Photos: President Buhari inaugurates National Economic Council

Pres. Buhari today inaugurated the National Economic Council which will be chaired by VP Yemi Osinbajo, while all the 36 state governors and the Governor of the central bank Godwin Emefiele are to serve as members. The team will be responsible for advising President Buhari on all issues relating to the Nigerian economy. More photos after the cut...

Tension rises as Senators, Reps-elect pick leaders today

 

Security was tightened at the National Assembly on Monday, preparatory to the inauguration of the 8th Assembly on Tuesday(today).

President Muhammadu Buhari, who will arrive in Abuja on Tuesday morning from Germany where he attended the G-7 Summit, is expected to   conduct the ceremony which will be followed by the election of the assembly’s leadership.

But going by the happenings in   the ruling All Progressives Congress and among its members in the Assembly, the elections of the Senate President and the Speaker of the House of Representatives may not be rancour-free.

Confusion as Saraki emerges Senate President

Senator Bukola Saraki (APC-Kwara Central) has been elected unopposed as President of 8th Senate by 57 of 108 senators, with 51 senators, including Senator Ahmed Lawan, absent.

The other senators were at the International Conference Centre, holdinga meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari, to resolve the National Assembly leadership crisis, at the time Saraki was declared President.

Saraki and Lawan have been engaged in a fierce contest to clinch the Senate top job.

President Buhari’s New Cabinet and The Men Coming In

John Alechenu of The Punch examines the likely shape of the Buhari cabinet and takes a look at individuals being considered to play a part in the government that Nigerians expect so much from.

After the euphoria of the May 29 inauguration ceremony, President Muhammadu Buhari and the governing APC are now faced with the task of delivering on promises they made to Nigerians.

Prominent among the promises contained in the “Change” slogan of the APC is the revamping of the nation's economy and the security of lives and property of citizens.

Official portrait of the new First Lady shouldn't have been released?

Yesterday, the official portrait of the new First Lady, Mrs Aisha Buhari was released and some think the new president has already broken a promise.

Found this article on Breaking Times titled 'Buhari breaks campaign promise as Presidency releases official portrait of First Lady'. Below is what the reporter wrote. Read and tell us what you think...

John Kerry To Lead US Delegates To May 29 Inauguration Of Buhari

President of the United States, Barack Obama has announced that the  Secretary of State, John Kerry, will lead the American government delegation to the inauguration of Muhammadu Buhari as Nigeria’s president.

The U.S State Department tweeted that, “Today @POTUS announced that @JohnKerry will lead the U.S. Presidential Delegation to the inauguration of President-elect Buhari of #Nigeria,” the U.S. 

African First Ladies Summit leadership: Patience Jonathan denies blocking Buhari’s wife

First Lady Mrs Patience Jonathan has denied allegations of plotting to prevent wife of the President-elect, Aisha Buhari from replacing her as President of the African First Ladies Peace Mission (AFLPM). Mrs Jonathan had in April sent out a letter of invitation to other first Ladies calling for the 8th AFLPM summit to be held in Abuja on May 15th where they will discuss on how to facilitate a smooth and formal hand over to the new Executive Committee that will pilot the affairs of the Peace Mission for the next two years, a move some people found to be against Mrs Buhari assuming her position after May 29th when her husband will have been sworn in.

In a statement released by her media aide, Mr. Ayo Adewuyi, Mrs Jonathan said there was an understanding in the Mission that the summit will hold on the 15th of May, 2015 if Pres. Jonathan loses the 2015 Presidential election. The statement after the cut

Jonathan Meets Buhari In Secret Again

Goodluck Jonathan has again met behind closed doors with the President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari. The meeting was held inside the President’s office at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

It is the third time he would be meeting Buhari after INEC declared him winner of the presidential poll. The meeting, which held at night, just like the first one they had on a public holiday (Good Friday), was described as “private” and so it was not open to journalists.

Jonathan Warns Buhari

Less than one month to the hand over date, President Goodluck Jonathan is flexing muscles. He has warned the incoming government headed by Present-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari to avoid actions that seem as if it is creating a parallel government when a government is still in place.

Specifically, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) at its meeting on Wednesday raised an objection to some terms of reference tabled before it by the transition committee of the incoming APC government.

"The incoming government should avoid creating a parallel government while the government is still on. We take exceptions to some utterances of some of the terms of reference that look as if the current government is being stampeded or intimidated."

PATIENCE JONATHAN'S MANY BATTLES

The wife of President Goodluck Jonathan, Patience, was not a contestant for any political office in the just concluded general election. However, she was more prominent at the various campaigns of her political party, the Peoples Democratic Party, was involved in – during the countdown to the polls.

She was optimistic that her intervention in the campaigns would save from defeat her husband, who was the presidential candidate of the PDP – and whose public rating had plummeted.

PDP vows to regain power in 2019

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has vowed to regain power in Nigeria in 2019.

The party made the commitment on Wednesday, April 22, 2015, after a meeting in Abuja.

To achieve this aim, members of the PDP National Working Committee and state chairmen of the party promised to work together in one accord.

The PDP’s decision was contained in a joint statement issued at the end of the meeting by the Vice-Chairman of the party in the North-West, Ibrahim Kazaure, and the Benue State Chairman, Emmanuel Agbo.

The statement reads:

PDP governorship candidate dissociates self from caskets placed all over Aba this morning

This morning, people in Aba woke up to find caskets placed in some areas with a warning that they shouldn't go against a particular group's interest or they will die. PDP governorship candidate in the state, Dr Okezie Ikpeazu has dissociated himself from the incident. His statement below..

APC can’t afford to lose Lagos,’ President-elect says

President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari has said that Lagos State is too important for the All Progressives Congress (APC) to lose to the  Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Buhari made the statement on Tuesday, April 7, 2015, during an APC rally in the Orile area of the state.

“Defy all elements, whatever it may be, and vote for APC from top to bottom,” Buhari said.

“Don’t attempt to be on the wrong side of the centre because we are now the centre,” the President-elect added.

OPEN LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT-ELECT, MUHAMMADU BUHARI

Sir, I actually do not know how to start this letter, but I know it is pertinent that I write to you on, especially considering the historic bend our 'common factor' which of this moment is Nigeria have just towed.

After much consideration, please permit me to start this piece by telling you as far as I, Olanrewaju Obideyi (aka Lobinco) am concerned, YOU DID NOT WIN THIS ELECTION, rather, NIGERIA.

Let me further expatiate this...

25 die celebrating Buhari’s victory

At least 25 people have died while jubilating over the recent electoral victory of President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari.

The victims lost their lives on Wednesday, April 1, in Abuja, Kano, Makurdi, Benue State and Kontagora in Niger State, Vanguard reports.

17 of the victims died in Kano, four in Abuja, three in Kontagora and one in Makurdi. Several other people were also said to have been injured in the separate incidents.

PDP official disrupts INEC result announcement, says Jega is partial and has been compromised

The PDP party agent at the Collation center in Abuja, Elder Godswill Orubebe is currently staging a protest at the INEC result collation center alleging that Prof Jega has been compromised. According to him, Professor Jega has been selective, partial and is tribalistic. He said APC had written a letter to INEC concerning an alleged rigging in Rivers state which he immediately sent a committee to investigate the issue but that when PDP wrote protest letters on the elections in Katsina, Kaduna and Jigawa, Jega did not send anyone to attend to their protest.

Orubebe, who is a former Minister of Niger Delta, is now calling for Jega to stop result collation. He sat on stage and refused to allow the result announcement to continue...

Rivers 2015 Election, My Position - Princewill

Prince Tonye Princewill is the governorship candidate of the Labour Party, LP, in Rivers State.

After a closed door meeting with all my local government representatives and an extended stakeholder engagement within my party, it is our official position that the senate and house of representative elections conducted on the 28th of March where largely neither free nor fair and were not in accordance with laid down electoral procedures. We will therefore be rejecting a large number of the national assembly results we participated in. The evidence to buttress the tribunal cases is now being collated and a team of 5 SANs, co-ordinated by the Rivers State party chairman, Prince Favour Reuben is being deployed to ensure we secure justice.

3 days to Presidential elections, Jega says polls will be ‘flawless’

The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Attahiru Jega has said that the upcoming elections will be “flawless or near perfect.”

Jega based his optimism on the level of the commission’s preparedness for the polls.

The INEC Chairman made the statement during the National Stakeholders’ Summit on the 2015 general election in Abuja on Tuesday, March 24.

Nigeria shuts all borders ahead of Presidential election

The Ministry of Interior Affairs has announced the closure of all land and sea borders ahead of Saturday’s presidential elections.

According to a statement released and signed by the Ministry's permanent secretary, Abubakar Magaji, the closure takes effective from midnight today Wednesday March 25, to midnight Saturday, March 28. The statement says the closure is “to allow for the peaceful conduct of the forthcoming national election". A directive has been given to the Immigration service to ensure that non Nigerians do not participate in the elections. See the letter after the cut...

First lady is a comedian,’ Ekiti APC says

The Ekiti State Branch of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has described First lady, Patience Jonathan as a comedian.

The Ekiti APC also said that Mrs Jonathan and the State Governor, Ayo Fayose only entertained their supporters during a March 16 rally in the state.

The party made the comments via a statement released on Tuesday, March 17, by its Publicity Secretary, Taiwo Olatubosun.

The statement reads: