NCAA rejects claims of Nigerian aircraft sold to Iran, begins probe

A former presidential spokesman, Doyin Okupe, says he has never criticised President Bola Tinubu in his political career. Okupe made spoke on Sunday in Lagos. He was reacting to a recent report which placed him in a list of politicians who fiercely criticised Tinubu in the past and have now suddenly become his staunch supporters.
‘I have never criticised Tinubu in my life’ – Okupe

A former presidential spokesman, Doyin Okupe, says he has never criticised President Bola Tinubu in his political career.

Okupe made spoke on Sunday in Lagos.

He was reacting to a recent report which placed him in a list of politicians who fiercely criticised Tinubu in the past and have now suddenly become his staunch supporters.

Okupe said there is no record anywhere in his political career where he ever criticised Tinubu.

“Go and check all through my time in Labour Party and in PDP. I have never in my life criticised Bola Tinubu even though we have never been under the same political umbrella before.

“A good man does not spoil another good person. We had a very serious, not-so-visible bond during the NADECO (National Democratic Coalition).

“He was abroad. We were here in Nigeria coordinating.

“When we were in the trenches together under severe pressure from government, running from here to here, it gives a bond that even political partisanship cannot give.

“So, you can go and check all publications. I have never, ever criticised him. There is nowhere you will hear me speak anything ill about Bola Tinubu,” he said.

Okipe said he had always maintained the position that if Tinubu was elected he was going to do well.

According to him, as a patriotic politician, he heeded the advice of some Yoruba elders to step down his ambition ahead of the 2023 general elections and support someone from the South-East in the interest of unity.

He said since the candidate he worked for did not win, he had no reason not to support the President and work for him to succeed.

The former Labour Party chieftain said that his few encounters with Tinubu revealed a patriotic and visionary politician, passionate about the country’s progress.

‘I have never criticised Tinubu in my life’ – Okupe

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, on Thursday told President Bola Tinubu that posterity will not be fair to him if he allows Governor Sim Fubara to be humiliated for respecting him [Tinubu]. He said this while describing some legislators under the aegis of the Rivers State National Assembly
Rivers crisis: Posterity will judge you if Fubara is humiliated – Eze warns Tinubu

A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, on Thursday told President Bola Tinubu that posterity will not be fair to him if he allows Governor Sim Fubara to be humiliated for respecting him [Tinubu].

He said this while describing some legislators under the aegis of the Rivers State National Assembly Caucus as an assemblage of habitual adult bedwetters.

Eze maintained that the lawmakers have lost their sense of decency and focus and are bereft of moral rectitude, following their alleged quest to retard the socio-political and economic advancement of Rivers State.

Eze, a member of the APC Legacy Media Team, was reacting to the recent communiqué by those he tagged as a group of Abuja-based ‘political area boys’ regarding the protracted leadership crisis rocking the Rivers State House of Assembly.

Recall that the Rivers State National Assembly Caucus had accused Governor Siminalayi Fubara of procuring the services of some persons, including Senior Advocates of Nigeria, to manipulate the law and judgments of the court to skew public opinion in his favor and justify his refusal to obey any court judgment against him.

In a statement released in Port Harcourt, Chief Eze described the attitude of the lawmakers as parochial, incongruous, and wicked, insisting that they have lost the essence of being called lawmakers.

The APC chieftain noted that, most importantly, from their stance, the group of lawmakers has become a tool in the hands of detractors hell-bent on destroying the state for their selfish interests.

At this point, Eze reminded the caucus that the core function of a legislator is to make laws, adding that legislators also represent their constituents and oversee the executive and judicial branches of government.

Rather than focusing on providing purposeful representation to their respective constituents, “those busybodies and middle-of-the-road lawmakers are busy playing politics with the progress and development of Rivers State.”

“It beats one’s imagination that the Rivers State House of Assembly members under Rt. Hon. Martin Amaewhule, upon defection to the APC, are still laying claim to their vacant seats.

“Allowing the issue at stake to chase shadows is repulsive, as there was no time Femi Falana, SAN, misinterpreted court judgments—he merely spoke the law.

“For these political chameleons to eat their vomit, swallow their pride, and lie from the pit of hell that defection never took place in Rivers State is highly unfortunate and morally debasing.

“We want Nigerians and the world to know that the withdrawal of the counter-affidavit by the Rivers State Governor in a suit by Amaewhule was based on the truce brokered by President Bola Tinubu. The question is: when did it become a sin for a governor to obey a President?”

“So, the governor withdrew his counter-affidavit because President Tinubu requested that all warring parties should sheathe their swords and come to the table for a truce.

“Unfortunately, those who feel Nigeria is their fathers’ estate—those dictators in the making, those who don’t respect their elders and Mr. President—blatantly refused to withdraw their court processes.

“If President Tinubu allows Fubara to be humiliated for respecting him as an elder and President of Nigeria, then posterity will never be fair to President Tinubu.”

Rivers crisis: Posterity will judge you if Fubara is humiliated – Eze warns Tinubu

The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), Lagos State Chapter, has described the approval of N85,000 minimum wage as a demonstration of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s commitment to addressing workers’ welfare in the state. Chairman of TUC in the state, Mr Gbenga Ekundayo, and Secretary, Mr Aladetan Abiodun, stated this in a statement issued on Friday
N85,000 minimum wage shows Sanwo-Olu’s commitment to workers’ welfare – TUC

The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC), Lagos State Chapter, has described the approval of N85,000 minimum wage as a demonstration of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s commitment to addressing workers’ welfare in the state.

Chairman of TUC in the state, Mr Gbenga Ekundayo, and Secretary, Mr Aladetan Abiodun, stated this in a statement issued on Friday in Lagos.

The duo, while acknowledging the minimum wage pronouncement, commended the governor for recognising the need to review the current minimum wage.

“While we have taken note of the N85,000 offer, we look forward to the upcoming meeting on Monday, Oct. 21, where we will commence discussions on this important matter.

“Organised Labour remains hopeful that through constructive dialogue, we can arrive at a more robust outcome that reflects both the economic realities of Lagos and the contributions of its workers,’’ they said.

The union leaders, who expressed optimism over the upcoming discussions, said that principles of good faith, fairness, and mutual respect would guide the negotiations.

“We are ready to work collaboratively with the government to ensure that the outcome is both beneficial to the workers and sustainable for the state.

“We remain committed to ensuring that this process upholds the highest standards of transparency and accountability.

“The welfare of workers is paramount, and we trust that our engagement with the government will result in an outcome that truly reflects the value of its workforce and the need to improve their living conditions,” they added.

N85,000 minimum wage shows Sanwo-Olu’s commitment to workers’ welfare – TUC