The Unity Party of Nigeria Supports Declaration Of Emergency

The Unity Party of Nigeria without reservation supports the declaration of emergency on the three states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa in other to stem down the level of violence inflicted on those states by  Boko Haram .

  The action of the President is in consonance with provisions of Section 305 of the Constitution regarding the procedure of state emergence.

   We want to add , however, that under a Unity Party of Nigeria administration, the situation would not have been allowed to degenerate into this stage of constituting a threat to our national survival before it is nipped in the bud.

   Boko Haram activities escalated as a result of failure of our security intelligence and the inability of the government to act decisively before now.

   Nevertheless, the Unity Party of Nigeria urges all Nigerians to stand by President Jonathan Goodluck’s administration to ensure that peace quickly returns to Nigeria. The time of emergency is akin to war time and we should work together to restore peace to our land.

    We should therefore eschew extreme partisanship and this is not to say that the opposition parties can not bring suggestions for peace , we must however be constructive as we give our opinions in a manner that would not endanger the security of our country in order to shame those who have vowed to make our country ungovernable.

    

                                     Alhaji Bari Adedeji Salau

                                UPN protem Publicity Secretary 

Jonathan Not Behind Moves To Resuscitate UPN – Presidency

The Presidency on Sunday distanced President Goodluck Jonathan from plans to resuscitate the Unity Party of Nigeria, as claimed by the National Chairman of Action Congress of Nigeria, Chief Bisi Akande.

Akande was quoted by a media report as describing the move by the founder of Oodua Peoples Congress, Dr. Fredrick Fasehun to resuscitate the party as a ploy by Jonathan to destabilise the country.

However, the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Dr. Ahmed Gulak while reacting to the report urged the ACN chief to count the President out of his alleged destabilisation plot.

Gulak said the President remained committed to the country’s unity and therefore could not be the arrow head of a destabilisation plot.

On the resuscitation of the UPN, Gulak said Akande was “too naive and desperate” to know that Fasehun was only exercising his constitutional right just as the leaders of the opposition parties were exercising their rights by seeking to register APC.

He advised the opposition leaders to stop distracting themselves and instead concentrate on getting their proposed new party registered.

He said, “I do not know when it becomes fashionable to stop somebody from exercising his constitutional right.

“Leaders of the APC themselves are exercising their constitutional right by seeking to register their new party. Akande is just too naive and too desperate to understand this. He should count President Jonathan out of any destabilisation plot.

“The President is for the unity of this country. He is for the rule of law; he will not stop anybody for exercising his or her constitutional rights. My advice for the APC leaders is that they should form a national party and stop distracting themselves.”

Posted by Daniel

INFORMATION NIGERIA

UPN pays N1m registration fee to INEC

A political association, the Unity Party of Nigeria, said on Tuesday that it had paid the N1m non-refundable fee to the Independent National Electoral Commission to qualify for registration.

The acting National Secretary of the party, Alhaji Abubakar Sokoto, told the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja.

Sokoto said the amount was paid on Monday vide an Ecobank cheque No: 130905, dated 02-04-2013.

“I confirm to you that we paid the N1m non-refundable registration fee to INEC yesterday (April 29).

“And INEC had acknowledged receipt of same the same day,” he said.

A letter conveying the payment to INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, dated April 29, was made available toNAN in Abuja.

The letter was entitled ‘Re: Instruction to Register A Political Party: Request for Information/Modalities’.

It read in part, “We write to acknowledge receipt of political party (hereinafter referred to as Unity Party of Nigeria) registration form from Mr. Ben Nwaokenya Esq (acting National Legal Adviser) a fortnight ago.

“We have gone through the requirements for the party (hereinafter referred to as Unity Party of Nigeria) registration that come along with the form and we wish to present our One Million Naira (N1,000,000.00) only registration fee for your commission.

“Other requirements will be met soonest.’’

Acting National Chairman of the group, Dr. Fredrick Fasehun, also told NAN on telephone that they stood on the socio-political and economic legacies of the late Chief Obafemi Awolowo.

“Equality of good fortune must be to each reward; liberty and brotherhood are the goals for which we will strive; plus plenty and the good things of life.

“All the political parties since 1999 have failed us. It is for this reason that we have resolved to create a platform for the platformless, create a voice for the generality of Nigerians.”

Meanwhile, a Federal High Court, Abuja, on Tuesday granted leave to the African Peoples Congress, one of the groups jostling to be registered under the acronym, APC, to sue the Independent National Electoral Commission.

The group is bitter that INEC failed to register it as a political party.

Ruling on an ex parte application brought by the association, Justice Gabriel Kolawole granted the party leave of the court to hear and adjudicate on the application filed in suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/224/2013.

The court gave the party a week to file all its processes and serve same on INEC.

No hearing date had been fixed for the substantive suit.

The plaintiffs, numbering about 30, who sued on behalf of themselves and the party  are seeking a declaration that INEC lacked the discretion  to refuse to register an association as a political party once the conditions stipulated by the said defendant for registration are met.

In an application filed by their counsel, Ededem  Ani of Awa Kalu SAN’s chambers, they asked the court to declare that being the principal members and promoters of the association known as African People’s Congress, they have met all conditions of eligibility for the registration of African’s People’s Congress as a political party.
PUNCH MAY 1, 2013