BREAKING: PDP Workers Begin Indefinite Strike Over Unpaid Salaries

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) workers at the party's
national secretariat, Abuja, have gone on strike following
the non-payment of their salaries which they said are for
three months, Daily Trust has reported.
It was gathered that the workers, who are mostly youths
working as cleaners and messengers, commenced the
strike on Tuesday, after all other means to get their pay
failed to yield positive results.
Daily Trust reported that the party's national secretariat
was very dirty during a visit to the secretariat as the
striking workers refused to perform their duties.
Some of them who came to the secretariat were seen
sitting idle, wearing sad look on their faces and
complaining that they had been spending their monies on
transportation to the secretariat for the past three
months without payment.
One of them who looked very hungry and tired told our
correspondent on condition of anonymity that their major
fear is that the PDP had been defeated in the March 28
presidential election and may not settle them even
though they had done their job.
He said the party is paying them N14, 000 each as
monthly salary, adding that even when they were being
paid in the past, the salary used to come late.
"I am tired of this place. We have decided that strike is
the best option for us now because they don't want to
pay us. You can see how the environment is today. We
are not working.
"We are collecting only N14,000 each from the party as
monthly salary but they have not paid us for the past
three months, and you know we are very junior staff. We
don't have long legs like others and we can't carry
placards or banners to protest, so we want our salaries
paid," he said.
He called on the party's national chairman, Alhaji Adamu
Mu'azu to address the situation, describing it as sad and
unfortunate.
However, calls put to the PDP national publicity
secretary, Olisa Metuh, to confirm the development were
unsuccessful.

Rivers Youths Bust INEC Officials Thumprinting Ballot Papers

A group of youths in Rivers State at the weekend found some
people believed to be officials of the Independent National
Electoral Commission (INEC) thumb printing ballot papers in
Khana, a community in Ogoniland.
The officials are believed to be carrying out the act to justify
the results posted for the National Assembly elections.
A source said: “One of the officials disclosed that the action
was arrived at to justify the results tendered and provide
evidence in preparation for tribunal.”
The youths later handed over the materials seized from the
officials to Senator Magnus Abe, who was the All Progressives
Congress (APC) Rivers South-East Senatorial candidate.
Abe, at a news conference yesterday which was also attended
by the Director-General of the Greater Tomorrow Campaign
Organisation, Victor Giadom, urged the Criminal Investigation
Department (CID) unit of the police to investigate and prosecute
the INEC officials and policemen involved in the act.
Abe said: “As you can see before me are INEC ballot papers
from Khana. At about 12noon (Thursday), youths stumbled on
some INEC officials in their office in Bori, where they brought in
presiding officers and supervisors to thumbprint ballot papers
and doctored results all in favour of PDP.
“I called the Area Commander, Bori and the DPO who told me
the INEC officials were in Bori to collect their stipends on the
last elections; I called CP Karma, who asked me to report the
matter to the CID; I decide to inform the Nigerian public before
proceeding to the police CID.”
Abe urged INEC chairman Prof. Attahiru Jega to redeploy the
Rivers State Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC), Gesila
Khan, before next Saturday’s elections “for showing executive
recklessness in collaboration with PDP and the police”.
He also called for the cancellation of the “concocted elections,
because the votes counted in favour of the PDP were not cast
by Rivers people.

Nanny absconds with three kids one day after employment

The Orekoya family on Lawanson Road,
Surulere, Lagos State says, presently, it has
no reason to be happy.
This is because a nanny employed on March
7 by the household disappeared with three
children a day after she was employed.
The names of the missing children are
Aderomola, (11 months), Adedamola (4 years)
and Demola (6 years).
The nanny, Mary Akinloye, a 23-year-old
indigene of Ibadan, Oyo State, was said to
have been contracted via OLX, an online sales
portal.
The children’s mother, Adebisi, told PUNCH
Metro that Akinloye looked older than her
age and that her claim that she was an
indigene of Oyo State was questionable
because of her accent.
She explained that the family had a nanny,
who suddenly stopped coming to work after
observing her annual leave.
She said the family subsequently put up a
post on OLX, seeking the service of a new
nanny.
She said, “We had someone who was taking
care of the kids before now. But the woman
did not show up on Saturday and Sunday
and we urgently needed someone to assist
because we were going to resume work on
Monday. We were disturbed and that was
why I posted the information on OLX.
“She (Akinloye) called us and said she was
interested. She said she was 23 years. I
agreed to employ her in the interim because
I really did not like the fact that she was
young. She agreed to collect between N10,
000 to N15,000 even though our former
nanny collected N25,000.
“I left her at home this morning
(Wednesday) around 7.30am. It was around
1pm that my eldest son called me and said
she had taken his siblings away. He said she
told him they were going out to buy some
things. She took the 11 months on her back
and held the others by the hand. She has
since not returned.”
Adebisi said the nanny was so much in a
haste to whisk the children away that she did
not allow them to eat.
Her husband, Leke, a businessman, said the
nanny gave the family the contacts of her
relatives, who they spoke with on the
telephone.
The relatives were said to have agreed to
meet with the Orekoyas during the week to
finalise documentation.
He said, “We spoke with two people she
introduced to us as her brother and sister.
They confirmed that they were her relatives.
“They gave us a vague description of where
they lived in Ikorodu. We agreed to do
proper documentation this week.
“It was in less than 24 hours that she went
away with the kids.
“She never gave us an idea that she was on
an evil mission.
“Her spoken English was fluent. She said she
had a National Diploma and just wanted to
make some money so she could return to
school.”
PUNCH Metro learnt that the purported
relatives had since remained unreachable on
their telephone lines.
The family was said to have contacted the
police from the Itire division, who reportedly
told the family to wait for 24 hours.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Kenneth
Nwosu, confirmed the abduction, saying the
police had started   investigation with a view
to rescuing the children.
He said, “The police are making efforts to
arrest the suspects and rescue the children

Igbos Forgive Oba Of Lagos, Endorse Ambode

Amid bickering caused by comments
made by the Oba of Lagos, Rilwan
Akiolu about the Igbos for their
perceived massive support for the
opposition in the state, the Igbo
leaders in Lagos State yesterday said
they have forgiven the monarch and
moved on with their lives.
The Igbo leaders in the state who
made this known after a meeting with
the traditional rulers in Amuwo Odofin
local government, at the council
Secretariat, Festac Town Lagos said
they have also unanimously endorsed
the governorship candidate of the All
Progressives Congress (APC), Mr.
Akinwunmi Ambode.
Speaking at the meeting, the chairman
of Ndi Eze, Lagos, Eze Gordian Dim
refuted the comment being circulated
in the social media attributed to the
Oba of Lagos, saying it was meant to
cause disaffection between the tribe
and the monarch.
He said, “What transpired at the Oba’s
palace was not what was painted by
some media organisations. I
engineered the whole process, and I
can say confidently to you that the
Oba’s statement was misconstrued
and should be discarded.
“His statement was a joke and we all
laughed through it, we even promised
him a wife.”
He noted that the needed
transformation from the centre will be
achieved if the ambition of Ambode is
supported.
The Igbo leaders averred that Lagos
State has been their home and they
will always support the progressives
as enshrined in the All Progressives
Congress.
He enjoined all Igbos to come out en
mass and vote for Mr. Akinwunmi
Ambode of APC on Saturday’s polls.
Responding the Onilado of Ilado and
Inagbe Island, HRM, Oba Mobadenle
Oyekan thanked them for the visit and
assured them that Lagos State is home
to all and the government would never
deny the citizens his or her right or
discriminate against anybody
irrespective of tribe, religion or ethnic
background.
Oyekan reiterated the good
relationship with the Igbos since the
creation of Lagos State and appealed
to them to continue to sustain it.

Watch Akinwunmi Ambode speech to lagoscians

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eodWgiIE_HA&feature=youtube_gdata_player