Category: General

Labour Party’s National Chairman, Abure Endorses Olumide Akpata For Edo Governorship

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The National Chairman of the Labour Party, Julius Abure, has extended his congratulations to Olumide Akpata for clinching victory in the party’s governorship primary held in Edo State on Friday.

Akpata, who previously served as the president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), secured a notable win with 316 votes, significantly outpacing his contenders, Ken Imasuangbon and Prof Sunny Eromosele, who each garnered seven votes.

Sergius Ògún received four votes, while Earnest Àyègbè got three votes. Paul Iseghohi opted to withdraw from the race.

In a gesture aimed at fostering unity and strengthening the party’s position ahead of the gubernatorial election slated for September 2024, Abure urged other aspirants to set aside any differences.

He encouraged them to integrate their support structures into the campaign for Akpata, emphasizing the need for a collective effort to ensure the Labour Party’s success at the polls.

Abure’s call for unity was articulated in a congratulatory message disseminated by his media team in Abuja on Saturday.

The Labour Party chairman expressed his confidence in Akpata’s ability to lead a successful campaign and ultimately secure the governorship seat, highlighting Akpata’s potential to effect significant change in Edo State.

The endorsement of Olumide Akpata by the Labour Party’s national leadership underscores the party’s commitment to presenting a formidable challenge in the upcoming governorship election.

As preparations for the electoral contest intensify, the Labour Party aims to galvanize support around its candidate, leveraging Akpata’s legal expertise and leadership experience to appeal to the electorate in Edo State.

He said, “I want to congratulate the Labour Party for having a free, fair and seamless primaries. You recall that I have always called and stood for a free, fair and credible elections and that is what has played out in our primaries.

“I therefore want to congratulate the winner of the primary election, Olumide Akpata, for recording the highest number of votes which made him the candidate of the party. I want to assure him of all our supports to ensure that we win the governorship election in September, 2024. We will not rest on our oars until that is achieved.

“We believe that Edo State at this point in time needs the best of the bests to man the Osadebey Avenue and today, Labour Party has selected one of its bests as the candidate of the party. If you juxtapose him with all other candidates that have emerged from the other political parties, it is clear that he stands out. We therefore congratulate him and we all will work towards the success of his candidacy in governorship election.

“Primary election usually comes with a lot of tension, bickering, politicking and horse-trading. However, now that the primary is over and a candidate has emerged, I want to call on all Labour Party faithful, particularly, those who have lost at the primaries to team up with the candidate so that we can all work in unity and togetherness for the victory of the party.

“Whatever errors we have made or pains any party member may have suffered in the process of this party primaries, we want to call on all and sundry to put it behind them and let us all come together as a united family to work for the success of the party ahead of the election.

“We equally call on the candidate to be magnanimous in victory by reaching out to all aggrieved members of the party. He must realise that he needs the support of all party members to win the general election.”

Meanwhile, the Lamidi Apapa-led faction of the party has disowned Akpata, saying he is not their candidate in the state.

In a letter dated February 22 and addressed to the National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, the faction identified Anderson Asemota as its governorship candidate and Monday Mawah as his running mate.

The spokesman for the Lamidi Apapa camp, Abayomi Arabambi who spoke with Punch confirmed that the two politicians are their chosen candidates.

He said, “The only Labour Party candidate we know is Barrister Anderson Asemota and his running mate, Monday Mawah. We don’t know anything about Akpata and where they got him from.”

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Only About 5% Of Nigerians Have More Than N500,000 In Their Accounts – Edun

Only About 5% Of Nigerians Have More Than N500,000 In Their Accounts - Edun

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Wale Edun, has lamented that only about 5% of Nigerians have more than N500,000 in their bank accounts.

Edun said it is not acceptable that the wealth of the nation is concentrated in the hands of a few while the majority languish in poverty.

Speaking during an interview with Channels TV, the Minister said the administration of President Bola Tinubu is working hard to address this imbalance in which just a few elites have the advantage over the majority of others.

Edun stressed that part of the moves to correct the imbalance, which has been on for about eight years, is the various economic reforms introduced by the current administration.

The minister said that the reforms are corrective measures to mop up the liquidity in the economy that is not tied to production or supply of goods and services, adding that these imbalances only benefit a few people in the economy.

“There has been an effort to ensure that the people’s money is not in the hands of a few. And on that point, I must emphasize that when we talk about the last eight years before Mr. President came to power, there was this liquidity built up.

“The Issue was that the funds were going to a few. Only about 5% of the population have bank accounts that have more than half a million in them. So, the majority was left out for eight years. They are on the sidelines while a small minority enjoyed.

“That is the major correction being made by Mr. President now. That is the major microeconomic reforms that have put in place.

“So therefore, government revenue that was outside the federal government consolidated revenue funds have been brought back to the government funds,” Edun said.

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