2015: South West will vote en masse for Jonathan/Sambo, says Mimiko

Gov. Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo said on Tuesday that the South West zone would cast their votes massively for the Jonathan/Sambo ticket in the 2015 Presidential election.
Mimiko, who was fielding questions from newsmen in Abuja on Tuesday, assured that the electorate in the South West would vote for the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) even if the All Progressive Congress (APC) picked its vice-president from the South West zone.  

Read more »

1 comment

2015 Elections: Suswam frowns at ex-Minister's defection to APC

Gov. Gabriel Suswam of Benue on Tuesday condemned the defection of the former Minister of State for Trade, Investment and Industries, Mr. Samuel Ortom, from the Peoples' Democratic Party (PDP) to All Progressive Congress (APC).

Suswam, who was fielding questions from State House correspondents in Abuja, frowned at those politicians moving from one party to another after failing to secure party nomination, saying such people had no principles and ideologies.

According to him, Ortom left the PDP unceremoniously despite the fact that he participated in the ‘most transparent’ PDP gubernatorial primaries but failed to secure the ticket.

‘‘There is no conviction in ideology and so, people just swing. They change party the way we change our under garments and I find that very unfortunate.  My Minister has been a great beneficiary of the PDP. And the most transparent primaries were held in Benue that is why no one is complaining about the primaries. They just want position and once they do not get it they swing. So, I find that very unfortunate. That is why we are having the problem we are having with politics in Nigeria”.

‘‘The other parties just wait for the other parties to conduct primaries so that when they have problem, they will just take them in.

‘‘If we continue to practice politics in that manner, I do not think that we can grow. We will not get anywhere because there is no philosophy behind what we do.

‘‘People just swing, we are just operating like pendulum and then, if it does not work this way, there are people within this period that changed party twice.  If they don't get nomination in PDP, they will move to APC and if they do not get in APC, they will move to Labour, they go to APGA or they go to Accord Party. I don’t see us growing in terms of party democracy.’’

According to him, this kind of politics comes out of desperation for power, saying that it is out of desperation that they move from one party to another.

Suswam, who witnessed the inauguration of the Youth Employment in Agriculture Programme (YEAP) Fund for Agricultural Finance in Nigeria (FAFIN) by President Goodluck Jonathan, said Benue had already keyed into the programmes through the disbursement of N1billion to farmers in the state.

 ‘‘We also give them another N500 million for people to be able to operate small agro-based cottage industry and we have one gentle man who is now exporting fish to the United States of America and Europe.
We also have young girls who are exporting some poultry products out of the country.  At the state level, we have established the biggest piggery farm in the entire West Africa and the biggest lab is in Benue.The testimonies we just heard will encourage youths, so I am happy that the President is doing this.’’

source; (NAN)

Leave a Comment

Mother, Daughter Nigeria Pageant will strengthen family bonds, says Murray-Bruce

The Group Vice-President, Silverbird Group, Mr Guy Murray-Bruce, said on Tuesday the Mother and Daughter Nigeria Pageant (MDNP) in the country would help strengthen family ties.

Murray-Bruce said this at the Silverbird Galleria, Victoria Island, Lagos, during the launch of the pageant. The mother and daughter pageant is a new form of show being introduced by the group in Nigeria.

In his words: ``The essence of the mother-daughter pageant is to promote family values especially between the mother and the daughter.

``We sometimes realised that there is a disconnect between mother and daughter because maybe the mother works too hard and the child is always at home with lesson teachers and nannies. We want to bring them closer together, pass them values that they ordinarily would have passed on them some generations ago.They will be involved in family values like cooking together; if you watch your mother cook, the daughter tends to emulate her and cook the same kind of food and that goes on from generation to generation.

``They will get involved in family indoor and outdoor games and they will interact with other mothers and daughters. We are kind of bringing up a bond together for the family. There will be a screening process.

 ``Obviously we want the most outgoing type daughter and mother, they have to be exciting.Don’t forget we are trying to bring out the people at home to watch. You wouldn’t want to see a dull mother and dull daughter, you might not be excited about it.``
Murray-Bruce said the pageantry was open to mothers of all ages and their daughters of between the ages of 9 and 16 years old, whether adopted or a biological child.  He gave the assurance that there would be no discrimination during the pageant. According to him, interested participants are expected to obtain application forms for N3, 000 from the various Silverbird malls across the country or via the company’s website.

A screening process is expected to follow after which shortlisted candidates will be camped for seven days during which activities such as cooking, fashion show, game night, and talent hunts will be held as part of the pageant.

Murray-Bruce emphasised that there would be no bikini sessions or any other form of nudity in the course of the show as the emphasis would be on promoting family values. In voting for the winner, viewers at home are expected to account for 60 per cent of the votes, while 30 per cent would be from the judges and 10 per cent from the live audience at the grand finale.

The theme for the maiden edition of the contest is ‘Timeless Grace’.

Source: (NAN)

Leave a Comment