Bayo Onanuga, spokesperson to President Bola Tinubu, says the United States of America and the United Kingdom owe the world the responsibility for peace in the Middle East.

Onanuga said the duo should ensure that the Israeli response to Iranian drones and missiles is not disproportionate.

His statement is contained in a post on his X handle on Sunday.

He said the view is his personal opinion and doesn’t come from the Presidency, where he serves.

DAILY POST reported that Israel witnessed an unprecedented air attack from Iran on Saturday, being a retaliation against the Israeli attack on its consul in Syria.

Israelis breathed easier in the early hours of Sunday after an unprecedented air attack from Iranian drones and missiles largely fizzled in the face of the Jewish state’s powerful air defenses with assistance from the U.S. military and other allies.

However, Onanuga says the conflict could degenerate, urging the UK, and the US to mediate.

According to him, there is a need for caution all round, adding that, with Gaza yet unresolved, the world does not want another war in the Middle East.

He said: “United States of America and the UK owe the world the responsibility for peace in the Middle East by ensuring that Israeli response to Iranian drones and missiles is not disproportionate. Israel first drew blood by attacking the Iranian embassy in Damascus, killing some Iranian military officials. Iran promised some retaliation against Israel which it did Saturday by raining drones and missiles in Israeli direction. Many of them were intercepted. Times of Israel has reported one injury.

“Iran said it has concluded its retaliation to Israel’s first attack. But Israel is planning a massive response. With Jordan, Syria and other countries closing their airspace, Iranian Defense Minister Mohammad Reza Ashtiani threatened a firm response to any country that “opens its airspace or territory for attacks on Iran by Israel”. This conflict can degenerate.

“The UK, USA should mediate. There is need for caution all round. With Gaza yet unresolved, the world does not want another war in the Middle East.”

[DailyPost]

• Govs, NASS members mobilise for NWC, BoT meetings
• Ex-Rivers gov’s group breaks 60 lawmakers’ ranks
• Why Acting National Chairman Damagum may survive

Ahead of Thursday’s meeting of the National Executive Committee(NEC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the camp of ex-Vice President Atiku Abubakar and  Nyesom Wike/G-5 group have retreated into the trenches over plot to remove the party’s Acting National Chairman, Umar Ilya Damagum.

Although there are indications that Damagum may survive, Atiku’s camp is understood to be poised to fight to the end.

The Wike/G-5 group has thrown its weight behind Damagum.

Most party leaders and NEC members were last night also mobilising for Damagum.  Apart from breaking the ranks of the 60 PDP lawmakers in the House of Representatives, who recently demanded Damagum’s resignation, an aspirant for the office of National Chairman, David Ombugadu from North-Central, has declared his support for Damagum.

These developments have created anxiety in Atiku’s camp which is struggling to sell the “Operation Rescue PDP” agenda to party leaders and members.

Party sources told The Nation that PDP governors and many members are not convinced by Atiku’s camp’s campaign on salvaging the party.

Many of them cite his intermittent shuttles between Nigeria and Dubai.

Many leaders suspect that Atiku’s renewed interest in PDP affairs stems largely from his interest in the party’s presidential ticket for 2027.  But Atiku’s camp is not prepared to give up on seizing PDP from the control of Wike/G-5 group.

A party source said: “It is going to be a battle royale at the NEC meeting.

There are two opposing sides, namely those seeking to maintain the status quo from Wike/G5 Group and Atiku’s camp which wants to rescue PDP and return it to the 1999 era.

“Those sympathetic to Atiku’s agenda are also pushing for a virile opposition.

“But the situation is complicated by the 2027 poll hidden motives of some of the leaders in the two camps.

“All the groups/camps have retreated into the trenches ahead of the meeting. There is intense lobbying going on now. “

At the last count, those who want to unseat Damagum from the North-Central are Senator Gabriel Suswam and Dr. Emmanuel Agbo (Benue State), ex-Minister Humphrey Aba (Kogi State) and the 2023 governorship candidate of PDP in Nasarawa State, David Ombagudu.

There are two opposing sides, namely those seeking to maintain the status quo from Wike/G5 Group and Atiku’s camp which wants to rescue PDP and return it to the 1999 era.

“Those sympathetic to Atiku’s agenda are also pushing for a virile opposition.

“But the situation is complicated by the 2027 poll hidden motives of some of the leaders in the two camps.

“All the groups/camps have retreated into the trenches ahead of the meeting. There is intense lobbying going on now. ” At the last count, those who want to unseat Damagum from the North-Central are Senator Gabriel Suswam and Dr. Emmanuel Agbo (Benue State), ex-Minister Humphrey Aba (Kogi State) and the 2023 governorship candidate of PDP in Nasarawa State, David Ombagudu.

The kingmakers

Findings revealed that those who will determine the fate of Damagum and other aspirants are mostly officers of the party.

Some of the NEC members include PDP governors, the Chairman and Secretary of the Board of Trustees, members of the BOT (who have no voting rights), minority leaders in the Senate and in the House of Representatives, two Senators from each of the six geopolitical zones; the Deputy National Chairman; all National Vice Chairmen; the National Secretary and the Deputy National Secretary; the National Treasurer and the Deputy National Treasurer; the National Financial Secretary and the Deputy National Financial Secretary; all state chairmen of PDP, all former National Chairmen, Deputy National Chairmen, National Secretaries, Chairmen and Secretaries of the BOT who are still members of the party, the National Legal Adviser and the Deputy  National Legal  Adviser, six ex-officio members, among others.

A party source said: “Going by the composition of the NEC, Damagum may survive. Most members are drawn from the National Working Committee and other organs of the party.

“So far, most officers of the party are on the same page with Damagum. Atiku has an uphill task to pull his agenda through.”

Will Damagum allow selection of a new Acting Chairman?

It was confirmed last night that the agenda on the choice of a new Acting National Chairman at the NEC meeting will be determined by Damagum and his team.

“I don’t expect Damagum to come up with an agenda to remove him from office. But Atiku’s camp can invoke some clauses in PDP’s constitution at the meeting to amend the agenda,” a member of the National Working Committee said.

When contacted on the intrigues ahead of the NEC meeting, Damagum simply wrote: “I have no comment for now.”

Atiku’s dangerous gamble/G-5 threat

Also, there was fresh anxiety that the G-5 group may take over the party in the event that Damagum is removed.

It was learnt that as part of its Plan B, the G-5 will want Danagum’s successor to be from the South instead of the North-Central where four aspirants have emerged.

It was learnt that the G-5, some party leaders and NEC members have proposed power shift from the North to the South to solve the prolonged crisis in the party since the suspension of Dr. Iyorchia Ayu as the National Chairman of the party.

A source said: “If their scheming for power shift succeeds as the last option, the Deputy National Chairman (South), Taofeek Arapaja from the G-5, may take over.

Another source said: “The NEC meeting is another litmus test for Atiku.

He needs to watch the slippery terrain before deciding on his next direction.

“If Atiku’s Camp sacks Damagum, Arapaja may take over, which will be fatal to the career of the former presidential candidate of the PDP.”

But another source told our correspondent that “the G-5 members have lost their potency because they are no longer in government.

“Except for Wike and Governor Seyi Makinde, I don’t think the G-5 can match Atiku’s political dexterity.

“In fact, from the grapevine, we learnt the G-5 is divided because some clauses in pre-2023 Presidential Election Gentleman’s Agreement have not been met. They are not as united as we may assume.

“There are lots of issues on this NEC meeting. Let us leave everything open.”

 I’m duty-bound to abide by party decision – Ombugadu

Damagum, in a statement yesterday, said ahead of the Thursday meeting that he was being supported by some PDP members to settle for a party leadership position.

He said he was “duty-bound to abide by party decision.”

“Lately, various groups of well-meaning members of our great party, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), have intensified a clarion call for me to be given a responsibility by the party at the national level,” he said.

He added: “I feel humbled that much of these calls emphasise our antecedents,  especially with keen references to our creativity, stamina, innovation, the populist enthusiasm that was aroused as well as the  dividends of democracy that our mandate yielded all over Nasarawa State; worthy attestations from the good people of Akwanga/Nasarawa Eggon/ Wamba Federal Constituency whom I represented between 2011-2019 and the very positive impacts of our keen pursuit of the gubernatorial ticket of Nasarawa State in 2019 and 2023 remain very relevant.

[TheNation]

The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has urged President Bola Tinubu to disclose the agreements and spending details of loans obtained by the administrations of Nigeria’s past presidents since May 1999.

SERAP urged Tinubu “to direct appropriate ministries, departments and agencies to provide our organisation with copies of the loan agreements obtained by the governments of former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo, Umaru Yar’Adua, Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari.”

This was disclosed in a statement issued by the organisation’s Deputy Director, Kolawole Oluwadare, which was made available to PUNCH Online on Sunday.

SERAP is also seeking “the spending details of any such loans as well as the interests and other payments so far made on the loans.”

Nigeria’s four past democratically-elected presidents include Obasanjo, who ruled for eight years from 1999 to 2007.

Obasanjo’s administration was succeeded by the late Yar’Adua (2007 – 2010); followed by Jonathan (2010 – 2015); and then the immediate past president, Buhari, whose administration ruled from 2015 – 2023.

The organisation stated that “widely publishing the agreements would allow Nigerians to scrutinise it and to demand accountability for the spending of the loans.”

SERAP lamented that the details provided may help to explain why “despite several billions of dollars in loans obtained by successive governments, millions of Nigerians continue to face extreme poverty and lack access to basic public goods and services.”

This latest demand by SERAP is coming two weeks after it gave the Kaduna State Governor, Uba Sani; the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and other 35 state governors one-week ultimatum to provide the loan agreements and spending details of the loans obtained by their states and the FCT.

As contained in the latest sub-national debt – domestic and external debts, which were released by the Debt Management Office as of December 30 and June 30, 2023, respectively; PUNCH reports that “for the sub-nationals, Plateau got N16.32bn; Rivers borrowed N7.07bn; Zamfara, N14.26bn; and the FCT under the leadership of Nyesom Wike borrowed N6.75bn from domestic creditors,” amongst others.

However, in its response, the Zamfara State Government refuted the DMO’s report that it borrowed N14.26 billion, adding that it has “never applied for loans or approached the state Assembly or National Assembly for such a request.”

Also, the Kaduna State Government, through the Ministry of Finance, denied procuring a fresh $17.69m loan.

“We did not borrow the said amount or any other amount as reported. The claims are entirely false and fabricated,” said the state Commissioner for Finance, Shizzer Bada.

However, SERAP demanded that Tinubu establish an “independent audit on the spending of the loans obtained by the governments of the former presidents,” and make its results available to the public.

“Democracy requires accountability and accountability requires transparency.

“Nigerians are entitled to information about what their government is doing in their name. This is part of their right to information,” SERAP said.

The statement noted that publishing the agreements and details of spending of the said loans “would demonstrate” Tinubu’s “oft-expressed commitment to openness in government and to promote accountability,” adding that it would also “improve public accountability” in the MDAs.

Quoting the DMO, SERAP said that “the total public domestic debt portfolio for the country is N97.3 trillion ($108 billion). The Federal Government’s debt is N87.3 trillion ($97 billion).”

It said that the interest paid on loans by the FG in 2015 was $5.5 billion; in 2016, $4.4bn; in 2017, Nigeria paid $5bn as interest; in 2018, $6.5bn was paid; while $6.2bn was paid in 2019.

“We would therefore be grateful if the recommended measures are taken within seven days of the receipt and/or publication of this letter. If we have not heard from you by then, SERAP shall take all appropriate legal actions to compel your government to comply with our request in the public interest,” the organisation said.

It noted that Tinubu’s administration “has a responsibility to ensure transparency and accountability in how any loans obtained by the Federal Government are spent, to reduce vulnerability to corruption and mismanagement.”

“Our requests are brought in the public interest, and in keeping with the requirements of the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended], the Freedom of Information Act, and the UN Convention against Corruption, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights to Nigeria is a state party.

“The Nigerian Constitution, Freedom of Information Act, and the country’s anti-corruption and human rights obligations rest on the principle that citizens should have access to information regarding their government’s activities,” the statement concluded.

[Punch]

The Organised Labour are demanding ₦615,000 as the new minimum wage for workers, due to the hardship in the country.

An executive of the organized labour, requesting anonymity as he lacked authorization to speak on the issue, disclosed to Sunday PUNCH that the consensus on the new monthly wage of ₦615,000 was reached through consultations facilitated by the NLC and TUC.

The source said, “We (NLC and TUC) have given our figures to the government (on the minimum wage), and it is ₦615,000. That is the position of the NLC and TUC on the matter. The government has been informed as well.”

Recall that the President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, had said in an interview that rising inflation in the country might push organised labour to demand ₦1 million as the minimum wage.

As a result, various controversies emerged, with experts expressing doubts about the feasibility or long-term viability of the proposed wage.

However, in an interview with Punch correspondent, another labour leader emphasized that the NLC and TUC had tentatively agreed on setting the new wage at ₦615,000.

When questioned about whether the May 1 deadline was still feasible, the labour leader said, “What I want you to know is that we are doing our best. Both the TUC and NLC have harmonised, and they have sent their position to the government.

“We are in the process. Be assured that once anything happens, I will, as usual, inform you. That is all I can tell you for now because we have not met, even though we have submitted our unified positions to the Federal Government. We will be speaking with one voice.

“But, let me also hint to you that with the removal of the electricity tariff subsidy, we are going to have another round of serious conversations with the government.

“Mind you, the tariff increase is also very good for us, because they (the government) did it when the new minimum wage process had not been concluded. So, it is going to be a good ground for us to ask for more.

“Our position will be defended based on the new price of ₦225 per kWh of electricity. Although we (the government and Labour) are not in agreement, we are waiting to meet and decide on the next point of action.”