President of Senate @Bukolasaraki now addressing the special plenary session of the Federation Council of @Russia pscp.tv/w/bfn5GjFQWEtk…
This is just as he declared that the APC would record landslide victory in the 2019 general elections in the state.
Akpabio who recently defected to the APC noted that already what remained of the PDP in the state was mere carcass as the body and soul of the party had joined the APC.
According to him, over 266,000 new members have registered with the APC after he and some other people dumped the PDP.
“I can predict that the first state in Nigeria to fall to the APC in 2019 presidential election in Akwa Ibom State, no one can controvert this l still speak with authority because I have my people’s backing to pronounce what I have just pronounced, victory is for APC and victory is for Mr. President come 2019 in Akwa Ibom State.”
On whether he was satisfied with the appointments by the Buhari’s government when it comes to South-South and Akwa Ibom State, he said “Well being a new person in the APC federal government, it will be wrong for me to dabble into issues of appointment but if you were to ask me appointment in the Presidency from 1999 to 2015 and even 2017 in those days I could say something but right now, I just come into APC and my focus is to ensure that APC remains here in the hilltop mansion, of course in the Villa in 2019.
“I am assuring you that we are not only going to win, the President will also win Akwa Ibom State.”
Also asked if the President was doing well in Akwa Ibom State in infrastructural development, the former Akwa Ibom State governor said that the state has fared well under the APC government.
He said,
“You need to know that I was governor of Akwa Ibom State for eight years and in the eight years of being a governor I cannot remember when there was one kilometre of road that was done by the federal government in my state, that is the first thing.
“The second aspect of it is that in terms of appointment, Akwa Ibom people have never faired this well since 1999 even under the PDP administration. I am beginning to think that the reason why we were not even given enough appointments under the PDP administration was that they took for granted that Akwa Ibom was a PDP state.
“But this President went out of his way to give a lot of our children the opportunity to have sensitive appointments at the federal level and we are very grateful.
He also clarified on his earlier statement that in 2015 his soul was with President Buhari.
He said,
“In 2015 we had a son of the Niger Delta, former President Goodluck Jonathan contesting the election and I was also a chieftain of the PDP. I was also the chairman of PDP Governors Forum so in spite of the fact that I believe strongly that the current President needed to be supported there was no way I could play anti-party activity in 2015 so I voted for PDP.
The Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, will formally receive the Minority Leader of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, into the All Progressives Congress on August 8, 2018.
The information on the schedule to receive Akpabio into the ruling party came on a day the former Governor of Akwa Ibom State visited the National Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in his Lagos home.
According to the APC Newspaper Twitter handle, Akpabio will be formally received into the APC at the Ikot Ekpene Stadium in Akwa Ibom State by Osinbajo on August 8, 2018.
Others who will join Osinbajo to receive Akpabio include the Senior Special Assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Senator Ita Enang.
Akpabio had during the week had a meeting with Osinbajo in the Presidential Villa.
The meeting was held at about the same time the Peoples Democratic Party, to which Akpabio belongs and on which platform he served as two-time governor of Akwa Ibom State and got his election into the Senate, was having its National Executive Council meeting.
Akpabio, as the Senate Minority Leader, a former Governor and a serving Senator, is a member of the NEC.
“When the administration of former governor Godswill Akpabio came, there was an idea of establishing one cottage industry in each of the 31 Local government areas.
To interprets that vision, and because the government is a continuum, Akpabio had to call all of us to support Udom, so that with his ingenuity as a strategic thinker and planner, he would bring the vision into reality”, he explained.
He disclosed that
“as a businessman, I have gone to Onna (where the governor hails from) to see clusters of industries and all of them are running. I went there as an indigenous entrepreneur, to see how I can network with the firms.
“I was able to see the metering industry, the syringe firm, which is about one of the largest in the continent and others. When I saw these firms, I was marvelled that the governor has done something good and magnificent.
“These and other strides in other areas gave me the impression that the governor is performing. Then, you look around Ikot Ekpene, you discover that such developments are not replicated.
“Therefore, It is in my place to give the governor an honest advice to also touch the lives of other people in the state.
“The governor said his administration has committed $7.2million dollars into completing the Four Point by Sheraton Hotel at Ikot Ekpene, my position is that what are the accompanying facilities to make the hotel functional to be able to recoup such huge investment?
“That is why I made a case for an international market to be established as well as oil palm processing mill in order to easily harness the oil palm potentials that are abound in the zone. We need industries to spring up in this area”, he stressed.
Senate President, Bukola Saraki on Tuesday led a delegation of Senators to Russia on a three-day parliamentary visit.
According to the Twitter handle of the Senate President,
“The visit is aimed at deepening legislative best practices and further strengthening the relationship between both countries.”
The delegation, which included, Senators Godswill Akpabio, Olusola Adeyeye, Monsurat Sunmonu, Duro Faseyi, Obinna Ogba and Ibrahim A Danbaba were received by Amb. Steve Davies Ugbah, Nigeria’s Ambassador to Russia.
Saraki on Wednesday was captured on video addressing the Russian Senate.
See the video and photos below:
UPDATE: The President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, and the Distinguished Senators on the parliamentary delegation have arrived in Russia. The delegation was received by Amb. Steve Davies Ugbah, Nigeria’s Ambassador to Russia. #SarakiInRussia pic.twitter.com/4yvJcYkijo
PICTURES: On his arrival in Russia, the President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, met with Senator Rafail Zinurov, the Deputy Chairman of the Federation Council of Russia's Committee on International Affairs. #SarakiInRussia pic.twitter.com/ilnGksrumA
Former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, and Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has praised the Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike saying that Wike has executed more projects in the last two years than the All Progressives Congress, APC-led Federal Government.
Akpabia said this while addressing journalists after accompanying Rivers State Governor on an extensive projects inspection on Monday.
Senator Akpabio said that Governor Wike’s excellent performance stems from his love for Rivers people.
Akpabio said,
“Governor Wike has done more work and projects in the last two years than the Federal Government. That is my considered opinion.
“Performance is not necessarily an issue of the availability of resources. If your state gets N5 Billion, do projects of that amount.
“If you get N1 Million, do projects commensurate with that figure. For Governor Wike, he has judiciously applied the scarce resources available to the state to develop needed infrastructure.
“The resources available to Rivers State is nothing compared to that of the Federal Government. Rivers State Government gets far less than a quarter than one percent of what accrues to the Federal Government, but we can see the tremendous quality of transformation taking place in the state.”
“It is not so much money that makes performance. It is love for your people. When you are elected, if you love your people you will perform, no matter the little money that you have.
“What I am seeing here in Rivers State is not like a recession economy because the Governor of Rivers State loves his people. Let me use this opportunity to congratulate the workers at the various sites because they are acquiring a lot of skills working at the sites.
“The kind of projects that Governor Wike is doing in Rivers State will attract the world to the state. Today, there is a song, that the handwork of Wike is beautiful.”
Former president Olusegun Obasanjo on Saturday opened the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library Complex in Abeokuta, Ogun State.
Several dignitaries attend the event, including Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Liberian President and ECOWAS Chairperson, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf former Commonwealth Secretary-General Emeka Anyaoku, former interim president, Ernest Shonekan, and President of African Development Bank (AfDB), Akinwumi Adesina.
Other dignitaries at the event include national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Bola Tinubu, ex Head of State, Abdulsalami Abubakar, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) National Chairman, Ali Modu Sheriff, Governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina, Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun, Senator Godswill Akpabio, Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, Aliko Dangote, Nuhu Ribadu and others.
Ex president Goodluck Jonathan, Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, Former Ogun State governor, Gbenga Daniels, Senator Ben Murray-Bruce were also in attendance.
See photos below:
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