The Late 5: More woes for Ogun APC as 26 lawmakers dump party; Reveal those who wanted Osinbajo’s position when you were ill – Shehu Sani tells Buhari

These are the stories that drove the conversation today:

Twenty-six members of the Ogun House of Assembly, on Monday defected from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Allied People’s Movement (APM).

The lawmakers who are loyalists of the state governor, Ibikunle Amosun, claimed to have won the legislative primaries of the APC conducted by the state election committee, appointed by the National Working Committee held October 8, 2018, in the state, but were refused the Independent National Electoral Commission’s forms for the nomination of the party as candidates for the election till the window closed on December 2.

According to a spokesperson for the group, Lamidi Olatunji who addressed journalists, “we regret that Mr. President’s efforts were frustrated by the forces that are hell-bent in taking the South West back to the dark age of slavery where unelected kingpins direct the affairs of the people.”


The Senator representing Kaduna Central, Sani Shehu, has reacted to the claim by President Muhammadu Buhari that some persons reached out to the Vice-President to consider them as his deputy because they assumed he was dead.

The lawmaker in a tweet on Monday, urged the President and his Vice to reveal the names of the said persons, stressing that should they not do so, Nigerians will have to wait for memoirs in years to come, when the nation would have moved on.”


The Presidential candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has promised to run a people-friendly government if elected in 2019.

The former Vice President addressing thousands of PDP faithfuls and supporters on Monday at the North-West Zonal launching of the 2019 Atiku/Obi Presidential Campaign Rally in Sokoto, said “Nigeria of today needs leaders that will involve all in government, not some individuals who only care for their personal interests and not the country.

“We have plan to involve all Nigerians in any decision making, most especially the masses that remain our priority in PDP,” he added.


Similarly, the media office of the PDP Presidential flag bearer, has called for a state of emergency to be declared in financing the military and security services as well as a national mourning over the reported killing by bandits of about 50 policemen in Zamfara State at the weekend.

In a statement on Monday, Atiku said this new casualty figure coming so soon after the heavy losses sustained by the Nigerian Army at the hands of Boko Haram in Metele, Borno is a red flag that calls for immediate and decisive action on the part of the leadership of Nigeria, as he advocated for an immediate allocation of at least $1 billion to go towards arming and training the military, police and other security agencies as well as providing improved service conditions for the officers and men at the frontlines of the war on terror and criminality.

Serving Nigeria must be a thing of sacrifice and pride, not a suicide mission. If we must send men and women to protect us, we must protect them by giving them the very best training and weaponry money can buy,” the statement added.


The African Development Bank Group on Monday said it has granted the Nigerian government a sum of $200 million loan for the funding of the country’s Electrification Project (NEP).

As contained in a statement by the AfDB, it loaned $150 million for the project while the balance of $50 million was issued from the Africa Growing Together Fund (AGTF), a US$2 billion facility sponsored by the People’s Bank of China to support the federal government efforts “to address critical energy access deficit in the country, and catalyze achievement of universal energy access by 2030 targets.”

“By supporting the electrification of unconnected and underserved communities, NEP will contribute materially to their economic development,” said the managing director of the Rural Electrification Agency, Damilola Ogunbiyi.


And stories from around the world:

China has made more than $1.2 trillion in additional trade commitments as part of a deal reached by U.S. President Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping and Beijing has vowed to take immediate steps on those promises. (Reuters)


An 80-year-old woman has died after being hit by a tear gas canister at her window during Saturday’s fuel protests in the French city of Marseille.

The woman, who lived in an apartment near to where the protests were taking place, was hit in the face while closing the shutters. (BBC)


The UK’s opposition Labour Party is pushing to launch contempt of Parliament proceedings against the government over its refusal to publish in full legal advice it received regarding British Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit plan. (Al Jazeera)


US President Donald Trump called Monday for “a long prison term” after his ex-lawyer Michael Cohen admitted lying to Congress about pursuing a real estate deal with Russia on Trump’s behalf during the 2016 election campaign. (AFP)


Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Monday said he was working with the United States and Canada to create a three-way investment plan to tackle the issue of immigration from Mexico and Central America. (Reuters)

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