying that the visit was for the Sallah celebration as against speculated coalition talks.

In a post on his official X handle, Atiku wrote, “As the Waziri Adamawa, I was obligated to be in Adamawa during the Sallah celebrations. I held forth for the Lamido Fombina (Adamawa) in some of the activities of the Sallah celebrations. Today, I had the opportunity to pay a post-Sallah visit to His Excellency, Muhammadu Buhari, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 2015-2023. It was a wonderful time with him. As usual, he cracked me up (to the extent that my ribs were hurting) with his peculiar humour.”

Politics

Lagos sets to hold local govt polls in July

Published

3 hours ago

April 12, 2025

ADMIN

The Lagos State Independent Electoral Commission (LASIEC) has scheduled the state council election for July 12.

Mr Tope Ojo, LASIEC’s Head of Public Affairs, made this announcement on Friday in Lagos.

He revealed that the election for 57 council chairmanship positions and 376 councillor seats will take place on July 12. If necessary, a re-run will occur on July 19.

Lagos State comprises 20 Local Governments and 37 Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs).

The election date was chosen to avoid a leadership vacuum in the state’s councils.

LASIEC’s notice confirmed that the election will include 20 Local Governments, 37 LCDAs, and 376 wards.

With the current local government administration nearing its end, LASIEC has ramped up efforts for a smooth election process.

The commission has officially launched the electoral process with the release of the Notice of Election.

Political parties must visit the LASIEC headquarters to obtain nomination forms for their candidates.

Ojo confirmed that a meeting with all registered political parties is set for Tuesday.

“The Election Guidelines will be published on April 17,” Ojo added.

According to him, campaigns and rallies will start on April 18 and end on July 9.

Nomination Forms for “substituted” and “only candidate” submissions must be submitted between June 18 and June 25.

LASIEC Chairman, Justice Bola Okikiolu-Ighile (rtd), assured a fair and level playing field for all political parties.

He reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to holding a free, fair, inclusive, and credible election.

Politics

Anambra 2025: Paul Chukwuma wins YPP Governorship Candidate after exit from APC

Published

2 days ago

April 11, 2025

Admin

Former All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship hopeful, Paul Chukwuma, has been officially declared the gubernatorial candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) for the upcoming November 8, 2025, election in Anambra State.

Chukwuma, who recently resigned from the APC over what he described as a deeply flawed and compromised primary process, secured the YPP ticket via a consensus vote held on Thursday in Awka. The primary, attended by 374 delegates, adopted the Option A4 voting system and was described as transparent and peaceful.

The election was overseen by the party’s National Secretary and Chairman of the Election Committee, Vidieno Bamayi. Despite Chukwuma being the sole aspirant, the party proceeded with a formal vote to uphold the integrity of the electoral process and demonstrate internal democracy.

“Even though he was unopposed, we conducted the primary in accordance with our constitution and electoral guidelines. This reflects our commitment to due process,” Bamayi stated.

At the end of the exercise, Chukwuma received overwhelming support, garnering 366 ‘yes’ votes, while eight delegates voted ‘no’. He was subsequently declared the official flagbearer of the YPP.

Chukwuma’s Vision and Promises

In his acceptance speech, Chukwuma expressed deep appreciation to the party and its delegates for the trust reposed in him. He described the YPP as a party with discipline, structure, and a mission to deliver transformative leadership to the people of Anambra.

“I come before you not just as a candidate, but as someone who understands the stakes and the expectations of Ndi Anambra. The YPP is ready to redefine governance in this state. Today, we take a bold step towards real change,” Chukwuma said.

He pledged to offer visionary leadership that would position Anambra State for growth, development, and greater political inclusion at the national level. According to him, one of his core goals is to bridge the gap between Anambra and the federal government, ensuring that the state benefits from national opportunities.

“Anambra is the heart of Igbo land, and it deserves to be firmly connected to the centre. I am here to make that connection possible with YPP as the vehicle,” he emphasized.

Interestingly, despite his departure from the APC, Chukwuma signaled support for President Bola Tinubu’s administration, especially the “Hope Agenda” – a policy framework aimed at economic revitalization and national unity. He expressed confidence in aligning his vision for Anambra with the broader developmental goals of the federal government.

“I believe in President Tinubu’s vision, and I will work to ensure Anambra taps into the opportunities created by this administration. We must think beyond party lines and focus on the development of our people,” he said.

Chukwuma will face a formidable lineup of contenders in what is expected to be a highly competitive governorship race. His opponents include:

Incumbent Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo (All Progressives Grand Alliance – APGA)
Nicholas Ukachukwu (All Progressives Congress – APC)
George Moghalu (Labour Party – LP)
Chioma Ifemulike and Chidi Onyeze (Accord Party)
Jeff Nweke (Action Alliance)

With his formal emergence as the YPP candidate, Paul Chukwuma is positioning himself as a unifier and reform-minded leader who intends to take Anambra to new heights. His campaign will likely focus on inclusive governance, economic expansion, and establishing stronger ties between the state and the federal government.